Close Reads Podcast

Welcome back to our ongoing conversation about Charles Dickens’ classic novel! In this episode, we discuss what the book is revealing itself to be about, the question of villainy in the story, the importance of the historical context, the differences in the various men who love Lucie, Dickens use of symblism, and much more. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this w...

We’re back with another conversation on Charles Dickens’ classical novel, and this time we discuss the introduction of Sidney Carton and Charles Darnay—and the way Dickens employs doubling to develop them as characters alongside the key themes of the book. Plus: a great Dickens-ism, a few wonderful scenes, chat on Dickens and dialogue, questions about how Dickens writes women, and much more. Happy...

Over the years, many of you have asked us to discuss a Dickens novel and it’s finally time! Over the next several episodes we are going to dig into A Tale of Two Cities . But fair warning: as we get into the book we do spend some time explaining why we’re not necessarily Dickens enthusiasts, before getting into what really works well. (Don’t worry, we won’t dwell further on the things we don’t lov...

You had questions about The Bridge of San Luis Rey ; we did our best to answer them. Thanks for tuning in to this series! Up next: A Tale of Two Cities. Please note: no video for this episode. 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

It’s time to dig into the end of Thornton Wilder’s lovely novel and in this episode we’re discussing the impact (and epilogue-like nature) of the final chapter, the spiritual contemplations inherent in the narrative, the way Wilder manages to say something powerful about the nature of love, and much more. Happy listening! Video edition A quick note on video: some listeners have requested that we p...

Welcome to the first episode of 2025 here on Close Reads! Our first book of the year is a short but powerful contemplation of , well, the meaning of life and death. Great way to kick off a new year . . . Topics of conversation include whether this is an unbearably sad book, the complex (mirrored) relationships at the core of the story, the nesting doll structure of the narrative, the echoes of Jes...

We’ve come to the end of our series on James Runcie’s novel, The Great Passion , which (as usual) means it’s time for a Q&A episode and this time we have a very special guest: our friend Greg Wilbur, who happens to a conductor and composer who has also authored a biography of Bach himself. Greg joined us to chat about his experience with The Great Passion and to answer some of your questions. Happ...

Merry Christmas from all of us at Close Reads! In this episode we’re chatting about the final chapters of James Runcie’s lovely novel, The Great Passion . Topics of conversation include the way this book is perfect for the Christmas season, how Runcie portrays the performance of the Passion in the book, what the epilogue accomplishes, and much more. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If yo...

It’s that time of year! In this annual tradition we’re sharing our top five reads of 2024 (as well as a slew of honorable mentions). Happy listening! 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

Welcome back to our ongoing conversation about James Runcie’s The Great Passion. In this episode we discuss the book’s ongoing contemplation about the way platitude’s rarely can solve the problem of real grief; how it explores spiritual questions; the complicated nature of Catharina’s relationship with Stefan; and much more. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this...

Welcome back to Close Reads as we continue our discussion of James Runcie’s The Great Passion . Topics of conversation include the way Runcie introduces the book’s tragedies, how Bach teaches both the protagonist and the reader, how to tell the difference between true wisdom and pithy sayings in the story, and much more. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with...

We’re on to a new book: James Runcie’s The Great Passion, a contemporary book that blends a variety of genres in a really delightful fashion. On this episode we discuss how he pulls it off. Plus: the way music is an ongoing motif in the construction of the story, why it’s such a re-readable book, how Bach is portrayed, and much more. Happy reading! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discus...

You had questions so we answered some. It’s an ask-us-anything episode for the long holiday weekend. Happy Thanksgiving from all of us here at Close Reads! 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

You have questions, we have answers! So join in as Heidi and Sean dig deep into your agreements and disagreements, your concerns and displeasures, your interigations and your impressions. We hope you enjoy, even if you disagree with the takes. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.c...

Welcome to the conclusion of our conversation of Emily St. John Mandel’s award-winning novel (other than the Q&A episode, which will drop next week). Topics of conversation in this one include: * The way the book contemplates whether civilization should be saved—and the way it thinks about civilization writ-large * the notion of re-birth and purification when things crumble * and, of course, wheth...

Welcome back to our discussion of Emily St. John Mandel’s award-winning, best-selling contemporary novel, Station Eleven. In this episode we discuss the characters’ longing for connection—both to their old world and to other people (and the question of hope that the book raises therein). Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access t...

Welcome back to our discussion of Emily St. John Mandel’s award-winning, best-selling contemporary novel, Station Eleven. Topics of conversation on this first episode include: * the winding way in which the book reveals itself * the moral universe (and telos) that the book seems to be setting forth * Mandel’s unique ability to craft characters which seem alive * and much, much more. Happy listenin...

Welcome to a new series here on Close Reads, in which we’re digging into Emily St. John Mandel’s award-winning, best-selling contemporary novel, Station Eleven, a book which became eerily prescient during peak Covid days. Topics of conversation on this first episode include: * the experience of reading a book which fictionalized events which almost seemed to actually have happened (sort of) . . ....

As is our custom here on Close Reads, we’re concluding this series on Francois Mauriac’s Vipers’ Tangle by answering some of your questions. We talk about Mauriac’s bibliography and biography, conversion stories in literature, Louis’ evolving heart, and much more! Thanks for tuning in and happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access...

Now that we’ve read all of Mauriac’s Vipers’ Tangle , we can discuss the details. So in this episode, we dig into the degree to which we can trust the narrator as the novel goes on, the degree to which his children are malicious, and the degree to which he’s truly changed/saved in the end. And so much more. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscri...

Flannery O’Connor’s fiction has been described as “gothic,” “violent,” “unsentimental,” even “grotesque.” Yet it is also often described as funny. How can both be true? Well in this episode the whole gang is back together to discuss that very question during a live recording that took place at our recent “Close Reads on the Road” event in Concord, NC. So join us as we explore O’Connor’s famous sto...

Welcome back to Close Reads. This week we’re discussing the way Vipers’ Tangle shift gears in this section and what it means for our understanding of the characters, the goals of the book, and our interaction with it. Plus: lots of conversation about Isa and marriage. Happy reading! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visi...

Welcome back to Close Reads! This week we discuss why Vipers’ Tangle isn’t better known, the degree to which the book wants to be sympathetic with the narrator, where we’re supposed to trust his perceptions, and some areas the book might fall short of being truly great (to David, anyway). Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access...

This week we kick off a new book with some conversation about Sean’s obsession with Graham Greene, why books about spiritual struggle are so compelling, whether this book has an unreliable narrator, and the difference between a novelist who is Catholic and a Catholic who is a novelist. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to...

You had questions about Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont —we have answers. Thanks so much for participating in this series of this episodes and happy listening! 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