エピソード

  • 84 CHARING CROSS ROAD >> Want to feel inspired? Want to look at this charming 1970 classic in a whole new way?? Listen in!

    84 CHARING CROSS ROAD >> Want to feel inspired? Want to look at this charming 1970 classic in a whole new way?? Listen in!
    2026/06/10
    Famously, the enduring appeal of 84, Charing Cross Road rests on its correspondence between an American TV-writing woman and a British bookseller. But what if the slim volume's real power comes mostly just from the independent, iconoclastic, sassy and powerful Helene? Or from Helene and all the other female voices in this delightful favorite? Treat yourself today! (If you haven't read it, you might take the hour to do so before listening. No spoilers, really, but we get pretty in depth.)
    続きを読む 一部表示
    54 分
  • LAZAR by Nelio Biedermann >> I finished this one and had some THOUGHTS.

    LAZAR by Nelio Biedermann >> I finished this one and had some THOUGHTS.
    2026/06/03
    Much has been made of Nelio Biedermann's wunderkind status. And there are plenty of reasons people are calling his debut novel "virtuousic" and "astonishing." It was SO fun to look at why much of this novel really worked, and why much of it . . . didn't.
    続きを読む 一部表示
    1 時間
  • BLUETS by Maggie Nelson >> I haven't pored over a text this intently in a looong time.

    BLUETS by Maggie Nelson >> I haven't pored over a text this intently in a looong time.
    2026/05/26
    Famously, the 240 "propositions" BLUETS produce a genre-bending, poetic, heady, broody, completely INGENIOUS work. Whether you've read it a dozen times or picked it up or, tried it and thought, what is happening here, listen in to more fully appreciate SO MUCH about its structure, its fascinating narrative stance, its HUMOR and the radical thing Nelson is doing by foregrounding all those old, white, male philosophers. This was such a gratifying lecture to record. Seventy-six minutes from now, you could--thanks to Nelson--feel inspired, humbled and a little smarter.
    続きを読む 一部表示
    1 時間 16 分
  • YESTERYEAR by Caro Claire Burke >> Wondering about the ending? Or what really happened in during the assault scene?? Tune in!

    YESTERYEAR by Caro Claire Burke >> Wondering about the ending? Or what really happened in during the assault scene?? Tune in!
    2026/05/19
    This controversial page turner is SO engaging. Find out why I think that's the case (from a literary perspective) while also allowing me to provide some forensic-style info as to the book's original shape (IT WAS MAYBE SEMI-UTOPIC!), what is actually going on in the assault scene (it's complicated) and what we might make of the ending. This lecture was SO fun (and weirdly short). Listen in now!
    続きを読む 一部表示
    37 分
  • THE BLUE FLOWER by Penelope Fitzgerald >> I'm not sure even Novalis himself (the 18th-century poet/philosopher protagonist of this novel) could fully appreciate THIS LEVEL OF LITERARY GENIUS.

    THE BLUE FLOWER by Penelope Fitzgerald >> I'm not sure even Novalis himself (the 18th-century poet/philosopher protagonist of this novel) could fully appreciate THIS LEVEL OF LITERARY GENIUS.
    2026/05/12
    The Blue Flower is considered Fitzgerald's masterpiece, and for good reason. It's challenging--an entirely different approach to historical fiction, with subtle, nuanced, gorgeous prose. She makes late-1700s Saxony feel immediate and accessible and you FEEL so much for these people. Listen in to fully appreciate how she produces a book that readers go back to again and again, gaining so much more every single time.
    続きを読む 一部表示
    57 分
  • WASHINGTON SQUARE by Henry James >> Comedy of Errors? Realist novel? Feminist treatise?

    WASHINGTON SQUARE by Henry James >> Comedy of Errors? Realist novel? Feminist treatise?
    2026/05/05
    Tune in to hear why James's 1880 New York novel might be all of the above--plus funny! The close look at the innovative, wry narrative stance is reason enough to spend an hour thinking about this slim book. Not to mention the excellent characterization, the use of satire and the send up of the Gothic meddlesome spinster aunt! Treat yourself now!
    続きを読む 一部表示
    57 分
  • CONVENIENCE STORE WOMAN by Sayaka Murata >> I returned to this one in the name of satire but came away with so much more.

    CONVENIENCE STORE WOMAN by Sayaka Murata >> I returned to this one in the name of satire but came away with so much more.
    2026/04/27
    I can't remember the last time a novel evoked such strong--and opposing!--reactions. This 2018 novella appealed back then but my re-reading was even more satisfying. Listen in to hear the many ways Murata is a master of satire. Maybe more interestingly, take a fascinating look at sexuality in the novel via two other Murata essays. Indulge yourself in talk about this smart, unique novel now!
    続きを読む 一部表示
    56 分
  • TRANSCRIPTION by Ben Lerner >> Almost never do I finish a book and wonder what on earth I'll say about it.

    TRANSCRIPTION by Ben Lerner >> Almost never do I finish a book and wonder what on earth I'll say about it.
    2026/04/21
    Lerner's new novel(la) is a revelation. One that deserves a LOT of our attention. It's a text that tests the limits and potentials of what fiction can do. Whether you loved it or came away wondering what the hell you just read, these ninety minutes should deepen your appreciation for this latest from one of my very favorite writers of all time.
    続きを読む 一部表示
    1 時間 24 分