Lit for Christmas

Welcome to our Christmas in September party! In this episode, Marty and his friend, Madeline, are haunted by Liquefied Ghosts and Louise Erdrich's The Sentence . BONUS POINTS:  Count how many times Madeline talks about the Lizard Man in the sewers of Bloomington. GHOST OF CHRISTMAS PRESENT SPIRIT: Liquified Ghost Ingredients: 2 oz. vodka 1 oz. vanilla simple syrup (or regular simple syrup if...

Welcome back to this Lit for Christmas vacation party! In this episode, Marty and his wife, Beth, return to the land of scotch, talking about O. Henry's classic Christmas short story "The Gift of the Magi" and a chest freezer full of dead cats. BONUS POINTS:  Help Beth title the poem she wrote for this episode! This episode is dedicated to LFC 's number one fan--Helen Haskell-Remien (January...

Welcome to our Christmas in July party! In this episode, Marty is joined by his friend, Madeline, as they both get hammered on sherry and hammer on Alex Haley's A Different Kind of Christmas . BONUS POINTS:  Place bets as to when Marty will throw up during the episode. GHOST OF CHRISTMAS PRESENT SPIRIT: Sherry (sweet or dry) NONALCOHOLIC ALTERNATIVE: Nonalcoholic sherry OR fruit juice Marty h...

Welcome back to this Lit for Christmas vacation party! In this episode, Marty and his wife, Beth, drink way too much spiked eggnog, reflect on whale sperm, and talk about writer/producer/director John Hughes' short story "Christmas '59," which was adapted for the silver screen into National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation . BONUS POINTS:  Count how many times Marty says "whale penis." SPIRIT OF...

Welcome to this Mental Health Awareness Month Lit of Christmas party. In this episode, Marty is joined again by his friend, Madeline, as they get blitzed on scotch and sodas, talk about J. D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye , and all that David Copperfield crap. BONUS POINTS:  Count how many times Marty says he's sweating. Marty would like to dedicate this episode to his good friend, Lon Em...

Welcome back to the third Lit for Christmas party of Season Two! In this episode, Marty and his wife, Beth, kill a bottle of red wine and dish about former U. S. Poet Laureate's Billy Collins' collection of poems Nine Horses for National Poetry Month. BONUS POINTS:  Count how many times Marty uses the phrase "academic snobbery." SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS PRESENT: Red Wine SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS PRESEN...

Welcome back to this special Saint Patrick's Day Lit for Christmas party! In this episode, Marty is joined by his friend, Madeline, venturing into the land of gin again to discuss Irish writer Sally Rooney's novel Normal People .  There may be a pot of gold at the end, or some aspirin and Alka-Seltzer. BONUS POINTS:  Count how many times Marty almost refers to Madeline as Amanda!  (...

Welcome back to the first Lit for Christmas party of Season Two! In this episode, Marty is joined by his wife, Beth, to guzzle some New York sours and discuss Oscar Hijuelos' Mr. Ives' Christmas .  Be prepared for some drunken magical realism! BONUS POINTS:  Count how many times Beth says Antonio Banderas! RECIPE FOR NEW YORK SOUR: Ingredients: 2 oz. of whiskey/bourbon 1 1/2 oz. lemon ju...

Welcome to Season Two of Lit for Christmas ! For this Shot of Christmas Spirit, Marty fills you in on what's coming up this year in the Lit for Christmas parties and shares a memory and poem about his sister, Rose. BONUS POINTS:  Every time you see someone you love, hug them. Lit for Christmas Party Hosts : Marty has an Master's in fiction writing, MFA in poetry writing, and teaches in the En...

Welcome to our little Lit for Christmas party this Christmas day! For this special Lit for Christmas party, Marty drinks solo and shares his essay "How Lovely Are Your Branches" and his poem "Revision Suggestions for Luke." BONUS POINTS:  Every time Marty says the words "Christmas Tree," add more RumChata to your hot chocolate. TODAY'S CHRISTMAS SPIRIT: RumChata Hot Chocolate Directions: Make...

Welcome back to the Lit for Christmas party, the podcast where the Christmas spirits flow all year long! For this special Christmas Eve Lit for Christmas party, Marty drinks solo and shares his essay "How the Light Gets In" and his poem "Thoughts of Darkness and Light on the Winter Solstice." BONUS POINTS:  Every time Marty says "darkness," take a shot. TONIGHT'S CHRISTMAS SPIRIT: Christmas B...

