Close Reads

From the CiRCE Institute, Close Reads is a book-club podcast with Angelina Stanford, Tim McIntosh, and David Kern. We read Great Books and talk about them. Join us!

Howards End, Chapters 26-30 02/16/2018

Howards End, Chapters 26-30 Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they continue their conversation about E.M. Forster's novel, Howards End. Topics of conversation include Margaret's response to Henry's past indiscretions, Helen's protection of the Basts, whether Henry is truly repentant, and much more! If you like this show please consider supporting it /episode/index/show/closereads/id/6268895

Howards End, Chapters 21-25 02/09/2018

Howards End, Chapters 21-25 Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they continue their conversation about E.M. Forster's novel, Howards End. Topics of conversation include the differences in liking and appreciating a good book, Romantic (big "R") literature and the Romantic period of art, whether Margaret is a true Romantic, and much more! If you like this show please consider supporting it /episode/index/show/closereads/id/6243183

Howards End, chapters 16-20 02/02/2018

Howards End, chapters 16-20 Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they continue their conversation about E.M. Forster's novel, Howards End. Topics of conversation include the differences between Mr. Wilcox and Margaret, capital "R" Romance vs. lower-case "r" romance, Forster's energetic writing, the awkward Wilcox-Shlegel kiss, and much more. If you like this show please consider supporting it /episode/index/show/closereads/id/6219135

Howards End, Chapters 11-15 01/26/2018

Howards End, Chapters 11-15 Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they continue their conversation about E.M. Forster's novel Howards End. Topics of conversation include whether this book is about anything, Forster's instance on keeping his characters at arms-length, an Angelina reversal, Margaret's affection for Mr. Wilcox, the Downton Abbey-ness of the story, and much more. /episode/index/show/closereads/id/6192048

Howards End: Chapters 6-10 01/19/2018

Howards End: Chapters 6-10 Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they continue their conversation about E.M. Forster's novel Howards End. Topics of conversation include whether Mrs. Wilcox is meant to a type of a mystic character, the odd relationship between Mrs. Wilcox and Margaret, Leonard's strange chapter (and role in the book), and much, much more. /episode/index/show/closereads/id/6167859

Howards End, Chapters 1-5 01/12/2018

Howards End, Chapters 1-5 Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they kick off their conversation about E.M. Forster's novel Howards End. Topics of conversation include Angelina's secret sports-life, which Schlegel sister Tim and Angelina see most in themselves, 19th-century European politics, the Bloomsbury group that Forster was a part of, his interesting use of pace and voice, and much more. /episode/index/show/closereads/id/6143322

Reviewing 2017: The Year in Reading 01/05/2018

Reviewing 2017: The Year in Reading Welcome back to Close Reads, where David, Angelina, and Tim are discussing their 2017 in reading and their reading goals for 2018. Plus, Angelina gets ambushed by a special guest. *** If you like this podcast, please consider supporting it via Patreon. Learn more at /episode/index/show/closereads/id/6119838

The Twelfth Night Q&A Episode 12/29/2017

The Twelfth Night Q&A Episode Welcome back to Close Reads, where David, Angelina, and Tim are discussing listener questions about Twelfth Night. Topics include lots of talk about Feste, strong women in Shakespeare, whether the ending is satisfying, the alternate title, Shakespeare as political rabble-rouser, and, of course, some Christmas-themed banter. /episode/index/show/closereads/id/6099298

Twelfth Night: Act 5 12/22/2017

Twelfth Night: Act 5 Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they continue to discuss William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. Topics include where Twelfth Night belongs in Shakespeare's canon, the somewhat abrupt ending, the lack of change in the characters, the subtitle, and the poem that ends the play. /// If you like Close Reads, please support us at patreon.com/closereads. /episode/index/show/closereads/id/6083264

#79: Twelfth Night, Act 4 12/15/2017

#79: Twelfth Night, Act 4 Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they continue to discuss William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. Topics include Shakespeare's innovation (and subversion) of dramatic form, the Shakespearean authorship question and whether it matters, the way the shape of the stage comes alive in the play, and much more. /episode/index/show/closereads/id/6049813

#78: Twelfth Night ( Act 3) 12/08/2017

#78: Twelfth Night ( Act 3) Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they continue to discuss William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. Topics include Shakespeare's approach to structure, identity (and the motif of disguise), and comedic reversals. Plus, Tim tells another story about classroom hijinks. /episode/index/show/closereads/id/6024632

