Podcast
Close Reads Podcast
Hosted by Goldberry Studios · EN
Close Reads is a book-club podcast for the incurable reader co-hosted by David Kern, Heidi White, Sean Johnson, and occasionally Tim McIntosh. We read good books and talk about them.
This is a show for amateurs in the best sense. This is not an experts show: we’re book lovers, book enthusiasts. Our goal is have empathetic and intelligent conversations about good books.
Close Reads is produced by Goldberry Studios, the podcast wing of Goldberry Books, a family-run indie bookshop in Concord, NC.
closereads.substack.com
closereads.substack.com
18episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
The Feast: Tuesday
May 2701:09:29Tap to summarizeWelcome back to another conversation about Margaret Kennedy’s The Feast. This week we begin by discussing some audience comments, then we discuss a number of topics, including poor Bruce and his bad decisions, Mrs Gifford vs Mrs Cove, and the difference between subtly and cleverness in literature (and whether either are artistic virtues), and more. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe
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The Feast: Monday
May 1800:52:57Tap to summarizeAnd then it was Monday in Margaret Kennedy’s The Feast. This week topics of discussion includes the way the various characters may (or may not) represent the seven deadly sins, which characters we root for the most (and which we despise the most), the question of hope in the story, and much more, as usual. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe
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The Feast: Prologue-Sunday
May 1101:03:03Tap to summarizeWelcome to the first episode of a new series on Margaret Kennedy’s novel, The Feast. We discuss the book’s allegorical bent (and how it’s different than most allegorical novels), the role of each of the main characters, the unique structure of the book (and it’s early reveals), and much more. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe
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The Grapes of Wrath Q&A Episode
May 601:02:35Tap to summarizeYou have questions, we did our best to answer them. Thanks for tuning in to this series on Steinbeck’s classic novel and happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe
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Vipers' Tangle: To the End
Oct 14, 2024Tap to summarizeNow that we’ve read all of Mauriac’s Vipers’ Tangle, we can discuss the details. So in this episode, we dig into the degree to which we can trust the narrator as the novel goes on, the degree to which his children are malicious, and the degree to which he’s truly changed/saved in the end. And so much more. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe
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Vipers' Tangle: Chapters 11-15
Oct 8, 2024Tap to summarizeWelcome back to Close Reads. This week we’re discussing the way Vipers’ Tangle shift gears in this section and what it means for our understanding of the characters, the goals of the book, and our interaction with it. Plus: lots of conversation about Isa and marriage. Happy reading! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe
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Vipers' Tangle: Chapters 6-10
Sep 30, 2024Tap to summarizeWelcome back to Close Reads! This week we discuss why Vipers’ Tangle isn’t better known, the degree to which the book wants to be sympathetic with the narrator, where we’re supposed to trust his perceptions, and some areas the book might fall short of being truly great (to David, anyway). Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe
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Viper's Tangle: Chapters 1-5
Sep 24, 2024Tap to summarizeThis week we kick off a new book with some conversation about Sean’s obsession with Graham Greene, why books about spiritual struggle are so compelling, whether this book has an unreliable narrator, and the difference between a novelist who is Catholic and a Catholic who is a novelist. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe
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