Welcome back to the Lit for Christmas party, the podcast where the Christmas spirits flow all year long! For this very late Spooky Season Lit for Christmas party, Amanda and Marty polish off a couple bottles of cheap white wine and talk about James Joyce's Christmas novella "The Dead."  Get ready for some talk about funerals, family, and drunken stream-of-consciousness.   BONUS POINTS: &...

A little Lit for Christmas party for Christmas Podcast Day, featuring Marty's essay "Miracle of the Hay." Lit for Christmas Party Hosts : Amanda got her undergrad at U of M in English, MFA from Goddard College, and JD from Wayne State University Law School.  She's a writer, fleece-legging addict, private poetry hoarder, public child herder, heirloom seed collector, candle dripper, cocktail mi...

Welcome back to the Lit for Christmas party, the podcast where the Christmas spirits flow all year long! For this better-late-than-never eighth Lit for Christmas party, Amanda and Marty get a little buzzed on Orange Creamsicles while talking about Primo Levi's essay "Last Christmas of the War" in honor of Yom Kippur.  It's all about twerking Bigfoots, oracles, and finding Christmas spirit in...

Welcome back to the Lit for Christmas party, the podcast where the Christmas spirits flow all year long! For this official seventh episode, Amanda and Marty enjoy a little Southern Comfort cocktail while discussing Fannie Flagg's novella A Redbird Christmas .  Tune in for a little downhome trash talk about Sweet Tea, book clubs, and bad endings. BONUS POINTS:  Get vaccinated and stay ali...

Welcome back to the Lit for Christmas party, the podcast where the Christmas spirits flow all year long! For this little pre-LFC party, Marty imbibes in some Fireball Hot Chocolate and shares his essay "Spooks of Christmas."  The big LFC party will commence in a few days.  In the meantime, enjoy a little Christmas ghost story. BONUS POINTS:  Contact Marty and tell him how much you l...

Welcome back to the Lit for Christmas party, the podcast where the Christmas spirits flow all year long! For this sixth episode, Amanda and Marty get hammered on peach schnapps and orange juice while talking about Truman Capote's short story "A Christmas Memory" and the wonder (or curse) of fruitcake.  As they navel themselves into incoherence, they discuss yoga and Chippendale dancers and wh...

Welcome back to the Lit for Christmas party, the podcast where the Christmas spirits flow all year long! For this fifth episode, Amanda and Marty travel back to land of gin and get lit on the French 75 while taking on Jean Shepherd's In God We Trust:  All Others Pay Cash , the book that was adapted into the classic Christmas movie A Christmas Story .  As we get blitzed, we talk about Bla...

Welcome back to the Lit for Christmas party, the podcast where the Christmas spirits flow all year long! For this fourth episode, Marty flies solo and gets more than a little lit on Marty Schnog as he talks about his Christmas essay, "Gloop Christmas."  See if you can lay your hands on some eggnog, sit back, and let Marty tell you the story of how a certain yuletide tradition started in his l...

Welcome back to the Lit for Christmas party, the podcast where the Christmas spirits flow all year long! For this third episode, Amanda and Marty get lit on Irish Roses and also get down and dirty about Seamus Heaney's poetry collection Wintering Out for National Poetry Month.  Get out your Irish whiskey, put on something green, and join us in the kitchen for some bad Irish puns, Heaney hero worsh...

Welcome back to the Lit for Christmas party, the podcast where the Christmas spirits flow all year long! For this second episode, Amanda and Marty get lit on French martinis while they slur through a discussion of Philip Van Doren Stern's short story "The Greatest Gift," which director Frank Capra adapted into the film It's a Wonderful Life .  Grab your cocktail shaker, mix yourself up the Sp...

Welcome to the Lit for Christmas party, the podcast where the Christmas spirits are flowing all year long! In this inaugural episode, your hosts, Amanda and Marty, get lit on White Russians while they talk, argue, and write about Joseph Brodsky's book Nativity Poems .  Grab some vodka, Kahlua, half-and-half.  Pour them over ice, and join us in the kitchen for a little conversation about...

Join poets Amanda and Marty for a NEW Christmas podcast where they talk about Christmas books and Christmas cheer!  On each episode, they will get drunk, share a recipe for a new Christmas beverage, and get down and dirty about a work of Yuletide literature.  Every episode is a Christmas party! Grab a glass of something strong!  Find a seat on the couch!  Let's get lit! Marty i...