173 - International Literacy Day Observed (Mini Episode)

Summary

SmartLess Presents ClueLess

Episode 173: International Literacy Day Observed (Mini Episode)

Host: Elliott Kalan
Producer/Co-host: Devin Tory Bryant
Air Date: September 15, 2025
Length: ~10 minutes

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Brief Overview

In this International Literacy Day-themed mini-episode, host Elliott Kalan and producer Devin Tory Bryant celebrate literacy and books through playful word puzzles. As the show awaits new full episodes (season 2 is "under construction"), they offer listeners a pair of literary games: a “word cloud” puzzle about a famous novel, and an “Odd One Out” challenge centered on classic books and pen names. Expect puns, quick wit, and trivia infused with the show’s signature irreverent charm.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Intro & Setting the Scene

• Elliott opens with a classic one-liner, setting up the episode’s playful tone:
  “They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder. They don’t say where ugliness is—probably up the beholder’s nose.” (00:31)
• The team addresses technical delays, with season 2 “still under construction,” leading to another bite-sized episode.
  (01:09)

2. International Literacy Day: Purpose & Banter

• Elliott shares background on International Literacy Day (ILD):
  • Established in 1967 by UNESCO
  • Recently, the US left UNESCO:
    “It’s an organization the United States was a member of until July of this year, when we decided we are no longer interested in education, science, or culture.” (02:04)
  • ILD is about promoting peace through literacy:
    “You don’t have time to start a war when you’re trying to finish a book.” (02:21)
• Elliott’s irreverent advice:
  “Instead of listening to this show, you should be reading a book right now.” (02:29)

3. Puzzle #1: Literary Word Cloud (Guess the Book)

• Elliott presents a list of evocative words; listeners are to guess the book:
  “Country. Home. Sea. Ship. Shore. Island. Footprint. Friday. Boat.” (01:18)
• After a pause, the answer is revealed:
  “The Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe. The classic story of a guy shipwrecked on a deserted island. He finds a footprint. It’s his new friend Friday.” (02:40)
• Elliott jokes about how people might get the answer by real island experience:
  “If so, then I can only assume you’ve spent time shipwrecked on a deserted island.” (03:04)

4. Puzzle #2: Odd One Out (Pen Names)

• Elliott lists five classic books/authors:
  1. 1984 by George Orwell
  2. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
  3. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
  4. Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
  5. The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss
     (03:32)
• Elliott delivers a comic, spiraling clarification on the title “The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss”:
  “I mean, that’s the last title. The name of the book is not. And the Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss. It’s just the Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss. I don’t mean the title is just the Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss. You know what I mean…” (03:33)
• After some time (and sponsor breaks), Elliott reveals the answer:
  • The odd one out is “The Grapes of Wrath” because it is the only book not written under a pen name.
  • “George Orwell was really Eric Blair, Mark Twain was Samuel Clemens, Lewis Carroll was Charles Dodgson, and Dr. Seuss was Theodor Geisel. But John Steinbeck, just plain old John Steinbeck, did not care who knew his real name. You can look him up in the phone book.” (06:43)
• Elliott’s suggested rewards:
  • Got it right? “Reward yourself by reading a book you love.”
  • Got it wrong? “Punish yourself by reading a book you hate. All I care about with this is that you read a book.” (07:24)

5. Humorous Literary Side-Bits

• Elliott’s faux book review:
  “And that was Why War Was Not as Good as Peace. The end. Wow, that Tolstoy really knows how to write them. Gripping.” (06:34)
• On the “blank page” in hardcovers:
  “All that’s left is the index and that one blank page every hardcover book has at the back. I never know why it’s there. It seems like a waste of paper.” (07:38)

6. Tease and Close

• Devin reminds listeners: Season 2 of ClueLess is “coming soon.” (07:50)
• Elliott rounds off:
  “Until next week, this has been a Smartless Presents Clueless mini. I’ve been your host, Elliot Kaelin, and I’m about to get down to some more reading. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Wow. This book has everything.” (07:55)

