The Bookening

Due to some horrible computer error, all the chapter markers got wiped out, so no chapter markers for this one. Sorry about that. But suffice to say, our heroes really like Charlotte's Web, and Brandon starts doing context for it about five minutes into the episode, and our heroes use that as jumping pad for lots of interesting things, and then the episode is done. Thanks for listening! :) Buy our heroes a more reliable computer! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Help Brandon pay his gambling debts! Hey. It's a movie review of a movie that our heroes surprisingly (to them at least) didn't like all that much. Here are the things that happen: 00:00 The show begins 01:04 Operatic donor shout-outs 04:08 We were disappointed by this movie 07:11 Lame ambiguity resolution 12:33 They Hollywooded it! 18:46 Lame tension resolution 23:04 Anthony Hopkins 25:34 Emma Thompson 28:04 The father 30:54 Heroism added??? 32:59 Downton Abby 34:34 Context 36:29 Who SHOULD they have cast? 39:11 Half-hearted Seal of Approval ... 42:13 ... or not! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Buy Nathan socks! In this episode, our heroes continue to discuss Remains of the Day. It's a pretty great book. Our heroes have wise insights and stuff. Here is your table of contents: 00:00 The episode begins 03:12 Donor Shout-outs 08:00 Diary form 11:49 Useful naval gazing? 13:10 The right choice of form 14:18 Nice little analog metaphor 15:00 Endings 16:27 Gradesaver quiz 26:42 Dignity 31:02 Self-justification and culpability 33:36 Is Darlington evil? 36:10 Guilt 39:44 Willful blindness 43:46 We're all English butlers 45:21 Uh-oh, we're talking about CS Lewis again 46:52 Sophie's choice 49:17 Your hands aren't clean! 51:46 More questions 56:00 Self-knowledge fail 58:57 Ralph Fiennes syndrome 01:02:22 Unreliable narrator 01:05:49 Is it too late? 01:06:51 A bold symbol 01:08:34 CS Lewis tangent 01:10:22 Bookening Seal of Approval 01:13:12 Modern authors ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Don't let Jake and Brandon's kids go hungry! In this episode our heroes discuss Remains of the Day and decide it is even better than Close Reads. Sorry, Close Reads! :) 00:00 General Awesomeness 03:55 Donor Shout-outs 05:47 Apology for donor shout-outs that just happened 06:47 Context begins 10:38 Biography 11:54 Between two cultures 19:38 Setting 21:47 Influences 24:31 "Process" 27:37 Emotional truth 28:41 Post modernism 34:27 Post-colonialism 36:13 Keira Knightley's cheeckbones 37:10 Baggage check! 43:37 Modern morbid self-obsession 44:47 Nothing literary happens after this point ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Make sure our heroes can afford to go to crummy movies for years to come! This is a podcast in which our heroes review the film Ready Player One. One of them liked it, one of them was ambivalent, and one was almost as grumpy about it as he was about the book. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Click here to make sure Jake and Brandon's kids don't starve! WARNING: This episode contains frank talk about some of the gross sexual stuff from the book. It's nothing makes us think we need to mark this episode as "adult" or anything, but it may not be the best one to listen to with your kids in the car. Anyhow, trouble was a-brewin' on last week's episode, as some of our heroes like Ernest Cline's Ready Player One and some of them did not. Today they are putting it on trial. Nathan is judge. Brandon is the prosecutor, and he is out for blood. And Jake "Atticus" Mentzel is the defense. If you listen really hard, you can hear some parts where our heroes are actually a little annoyed with each other, but it's okay. They're all still friends. Table of Contents: 00:00 Preliminary Matter and Donor Shout Outs 03:34 The Trial Begins 04:07 Opening Statement of the Prosecution 09:44 Opening Statement of the Defense 14:16 Character matters? 16:35 Scenes that Tolstoy doesn't have 21:52 Approach the bench 27:12 A Perfect Validation Fest 29:54 A waste of time? 34:00 What makes a book worthwhile? 36:13 Jake the Lawyer 39:45 Popcorn that aspires to be steak 43:16 Poor Brandon 45:01 "This is actually getting real now" 47:25 Good trash 48:30 She got all my references 51:11 A great sandbox 55:21 What's at stake is stupid 57:00 Impartiality goes bye-bye 1:01:00 Closing Arguments - Jake 1:04:01 Closing Arguments - Brandon 1:10:00 The Verdict Music: "The Pirate And The Dancer" by Rolemusic is licensed under an Attribution License. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Click here to make sure Jake and Brandon's kids don't starve! THIS WILL NOT, WE REPEAT, THIS WILL NOT BE A REPEAT OF WRINKLE IN TIME, EVEN THOUGH IT SOUNDS LIKE IT MIGHT BE EARLY ON. SOME OF US MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE ACTUALLY LIKED THIS BOOK. Our heroes discuss Ready Player One, a book that may or may not end up being the impetus for one of the bigger disagreements in Bookening history. They also discuss sci-fi in general, and indulge in some gnarly 80s nostalgia. Suffice to say, some of our heroes liked it and some did not. As a matter of fact, next week we're putting the book on trial, with a judge and prosecutor and everything. You may even hear a raised voice or two. In the meantime, here are the things that happen in this episode: 00:00 Bit-music theme song thing 00:59 Our Heroes Love the 80s 04:03 80s Donor Shout-Out 07:38 Jake summarizes the book 09:28 Context! 09:42 Ernest Cline's life 14:22 Poetry Slams 15:29 Awkward self-conscious idiots who think they're big men because somebody told thme about Nietzsche and Schopenhauer one time 17:59 We're not going to beat up on this book (Well not all of us) 21:07 Fanboys 22:31 Bidding Wars 23:36 The Brilliant Idea for Ready Player One 24:20 Science fiction 25:22 The coining of the term sci-fi 26:45 Vantage points 28:41 Different schools of sci-fi 30:58 Today 33:34 Science is magic stripped of the supernatural 37:18 Fan fiction 38:26 Experiment in Criticism 43:34 Down with Marxism! 44:19 Baggage check! Music: "The Pirate And The Dancer" by Rolemusic is licensed under an Attribution License. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

