There Will Be Books

We are back this week talking about one of Matt's desert island books. "A Question of Upbringing" is challenging too describe and even recommend broadly, but as we discuss characters, themes, and plot lines we find there is so much to enjoy and love from this 20th century classic. A rewarding read that favors a curious and patient reader. As always, thanks for listening and supporting us. Enjoy!

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Spring is upon us and what better way to celebrate than to add to our TBR? This month we decided to add a "dad bio" and a bestseller to our TBR but the real question is did we add just two books? Lots of fun this week, with a great list of books discussed. Matt's question to everybody is, "Are we at a TBR tipping point?" As always thanks for listening and supporting us!

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It's that time again, to pick our favorites from the last year. What was our favorite book? Who wrote our favorite prose? Who was the best villain? Join us for our annual Book Oscars! We have those categories plus lots more. Let us know if you agree or disagree with our selections by reaching out to us on our socials. As always thanks for listening!

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Are we clowns? Do we not discuss books in a serious enough manner? We discuss these questions plus two more short works from Franz Kafka and Paul Bowles. And finally, we nominate books for March. In typical fashion, we select more than one book! Thanks for listening!

Books added to TBR:

Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse

My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante

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We are back with a jam packed episode. First off, we discuss the massive 2005 hit, "The Historian" by Elizabeth Kostova. We gave inklings that one of us didn't like the book and Peter details why. Next, we discuss the essay "Fear and Loathing at the Super Bowl" by Hunter S Thompson. We discuss the writer vs the persona. And finally, we give our predictions for our latest thriller book, "The Nine Tailors" by Dorothy Sayers. Lots to discuss and debate. Such as, "do you agree with Peter's opinion on The Historian?" And "Is Matt plain?

Thanks as always for listening and supporting us.

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We have a fantastic novel to discuss this week. Laurent Binet's debut novel "HHhH" has been on both our radars since its release over a decade ago and our high expectations were met and exceeded by this brilliant, thrilling, and important book. We highly recommend this book and we hope you enjoy our conversation about all things "HHhH."

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We came in with a plan to add some shorter works to our TBR, and because of Matt's ear infection and because Peter can't help himself, we added two novellas and six essays/short stories. Reasonable, right? Lots of interesting nominations this week so be sure to grab a pen and paper. As always thanks for listening. Enjoy!

Jan/Feb TBR Additions:

Notes from Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky

Breakfast at Tiffany’s by Truman Capote

“Fear and Loathing at the Super Bowl” by Hunter S. Thompson

“The Hyena” by Paul Bowles

“The Truth is a Cave in the Black Mountains” by Neil Gaiman

“John Wayne: A Love Story” by Joan Didion

“Before the Law” by Franz Kafka

“Prisoner of Shelves” by Christopher Hitchens

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It's beyond cold outside and we've both been under the weather but we are back this week with our annual Flashman episode! We are discussing the fourth book in the series, "Flashman at the Charge." Perhaps the best of the series so far and a possible jumping off point for new readers to the series. We gush over George MacDonald Fraser's creation, and dive deep into what makes it such a rewarding series. Plus, Matt makes an analogy he promises to repeat in 2024.

Thanks for listening!

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We are back after a busy holiday season to talk Christmas movies, both good and bad. This year we both watched the 2000 movie, Reindeer Games. We discuss if the movie was as bad as everybody said and more. And finally, Peter discusses the stack of books he hauled and Matt talks about the mammoth book he got for Christmas. Another fun episode in the books. Also, let us know if you got any books over the holiday season.

Thanks for listening!

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To close out another great year of book nominations, our December nominations are the best group yet. We could have picked a half dozen books to add to our TBR but we settled on a classic.

We also discuss Napoleon's education, attempt insightful analogies, and discuss upcoming Patreon content.

Thanks for listening and enjoy!

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We are back this week to wrap up Burr by Gore Vidal. To finish up this entertaining and informative novel, we discuss Burr's duel with Hamilton and his treason charge. We discuss Vidal's plausible theories that he puts forth during this fascinating chapter in American history. High recommend for historical fiction fans. Enjoy!

