Buzzed British Book Club

NEW FORMAT ALERT! Your two favorite fake British friends have been SUPER busy. Too busy, in fact, to read the same bloody book. So they took some time to talk about two different books they read in a more concise format:

Pulitzer Prize winner and recently adapted by Netflix for a limited series, "All The Light We Cannot See" is a book that can change your life. Naturally, that meant Kit and Bridge had to register their official opinions in the form of cork ratings and a deep dive into the character's minds... exploring the tricky moral ground of a sympathetic Nazi character. But complex intellectual conversations aside, the booze does get to them and things do get a little silly toward the end. You won't want to miss it.

Spooky season and probiotics? Let's give it a go!

Kit and Bridge swap out their usual headwear for witch hats and stoke up the fires under their cauldrons as they get ready to embrace their inner witches. In The Once and Future Witches by Alix Harrow, your two favorite fake British friends discuss what bullshit it is that taking down the patriarchy requires so many bloody meetings, what "speechifying" means and why it should make a comeback into the modern vernacular, and how this tome of a book might benefit from a movie adaptation.

Your two favorite fake British friends address the age-old question: can a much loved book ever been successfully adapted into a feature-length film? Opinions abound as Friend of the Pod and author, Laura Marden, joins for the discussion about queer intimacy displayed on screen, the concept of found family, and perhaps most importantly, the magic that are white polo breeches.

Watching Content: Amazon's Red, White & Royal Blue

Drinking Content: Various blends of herbal tea!

Show Notes:

They're baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack! After disappearing rather unceremoniously, Kit and Bridge are ready to get back to business.

In this episode, your two favorite fake British friends talk about what the FRENCH TOAST they've been doing (mostly what Kit has been doing - she's got the big news!). They also share some fun tea (as in literal tea, not the hot "goss") and talk about some things they are doing differently this season.

Email us your favorite drink recipe: buzzedbritbookclub@gmail.com and we'll feature it on our podcast!

What do you get when you give a bowling champion a chance for revenge after her most prized possessions are stolen? You get one epic show down at the corner gas station.

Don't miss this episode covering Mrs. Perez, an adorably punchy short story written by the Texan author, Oscar Cásares. Your two favorite fake British friends, Kit and Bridge, talk bowling, rebirth, and how they want to be best friends with Lola. Listen in to hear Bridge pronounce Spanish words poorly and for their cork ratings. Plus, tune in to the next episode because rumor has it Kit has taken up bowling as a result of this short story.

Drinking Content: J. Lohr Cabernet Savignon

In this episode of Buzzed British Book Club, your favorite fake British friends Kit and Bridge dive into the wonderfully vibrant world of "Goat," a short story written by the multi-talented James McBride. They learned many life lessons, like "If it looks like a buzzard, and smells like a buzzard, it ain't catfish."

In this close knit community living in a rural corner of Pennsylvania, where electricity is scare and opportunities even more so, Goat's chance to get out is his speed. He can run circles around just about anyone. But the circles keep spinning in this tale as the girls puzzled over the secrets Goat's teacher discovers and what it means for the characters and the real people they are meant to reflect.

Join us for this great sneak peak into the lush voices James McBride writes - we return to this author later this year to read his novel, The Good Lord Bird. You won't want to miss our chat and our cork ratings!

Imagine growing up in a land where you look different from everyone else; there isn't a single person in your world that looks like you. Your parents are gone, you're teased and bullied mercilessly, and the world has been torn apart by war. This is the premise of the great Kurt Vonnegut's story and your two favorite fake British friends, Kit and Bridge, get into it. They talk belonging, Joe Louis, the nuances of the military that Vonnegut nailed with the lightest touch, and how this story can cut you right to the bone. Join them for more about Kurt Vonnegut, more LeVar Burton admiration, and the cork ratings, of course!

Drinking Content: The Sheriff of Buena Vista (Fancy!)

Reading Content: D.P. by Kurt Vonnegut

After a lengthy intermission, Kit and Bridge's coverage of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo continues with Part Two! Your two favorite fake British friends get into it with Celia, continue their love affair of Harry, talk about who saw the plot twist coming with some random mentions of Grey's Anatomy, and wrap up with their cork ratings. They got into some Winking Owl this go 'round so you know Kit loved it!

Drinking Content: Winking Owl Merlot

Reading Content: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Have you ever wondered what happens after you die? Did your vision involve a bureaucrat getting messages from God via pneumonic tube? Well, that's what the great Stephen King depicts in his short story, "Afterlife." 

Your two favorite fake British friends jump into the beyond with some Tuscan Red wine to facilitate these lofty thoughts about the afterlife, regret, and how Mr. King weaves historic events into this story that give it even more depth. Listen in to hear their thoughts and cork ratings! 

