Literate Sleep

About Literate Sleep

Rick Whitaker, author and host of the nocturnal podcast Literate Sleep, reads aloud from literary texts that you can enjoy while falling asleep. These are not cliffhangers or thrillers. They’re citizens of the low country, content to amble along to see whatever happens to be there--fabulous but fully self-evident literary landscapes without the promise of climax, epiphany, or resolution. These texts could go on, it seems, forever, which is not to say that they’re boring. They're not. Among the writers whose work will be featured in future episodes are, for instance, Oscar Wilde, Thomas Lynch, W. G. Sebald, James Baldwin, Susan Sontag, Richard Howard, Ronald Firbank, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Ivy Compton-Burnett, Marcel Proust, Toni Morrison, William James, Edith Hamilton, and the list could go on and on--you could be put to sleep by the list itself. But as a reader with a severe allergy to boredom, Rick Whitaker will always strive to put you to sleep with texts that will not bore you. In his quiet readings without music, these literary texts will lull you, pacify you, and induce you to sweet, smart dreams. The first episode is a reading of a 1913 story by the Swiss writer Robert Walser. Born in 1878, Walser was a dropout from school at 14. In his 50s he retired to a sanatorium where, he said, he went “not to write, but to be mad.” "Kleist in Thun" is his homage to the German poet Heinrich von Kleist. Following the Walser story, a page from James Joyce's famously inscrutable novel Finnegans Wake. But you’ll be sound asleep by then. Literate sleep.

Publisher

Rick Whitaker

Category

arts · education · health & fitness

Language

en

Explicit

Yes

First episode

29 Mar 2025

Latest episode

9 Jul 2025

Latest episodes

15 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   9 Jul 2025

   Ivy Compton-Burnett's Mother and Son, Part 3

   The host reads part three of Ivy Compton-Burnett's novel *Mother and Son*, a comedy of manners.

2. 

   27 Jun 2025

   Ivy Compton-Burnett's "Mother and Son" Part Two

   The host reads part two of Ivy Compton-Burnett's novel *Mother and Son*.

3. 

   20 Jun 2025

   Ivy Compton-Burnett's "Mother and Son" part 1

   This episode explores the genius of Ivy Compton-Burnett and delves into her novel "Mother and Son," which reveals the wide range of human intelligence and feelings.

4. 

   13 Jun 2025

   Fathers and Sons: an anti-celebration

   The host reads his compilation of stories inspired by David Markson, presenting fathers and fatherhood at their worst, while hoping listeners find humor in the dark narrative.

5. 

   1 Jun 2025

   Quentin Crisp's "Manner from Heaven"

   Host discusses Quentin Crisp's book "Manners from Heaven," sharing personal anecdotes and insights into Crisp's well-mannered nature and societal observations in this episode celebrating Pride month.

6. 

   21 May 2025

   The Widower: an unfinished novel about Hart Crane

   Tonight I’ll read “The Widower,” my own unfinished novel about the American poet Hart Crane. It is narrated by an imagined character who purports to have been Hart Crane’s lover in the months just before Crane’s death in 1932. So I invite you now to lie down and close your eyes, calm yourself down, relax completely, and let yourself by taken off to sleep: literate sleep.

7. 

   13 May 2025

   John Ashbery's FLOW CHART: an excerpt

   Tonight I’ll read an excerpt from the late John Ashbery’s book-length poem FLOW CHART, one of the great monuments of late-20th-century poetry. If you’re unfamiliar with Ashery’s poem, you’re in for a unique experience. It will certainly not bore you, but it might exhaust you with its unrelenting expression so that before long you’ll want to be lying down so you can close your eyes, calm yourself down, relax completely, and let yourself by taken off to sleep: literate sleep.

8. 

