Dylan and Kassia read Strange Pilgrims, a short story collection suggested by a listener. To hear the full episode, join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384
Dylan and Kassia discuss Howard Sturgis' 1904 novel Belchamber. It follows the coming of age of Sainty, a not-so-average English boy who prefers needlepoint to riding and Tennyson to girls. We talk about the novel's interweaving of comedy and tragedy, the nature of being a sissy, and, of course, Henry James' famous critiques. If you want to hear extra episodes, explore our Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384
Screenwriter Howard A. Rodman joins us to discuss Jean-Patrick Manchette's Skeletons in the Closet, translated from French by Alyson Waters. This is a private eye novel set in Paris after the failed revolution of May 68. We talk about Manchette's playfulness with genre, the brutal yet slapstick violence in his books, and his collapse of high-versus-low distinctions. Check out our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384...
Tolkien enthusiast Alex Cuellar joins us to discuss The Silmarillion. One of us has to test the limits of our edurance for the fantasy genre. To hear the full episode, sign up to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384
Leaf by Leaf host Chris Via joins us to discuss John Ehle's 1964 novel The Land Breakers. It is a story of love, sacrifice, and survival in an unspoilt Appalachian landscape. We talk about the book's nuanced character development, the violent birthing pangs of early America, plus the similiarities and differences between Ehle's bear hunt and Melville's whale watch. Explore our bonus material here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384...
In this clip, we hear about how McNally Editions editor Lucy Scholes came to rediscover English author Kay Dick and her dystopian novel They. To listen to the full conversation, check out our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384
Author Linda Rosenkrantz joins us to discuss her 1968 "reality novel" Talk. In the summer of 65, Rosenkrantz took a tape recorder to the beach and documented her friends' conversations. She later shaped the transcripts from that trip into a sharp, funny, and unusually revealing book. We speak with her about her contrasting experiences with publishing then and now, her artistic inspirations, other tape recording projects, and more. Explore our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384...
Novelist Amit Chaudhuri joins us for a wide-ranging conversation as his first three books (A Strange and Sublime Address, Afternoon Raag, and Freedom Song) are republished as NYRB Classics. We talk about his uneasy relationship with the realist novel, the literary market's distortions of value, and the role place plays in his creative project. To hear the full episode, join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384
In this brief clip, publisher Kate Macdonald shares the story of writer T. H. White's most beloved dog, Brownie. In the full episode, we talk about Sylvia Townsend Warner's approach to biography, White's Arthurian cycle, and the unglamorous side of being an author. To listen, join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384
We are joined by author Helen Macdonald to discuss T. H. White's The Goshawk, originally published in 1951. In this conversation, we talk about the devotion required to train a hawk, what one learns during the process, and how White's book haunted our guest. For more on White's biography, join us on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384
Writer Patrick Preziosi rejoins the show to talk about an Italian favorite: Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa's The Leopard. In this clip, we talk about the Sicilian prince's strange path to publication and how his other short works illuminate this masterpiece. Listen to the full episode to hear our thoughts on Visconti's film adaptation, Lampedusa's prose, and what it's like to read the novel in Sicily. Subscribe to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384...
Writer Bijan Stephen joins us to discuss David R. Bunch's short story collection Moderan. In Moderan, people replace their "soft parts" with metal and devote their lives to making war. We talk about Bunch's satire of the international order, his wildly innovative use of language, and his commitment to depicting a utopian hellscape. Read Bijan's article on Moderan here: https://dirt.fyi/article/2022/06/the-future-is-moderan Check out Chris Lee's fantastic travelogue: https://chrisleefrancis.com/b...
Poet and writer Alina Stefanescu joins us to discuss her own pantheon of "tortured poets" in the wake of a pop star's adoption of the phrase. Check out Alina's writing here: https://www.alinastefanescuwriter.com/ To hear the full episode, become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384
After mentioning the book in our Mary Olivier episode, writer and librarian Nancy Pearl returns to discuss Ruth Adam's I'm Not Complaining, one of her favorite Virago Modern Classics. In this clip, Nancy talks about the novel's unique angle on the Great Depression. To hear the complete conversation, become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384
Writer and co-host of the Vollmannia podcast Ryan Alexander joins us to discuss Moravagine, first published in 1926. The novel was written by Blaise Cendrars (given name: Frédéric-Louis Sauser) and translated from French by Alan Brown. The plot involves a monstrous criminal who, once released from a mental hospital, goes on a worldwide killing spree before returning to Europe to fight in World War I. We talk about the book's unique representation of violence, its social commentary on misogyny an...
Enjoy this clip from our bonus episode covering Celia Dale's sinister novel A Spring of Love with culture critic Andrew Male. The book is being reprinted by Daunt Books in September and is available for pre-order now. To hear the full conversation, subscribe to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384
In this bonus episode, we speak with writer and editor Anthony Garrett about Atmospheric Quarterly, the new literary magazine he co-founded. Read it here: https://www.atmosphericquarterly.com/
Author Laila Lalami joins us to discuss Tayeb Salih's novel Season of Migration to the North translated from Arabic by Denys Johnson-Davies. We talk about the book's postcolonial themes, its treatment of women's roles, and transformation of the Western canon. Read more about our guest's work here: https://lailalalami.com/ Want to support the show? Explore our Patreon tiers here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384...
Max Lawton joins us to discuss his new translation of Vladimir Sorokin's Blue Lard, a controversial Russian novel originally published in 1999. We talk about where this book fits into Sorokin's varied career, its irreverent treatment of political and literary icons, and the spirit of freedom that permeates every page. Want to boost your L-harmony? Give our Patreon a look-see: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384
In this bonus teaser, we discuss a work of experimental poetry chosen by a patron. Explore the hidden character of the vowels here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384
Writer and translator Frank Wynne joins us to discuss The Radiance of the King written by Camara Laye and translated from French by James Kirkup. We talk about the book's hilarious absurdity, reversal of Western tropes, and mysterious ending. Read more about our guest's work here: https://www.terribleman.com/ Interested in extra bookish content? Check out our three Patreon tiers here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=84429384...
This Valentine's Day, we decided to revisit a romantic classic that one of us hates and the other loves. Will the cynic be persuaded to change their heart? To swoon over the full episode, consider becoming a patron: patreon.com/user?u=84429384
Chris Clarke joins us to discuss his new translation of Raymond Queneau's The Skin of Dreams. This delightful novel follows the wild imaginings of a daydreamer as he ventures from his dull reality in the outskirts of Paris to the glamorous heart of Hollywood. We talk about the challenge of rendering the original's linguistic playfulness in English and how Queneau's love of cinema helped inspire the book's form.
Designer Katy Homans reveals the secrets behind those iconic NYRB Classics covers, and we find out what color Edwin Frank hates the most. To hear to the full episode, consider becoming a patron: patreon.com/user?u=84429384
In this episode, Kassia and Dylan discuss the Japanese novel Tun-huang written by Yasushi Inoue and translated by Jean Oda Moy. This work of historical fiction imagines how a trove of early Buddhist sutras came to be hidden in caves along the Silk Road for centuries. We talk about the book’s criticism of education, bureaucracy, and materialism, as well as the significance of freedom, preservation, and translation. Interested in supporting the show? Check out our Patreon page here: patreon.com/us...
Chapo Trap House co-host Will Menaker joins us to talk about Moby-Dick by Herman Melville. Recorded amid a marathon reading of Melville's masterwork, we discuss the book's prophetic vision of America and the popular culture that it spawned. Will reads from his favorite section of the novel and gives a pitch for why it should be read today. To listen to the full episode, head over to our Patreon page and subscribe: patreon.com/user?u=84429384
This episode was recorded before a live audience at the New Bedford Whaling Museum during their annual Moby-Dick Marathon. We spoke with Tim Marr and Wyn Kelley of the Melville Society Cultural Project about Melville: A Novel written by Jean Giono and translated from French by Paul Eprile. Giono's "novel" was originally conceived as a preface to his French translation of Moby-Dick. Our conversation covers Giono's imagined vision of the great American author, the struggle to create art, and the r...
Book blogger, podcaster, and Ivy Compton-Burnett admirer Simon Thomas returns to discuss his work with the British Library Women Writers series and his favorite book in it: O, the Brave Music by Dorothy Evelyn Smith. We talk about the ethics of censorship in republishing and what makes this coming-of-age story so strangely uplifting despite its tragic elements. Toward the end, we debrief last summer's NYRB Classics bracket championship. To listen to the full episode, head over to our Patreon pag...
Writer and filmmaker Tariq Ali joins us to discuss Muhammad written by Maxime Rodinson and translated from French by Anne Carter. We talk about Rodinson's Marxist perspective, how the biography works as an "antidote" to far-right sentiment, and what it means to read it during a war in Gaza. Check out our Patreon here: patreon.com/user?u=84429384
In this enlightening conversation, we talk to scholar Dan Sinykin about his book Big Fiction, which details the rise of conglomeration in American publishing and its impact on the kind of fiction that gets written, released, and acclaimed. We were delighted to hear his insights into the founding of the New York Review of Books, Renata Adler and Elizabeth Hardwick's use of autofiction, and the current spate of literature in translation. To listen to the full episode, head over to our Patreon page...
