We open this episode with almost half of England devastated by this plague, and this lovely October scene marks one step closer to the end of this trailblazing dystopian novel. It really hits the gas as we get closer to the close, as Shelley is well known to do. If I'm honest, even though I really enjoyed this story (especially once it got going), I was a little unnerved by the plague coming in for the second half of the book given the way the world around us has continued to progress. It's real...
Mar 10, 2022•3 hr 45 min•Season 2Ep. 6
Just two episodes this month, folks, I really decided to lean in on making these episodes longer, and that put me over the size limit just barely on the third one. Like the title says, our intrepid protags have fled mama Britain's happy embrace, and are now flexing Shelley's ability to write about serene mountaintop nature finding their way down south to at least ride out the last dregs of the plague in comfort and style, or, well, that's the ideal plan anyway. Stirring descriptions as usual fro...
Feb 10, 2022•3 hr 50 min•Season 2Ep. 5
First off, I gotta say: Content warning for the rest of The Last Man, we're dealing with a plague story now! Ok, now that that's outta the way, how have y'all been? It's a new year, let's hope it's gonna go better than the last two have! Honestly, even despite the sudden turn to plague in this story, I love the way it's going, and just like Shelley's other work, Frankenstein, it REALLY picks up speed here in the next few episodes, so make sure to keep tuning in! You can find the text (to read al...
Feb 10, 2022•1 hr 33 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Bit of a longer episode this time, I'm going to try to really stretch these things out as long as I can so we actually make progress through the books! Heck, we're only a third of the way through the book by the end of this episode, but the good news is, since this is Mary Shelley, that means it's about to pick up in a MAJOR way, and that's not even mentioning the steam we've been building to get here throughout the episode! Such intrigue between Raymond, Evadne, and Adrian's sister, just what c...
Dec 10, 2021•3 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 3
This episode, we dive a little further into The Last Man, which is getting increasingly affectionate between our main character and Adrian. Listen, I know that nothing's going to come of it, but that tension, especially for a modern reader, really builds between the two, huh? Who knows, this book doesn't get talked about, maybe I'm just out and out wrong about my guesses and it DOES do what a modern reader expects! One way to find out, and that's to Attend our Tale, Dear Reader! You can find the...
Dec 10, 2021•1 hr 48 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Welcome to Season 2 of Paper Cuts, everyone! We open this brand new set of episodes with a brand new book, The Last Man by Mary Shelley, of Frankenstein fame! I'm really happy to be back recording episodes, it's been a long time. We are _finally_ actually getting to be live on Fridays once more, so feel free to drop by on Twitch, it'll be 5:30 Pacific time every week! Also, I ditched actually using Reading Simulator, found a better way to have the text on screen. If only that game didn't have it...
Dec 10, 2021•2 hr•Season 2Ep. 1
For this last episode of the first "season" of Paper Cuts, I took a bit of a different approach. For a little context, while this is streamed live on twitch, I stream under the category Reading Simulator, as well, I'm reading aloud, and the more appropriate podcasts/talk shows tag is a bit busy. Well, turns out, Reading Simulator isn't just a snarky tag inserted by someone who dislikes Visual Novels, it's a real game! I gave it a shot here to read more Sherlock Holmes. How's the result? Feel fre...
Nov 10, 2021•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 60
This time, we dive into a well-known classic, that character that the author WISHES the public would hate, tumblr's favorite darling, the infamous know-it-all that all others are patterned after, that's right! It's sherlock holmes, everyone! I knew I was going to get to this one as soon as the podcast started, it's practically THE well known public domain book that everyone's got some awareness of. While we read here, however, the question really becomes, how many of the adventures will I wind u...
Nov 10, 2021•2 hr 13 min•Season 1Ep. 59
In this thrilling episode of Paper Cuts, we finish up The Secret Garden, this time learning just what the response can be when you mention that hey, I've maybe discovered the secret that's got everyone all tense! If I may be a bit honest in oversharing, I think Colin in particular is part of why this book stuck to me as a kid. I had a lot of medical nonsense occur when I was younger, so having someone find a path to recovery for this kid who was in a real rough spot is kinda cathartic! You can f...
Nov 10, 2021•54 min•Season 1Ep. 58
For the last episode this month (And the last episode before we're properly recording live episodes again! AAA!!!) we get a little further into the Secret Garden, learning more about just what wonders the earth can hold, let alone just how much wonder and whimsy can crop up when you least expect it to get ahold of you. I was genuinely tempted to dig up my childhood copy of this for the recording of these episodes, but I didn't have any luck rummaging around for it. Ah well, the digital copy cert...
Oct 10, 2021•1 hr 35 min•Season 1Ep. 57
This episode, we start in on a childhood favorite of mine! The Secret Garden is really a wonderful tale for kids to pick up as early reading practice, and I do hope that by bringing it up here, that the tradition continues on of kids reading it and finding that little bit of whimsy in their day to day life. Y'know, between this and Narnia, I must have had quite the penchant for stories where a young british kid, trying to avoid their circumstances, heads out to a family estate to live life there...
Oct 10, 2021•1 hr 38 min•Season 1Ep. 56
We dive into the finale of this well-remembered tale this episode, finally learning what lies beyond the pale, even though it makes our main characters quail, their fright assailing them like the stormwind hassles a sail. Additionally, this episode marks the remaining backlog shrinking to a mere five, so soon you all will once more be able to hear my voice live, rather than the echoes of the past being what reaches your ears! I'll freely admit, I'm equal parts excited and horrified to get back o...
Oct 10, 2021•59 min•Season 1Ep. 55
Finally, we're spooky at the right time! This episode dives further into that old standby from a man who's got a VERY unfortunately named cat (Seriously, it's just a REAL bad choice) but still spins us a remarkable tale of the world beyond our understanding, and how it can leave its grubby little fingerprints (or perhaps sucker-circles, depending on who you ask) all over this place we all call home. At the end of the day, this book's public domain, the author doesn't get anything from us talking...
Oct 10, 2021•44 min•Season 1Ep. 54
Listen, I know it's about a month early right now, but at the time I recorded this episode, it was PRIME SPOOKY SEASON! And hey, I'm not crazily, wildly early, so it's not the end of the world. In addition to the obviously horrifying story I'm referencing in the title, we also explore an oddity of what was then, the modern age. Honestly, it wouldn't shock me if someone rigged up something a little more well-suited to the current time, and I mean, provided you were able to talk someone into keepi...
Sep 10, 2021•1 hr 28 min•Season 1Ep. 53
After polishing up the last bit of the Colors of Space, we dive into another short-ish story with a shockingly familiar title: The Sound of Silence, by Barbara Constant. And golly, what a SHOCK, someone going to a psychiatrist? Taking care of their brain? Why, isn't that just wild! Just what could Lucky Lucilla be thinking, if only we had a way to see into her mind, hm? Once we find out what's going on in her head, we then turn to the ever-ticking clock, and learn something of an entirely differ...
Sep 10, 2021•1 hr 17 min•Season 1Ep. 52
Next up in our big batch of episodes this month, we get further into the colors of space, this time following Bartol in his clever little ruse, the habits of a space-worker settling in comfortably. Does he survive that which should fell him without a second thought? Well, I know, and if you've read the book, you know, but hey, there's no way to tell without giving the episode a listen, so feel free to lend your ear, gotta find out what those Lhari are up to somehow! You can find the text (to rea...
Sep 10, 2021•2 hr 15 min•Season 1Ep. 51
This episode, we dive into a brand new book! Coincidentally, we're pushing this batch of episodes right after the fourth anniversary of this show, I first started doing Paper Cuts live at SAU on September 8th, 2018! The book we're picking up is a good deal newer than the average fare around here, I managed to rustle up something in that little period of copyright in the middle where you had to renew, and if you didn't, things are free game. The Colors of Space is apparently a pretty popular book...
Sep 10, 2021•1 hr 57 min•Season 1Ep. 50
Our last episode on this english class favorite, this time we learn a little bit about some favored poetry of a man already made melancholic by the divorce of his form from the passage of time that adds contrast to all our lives, only to watch him spiralling further and further until he spins to a half-hearted halt. His experimentation has gained him nothing, and his soul is made wicked and empty from his excesses. I know this is an odd way to say it, but it all feels very Hayesian, you know? So...
Aug 10, 2021•1 hr 59 min•Season 1Ep. 49
Having finally learned of the particulars of that titular portrait, we can get into the meat and bones of this lovely little tale. Immediately, and shockingly so, Dorian has a change of mannerisms that puts Basil off of their friendship, and a whole new sort of tension enters the fray here. Just how will that resolve, or perhaps twist the vision of the story as it passes by? That's the bit you'll learn in the telling of the tale, in this episode of Paper Cuts! You can find the text (to read alon...
Aug 10, 2021•1 hr 58 min•Season 1Ep. 48
This time, we delve further into the tale of Dorian Grey, first resolving his shocking engagement (poor Sybil), then learning more about the particulars of just why it's so shocking, despite Dorian's insistence to the contrary. Basil has some opinions on the matter, and shocking nobody, so does Lord Henry. But how far does the slide into darkness go for our dear centerpiece of this tale? Well, you've got to listen to find out that part of things! You can find the text (to read along with) here: ...
