

Sophomore Lit
John McCoy
A podcast about your 10th grade reading list, hosted by John McCoy.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Dec 7, 2022 • 57min
136: Stuart Little
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
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Nov 24, 2022 • 18min
135: Thanksgiving Special: The Wreck of the Hesperus
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.
What is the Spanish Main?
Spoiler: none of us got it right.
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Nov 13, 2022 • 49min
134: Macbeth
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!
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Oct 6, 2022 • 53min
133: The Picture of Dorian Gray
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
The Art Institute of Chicago’s entry
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Sep 25, 2022 • 51min
132: The Canterbury Tales
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.
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Aug 28, 2022 • 51min
131: Beowulf
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
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Jul 29, 2022 • 1h 12min
130: Epic of Gilgamesh
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
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Jun 24, 2022 • 40min
129: The Metamorphosis
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
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May 17, 2022 • 1h 1min
128: Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Tale of Wall Street
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
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Apr 15, 2022 • 56min
127: The Egypt Game
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
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