It's another episode of The Lookening! Happy Ides of March Eve! (Assuming you're listening to this on the day it comes out). In this episode our heroes nobly and humbly undertake a task that made sense when they decided to do it. And that task is to review A Wrinkle in Time. Not the book. They already reviewed that. Just last episode. No, they're reviewing the movie. They love you and work hard for you. Even when that work is difficult and involves Oprah. Appreciate them. Support them on Patreon. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Support our heroes here! Our heroes review Madeleine L'Engle's beloved (by some) fantasy novel A Wrinkle in Time. They'll do the movie next week. Strangely enough, this is the second novel our heroes have discussed that was published in 1962 and features temptation, supernatural evil, emasculated fathers, coming of age, and love conquering all. The other one was Something Wicked This Way Comes and it rocked. Listen to find out how A Wrinkle in Time compared. Don't skip the opening, which provides an explanation for the episode that follows it. Here are things that happen in this episode. 00:00 Our heroes discuss their methods 06:41 Opening remarks 10:41 Donor Shout-outs (with lots of commentary on the book mixed in) 21:45 Context 27:19 Worse than Dan Brown 31:14 Baggage 37:54 The First Page 41:52 Charles Wallace Must Die 58:18 Scholastic Guide to the book ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

If Pride and Prejudice is a book that every young person who is dating should read, Mansfield Park is a book that every parent should read. It's full of wisdom, yo! So is this episode, thanks to the efforts of our heroes! Here are the things that happen: 00:00 Music, our heroes introduce themselves, etc. 02:18 Donor Shout-Outs 06:58 Mansfield Park is a book for parents 08:46 Manners vs. morals 11:16 If you don't have sympathy for Fanny, reread the beginning 16:22 Less Common Acquirements 17:32 Severity Vs. Indulgence 19:05 All he had to do was smile 21:27 The perfect pharisees 22:58 Parents who won't "run the risk of investigation" 25:18 Mediated discipline 27:48 The uses of outward conformity 30:15 Sir Thomas is not a villain 31:47 The importance of parental unity 34:30 Show affection to your kids!!!! 38:26 Pride 41:05 When all that's left is verbal abuse 42:52 Don't be a jerk because you're recovering authority, Dad ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★