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We're back after a week off, and ready to talk books, or is that missing crockpot lids or egg yolk in coffee or free range pork. Never mind, we begin with randomness before getting to some exciting news from Matt and thats all before getting to selecting a November book. This time we turned our attention to the world of Non-fiction and selected a very interesting title. As always, thanks for listening and enjoy!

November Book

The Poison King by Adrienne Mayor

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As baseball celebrates another World Series champion, we decided awhile ago to read the classic baseball book, "Ball Four" by Jim Bouton. A sensation, when it was released in 1970, we discuss how much Bouton's book still shocks and what seems relatively tame nowadays. A must read for baseball fans but Bouton's talent as a writer makes for an interesting read for not just the devoted fans of America's pastime. Along the way, we discuss our history with baseball, favorite moments, and biggest heartbreaks. Enjoy!

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Many moons ago Matt's dad insisted with we read "Jayber Crow" by Wendell Berry, and this week we are ready to discuss this fantastic book and author. A great book to take your time reading, we unpack the life philosophies Berry seems to hold true as well as praise the beautiful prose and character development. A fantastic author that we hope to return too in the near future. And finally, we end the episode by coming up with prop bets for our newest thriller! Join us over on our Patreon for more content including our Thriller Book Club.

Thanks for listening and enjoy this weeks episode.

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We begin this week with Matt trolling, Peter vowing to nominate sad books for six months, and end with our annual October tradition of nominating scary books. And as is wont to happen from time to time, we add more than one book this month! Thanks for listening. Enjoy!

Books selected:

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

The Black Spider by Jeremias Gotthelf

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We begin this week with a tale as old as time....cutting up couches. From there we dive into the brilliant 2013 novel, 'The Son' by Philipp Meyer. This is our second Meyer novel that we have covered on the podcast and it's safe to say we are big fans! So much to unpack in this sprawling epic novel and we had a great time diving in. We highly recommend this novel and hope you enjoy this episode.

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We are very grateful to welcome back author, R.J. Jacobs back onto the podcast this week. His fantastic new dark academia murder mystery novel, "This is How We End Things," was recently released and we had a great time discussing the newest book and all things writing. We think you'll enjoy this one. Thanks for listening and happy reading.

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We combined two episodes into one this week. First, we nominate some legal thrillers for our thriller book club that we have a great time doing over on our patreon. (No pressure to join but our patreons get exclusive episodes and help us select books to read) And finally we nominate and select a new September book to read. Fun episode all around. Hope you enjoy!

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Special episode this week, we are joined by Rustin Dodd, co-author of the book "Kingdom Quarterback." This fascinating new book looks at the rise of star quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, and the history of Kansas City. We discuss the troubled history of suburban development in Kansas City, how the Chiefs became Super Bowl champions, and much more. We recommend this book to both sports fans and history buffs. Enjoy the interview.

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We begin this week with Matt's wife questioning Peter's taste in books. All in good fun! And then we begin a very fun and interesting discussion on the first half of the 1973 Gore Vidal novel, "Burr." If you are in anyway a fan of historical fiction, Vidal is a great author to read. We delve into Burr's historical importance and how Vidal created a compelling and entertaining novel based on Burr's life. Hope you enjoy this week's episode. Thanks for listening!

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We begin with a discussion about parking courtesy and shift to discuss the best selling author, Nicholas Sparks and his book, "Nights in Rodanthe." This is our first entry in a series we like to call, reading out of our comfort zone. Best selling romance is not usually our kind of book, and in hindsight we probably picked a dud of an example. But we had loads to discuss, including the 2008 movie adaptation starring Richard Gere and Dianne Lane. Which did we like better?

Also, we will probably do this series again, so send in some titles of books you think would be out of our comfort zone. Social media links below.

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When you have an overflowing TBR the best thing to do is to select more books. Right?! We already have the next in the Flashman series to add but we decided to add another book, too. A very long list of books were discussed and a surprising selection was made. As always books weren't the only things discussed. Side topics included; wasps, insect spray, heat stroke, camping, and audio book narrators. Sounds fun right? Enjoy!