#77: Twelfth Night (Act 2) 12/01/2017

#77: Twelfth Night (Act 2) Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they continue conversation on William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. Topics include the number of lines dedicated to the "foolish" characters, the nature of Soliloquy in Shakespeare, and much, much more. /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5999995

#76: Twelfth Night (Act 1) 11/25/2017

#76: Twelfth Night (Act 1) Join Angelina, Tim, and David as they kickoff conversation on William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. Topics include different approaches to Shakespeare, Renaissance metaphors that are key in the play, and much, much more (this episode is long!). /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5977772

#75: Murder on the Orient Express: The Movie 11/18/2017

#75: Murder on the Orient Express: The Movie It took a few takes (and some persistent in the face of tech issue), but Angelina, Tim, and David are back with another episode of Close Reads. This week they discuss Kenneth Branaugh's film adaptation of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express. /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5957619

#74: Murder on the Orient Express Q&A 11/11/2017

#74: Murder on the Orient Express Q&A Join Angelina, Tim, and David for another episode of literary debate, witty banter, and all around frivolity as they answer several listener questions and debate the overall artistic quality of Agatha Christie's "masterpiece." Topics includes (more on) justice, considering literary world's for their own sake, P.D. James take on Christie (and other mystery writers), the grandeur of red-leafed trees, and much more. /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5933822

#73: Murder on the Orient Express (part 3) 11/03/2017

#73: Murder on the Orient Express (part 3) On this episode of Close Reads Angelina, Tim, and David discuss the finale of Agatha Christie's beloved mystery story, Murder on the Orient Express. Topics include: The Great Candy Wars of 2017, the detective as a trope, the question of justice in the ending, Poirot's punting, Tim's inner struggle. Please consider becoming a patron of this podcast. Learn more at . /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5907718

#72: Murder on the Orient Express (part 2) 10/27/2017

#72: Murder on the Orient Express (part 2) On this episode of Close Reads Angelina, Tim, and David discuss part two of Agatha Christie's beloved mystery story, Murder on the Orient Express. Topics include: Some (fascinating) listener theories on the book, Poirot's approach and personality, the role of the reader in a good mystery, Tim shenanigans, and much more. Please consider becoming a patron of this podcast. Learn more at . /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5884574

#71: Murder on the Orient Express (part 1) 10/21/2017

#71: Murder on the Orient Express (part 1) On this episode of Close Reads Angelina, Tim, and David kick off their discussion of Agatha's Christie classic mystery story, Murder on the Orient Express. This week they chat about part one. Topics include the way Christie plays with the form of the mystery story, Hercule Poirot's character, the nature of justice in the story, and MUCH more. Please consider becoming a patron of this podcast. Learn more at . /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5862009

#70: Gilead (ep. 8) 10/07/2017

#70: Gilead (ep. 8) On this episode of Close Reads, Tim and David conclude their discussion of Marilynne Robinson's beloved, Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Gilead. include whether Jack should have left town, whether Jack is a bad guy, and much, much more. This episode covers pages 215 through the end of the book. *** Please consider becoming a patron of this podcast. Learn more at . /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5816579

#69: Gilead (ep. 7) 09/30/2017

#69: Gilead (ep. 7) On this episode of Close Reads, Angelina, Tim, and David continue their discussion of Marilynne Robinson's beloved, Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Gilead. Topics include Angelina's strong feelings about the book (and David's pushback), whether Robinson misfired with the Boughton/Ames scene, and much more. This episode covers pages 188-215. *** This episode is brought to you by our good friends at. Set up a campus visit now! Please consider becoming a patron of this podcast. Learn more at . /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5792116

#68: Gilead (ep. 6) 09/22/2017

#68: Gilead (ep. 6) On this episode of Close Reads, Angelina, Tim, and David continue their discussion of Marilynne Robinson's beloved, Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Gilead. Topics include ways the parable of the prodigal son show up in the book, Jack Boughton's concerns about being "elect," rejection vs. restoration, Jack's loneliness, and much more. This episode covers pages 160-188. *** This episode is brought to you by our good friends at. Set up a campus visit now! Please consider becoming a patron of this podcast. Learn more at patreon.com/closereads. /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5767418

#67: Christine Perrin on Learning to Love Marilynne Robinson 09/18/2017

#67: Christine Perrin on Learning to Love Marilynne Robinson On this bonus episode of Close Reads, David discusses Marilynne Robinson with poet, teacher, and speaker Christine Perrin, who explains why it took her a while to learn to love Gilead, why Lila is her "heart book," and much, much more. *** This episode is brought to you by our good friends at. Set up a campus visit now! /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5751593

