The Reader and the Writer: Recent Episodes

View Details

Welcome back to the R&W year-long read, War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy. In this episode, Rhea and Shari discuss in depth this “time between times” of the story. Using two different quotes from this month’s reading, they talk about all the story lines from this strange time of “life and death hanging in the balance,” and all the motivations that are—or are not—for the “good of the people.”

Below are the quotes the ladies used to guide their discussion, and the questions that follow for each story line’s considering:

• Quote 1: Life and death hanging in the balance:

“...no one–least of all Natasha and Prince Andrei–spoke of this: the unsettled question of life and death, which hung not only over Bolkonsky but over all Russia, shut out all other considerations.” (991)

• Quote 2: For the good of the people…??:

“Since the world began and men have killed one another no one has ever committed such a crime against his fellow-man without comforting himself with this same idea. This idea is le bien public, the hypothetical welfare of other people.” (957)

Questions to consider as we examine each story line:

• Is life or death being chosen by the characters? Either literal or spiritual.

• What is the motivating factor behind each one’s choice and in each situation?

• Are the characters being honest about their motivations? Are they lying to themselves to justify their actions? Are they truly looking out for “the good of the people”?

Links to books, people, and ideas discussed… and Rhea’s bookmarks!:

• Rhea’s Oct - Dec Bookmarks

• Sabbath, by Abraham Joshua Heschel

• Violence and the Sacred, by René Girard

• Deceit, Desire, and the Novel, by René Girard

• The Four Quartets, by T. S. Eliot (about)

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode ❤️ it and share it!

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to The Feast! Things are boiling over at Pendizack Manor Hotel, and Shari and Rhea are in for it. In this episode, they talk about the 7 evils spilling over in the host characters: the disgusting St. Merrick episode (termed by Shari as the Epstein Island escapade), soapstone insanity, envy’s constant pot-stirring, the super-righteous “symposium,” a mother ready to abandon her children to imminent doom (!), and more.

And yet, beauty abounds through the turning of other characters toward goodness, truth, and beauty. And all the while preparations for the Feast continue, and the cliff slowly crumbles overhead.

Next week, Shari and Rhea will discuss the final day, “Friday”, and wrap up their discussion of The Feast.

As mentioned in the episode, below is the list and links to many of the references to poems, songs, myths, etc. that show up over “Wednesday” and “Thursday.”

The Great Conversation happening in The Feast:

• Scapegoat | Fairies at the bottom…

• ‘There are Fairies at the Bottom of Our Garden’ - Michael Aspinall, the Surprising Soprano (Scapegoat)

• There are Fairies at the Bottom of our Garden | Odyssey Theatre Ensemble

• Bond or Free?

• What to write in a headstone epitaph? - Mississauga Cemetery

• “Wind, gentle evergreen!...”

• Epitaph on Sophocles headstone.

• Oh Shenandoah - Wikipedia (Duff, Robin, and Angie singing)

• Symposium | My Aged Uncle Arly

• Edward Lear | The Poetry Foundation

• Limericks / playful

• Mrs. Paley | The Quangle Wangle’s Hat | The Poetry Foundation

• Robin | The Dong with a Luminous Nose | The Poetry Foundation

• Gerry & Angie | Mr and Mrs Discobbolos by Edward Lear - Famous poems

• Duff | The Pobble Who Has No Toes - Edward Lear

• Nancibel | Carmen - Wikipedia (opera)

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! If you like this episode ❤️ it and share it.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our literary work, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to The Feast! In this episode, Rhea and Shari have their own feast of a discussion, looking at all the ‘Love & Truth’ of Monday, and ‘Truth & Lies’ of Tuesday. They talk about the Cove girls’ other worldliness, the “man-of-war” love of Christina Paley, the surprise kindness of Henry Gifford, and the strange connections between Wuthering Heights and Bruce and Anna’s relationship. They talk about significant names, significant titles, significant words, phrases, and conversations.

Next week they will discuss Wednesday - Thursday.

Below is the reading schedule:

Thanks for listening to this episode The Reader & the Writer! If you like this episode ❤️ it and share it.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, become a paid or free subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to The Feast! Shari and Rhea are so excited to dive deep into Margaret Kennedy’s allegorical novel about the seven deadly sins. In this episode, they go straight to the speculation: who represents each of the sins? Who’s alive? Who died? They had a lot of fun setting up this story and are fully ready to have to renounce their deeply held beliefs on all of it.

Be sure to check out Rhea’s Reading Guide on The Feast.

Below are the links to the poetry pieces and the opera that have shown up so far in The Feast (Prologue - Sunday):

Links to quoted literature within The Feast:

• Nothing is certain but the certain spring

• Robert Laurence Binyon - “Burning of the Leaves” (written during WWII)

• Sunday | ch9 pg 89

• And whispers to the worlds of space/A sentinel…I hear at times…

• Alfred Lordy Tennyson

• Sunday | ch 8 & 9 | pg 83 & 86

• Their shoulders hold the sky suspended…

• AE Housman

• Saturday | Ch 3 | pg 16

• Why this is Hell! Nor am I out of it!

• Doctor Faustus by Christoher Marlow

• Saturday | Ch 9 | pg 45

• Il Trovatore

Here is the Reading Schedule for The Feast:

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you like this post, ❤️ it and share it.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to this final episode of Deacon King Kong. In this episode, Shari and Rhea discuss all the story’s thread and how they all end up “in God’s hands.” They talk about salvation stories, good and evil, who the true antagonist of the story is, and the beautiful community of Christ. Oh, and they argue about where the climax of the story is.

R&W’s next deep read is The Feast, by Margaret Kennedy. They will take four weeks to read this book. Reading segments are as follows:

• Part 1: Prologue - Sunday

• Part 2: Monday - Tuesday

• Part 3: Wednesday - Thursday

• Part 4: Friday

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you like this post, ❤️ it and share it.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to our close read of Deacon King Kong. In in this episode, Shari and Rhea discuss the women at the center of this story and how they are the “still point” for each of their respective communities. They discuss motifs they see taking a center stage in this section: the water, Statue of Liberty, the “shining” harbor in the afternoon sun; and how these images continue to pop up and provide a strong juxtaposition to all that is not “normal” about The Cause, as Sister Gee laments to Potts. They discuss several important conversations that happened: Sister Gee and Potts, Elefante and Sportcoat, Sportcoat and young (dead) Hettie, and others. Oh, and they talk about the weeds.

Next week they will discuss the final chapters of the story: Chapters 21-26.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, show it some ❤️ and share it with someone.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to R&W’s 2025 year-long read, War and Peace.

We know, it’s been a minute. After two months, Rhea and Shari were so glad to get back to this story. They focused their discussion on the “movements” of characters and events, and on “form v. substance.” They spend considerable time talking about Natasha’s movement from guilt to new freedom, Pierre’s movement toward war, Old Bolkonsky movement from life to death, and his son’s movement toward eminent death as well. They discuss the “form” of war—that of a chess game—versus the “substance” of war, something more terrible and chaotic; and the form of Hélène v. the substance of Marya…. and much, much more.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode ❤️ it and share it.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our literary work, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to R&W’s deep read of Deacon King Kong by James McBride. In this episode, Rhea and Shari discuss all the ways the threads of the story are beginning to slowly weave together. They talk about McBride’s humor, his brilliance in bringing us into this community of The Cause House with kind hospitality, and allowing us to deal with hard realities through this hospitable way. They discuss Shari’s three-way Venn Diagram on the story’s territories from the first episode, expanding on the ideas laid out last week, and what may lie at the center of the three. Rhea notices the way “the Truth” has been popping up a lot in this section, as well as all the commonality between characters and 20 years. They spend a long time on Elefante and the Venus of Willendorf. They wonder where the story is going to go next.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode hit the ❤️ button and share it!

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our literary work, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to an R&W new read! This week Rhea and Shari begin a four part discussion on Deacon King Kong by James McBride. In this episode, they introduce the wide and colorful cast of characters: Sportcoat, Hot Sausage, Deems, Jet, Bunch, Earl, and more. They wonder why some non-characters: like the community itself, the cheese, and the ants feel more like characters and less like places or things. They talk for some time about the “voicey-ness” of the story, particularly with regards to the narrator. They also talk about how the story is being told almost like an old-fashioned “yarn.”

If you haven’t yet, check out Rhea’s Reading Guide for Deacon King Kong:

Reading Schedule (Note date Change for Episode 2)

Below is the Reading Schedule for Deacon King Kong, with the exception of Episode 2:

PLEASE NOTE: Due to the upcoming Labor Day holiday and family/work obligations, Episode 2 will air Wednesday, September 3rd, rather than the 2nd.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you like this post, ❤️ it and share it!

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to R&W’s three-part series on George MacDonald’s fantasy novel, Phantastes. In this episode Shari and Rhea discuss the ending of the book, the things they loved, and the things they didn’t. They discuss whether or not the continual semi-confusing dreamlike quality of the story was intentional on MacDonald’s part, or a storytelling hiccup. They talk about the motifs, the symbols, and the ultimate theme of love running through. And they talk about how reading Phantastes has rekindled their love for Narnia and deep desire to read the series again.

R&W’s next deep read is Deacon King Kong, by James McBride. Below is the reading schedule:

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode show it some ❤️ and share it with a friend (or stranger, or enemy. We’re not picky).

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to R&W’s deep read of Phantastes by George MacDonald. In this episode, Shari and Rhea spend considerable time discussing the many symbols they are recognizing in the story, and wonder about what deeper reality these symbols might be pointing us toward. They discuss how much they loved Chapter 13—the story within the story. And Rhea asks Shari what she thinks about MacDonald’s claim that a good story will mean many things and will change depending on the particular reader, and this is a good thing.

Next week, Shari and Rhea will discuss through to the end of the story. If you haven’t already, be sure to check out and make use of the many resources Rhea provides in her reading guide to Phantastes.

Thanks for listening to this edition of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, give it some ❤️ and share it with a friend!

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to a new deep read on The Reader & the Writer! This week Rhea and Shari kick off a three-week dive into George MacDonald’s fantasy novel, Phantastes. In this episode, they discuss George MacDonald’s background, his ideas about the imagination, and the intertwining nature of truth and beauty. They talk about the main character, Anodos, the episodic feel to the story so far, and the ways they already notice the strong use of symbols in the narrative.

If you haven’t read Rhea’s introduction and reading guide for Phantastes, you must go check it out! You can read it here:

Below is the reading schedule:

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you like this post, please give it some ❤️ and share it!

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to this special edition of The Reader & the Writer. In this episode, Shari interviews author, Cynthia Beach. Cynthia is the author of the novel, Surface of Water, published with IVP Press in 2024, She’s also written and published a wonderfully inspiring as well as practical craft book, Creative Juices for Writers. She has an MA in journalism from Wheaton College and an MFA in fiction writing from the Northwest Institute of the Literary Arts. She is also a trained spiritual director. Cynthia directs faith-based writing workshop, Scriptoria with Gary D. Schmidt. She lives near Grand Rapids, Michigan on a quiet seven acres with her husband, Dave.

Links to Cynthia’s website and Scriptoria:

• cynthiabeach.com

• scriptoriaworkshop.org

Thanks for listening to this edition of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked it, ❤️ it and share it.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our literary work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back! In this episode, Shari and Rhea conclude their discussion of Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson. They get deep into ideas of transfiguration, baptism, endings that don’t do what they want, and where the beauty is despite the great sadnesses. There is much to lament, much to rejoice over, much to wonder at in these final chapters. It also makes the following quote from Robinson’s interview with Trinity Forum all the more poignant (you can find that interview on Rhea’s post on Housekeeping):

There is a way in which a good writer can see into strange places and see beauty in places others can’t. —Marilynne Robinson

If you’re journaling along with us, here is this week’s prompt:

Journal from on high, outside yourself. Assume an imaginary position from a place above you. For example: the top of a nearby tree, as a bird flying overhead, a rooftop, mountaintop, etc. Further this prompt by writing from the p.o.v. of anything in your surroundings (an object on your desk, your pet, your mailbox, etc.). Again, focus on your five senses—especially to begin.

R&W’s next deep read is Phantastes, by George MacDonald. Below is a reading schedule:

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, ❤️ it and share it. Thanks!

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To support the literary work we’re doing, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to R&W’s deep read of Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson. In this episode, Shari and Rhea discuss the feeling of darkness and mystery surrounding much of this section of the novel. They discuss Sylvie’s strangeness, Ruthie’s eccentric imagination, and Lucille being fed up with all of it. They talk about the role of dreams, the continued motif of water, and the strangeness of death that seems to haunt this family no matter how they try to live.

Next week they will finish the novel. In case you’ve missed it, below is the reading schedule, as well as a link to Rhea’s post introducing Housekeeping.

If you’re journaling on place with us, this week’s prompt is:

Journal about what’s beneath your feet. Choose a familiar location. First, journal on what you can see. Then, journal on what you can’t see, as you “drill” down beneath the surface of where you are. Use your five senses and your above ground surroundings to help you discern what might be below. You’ll have to use your sense of imagination for this one.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked it, ❤️ it and share it. Thanks!

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To support what we’re doing here, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to our year long read of War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. In this episode, Rhea and Shari break down the whole tragic event of Natasha’s inevitable break up with Andrei. They wonder how many more times Dolokhov will keep appearing where there’s trouble-making. They worry over Andrei’s heart and wonder over Marya’s words to him about forgiveness. They are finally satisfied with Tolstoy spending all those chapters last month on Nikolai and the hunt. They hope—multiple times—that Anatole and Hélène get what’s coming to them. Finally, they discuss the ways all things are positioning themselves to come to a head in Moscow with the War of 1812.

If you’re looking for the next set of bookmarks, as well as where in the world the bookmarks are, read Rhea’s latest W&P post:

A programming note: Due to scheduling and travel conflicts, our next War and Peace episode on July’s reading will drop later in August (not the first Friday as usual.)

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked it, ❤️ and share it. Thanks!

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To support the work we’re doing here, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

It’s time for a new book! Welcome to Housekeeping by Mariynne Robinson. In this episode, Shari and Rhea introduce listeners to the author, and this strange new place they find themselves now, Fingerbone, Montana, a vastly different world from early 1700’s England, for sure! They then dive into the narrative, talk about the eccentricities of the characters, the aliveness of the setting, and the possibility of motherhood as a place. They marvel over Robinson’s sparkling, image-rich prose, and notice immediately the profundity of water imagery throughout. Clearly, water will play an important role in unfolding Housekeeping’s deeper themes. But how?

Rhea wrote an excellent post introducing Housekeeping and its author. It contains the reading schedule, a set of bookmarks for each section, excellent links to interviews with Marilynne Robinson, War & Peace connections, and a new opportunity we’re inviting you to join: a practice of journaling on place. Stay tuned. More to come on that in an upcoming essay post by Shari (on the Reader & Writer Substack).

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this epidsode, ❤️ it and share it! This helps us reach more folks who love literature like you.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to the last episode of Moll Flanders! In this episode Shari and Rhea dive deep into Moll’s moment of repentance and her life as a penitent afterwards. Do we believe her? Does she become a reliable narrator in the end? What is the difference between repentance and penitence anyway?? They also go back to the question they asked themselves early on: why does this novel feel so contemporary and necessary for our 21st century time?

All this and much more.

As mentioned at the beginning of the episode, R&W’s next slow read will be Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson. Listen to the episode, or read this post for specifics about this change to the 2025 R&W reading lineup.

Below is the reading schedule for Housekeeping. Pick up a copy and start reading!

Thanks for listening to this edition of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked it, ❤️ it and share it.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to R&W’s on-going read of Moll Flanders. In this episode, Rhea and Shari talk about Moll’s brazenness with her thievery, the hollowing out of her soul, the events leading up to her capture, and how Defoe manages to truly make Moll “nameless” by the time she reaches the end—that is, the end of her “Course of Life for forty Years,” a “horrid Complication of Wickedness, Whoredom, Adultery, Incest, Lying, Theft, and in a Word, every thing but Murther and Treason.” (p. 355 of novel)

Next week they will finish the novel. It promises to be an excellent conversation!

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked what you heard, hit the ❤️ button and share it with someone. Anyone. We’re not picky.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. If you love literature and like the work we’re doing here, become a free or paid subscriber. You won’t be sorry.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to Moll Flanders, the novel that reads like a slow motion train wreck. In this episode, Rhea and Shari discuss Moll’s continued decent and desecration of her soul. They discuss Moll as an addict; this insatiable need she has now developed to thieve after years of morally depraved choices. They wonder at Moll’s string of failed marriages and ask at what point these failures are because of her extreme lack of discernment rather than simply “bad luck.” They circle back to what they think Defoe is doing by telling this story. That is, what is the “aboutness” of this story really?? Is it about revealing and condemning the injustices woven through England’s social class system at that time? Is it about the injustices society foisted upon women? Or, is Defoe really trying to answer the question: Can there be redemption for people like Moll Flanders? If so, where does it come from? How?

What are your thoughts on all these things? Leave a comment below! We’d love to hear from you.

We have two episodes left for Moll Flanders:

• June 17th, pages 297-363

• June 24th, pages 364-427

One important note: R&W has made an adjustment to the second half of the 2025 reading schedule. Please stay tuned for an official announcement on that, coming soon!

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this post, hit the ❤️ button and share it. You can support the literary work we’re doing here by becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to our year long read of War & Peace! In this episode, Shari and Rhea discuss all the drama that’s suddenly boiling over in this story. They discuss all the matchmaking that is suddenly happening, compare each couple’s foundation, complications, motives, etc. They talk about the Rostov’s downward spiral, and Pierre’s ever-deepening malaise over life. They discuss the connections they see between Moll Flanders from Daniel Defoe’s novel of the same title, and various characters in W&P. And, they agree on the two characters they see as rising to the top as being the main characters of the story. (It’s only taken ‘til May!)

Let us know in the comments section if you agree with our assessment. And share any other thoughts you had while listening to our conversation!

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked what you listened to, hit the ❤️ button and pass it around!

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to Moll Flanders! In this episode, Shari and Rhea continue to discuss Moll’s downward spiral. Why does Moll insist on this Gentlewoman status to the extreme detriment of herself and all her children she keeps birthing and leaving behind?? They talk more about Moll’s seeming lack of maternal compassion or instinct, and how much of it is due to the male author behind it. They discuss the autobiographical format and begin to question Defoe’s motives for writing this book anonymously and trying to pass it off as a true autobiography of a woman. And much, much more.

Here is the reading schedule for the rest of the book:

We’d love to hear from you! What are your thoughts on Moll Flanders so far?

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, click the ❤️ button and share it!

