Showing titles in Literary History & Criticism

Just before the small-time bootlegger Max Gerlach died, he tried to reveal his secret: he was the inspiration for the mysterious Jay Gatsby. It’s a nice story, but was he telling the truth? Veteran reporter Joe Nocera and producer Poppy Damon investigate this century-old literary mystery and uncover untold secrets about the Great American Novel.

Welcome to the History Book Club - the club for all lovers of history, presented by Oliver Webb-Carter, formerly of Aspects of History. Oliver interviews authors of the best historical writing, to draw out the stories that you'll be interested in. Every month will also feature the History Film Club, as historian Roger Moorhouse and director Tim Hewitt join to discuss a historical movie. Get in touch if you want a particular area of history to be covered, because at the History Book Club, members are the most important people of all.

Bodies are discovered in one of the excavated houses at a volcanic tourist attraction dubbed 'The Pompeii of the North'. Markus Magnusson, who was only a teenager when the volcano erupted, falls under suspicion and hires attorney Thora Gudmundsdottir to defend him—but when his childhood sweetheart is murdered, his case starts to look more difficult, and the locals seem oddly reluctant to back him up.

In The Trip to Echo Spring, Olivia Laing examines the link between creativity and alcohol through the work and lives of six of America's finest writers: F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Tennessee Williams, John Berryman, John Cheever, and Raymond Carver. All six of these men were alcoholics, and the subject of drinking surfaces in some of their finest work, from Cat on a Hot Tin Roof to A Moveable Feast.

When facing a moral dilemma, Isabel Dalhousie--Edinburgh philosopher, amateur detective, and title character of a series of novels by best-selling author Alexander McCall Smith - often refers to the great twentieth-century poet W. H. Auden. This is no accident: McCall Smith has long been fascinated by Auden. Indeed, the novelist, best known for his No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series, calls the poet not only the greatest literary discovery of his life but also the best of guides on how to live.

Brought to you by Penguin. My friends will respect me, I hope, just as much under my jacket as under my dress... So take me for a man or a woman as you wish. By the age of thirty, the novelist who had been born Aurore Dupin in 1804 had become the internationally renowned George Sand. In English...

Sex. Drugs. Rock 'n' Roll. Agatha Christie?? Agatha Christie may not be the first person you think of when you think of the Swinging Sixties, but her writing has much to say about the big topics of the day. Join Dr Mark Aldridge and Gray Robert Brown on a rad journey through time with the Queen of Crime.

Canale Podcast dedicato al professor Alessandro Barbero focalizzato su interventi brevi, conferenze inedite e podcast non reperibili su altri canali. (Non ufficiale - come tutti) . . // Disclaimer // Tutti gli audio disponibili sono utilizzati negli episodi dopo previo consenso e accordo con i distributori originali di altre piattaforme e/o comunque distribuiti liberamente e originariamente con licenze CC BY 4.0 e affini (o registrati in loco), viene sempre riportata la fonte principale. I titoli potrebbero differire in caso di titoli originali troppo lunghi o estratti brevi. Per qualsiasi ...

A fascinating take on classical Greek stories: Discover six classic Greek myths in this exciting retelling that paints both famous and lesser known characters in a whole new light. Follow the likes of Odysseus, Lamia, Bellerophon, Icarus, Medusa, and Artemis as their fates are revealed through bloody trials, gut-wrenching betrayals, sinister motives, and broken hearts.

A brilliantly original exploration of our obsession with the end of the world, from Mary Shelley’s The Last Man to the Manic Street Preachers’ Everything Must Go. 'Brilliant, scholarly, sharp and witty’ – Adam Rutherford, author of A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived 'Will make...

With every new issue, Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine shares one piece of short fiction in podcast form. Enjoy these audio treats from our pages!

For over 40 years, Carlos Castaneda’s The Teachings of Don Juan has inspired audiences to expand their world view beyond traditional Western forms. Originally published as Castaneda’s master’s thesis in anthropology, Teachings documents Castaneda’s supposed apprenticeship with a Yaqui Indian sorcerer, don Juan Matus. Dividing the work into two sections, Castaneda begins by describing don Juan’s philosophies, then continues with his own reflections.

Bloomsbury presents Electric Spark by Frances Wilson, read by Sara Vickers. ‘Absolutely mesmerising’ Spectator ‘I raced through it’ Ali Smith, Guardian ‘Unputdownable’ Financial Times ‘A fire-starter’ New York Times ‘Hypnotic’ TLS ‘Joyously, brilliantly intelligent’ Anne...

The Potter Discussion is the ultimate Harry Potter podcast, giving you weekly discussions on the most exiting topics in Harry Potter, Fantastic Beasts, and beyond! In each episode, we talk about a new topic within the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts fandom, in addition to the occasional quiz or breakdown of a character. If you are a PotterHead and a Harry Potter super-fan, this podcast is for you! Sit back, subscribe, and let's dive into the unknown!

When John Bercow retired as Speaker of the House of Commons on 31 October 2019, he had become one of the most recognisable and iconoclastic figures in British politics, occupying a ringside seat during one of the most febrile periods in modern British history. In his no-holds-barred memoir, he...

Brought to you by Penguin. A far-ranging, invigorating and irrepressible collection of essays on literature, cinema, art - and everything in between - from the MAN BOOKER PRIZE- and WOMEN'S PRIZE-SHORTLISTED author of Feel Free and Swing Time How did George Eliot's love life affect her prose?...

Sanctuary is an ancient right. But what does it mean today? Drawing on a lifetime of engagement with literature, myth, history and tradition from different cultures, Marina Warner's Sanctuary is an ambitious attempt to grapple with the sharpest questions that we are facing in today's world of...

From the very first book publication in 1920 to the recent film release of Death on the Nile, this investigation into Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot celebrates a century of probably the world’s favourite fictional detective. This book tells his story decade-by-decade, exploring his...

The first and most successful in the Baroness's series of books that feature Percy Blakeney, who leads a double life as an English fop and a swashbuckling rescuer of aristocrats, The Scarlet Pimpernel was the blueprint for what became known as the masked-avenger genre. As Anne Perry writes in her Introduction, the novel "has almost reached its first centenary, and it is as vivid and appealing as ever because the plotting is perfect. It is a classic example of how to construct, pace, and conclude a plot. . . . To rise on the crest of laughter without capsizing, to survive being written, ...

Published in 1748, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding is Scottish empiricist philosopher David Hume's distillation of his mature philosophy. Addressing themes including the limits of human understanding, the compatibility of free will with determinism, weaknesses in the foundations of religion, and the appeal of skepticism, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding is Hume's attempt to revise and clarify the ideas of his earlier A Treatise of Human Nature.