   8 May 2025

   Cheryl Mendelson's "Home Comforts" Part One

   Tonight I’ll read (with the author's permission) the first part of Cheryl Mendelson’s “Home Comforts: The Art and Science of Keeping House” published in 1999. I had heard long ago that “Home Comforts” was the only modern literary book about housekeeping that was not only useful but beautiful. Friends urged me to read it. I’m ashamed to say that I did not, until recently. Now, at last, I am a devotee of this remarkable (and, at nearly 900 pages, remarkably long) book. Tonight, I’ll start by reading the introductory essay. I’ll read some other chapters later. Now, as I read from THE American book on housekeeping, I invite you to lie down and close your eyes, calm yourself down, relax completely, and instead of cleaning your bathroom or kitchen, let yourself be taken away to sleep: Literate Sleep.

9. 

   4 May 2025

   Natalia Ginzburg's "Human Relations"

   This podcast is intended to help you fall asleep. Do not listen to it while driving. It’s best to listen while lying in bed, as comfortable as you can get, and without the likelihood of being interrupted until it’s time to wake up. I’m Rick Whitaker, and this is Literate Sleep. Tonight, I’ll read “Human Relations,” an essay by the great Italian writer Natalia Ginzburg, published in 1953. Since I expect you’ll be asleep when I read the end of Ginzburg’s essay, I’ll now read the final sentence of it, which should not be missed: “We’re hurt and aggrieved, we whisper suspicious questions, all the while knowing so well how the long chain of human relations takes its course, making its long and inevitable parabola, the whole long road we have to travel to feel, at last, a bit of compassion.” Now I invite you to lie down and close your eyes, calm yourself down, relax completely, and let yourself be taken away to sleep: Literate Sleep.

10. 

    28 Apr 2025

    Two Stories in the Style of W.G. Sebald: "The Keeper of Light" and "The Archive of Sand"

    Tonight I’ll read two tales created with assistance from Claude Sonnet 3.7, the AI chatbot from Anthropic. The stories were composed with minimal prompting: Please write a story that would be ideal for my new podcast called Literate Sleep, in which I read literary texts aloud to help listeners fall asleep. It shouldn’t be boring but also shouldn’t lead to a climactic ending. Claude dutifully wrote a story called "The Gentle Harbor," which featured a character named Eleanor and a lighthouse, but it had no charm nor style. Try writing it in the style of W.G. Sebald. I did some editing and found that I was very pleased with the story. Excellent. Please write a second story in the style of Sebald that I’ll read as a companion to this one. Out came "The Archive of Sand," which I carefully edited. Can you provide a black and white photo to accompany the two stories? After some back and forth, Claude referred me to the Library of Congress, where I found a photograph I liked, in color. I make no grand claims for these stories, which are undoubtedly inferior to anything written by Sebald himself. But Sebald is long gone, sadly, and I, for one, am grateful for a chance to read something even vaguely like Sebald’s prose. So I invite you to lie down and close your eyes, calm yourself down, relax completely, and let yourself be taken away to sleep as I read two new Sebaldian tales, The Keeper of Light and The Archive of Sand. I trust that the sound of my voice will lull you right to sleep: Literate Sleep.

11. 

    22 Apr 2025

    Edmund White's The Loves of My Life: A Sex Memoir

    Tonight I’ll read an excerpt from Edmund White’s recently published The Loves of My Life: A Sex Memoir. Edmund is a close friend of mine, and my favorite page in this book is the dedication page, which reads: To Rick Whitaker. Be advised that you will hear some vivid descriptions of gay sex, so if you wish not to fall asleep with such stuff in your head, you might want to skip this episode. Most of my friends will undoubtedly listen to it repeatedly. But if you’re OK with gay sex, I invite you to close your eyes, calm yourself down, relax completely, and let yourself be taken away, while I read to you, for a peaceful night of rejuvenating, healthy, deep sleep. I’ll read from The Loves of My Life for about half an hour. By the time I’ve finished, I expect you’ll be either wide awake and ordering a copy of the book, or sound asleep: Literate sleep.

12. 

