Reading Books Together: A Podcast with Deborah Brothers & John Paul Jaramillo Join us this month as we read Bram Stoker’s Dracula, John Paul’s pick for our second annual October “Spooktacular” podcast. Deborah gives three reasons why the book is worthy of reading and more than three reasons why she never wants to have to readContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 15”
Tag Archives: fiction literature
reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 14
Join us this month as we talk about Good Night, Irene: A Novel, Luis Alberto Urrea’s fictionalized account of his mother’s WWII service with the American Red Cross. It is clear Urrea is a poet at heart and his rich descriptions help anchor the reader into Irene and Dorothy’s world and what it takes toContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 14”
reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 12
This month we talk about Brave New World, the classic dystopian novel by Aldous Huxley. We talk about our reactions to the book’s grumpy stylistics as well as its essential ideas and spot-on premonitions. We ramble about connections to Shakespeare and Browning, John Paul reads a few “one star” Goodreads write-ups, and we sum upContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 12”
reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 10
For Febuary’s podcast, no, wait, March’s podcast, John Paul discusses On the Road by Jack Kerouac and Deborah discusses On the Road The Original Scroll by Jack Kerouac. They both discuss Toad from The Wind in the Willows and the importance of long and rambling novels. They also have some fun reading one-star reviews fromContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 10”
reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 9
For January’s podcast, we talk about George Eliot’s 800 page masterpiece in 19th century realism, Middlemarch. We talk about its scope, impact, and Deborah gets mad at John Paul for spoilers while he says, “Spoilers? It was published in 1872!” We also have some fun reading one-star reviews from Goodreads. –Deborah Brothers holds a Ph.D. inContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 9”
reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 8
For December’s podcast, we discuss Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. We talk about Dickens’ background and his poverty. We discuss Patrick Stewart and Mr Magoo. We also have some fun and read one-star reviews from Goodreads. –Deborah Brothers holds a Ph.D. in English Studies and reviews books for Choice and The Lion and the Unicorn and her essays, fiction,Continue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 8”
reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 7
In November’s podcast, we discuss Annie Dillard’s Pilgrim at Tinker Creek. We talk about pantheism and God-searching in the woods. We also have some fun and read one star reviews from Goodreads. –Deborah Brothers holds a Ph.D. in English Studies and reviews books for Choice and The Lion and the Unicorn and her essays, fiction, and scholarly work haveContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 7”
reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 6
In this month’s Halloween Spooktacular, we talk about Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein: the 1818 Text. We discuss science fiction, horror, and organic chemistry as well as Percy Shelley’s gifted heart. –Deborah Brothers holds a Ph.D. in English Studies and reviews books for Choice and The Lion and the Unicorn and her essays, fiction, and scholarly work have appeared in severalContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 6”
reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 5
Radiant Child is a 2016 picture book by author/illustrator Javaka Steptoe. It is a biography of artist Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960-1988) whose work first appeared in NYC in the late 1970s. In this month’s discussion, we talk about picturebooks as a form and the lives and work of both Basquiat and Steptoe, which overlap in several ways. Continue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 5”
reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers & john Paul jaramillo episode 4
Reading Books Together: A Podcast with Deborah Brothers & John Paul Jaramillo Music “Viv” by Joel Styzens from Relax Your Ears John Paul Jaramillo and Deborah Brothers sit for a 40 minute discussion of 2022’s novel Woman of Light by Kali Fajardo-Anstine. The August “Reading Books Together” podcast discusses young people and reading, historical fiction and ColoradoContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers & john Paul jaramillo episode 4”
reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers & john paul jaramillo–episode 1 may 2022
Reading Books Together: A Podcast with Deborah Brothers & John Paul Jaramillo Music “Viv” by Joel Styzens from Relax Your Ears For their first foray into book review podcasts, Deborah Brothers and John Paul Jaramillo feature the 2021 novel by Canadian-American author Ruth Ozeki, The Book of Form and Emptiness. They discuss aspects of postmodernism metafiction, Buddhism, and bildungsroman.Continue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers & john paul jaramillo–episode 1 may 2022”
a visual history of chicano/a/x literature site
So pleased to be included in A VISUAL HISTORY OF CHICANO/A/X LITERATURE site https://faculty.ucmerced.edu/mmart…/index_files/vh2017.htm
quick review/recommendation–consider this: moments in my writing life after which everything was different (2020)
Chuck Palahniuk’s new book might be one of the most down to earth texts on the craft of writing. And I’ve long admired Palahniuk and his craft of writing–his fiction and his non-fiction. And back in the day when I started teaching fiction, I started using his lessons from litreactor.net and his compiled 36 WritingContinue reading “quick review/recommendation–consider this: moments in my writing life after which everything was different (2020)”
quick note–twin peaks, juan rulfo and spirit world voices
After a long semester of teaching I found some time to indulge in studying the novella Pedro Paramo by Juan Rulfo. I’ve been an admirer of Rulfo’s career and this book reads as a tremendous progression from his short stories I was introduced to in his book The Burning Plain. What I found in this work is aContinue reading “quick note–twin peaks, juan rulfo and spirit world voices”
quick review of junot díaz’ this is how you lose her
I’ve long read and admired Junot Diaz‘ style of prose. I’m almost embarrassed to say how much I’ve modeled my own work after his. This latest collection of work contains all the themes of trouble and failure at its heart. And also the redemption. I continue to admire how the work follows a consistent universeContinue reading “quick review of junot díaz’ this is how you lose her”