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Memorable Quotes

• Elliott Kalan:
  • “You don’t have time to start a war when you’re trying to finish a book.” (02:21)
  • “If so, then I can only assume you’ve also spent time shipwrecked on a deserted island. Maybe you just got back yesterday. Congratulations. Welcome home.” (03:04)
  • “...he’s just plain old John Steinbeck, did not care who knew his real name. You can look him up in the phone book.” (06:49)
  • “Punish yourself by reading a book you hate. All I care about with this is that you read a book.” (07:25)
• Devin Tory Bryant:
  • “While Elliott’s losing his train of thought, why don’t I remind everybody that Clueless Season 2 will be coming soon.” (07:50)

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Notable Timestamps

• 00:31 – Elliott’s opening quip and introduction to ClueLess.
• 01:18 – Presentation of the International Literacy Day “word cloud” puzzle.
• 02:04 – ILD history and satirical asides about UNESCO.
• 02:40 – Solution to the word cloud puzzle: Robinson Crusoe.
• 03:32 – Introduction to the "Odd One Out" game.
• 06:43 – Reveal: “Grapes of Wrath” is the odd one out (not a pen name).
• 07:38 – Elliott’s musing about the blank page in hardcovers.
• 07:50–07:55 – Announcement about Season 2 and closing remarks.
• 09:15 – IKEA “Department of Rejected dreams” bit.

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Tone & Style

The episode is light-hearted, zippy, and sprinkled with playful literary banter. Elliott’s self-aware wit and comic tangents keep the pace lively, while Devin provides grounding and the occasional gentle push to keep things moving.

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For Listeners Who Haven’t Tuned In

This concise mini-episode, perfectly timed to honor literacy, tosses fun, accessible puzzles your way and wraps them in winking humor. Expect cheeky asides about pen names and classic books, a dose of literary trivia, and the warm, irreverent dynamic between Elliott and Devin. If you love wordplay, odd facts, and the joy of books, this one’s for you.

Transcript

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[Elliot Kaelin]

Smart Glass. They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder. They don't say where ugliness is probably up the beholder's nose. This is Clueless.

[Devin Tory Bryant]

Clueless.

[Elliot Kaelin]

Clueless.

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I'm clueless.

[Elliot Kaelin]

Welcome to Smartless Presents. Clueless, the puzzle podcast that lives life like every episode was its last. I'm your host, Elliot Kaelin, and to prove it, here's my driver's license. Producer Devin what are we doing here this week?

[Devin Tory Bryant]

Well, I don't know if you can hear over all the heavy equipment behind me, but the puzzles and guests For Clueless Season 2 are still under construction. So this week we're gonna have another mini episode.

[Elliot Kaelin]

Great. On today's episode, we're celebrating International Literacy Day, which was technically last week. Today, September 15th is really national Linguine Day. But it's a lot easier to write a puzzle about books than a puzzle about a specific pasta that's basically just deflated spaghetti. Let's start our celebration of last week's holiday with a verbal word cloud puzzle. All of these words relate to a famous book. Try to see how many words it takes for you to guess which book it is. Country. Home. Sea. Ship. Shore. Island. Footprint. Friday. Boat.

[Devin Tory Bryant]

Hey, Elliot, to give the listeners some time to think of the answer, why don't you tell us what National Literacy Day is all about?

[Elliot Kaelin]

Good idea, Producer Devin I'd love to. International Literacy Day is a day for literacy internationally. It was started in 1967 by UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. It's an organization the United States was a member of until July of this year, while when we decided we are no longer interested in education, science, or culture. The purpose of the holiday is to promote peace through literacy because you don't have time to start a war when you're trying to finish a book. Speaking for myself, I love books. I'm glad they have their own International Day. In fact, instead of listening to this show, you should be reading a book right now.

[Devin Tory Bryant]

Okay. That's probably enough. Elliot, why don't you give everyone the answer to that word? Cloud Puzzle.

[Elliot Kaelin]

Whatever you say, producer Devin. To remind you those words were country, home, sea ship, shore, island, Footprint. Friday. Boat. And the answer is the Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe. The classic story of a guy shipwrecked on a deserted island. He finds a footprint. It's his new friend Friday. It was the best selling novel of 1719 and possibly the only novel of 1719. Listener, did you get the answer? If so, then I can only assume you've also spent time shipwrecked on a deserted island. Maybe you just got back yesterday. Congratulations. Welcome home. I can't think of a better way to celebrate your return to civilization than by playing today's main game. Today it's a classic. Odd one out.