Books Selected:

Flashman at the Charge by George MacDonald Fraser

The King David Report by Stefan Heym

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This week we had the great joy of talking books, authors, and so much more with author and podcaster Brad Kelly. There really is nothing better than talking books, reading history, favorite authors, etc. We end with Brad discussing his writing process. This was such a fun episode that we could have gone on for hours more. And finally, make sure to listen to "Art of Darkness," the podcast Kelly co-hosts and pick up his novel "House of Sleep."

Links to all things Brad Kelly:

https://www.youtube.com/@artofdarkpod

https://www.bradkellyesque.com/

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It's been about a year since we selected this fantasy classic, but we are ready (Matt's been ready, it's Peter whose been reading too many library books on the side) to discuss the first book in the series, "The Sword in the Stone." But first we get sidetracked by chili and sports analytics. Listen to fully understand the way our brains work: books, sports, and chili. Great episode this week, discussing a great book. Enjoy!

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We begin this week with a surprise book haul from Matt! After that we discuss "52 Pickup" by Elmore Leonard, a lesser known novel from the legendary writer but a very good novel none the less. Also, Peter discusses his first impressions of Leonard and why ultimately he is such a fantastic writer. Thanks for listening and we hope you enjoy the episode!

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We begin this week with a look inside the mind of Matt. And from there we find out the internet agrees with Matt and disapproves of Peter's anti-footnote crusade. The bulk of this episode is the good old monthly book nomination and selection process. From there we come up with prop bets for are upcoming read, "Nights in Rodanthe." All around a great episode. Hope you enjoy!

Books Nominated:

Golf in the Kingdom by Michael Murphy

In the Skin of a Lion by Michael Ondaatje

The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood

*A Question of Upbringing by Anthony Powell

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett

Any Human Heart by William Boyd

Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami

The Sisters Brothers by Patrick DeWitt

*The Son by Philip Meyer

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This week we're back with another discussion about a David Foster Wallace essay. This time there is some controversy! Did Peter actually read the essay if he didn't read the footnotes? Also, we discussed Fourth of July movies and drinking six cups of coffee. Finally, we are joined by Matt's extremely intelligent and thoughtful brother. Fun episode all around. Enjoy!

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A little bit of everything on this weeks episode. Peter is left disappointed by a recent read, and Matt talks about C.S. Lewis. For the main bulk of the episode, we give our updated thoughts on "Homo Deus." Finally, we come up with prop bets and talk through predictions for our upcoming thriller book club. Thanks for listening, and enjoy!

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This week we are diving into the 1964 book, "A Moveable Feast," by Ernest Hemingway. So much to talk about when discussing Hemingway, and we delve into the book but also Hemingway in general. A very entertaining episode, and not our last Hemingway episode by any means. Enjoy!

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This week we're discussing Robertson Davies' novel, "The Manticore," and surprisingly one of us liked it and the other did not. Division on the podcast! And finally, we pick a June book from a list of nominations that are out of left field. We go through a good list of books we wouldn't normally nominate in the hopes of trying something new. Where we end up may surprise you....Nicholas Sparks is that you? (Side note; in classic fashion we mispronounce our selection for the entire podcast. Oh well.) As always loads of tangents, featuring Taylor Swift, Adele, and audiobooks. Enjoy!

Nominations:

The Bridges of Madison County by Robert James Waller

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Leaving the Atocha Station by Ben Lerner

Nights in Rodanthe by Nicholas Sparks

Can You Keep a Secret? By Sophie Kinsella

The Man You’ll Marry by Debbie Macomber

Another Woman by Penny Vincenzi

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Special episode this week, we are joined by Aldous Asterion, host of the podcast, "The Forest of Symbols." Asterion helps us unpack Cormac McCarthy's 1979 classic novel, "Suttree." Join us as we delve deep in the novel and McCarthy in general. We had a great time discussing this surprisingly humorous novel with the very knowledgeable, Aldous Asterion. We hope you enjoy the episode, and make sure you check out Asterion's podcast, "The Forest of Symbols."