"History, huh? Bet we could make some." 

Kit and Bridge continue their long, winding chat of Red, White, and Royal Blue as the prosecco goes very much to their heads. Don't miss the discussion and their cork ratings in part two of their coverage of Casey McQuiston's "banter-ful" novel. And while they won't give the ratings here, it's fair to say your two favorite fake British friends fancy this rom-com.

Reading content: Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

Drinking content: LaMarca Prosecco

As the season of love settles around you, join Kit and Bridge as they romp their way through the delightful rom-com that is Casey McQuiston's Red, White, and Royal Blue. Paired with LaMarca's Prosecco and lots of steamy scenes, there is no way they make it through without needing a cold shower at the end. Listen in  for the journey of a cross-the-pond romance that could dictate world politics and break the internet all at once. 

Reading content: Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

Drinking content: LaMarca Prosecco 

Looking for a jaunt with a murderous wizard and a morally-complex thief that culminates in a giant pile of ----? Look no further, mates. 

Your two favorite fake British friends, Kit and Bridge, jump into another short story that LeVar Burton covered in his podcast. Listen to the story (both parts) and join the debate -- is Jayn's accent Irish, English, Jamaican...? And how do you feel about the motivation for the whole escapade?

Kit and Bridge enjoy a "kitty cat" bottle of wine and the complex characters in this High Fantasy world. Join them for their cork ratings and share your own in the comments.

Reading Content: Empty Places by Richard Parks

Drinking Content: Moselland Reisling (dusty rose kitty cat wine bottle)

Content warning: this episode deals very heavily in discussions of rape, suicide, abuse, both psychological and physical, in tandem with the story and as our hosts share personal experience. Please take care as you listen. 

In this second part of the discussion of Octavia Butler's Kindred, your two hosts dive further into Dana, Rufus, Kevin and Alice's characterization. As Dana continues to navigate being wrenched between times, the stakes continue to rise until the plot reaches such a desperate climax there is no way you can put this book down. Kit and Bridge hypothesize about Octavia Butler's influence on another well-known time-traveling heroine, Claire of Outlander, and share their cork ratings. You won't want to miss this episode! 

Reading content: Kindred by Octavia Butler

Drinking content: Nighthawk Black Rich Red Wine Blend (Bota Box)

Kit and Bridge are kicking off the New Year with a new short story by the phenomenal Octavia Butler. Tune in as they sip terrible hot toddies to nurse their colds and drink in this amazing short story (as voiced by LeVar Burton) to nurse their souls. Childfinder was written in 1971 but did not see the light of day until 2014. Join your favorite fake British friends as they weave their way through the complicated world Octavia Butler crafted and attempt to decipher the hidden message in the historical text. Listen to follow along and hear their ratings of the hot toddies (gave a heavy hint already) and the short story!

Reading Content: Childfinder by Octavia Butler

Drinking Content: Random homemade hot toddies

Happy Christmas, mates! 

Join your two favorite fake British friends as they get into the spirit of the season with one of their favorite authors, J.R.R. Tolkien, and read a little known text of his that he wrote in the form of letters from Father Christmas to his children over the course of 23 years. This book was posthumously published in 1976, and you'd think it would be a simple light-hearted tale. But Kit and Bridge provide some historical context in the forms of world history and some of Tolkien's other works that make this text quite fun to dissect. Maybe the goblins were early forms of the orcs seen in Lord of the Rings... maybe the entirely all male squad was a blueprint for the Fellowship. Either way, it's well worth a read. Listen to follow along and hear their ratings of the wine and the book!

Reading Content: Letters from Father Christmas by J.R.R. Tolkien

Drinking Content: Weihnachts Red Wine (aka German German German Red Wine) --the one in the Christmas Tree bottle

Kit and Bridge continue to wind their way through the wonderful novel, The Nightingale. As they resume their discussion, you'll hear more of the struggles with Sturmbannführer Von Richter (not just the pronunciation... but his general hideous character), the complexities of Vianne's husband returning from the POW camp, and the cork ratings for the wine and the book. 

Reading Content: The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

Drinking Content: Bordeaux Superieur from Lidl & supplemented by Winking Owl Cabernet Sauvignon from Aldi

"...In love we find out who we want to be; in war we find out who we are." As far as first liners go, that's a corkin' good one. 

Kit and Bridge survive a French Bordeaux and the painful, powerful, beautiful novel that is Kristin Hannah's The Nightingale.

Wrapping up the month of November's theme of the military and war, Kit and Bridge drain a bottle of Evening Shade Rose and Helen Oyeyemi's My Daughter, the Racist. Winner of the BBC's National Short Story Award of 2010 for this work, Helen Oyeyemi was also a finalist for the Shirley Jackson Awards in 2009 for novel she wrote called White is For Witching... it's all connected, innit?

