Literary Disco

Three Day Road is an award-winning Canadian novel centered on First Nation characters. It’s been heralded for celebrating forgotten heroes: natives who fought for Canada during World War I. But recently, it’s author Joseph Boyden, has come under scrutiny regarding his claims of aboriginal heritage. And so, on this episode of the Disco, we tackle some of the thorny issues surrounding cultural appropriation… Who has “the right” to pen books of marginalized peoples? Does the ethnicity of an author matter? When? Who decides? We’d love to hear your thoughts, so jump onto our Facebook page. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Forget what you think you know about Thor and Loki, and join the Disco trio to talk about Neil Gaiman’s latest: a retelling of Norse Mythology. Tod is bored, Rider rants, and Julia keeps her cool as the content of the Gaiman’s book is quickly abandoned in favor of discussing myths in general. Tod: “Why read about a bunch of fake gods?” Rider: “As opposed to the ‘real’ ones?” And, it’s on… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After some technical difficulties (uh, Tod) we now have another Lost Episode. Goodbye, 104, we barely knew ya. So we’re jumping right to 105, in which, for the first time besides our live shows, the Literary Disco gang recorded in the same room! We discuss Kevin Smokler’s insightful survey of 1980s teen films, Brat Pack America. This great book explores the history, meaning and legacy of a series of films that had a huge impact on more than one generation of Americans. Even Julia, who was way too young to see any of them in the theater, has a lot to say. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You read it in high school. Or college. It was that “important” book about the dangers of authoritarianism. An interesting, alternative future. A distant possibility. Maybe not anymore? The Disco trio discuss… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Just like you, we’re on an Octavia Butler kick since reading Dawn. This episode, we check out the brand-new graphic novel adaptation of Butler’s masterpiece Kindred. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tod, Julia and Rider answer questions from listeners. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Back from a long absence, we explain where we were, what we were doing, and what you should have been reading all along. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s that time again. Tod and Julia discuss summer reading…and introduce a contest for Episode 100. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Back by popular demand — games! As we near the big 100, we take some time to play a few Literary Disco classics. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode, we enter the compelling world of Octavia E. Butler’s Dawn, the first in her Xenogenesis series. That’s right, we’re going full sci-fi. Post-apocalypse, aliens, tentacles and even…interspecies orgies? This little novel sends us down a rabbit hole of slavery, feminism, and the ethics of alien meddling. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For the first time on the Disco, we discuss a book on the craft of writing. We delve into a new collection of essays by some of the world’s great memoirists. Why We Write About Ourselves: Twenty Memoirists on Why They Expose Themselves (and Others) in the Name of Literature is edited by Meredith Maran and includes pieces by Darin Strauss, Cheryl Strayed, Anne Lamott and more. These essays are brief, interesting glimpses behind the curtain; a chance to see how some writers approach their material. And, perhaps not surprisingly, the process and philosophy varies greatly from writer to writer. [No, it’s not your speakers, please excuse the horrible sound quality from Rider’s microphone] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This month we read a nonfiction classic about the movies that changed Hollywood– hear us battle it out between Dr. Dolittle and Bonnie & Clyde. Oscar season is over but we’re not done talking about it! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode we discuss an essay by Colby Buzzell appearing in the March Issue of Esquire, available here. Buzzell offers a look at the life of American Muslims and the armed protestors who regularly appear outside of their mosques. While he aims for objectivity, Buzzell’s personal history becomes unavoidable: he served in the military, where he actually shot at mosques… An interesting look at a tense subject. We dive in headfirst. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Just in time for the end of the year… Oh, wait. Super late, we have our annual “best of” conversation for 2015! We cover our favorite books, and then, as is Literary Disco tradition, we digress into countless other favorites… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy holidays! For this winter season, we got you an extra episode (to make up for our many delays this year– we blame Rider’s cute baby and Julia’s incredible myriad of technical issues). We got you what you like best: a book we were shocked by. Join us for a Christmas-themed romance novel around the fire! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We continue our discussion with New York Public librarian Gwen, who recommended two books for us to read and discuss. Both are aimed at a younger audience but with an eye to gender and identity. George, by Alex Gino, is a coming of age story set in your typical American school and family. It just so happens our protagonist is a girl that everyone keeps assuming is a boy. Gino tackles a difficult subject in a direct and personal way, and we discuss the hurdles that may face a transgender novel written for middle-grade readers. The graphic novel Lumberjanes is similar only in that it defies gender expectations. Without ever being “issue” driven, this fun, adventurous, and beautifully drawn series of comics completely won us over. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this first half of two-part special (we’re crazy like that), we meet someone with the coolest job in the world: a recommendations editor at the New York Public Library. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Justine, the first book of the legendary Alexandria Quartet, gets the disco treatment. This novel was published in 1957 and has attracted devotees ever since. Told from the perspective of an unnamed narrator, it’s a non-linear, intense examination of the city of Alexandria, Egypt, and a particular woman who lives there. Tod, Julia and Rider all agree it is dense, overwritten, and largely plot-less. Are these strengths or weaknesses? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We catch up from a long break. Some books, some travel, some major humiliation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This posthumous collection is getting so much praise lately– does it live up to the hype? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A long-lost episode finally appears! Rider tries to trick Tod & Julia with a classic game of ours. You should be able to guess at least one of these: play along! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After a brief hiatus, we’re back and we’re live! This episode has it all: nudity, cursing, Ayn Rand. Have fun and laugh along like you were there. (Episode 84 will come out next– we’re nonconformists like that.) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You asked for it. We don’t know why, but you did. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vacation is upon us and our book lists are piling up! As Rider enjoys his vacation, what will Julia & Tod be reading next? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s officially summer, which means we too are officially given over to Marvel and DC madness. Now that our lives are all superheroes all the time (or so it seems in the movie theaters), we discuss our favorite superheros and Nick Harkaway’s fascinating novel, “Tigerman.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After a long and beautiful vacation, we’re back! And we’re busy discussing one of the year’s breakout nonfiction books, The Empathy Exams by Leslie Jamison. But not before we do a bookshelf roulette that brings us to favorites old and new. That’s right, we’ve got a book so new you can’t read it yet– but you’ll want to. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we read William Grill’s Shackleton’s Journey, an illustrated book for children that covers a famous expedition to Antarctica that began in 1914. It’s an interesting intersection of cold facts and beautiful drawings. And it left us feeling hopeful, despite the fact that the journey itself was a failure. Up first, a Children’s Book themed Bookshelf Revisit, in which we each pull down a favorite — and weird, they’re all weird — kid’s book. But most importantly, this is the episode where Tod reveals his secret passion project involving food. That’s right, we actually get him to talk publicly about…Goldburgers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We finally take on the young detective Nancy Drew with her first adventure, The Secret of the Old Clock Much like our Hardy Boys episode, there is some confusion about the setting (less wig shops this time), the criminals, and the overall feeling that the “mystery” ain’t that mysterious. (Hint: there’s a secret in the old clock.) And who knew that this much discussion of probate law would launch one of the most beloved and imitated characters of all time? But up first: should you ever be ashamed of what you read? We read and discuss the side-by-side essays that asked this question in The New York Times Book Review. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We are joined this week by rising superstar Jill Alexander Essbaum (author of New York Times bestseller “Hausfrau”). Just in time for Easter, we discuss sexy religious poetry, her book, and a poetry collection you’ve never heard of: “Interrobang” by Jessica Piazza. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here we go again. No genre, subject, or style is as hotly debated as Story Songs. At least there’s no baseball this time. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An incident with a gun. A disfigured game designer. His play-by-mail roleplaying game. A death. A lawsuit. That’s all we’ll give away in an attempt not to spoil the strange and beautiful new novel that is Wolf in White Van by John Darnielle. Yes, we mispronounce his name for the first half of the show. And yes, none of us really know his music (he’s the lead singer and songwriter for the band, The Mountain Goats) but by the end of this episode, we certainly give props to John Darnielle for this incredible debut novel. We only picked up this book thanks to YOUR recommendations over at the Literary Disco Goodreads Group, and man, are we glad we listened to you guys (thank you Anastasia, Terry, Bree, and Sonnet). Keep ’em coming! Click here to purchase from an independent bookseller Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We couldn’t resist discussing an incredible essay by Chris Offutt that appeared in The New York Times Magazine. It’s entitled My Dad, The Pornographer. You can guess what it’s about. To give us some context, we reached back into the archives and pulled out two of Offutt’s short stories from his first collection Kentucky Straight. Fathers, sons, the American south, writing, sex, and death. All the ingredients of a classic Literary Disco episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we examine whether or not every work by a master is a masterpiece. There may be some yelling. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How do movies affect us? How can we best write about them? Do we think in movie narratives now? What are the best books about movies? The gang tackles these pertinent questions while zipping through Tara Ison’s fun and creative essay collection. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We start off the year with a book that was hailed as one of the best of 2014: Jenny Offill’s The Department of Speculation. What’s the line between beautiful and pretentious, we ask? Plus, a revisit that jumps from comedy memoir to philosophy you’ll never read. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2014 is coming to a close, and we take a moment to answer life’s big questions: what was the best thing we read for the podcast this year? What was the best thing we read outside of it? Have Julia & Rider read Tod’s book? What is Rider’s big announcement? And who exactly is our man of mystery, producer Tucker Ives? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You will probably be given this book for Christmas, so let us pre-judge it for you! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can the man who wrote “In Cold Blood” deliver a warm-blooded holiday tale? What are Julia, Tod, and Rider thankful for this year? Is it possible to cheat at “Judging a Book By Its Cover”? These questions may or may not be answered in this holiday episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, at your request, dear listeners, we take on one of the silliest, most lovable books in the known universe. We discuss the difference between satire and parody, South Park, and a rare unanimous agreement on the best satirical living writer in America. And finally we get around to discussing “A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy,” a favorite of yours when you were eleven. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Get out the tissues. This episode, we head straight for emotional jugular, as we read Edward Hirsch’s devastating poem about the life and death of his son, Gabriel. Hirsch may make us cry (and yes, that means each of us, many times) but we are also awed by his craft and uplifted by this ambitious poem. Up first, we each talk about our favorite father-son work of literature. Rider goes Searching for Bobby Fischer, Julia embraces a Long Day’s Journey and Tod heads to Empire Falls. Click here to purchase from an independent bookseller Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What’s really scary? Zombies, ghosts, vampires– or bizarre novels about torture based on true events? For this year’s Halloween episode, we welcome our expert in horror, Stephen Graham Jones. We begin with some fun stuff, like why it took zombies so long to catch on, and what the next zeitgesity beast might be. Then we asked Stephen to select a horror book for us to read. He picked a doozy. Hitherto unknown to all three of your Disco hosts, The Girl Next Door is without a doubt the most disturbing, controversial novel we’ve read. It’s well written, beautifully structured, and yet, will make you wish you never started it. Join us, and please share your thoughts on our Facebook Page. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When she was 13, Wendy C. Ortiz started “dating” her 28 year-old English teacher. In her new memoir, Excavation, she returns to the years she spent maintaining this secret relationship. It’s a disarming look at a tough adolescence. Ortiz manages to capture not only her own disorienting emotions, but also — as Tod and Rider will attest — an incredibly accurate portrait of life in the San Fernando Valley in the ’80s. But first, it’s a Bookshelf Roulette. And Julia regales us with stories of sleepwalking… Click here to purchase from an independent bookseller Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A Pulitzer Prize winner none of us had read, Tinkers is a short, innovative, and compelling novel, first released in 2009. Join us as we discuss death vigils, hermits, epilepsy, and depressed mothers. Not to be missed: Tod cries. Really, he cries. Up first, the return of the Bookshelf Revisit. Rider delves into Celine Dion. Tod talks about going Against Football. And Julia buys the new David Mitchell. Click here to purchase from an independent bookseller Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ahoy! For this very special episode, Tod & Julia talk about her trip aboard the Charles W. Morgan, Moby-Dick, and the difference between boats and ships. Followed by a piece Julia wrote aboard the Morgan. Enjoy this unique back-to-school special! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Summer’s over and it’s time to get serious– grab a raft and float down a river while listening to us take on the Mark Twain classic, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week the Disco Trio heads to their tablets and phones. The Atavist publishes digital essays, articles and books. One of their latest, most experimental pieces was written by Hari Kunzru. Twice Upon a Time is equal parts poem, musical experience, essay, and memoir. The discussion begins with the piece itself, then moves to the broader question of form. Should we be swiping and listening while we read? Up first, Julia gives a short recap of her time on the open seas. Then it’s a traditional Bookshelf Revisit: Rider talks about his time as a werewolf, Julia gets poetic, and Tod loves the 4th of July. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Breece D’J Pancake died in 1979 at the age of 26, but not before writing some legendary short stories. In this episode, we read his collected work and discuss the rural landscape he explored. But first: it’s the return of Klassics Korner with Two K’s. Tod tries to fool Julia and Rider with some Leo Tolstoy by creating a fake paragraph from The Death of Ivan Ilych. Will it work? Click here to purchase from an independent bookseller Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we take on a smart book. Maybe too smart. Rider first stumbled upon Submergence by JM Ledgard when it was given as an example of complex grown up literature within an article about the popularity of Young Adult work. The trio decided to give it a try, and are pretty unanimous in its brilliance. But does brilliance make a book meaningful? Or…fun? Specifically, the group discusses how the worldliness and scientific complexity of Submergence might not be enough to make up for its minimal plot. Up first, the triumphant return of Judging a Book by Its Cover. Will the trio be able to tell things about a book from the first paragraph? Will they maybe know exactly which book it is? Tune in to find out. Click here to purchase from an independent bookseller Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s time for more poetry. And much to Tod’s chagrin, the words “Mother” and “Father” appear a lot in this collection. Undeniably, however, the poems of W.E. Butts collected in The Cathedral of Nervous Horses are thoughtful, touching, and all around damn good. The Disco trio discusses his work, and then more generally, the mysterious life of working-class poets — those who dedicate their days writing in a form that barely gets any recognition. But first up, a Bookshelf Roulette. Rider catches a Paris Trout, Tod gets hip-hoppy, and Julia stumbles on Didion once again. Click here to purchase from an independent bookseller Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Before there was the Hunger Games, there was the Lottery. And not the fun kind. This week, we take on a newly published Shirley Jackson story and mix in a revisit to her classic short story “The Lottery”– which, incredibly, Rider has never read. Read along with these short stories and enjoy our descent into our usual madness (now, with more stoning!). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices