Book Fight

We welcome Tyrese Coleman (How to Sit) to discuss the 1999 Sister Souljah novel The Coldest Winter Ever. We talk about the genre of street lit, and why some Black authors celebrate it while others bristle at being included in it. We also revisit Percival Everett's satirical novel Erasure, and wonder whether this Sister Souljah book inspired it.  If you enjoy the show, and would like more Book Fight in your live, you can join our Patreon for only $5 a month. Join soon and you can catch our next installment in The Hunt for the Worst Book of All Time: Heaven is for Real: https://www.patreon.com/BookFight  

If you're a regular listener to the podcast, you know that we like to bring you something a little special around the holidays. This year, our Christmas book is about a very horny vampire, and we're joined to discuss it with two superstar Barrelhouse editors: Becky Barnard and Erin Fitzgerald.

Happy holidays! This week, while we take our annual break, we've got a special bonus episode for you. We recorded this one last December for the Patreon, as part of our Hunt for the Worst Book of all Time. A novel based on a terrible song that was, for some reason, eventually turned into a straight-to-cable movie starring Rob Lowe. Enjoy! If you enjoyed this episode, and would like to get more in our Hunt for the Worst Book of All Time series, you can subscribe to our Patreon, for just $5 a month, which also helps to support all the free content we produce: https://www.patreon.com/BookFight Thanks! And we'll be back next week with this year's holiday episode, featuring two special guests!

We're joined by Christian Tebordo, author of several books and director of the MFA program at Roosevelt University in Chicago. We talk about how current students respond to ambiguity in stories, how small presses have evolved over the last several years, and why The Apology might be the most earnest book Tebordo will ever write.

We're joined by Kory Stamper, professional lexicographer and author of the book Word by Word: The Secret Life of Dictionaries, who chose a modern retelling of Beowulf for us to read. We consider how the epic poem translates to the contemporary American suburbs, and also why Beowulf has been so enduring in the first place. We also talk to Kory about her former job at Merriam-Webster's dictionary, the politics of language, and why we're right to roll our eyes at people who correct our grammar. You can learn more about Kory's book here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/530504/word-by-word-by-kory-stamper/ You can find Kory on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/korystamper If you like our podcast, and would like to get access to two bonus episodes a month--including our ongoing hunt for the worst book of all time--please consider joining our Patreon, for just $5/month: https://www.patreon.com/BookFight  

We're joined by Elisa Gabbert (The Unreality of Memory) to discuss Benjamin Labatut's When We Cease to Understand the World, a book that is mostly nonfiction--about scientists whose discoveries pushed them in the direction of madness--with some fictional flourishes. We talk about genre distinctions, reading works in translation, and why fall is the best season. We also rope Elisa into helping us answer a couple questions from the NaNoWriMo forums about naming cars and what life is like under the sea. You can find Elisa on Twitter @egabbert. Or check out her website, which features links to her work: http://www.elisagabbert.com/ You can also read the poems she referenced in her answer to "what reading experience has mostly recently made you cry." The Mark Leidner poem is here: https://sixthfinch.com/leidner4.html. And the Ezra Pound poem is here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47692/the-river-merchants-wife-a-letter-56d22853677f9. Finally: if you like the show, please consider subscribing to our

It's been a minute since we had Katherine Hill on the show, but long-time listeners may remember her multiple past appearances, including one in which we discussed Judy Blume's Forever and another in which Mike failed to finish the very long book that Katherine picked. But now she's back, and we're delving into one of her recent favorites, The Copenhagen Trilogy by Tove Ditlevson, a three-part memoir that was recently released in a single hardback edition, to much buzz on the literary internet. We talk about the book's blunt, unsentimental style, and why critics are so keen on putting it into the category of "autofiction." We also rope Katherine into taking a trip with us to the National Novel Writing Month forums, where we try to help writers with their world-building and character naming. You can learn more about Katherine--and her books!--on her website, here: https://www.katherine-hill.com/ If you like the show, for just $5 you can get access to two bonus episodes a month, plus our entire archive: ht

