Close Reads Podcast

Join David Kern, Tim McIntosh, and special guest Adam Andrews (of Center for Lit) for an exploration of Shirley Jackson's harrowing short story, "The Lottery." Conversation touches on the crazy initial response the story received, the way Jackson manages to point her critique at contemporary life and not just the ancient pagans, best practices for teaching this story, why Jackson doesn't reveal th...

Join David Kern, Heidi White, and guest Jonathan Rogers for an exploration of William Faulkner's short story, "A Rose for Emily." Discussion touches on the pedagogy of teaching literature, Faulkner's customary obtuseness, the purity of the narrative of this story, what it says about Southern culture, and much, much more. Click here to sign up for the Close Reads email newsletter. See acast.com/pri...

Join David Kern, Angelina Stanford, and Heidi White, for an exploration of Susan Glaspell's short story, "A Jury of Her Peers." Topics include the possible feminist ideas in the story, the question (or non-question) of justice, how the men in the story should be read, the private vs public lives of the women in the story, and much more. Click here to sign up for the Close Reads email newsletter. S...

Join David Kern, Angelina Stanford, and Heidi White, for an exploration of Kate Chopin's short story, Desiree's Baby . Topics include the story's fairy tale nature, the way it touches on matters of race and gender, its structural genius, and much, much, much more. Click here to sign up for the Close Reads email newsletter. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is a public...

Join David Kern, Tim McIntosh, and very special guest Jonathan Rogers (author of The Wilderking Trilogy and The  Terrible Speed of Mercy: A Spiritual Biography of Flannery O'Connor,  among other books), for a deep-dive into Ambrose Bierce's famous short story, "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge." Discussion touches on whether Bierce's "gotcha" moment is a flaw in the story, the idea of the unrelia...

Join David Kern, Heidi White, and very special guest Jonathan Rogers (author of The Wilderking Trilogy and The Terrible Speed of Mercy: A Spiritual Biography of Flannery O'Connor, among other books), for a deep-dive into Washington Irving's famous short story, "Rip Van Winkle." Topics include the place of this story in the American literary tradition, Irving's craftsmanship, the conceit/framing de...

Join David, Tim, and Heidi for some more lively discussion as they conclude their conversation about Tennessee Williams' award-winning and much-beloved play,  The Glass Menagerie . Topics of conversation include the glass unicorn, the value of tragedies, the challenges of reading a play (vs. seeing it performed), and much, much more. Plus, David explains some exciting new changes for the Close Rea...

Join David, Tim, and Heidi (Angelina is away for work) for a lively discussion about Tennessee Williams' award-winning and much-beloved play, The Glass Menagerie . Topics of conversation include the differences (and unique challenges) between play writing and novel writing, who plays are written for, how to read plays, why this play has been so popular for so long, Williams' creative genius, and m...

Join David, Tim, Angelina, and Heidi as they conclude their conversation about Wendell Berry's novel, Hannah Coulter, by answering listener questions. Topics include the Okinawa chapter, whether Berry is preachy, whether his work will be remembered in a few hundred years, and much more. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss th...

Join David, Tim, Angelina, and special guest Heidi White as they continue their discussion of Wendell Berry's 2003 novel,  Hannah Coulter . They discuss the ways this book impacts each of them, the character of Hannah, why men love this book, and much, much more. If you enjoy this show, please support it on Patreon. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is a public episod...

Join David, Tim, Angelina, and special guest Heidi White as they continue their discussion of Wendell Berry's 2003 novel,  Hannah Coulter . Conversation touches on Berry's emphasis on the values of rural life, whether Berry's ideals can be applied anywhere, Nathan Coulter and Burley Coulter as embodiment of those ideals, and much more. If you enjoy this show, please support it on Patreon. See acas...

Join David, Tim, Angelina, and special guest Heidi White as they begin their discussion of Wendell Berry's 2003 novel, Hannah Coulter . Conversation touches on first impressions, the book's epitaph, Hannah's unique voice, the poetic rhythms of Berry's writing, whether this is a sad book, and much, much more. If you enjoy this show, please support it on Patreon. See acast.com/privacy for privacy an...