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing here, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to Part 2 (of six) of Moll Flanders. In this episode, Rhea and Shari spend considerable time discussing Moll’s character. Mainly: can she be trusted? Why does she keep making these missteps over and again? How many of her problems are really of her own doing? All this led to discussions of the unreliable narrator, the uniqueness of the first person narrative (particularly in this early English novel form), and the male author writing in the female perspective. We also talked about structure and style: what each is, isn’t, and how each is contributing to our opinions surrounding Moll as an unreliable narrator.

Next week we’ll be discussing pp. 168 - 233. You can see the entire schedule below:

Also, Rhea made bookmarks for Moll Flanders. You can find a link to those in this post of Rhea’s (scroll to about mid-way through the post):

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to Moll Flanders, R&W’s next slow read. In this episode, Rhea and Shari spend time introducing the background to this 18th Century novel and it’s author, Daniel Defoe, named by Henry James as the “father of the English novel.” They discuss the strange, autobiographical style of the novel, Defoe’s use of the novel form to criticize his country’s debtor laws and women’s lack of agency, how the novel reads as a male author writing from a female perspective, and much more.

Below is the reading schedule for Moll Flanders:

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, hit the ❤️ button and share it! Subscribe below to never miss an episode or essay.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Hello! Welcome to April’s reading of War & Peace.

In this episode, Shari and Rhea do a deep dive in the contrasts and companionships continuing to form in W&P. They spend considerable time talking about Pierre and Andrei: their arguments about what matters, their individual directions and efforts, their loves, lusts, and greatest desires. They discuss Andrei’s turn toward life after his strange and shocking encounters with beauty. They wonder why Pierre can’t be happy despite walking diligently in his Freemasonry faith. They discuss what Tolstoy is doing with Rostov and Denisov’s story, namely, pointing a finger at the corruption and injustices found in Russia’s Army, as well as the hypocrisies found in high offices.

They also discuss the romances—and continued coldness—between partners: the budding love affair between Andrei and Natasha, the continual struggles between Pierre and Hélène, Berg’s marriage to Vera, and the way Natasha sees Boris as narrow like the dining room clock—narrow, and grey-like, while she sees Pierre as blue, dark blue, and red…. and square.

References and mentions in the show:

• The quote on beauty by Pope Benedict XVI, in his 2009, Meeting with Artists:

“Indeed, an essential function of genuine beauty, as emphasized by Plato, is that it gives man a healthy “shock”, it draws him out of himself, wrenches him away from resignation and from being content with the humdrum—it even makes him suffer, piercing him like a dart, but in so doing it “reawakens” him, opening him afresh the eyes of his heart and mind, giving him wings, carrying him aloft.”

• Quote from Screwtape Letters, Letter 23; by C. S. Lewis:

“The thing to do is to get a man at first to value social justice as a thing which the Enemy demands, and then work him on to the the stage at which he values Christianity because it may produce social justice. For the Enemy will not be used as a convenience. Men or nations who think they can revive the Faith in order to make a good society might just as well think they can use the stairs of Heaven as a short cut tot the nearest chemist shop.”

• The Gospel in Tolstoy, edited by Miriam LeBlanc, published by Plough Publishing House. This is the book mentioned by Shari near the end of the episode in connection with Tolstoy’s own complicated relationship with Christianity. From the intro “To the Reader”:

“What though, is the ‘gospel in Tolstoy’ — is such a title even defensible? After all, this was a man who lost his traditional Christian faith as a teenager, and spent much of his career attacking the Russian church of his upbringing. Despite a sincere conversion and his self-description as a Christian, his views fall well outside the usual norms of Christian orthodoxy—after all, he rejected most articles of the Nicene Creed, and even compiled a version of the Gospels from which anything miraculous, including the resurrection, is left out.

Yet with all his rationalism, Tolstoy remained a man haunted by Jesus of Nazareth.” —The Editor (p. ix-x, Miriam LeBlanc)

• The Ethics of Beauty, by Timothy G. Patitsas, 2019, St. Nicholas Press

Thanks for listening to this edition of The Reader & the Writer! Be sure to hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to this final episode of Odyssey, translated by Emily Wilson. In this episode, Rhea and Shari discuss their deep love of Odysseus and Penelope’s reunion, and their utter confusion with Book 24—why it felt random, rushed, unnecessary, etc. They talked about where the climax was, and what the story is ultimately about. They talk about story telling as the collective love language of the ancient classical world. This led to a lengthy discussion wondering what our collective love language is: Do we have one? If not, why not? Which led to a discussion about coming home, the problem of homelessness and whether or not homelessness is the worst thing a person can suffer. What about a society? Are we a “homeless” society?

It was a twisty-turny, full of questioning, fun discussion. A great way to end our deep read on this ancient-but-ever-relevant epic story.

R&W’s next deep read is Moll Flandersby Daniel Defoe. We’re excited to take on this obscure, controversial, oft avoided novel written by the man James Joyce called “the father of the English novel.”

Stay tuned for the latest reading schedule for Moll Flanders. We highly recommend you read the Penguin Classics version (linked to the title) to avoid confusion with page numbers (there are no chapter breaks)

Read this post on a programming update for R&W’s reading and writing schedule in May.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you like this post, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, become a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to the Odyssey! In this episode, Rhea and Shari discuss the host-guest relationships that truly are driving the story forward at this point. They wonder why Odysseus disguises himself rather than just come home and kick everyone out. They discuss the role of fate in the story and why they keep reading if they know how it all turns out in the end. But the thing they talk about the most, is why the heck they don’t like Odysseus, the hero of the story. Is it Wilson’s translation? Or the very definition of “hero” in the classical ancient world that has them confounded?

Next week they will discuss the end of the book.

Read this post for an update on their reading and writing schedule for May.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you like this post, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing here, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to Part 2 of R&W’s discussion of The Odyssey.

In this episode Rhea and Shari discuss just how complicated of a man Odysseus is. They discuss the real flavor they get of the story being originally told orally, the way it reads much like The Arabian Nights: stories within stories within stories. They also discuss all the spin offs and stories The Odyssey rhymes with and has inspired in the centuries since.

They discuss Odysseus’s failure to be a good guest in multiple settings, and the ways he is responsible for his own wanderings, and ways he isn’t. They discuss the Cyclops, Hades and all the crying. Mostly they discuss all the ways this story is offering unexpected things to consider they hadn’t thought much about before.

Here is Rhea’s Substack post all about The Odyssey, and our reading schedule:

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! If you like this post, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the work we’re doing here, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to our first episode of Homer’s The Odyssey, translated by Emily Wilson. In this episode, Shari and Rhea take a deep dive into the history of The Odyssey and Homer… or is it Homers? They also spend a LOT of time talking about metric verse, how it was originally written in the Greek (dactylic hexameter) and how Wilson translated it into iambic pentameter. We also talk about what the heck all that means. They discuss the opening of the story, Odysseus as a “complicated man” and the importance of hospitality to this entire story.

In case you missed one of our last episodes or Substack posts on The Odyssey, here is our reading schedule:

Links to resources mentioned in this episode:

A Poetry Handbook, by Mary Oliver

Rhea’s Substack post on The Odyssey (with links to other articles and YouTube videos discussed on this episode)

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer!If you like this post, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the work we’re doing here, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to March’s reading of War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy. Things are heating up in 1806 Russia. Rhea and Shari have lots to discuss. They talk about the sad—and predictable—outcome at Austerlitz, Andrei’s injury and the ways it’s changed him… and ways it has not. They discuss Pierre’s sad situation: his bizarre dual with Dolokhov, and this newest way he’s come “under the influence” of a force greater than himself. Of course they talk about Dolokhov and Sonya, Denisov and Natasha, and how some characters seem to be maturing while others are regressing as they age. Finally, they spend time studying the writing in the scene of Natasha singing, looking for ways Tolstoy is telling the story “ekphrastically.”

Articles mentioned in this podcast:

• Ekphrastic Writing, Ekphrastic Life -Substack article written by Shari

• Ekphrastic Practice -Substack article written by Shari

Keep up with all R&W’s War and Peace reading on Rhea’s Substack by clicking on her “War & Peace” tab. You will find links to the famous bookmarks on this page as well.

Thanks for reading and listening to The Reader & the Writer! If you like this post, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support R&W’s work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

In this bonus episode of Pachinko, Shari and Rhea share their thoughts—in broad and generous strokes—on Apple TV’s film adaption of Pachinko. In order to not give spoilers, they spend most their time talking about screen adaptations in general, focusing on how trying to compare books to their movie (or TV show) counterparts is really futile, if your purpose is to judge whether one is better than the other. It is, as the cliche goes: like comparing apples to oranges. Both are a medium of storytelling… but that’s about it.

Articles referenced in this episode:

• Books vs. Movies: Which is Better? (And Why Do We Care?) - From:Dabblewriter.com

• On Criticizing an Author’s Vision - Substack essay by Shari

R&W’s next deep read is The Odyssey by Homer, translated by Emily Wilson. You will find the reading schedule below:

Here is an excellent post by Rhea with loads of resources to get you ready for this epic, ancient read:

Thanks for reading and listening to The Reader & the Writer! If you like this post, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to this final episode of R&W’s deep read of Pachinko, by Min Jin Lee. In this episode, Shari and Rhea discuss the way Lee brought her multigenerational tale to a beautiful close. They discuss motherhood, the grace of hearing hard truths, grace in death, grace in forgiveness, grace in suffering, grace in everything. They discuss the way Lee reveals everything in the end through a redemptive lens that is filled with hope for both today and for eternity. They talk about endings, the story’s climax, meaning and its final word. They continue to lament Noa. But they find a greater grace for him, too.

