A casual podcast about the books we love. Hosted by Mark Thomas (Harvard Law School) and his lifelong friend Max, a fellow literature enthusiast. Visit Mark's personal site at markthomas.site (https://markthomas.site/) for more on his research into legal frameworks for abundance and industrial policy.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
This is a rerun of our episode about the book American Prometheus, a biography of J Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J Sherwin. It originally aired on October 27, 2022.
We're rerunning it in honor of the movie Oppenheimer, which Christopher Nolan wrote based on this book. This episode contains spoilers.
Related stuff:
The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing
The Missed Chance to Stop the H-Bomb by McGeorge Bundy in the New York Review of Books
Hiroshima: Why America Dropped the Bomb by Ronald Takaki
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
2 May 2023
Heaven by Mieko Kawakami
This episode is about Heaven, a novel by Japanese author Mieko Kawakami
References:
A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki
Thus Spoke Zarathustra by Friedrich Nietzsche
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
22 Mar 2023
The Reluctant Fundamentalist
This episode is about The Reluctant Fundamentalist, a novel by the Pakistani-British author Mohsin Hamid.
References:
Exit West, by Mohsin Hamid
Moth Smoke, by Mohsin Hamid
The Reluctant Fundamentalist, a box office bomb starring Riz Ahmed
Opinion piece on Pakistani-Indian relations by Mohsin Hamid: https://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/22/opinion/pakistani-militants-the-enemies-of-peace-the-internal-enemies-of-pakistani-peace.html (https://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/22/opinion/pakistani-militants-the-enemies-of-peace-the-internal-enemies-of-pakistani-peace.html?utm_source=pocket_mylist)
Mohsin Hamid profile: https://www.fastcompany.com/3045216/why-companies-need-novelists (https://www.fastcompany.com/3045216/why-companies-need-novelists)
Interviews with Mohsin Hamid: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3ct3c7l and https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0144ybj (https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0144ybj)
Critique of Hamid's work by Zain R Mian: https://herald.dawn.com/news/1398781 (https://herald.dawn.com/news/1398781)
The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho
The Fall, by Albert Camus
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
27 Oct 2022
American Prometheus
This episode is about the book American Prometheus, a biography of J Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J Sherwin. It won the Pulitzer Prize and is being made into a feature film by Christopher Nolan.
Related stuff:
The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing
The Missed Chance to Stop the H-Bomb by McGeorge Bundy in the New York Review of Books
Hiroshima: Why America Dropped the Bomb by Ronald Takaki
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
5 Oct 2022
The Buried Giant
In this episode, we're talking about The Buried Giant by Nobel laureate Kazuo Ishiguro. This episodes contains spoilers.
References:
Ishiguro's WSJ interview: https://www.wsj.com/video/kazuo-ishiguro-uncovers-the-buried-giant/542AED13-6ABD-42D9-A8F3-86806087F241.html
Neil Gaiman's review: https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/01/books/review/kazuo-ishiguros-the-buried-giant.html
Postwar by Tony Judt
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
Le Morte d'Arthur by Sir Thomas Malory
The English and their History by Robert Tombs
The Makers of Scotland: Picts, Romans, Gaels and Vikings by Tim Clarkson
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
13 Sept 2022
The End of the Myth
In this episode, we're talking about The End of the Myth by Greg Grandin. Please join us. Or don't. It's your choice.
Further reading:
"The Moral Equivalent of War" by William James
A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico by Amy Greenberg
The War Lovers: Roosevelt, Lodge, Hearst, and the Rush to Empire, 1898 by Evan Thomas
Fordlandia: The Rise and Fall of Henry Ford's Forgotten Jungle City by Greg Grandin
The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln by Sean Wilentz
What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815-1845 by Daniel Walker Howe
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
25 Aug 2022
Aurora
In this episode, we're talking about Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson. Please join us. Or don't. It's your choice. This episode, like all of our episodes, contains spoilers.
Other Kim Stanley Robins work that we reference (or have read):
The Mars Trilogy (Red Mars, Green Mars, Blue Mars)
The Years of Rice and Salt
New York 2140
Red Moon
The Ministry for the Future
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
2 Aug 2022
The Topeka School
In this episode, we're talking about The Topeka School by Ben Lerner. Please join us. Or don't. It's your choice. This episode, like all of our episodes, contains spoilers.
References:
Other books by Ben Lerner that we reference are 10:04 and Leaving Atocha Station
Poetry by Ben Lerner (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/ben-lerner)
Lerner's article in Harper's about high school debate and political speech (https://harpers.org/archive/2012/10/contest-of-words/)
Lerner on the Guardian's book podcast (https://www.theguardian.com/books/audio/2019/dec/17/ben-lerner-and-meena-kandasamy-on-autofiction-books-podcast)
National Forensics League list of national champions (https://www.speechanddebate.org/nationals-history/)
David Kensinger (http://kensingerandassociates.com/David.html)
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
12 Jul 2022
Wolf Hall
In this episode, we're talking about Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel. Please join us. Or don't. It's your choice. This episode contains many spoilers, for all three books in the trilogy.
References:
The final two books in the trilogy are Bring Up the Bodies and The Mirror and the Light
Thomas Cromwell: A Revolutionary Life by Diarmaid MacCulloch
The Life of Cardinal Wolsey by George Cavendish
A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt, with two film adaptations starring Paul Scofield (1966) and Charlton Heston (1988)
Wolf Hall Parts One & Two is a play adaptation of the first two books by Mike Poulton, premiered by the Royal Shakespeare Company
Wolf Hall was also adapted into a 6-episode BBC miniseries (https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02gfy02)
A Place of Greater Safety by Hilary Mantel
The Power Broker by Robert Caro
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/champsatthelit
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
28 Jun 2022
SPQR
In this episode, we're talking about SPQR by Mary Beard. Please join us. Or don't. It's your choice. This episode contains spoilers, but it's all ancient history.
References:
The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/champsatthelit
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
20 Jun 2022
Episode 0: The Introduction Episode
On this dumb podcast, two friends talk the dumb podcast they made where two friends talk about books. Please join us. Or don't. It's your choice.
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/champsatthelit
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
3 ratings
Contact Champs at the Lit
Guest appearances
Does not typically book guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
Host of Champs at the Lit?
Claim your podcast to manage its listing and keep your show details accurate.
Pod Engine is an independent podcast discovery and analytics service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by this podcast. Artwork and show content belong to their owners. Full legal notice.
Explore this show Podcast research with Pod Engine
