A Deadman's Books

We're back at the movies with Mary Beth as we take a look at Baz Luhrmann's 2013 adaptation of The Great Gatsby starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Also, making his podcast debut, Hollis sits down and makes a recording with Dad where he talks about Batman, Star Wars, and maybe Little Bear. A Deadman's Books theme song: Surfing! by automaticbananas A Deadman at the Movies theme song: Sunset Dances on Vinyl...

Our first ever crossover episode where Jason Crockett invites us into his atmosphere of his classroom podcast, With Honors. We recorded live, in front of his Honors Sophomore English class at our local high school. The book chosen was F. Scott Fitzgerald's masterpiece, The Great Gatsby. Is Nick really that honest? Is there a person in this book that we would like as a friend? Can you repeat the pa...

In Suzanne Collins The Hunger Games, the oppressive Capital as taken control of what is now called Panem. To remind those of a failed rebellion, the Capital requires that each district offer up two of its young as sacrifices and entertainment in what is called The Hunger Games. Katniss Everdeen makes the ultimate sacrifice when her younger sister is chosen from the lottery to represent their Distr...

Roger Haston joins us as we talk about the film adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's The Road starring Viggo Mortenson. Is it tougher to adapt books that are dense as opposed to books like a cheap thriller? Would this make for a better mini-series? Are there any changes that we would make to this adaptation. These are some of the things we talk about in this episode and more. Hosted on Acast. See acast...

The world is cold and full of constant raining ash. There is no food or resources, and cannibals roam the landscape looking for the weak to devour. Amongst this post apocalyptic world is a father and son. The father, remembering warm summers spent in Florida, decides to try and travel the road from Appalachia to what he hopes is warmer weather and warmer conditions. While traveling, he must not on...

In Ayn Rand's dystopia, Anthem, human society has progressed back to the dark ages. All individual thought, freedoms, and speech has been stripped away. In replace of that is the worship of the almighty 'WE'. That is until one day, when protagonist Equality 7-2521 stumbles upon a manhole while performing his mundane job as a street sweeper. What he finds here is a tunnel from a forgotten past. In...

If you were told that Tom Hanks, Emma Watson, Bill Paxton, John Boyega, and Patton Oswald were in a movie together, you'd probably think that you were in for a special treat...or a major letdown. Mary Beth Haston joins us as we watch and review the film adaptation of Dave Eggers' The Circle. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How transparent are we truly? Dave Eggers' dystopia The Circle takes a look at the exposure we surrender to big tech, and what would happen if their motives were for political gain and control. Hannah Randolph joins me as we look at this novel that has become quickly timely and prophetic. We will talk about Eggers' writing style, things in the current political climate that this novel is beginning...

Guy Montag is a fireman, but instead of starting fires, he starts them. In the society of Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, books are banned and are burned when discovered. Protagonist Guy Montag however has a secret. At his department's book burnings, he's been taking books back home with him. After speaking with his teenage neighbor, Montag begins to slowly realize the importance of literature. The...

In George Orwell's 1984, protagonist Winston is dealing with life living in Airstrip 1 under the watchful eye of Big Brother. He begins to question the world and those around him as he tries to dive deeper into what he assumes is a group looking to find truth in the government. Jason Crockett joins us again as we talk about the historical implications of this book, why books like 1984 should be re...

The ultimate disaster is facing Earth. The Sun is losing its energy. Also, this energy is being depleted by tiny alien lifeforms that are being discovered for the first time. Scientist/Teacher Rylan Grace is sent to another star system to try and figure just exactly what the solution is to save Earth. Jason Crockett joins us again as we sit down and discuss Andy Weir's sci-fi novel, Project Hail M...

In this bonus episode, Mary Beth Haston joins us as we review the movie adaptation of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. The movie was made in 1997, three years after the books publication. It stars Kevin Spacey and John Cusack, and it was directed by Clint Eastwood. We will talk about what we liked and didn't like about the movie compared to its source text. We will also stray away and talk...

Journalist John Berendt tells the story of the murder and court case of Danny Hansford through the larger than life characters that occupy Savannah, Georgia. From squatting lawyers to men who keep flies on a string, this book covers the eccentricity of society in Savannah. After spending time with known 'bachelor' Jim Williams, Berendt writes about the ups and downs during the time period of Hansf...

Oakley Hall's western epic Warlock examines deep messages and themes with the backdrop of the American Old West. When the citizens of Warlock feel as if their voice isn't being heard so that they can properly protect themselves, they form a committee to take matters into their own hands. The committee hires the larger than life figure of Clay Blaisedell who comes to Warlock with his friend Tom Mor...

Our friend Jason Crockett joins us as we continue our countdown of our top 5 reads in 2024 with our number three book of the year, The Land Breakers by John Ehle. The novel is the opening book of Ehle's 'mountain novel' series of seven books that spans the generations of two families, the Wrights and the Plovers. In The Land Breakers, Mooney Wright and his wife Imy cross into the Appalachian Mount...

We continue our countdown of our top 5 reads in 2024 with number four on the list, Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe. This book takes us through "The Troubles" as the IRA sought to create a united Ireland by getting the British Government to release control of Northern Ireland. The book begins with the kidnapping of Jean McConnville, a single widowed mother of ten, and centers around some of the...

Dermot Healy's Long Time, No See is number five in our Top 5 Reads of 2024. Set in 2006 in an isolated coastal town in northwest Ireland, Long Time, No See is about a young teenager named Phillip Feeny (Mr. Psyche) who is working to overcome trauma and grief from an accident that he has perviously had. While navigating through this, Phillip must work through the situation that has arisen with his...

Welcome To A Dead Man's Books. This podcast was created as a way to help preserve memories of reading books so that one day my kids will be able to read my books with me. It's also a way to go back and talk about many of the books my friends and I have loved together. It's also a place that hopefully other fellow book lovers will come and share their thoughts on the books we read and give recommen...