    18 Apr 2025

    The Best Poems of Emily Dickinson

    This podcast is intended to help you fall asleep. Do not listen to it while driving. It’s best to listen while lying in bed, as comfortable as you can get, and without the likelihood of being interrupted until it’s time to wake up. I’m Rick Whitaker, and this is Literate Sleep, where I read from literary texts that I hope you will enjoy hearing without being concerned about their endings. Tonight’s reading is devoted to my own selection of poems by Emily Dickinson, one of the major American poets. I invite you to close your eyes, calm yourself down, relax completely, and let yourself be taken away, while I read to you, for a peaceful night of rejuvenating, healthy, deep sleep. I’ll read Dickinson’s poems for about 45 minutes. By the time I’ve finished I expect you’ll be sound asleep: Literate sleep.

13. 

    9 Apr 2025

    Enough and other stories by Samuel Beckett

    Tonight’s reading is devoted to the great comic writer Samuel Beckett, who was born April 13, 1906. I’ll read three of his short stories, starting with the longest of them, a story called “Enough.” Now I invite you to close your eyes, calm yourself down, relax completely, and let yourself be taken away while I read to you for a peaceful night of rejuvenating, healthy, deep sleep. After reading the three stories, I’ll read a biographical note about Samuel Beckett. But I expect you’ll be sound asleep by then. Literate sleep.

14. 

    5 Apr 2025

    The Poetry of Maya Angelou

    Tonight’s reading is devoted to the American poet Maya Angelou (1928-2014). First I’ll read a selection of her poems, then an interview she gave in 2013. After reading the interview, I’ll read a biographical note about Dr. Angelou. But I expect you’ll be sound asleep by then. Literate sleep. uJcvTuN98fcN5IcP8vD2

15. 

    29 Mar 2025

    "Kleist in Thun" by Robert Walser (1878-1956) about the self-tormented poet Heinrich von Kleist

    This podcast is intended to help you fall asleep. Do not listen to it while driving. It’s best to listen while lying in bed, as comfortable as you can get, and without the likelihood of being interrupted until it’s time to wake up. This is the first episode of Literate Sleep. I’ll read from literary texts that I hope you will enjoy hearing without being concerned about their endings. These are not cliffhangers. There is no promise of climax, epiphany, or resolution. But they’re music to my ears and, I hope, to yours. To hear a page of James Joyce’s famously unreadable novel Finnegans Wake while drifting off to sleep is, for me, nocturnal heaven. Among the other writers I have in mind for Literate Sleep are, for instance, Oscar Wilde, James Baldwin, Susan Sontag, Richard Howard, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Ronald Firbank, Ivy Compton-Burnett, Marcel Proust, William James, Walter Pater, Edith Hamilton, David Markson, Thomas Lynch, and so on. As a reader with a severe allergy to boredom, I will always strive to put you to sleep with texts that will not bore you. But they will lull you, pacify you, and induce you to sweet dreams. So settle in, close your eyes, calm yourself down, relax completely, and let yourself be taken away while I read to you for a peaceful night of healthy, restorative sleep. I begin with a 1913 story by the Swiss writer Robert Walser. Born April 15 (coincidentally, also my birthday), 1878, Walser was a dropout from school at 14. He wandered around Europe precariously, his mental health always spotty, but at the same time, he produced essays, stories, and novels now considered classics of modern European literature. In his 50s he retired to a sanatorium where, he said, he went “not to write, but to be mad.” His story "Kleist in Thun" (1913), read here in its entirety, is set in the pretty Swiss lakeside resort town of Thun and features the German poet Heinrich von Kleist (1777-1811), known as one of the pre-eminent Romantic, demonic geniuses. He committed suicide at the age of 34. The episode concludes with a brief excerpt from Finnegans Wake by Walser's contemporary James Joyce. But I expect you’ll be sound asleep by then. Literate sleep. --Rick Whitaker

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

3 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 31 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

49

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

32

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Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.