This week we're back with one of our favorite authors, Dawn Powell! Criminally, underrated and under read, Powell's novel, "A Time to Be Born," is a fantastic novel full of satire, sharp criticism, and supreme prose. We hope more people pick up Powell's works, and hopefully Penguin or some other major classic imprint will republish all her work. Always fun to discuss Powell, and we hope you enjoy the episode!

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We're back with one of our favorite episodes, the author fantasy baseball draft! Back from his win last year, author Sam Ernst joins us for an extra long episode. New this year, we each pick multiple teams, drawing from specific genres or regions. Listen to find out who gets drafted to the Sci-Fi team, or Literary Fiction Team and tons more. We hope you enjoy!

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Jam packed episode this week, Peter goes through the books he read in April from the library, lots of good recommendations. Then we have a discussion on our initial thoughts on Yuval Noah Harari's book, "Homo Deus." And finally we pick a May book to add to our TBR. Enjoy!

Recommends:

The Lost Americans by Christopher Bollen

Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton

This Other Eden by Paul Harding

A Fever in the Heartland by Timothy Egan

May Selection:

52 pickup by Elmore Leonard

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Months ago Peter lost a bet to Matt and consequently Peter had to read a selection of essays from David Foster Wallace. On this episode, we discuss two of those essays, "Consider the Lobster," and "Host." We discuss the essays themselves but also Wallace's famous style. Side note, let us know your feelings on David Foster Wallace. He certainly lends himself to healthy debate. And finally, we select our latest books to add to our TBR. A varied selection was nominated and we struggled to pick just one.....so we picked two. Enjoy!

Book Nominations

*A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway

Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell

The Last Picture Show by Larry McMurtry

The Cousins’ Wars by Kevin Phillips

Straw Dogs by John Gray

The Culture of Narcissism by Christopher Lasch

*Homo Deus by Yuval Noah Harari

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A little while back we added some short stories to our TBR and on this episode we discuss our selections. Listen as we discuss short stories from Kate Chopin, P. G. Wodehouse, and Shirley Jackson. Fun times all around!

Short Stories:

The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

The Storm by Kate Chopin

Honeysuckle Cottage by P.G. Wodehouse

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We have a fun one this week! We are putting on our tuxes and hosting our 2nd Book Oscars. We have a great list of categories this year, covering all the books we read from last year. So sit back and enjoy as select our Best Author, Best Book, Best Scene, and so much more! Also, if that wasn't enough at the end we select a book for March. Thanks for listening!

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This week we are delving into Nathaniel Hawthorne's 1852 novel, "The Blithedale Romance." We didn't know what to expect going into this novel, and we both were surprised by how relevant the novel still is. We discuss the central themes to the book, including why utopian societies usually fail. A very fun and interesting conversation about a book you might not have heard about. 

This weeks independent bookstore shoutouts:

People's Co-Op Bookstore- Vancouver, British Columbia

Amatoria Fine Art Books- Sacramento, California

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I'm not sure how to describe this one, sure there is lots of book talk, including some interesting recommendations, but there is also a rant about Game of Thrones season 8 and a rant about Aaron Rodgers. So I guess that's par for the course. Also, we answer some listener questions, discuss the upcoming Dennis Lehane novel, and Matt reviews the books he reads to his kid. Really fun episode, enjoy!

Independent Book Stores mentioned:

Time Tested Books; Sacramento, California

Collins Books; Seattle, Washington

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As much of the Midwest braces for a monster winter storm, what better way to pass the time than with some insightful and fun book talk. This week we have a jam packed episode as we discuss Guy Gavriel Kay's novel, "All the Seas of the World," set prop bets for our newest thriller book, and pick a few short stories to tide us over for February. As always, enjoy!

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Special episode this week, as we were lucky enough to interview author Dale A. Jenkins and discuss his book "Diplomats & Admirals." Jenkins' book goes in depth on the failed diplomacy between the USA and Japan, and then moves forward to the attack on Pearl Harbor and the book culminates with the Battle of Midway. We both agree this book is full of fascinating facts and conclusions, well worth the time of any WWII history buff. We hope you enjoy this interview as we discuss the book in detail.