Our next episode will be a Pachinko bonus episode. It will air April 1st.

R&W’s next deep read is Homer’s The Odyssey, translated by Emily Wilson. The reading schedule is:

• April 8: Books 1-6 (pp 105-207)

• April 15: Books 7-12 (pp 208-315)

• April 22: Books 13-18 (pp 316-423)

• April 29: Books 19-24 (pp. 424-525)

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or pledge-based subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to R&W’s deep read of Pachinko, by Min Jin Lee. In this episode, Shari and Rhea spend most of their discussion lamenting Noa. Oh, Noa. Noa!! How could you! The pain. The agony. The heartache.

But there is more to cover. They discuss Mozasu’s life, Solomon’s growing up as a Korean-Japanese, Hansu’s cracking demeanor, Haruki’s strange chapters, and everyone’s deep suffering. They discuss major themes they see continuing to develop, especially: home, fate, suffering, and—a new one—curses. They also discuss the interrelatedness of all these things and how they shape identity, our sense of home, our sense of belonging, our sense of agency in determining all these things.

Our last discussion of Pachinko will air March 25th.

We will be doing a Pachinko bonus episode on April 1st, in which we react to the Pachinko TV series, airing on Apple TV, as well as other articles/podcast episodes we’ve digested during our month of reading.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or pledge-supporting subscriber.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back for Part Three of Pachinko. In this episode, Rhea and Shari connect some of their stand out quotes with major themes they see developing through the novel: suffering, love, fate, and home. They go back to the quote from Book II and continue to discuss how they see the quote being brought forth through the tensions between characters and their relationships with one another and their place. They discuss the characters and how they are developing through this part of the novel. And, they talk about how this novel is “teaching us to read it.” (A quote from an excellent article by Substacker, Henry Oliver).

Next week we will continue our deep read of Pachinko: pp. 299-396

Link to Henry Oliver’s essay: How to Read the Opening of a Novel

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you like this post, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend. Subscribe below to receive new podcast episodes and essays straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to this second episode of War and Peace, R&W’s year long read. In this episode, Shari and Rhea talk and wonder about a whole host of topics. They talk about the scenes that stand out to them: Vasili’s cunning and manipulating, Old Bolkonsky’s gruff love, Nikolai’s obsession with the emperor, and Andrei’s Toulon. They do a deep dive in all study of contrasts Tolstoy is developing: Andrei - Nikolai; Vasili Kuragin - Old Bolkonsky (fathers); Pierre’s match to Hélène - Marya’s (un)match to Anatole; Scön Grabern - Austerlitz; and others. They discuss the continued development of characters, the fact that so far no Kuragin is a good Kuragin, and how the total omniscient narrator allows us to know more about the characters than they know about themselves. They discuss the ways they see War and Peace in conversation with other books they’ve been reading: namely The Screwtape Letters, and Pachinko. And there’s more!

Our next episode will air April 4. We’ll be discussing March’s readings:

Book 1 | Part 3: Chapters 14 - 19 thru Book 2 | Part 2: Chapters 1 - 8

Some Links:

• For Rhea’s nifty bookmarks with each month’s reading: Rhea’s Substack

• For note-taking suggestions as you read War and Peace: Shari’s essay On Notetaking

• On Austerlitz and a creative look on the art of narration: A War & Peace Post

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this post, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend. Subscribe to receive podcast episodes and essays straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to the R&W deep read of Pachinko, by Min Jin Lee. In this episode, Shari and Rhea discuss how the story is developing, and how their view of the characters is developing, too. They continue their ongoing discussion of how the opening quotes (the one by Dickens in Book I, and Park Wan-suh in Book II) are being enfleshed through the story telling for each section of the story. They discuss the “cinematic” feel of the story at times. They talk about what it means to “conjure” home. They discuss the heartbreak they felt reading this section, the foreboding, and also the hope they each have for certain characters moving forward.

Next week (March 11th) they will be discussing pp. 202-298.

Have a favorite scene or burning question as you’ve been reading Pachinko? Leave a comment below! We’d love to have a conversation with you, and even discuss it on a future episode of the podcast.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you like this post, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend. Subscribe to receive podcast episodes and essays straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

In this episode, Shari and Rhea dive into their new book, Pachinko, by Min Jin Lee. They give some background on author, Min Jin Lee, and her motivations for writing Pachinko. They discuss the Korean Japanese conflict that is the backdrop for this generational Korean family drama. They discuss the significance of “beginnings” in this novel, as well as its almost-omniscient narrative style. They discuss characters and the variety of motives the characters are operating from: everything from personal honor to cultural standing, lust to Christian love.

Links to websites, documentaries, and articles mentioned in this show:

• Felix Doolittle stationary website

• Min Jin Lee website

• Documentary on Pachinko and Min Jin Lee

• Article on Japanese annexation of Korea

• Women’s Roles in Contemporary Korea

• Value and Meaning of the Korean Family

You can find our full reading schedule for Pachinko here.

Next week we’ll be discussing pp. 95 - 201

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to this last episode on Crossing the Mangrove. In this episode, Shari and Rhea discuss their thoughts on the ending: what surprised them, what annoyed them, whose narrative they were ultimately drawn toward, and what they think the story is really about. They talk about Xantippe’s character being an archtype of the first Adam, the role of “the Good” as Plato expresses it in The Republic and how the Good it is expressed throughout this CTM narrative. They spend much time talking about the women of this story, especially the two women at its heart: Vilma and Mira, and what their individual narratives suggest for them moving forward. They talk about prophets, and suffering, truth and love, and much, much more.

This episode was great fun to record; a fitting way to close the book on Crossing the Mangrove.

The next book for The Reader & the Writer will be Pachinko, by Min Jin Lee. Shari and Rhea will take five weeks to read this epic novel telling the story of a poor, Korean immigrant family four generations strong. You can find out more about the story itself and the R&W reading plan here:

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to Crossing the Mangrove, episode 2. In this episode, Shari and Rhea dig deeper into narration and what they think Condé’s primary concern is based on the narrative style of the story. They discuss what more they’ve learned about Francis Sancher, the characters, and the community of Rivere au Sel. They spend a long time talking about truth: small “t” truth v. “T” truth and how they see this playing out in the story. They talk about whose narrative they trust, whose they don't. And, they discuss Crossing the Mangrove’s unique narrative arc.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer. And mostly, for being part of this R&W community. :)

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to this first episode of The Reader & the Writer’s year long read: War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. In this introductory episode, Shari and Rhea do a brief background of Tolstoy as it relates to his writing of W&P, talk narrative strategy with Tolstoy’s omniscient narrator—who likes to pop out from behind the curtain sometimes in the chapters from Part Two—as well as the theatrical style of the scenes and narration. They discuss the characters—oh the characters! And the families!! They talk about who they love and who they don’t, who they think will rise to prominence in the story and who seems to have faded into the background already. They discuss the significance of the novel opening in French and all the French filtered throughout the story—who speaks it, when it gets spoken the most, and why. They spend time with character motives, and do an overview of the major events of the story so far—which ones they think are especially important for moving the narrative forward, as well as helping us understand what this story is about… which…what isn’t it about?! They also spend some time sharing ways they see War and Peace in conversation with other novels they’ve read on R&W.

The podcast plan for the R&W War and Peace episodes is to drop an episode on the 1st Friday of every month. That episode’s contents will be on the reading for the prior month’s reading.

Please chat with Shari and Rhea on Substack! Send them your thoughts and/or questions in the comments section below, or through the chat function, to either The Reader & the Writer Substack or to Rhea Forney.

Thank you so much for listening and being a part of the Reader & the Writer community!

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to the first episode of Crossing the Mangrove, by Maryse Condé, where there is a whole host of characters, and one dead man at their center. In this episode, Rhea and Shari discuss the author, Maryse Condé the unique setting of Guadeloupe, the diverse cast of characters, and the strange, mysterious death of Francis Sancher. They talk about narrative voice, this story’s ever shifting point of view, and how we think it affects the telling of the story—or if it’s too early to tell.

Next episode they will be discussing the middle section of the book: pp. 76 - 151.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Due to unexpected travel for Shari, this week’s episode is a repeat of Shari and Rhea’s discussion of going to see a live stage production of The Screwtape Letters back in early December 2024.

The Reader & the Writer will be back live next Tuesday, Feb 4th, with their first episode of Crossing the Mangrove. The episode schedule is:

• Feb 4: pp 1-75

• Feb 11: pp 76-151

• Feb 18: 152-208

Also, look for our first War & Peace episode to drop the first week of February.

Thanks for listening! I (Shari) can’t wait to be back with you all next week, both on the podcast and on our R&W Substack page!

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new podcasts and posts straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to the third episode of The Screwtape Letters. In this episode, Rhea and Shari discuss Screwtape’s last six letters. They continue their discussion of love and its antitheses. They discuss the tools they’ve recognized Screwtape employing in these final chapters, especially the weaponization of language. They also discuss Screwtape’s Toast at the end of the book, and what was happening in the world in 1959 to make C. S. Lewis bring Screwtape back out for an encore in an American publication. Finally, they discuss the power of Lewis’s chosen genre: the fictionalized epistolary narrative for conveying the message he hoped to share.