Aug 10, 2021•1 hr 40 min•Season 1Ep. 47
We dive into another new story this episode, one that, if I'm honest? Needs a new big budget retelling. I say that a lot, and it's a cultural fixture for sure, but, like many of its fellow well-remembered classics, a lot of details of the story have gotten lost in the cultural shuffle! Sure, we all know about the painting, but what about the very Dorian tension, hm? It would fit right in in a modern setting, that anxiety of "what sort of feelings am I feeling?" Really, it's evergreen stuff, if y...
Jul 11, 2021•2 hr 7 min•Season 1Ep. 46
Summerwe'en has struck our dear podcast, and we're feeling pretty spooky because of it! Lots of Edgar Allen Poe on the way, and the first story in particular is on the nose for the past year or so we've been having, or at least, the internet at large would have you think that way! Wanna find out if they're right? Gotta give this episode a listen! We then dive into tales that also feel appropriate and give The Fall of the House of Usher a look. Certainly not least is the Telltale Heart, a real pa...
Jul 11, 2021•1 hr 21 min•Season 1Ep. 45
This time round, we draw our journey with good ol' hotfeets mcgee (That's definitely a name for the devil that's catching on, right?) to a close, in a suitably dramatic fashion. Personally, I was hoping for a fiddle battle, but hey, I'll take the ending we got anyway! I was really pleasantly surprised by this book overall, I wasn't expecting anything special. Thoroughly glad a viewer suggested it! Up next episode is something spooky, so prepare your ears for that! You can find the text (to read ...
Jul 11, 2021•1 hr 49 min•Season 1Ep. 44
We delve into fantastic descriptions of a fantastic place, and a little story some or most would know: that of the serpent Causing Problems On Purpose for the newly split humans, who were just working out their own relationship with the world and each other. The damage is just as great as you'd expect, given the trouble that crops up. Up next episode is the 10th book through the finale, so look forward to that soon! You can find the text (to read along with) here: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebook...
Jun 10, 2021•1 hr 59 min•Season 1Ep. 43
Despite the storm outside, we continue to learn more about the journey that the old Lightbringer goes on. A war among those fallen, and those who remain in the more hallowed lights is detailed this time, and even though the obvious conclusion is just what one would expect for when this was written, the way things are explained still remains enjoyably fascinating. You can find the text (to read along with) here: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/20 We go live each week with a new, live episode of ...
Jun 10, 2021•2 hr 3 min•Season 1Ep. 42
We hop into a new story, this time one chosen by a listener! Let's dive into Paradise Lost, a public domain favorite that I knew existed, vaguely, but hadn't gotten around to yet. Honestly, I wasn't sure whether I'd enjoy this one, but I wound up really getting into it. Oh, and before I forget! There's two ways to suggest new books (though it'll take 20 episodes before I get to them). You could join the discord, (discord.gg/PBZNsjn) or send me an email over at [email protected]! You can fi...
May 20, 2021•1 hr 46 min•Season 1Ep. 40
Getting further into our tale of a Paradise that enshrines us no longer, we dive into the details of Eden itself, in quite the lyrical manner. This is technically a poem after all! Not only does that world built in Genesis get detailled here, but also we're given faces and names to several other players in the story at this point... Or maybe they're just being dramatic about how they describe the people's feelings. It's a little hard to tell, sometimes, especially with all the capitalization cho...
May 20, 2021•2 hr 28 min•Season 1Ep. 41
Hello, my name is elder Nester, and I would like to share with you the most amazing book! No, no, not the one you're expecting, it's Around the World in 80 Days! It really is quite the wonderful story, if you ask me anyway! We wrap it up this episode, and find out if Phileas and Passepartout (whose name I've been saying THOROUGHLY wrong basically this whole time, oops) can, in fact, manage their circumnavigatory feat and win that money! You can find the text (to follow along with) here: https://...
Apr 13, 2021•2 hr 4 min•Season 1Ep. 39
52 days into the journey (just like the title would have you guess!) we head from Singapore to Hong Kong. The detective is thoroughly suspicious of just what's what here, and does his best to jam up the works of everything. Just how will our intrepid travellers resolve this particularly sticky misunderstanding? Well, that's in the telling of the tale, gotta tune in for that! You can find the text (to follow along with) here: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/103 We go live each week with a new, l...
Apr 13, 2021•1 hr 59 min•Season 1Ep. 38
This week, we find ourselves at the finale of Phantom! Just how does the beloved tale of Christine, Raoul, and the Punjab Lasso-weilding Erik resolve? Gotta listen to the episode for that one, but uh, I'll give you a hint: There's a lot of water involved. Like I've mentioned quite a few times, this is a childhood favorite of mine, and I'm glad we got it read! You can find the text (to follow along with) here: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/175 We go live each week with a new, live episode of t...
Mar 10, 2021•3 hr•Season 1Ep. 35
