Close Reads Podcast

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.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe

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 patreon.com/closereads.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe

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.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe

They debate the play's abrupt, single-scene ending and whether its rapid wrap-up feels comic or cruel. They question unresolved threads like Malvolio, Toby, and Andrew and whether social repair truly occurs. They weigh the play's fixed characters and screwball form against earned transformation. They end by reading Feste's closing poem as a jaded commentary on maturity and pleasure.

They unpack why Act 4 feels like a theatrical puzzle and how Shakespeare bends classical rules. They debate authorship theories and whether they change how we read the plays. Stagecraft comes alive with trapdoors, split houses, and actor-specific writing. They trace dreamlike motifs, rapid comic courtships, and Malvolio's descent into symbolic darkness.

They dig into Act 3’s role as the play’s comedic turning point, full of mistaken identities and escalating reversals. They debate sympathy for Malvolio and whether the prank crosses a line. They trace disguise through clothing, language, and Christian imagery. They also speculate about who will marry whom and how unmasking reveals true selves.

A lively dive into Act 2 of Twelfth Night, from why comic scenes dominate to how soliloquies shape plot. They debate Shakespeare’s sparse stage directions and the mechanics of writing for performance. Conversations roam through comic economics, Malvolio’s comeuppance, disguise and self-knowledge, and who truly drives the play’s action.

A lively kickoff to Twelfth Night with chats on reading and teaching Shakespeare. They debate editions, performative versus textual approaches, and classroom tricks like recitation. Conversations touch on Renaissance metaphors, carnival disorder, love as madness, comic disguise, and the characters who embody excess and wisdom.

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.    See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe

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.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe