Fiction – John Paul Jaramillo

On Roughness, Recurrence, and the Book That Refuses to Behave

I’ve been obsessing lately over what to call the book I’m finishing. Not just in the practical publishing sense, though that’s part of it. I mean in the deeper craft sense. What is this thing I’ve made? Is it a novel-in-stories? A composite novel? A short story cycle? Or is it simply a book of stories thatContinue reading “On Roughness, Recurrence, and the Book That Refuses to Behave”

Hamnet (2025) — The Most Emotional Film I’ve Seen in Years

I don’t say this lightly: Hamnet might be the most immersive and emotional film I’ve seen in years. Not because it’s manipulative, not because it tries to wring tears out of you with dramatic speeches or swelling music—but because it does the opposite. It stays quiet. It stays human. Directed by Chloé Zhao and co-written with Maggie O’Farrell, Hamnet is a slow,Continue reading “Hamnet (2025) — The Most Emotional Film I’ve Seen in Years”

Who Gets to Speak–James by Percival Everett

Years ago—long before James existed as a book—I taught Huckleberry Finn the way I had been taught to teach it. Carefully. Respectfully. With all the right caveats. I told students it was complicated. I told them it was “of its time.” I told them Mark Twain was trying. All of that is true. None of it ever quite settledContinue reading “Who Gets to Speak–James by Percival Everett”

date night with ten min plays–the cary grant of san luis–jan 25 (video)

reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo holiday re-run

Reading Books Together: A Podcast with Deborah Brothers & John Paul Jaramillo This December we discuss two Christmas-ritual themed works: Truman Capote’s “A Christmas Memory” and E.T.A. Hoffman’s Nutcracker and the Mouse King. Deborah gives some context for the children’s lit aspects of both selections and John Paul decides we should have read Alexandre Dumas’ The Nutcracker. (He did alsoContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo holiday re-run”

cultural conversations with john paul jaramillo at lincoln land community college library–wed oct 9 (video)

reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 22

Join us this month as we talk about Mat Johnson’s award-winning 2015 novel Loving Day, asatirical look at contemporary USA’s engagement with race, identity, class, and culture.And of course, 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 workContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 22”

reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 21

And we’re back! We skipped a month but in this episode we discuss the novel Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko. John Paul discusses his love affair with the book and his awe in the structure, and Deborah discusses cultural myth, the sacred feminine, and cultural heroes. And, of course, we discuss Goodreads’ one-star reviews. –DeborahContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 21”

reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 20

Join us a week late for our April discussion of our March pick of Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House. We talk about confined women, Jane Austen Hallmark movies, cozy horror, and of course, John Paul’s obsession with one-star Goodreads reviews! –Deborah Brothers holds a Ph.D. in English Studies and reviews books for Choice and The LionContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 20”

reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 19

Join us two weeks late for our February 2024 discussion of Ray Bradbury’s 1950 classic The Martian Chronicles. We talk novel-in-stories, colonialism themes, Sci-Fi vs fantasy, and of course, John Paul’s obsession with one-star reviews! –Deborah Brothers holds a Ph.D. in English Studies and reviews books for Choice and The Lion and the Unicorn and her essays, fiction, andContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 19”

reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 17

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 13

Join John Paul Jaramillo and Deborah Brothers for the July edition of “Reading Books Together,” a monthly podcast where we talk about a book we’ve read. We focus our discussion on recurring themes in the life and short fiction of Texas-born writer Katherine Anne Porter, winner of a Pulitzer, a National Book Award, a GoldContinue reading “reading books together: a podcast with deborah brothers and john paul jaramillo episode 13”

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”