Period. the podcast

Host Alison Thoet de Castillo interviews NYU French professor Claudie Bernard about Alexandre Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo and recent screen adaptations, including the PBS Masterpiece series, the 2002 Kevin Reynolds film, and French versions.  They outline the novel’s revenge-driven plot and Edmond Dantès’s “death and resurrection” transformation into the godlike Count, then discuss how adapta...

This summer, Netflix brought Laura Ingalls Wilder’s popular series of books “Little House on the Prairie” back to the small screen with a new 8-episode show. For this episode, we explore this adaptation with Wilder expert and author Pamela Smith Hill.  We discuss why generations keep coming back to this story about the American frontier, the modern critiques of Wilder’s books which were largely wr...

Christopher Nolan's latest film, "The Odyssey," is the film of the summer, wowing audiences and critics alike. But this week's guest, renowned classist and translator Emily Wilson, isn't a fan. We discuss why she think's Nolan's adaptation misses the mark, why the story of Odysseus still resonates nearly three thousand years later,  and the art of translation. 

For this very special episode, we're joined by actress Susannah Harker, who played Jane Bennet in the classic 1995 BBC adaptation of 'Pride and Prejudice' as well as author and Austen expert Gabrielle Malcolm. We discuss their thoughts on "The Other Bennet Sister," a new BBC series (available on Britbox in the U.S.) based on Janice Hadlow's novel of the same name. The...

Now that part 2 of Bridgerton is out, we discuss the entire season, as well as how the show portrays its first East Asian lead character, Sophie Baek. Kat Moon, an entertainment correspondent at TV Guide and long-time Bridgerton fan, joins us to share her thoughts on the season and what she learned after interviewing actor Yerin Ha and showrunner Jess Brownell.  If you want to read some of Kat&apo...

Emily Brontë's wild and strange novel, Wuthering Heights, is widely considered a classic in English literature. This week, we explore the latest, controversial adaptation of the novel, 2026's "Wuthering Heights" directed by British filmmaker, Emerald Fennell.  Together with Victorian literature professor Catherine Robson, we dive into what we think the film got right, what&apos...

With the release of the first half of the fourth season of Netflix's blockbuster period drama Bridgerton, we dive deep into the series with historian and pop culture expert Julie Taddeo.  We discuss if Bridgerton is historically accurate, whether that even matters, and our favorite parts of this season so far.  If you want to hear more of Julie's great analysis, she co-hosts the podcast...

In honor of Jane Austen's 250th Birthday, two experts Devoney Looser and George Justice (who are also a couple) come on to talk about all things Pride and Prejudice. We chat about how Austen helped bring our two guests together, their favorite Darcys, the pros and cons of series adaptations and much much more.