Thrown: SARA COX'S GLORIOUS FEELGOOD NOVEL

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The assorted neighbours come together to try out a new skill, under the watchful eye of their charismatic teacher, Sasha. And as the soft unremarkable lumps of clay are hesitantly, lovingly moulded into delicate vases and majestic pots, so too are the lives of four women. Concealed passions and heartaches are uncovered, relationships shattered and formed, and the possibility for transformation is revealed.

The bra wire was currently jabbing her left breast every time she breathed in and, today of all days, she’d need to take some deep breaths. She has a garden office where she writes, but says Cyzer would come in between his own meetings for little chats. "He'd come in for office banter, but when you're writing you can't dip in and out of it. You really have to lose yourself in it."She doesn't see much of Ball or others because of their different live show times, but remains good friends with Irish DJ Annie Mac. More than 25 years on from her presenting break on Channel 4’s The Girlie Show, book-writing is the latest plot twist in a varied career and, at the age of 47, Cox – who is mum to Lola, 18, Issac, 14, and Renee, 12 – is enjoying what is possibly the sweetest spot of her professional life to date. My most honest answer is probably Victoria Hislop or Philippa Gregory. I met Philippa Gregory actually – she was very nice but I fangirled her a bit and I don’t think authors are really into that. I’ll tell you who I want to read more of – Maggie O’Farrell. The characters were so fully formed and vividly described that they all came to life instantly for me and I felt completely invested in each of their stories. The pottery aspect was a very clever devise (and clearly the author has used her experience on the great pottery throw down to full advantage) and wove there stories all together seamlessly. I wish I was part of their class! I really want to like the book, and hence the even greater disappointment as I progressed through it.

The story centres around four women who attend the local community centre for a pottery class. They all have problems. The characters are likeable, interesting and believable. A story of friendships, that are heartwarming and funny. This enjoyable read held my attention throughout. It’s seen her metamorphose from the party girl with a penchant for goofing around, into something close to a national treasure – losing none of the irreverence and wit that made her stand out from the crowd in the first place. This story has Sara’s voice ringing true throughout. A fresh, cheeky, insightful take on how change can happen through female friendships.’ DAWN FRENCHI’m a huge fan of Sara Cox’s BBC 2 Between the Covers so when the lovely folk at Team Bookends sent me a surprise early reader copy of Sara’s debut novel, Thrown, in return for an honest review, I couldn’t have been happier. I’m delighted to share my review of Thrown today. It actually felt quite nice between her fingers and thumb, rolling the little lumps like dried peas just under the surface. Must do something about that, she thought, though it’d been an age since she’d been to Zumba. This story has Sara's voice ringing true throughout. A fresh, cheeky, insightful take on how change can happen through female friendships.' DAWN FRENCH I have my best friend and soulmate, who's up north, and down here there's a group of five of us. Two of them I met through Radio 1 and the other two through my husband," says Cox. My only sight criticism is it was a little predictable at times but it was such a fun read I didn’t mind that too much.

Her husband hasn't read her novel and didn't read her memoir, she notes, laughing. "He doesn't read a great deal," she explains. "He might look at a book while we're in bed, but I don't think he wants to read a book about me or by me when he's laying next to me." I would have also liked to perhaps see more of each story, to flesh it out so that there was more of a connection to each. This is probably an unreasonable request for the book would become too long if too much time was spent on each and then I would have complained about the story going on no doubt! Nonsense.’ He frowned. ‘You can handle this – it’s a pottery class you’re organising not a military coup. It’s a positive thing, people will love it. They need something like this to bring them together a bit.’ Which all makes it hard to believe that there was a time, not so long ago, when everything stalled for Cox and she was left wondering where her future lay. On returning to Radio 1 following her first maternity leave, in 2005, and having previously presented both the flagship Breakfast Show and Drivetime before that, she was handed weekend afternoons. Sheila: the nest is empty, there's a lonely little feeling in her tummy and her husband seems so distracted.

Summary

Funnily enough, I’ve just been recording a show with Jonathan Ross, and he was one of the people I turned to for advice. It wasn’t like he said: “Ring this number, they’ll give you a job!” but he gave me confidence. Jameela: All she's ever done is work hard, and try her best. Why won't life give her the one thing she really wants? I read all the Judy Blume books and obviously The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole. Riders and Polo combined some fruity frolics and horses and that blew my 15-year-old mind. English lit A-level really brought Shakespeare to life – I read Romeo and Juliet with my sister before she went away to London, cuddled up on a top bunk. Jameela: all she’s ever done is work hard, and try her best. Why won’t life give her the one thing she really wants? He’s an absolute sort!’ she says. ‘He’s just a lovely, lovely man and I think we’re a brilliant team. We laugh a lot together, even when the kids are rolling their eyes. That’s a sign of true love, I think.’ A keen runner, horse rider and cyclist, Cox takes active steps to protect her mental health, mainly through exercise.