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An epic episode this week, in fact it was such a great episode we had to record over 2 nights! In truth, we had technical difficulties but we persevered and made a very good episode. This week we're talking Matt's chili recipe, reading emails, shouting out used bookstores, picking books to read in January, and discussing the great Olga Tokarczuk novel, "Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead." Just an overall jam packed episode. Enjoy!

Indie Bookstores to check out!

• Words of Windsor (Windsor, Colorado)

https://www.wordsofwindsor.com/

• Dog-Eared Books (Raleigh, North Carolina)

https://www.dogearedbooksnc.com/

Books nominated:

Claudius the God by Robert Graves

The Manticore by Robertson Davies

Ripley Under Ground by Patricia Highsmith

Queen’s Play by Dorothy Dunnett

City of Bohane by Kevin Barry

Train Dreams by Denis Johnson

A Time to be Born by Dawn Powell

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Judging from the title you'd guess this was an episode looking back on our year in reading and looking ahead. You'd be partially right. We do discuss those things but we begin with Matt's beautiful mind as he postulates that the term G.O.A.T comes from David Foster Wallace. From there we discuss, Harrison Ford, The Godfather, The Office (David Wallace) and LL Cool J. Sound confusing? Enjoy!!!

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Happy Holidays! We're finishing up the year talking about books we got on Christmas and we review a couple classic holiday movies! We had fun on this one and in classic style Peter thought this was a Patreon episode and Matt thought it was regular....so we decided to release it to everybody! Thanks for listening to us this year and hopefully you continue to check us out in the new year.

Enjoy!

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In this episode, Peter discusses his peak reading out loud phase, Matt and his mom agree on "All the Pretty Horses," and a new book is added to the TBR. Of course, there's lots more that we discuss, including Peter losing another bet and some early 2023 reading goals. Enjoy!

Book added to TBR:

The Blithedale Romance by Nathaniel Hawthorne

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Really the title says it all. We begin with sports talk, where one of us has a good team and the other does not. Is Matt being nice? Then we move onto literary criticism, as we discuss a 1960 Gore Vidal essay on Norman Mailer. And finally, we continue a tradition of picking a holiday movie to watch, this time going back to the 1940's. If you like this type of episode give our Patreon a try and thanks for listening!

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We're recording this right before Thanksgiving, giving us a chance to stand up for Thanksgiving food! After praising pies and casseroles, we discuss some recent books we've been reading on the side and giving out some gift ideas for the holidays. Finally, we pick our November book. It's a jammed pack episode this week and we hope you enjoyed your holidays with food and books!

Holiday Book Recommends:

An Immense World by Ed Yong

Life on the Mississippi by Rinker Buck

King of the Jews by Nick Tosches

Black Snow by James Scott

Shrines of Gaiety by Kate Atkinson

Stories from the Tenants Downstairs by Sidik Fofana

Breathless by David Quammen

The Escape Artist by Jonathan Freedland

November selection:

All the Seas of the World by Guy Gavriel Kay

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We took a trip back to our childhoods this week, as we read Alvin Schwartz's classic horror collection "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark." We discuss what makes a story scary and what kind of stories scare us the most. In addition, we praise the artwork of Stephen Gammell, read aloud selections, and more. Also, please let  us know what your favorite story is from the collection. Enjoy!

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After so many episodes it might be surprising to know we have not done a Shakespeare episode, we change that tonight! We dive into A Midsummer Night's Dream, discuss theories on the play, our history, and experiences with it and a whole lot more. Enjoy!

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We planned on doing a normal book club nomination episode, but somewhere along the way we get very sidetracked! Don't worry we do select an October book and add in some added criteria for reading this months scary selection. We think you'll like it! As for the rest of the episode...Enjoy!!

October Book Selection:

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz

*Bonus Thriller*

Always the First to Die by R.J. Jacobs

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