Join David, Tim, and Angelina as they conclude their conversation of P.G. Wodehouse's novel,  The Code of the Woosters, by answering listener questions. Topics include Bertie's thickness, Jeeves' genius, the percentage of allusions that the hosts got when reading this book, and much more. I f you enjoy this show, please consider supporting it on Patreon. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-o...

Join David and Angelina as they continue their conversation of P.G. Wodehouse's novel,  The Code of the Woosters.  This week - sans Tim - discussion touches on, well, the code of the Woosters. Plus, Graeme Pitman makes an appearance and conversation goes far afield. I f you enjoy this show, please consider supporting it on Patreon. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is...

Join David, Tim, and Angelina as they kick-off their conversation of P.G. Wodehouse's novel, The Code of the Woosters. This week's discussion touches on whether Wodehouse had serious intentions when he wrote this novel and why so many people consider him funny over multiple generations and in various places. Plus, they do a close read of a specific scene, just for the sheer pleasure of it. I f you...

Join David, Tim, and Angelina as they kick-off their conversation of P.G. Wodehouse's novel, The Code of the Woosters. Focusing on their favorite passages in the first four chapters they discuss what makes Wodehouse so funny, the deeper themes in his work, and the consistent presence of irony in the story. Plus they laugh a ton. I f you enjoy this show, please consider supporting it on Patreon. Se...

Join David, Tim, and Angelina, as they answer listener questions about Charles Portis' novel, True Grit . I f you enjoy this show, please consider supporting it on Patreon. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe

Join David, Tim, and Angelina for the conclusion of their conversation about Charles Portis' masterpiece,  True Grit.  Conversation touches on who the book's hero is, whether justice is served in the end, Rooster's tragic ending, and much more. I f you enjoy this show, please consider supporting it on Patreon. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is a public episode. If...

Join Angelina, Tim, and David for the beginning of their conversation about Charles Portis' masterpiece,  True Grit.  Topics of conversation include the effects of the civil war on the characters in the book, the complicated character of Rooster Cogburn, the differences between Rooster and LeBeouf, and much more. I f you enjoy this show, please consider supporting it on Patreon. See acast.com/priv...

Join Angelina, Tim, and David for the beginning of their conversation about Charles Portis' masterpiece,  True Grit.  Topics of conversation include whether Mattie is worth imitation, the humor in Rooster Cogburn, Mattie's infatuation with LaBeouf, and Charles Portis' light but skilled touch. I f you enjoy this show, please consider supporting it on Patreon. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and o...

Join Angelina, Tim, and David for the beginning of their conversation about Charles Portis' masterpiece, True Grit. Topics of conversation include the place of the Western genre in American literature, True Grit's unique approach the Western protagonist, and much more. Plus, they chat about the next few books and the Literary Leading Ladies Bracket.   I f you enjoy this show, please consider suppo...

Join Angelina, Tim, and David for the conclusion of their conversation about E. M. Forster's Howards End as they answer a plethora of listener questions (and discuss this year's Close Reads' literature bracket). Topics include Tibby's role, Leonard's fate, what Forster means by "connection," and much, much more! I f you enjoy this show, please consider supporting it on Patreon. See acast.com/priva...

Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they continue their conversation about E.M. Forster's novel,  Howards End . Topics of conversation include whether the ending is satisfying, Forster's preachiness, Margaret's threat to leave Henry, Henry's redemption, and much, much more.   If you like this show please consider supporting it  on Patreon.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. T...

Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they continue their conversation about E.M. Forster's novel,  Howards End . Topics of conversation include the ways place = character, whether Margaret was wrong to side with Helen over Henry, Margaret fighting for woman-kind, whether Henry deserves any sympathy, fallen sisters in literature, and much, much more. PLEASE NOTE: This episode contains a brief discussio...

Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they continue their conversation about E.M. Forster's novel,  Howards End . Topics of conversation include Margaret's response to Henry's past indiscretions, Helen's protection of the Basts, whether Henry is truly repentant, and much more!  If you like this show please consider supporting it  on Patreon.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. T...