This week, the Jennys agree that Amazon is being a bully in the Hachette dispute, discuss what makes a book feel dated, and have amiably opposite responses to Italo Calvino’s If on a winter’s night a traveler. We also play a game in which we learn some things about Italy. You can listen to the podcast in the embedded player below or download the file directly to take with you on the go.
Or if you wish, you can find us on iTunes (and if you enjoy the podcast, give us a good rating! We appreciate it very very much).
Here are the contents of the podcast, if you want to skip around!
Starting at 1:15 – Bookish news! Levar Burton is Kickstartering Reading Rainbow. That is still ongoing. Also ongoing is the Amazon/Hachette dispute, which I confess I was hoping would be over by now. Here are some remarks by a Hachette author; a Slate article on what Amazon is up to; and a sad NY Times editorial.
Starting at 5:11 – What makes a book feel dated? I have a thesis statement about this!
Starting at 16:51 – Whiskey Jenny and I feel differently about Italo Calvino’s If on a winter’s night a traveler. He’s too experimental for me, but Whiskey Jenny digs it, even though she normally does not like not to know exactly what’s going on at every moment. That just goes to show that Whiskey Jenny is a more open-minded reader than me (which I already knew).
35:19 – A mystery about reading habits arises. Please weigh in. We have no idea what is going on with this.
Starting at 37:07 – We play Randon’s game Italy or Not Italy!
Starting at 49:16 – For next time, Whiskey Jenny recommends that we read Karen Russell’s new novella Sleep Donation. I am tentatively excited about this. I want to love Karen Russell, but I did not care for Swamplandia. Could Sleep Donation be my way in on Karen Russell? TUNE IN NEXT TIME TO FIND OUT. (I hope yes.)
51:34 – Closing remarks and outro.
Credits
Producer: Captain Hammer
Photo credit: The Illustrious Annalee
Song is by Jeff MacDougall and comes from here.