how to win the lottery: a book club podcast

it’s a return to the best podcast format ever invented: the random card draw. we are exploring our sixth state and telling sufjan stevens to once again suck shit as we have tripled up on his state output. after recapping the states we have already covered (as well as which we’re most excited for), shreds draws a card and determines our fate. we discuss our favorite things about minnesota.

reading list for season nineteen

ruby and roland by faith sullivanvestments by john reimringeramerican boy by larry watson

we talk to sara levine, author of treasure island!!! and the hitch, about pets, siblings, and her favorite notebooks. after joey promises her 100 compliments, shreds tells her about the 100% hit rate on recommending her novels to friends. sara talks about haters on goodreads and “hammock reviews”, what she learned from adam levin about parrots, and subverting the expectations of chick lit. we tell her about her mythology on the podcast. we ask about the cover art of her novels, how she approaches different class situations for her protagonists (or: if she does), and whether she ever lived by the mottos “steer the boat, girlfriend” or “be the alpha.” we talk about her ability to invert expectations and play with genre a bit and then share a series of questions from meg. sara mentions another author she recommends we read, discusses the ups and downs of publishing short stories in smaller publications, and her affinity for robert louis stevenson. (here’s the playlist for treasure island!!! that she created for largehearted boy.)

reading list for season eighteen

short dark oracles by sara levinetreasure island!!! by sara levinethe hitch by sara levine

our final book in the sara levine module is the hitch, which is notable as it’s a new release (and one of the fastest publication-to-episode timelines we’ve done) and, more importantly, another perfect novel. we compare it to treasure island!!! (and how this is a counter-arc to that), discuss the story of the “fun aunt” thrown into the deep end (by choice), and sara levine’s ability to craft good knock knock jokes (and why almost all art about comedy is a bit rough). is the secret to happiness going to mcdonald’s? shreds talks about the sitcom sensibilities in this novel that allow for levity in a really dark situation, how the novel’s “small book aesthetics” leave us craving more (in a good way), and how the hitch executes on his favorite trope in storytelling. we admire the cover and praise levine for dismissing drama in favor of more interesting drama. joey pitches a new challenge/idea to shreds.

reading list for season eighteen

short dark oracles by sara levinetreasure island!!! by sara levinethe hitch by sara levine

it’s time to talk about one of our favorite books, treasure island!!! by sara levine, and a plea to you, listener: go read this one. after shreds accidentally previews our next module, we ask: which most defines us? boldness, resolution, independence, or horn-blowing. we talk about how treasure island!!! serves as the best kind of palate cleanser, why we relate to messy and narcissistic 25-year-old female protagonists, and whether or not a pet library is a good business model. we share our favorite moments in the book, compare the novel’s tone to how sitcoms get away with darkness, and praise sara levine and her unique descriptions. joey mentions the almost unspoken (deep, deep) sadness of the text. shreds talks about how easy this novel would be to adapt, with so many actresses who could fit hte bill. egg writes in to compare this to the original treasure island. steer the boat, girlfriend!

reading list for season eighteen

short dark oracles by sara levinetreasure island!!! by sara levinethe hitch by sara levine

our sara levine module kicks off with her short story collection, short dark oracles. after comparing ourselves to other media with animals making noise in the background, we talk about our favorite stories from the collection, the value in a successful short story (as well as how the arc of a short story has changed over the years), and our favorite lines (mostly: the ones that made us laugh out loud). shreds talks about a shirt that makes him sick. we talk about a dog with a chapbook, a kinship between sara levine and lisa hanawalt, and how we wish we had even more writing of levine’s to look forward to. (this prompts shreds to talk about tao lin’s “10 more novels” idea.) a youtube comment inspires us to discuss books and movies we immediately started again after finishing. we heap more praise on matt johnson and nirvanna the band the show the movie.

reading list for season eighteen

short dark oracles by sara levinetreasure island!!! by sara levinethe hitch by sara levine