I’ve heard it said by men of wide experience that podcasts used to be better in the old days. Kieran Healy discusses three short stories by Frank O’Connor: “First Confession,” “The Majesty of the Law,” and “Guests of the Nation.” John McCoy with Kieran Healy Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member.…

Forever is composed of podcasts. Caroline Fulford discusses selected poems by Emily Dickinson (c. 1860-65). John McCoy with Caroline Fulford and Marina McCoy Show Notes & Links Emily Dickinson at the Poetry Foundation Biography and texts of many of her poems. Works in this episode linked below: I felt a funeral, in my brain I heard a Fly buzz - whe…

Cigars are always trouble. Marina McCoy discusses Barbara Robinson’s The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (1972). John McCoy with Marina McCoy Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.Von The Incomparable

Sometimes you want to go where everybody is a thread in the fabric of the human condition. Also they know your name. Phil Gonzales discusses William Saroyan’s The Time of Your Life (1939). John McCoy with Phil Gonzales Show Notes & Links The Time of Your Life (1976) The John Houseman directed television version for Theater in America, with Kevin Kl…

Hey, things are tough. The McCoy Bros, Rob, John, and Dan, discuss the books that get them through. John McCoy with Rob McCoy and Dan McCoy Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.Von The Incomparable

Ross Cleaver returns to talk owls, plates, and Welsh mythology in Alan Garner’s The Owl Service (1967). John McCoy with Ross Cleaver Show Notes & Links Owl Service dinner plate The titular service plate with its owl flowers. Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podca…

This episode has many omissions, and contains much that is apocryphal, or at least wildly inaccurate. Jacob Haller tries to make sense of Douglas Adams’s The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (1979). John McCoy with Jacob Haller Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to po…

What’s more cultivated and genteel than classical theater? David Loehr discusses Aristophanes’s Lysistrata (411 B.C.E.) John McCoy with David J. Loehr Show Notes & Links Lysistrata Jones Trailer for the 2011 Broadway musical Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podca…

Because twenty would be too few and twenty-two would be ridiculous. Shaenon K. Garrity discusses William Pène du Bois’s The Twenty-One Balloons (1947). John McCoy with Shaenon K. Garrity Referenced Works The Twenty-One Balloons Show Notes & Links Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members ge…

Rain Main meets Air Bud. Dan McCoy discusses stims and happy endings and Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (2003). John McCoy with Dan McCoy Show Notes & Links Dan McCoy's Special Interests My brother’s newsletter mentioned in the episode. Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becomin…

This is the way the world ends, not with a bang but with a bunch of monks sitting around copying stuff. Jelani Sims returns to discuss Walter M. Miller Jr.’s A Canticle for Leibowitz (1959). John McCoy with Jelani Sims Referenced Works A Canticle for Leibowitz Show Notes & Links A Canticle for Leibowitz The Internet Archive has all episodes of the …

Stick some stamps on the top of our heads. Deborah Stanish discusses Eudora Welty’s “Why I Live at the P.O.” (1941) John McCoy with Deborah Stanish Referenced Works Why I Live at the P.O. Show Notes & Links Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episode…

The most important reason for going from one place to another is to see what’s in between. Moisés Chiullán discusses Norton Juster’s The Phantom Tollbooth (1961). [We’ve re-issued this episode to correct an audio problem.] John McCoy with Moisés Chiullán Referenced Works The Phantom Tollbooth Show Notes & Links The Phantom Tollbooth (1970) Trailer …

Podcasters: What Do They Know? Do They Know Things?? Let’s Find Out! Jason Snell talks about marine life in J.D. Salinger’s “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” (1948). John McCoy with Jason Snell Referenced Works A Perfect Day for Bananafish Show Notes & Links Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Me…

Lions and tigers and bea— you know what, just lions. Jordan Morris is here to discuss Ray Bradbury’s story “the Veldt” (1950). John McCoy with Jordan Morris Show Notes & Links "The Veldt" radio drama From the 1983 NPR Playhouse series Bradbury 13. "The Veldt" Track by Combustible Edison from the album I, Swinger (1994). Support this show and other …

The Podcast! The Podcast! John Holt discusses the ill-fated cruise that is Joseph Conrad’s novelette Heart of Darkness (1899). John McCoy with John Holt Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.…

Though his mind is not for rent, it still is the subject of this episode. Jacob Haller discusses Mark Twain’s Tom Sawyer (1876). John McCoy with Jacob Haller Referenced Works Tom Sawyer Show Notes & Links Tom Sawyer (1973) The trailer for the musical movie version from Reader’s Digest. Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable n…

Actually, I need this sea in an extra wide. Caroline Fulford discusses postcolonialism and recurring fires in Jean Rhys’s Wide Sargasso Sea (1966). John McCoy with Caroline Fulford Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.…

The Burgermeister Meisterburger has nothing on this burglar! My wife Marina joins me for our annual Christmas episode. This time we discuss Willa Cather’s “The Burglar’s Christmas” (1896). John McCoy with Marina McCoy Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bo…

