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Among Phil Rickman’s guests at the Hay Festival are Â鶹Éç Security Correspondent Frank Gardner with his fast-paced (and violent) new spy thriller, Crisis, set in Colombia, Korea and London. 

Polly Samson is well known as Pink Floyd’s lyricist. Here she talks to Phil about her beautiful and complex novel, The Kindness, the result of four years’ work, with writing that can span past, present and future.

And Springwatch presenter Chris Packham talks about his autobiographical work, Fingers in the Sparkle Jar, in which he ingeniously tells the story of his unusual childhood -  a young boy obsessed with animals, and an inability to relate to, or be understood by, humans. 

Don’t forget Shelf Starters returns later in the series. If you ‘ve drafted a novel and you’d like a professional opinion on it, why not send us the first 25 pages plus a synopsis?  Send them to shelfstarters@bbc.co.uk .