Two recovering straight-A Millenial ladies just stompin' around and figuring it all out.
Join Ashby and Coco as they trade in textbooks for real talk from the school of life. Each week they dive into articles, books, conversations, and culture—unpacking the complicated themes that shape our world. With curiosity, humor, and a dash of existential dread, they apply the only skills they have (read: turning everything into a grad school discussion seminar) to try to make sense of these nonsensical times.
This week, Coco and Ashby watch Netflix’s East of Eden and revisit the John Steinbeck novel that inspired it. They love the performances and appreciate how Zoe Kazan’s adaptation brings a fuller humanity to the characters. The book? They have some gripes (of wrath).
They discuss Steinbeck’s ideas about good and evil, his portrayals of women and women’s lives, and his treatment of Lee, their favorite character. They appreciate how Kazan’s adaptation gives the characters fuller humanity and brings more poetry and mystery to the story, while taking issue with Steinbeck’s “tell, don’t show” approach.
Along the way, Ashby shares context from Steinbeck’s biography and how readers and critics received the novel in its day. Coco and Ashby come away enthusiastic about the adaptation and its cast, but won’t be rushing to recommend the book.
As always, join us at syllabuspod.substack.com (http://syllabuspod.substack.com/) for all of the references made in this episode. Stay in the loop on Instagram @syllabusthepod, and send ideas or feedback to syllabuspodemail@gmail.com (mailto:syllabuspodemail@gmail.com).
17 Oct 2026
Sense & Sensibility
This week, Coco and Ashby get cozy with Jane Austen’s Sense & Sensibility. They discuss their relationships with Austen’s work, and while neither tends to fantasize about living in a different time period, Coco does long for the gossip of a small community, and Ashby wouldn’t hate wandering the English moors.
In this episode, they dive deep into Austen’s novel, asking: Is John Middleton the Kyle Cooke of the book? Does Jane Austen hate children and brothers? And how weird is it to root for a 35-year-old man to get with a literal teenager? They delight in Austen’s ruthless portrayals of her side characters and appreciate that, while they won’t be calling Austen "woke" anytime soon, her novels offer a vision of a happy life for women under restrictive circumstances.
Along the way, they consider Austen’s biography, possible inspirations for her characters, and what they’ve loved – and not loved – about film adaptations of her novels. Rest in peace, Alan Rickman, but you were an odd choice for Colonel Brandon!
As always, join us at syllabuspod.substack.com (http://syllabuspod.substack.com) for all of the references made in this episode. Stay in the loop on Instagram @syllabusthepod, and send ideas or feedback to syllabuspodemail@gmail.com (mailto:syllabuspodemail@gmail.com).
26 Aug 2026
The Uncomplicated Magic of Dua Lipa
This week, Coco and Ashby close out the summer with pop music’s most literary It Girl: Dua Lipa.
Coco takes Ashby on a journey through her algorithm and her AirPods as they ask: what is it about Dua Lipa that feels so captivating? From the ongoing “Dua Lipa is always on vacation” joke to her recent marriage to Callum Turner, Mr. Dua Lipa if you ask them, they dig into how her glamorous Instagram presence has captured the internet without quite alienating it.
They explore how Lipa’s Kosovar-Albanian background informs her worldview, from her politics and activism to the books she highlights through her editorial platform, Service95. They also pop in the earbuds to get a feel for Dua as a podcast host, and come away with a clearer understanding of why she has earned a reputation as a surprisingly thoughtful book-club guide.
Coco and Ashby remain appropriately skeptical of celebrity culture, but they ultimately decide that if having a “Dua Lipa summer” means reading moving books, eating great food, connecting with friends, and dancing the night away, there are worse aspirations.
Just don’t make the mistake of ordering too many dirty martinis. You are not, in fact, Dua Lipa.
As always, join us at syllabuspod.substack.com (http://syllabuspod.substack.com) for all of the references made in this episode. Stay in the loop on Instagram @syllabusthepod, and send ideas or feedback to syllabuspodemail@gmail.com (mailto:syllabuspodemail@gmail.com).
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Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
3 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
8 ratings
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