This week, we're joined by the writer Andrew Moxon (author of the novel The Revisionaries), who read Michael Ondaatje's In the Skin of a Lion as an undergrad and wanted to see if it would hold up some twenty years later. We talk about our respective relationships with historical fiction, as well as what it's like--for Andrew, at least--to gain more than 30,000 Twitter followers in a single day. You can check out Moxon's book here: https://www.amazon.com/Revisionaries-Moxon/dp/1612197981 And if you like our podcast, and would like more of it in your life, consider subscribing to our Patreon. For $5 a month you get two monthly bonus episodes, including our ongoing Hunt for the Worst Book of All Time. You can also sleep well at night knowing that you help support the regular episodes, which are free to listen to but definitely not free to produce: https://www.patreon.com/BookFight Thanks for listening! And if you like the show, tell a friend!

This week, we're joined by Dan McQuade (Defector Media) to discuss humor columnist Dave Barry's debut novel, Big Trouble. Both Dan and Mike were big fans of Dave Barry's humor writing as teens, while Tom apparently skipped right over his newspaper column each week on his way to The Family Circus and Heathcliff. We talk about how difficult it can be to maintain a consistent tone in a "wacky" novel, as well as the ill-fated movie version of the book, which had the bad fortune of having a September 2001 release date as well as a climactic scene featuring a bomb on a plane. We also talk to Dan about Defector Media, the worker-owned company he's been writing for since the collapse, via venture capital shitheads, of Deadspin. Check out Defector Media here, and subscribe to support independent journalism: https://defector.com/ And if you like our show, consider subscribing to our Patreon, which gets you two bonus episodes each month for a mere $5: https://www.patreon.com/BookFight  

This week, we're joined by Ben Winters (Golden State, The Quiet Boy) to discuss a Stanley Fish book about how to write great sentences. We talk about our love-hate relationships with craft books, why our first drafts are such a mess, and the false dichotomy of "language" vs "plot" when attempting to categorize writers. We also chat with Ben about his unusual writing career, which began with being hired to write the novel Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters for Quirk Books. You can find out more about Ben on his website: https://benhwinters.com/ If you like our podcast, and would like to get more of it, check out our Patreon, where $5 gets you two bonus episodes a month: https://www.patreon.com/BookFight  

This week, Lilly Dancyger (Negative Space) joins us to discuss an essay about creepy men and harassment by Melissa Febos, "Intrusions." We talk about what makes this essay stand out in a crowded field of personal essays, and what writers of creative nonfiction can learn from it, particularly the way it operates in multiple modes that allows the author to approach her subject from a variety of angles. We also talk to Lilly about teaching creative nonfiction, why editing personal essays started to give her "trauma fatigue," and how to balance your desire for "exposure" with your desire for being able to pay your rent. If you like the show, please consider subscribing to our Patreon--for $5 a month, you'll get access to two monthly bonus episodes, plus our entire back catalog of bonus material: https://www.patreon.com/BookFight  

This week, novelist Adam O'Fallon Price (The Hotel Neversink) joins us to discuss a strange, short novel by Muriel Spark called The Driver's Seat, in which a woman travels to the south of Italy to find someone who will murder her. We talk about the book's detached, somewhat cold point of view, its narrative leaps into the future tense, and just what to make of its odd cast of characters. We also talk to Adam about his relationship to the mystery genre, how his agent talked him out of writing a linked story collection, and why he left his music career to make a life as a writer instead. If you like the show, check out our Patreon, where a measly $5 gets you access to two monthly bonus episodes and archived content: https://www.patreon.com/BookFight  

This week, Emily Adrian (The Second Season) joins us to discuss a book she'd never read, Frederick Exley's 1968 "fictional memoir" A Fan's Notes. The book mirrors Exley's own experiences with mental health facilities, as well as his lifelong obsession with the New York Giants' star Frank Gifford. We consider how the book has held up over time, and whether we can--or should--get past its pretty rampant misogyny. We also talk about Emily's new novel, about a trailblazing female sportscaster, and why certain men can't seem to believe she understands basketball. Plus: how to write well about sports, and the important differences between a lectern and a podium. If you like the show, and would like to have more of it in your life, you can subscribe to our Patreon for $5 a month and get access to our entire catalog of bonus episodes, including our new Hunt for the Worst Book of All Time, which has forced us to read books by Tucker Max, Danielle Steel, Sean Penn, and--most recently--Morrissey.  