The waiting is the hardest part. Ross Cleaver and James Randall discuss the apocalypse, palace intrigue, and the charm of 80’s BBC television in this episode about John Christopher’s The Prince in Waiting (1970). John McCoy with Ross Cleaver and James Randall Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member…

Fish and visitors stink in three days, but podcasts are evergreen! Dan and Rob return for the annual Thanksgiving nonsense with Benjamin Franklin’s Poor Richard’s Almanack (1732-1758). John McCoy with Dan McCoy and Rob McCoy Referenced Works Poor Richard's Almanack Show Notes & Links Rare Book Room Facsimiles of most of the pages of most of the edi…

Raggedy Ann, Barbie, Chucky—they’re all here. That’s what this book is about, right? Erin Gambrill discusses Jacqueline Susann’s Valley of the Dolls (1966). John McCoy Sponsors Incomparable Memberships!: Sign up, support our show, and get access to exclusive podcasts! Referenced Works Valley of the Dolls (novel) Show Notes & Links Valley of the Dol…

Why just sit around waiting for the end of the world when you can hear a podcast about it? Jelani Sims discusses Nevil Shute’s On the Beach (1957). John McCoy with Jelani Sims Sponsors Incomparable Memberships!: Sign up, support our show, and get access to exclusive podcasts! Show Notes & Links On the Beach (1959) Stanley Kramer’s film adaptation, …

Kids today love Thucydides, right? Anyone? Daniel Daughhetee returns to discuss this late fifth century BCE chronicle of Athens v. Sparta. John McCoy with Daniel Daughetee Show Notes & Links Map of the Peloponnesian Wars Follow along at home! Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get ear…

It’s a naive literary podcast without any breeding, but I think you’ll be amused by its presumption. Dan Cassino discusses James Thurber’s “The Catbird Seat” (1942) and The 13 Clocks (1950). John McCoy with Dan Cassino Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, b…

If you’ve believed six impossible things before breakfast, why not listen to this podcast before lunch? Phil Gonzales discusses Lewis Carroll’s Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There (1871). John McCoy with Phil Gonzales Referenced Works Through the Looking-Glass Show Notes & Links Kate Beckinsale adaptation of Through the Looking Gl…

After eight years of the podcast I finally do the inevitable. Shelly Brisbin discusses John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath (1939). John McCoy with Shelly Brisbin Referenced Works The Grapes of Wrath Show Notes & Links Thomas Hart Benton's Departure of the Joads A discussion of the painting (in the collection of Ralph Foster Museum) Support this sh…

Howl likes to move it, move it. Audrey Lazaro and Dan McCoy are on to discuss Diana Wynne Jones’s book Howl’s Moving Castle (1986). John McCoy with Dan McCoy and Audrey Lazaro Referenced Works Howl's Moving Castle Howl's Moving Castle [Amazon] Show Notes & Links Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a mem…

I don’t care how long this day’s journey has been, so help me I will turn this car around if you kids don’t stop. Kris Markel discusses Eugene O’Neill’s Long Day’s Journey Into Night(written 1941, published 1956). John McCoy with Kris Markel Referenced Works Long Day's Journey Into Night Show Notes & Links The Complete and Condenses Stage Direction…

Jean, Jean, the roses are red and all of the leaves have gone green, so Glenn Fleishman and John are discussing Muriel Spark’s The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1961). John McCoy with Glenn Fleishman Referenced Works The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie Show Notes & Links Pants in the Boot Glenn’s podcast on being divided by a common language. The Prime of M…

Ross Cleaver discusses Carrie’s War (what is it good for?), Nina Bawdwin’s 1973 children’s book about evacuations, skulls, and grumpy Welshmen. John McCoy with Ross Cleaver Show Notes & Links BBC School Radio: Carrie's War The BBC school radio site with teaching guides and a complete recording of the book. Support this show and other shows like it …

Grab a whisky and soda and put your leg up. My dad and I discuss Ernest Hemingway’s “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” (1936). Bonus content: a visit to the Hemingway Home in Key West! John McCoy Referenced Works The Snows of Kilimanjaro Show Notes & Links Hemingway Home The former home of Ernest and the current home of many six-toed cats. Support this sho…

Jelani Sims returns to discuss the literal and metaphorical ghosts of Toni Morrison’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel Beloved (1987). John McCoy with Jelani Sims Referenced Works Beloved Show Notes & Links Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, a…

I have good feelings about this one! Zach Powers returns to discuss desparate criminals and mysterious benefactors in Charles Dickens’s Great Expectations (1861). John McCoy with Zach Powers Referenced Works Great Expectations Show Notes & Links Great Expectations (1998) Trailer Relive the 90s and enjoy the trip-hop stylings of Mono. Support this s…