Our next book is Crossing the Mangrove , by Maryse Condé. We will take three episodes to read and discuss the book. The reading schedule is:

• Jan 28th: pp. 1-75

• Feb 4th: pp. 76-151

• Feb 11th: pp. 152-208

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to this second episode of The Screwtape Letters. In this episode, Rhea and Shari continue their discussion of the loose narrative of the letters, the continued efforts of Screwtape and Wormwood to lure the Patient toward their “Father” and what is at the heart of this conflict—that is, love. This is where they center much of their discussion: what is love? What is it’s opposite? How is C. S. Lewis employing language, metaphor, and motif to help us understand the demon world’s utter confusion over God’s motives for acting as He does toward humans?

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you like this episode, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend. Subscribe to receive podcast episodes and essays straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to the R&W’s first deep read of 2025: The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis. In this episode, Shari and Rhea go through some background for Lewis’s writing of Screwtape, and then dive into discussing Letters 1-12. They talk about the art of letter writing, hearing a one-sided conversation as a story, and discuss what kind of story Screwtape is, anyway. They discuss what narrative arc, if any, they see developing thus far, wonder who the main character might be, and set up some questions to consider as they continue to read.

Here are links to websites and resources mentioned in their discussion:

• Dr. Jerry Root Lectures on The Screwtape Letters with PDF of notes.

• Beauty & the Arts podcast episode on the Art of Letter Writing (connected to a larger study of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians)

• Flannery O’Connor’s short story, “Everything That Rises Must Converge”

• R&W’s OAI podcast episode on The Screwtape Letters live performance they saw in Dec. 2024, as well as Lewis’s introduction to 1961 edition of The Screwtape Letters

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you like this episode, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend. Subscribe to receive new podcast episodes and essays straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to R&W’s final episode of 2024! In this episode, Shari and Rhea ask one another a series of questions (not seen in advance) about the books they read, the podcast they’ve made, and their hopes for The Reader & the Writer in 2025 and beyond. They talk about which characters from their 2024 reads they’d invite to dinner, what settings they’d most like to visit, which books their most anticipating in 2025, and a whole lot more.

If you like this episode, be sure to give R&W up to a 5-star review on your listening platform of choice. Share R&W with a friend! And for a full engagement with the R&W community, follow The Reader & the Writer on Substack. We are excited to engage with you all in 2025!

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend. Subscribe to The Reader & the Writer for future episodes and essays sent straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

It’s finally year. For months, Rhea and Shari have been working behind the scenes to decide how they will select their books for 2025. It’s been a lot of discussion, book lists, and finding the right hats—you have to listen to understand what this means—but they made it to the big day and through The Big Draw. Their final list spans centuries, cultures, and countries. They are pretty excited about it and hope you are, too.

Note: After the episode, they made one change to the list, due to a mix up in country origin of the author. Without giving away the entire list here (listen to the episode!), please note that Rebecca, by Daphne du Maurier (who we thought was French but was really English) is being replaced by Crossing the Mangrove, by Maryese Condé (who was French)

Look for a complete list of the R&W 2025 Book List on the R&W Substack page.

Thank you so much for listening to The Reader & the Writer this year! We’re so glad you’re here. :)

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

In this bonus episode, Rhea and Shari share their recent experience seeing a live, stage adaptation of The Screwtape Letters, by C. S. Lewis. They also discuss some of Lewis’s opening remarks in the Preface to the 1961 Edition (found in the annotated edition), and how they saw these elements play out on stage.

Links:

• Fellowship for the Performing Arts

• The Screwtape Letters Annotated Edition (This is the edition we will be reading from in January)

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode hit the ❤️ button, or leave a favorable review, and share it with a friend.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

In this second and final episode of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, Shari and Rhea discuss Staves 3-5. They talk about the sheer amount of food and feasting mentioned, the joy of the Ghost of Christmas Present, and the stern kindness of the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. They talk about Scrooge’s restored imagination, and the weirdness of the children—Ignorance and Want—hiding in the Ghost of Christmas Present’s robes. And, a whole lot more.

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! If you’ve loved reading A Christmas Carol, subscribe to our Substack page for weekly Advent devotional essays written by Shari exploring the themes found within the story.

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, hit the ❤️ button or write a great review, and share it with a friend.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to our last book of the year: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. This week Shari and Rhea discuss Staves 1-2 of this classic novella. They share background information on Dickens and his inspiration for the story. Shari praises the Muppets Christmas Carol as the best movie version ever. They discuss all the many motifs and metaphors that hint directly to the Great Story found in Scripture. And a whole lot more.

Link for the Hillsdale College online course for A Christmas Carol.

Next week they will discuss the rest of the story, Staves 3-5.

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

This is the final episode for Persuasion, by Jane Austen. In this episode, Shari and Rhea discuss some plot twists they weren’t expecting. They also discuss their final thoughts on particular characters, whether or not Anne Elliot has a flaw, what they think Austen is finally saying about persuasion, as well as other underlying themes of this story. And, of course, Wentworth’s letter, as being the most beautiful love letter ever written.

The Reader & the Writer’s final book for 2024 will be A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens. Shari and Rhea will take two weeks to discuss this, most all-essential Christmas Tale: Dec. 3rd, and Dec. 10th. Any unabridged version of the story will suffice for reading along.

Thank you for journeying with us here on The Reader & the Writer! If you like what we’re doing here, please leave us a kind review and share R&W with a friend! It helps expand our reach to a wider audience. :)

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

In this episode, Shari and Rhea discuss the first half of Volume 2 of Persuasion. They continue to notice Austen’s character development, particularly as more characters come into the story in larger ways: Anne's father and sister, Elizabeth, Lady Russell, Mrs. Smith, and Mr. Elliot. They discuss Wentworth and Louisa’s easy break up and her whiplash-like attachment to Captain Benwick. And they delve into the issues surrounding women of that time, and what might be the equivalent concerns for women of our 21st Century time.

Thank you so much for reading and wondering with us here on the Reader & the Writer. We are grateful you’re here. If you liked this episode, please consider leaving us a kind review. It helps the R&W reach a wider audience.

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to Persuasion. This week Rhea and Shari talk extensively about Anne’s character, what they think of the possibility of her not having a flaw, and what role the omniscient narrator may play in shaping their view of her. They also talk about the direction the story is taking, the purpose of other characters to the trajectory of the narrative, and the way the characters in this section behave as the 19th century version of Friends.

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome to Persuasion by Jane Austen. In this episode, Shari and Rhea begin their four-part discussion of Austen’s last completed novel, published after her death. They do a brief biographical sketch of the author, then dive into the novel discussing the omniscient narrator, Persuasion’s main character, Anne Elliot, and whether it’s possible to be endeared to a character with no apparent flaw. We also discuss the virtues of patience, humility, and hope and how a willingness to suffer enlivens these three.

Our reading schedule for Persuasion is:

• Nov 5th: Chapters 1-7

• Nov 12th: Chapters 8-12

• Nov 19th: Chapters 13-19

• Nov 26th: Chapters 20-24

Thanks so much for journeying with us on the Reader & the Writer! We are beyond grateful for your participation. We’d love to grow our audience and community reach. So, if you love what you’re hearing and reading, please like, review, subscribe, and share The Reader & the Writer with others.

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

This week is our last week with Lincoln in the Bardo. Rhea and Shari discuss our thoughts on the ending, themes of the story, and what we each have taken away from this time in the Bardo.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

Thanks for visiting The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

Welcome back to another episode of the Reader & the Writer! This week, Shari and Rhea continue their deep reading of Lincoln in the Bardo. They discuss the way this story—especially the place of the bardo—continues to open up to them in new ways, even this late in the story; same with the characters. They talk about continual development of the story’s themes as they discern them thus far, and ways they see the backdrop of the Civil War beginning to creep toward the front. Finally, they talk about how they, as readers, handle a story’s “truth” or presentation of something (like the afterlife) when it pushes uncomfortably against or outright collides with their own understanding or beliefs.

Thank you so much for joining us on this literary journey! Our next episode will be our last for Lincoln in the Bardo. Our next book is Persuasion by Jane Austen.

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! If you like this episode hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

Thanks for joining us on The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new podcast episodes and posts straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

In this episode, Rhea and Shari continue their discussion of Lincoln in the Bardo. They discuss the ways: the characters are being enlivened, the plot is thickening, and their own understandings of the afterlife are shaping their “seeing” of the bardo.

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! If you like this episode, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcasts straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

On this OAI bonus episode, Rhea and Shari discuss a chapter excerpt from Shannon Reed’s latest book, Why We Read: On Bookworms, Libraries, and Just One More Page Before Lights Out. You can access a PDF of that chapter here.

Reed, with much humor and humility, describes the first time she taught Lincoln in the Bardo to her Readings in Contemporary Fiction class at Pitt, and goes on to describe how what she thought would be a horrible experience has taught her one of the most important reasons why we read.

Rhea and Shari talk about all kinds of things in this episode and go on a few fun tangents, especially on imagination and how a writer keeps writing, instead of throwing in the towel, in the face of reading those masters who’ve gone before.

Thanks for listening to the The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend.

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

This week Rhea and Shari begin their deep read of Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders. It’s a weird one! But so worth the effort, as Rhea and Shari discuss in this first episode. They talk about Saunders’s unorthodox way of telling this story, how the novel reads almost like a play—but then again, doesn’t. They talk about the opportunities and limitations of this odd story-telling style, new ways they are discovering—or may yet discover—on how to participate with the story that other, more traditional narrating styles don’t offer, ghost personalities, and where they think the “water begins to boil.”

Here are links to some of the resources they mentioned in the episode:

• George Saunders at the New Yorker

• What to do with a potentially book-ruining problem, article on Substack (available to free subscribers)

• Story Club with George Saunders (on Substack)

• George Saunders website

The rest of our reading schedule for L in the B:

• Oct 15: pp 89-176

• Oct 22: pp 177-262

• Oct 29: pp 263-343 (end)

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you like this episode, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend. This post is public so feel free to share it.

Subscribe to the Reader & the Writer. It’s a free publication and podcast. By signing up, you’ll receive new posts and episodes straight to your inbox.

Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

View Details

In this final episode of Arabian Nights Tales, Rhea and Shari discuss O. Henry’s short story, “A Madison Square Arabian Night.” They talk about all the ways this story conjures the Arabian Nights atmosphere through word play, character development, metaphor, mystery, and—inverted sentence structure…?? Rhea talks about how this story compares in style to O. Henry’s other short stories, and Shari forgets she’s ever read anything by O. Henry—to include one of his most well-known works (which she owns, even!): The Gift of the Magi. And, they end their discussion with a unexpected wading into sacramental theology and how it shows up here in “A Madison Square Arabian Night.”

If you don’t have The Annotated Arabian Nights translation we’ve been reading from, you can read O. Henry’s short story here.

Next week, Shari and Rhea begin a month long deep reading of Lincoln in the Bardo, by George Saunders. The reading schedule will be:

• Oct 8th: pp 1-88

• Oct 15th: pp 89-176

• Oct 22nd: pp 177-262

• Oct 29th: pp 263-end

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you like this post, hit the ❤️ button below and share it with a friend.

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

Rhea and Shari continue their deep reading of the Arabian Nights tales. In this episode they look closely at “Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp,” a tale that comes to the Arabian Nights through the French tradition. They talk about the differences between the stories they’ve been reading v. this, first of the French tales they’ve explored, all the questions they have about the characters and their development (or lack thereof), the continual motifs running through the story, the development of the plot, what “beauty” is venerated in this story, the role of the jinni’s magic v. Aladdin acting as an agent in his own destiny, story types and what happens when a story tries to be “all things to all people.”

Next week they will be discussing the short story, “A Madison Square Arabian Night,” by O. Henry. If you don’t have the Seale translation that Rhea and I have been reading from, you can read the story here.

You can best interact with us on Substack:

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, hit the ❤️ button. This post is public so feel free to share it.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

This week Rhea and Shari continue their exploration of Yasmine Seale’s new translation of The Annotated Arabian Nights. Their discussion focuses on the Three Women of Baghdad story. They talk about the crazy (R rated) beginning to the tale, the power and allure of the women over the men and the wild way the tables turn right at the end.

Next week, they will be discussing the story: “Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp."

Their last episode on the Arabian Nights will be a discussion of O. Henry’s short story, “A Madison Square Arabian Nights.”

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, hit the ❤️ button and share it with a friend!

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcasts right to your inbox.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

We’re spending the next several episodes exploring The Annotated Arabian Nights translated by Yasmine Seale, and edited by Paulo Lemos Horta. In this episode, we talk about the origin and history of the Arabian Nights, the tradition of Persian oral story telling, the merchant class, the difference between the Arabian Nights and European fairy tales, the frame tale of Shahrazad and her murdering husband, how relationships between men and women are expressed… and much, much more.

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, hit the ❤️ button below. This post is public so feel free to share it!

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new podcast episodes and posts straight to your inbox.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

This week on the R&W, Rhea and Shari bring their discussion of ESU to a close. They talk about the magic of Persian storytelling, shepherds, sheep, what the truest thing about a person is, and the one thing that is the truest thing of all.

Our next book will be selections from The Annotated Arabian Nights, translated by Yasmine Seale. We’ll be discussing the Intro. - p. 158 on Sept. 10th.

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and podcast episodes straight to your inbox.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

It’s a bonus episode on the R&W! For this OAI, Rhea and Shari discuss Joel J. Miller’s article, “Protesting the Decline of Reading,” published May 25, 2024, on his Substack, Miller’s Book Review. The article is about the decline of reading amongst college students and how it is effecting their ability to do complex thinking and expression of subject matters in both the classroom, and the culture. But it isn’t just college students, says Miller. It’s all of us. What’s happening? What can we do?

This was a great article to discuss and think through. If you care at all about reading, literacy, education, and the future health of our public discourse, this is a great article to read. And Joel J. Miller’s Substack, Miller’s Book Review, is an excellent Substack to read.

Links to article and other discussion points:

• “Protesting the Decline of Reading,” Joel J. Miller

• Andrew Huberman podcast with guest, Jonathan Haidt

• The Coddling of the American Mind, Jonathan Haidt, and Greg Lukianoff

• The Anxious Generation, Jonathan Haidt

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

In this episode, Rhea and Shari continue their discussion of Everything Sad is Untrue, by Daniel Nayeri. They talk about food and poop, memories, hospitality, what makes us friends with Daniel now, whether or not writing poetry makes you brave, and whether we want a God who talks or a God who listens?

Links:

• Daniel and his mother baking

• Everything Sad is Untrue

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new podcasts and posts straight to your inbox.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

This week we begin a new book! Everything Sad is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri is astonishing, even from its opening pages. On this episode, Rhea and Shari talk about Daniel Nayeri the author and character in his own autobiographical novel that is also a memoir and also true… mostly. We talk about refugees, being good guests and good hosts, Schehrazade and her thousand tales, the coiling of stories, our slippery memories, time and storytelling, unreliable narrators, and more.

We are taking three weeks to discuss this story. Next week we’ll discuss through p. 231; and the following week we’ll discuss the end.

After Everything Sad is Untrue, we’ll be discussing tales from the Arabian Nights. We will be reading from the new translation by Yasmine Seale.

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new episodes straight to your inbox. Thank you for supporting our work!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

This week’s episode begins a new experiment on the Reader & the Writer, where Rhea and Shari discuss articles we find interesting on the topics we love. These are one-off episodes that we will intersperse between our regular episodes where we do careful, slow-ish readings of stories well told.

For this first O.A.I (I can’t help it, I was a military wife for 14 years), we’re discussing a 2021 article written by James Wood for the New Yorker magazine, “Anthony Doerr’s Optimism Engine.” We’ll be discussing Wood’s critiques of Doerr’s Cloud Cuckoo Land, and weighing in on whether or not we agree with him, and why.

You can read the New Yorker article here: Anthony Doerr’s Optimism Engine

If you like this episode, please subscribe to The Reader & the Writer. Find us on Substack. Share with your community.

And, give us a positive review on your platform of choice. It helps us reach more people, which, in turn, helps us make The Reader & the Writer, well… better! And better able to reach out into our community with the beauty of the story well told.

Thanks for listening! We’ll see you next week (8/20) for our first of three discussions on: Everything Sad is Untrue, by Daniel Nayeri

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support the work we’re doing here. :)

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

This week on The Reader & the Writer, Rhea and Shari bring their discussion of Cloud Cuckoo Land to a close. It is a long, winding conversation on everything from being human and part of the problem, the beauty of our broken lives, understanding that what we already have is almost always better than what we think we need, and—finally—the eternal beauty of pursuing the best kind of fool’s errand.

Next week we will begin something new: occasional podcast episodes on articles we’re reading. These are one-off episodes where Rhea and I will be discussing recent articles we’ve found on Substack and other information outlets concerning topics near and dear to us both: education, literacy, literary trends, and some arts & culture… and anything else we find fascinating and want to share with you!

The next two books we are reading on the R&W:

• Everything Sad is Untrue, by Daniel Nayeri

• The Annotated Arabian Nights, translated by Yasmine Seale (we will be reading portions of this book, not its entirety)

We’d love to hear from you!

• Email us at: readerandwriterpodcast@gmail.com

• Follow us on Facebook: The Reader and the Writer

• Subscribe to the podcast on Substack and these major platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon

As always, if you are enjoying The Reader & the Writer, like, subscribe, and give us a 5-star review on your podcasting platform to help us expand our reach.

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

This episode is all about captivity. Shari and Rhea discuss each of the characters’ movement into being held captive—in some cases literally, and always within themselves.

We’d love to hear from you!

• Email us at: readerandwriterpodcast@gmail.com

• Follow us on Facebook: The Reader and the Writer

• Subscribe to the podcast on Substack and these major platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe to receive new podcast episodes and posts to your inbox

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

We’re continuing our close reading of Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr, and, as Rhea says, it’s all about captivity. How are each of the characters being held in captivity—both outwardly and inwardly? What is holding them there? Is every idea they are held captive by bad? What about us? What are we being held captive by day in and day out? And what about poor Aethon? His story isn’t turning out as magical as he thought it would. Finally, Rhea and Shari discuss all the ways they see the characters’s stories begin to intersect and talk to one another, even though physically in some cases, there is no way they ever could. We had a lot of fun discussing this episode, and hope you enjoy listening along.

Timeline for the rest of Cloud Cuckoo Land:

• July 30: Chapters 13-19

• Aug 6: Chapters 20-24

Programing note:

A head’s up on what we’re reading next. Rather than tackle three YA novels over six weeks giving none of them due diligence, we’ve decided to focus on Everything Sad is Untrue by Daniel Nayari. Afterwards, we’ll be reading some of The Arabian Nights, which Everything Sad… is written (loosely) in concert with. Everything Sad… will begin either Aug. 13th or Aug 20th, and run for three episodes.

We’d love to hear from you!

• Email us at: readerandwriterpodcast@gmail.com

• Follow us on Facebook: The Reader and the Writer

• Subscribe to the podcast on Substack and these major platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new podcast episodes and essays straight to your inbox.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

Hello Reader & Writer listeners! This week, Rhea and I are beginning a new book: Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr. In this episode we spend considerable time talking about Anthony Doerr and his “theory of everything” masterfully contained inside this book. We dive into the story’s strange structure: three time periods, five protagonists, and the magical myth of Aethon running throughout. We talk about quest stories. We fumble through the first seven chapters of the story, trying to make sense of each character’s situation and how each one rhymes with the others through simple repetitions and woven through motifs.

Here are the links to the interviews mentioned in the episode:

• Free Library of Philadelphia Interview with John Freeman

• Writers Symposium by the Sea interview with Dean Nelson (on All the Light We Cannot See)

• Anthony Doerr’s website

• Anthony Doerr on The Louisiana Channel

Here is the schedule for the rest of Cloud Cuckoo Land:

• July 16: Chapters 1-7

• July 23: Chapters 8-12

• July 30: Chapters 13-19

• Aug 6: Chapters 20-24

Finally, a head’s up on what we’ll be reading next, as we’ve made a change. Rather than tackle three YA novels over six weeks giving none of them due diligence, we’ve decided to focus on Everything Sad is Untrue by Daniel Nayari. Afterwards, we’ll be reading some of The Arabian Nights, which Everything Sad… is written (loosely) in concert with. Everything Sad… will begin either Aug. 13th or Aug 20th, and run for three episodes.

We’d love to hear from you!

• Email us at: readerandwriterpodcast@gmail.com

• Follow us on Facebook: The Reader and the Writer

• Subscribe to the podcast on Substack and these major platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new podcast episodes and Substack posts directly in your inbox.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

Here we are, at the final episode for North Woods. This was, by far, our favorite section of the story. Just when we thought it couldn’t be anymore of a delight to read, Mason pulls all the threads through in a most magisterial way. In this episode Shari and Rhea discuss the nature of mental illness (a motif that shows up throughout the story), mementos and their meanings, transcendence, constructs of time, and the liminal space between here and eternity. Shari gets her Hamilton quote in for the series, and we end with a C.S. Lewis quote from Weight of Glory.

We hope you loved North Woods as much as we did. Let us know what you thought of the story, our discussion, and your personal takeaways in the comment section.

Our next story is Cloud Cuckoo Land, by Anthony Doerr. The first episode of this series will drop July 16. You’ll notice we’re taking a break on July 9th, so everyone—us included!—has time to read. :)

We want to hear from you!

• Find us on Facebook: The Reader & the Writer

• Send us and email: readerandwriterpodcast@gmail.com

• Write a review on your preferred podcast listening platform!

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new episodes and essays straight to your inbox.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

We are in the middle of North Woods and things are getting wild. In this episode, Shari and Rhea spend a lot of time discussing the heart of the artist: the tension between vision and expectation, who one makes art for, and getting out of the way of what wants to be made. We also talk about confessing to the earth, all the ways Mason continues to bring this north woods alive for us: the wonder of these multiple points of view, images, “found texts;” the making and re-making of Eden, blights, diseases, “Harrow,” “Rupture,” and “Stitching.” And, of course, the lusty beetle scene!

Find us on Facebook: The Reader & the Writer

Send us and email: readerandwriterpodcast@gmail.com

Write a review on your preferred podcast listening platform!

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive the latest podcast episodes and essays delivered to your inbox.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

This week Rhea and Shari begin North Woods by Daniel Mason. In this episode they discuss their first impressions of the story and give an overview of the characters and action in these beginning sections of the book. They talk about elegant writing, playfulness with prose, and the way Daniel Mason is masterful at creating movement and transcendence throughout the narrative. Of course, there are character transitions, p.o.v shifts, action, and the motifs they discuss as well: The Creation narrative, the Fall, and all that white space (!).

Links to interviews, articles, and podcasts they discussed in the show:

• You Tube interview

• Oxford Review of Books article/interview

• Sold a Story podcast

Timeline for the rest of North Woods:

• Part 2 (pp. 131-242): June 25

• Part 3 (pp. 243 - end): July 2

Thanks for reading The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe for free to receive new episodes and posts straight to your inbox.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

On this episode, Shari and Rhea wrap up their discussion of David Copperfield. They explore all the side stories and whether they were so much of “side stories” after all. They compare mother - child relationships, notice the many subtle—and not so subtle—Biblical connections, and recognize all the ways Dickens is plain old havin’ fun in this section: the theatrics, dramatic monologues, romanticism, stark contrasts of good and evil, and… the over-the-topness of Mr. Micawber’s speechifying. Oiy!! They also ask themselves who is the real hero of David’s story? And… do they still wonder if they made a mistake reading David Copperfield and Demon Copperhead back-to-back? This, and a lot more!

We’d love to hear from you! What do you think of the episodes? What would you like to hear more about when we discuss each story? Have any questions? What do you think of our assessments of characters and their motives? You can message us through the Reader & the The Writer, or through each of our personal Substack accounts: Shari Dragovich, or Rhea Forney.

Looking ahead to our next reads:

Summertime Reads:

• North Woodsby Daniel Mason;

First episode dropping June 18th; “One” up to but not including “Letters to E.N.” (pp. 5-127); Episode 2: pp. 131-239; Episode 3: pp. 243-369 (end)

• Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr

Back to School YA Slam:

• The Wednesday Warsby Gary Schmidt

• Everything Sad is Untrueby Daniel Nayari

• You Bring the Distant Nearby Mitali Perkins (Note: Shari misspoke when she named this title in the podcast… oops!)

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe and never miss an episode!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

On this episode, Shari and Rhea discuss lots of “big picture” topics they are recognizing as they read: deep dives into character comparisons between David Copperfield and Demon Copperhead; recurring imagery and how theses things are telling a story behind the story; developing themes; and… why we even bother to spend the time reading and writing stories at all. Oh, and a long and winding discussion on character foils! It’s getting real, dear listener!

In our final episode of David Copperfield, we’ll be reading to the end. Look for this episode to drop June 11th.

Also, looking ahead to our next reads:

Summertime Reads:

• North Woodsby Daniel Mason

• Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr

Back to School YA Slam:

• The Wednesday Warsby Gary Schmidt

• Everything Sad is Untrueby Daniel Nayari

• You Bring the Distant Nearby Mitali Perkins

Thanks for listening to The Reader & the Writer! Subscribe to never miss an episode!

Music: Dawn by Ardie’s Son

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

Much is happening in this middle section of David Copperfield! So, we’ve decided to divide this middle section of the story into two parts. In Part 1 of this section, Rhea and Shari discuss the specifics of the story: development of characters, ways the story is coming into its own and separating itself from Demon Copperhead in our minds, and how much we’re enjoying the movement happening here.

Music: Dawn by Ardie’s Son

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe to the Reader & the Writer to never miss an episode.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

Welcome back to our discussion of David Copperfield! In this episode, Rhea and Shari discuss Chapters 1-22 of David Copperfield. They do a deep dive into the various characters that have been introduced so far and compare them (because they can’t help it) to their dopplegangers in Demon Copperhead. Beyond this, however, they discuss the peculiarities of the time and place of David Copperfield that make the characters behave and spend their days as they do. They discuss the roles of women and the wide variation of female characters in the story. And they discuss the writing trick Dickens' employs to create caricatures out of several of his characters, quietly weaving satire and a kind of social commentary throughout the novel.

On the next episode, dropping May 14th, we’ll be discussing Chapters 23-42.

We’d love to hear from you! Post a comment or send us a message. And if you are enjoying The Reader & the Writer, please share it with you lit-loving friends. :)

Thank you for reading The Reader & the Writer. This post is public so feel free to share it.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

This week Shari and Rhea begin reading David Copperfield. In this episode, they do a “warm up” to the reading; that is, an introduction to the time and place in which Dickens is writing. They share some of the more surprising struggles they’ve had while reading David Copperfield, and wonder if they’ve made a mistake in reading it back-to-back with Demon Copperhead. They talk about the difference between Regency and Victorian England, the messy emergence of England’s middle class, other British literature of the same era… but not exactly the same era, and how all this new understanding is helping them to pick up more of the satire and social commentary that Charles Dickens is putting down throughout the story.

The episode schedule for David Copperfield will be every two weeks. Below is the readings schedule with dates:

• May 14th: Chapters 1-22

• May 28th: Chapters 23-42

• June 11th: Chapters 43-64 + a short wrap up with the Great Story

We recommend finding a copy of David Copperfield that offers literary and/or historical commentary on Dicken’s and his writing of David Copperfield, as well as offers footnotes to give context to confusing words, phrases, or references. Rhea and I are reading from: the Penguin Classics Edition, and The Barnes & Noble Classics Series.

Read wide & read well, dear listeners. And live every day in witness to the Great Story.

Intro and Exit music: Dawn by Ardie’s Son

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

This is our last episode on Demon Copperhead. Rhea and Shari talk about all that this story invited them--indeed, forced--them to consider in life: the difference between pity and compassion; how economic stability, or lack thereof, is directly connected to the dignity of the individual and a community; the evocation of Demon's character through his voice; the difference between focusing on problems v. solutions; and our God-given and ordained selves that are are made to love, and out of that love make new things.

Thank you for reading The Reader & the Writer. This post is public so feel free to share it.

