books
-
Augustine and the Art of Not Yet
“I had been putting off the moment when by spurning earthly happiness I would clear space in my life to search for wisdom; yet even to seek it, let alone find it, would have been more rewarding than discovery of treasure or possession of all the world’s kingdoms, or having every bodily pleasure at my… Continue reading
-
History of Literature Episode 43 – Seeing Evil (with Professor Rebecca Messbarger)
What is evil? Is it a force that lives outside us? Or something that dwells within? And how do we recognize it? Professor Rebecca Messbarger joins Jacke to discuss the problems of seeing evil and the particular ways that post-Fascist Italian writers dealt with the dilemma. We also hear the story of how a mild-mannered Italian… Continue reading
alabama moon, anna morandi manzolini, carlo gadda, family sayings, italian enlightenment, italian post-fascist detective fiction, italo calvino, lady anatomist, leonardo sciascia, mr palomar, natalia ginzburg, rebecca messbarger, recognizing evil, that awful mess on the via merulana, todo modo, watt key -
The History of Literature Episode 41 – The New Testament (with Professor Kyle Keefer)
Charles Dickens called the New Testament “the very best book that ever was or ever will be known in the world.” Thomas Paine complained that it was a story “most wretchedly told,” and argued that anyone who could tell a story about a ghost or even just a man walking around could have written it… Continue reading
-
Kitty Weeks, Welcome to the Big Time!
So many things to like about this one… I think my favorite fact about Capability “Kitty” Weeks (other than the fact that her name is Capability) is that she drives her own car. So awesome. And of course, it’s also great that she’s paving the way for women journalists everywhere and investigating a murder, too.… Continue reading
-
The History of Literature Episode 40 – Radha Vatsal, Author of “A Front Page Affair”
Host Jacke Wilson is joined by special guest Radha Vatsal, author of the historical mystery A Front Page Affair. Radha starts by talking about her own adventure leaving India to study in America at the age of 16, which eventually led to an interest in the action film heroines and female journalists at the start of the… Continue reading
-
The Dreams of Graham Greene
Graham Greene week continues! Today’s our last installment before we take a look at intrepid women journalists (and other action heroines) in New York City of the 1910s. The most curious book in the Graham Greene canon is probably his book of dreams, A World of My Own, essentially a dream diary. Stop there! I know… Continue reading
-
Catherine Walston: The Beautiful Inspiration for “The End of the Affair”
As we discussed on the podcast, Graham Greene’s masterpiece The End of the Affair had a real-life basis: Greene’s affair with Catherine Walston, an American beauty whose “zeal for Catholicism was matched only by her insatiable lust.” (Quite a description!) And of course, the Hollywood versions of Sarah (the character inspired by Walston) do justice… Continue reading
-
To Catch a Spy: Graham Greene’s Deathbed Revelation
It’s one of the great mysteries of Graham Greene’s life, and it may have cost him the Nobel Prize. I alluded to it in the podcast that Mike and I did on Greene’s life and works. Part of it isn’t a mystery at all, of course. We know that Greene worked for Britain’s foreign intelligence… Continue reading
-
The Secret Diaries of Graham Greene
Here’s another fascinating story we didn’t get to during our hour-long conversation on the life and works of Graham Greene – the matter of his secret journals. I asked the President of the Literature Supporters Club to fill in the skinny: Oh, I should have mentioned it on the podcast. Just a delicious detail. He kept parallel… Continue reading
-
Graham Greene and the Lolita Controversy
We talked for an hour, and yet we still barely scratched the surface of Graham Greene’s incredible life. Here’s one we didn’t get to: his role in bringing Lolita to the literary world’s attention – and inadvertently triggering the ban (which probably helped sales in the long run). Maria Popova has more: When Lolita was first published… Continue reading
Jacke Wilson 