[IKEA Spokesperson]

Odd one.

[Devin Tory Bryant]

Which one's the odd one out?

[IKEA Spokesperson]

Get out.

[Elliot Kaelin]

Get out. Get out. That's right. For this odd one out, I'm going to tell you the titles on my International Literacy Day reading list and and you'll tell me which book doesn't belong and why. The books are 1984 by George Orwell, the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, the Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, and the Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss. I mean, that's the last title. The name of the book is not. And the Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss. It's just the Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss. I don't mean the title is just the Cat in the hat by Dr. Seuss. You know what I mean. You've heard of the Cat in the Hat. You know what the title is. So again, they are 1984 by George Orwell, the Adventures of a Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, the Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, the Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss. And to give you time to read all those books so you can answer this question, here is a word from our sponsor. Finding a therapist online is hard enough, but finding one who actually takes your insurance, that's even harder. Ruala is a healthcare company that makes accessing affordable, high quality mental health care easier. They partner with over 100 insurance plans and match users with licensed in network therapists and psychiatrists nationwide based on their goals, preferences and background. No long wait lists, no frustrating back and forth, just personalized care that fits. Plus, Rula sticks with you throughout your journey, checking in to make sure your care is helping you move forward. Appointments are often available as soon as tomorrow, and with most patients paying just $15 per session, sometimes even less, it's care that actually fits your budget, too. Thousands are already using Rula for therapy that's high quality, accessible, and covered by Insurance. Visit rula.com clueless to get started. After signing up, you'll be asked how you heard about them. Let them know this show sent you there. That's r u l a.com clueless because mental health care should work with you, not against your budget.

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[Elliot Kaelin]

Streamline operations and get more done with the Home Depot. How pros get more done welcome back to Smartless Presents. Clueless, the puzzle podcast that knows a lot of big words but doesn't necessarily know what they mean. I'm going to reveal the answer to today's odd one out just as soon as I finish this book I'm reading. And that was why War was Not as Good as Peace. The end. Wow, that Tolstoy really knows how to write them. Gripping. To remind you, the books on my reading list were 1984 by George Orwell, the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, the Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, and the Cat in the hat by Dr. Seuss. Which one is the odd one out? Well, if you said the Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, you are right. Why? It's the only book on the list that wasn't written under a pen name. The literary equivalent of a superhero's secret identity. George Orwell was really Eric Blair, Mark Twain was Samuel Clemens, Lewis Carroll was Charles Dodgson, and Dr. Seuss with Theodore Geisel. But John Steinbeck, just plain old John Steinbeck, did not care who knew his real name. You can look him up in the phone book. Did you get the answer, Listener? If so, reward yourself by reading a book you love. Did you not get the answer? Punish yourself by reading a book you hate. All I care about this is that you read a book. And now we've come to the final chapter of this episode of Clueless. All that's left is the index and that one blank page every hardcover book has at the back. I never know why it's there. It seems like a waste of paper. Yeah.

[Devin Tory Bryant]

While Elliot's losing his train of thought, why don't I remind everybody that Clueless Season 2 will be coming soon.

[Elliot Kaelin]

Thank you, producer Devin, and thank you, listener, for joining us today. Until next week, this has been a Smartless presents Clueless mini. I've been your host, Elliot Kaelin, and I'm about to get down to some more reading. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Wow. This book has everything Clueless, you have been listening to.

[Devin Tory Bryant]

Smartless presents Clueless, a Smartless Media production in association with Sirius xm. Your host is Elliot Kalin, who also writes our scripts. Your producer, editor and engineer is Devin Tory Bryant, who is me. I also write all the music and sound effects. Today's puzzles were written by Jason Reich. Executive producers are Elliot Kaelin, Sean Hayes, Will Arnett and Jason Bateman. Executive producers for Smartless Media are Richard Corson and Bernie Kaminski. Remember to follow, subscribe, rate and review the show. It really helps. That's all for now. We will see you again for more.

[Elliot Kaelin]

Smart medium.

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[Elliot Kaelin]

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