There are many podcasts from which I might have derived good, by which I have not profited. John and Marina discuss Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol (1843). John McCoy with Marina McCoy Referenced Works A Christmas Carol Show Notes & Links 1984 adaptation of A Christmas Carol With George C. Scott. Support this show and other shows like it on The…

This is one weird mouse book. Phil Gonzales and John discuss E. B. White’s Stuart Little(1945). John McCoy with Phil Gonzales Referenced Works Stuart Little Show Notes & Links Stuart Little (1968) The Johnny Carson-narrated film from McGraw-Hill Films Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Member…

It’s Thanksgiving, so of course Rob, John, and Dan drink and discuss “The Wreck of the Hesperus” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1842). John McCoy with Rob McCoy and Dan McCoy Referenced Works The Wreck of the Hesperus Show Notes & Links The Wreck of the Hesperus Link to full poem. SCHOONER HESPERUS WAS NEVER WRECKED The New York Times gets pedantic…

Probably best not to listen to this episode while you’re in a theatre. Shannon Campe and John discuss Shakespeare’s Macbeth (1605-ish). John McCoy with Shannon Campe Referenced Works Macbeth Show Notes & Links Text of play From the Folger Shakespeare Library 1979 Trevor Nunn production Featuring baby Ian McKellen and baby Judi Dench! Support this s…

The podcasts that the world calls immoral are podcasts that show the world its own shame. Tamar Avishai and John discuss Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray (1831). John McCoy with Tamar Avishai Referenced Works The Picture of Dorian Gray Show Notes & Links The Lonely Palette Art history for the masses Ivan Albright's painting of Dorian Gray T…

Those smale foweles maken melodye got nothin’ on us: Kathy Campbell and John discuss Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales (c. 1400). John McCoy with Kathy Campbell Referenced Works The Canterbury Tales Show Notes & Links Harvard's Geoffrey Chaucer Website With commentary, Middle English, and Modern English translations. Support this show and other shows …

The original Farewell to Arms. Nathan Alderman discusses Beowulf (c. 1000). John McCoy with Nathan Alderman Referenced Works Beowulf Show Notes & Links Beowulf in Old English Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.…

Gilgamesh, a king, at Uruk. It’s not just a Star Trek meme. Gregory Fried talks ritual sex, heavenly bulls, and sneaky snakes in the Epic of Gilgamesh. John McCoy with Gregory Fried Referenced Works Epic of Gilgamesh Show Notes & Links Wikipedia article on the Epic of Gilgamesh Line-by-line literal translation of Gilgamesh, ed. Morris Jastrow Suppo…

Gregor’s mother warned him about days like this. Jason Snell discusses Franz Kafka’s inescapable novella, The Metamorphosis (1915). John McCoy with Jason Snell Referenced Works The Metamorphosis Show Notes & Links Wikipedia entry for The Metamorphosis Kafka rock opera from Home Movies Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable ne…

Audrey Lazaro discusses Mellville’s 1853 story, “Bartleby the Scrivener,” one of the top three bits of scrivener fiction ever. John McCoy with Audrey Lazaro Referenced Works Bartleby the Scrivener Show Notes & Links An inexplicable 1969 film adaptation by the Encyclopædia Britannica Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable net…

No, I won’t make a Bangles joke. Erin Gambrill discusses Zilpha Keatley Snyder’s The Egypt Game (1967). John McCoy with Erin Gambrill Referenced Works The Egypt Game Show Notes & Links Wikipedia article on The Egypt Game Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts,…

Bambi’s not so cute in this gritty new reboot. Glenn Fleishman discusses Felix Salten’s 1923 parable about what goes on in the woods. Also we talk a lot about copyright. John McCoy with Glenn Fleishman Referenced Works Bambi Show Notes & Links Wikipedia on Bambi Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a mem…

Climb ev’ry mountain—except these mountains, they’re nuts. Phil Gonzales discusses H.P. Lovecraft’s “At the Mountains of Madness,” written in 1931 and published in 1936. John McCoy with Phil Gonzales Referenced Works At the Mountains of Madness Show Notes & Links Wikipedia article on "At the Mountains of Madness" HPLHS Dark Adventure Radio Theater …

To begin at the beginning: David Loehr is back in the slow, black, crowblack, podcast-bobbing sea to discuss Dylan Thomas’s Under Milk Wood (1954). John McCoy with David J. Loehr Referenced Works Under Milk Wood Show Notes & Links 1954 production with Richard Burton Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a…

New Year’s is a time for optimism, but instead Christy Admiraal discusses Sylvia Plath’s 1963 roman à clef, the Bell Jar. Also, John totally gets the dates wrong for this book’s complicated publishing history. John McCoy with Christy Admiraal Show Notes & Links Wikipedia entry on the Bell Jar The book was first published in the UK 1963 under a pseu…

But I sold my Zune to buy you this podcast! Marina and John discuss hair, watches, and O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi.” John McCoy with Marina McCoy Show Notes & Links Wikipedia entry for O. Henry Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and m…