Don't Come After Us

Trish and Ish are surprised. But they shouldn't be, because what better book is there to celebrate Canada Day with than L.M. Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables? Well now, I dunno. Take a stroll with us along the Lake of Shining Waters (AKA Barry's Pond) as we take comfort in the novel's slice of life coziness, fail to suppress a smile at its wry humour, and are charmed by the whimsy of Avonlea's fa...

2026 Trish and Ish record an episode on Greenwood, written by Tristan's fellow UBC alum Michael Christie. They pay homage to the novel's intricate tree ring structure, the extended tree/forest/family analogy, and many long-winded descriptions of tree varieties. Seriously, this man really loves trees. 2023 Trish has the idea to start a book podcast. It's not as lucrative as Harris Greenwood's lumbe...

2026.- I have just returned from a visit to the cinema, the Emerald Fennel adaptation that I shall be troubled with. Disturbed by what I had seen, I asked my domestic podcast hosts to explain to me what I had witnessed, and this is what they told me: "It would be an act of pure idiotcy not to listen to this episode, because we're discussing one of the great literary classics, Wuthering Heights by...

2026 is upon us! If you need some consolation for failing your New Year's resolutions, look no further than this episode, where Trish and Ish look back on 2025 through discussing some of the books they read that weren't featured on the pod. Whether you like women turning into plants, excessive references to Edgar Allan Poe, or modern plagues (literal and metaphorical), there's a little something h...

A book podcast, you say? Bah, humbug! Is there no BookTok? In our final episode of the year, Trish and Ish will try to warm your squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old heart as they discuss the Christmassiest book of all time, Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. You will be haunted by two hosts as they reference Episodes of Podcast Past, Pop Culture of Podcast Present,...

If you're feeling literally run off your feet by the holidays, wipe the snow off your goloshes and join us at the table as we give a toast to James Joyce's story "The Dead". Described as "one of the most powerful evocations of human loss and longing that the English language possesses", this crown jewel of the Dubliners collection might just be too sophisticated for our humble hosts. Nevertheless,...

It's Halloween again, and you know what that means: we're covering a horror story. Specifically, a cosmic horror story. And what better author to feature than Providence, Rhode Island's own H.P. Lovecraft and his seminal short story, "The Call of Cthulhu"? Search through our proverbial great-uncle's research notes with us as we uncover the hallmarks of Lovecraftian horror, debate the pronunciation...

Dear Pursuers (that's what we decided our fans are called), In today's episode we cover what Wikipedia describes as a "science fiction fantasy LGBT epistolary novel". You guessed it - it is, of course: This Is How You Lose the Time War. Written by everyone's favourite iconic duo, equine accident survivor Max Gladstone and Canadian Content certified Ottawan Amal El-Mohtar, this is as Ish Majeed cal...

Last night I dreamt... you listened to Don't Come After Us again. It seemed to me that episode was the one where we covered Daphne du Maurier's 1938 classic: Rebecca. Trish and Ish discuss the book's skillful use of literary devices, the psychological and Freudian themes, and enduring cultural impact (even influencing such pop girlies as Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo). Also included: hot takes f...

Reasons why it's good to listen to this episode: It could help you through a breakup. It may or may not be popular on BookTok. Almost every millennial woman knows the name Dolly Alderton, according to mamamia.com at least. So obviously we had to cover one of her books. The book in question is none other than her 2023 novel about breakups and heartache: Good Material. Come for the relatable charact...

Back by popular demand, it's another bonus episode! Maybe this one will crack 10 listens. This time we discuss some of the authors whose works we read as children and who helped to shape our young minds. Tune in to hear us mispronounce the names of several manga authors, exceed our mandated Canadian content quota, and inevitably make reference to a certain paranormal romance series that once more...

Journeys end in lovers meeting. Hill House is not sane, and neither are we after reading this book. Of course, we're talking about the classic horror novel: The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, a fitting choice for our first Hallowe'en special! This episode, Trish and Ish discuss the tragic psychological depths of Eleanor Vance, the unbearably glib dialogue, and which of our hosts got ge...

From the "mother of fantasy", as Tristan erroneously calls Ursula K. Le Guin, comes the epic tale of one lad's transformation from twerp to chad (AKA Duny to Ged). This tale's True Name is A Wizard of Earthsea . Set sail with us as we discuss the Le Guin's unique outlook and approach to the fantasy genre, similarities to other books set in wizarding schools, and what it means to truly come of age....

Get your buckets ready, because this book will make you want to throw up several times. Of course, we're talking about Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things. At once disturbing yet beautiful, childlike yet extremely mature, and crude yet poetic, this book is a jumbled, chaotic tapestry of contradictions. Listen as our hosts discuss their evolving feelings towards the book's lyrical writing style...

In this follow-up to our Heart of Darkness episode, we discuss a book written by its most notable critic: Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart. Join us as we discuss the protagonist Okonkwo's many flaws, as well as the story's "universal" themes. Specifically, we cover the individual vs. society, the effects of Christianity on traditional Igbo culture, and the fragility of a seemingly stable social o...

Look out WatchMojo! There's a new countdown list in town. What was supposed to be a brief "mini episode" turned into this: a 3-hour extravaganza in which Trish and Ish recount in painstaking detail their top 3 favourite authors (though what they mean by favourite is up for debate). The final reveal will shock you just as much as it shocked (and disturbed) one of our hosts.

Today we explore a book that has a very special place in the heart of one of our hosts: the Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro. Tune in to find out the striking similarities between our beloved Stevens and Ish, our briefest and most painful author spotlight to date, and our exploration of the story of a wasted life. Plus, banter of a calibre to make a repressed manservant jealous.

Join us on a journey into the darkest reaches of the human soul with the classic novella Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. Learn about the author's eventful life, the crucial historical context of Congolese history, and both of our personal histories with this book. As well, hear our thoughts on its ambiguous style, thought-provoking themes, and its more controversial aspects. Hopefully at the e...

In our second installment, we revisit a classic series from our childhood: the Hunger Games trilogy. Join us as we take a deep dive into the addictive readability of the Hunger Games, the pitfalls of Catching Fire, and the "delightful cynicism" of Mockingjay. What's more, hear our thoughts on every major character, our dissection of the surprisingly complex themes, and most importantly, find out i...

Join us on our first ever episode, where we discuss the beloved and iconic Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie. We go over the surprisingly spicy details of the author's biography, give our thoughts on the characters, the clues, crazy twist ending, and humour of the book, and discuss the place of Agatha Christie in the history of literature. Also discover why Agatha Christie was simult...