This week, J. Robert Lennon (Subdivision, Pieces for the Left Hand) joins us to discuss a story he loves to teach: Ted Chiang's "Hell is the Absence of God." We talk about what he hopes his students take from that piece, and why there are so few omniscient narrators in contemporary literary fiction. Plus: Christian summer camps, why you should never read your Goodreads reviews, and why John doesn't want to fight anyone.

When this week's guest, Lynn Coady, won Canada's prestigious Giller Prize for her book of short stories, Hellgoing, the comparisons to Alice Munro were probably inevitable. So it's fitting that the story Coady chose for this episode of the podcast is by Munro, and is one Coady says she's returned to again and again. "Save the Reaper," from The Love of a Good Woman, is a bit more menacing than the typical Munro story, though it makes us wonder if the menace is there in other Munro stories, too, just less obviously on the surface. We also talk to Coady about her own work, including her most recent novel, Watching You Without Me, and why she decided she wanted to write a book about--and for--middle-aged women. If you like the show, and would like to have more of it in your life, you can subscribe to our Patreon for $5 a month and get access to our entire catalog of bonus episodes, including our new Hunt for the Worst Book of All Time, which has forced us to read books by Tucker Max, Danielle Steel, and Sean Pe

We're joined by David Roth (writer and co-owner, Defector Media) to discuss the debut novel by Pete Beatty, which spins a tall tale of a mythological character, Big Son, and his various feats in 1830s Ohio. We talk about how the novel complicates and subverts stories of American myth, and just how much fun it is to read. We also chat with David about his own work, including blending sports and politics at Deadspin (R.I.P.), and how reading Kurt Vonnegut prepared him for writing about Donald Trump. If you like the show, and would like to have more of it in your life, you can subscribe to our Patreon for $5 a month and get access to our entire catalog of bonus episodes, including our new Hunt for the Worst Book of All Time, which most recently forced us to read actor Sean Penn's "novel," Bob Honey Who Just Do Stuff.

We're joined by Lauren Grodstein, author of several novels, including the New York Times bestseller A Friend of the Family, to discuss Philip Roth's Everyman. As a Jewish author from New Jersey, Grodstein says Roth has loomed large throughout her life, and she's wrestled with how to think about his legacy, particularly in light of the recent scandal involving his biographer, Blake Bailey. But even more broadly, how are we meant to reckon with an author who is wise in so many ways, but also clearly limited in others? If you like the show, and would like more of it in your life (in the form of two monthly bonus episodes) you can join our Patreon for just five bucks: https://www.patreon.com/BookFight  

We're joined by Jeff Chon, author of the new novel Hashtag Good Guy With a Gun, to talk about political fiction, conspiracy theories, and why some editors are cowards. We also talk about the South Korean novel The Disaster Tourist, by Yun Ko-Eun (translated by Lizzie Buehler), which Jeff says he picked up as part of his ongoing project to "be a better Korean," but then fell in love with because of its lively voice and dark humor. Thanks for listening! If you like the podcast, and would like more of it (in the form of regular bonus episodes) you can subscribe to our Patreon here, for just five bucks: https://www.patreon.com/BookFight  

We're joined by John Kell (freelance journalist, PR rep for Chobani) to talk about why the pandemic inspired him to read more books featuring gay male characters, which he recently wrote about in a piece for Fortune. We discuss one of those books, Edmund White's Our Young Man, and why John felt somewhat ambivalent about its main character, a gorgeous male model who is trying not to age out of the industry. We also talk about what kinds of gay lives get represented in fiction, which fictional universes we'd like to see get COVID updates, and what it's like to make the move from journalism to public relations. If you like the show, and would like access to two bonus episodes each month--plus our entire backlog of bonus material--you can subscribe to our Patreon for just $5: https://www.patreon.com/BookFight  

We welcome special guest Christopher Gonzalez (I'm Not Hungry But I Could Eat) to discuss a novel that taught him a lot about flash fiction. Also discussed: the Netflix show Marriage or Mortgage, why flash fiction isn't just about word count, and how to title your novel to give critics an easy talking point. If you like the show, and would like more Book Fight in your life, you can join our Patreon and get regular bonus episodes: https://www.patreon.com/BookFight