Workers' Lit

Nuclear war kinda sucks.We are joined by returning guest and apocalypse-understander Brian Alford of The Worst of All Possible Worlds podcast to discuss Nevil Shute's 1957 end-of-the-world novel, "On The Beach."What if the world was ending, but we were in Australia and being real polite about it? Have you been wondering what that'd be like? We know you have, so listen on!Listen to Brian's fantastic podcast, ⁠The Worst of All Possible Worlds⁠

It's a bonus author interview!We're joined by author, public theologian, and all-around cool guy Brian Recker to talk about his new book, "Hell Bent: How the Fear of Hell Holds Christians Back from a Spirituality of Love"If you were raised evangelical, this one will hit hard, but even if you weren't, this is a great discussion (and book!) about the politics of hell, liberatory (and anti-liberatory) forms of Christianity, and the way a fear of divine punishment hangs over our society...and how we all deserve to escape that fear.Buy a copy of Hell Bent here!

The US is up to some bad stuff, folks.We start by discussing the evangelical cabal (and Jacob's ties to it), move into the DC shooting (and the Pentagon's responsibility for it), and then talk about US meddling in Latin America, Pete Hegseth, and Jen's suspicious absence.Finally, Starbucks takes a big L (and we're very pleased).Articles referenced in this episode:https://www.propublica.org/article/roommates-steve-berger-mike-johnson-andy-ogles-right-wing-influence-townhousehttps://www.dropsitenews.com/p/national-guard-shooter-rahmanullah-lakanwal-afghanistan-zero-units-cia-imprisonmenthttps://www.dropsitenews.com/p/honduras-vote-election-libre-trump

This week Aysha and Jacob face down the twin horrors of Dionysian madness and class anxiety with Donna Tartt’s brilliant 1992 work of literary fiction/inverted mystery, “The Secret History.”We are joined by Kevin Vibert and Harley Takagi Kaner of “The Penumbra Podcast.” In the opinion of the Workers’ Lit team these two are among the greatest audio dramatists literally of all time…so yeah, they’re quite qualified to talk about some bomb-ass fiction.Themes: Closeted bisexual angst, middle class angst, academic angst, and hiding-a-murder angst.Go listen to the Penumbra Podcast!

The world remains quite weird.This week we’re joined by Jason Robinson of “48 Minutes of Dogs Barking” and “Submitted for the Approval of the Midnight Pals” to talk about Marjorie Taylor Greene and the so called “MAGA Civil War,” some standout Epstein emails and the wackiest online reactions to them, the so-called “Seditious Six” scandal, and some truly horrid news out of Texas.Also, Jacob shares some college lore.Listen to “48 Minutes of Dogs Barking,” a podcast about the weird corners of the internet Listen to “Submitted for the Approval of the Midnight Pals,” an audio drama about famous horror authors telling stories around a campfireWe’re experimenting with format for this side of the show, so please comment or email us (workerslit@gmail.com) with your thoughts!

It’s Alive!!!It’s time to make up a guy to get mad at with Mary Shelley’s 1818 genre-creating classic, “Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus.”We join Victor as he falls in love with his sister, gets real depressed, and is sooooo mean to the poor little monster.Class critique, religious skepticism, a Guillermo Del Toro adaptation, this book’s got it all!

Epstein scandals! A tumbling economy! Nicki Minaj standing up for Christendom! AI in massive trouble! What a week to talk about the darn news.We are joined by Johnny Amizich, writer for Hard Drive and host of the podcast "Culture Dumpster," to talk about the happenings of the last week, with special attention put on the AI bubble. Johnny explains it well here, and for further reading, check out Ed Zitron's blog (which we refer to several times throughout the episode). Go listen to Culture Dumpster!Support the Palestinian Children's Relief Fund here.Learn how to support the Starbucks strike here.

What if you could really, really, REALLY go on the computer?William Gibson asks this vital question in his 1984 sci-fi classic, "Neuromancer," and today we're joined by Trevor Strunk of "No Cartridge" to consider just that!How did AI get so lame? Why are tech oligarchs the worst? How do we feel about hot women with claws? All will be revealed...Go listen to "No Cartridge," one of the best podcasts out there about video games!

Another crazy news week! We start with the summary, and then go into a discussion (featuring Josh Boerman) at around the 15-minute mark.Today's topics: huge electoral losses for the Republicans, the Zohran Mamdani victory, total Democrat capitulation on the shutdown, unceasing imperialism, too little (and too much!) water due to climate change, and a socialist victory in Atlanta.Listen to Josh's fantastic podcasts, The Worst of All Possible Worlds AND Ill Conceived!

This truly is a book for our moment.The pod dives into (friend of the pod) Lee Mandelo’s 2024 queer horror, “Woods All Black.”Looking for an intersection of queerness, rage, and resistance in the face of rising fascist undercurrents? Look no further!Episode art is an edited version of a Deviantart post (and later popular meme) by Endlen.