Love what you’re hearing? Subscribe to The Reader & the Writer and receive new episodes straight to your inbox.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

In this episode of The Reader & the Writer, Rhea and Shari finish their close reading of Demon Copperhead. These are hard times for Demon, and they were difficult to read. Rhea and Shari will compare characters, discuss what causes the "wanting disease," and talk about that long dénouement and why it felt unusual to us both.

Thank you for listening to The Reader & the Writer. This post is public so feel free to share it.

Love what you’re hearing? Subscribe and receive episodes straight to your inbox.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

Welcome back to The Reader & the Writer. On this episode, Rhea and Shari continue their close reading of Demon Copperhead. We call these Demon's "foster care - golden years", though not to be confused as being the same. Quite the opposite. We'll be discussing dignity, motives, and flying kites as offerings of thanksgiving.

Thank you for reading The Reader & the Writer. This post is public so feel free to share it.

Love what you’re hearing? Subscribe to receive episodes straight to your inbox.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

Welcome to the Reader & the Writer! This is a new literary focus to the old Beauty & Arts podcast. On R&W, Rhea Forney and Shari Dragovich discuss excellent works of literature--both old and new--through close reading; and then examine how these works give witness to the Great Story, the one that finds as its opening, "In the beginning...." If you listened to their discussions of the the Narnia series on the B&A’s podcast, then you are well-acquainted with the style and format of The Reader & the Writer.

In this first episode, Rhea & Shari re-introduce themselves and dive right into discussing their first book, ⁠Demon Copperhead⁠, by ⁠Barbara Kingslover.⁠ They discuss chapters 1-19, Demon's early childhood years, as Shari calls them, "the Mom years."

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

In this episode, Shari continues looking at Paul's letter to the Ephesians through the lens of a literary art form, looking specifically at Paul's emphasis of the restorative work of Christ in the life of his Gentile readers. She especially focuses on the repetition of language Paul uses, his continual weaving through of the Trinitarian reality, and ways he gives small tastes of big ideas (like "oneness" and "power") that he will more fully flesh out in the second half of his letter.

Primary resource for this series: The ESV Literary Study Bible, published by Crossway. https://www.crossway.org/bibles/esv-literary-study-bible-hcj/

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

In this third episode of Ephesians as a letter writing art form, Shari looks at Paul's use of long sentences and exulting language to move his readers inward and upward into Trinitarian love and life.

Intro and Exit music: "The Story of One Life," by Silence in the Streets

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

In this episode, Shari offers reasons for why a literary reading of any book in the Bible ought be given a first priority, and addresses common fallacies associated with reading the Bible as literature. Then she gets into an overview of the letter to the Ephesians. She gives historic context to the letter, offers a picture of who the believers of Ephesus were, what Paul may have been motivated by near the end of his life, and how that shaped his letter.

Finally, she offers a list of Paul's literary intentions for writing Ephesians, and explained how this is different than the literary tools he uses for making his intentions come to bear.

The episode gets a little weedy toward the end. Hopefully as we get into the letter, some of the ideas discussed here will come more clear and alive.

Resource: The Literary Study Bible, ESV, copyright 2007, 2019 by Crossway

Music: Story of One Life, by Silence in the Streets

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

With this episode, Shari kicks off a new series: The Art of Letter Writing--a study of Ephesians through its literary style. Shari will give an intro to the the series, and answers the question, "Is letter writing an art form?" She also offers some tips for how to read Ephesians through a literary lens.

Intro and exit music: The Story of One Life, by Silence in the Streets

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thereaderandthewriter.substack.com

View Details

In this final episode of The Silver Chair series, Shari and Rhea discuss what it means to reorient one's idea of success (more than life or death), the trap of enchantment, and living like a Christian even if it weren't true.

For the Q&A episode, send your comment or questions to:

shari@stjohnlutheran.org

Other books referenced in this series (episodes 15-17):

• The Truth and the Beauty, by Andrew Klavan
• Plato's Republic
• Luther's Small Catechism
• Planet Narnia, by Michael Ward

View Details

In this episode, Shari and Rhea continue their close reading of The Silver Chair. They discuss the problem with distractions, how similar the Underworld is to purgatory, and the struggle of trying to discern the truth in a world full of deceptions.

View Details

This episode begins a three-part series on The Silver Chair. Shari teams up again with guest co-host, Rhea Forney for diving deep into Lewis's story of saving a prince, battling the powers of darkness, and critical importance of remembering the signs.

View Details

In this episode, Shari and guest co-host, Rhea Forney, continue their close reading of Horse and His Boy. In this episode, they discuss the importance of being in community, Aslan's strange behavior, and the image of Christ in the Hermit of the Southern March.

View Details

Shari and Rhea finish their close reading of Horse and His Boy. They discuss the prominence of water, the silence surrounding Shasta's conversion, and Lewis's secret mercurial thread woven throughout the story.

View Details

On Episode 12, Shari invites Rhea Forney to engage in a close reading of the next book in our Narnia series: The Horse and His Boy. In this episode, Shari and Rhea will discuss the benefits of close reading, the idea of uncovering the "aboutness" of any story, and how identity keeps coming to the forefront in the first chapters of The Horse and His Boy.

View Details

In this episode, Shari discusses Reepicheep, the most valiant character of Narnia thus far. She talks about courage, the definition of true hope, and why Reepicheep is an honorable and worthy guide for us in these self-identity crisis times in which we live.

Work Cited:

• Doris T. Myers, "The Compleat: Anglican, Spiritual Styles in the Chronicles of Narnia," Appendix Five of Paul Ford's book, Companion to Narnia
• The Bible, ESV, Matthew, Galatians

Intro and exit music: Dawn, by Ardie Son

View Details

In this episode, Shari discusses all the dancing in Prince Caspian. She goes through the five episodes of dancing in the story, reading some of those scenes from the book. Then she discusses why dancing plays such a prominent role in a story that is essentially about war, and how Lewis's medieval mind is at work again - this time from a medieval cosmology perspective.

Resources:

Planet Narnia by Michael Ward

Companion to Narnia, Revised and Expanded by Paul Ford

Intro and Exit music by Ardie Son, Dawn

View Details

We're heading back to Narnia on the podcast. In this episode, Shari introduces Prince Caspian and discusses the difference between Old Narnia and New Narnia. She then takes a look at what C. S. Lewis may be up to in contrasting the two - in particular with regards to his love of the medieval mind.

Article referenced: Louis Markos (2001), "Apologist for the Past: The Medieval Vision of C.S. Lewis's "Space Trilogy" and Chronicles of Narnia", Mythlore

Book referenced: C. S. Lewis (1964), The Discarded Image

Music by Ardie Son, Dawn

View Details

On this final episode in the Lenten series, Shari discusses how the story of Jonah is deeply connected to the narratives of Genesis 1-3; and suggests some big ideas we, as readers, might pick up on by reading the two stories side-by-side.

Questions or Comments? Email: shari@stjohnlutheran.org

View Details

In this episode, Shari dives deeper into the genre of satire, its history and its elements. She discusses the four elements of satire, and how these are expressed in Jonah's story.

View Details

On this episode, Shari takes the long and winding road to discovering Jonah's genre, why it's hard to determine, and why it really does matter.

View Details

With this episode, Shari begins a new podcast series: The Art & Beauty of Storytelling in Jonah. Join her in exploring the old biblical story of Jonah from a literary  point-of-view; uncovering greater treasures tucked within this story so masterfully written.

Notes: 

Intro and Exit Music: The Story of One Life by Aleksey Chistilin

Questions or comments? Email: shari@stjohnlutheran.org

View Details

In this episode, Shari finishes the first of  the Beauty & the Arts, Narnia Series, with a discussion of the climax moment in Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe. She also talks about how C.S. Lewis uses contrasts to make his big ideas come better alive to readers.

You can find a Discussion Guide for LWW at stjohnlutheran.org; Under the Resources Tab.

View Details

In this third episode in the Beauty & the Arts' Narnia series, Shari discusses food and eating in Narnia, and what other meanings they might contain beyond - but not excluding - the act of eating, itself. 

Resources used in this podcast:

• Companion to Narnia by Paul Ford
• How to Read Like a Professor by Thomas Foster

Questions to ask when examining a food scene in a story (novel, short story, play, etc):

1. Who all is sharing in the meal together?
2. What is the meal being shared?
3. Where are they eating?
4. What else is happening at this meal besides eating?
5. What else is being consumed besides the actual food? What else is being shared? What details within the scene make you think this?
6. Finally, what other stories sound similar to this one, and how might putting the two side by side help you discover something new or make new meaning come to bear?

View Details

On this episode, Shari dives into the wardrobe... from Edmund's point-of-view

To have Shari send you a Discussion Guide for LWW, email her at: shari@stjohnlutheran.org

View Details

In this episode, Shari will discuss the difference between allegory and fantasy, and why C.S. Lewis was so adamant that the Narnia Chronicles were one and not the other. She will also talk about Lewis' love for fairy story and why this was his chosen form in writing the Chronicles of Narnia.

Resources used in this episode:

• Companion to Narnia, by Paul Ford
• C.S. Lewis Companion and Guide, by Walter Hooper
• Of Other Worlds, Essays and Stories, by C. S. Lewis
• Letters to Children, by C.S. Lewis; edited by Lyle W. Dorsett and Marjorie Lamp Mead

View Details

In this brief episode, Shari will give an overview of what listeners can expect when tuning into Beauty & the Arts.