#66: Gilead (ep. 5) 09/14/2017

#66: Gilead (ep. 5) On this episode of Close Reads, Angelina, Tim, and David continue their discussion of Marilynne Robinson's beloved, Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Gilead. Topics include how easy it is to focus on the wrong things when you read, the mystery of reading a book, the lack of a problem to be solved in this book, the Jack Boughton revelation, and much more. This episode covers pages 128-160. *** This episode is brought to you by our good friends at. Set up a campus visit now! /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5738528

#65: Gilead (ep. 4) 09/04/2017

#65: Gilead (ep. 4) On this episode of Close Reads, Angelina, Tim, and David continue their discussion of Marilynne Robinson's beloved, Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Gilead. Topics include all the baseball in the book, the mystery of Jack Boughton, the remembrance of sorrow, and much more. This episode covers pages 97-128. *** This episode is brought to you by our good friends at. Set up a campus visit now! /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5705952

#64: Gilead (ep. 3) 08/29/2017

#64: Gilead (ep. 3) On this episode of Close Reads, Angelina, Tim (from Aruba), and David continue their discussion of Marilynne Robinson's beloved, Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Gilead. Topics include the book's lack of plot, the various father/son relationships, more conversation on theology and suffering, and more. This episode covers pages 68-97. *** This episode is brought to you by from Classical Academic Press, featuring new literature courses taught by Close Reads co-star, Tim McIntosh. It's also brought to you by our good friends at. Set up a campus visit now! /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5688177

#63: Gilead (ep. 2) 08/22/2017

#63: Gilead (ep. 2) On this episode of Close Reads, Angelina and David continue their discussion of Marilynne Robinson's beloved, Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Gilead (while Tim vacations in Aruba). Topics include John Ames' observations of humanity, the goodness of growing old, contemplation of heaven (and the beauty of perishability), and more. This episode covers pages 37-68. *** This episode is brought to you by from Classical Academic Press, featuring new literature courses taught by Close Reads co-star, Tim McIntosh. It's also brought to you by our good friends at. Set up a campus visit now! /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5664897

#62: Gilead Kick-off Show 08/14/2017

#62: Gilead Kick-off Show On this episode of Close Reads, Angelina, Tim, and David kick off their discussion of Marilynne Robinson's beloved, Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Gilead (2004). Topics include whether this is a sad book, a bit on Robinson's biography, John Ames's joy in the face of suffering, and more. *** This episode is brought to you by from Classical Academic Press, featuring new literature courses taught by Close Reads co-star, Tim McIntosh. It's also brought to you by our good friends at. Set up a campus visit now! /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5641930

#61: Brideshead Revisited Q&A 08/08/2017

#61: Brideshead Revisited Q&A On this episode of Close Reads, Angelina, Tim, David, and Andrew conclude their discussion of Evelyn Waugh's classic novel Brideshead Revisited, answering listener questions. Topics include: The BBC miniseries and Jeremy Irons' audio book The effect of Charles immaturity on his perspectives Whether it's a true conversion story Which characters display true faith Symbolism and conversion and much more This episode is brought to you by from Classical Academic Press, featuring new literature courses taught by Close Reads co-star, Tim McIntosh. It's also brought to you by our good friends at. Set up a campus visit now! *** /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5622206

#60: Concluding Brideshead Revisited (LIVE EPISODE) 07/28/2017

#60: Concluding Brideshead Revisited (LIVE EPISODE) On this special LIVE episode of Close Reads, Angelina, Tim, David, and their special guest conclude their discussion of Evelyn Waugh's classic novel Brideshead Revisited, focusing on the final chapters. This episode was recorded at the 2017 CiRCE Conference. Topics include: The love story Whether this story is tragedy Whether people wanted Julia and Charles to stay together The sign of the cross and aesthetic theology The ongoing thread twitches Listener comments and much more This episode is brought to you by from Classical Academic Press, featuring new literature courses taught by Close Reads co-star, Tim McIntosh. *** /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5588509

#59: Brideshead Revisited, part 2, chapters 2-3 07/18/2017

#59: Brideshead Revisited, part 2, chapters 2-3 On this episode of Close Reads, Angelina, Tim, and David continue their discussion of Evelyn Waugh's classic novel, Brideshead Revisited, focusing on chapter 9. Topics include: Julia's prescience Julia's guilty conscience Bridey's strong words Ryder's skepticism and much more This episode is brought to you by from Classical Academic Press, featuring new literature courses taught by Close Reads co-star, Tim McIntosh. *** /episode/index/show/closereads/id/5549667

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