After the All Quiet of the Western Front episode, your two favorite fake British friends jump into My Daughter, the Racist, flipping the perspective of war from the soldier to the civilian, from the man to the woman, from a European to an African. 

Listen to follow along and hear their ratings of the wine and the short story! 

Reading Content: My Daughter, the Racist by Helen Oyeyemi

Drinking Content: Evening Shade Rose

In their first book to movie comparison bonus episode, Kit and Bridge recount the experience of watching Netflix's 2022 adaptation of All Quiet on the Western Front, the differences from the source text, the inception-y music, and whether human bowel movement foley should be included in films. As they sip on a sweet White Zinfandel from the illustrious Winking Owl Collection, your two favorite fake British friends hold nothing back in their cork ratings. 

Listen to follow along and hear their ratings of the wine and the film!

Reading Content: All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

Watching Content: All Quiet on the Western Front - Netflix 2022

Drinking Content: Winking Owl White Zinfandel 

Kit and Bridge dive into a bottle of Riesling and Erich Maria Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front. Long considered one of the best war books of all time and a consistent required reading for high schoolers, your two favorite fake British friends thought it a worthwhile read in the spirit of Armistice Day, Remembrance Day, and Veteran's Day. While the book has already been translated into a movie (1930), TV film (1979), radio adaptation (2008), it is being adapted to the silver screen yet again, for the first time by a German production company, and is now available on Netflix. 

Listen to follow along and hear their ratings of the wine and the book! 

Reading Content: All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

Drinking Content: Schmitt Sohne Riesling

In the second BONUS Episode, Kit and Bridge are joined by special guest, Laura Marden, to discuss Laura's short story, "Come, Devil," which was published on CreepyPod and narrated by Nathan DuFort. 

Join your favorite fake British friends as they imagine Snoop Dogg running from a vampire and explore the writing craft, publishing, and learn more about Laura's journey to becoming an author.

Listen to follow along and hear their ratings of the wine and the story.

Reading Content: "Come, Devil" by Laura Marden

Drinking Content: Three Finger Jack (Kit and Bridge) and 19 Crimes Cali Red - Snoop Dogg edition (Laura)

In the final October 2022 episode, Kit and Bridge pop the cork off The Gilda Stories and a red blend from the McBride Sisters Collection.

Your favorite fake British friends recap the novel and talk in depth about Gilda 1.0 and Gilda 2.0, what it means to be a vampire in this world (versus the sparkling ones in Twilight), how creepy page 140 is, and how everything comes full circle. Listen to follow along and hear their ratings of the wine and the book!

Reading Content: The Gilda Stories by Jewelle Gomez

Drinking Content: McBride Sisters Collection Black Girl Magic 

October 24

It's our first bonus episode and one of Bridge's real-life clients sent her cheese today! Petey is laughing at us because we ran around the house, jumping over the roomba, and nearly falling down when Kit hauled in a marble slab for the charcuterie spread. But doesn't he know we LOVE CHEESE?! 

Once we'd had our fill and nearly finished the Apothic Cab, we sat down to do some work. It was all about Patient Zero, Tananarive Due's short story. Bridge's dad has a connection to Tananarive Due and her mother Patricia Due from the days of some of their earlier writings. Tananarive Due is a popular writer and has written about vampires and other fantasy topics. Maybe one day we'll get to meet her.

The lights keep blinking, and our eyes are red, but that might just be the wine. We didn't really want to go outside, but isn't it okay if we've wrapped recording for the day? If you're reading this, tell us your cork rating for the wine and the short story. 

Reading Content: Patient Zero by Tananarive Due

Drinking Content: Apothic Cab Cabernet Sauvignon

In their second episode, Kit and Bridge swig some sangria and Shirley Jackson's short story, The Lottery. This short story was originally featured in the New Yorker in 1948. Your favorite fake British friends recap the story and discover some ways its still influencing content today. Listen to follow along and hear their ratings of the wine and the short story! 

Reading Content: The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

Drinking Content: Winking Owl Sangria

In their pilot episode, Kit and Bridge sink their teeth into Stephenie Meyer's Twilight and a bottle of cabernet sauvignon (rather in poor taste). 

Originally published in 2005, the series of books and movies has permeated our modern culture in surprising ways. Your favorite fake British friends recap the novel and talk in depth about Edward's breath, Bella's clumsiness, and if Alice is the true MVP. Listen to follow along and hear their ratings of the wine and the book! 

Reading Content: Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

Drinking Content: Carnivor Cabernet Sauvignon