Ep 66 - The Bookish Q&A Show (Coffee with Hardcore Literature)

Ep 66 - The Bookish Q&A Show (Coffee with Hardcore Literature)

Author: Benjamin McEvoy April 26, 2023 Duration: 1:53:55

If you're enjoying the Hardcore Literature Show, there are two ways you can show your support and ensure it continues:

1. Please leave a quick review on iTunes.

2. Join in the fun over at the Hardcore Literature Book Club: patreon.com/hardcoreliterature

Thank you so much. Happy listening and reading!

- Benjamin

Timestamps:
  • 0:00 expressing my gratitude for you
  • 3:31 how to find meaning in our lives?
  • 20:44 advice on keeping a commonplace book?
  • 27:00 your thoughts on French Literature?
  • 32:37 your favourite films and shows?
  • 40:42 entry recommendations for big classics?
  • 45:20 your process for making connections?
  • 51:30 a master plan behind the syllabus?
  • 53:15 can you riff on Tolstoy's sense of love?
  • 58:35 how to love someone for who they are?
  • 1:03:40 character names in Shakespeare?
  • 1:06:05 three writers you would have coffee with?
  • 1:07:48 what is your literary guilty pleasure?
  • 1:09:00 what is the greatest decade ever for novels?
  • 1:11:00 what podcasts do you enjoy listening to?
  • 1:13:17 are you concerned about artificial intelligence?
  • 1:19:30 a difficult dilemma: rereads or new reads?
  • 1:22:10 what are your favourite Japanese works?
  • 1:24:20 interest in a behind-the-scenes show
  • 1:25:00 tell us more about Shakespeare's audience?
  • 1:30:59 supposedly great books that are overrated?
  • 1:33:16 how to deal with feelings of overwhelm?
  • 1:39:10 do books appeal to different temperaments?
  • 1:41:47 your elevator pitch for getting into literature?
  • 1:46:55 what are the essential book club lectures?
  • 1:52:30 recommendations for book club newcomers
  • 1:53:00 talking about the questions for the next show

For those who find that the greatest books demand more than a casual read, Hardcore Literature with Benjamin McEvoy offers a sustained and rigorous conversation. This isn't about quick summaries or light reviews; it’s an immersive, chapter-by-chapter excavation of the works that have shaped our world. Think of it as a serious, yet deeply passionate, book club where the texts are treated with the intensity they deserve. You’ll find detailed explorations of Shakespeare’s psychological depth, the raw epic power of Homer, and the vast human panoramas within Tolstoy’s novels. Each episode is crafted to be a session of close reading, where poetry is felt for its visceral impact and prose is examined for its transformative potential. Benjamin guides listeners through these complex landscapes, focusing on language, structure, and the timeless questions the authors pose. The aim is to move beyond simply recognising a classic to truly understanding its machinery and its enduring resonance in our own lives. This podcast operates on the belief that literature is a lived experience, a form of hard-won wisdom. It’s for anyone who has ever finished a monumental book and immediately wanted to start it again, knowing there was more to uncover. Within these episodes, the focus remains on the text itself-the words on the page-and the profound, often startling, insights they yield when given proper time and attention. It’s an ongoing education in the art of reading deeply.
Author: Language: en-gb Episodes: 90

Hardcore Literature
Podcast Episodes
Ep 90 - How to Live the Great Books: Life-Changing Reading Habits [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:51:33
If you're enjoying the Hardcore Literature Show, there are two ways you can show your support and ensure it continues: 1. Please leave a quick review on iTunes. 2. Join in the fun over at the Hardcore Literature Book Clu…
Ep 89 - Book Club Schedule for 2026 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:44:11
If you're enjoying the Hardcore Literature Show, there are two ways you can show your support and ensure it continues: 1. Please leave a quick review on iTunes. 2. Join in the fun over at the Hardcore Literature Book Clu…
Ep 87 - Appreciating Shakespeare on My Birthday [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:25:24
If you're enjoying the Hardcore Literature Show, there are two ways you can show your support and ensure it continues: 1. Please leave a quick review on iTunes. 2. Join in the fun over at the Hardcore Literature Book Clu…
Ep 86 - Antony and Cleopatra (Shakespeare) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:21:41
If you're enjoying the Hardcore Literature Show, there are two ways you can show your support and ensure it continues: 1. Please leave a quick review on iTunes. 2. Join in the fun over at the Hardcore Literature Book Clu…
Ep 85 - The Interpretation of Dreams (Freud) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:30:03
If you're enjoying the Hardcore Literature Show, there are two ways you can show your support and ensure it continues: 1. Please leave a quick review on iTunes. 2. Join in the fun over at the Hardcore Literature Book Clu…
Ep 84 - Book Club Schedule for 2025 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:39
If you're enjoying the Hardcore Literature Show, there are two ways you can show your support and ensure it continues: 1. Please leave a quick review on iTunes. 2. Join in the fun over at the Hardcore Literature Book Clu…
Ep 83 - Reflecting on Reading the Great Books in 2024 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:37:19
If you're enjoying the Hardcore Literature Show, there are two ways you can show your support and ensure it continues: 1. Please leave a quick review on iTunes. 2. Join in the fun over at the Hardcore Literature Book Clu…
Ep 82 - Thus Spoke Zarathustra (Nietzsche) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:27:48
If you're enjoying the Hardcore Literature Show, there are two ways you can show your support and ensure it continues: 1. Please leave a quick review on iTunes. 2. Join in the fun over at the Hardcore Literature Book Clu…
Ep 81 - The Metamorphosis (Franz Kafka) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:19:19
If you're enjoying the Hardcore Literature Show, there are two ways you can show your support and ensure it continues: 1. Please leave a quick review on iTunes. 2. Join in the fun over at the Hardcore Literature Book Clu…