In this episode, Jordan and Brendan travel to Middle Earth to discuss the role of the common man in the fight against evil, worlds born from words, the emboldening of virtue, the imminent approach of glory, the purpose of silly hobbit songs, and what makes a story timeless. Other Mentions: Beowulf Next episode we will be discussing The Fellowship o…

In this episode, Jordan and Brendan discuss the “If Only” feeling, beauty in the midst of bleakness, the call to adventure, the cost of idealism, director’s cut conspiracies, and the idiocy of semicolons. What We’re Reading: Letters to a Diminished Church by Dorothy L. Sayers Present Concerns: Journalistic Essays by C.S. Lewis Perelandra by C.S. Le…

In this episode, Jordan and Brendan discuss the scandal of grace, beautifully hyperlinked symbolism, the cosmic story arc, the nature of true value, the power of chocolate kisses, and the polite consumption of buttermilk. What We’re Reading: Stoner by John Williams The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder The Iliad by Homer Other Mentions: Psa…

In this episode, Jordan and Brendan discuss the duality of man, the gamble of letting Death narrate your story, the power of words to bring life or death, picking a good Pilsner, and cologne ads. What we’re reading: All the King’s Men by Robert Penn Warren The Great Passion by James Runcie How God Became King by N.T. Wright Recapturing the Wonder b…

In this episode, Jordan and Brendan discuss our thought-tormented age, early 20th century Irish politics, the polarizing Modernist legacy of James Joyce, the magic of Thin Places, the tension between a blaze of passion and a life of long fidelity, and whether or not it’s ok to bake a little baby Jesus into your King Cake for this year’s Epiphany Fe…

In this special Yuletide episode, Jordan and Brendan discuss the supremacy of It’s a Wonderful Life, the clash of Two Kingdoms, Dickens’s delight in language, the role of repentance & remembrance in true conversion, the call for a renaissance in heartfelt sentiment, and the coziness of mulled wine. Mentioned in this episode: It’s a Wonderful Life (…

In this episode, Jordan and Brendan discuss the difficulty of the short story form, O’Connor’s punishment of hypocrites & use of the grotesque, Nietzsche’s view of monsters, the dreadful irony of grace, and gas-station snacks. What we’re reading: The Cross of Christ by John Stott The Book of the Dun Cow by Walter Wangerin Jr. The Christian Imaginat…

In this special Halloween episode, Jordan and Brendan discuss their favorite spooky stories, Bradbury’s polarizing prose, the struggle with time & mortality, evil’s inexplicable mystery, and the importance of avoiding carnivals. Scary Story Picks: The Bear & the Nightingale by Katherine Arden “Click-clack the Rattle Bag” by Neil Gaiman Other Mentio…

In this episode, Jordan and Brendan discuss the complex & bittersweet relationship with Home, the pronunciation of “Kunstlerroman,” getting to know your neighbors, the line between poetry & prose, Mexican street food, and whether this book is technically even a novel. What we’re reading: Trust by Hernan Diaz 100 Poems by Seamus Heaney The Weight of…

In this episode, Jordan and Brendan acknowledge their limited perspective; they also discuss the slow & frustrating work of justice, the effects of dehumanization, Gaines’s use of seemingly futile repetition, and the power of southern comfort food. What we’re reading: A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold The Sun Walks Down by Fiona McFarlane The G…

In this debut episode, Jordan and Brendan discuss homesickness, pretentious German words, Lewis’s profound love of horses, the “around the corner” feeling, cockney accents, and the absurdity of adulthood. What we’re reading: The Need to be Whole by Wendell Berry A Swim in the Pond in the Rain by George Saunders Other Mentions: The Silmarillion by J…