Episode 2 - Jerusalem: The Boroughs (Part 1)
The Hashish and Superiority Book Club
Release Date: 10/19/2018
Overstory the Ninth
The Hashish and Superiority Book Club
Tree People Vs. Lesbian Space Necromancers
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Richard Power's The Overstory and American Chernobyl
The Hashish and Superiority Book Club
James and Hugh talk about The Punisher's computer guy, America's Chernobyl, and mostly Richard Power's The Overstory. Want more of these conversations? To hear Wade's eventual thoughts on The Overstory? Check out the Kickers of Elves patreon at https://patreon.com/kickersofelves
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Fall; or, Dodge in Hell: Part 11 - This is the Way the World Ends
The Hashish and Superiority Book Club
A hollow man? The Quest is completed. We finally put Bitworld to rest. How many books are in this book? Again, themes are questioned. Fantasy forms are discussed before the big wrap up. Final feelings -and the book- are put to rest. And no, Chris Brown did not sing on that one song. If you have your own opinions to share: 917 408 3898
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Fall; or, Dodge in Hell: Part 10 - Conflict Really Escalates in this One
The Hashish and Superiority Book Club
We go full reaility show drama/American Chopper Meme with this one.
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Fall; or, Dodge in Hell: Part 9 - Turtles All the Way Down
The Hashish and Superiority Book Club
The regular James returns. Is it the same podcast on down throughout every reality? First, a synopsis! We haven’t actually done many of those. Are you ready for some hot logging action? Do we live in simulation? Is it turtles all the way down? Is there some Snow Crash in this? Work and labor! Do the economics of this book fall flat? Is this a libertarian text? Is Bitworld’s similarity to our world the point? How confounding is this to the general reader? Do other books have a more balanced...
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Fall; or, Dodge in Hell: Part 8 - A Gnostic Simulation
The Hashish and Superiority Book Club
We experienced a loss with this episode. There may, however, be a technological solution. Listen for a note at the top of the episode to explain further, but the short is: A routine procedure went awry. James is Gone (No, he's not!) Maybe he is here, in some sense. What exactly does Gnosticism have to do with Dodge in Hell? Quite a lot it turns out! We read the beginning of Book 2 of Fall for this installment, but even if you haven't read it that's ok. It's a book about a simulated afterlife. Lets talk about simulations and their worth. ...
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Fall; or, Dodge in Hell: Parts 6 and 7 - Arguing about the Afterlife
The Hashish and Superiority Book Club
Book One ends, but we're still arguing the premise of the book. How is this thing structured anyway? All about El’s name. Paradise Lost, huh? Does Milton’s view of history have anything to do with this book? What are we supposed to derive from Paradise Lost similarities? Oh boy, here’s where we start going off the rails. If Maeve refers to a brain “simulation” does that completely negate the conceit of a digital afterlife? What is the humanity of this book? Is it a dog staring at your finger? Are these people dead or not? More...
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Fall; or, Dodge in Hell: Parts 4 and 5 - This Meeting is Out of Order
The Hashish and Superiority Book Club
With Ameristan behind us, it's time to head back to the back to the conference room. Things get heated. More analyzing the mental state of the author. Is he calming? Is he ok? Are we ok? Are you ok? Just what is happing here? 917 408 3898 https://kickersofelves.com
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Fall: or, Dodge in Hell: Parts 2 and 3 - Blowing Up
The Hashish and Superiority Book Club
We think we have a better idea of the book now, but do we? Is this an angry book where Neal is working out his feelings on the 2016 election? Are dumb people the biggest problem in the world? Welcome to Ameristan! Is this intellectual elitism? More predictions and trying to figure this thing out. Are we right? Wrong? What a sex scene!
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Fall; or, Dodge in Hell: Part 1 - Getting Started
The Hashish and Superiority Book Club
We’re into Fall! What do we think about the book so far and just how wrong are we about what’s going to come next?
info_outlineEpisode 2 - Jerusalem: The Boroughs (Part 1)
Intro - We have a few opening points to make before we get started with the text. Hugh gives his overall opinions on huge works and and this book specifically. The guys talk some about the differences between Modernism and Postmodernism.
The Prelude: A Work in Progress (skip to 12:20) - We are introduced to siblings Alma and Mick Warren. And the town of Northampton. And Dodderidge Chapel, with its weird freight door.
Chapter 1: A Host of Angels (skip to 32:20) - We follow the Warren kids’ great-grandfather, Ern Vernall, as he is visited by an Angel (angle?) and proceeds to lose his mind.
Chapter 2: ASBOs of Desire (skip to 47:45) - We spend the day with adorable and delightful Marla, as she appreciates true art, seeks to alleviate her hungers, and make a dollar or two in the process.
Chapter 3: Rough Sleepers (skip to 67:55) - We spend the same day with Freddie Allen, who used to be in the life, but who is not so much anymore. He likes Puck’s Hats, ladies, and watching trilliards.
Welcome to The Hashish and Superiority Book Club, a podcast where we hope to tackle the large and weighty tomes of great (or not so great) fiction we find pertinent to the modern world - heretofore to be referred to as Hell World. Each season of the podcast will tackle either one large work or one author, dissecting what makes them lasting and important to the modern hellscape.
We are Kickers of Elves (kickersofelves.com, @kickerspodcasts), a group of podcasting thirtysomething sad bastards consisting of Wade Bowen (@bogmad), James Nolen (@jamesnolen), and Hugh Crawford (@hughbotcrawford).
For Season 1, we have decided to read the entire 600,000 word, 1300pg doorstop by Alan Moore named Jerusalem (2016).
Music Used:
“Theme Song” by James
“Transition 1” by James
“The River” by Bruce Springsteen
“Transition 2” by James
“Sheila” by Jamie T
Closing Song: “Don’t Fall In” by Kate Tempest
Publisher Blurb:
Begging comparisons to Tolstoy and Joyce, this “magnificent, sprawling cosmic epic” (Guardian) by Alan Moore—the genre-defying, “groundbreaking, hairy genius of our generation” (NPR)—takes its place among the most notable works of contemporary English literature. In decaying Northampton, eternity loiters between housing projects. Among saints, kings, prostitutes, and derelicts, a timeline unravels: second-century fiends wait in urine-scented stairwells, delinquent specters undermine a century with tunnels, and in upstairs parlors, laborers with golden blood reduce fate to a snooker tournament. Through the labyrinthine streets and pages of Jerusalem tread ghosts singing hymns of wealth and poverty. They celebrate the English language, challenge mortality post-Einstein, and insist upon their slum as Blake’s eternal holy city in “Moore’s apotheosis, a fourth-dimensional symphony” (Entertainment Weekly). This “brilliant . . . monumentally ambitious” tale from the gutter is “a massive literary achievement for our time—and maybe for all times simultaneously” (Washington Post).
Some links to purchase the book:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BX7S1M2/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1 (We hate these robber barons, especially Jeff Bezos. Don’t use Amazon if you can help it, but we are huge hypocrites for James and Hugh both recommend reading the book on Kindle.)
Powell’s https://www.powells.com/book/-9781631494727
If you like this podcast, we hope you check out our other ongoing podcasts covering every single episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (The Rules of Acquisition) and our highly critical struggle session with Star Trek: Discovery (A Discovery Home Companion).
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Phone Number: 917 408 3898