Desperate Readers

XXXVIII. Is-slottet: The Ice Palace by Tarjei Vesaas

The Nordic trilogy wraps up with The Ice Palace by Norwegian novelist Tarjei Vesaas, which recounts the strange relationship between two girls, Siss and Unn, and the aftermath when one of them disappears. Niko and Tatiana discuss girlhood, the Other, the psyche, and community. 

XXXVII. I Was Taking a Drive: A Shining by Jon Fosse

The overdue Nordic winter trilogy continues: Tatiana and Niko read 2023 Nobel Prize Laureate Jon Fosse's most recent translated work, A Shining, about a man who begins to drive until he finds himself in the woods during a snow storm. They discuss modern inner monologues, psychoanalysis, and the limits of language. 

XXXVI. Bro!: Beowulf translated by Seamus Heaney

We're Back! After a long winter (and winter break), Niko and Tatiana read the classic Old English epic Beowulf, translated by Seamus Heaney. They discuss legacy, vigilance,  steadfastness, and how lads love lads.
 
This episode was recorded in January 2024.

XXXV. Ethics and Aesthetics: Poor Things by Alasdair Gray

In preparation for the new Yorgos Lanthimos movie, Niko and Tatiana read Poor Things by Alasdair Gray. They discuss Bella Baxter's story, ethics and aesthetics, nineteenth-century medicine, and muse a little on the movie starring Emma Stone and Mark Ruffalo. 

XXXIV. Life Is Hard, but You Must Be Harder: Woman at Point Zero by Nawal El Saadawi

This week, Niko and Tatiana read Woman at Point Zero by Egyptian feminist author and doctor Nawal El Saadawi, the "Simone de Beauvoir of the Arab world". Based on a true story, Woman at Point Zero recounts the life of Firdaus, a young prostitute on death row, allowing her to reclaim the meaning of her life and depict the lot of Egyptian women. Niko and Tatiana discuss consciousness, sex work, and the gaze of eyes. 

XXXIII. How Did they ever Make a Podcast of Lolita: Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

A true American classic! Niko and Tatiana read Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita and discuss eroticism, the English language, and America!

XXXII. It Gives Two Turns!: The Turn of the Screw by Henry James

Spooky season comes late to the pod as Niko and Tatiana invite special guest Alex to talk about Henry James's ghost story, The Turn of the Screw. The three discuss psychoanalytic interpretation, turning, the unknowable, and of course, ghosts. 

XXXI. The Labyrinth of Inhumanity: The Most Secret Memory of Men by Mohamed Mbougar Sarr

For literature and literature lovers. Niko and Tatiana read The Most Secret Memory of Men by Mohamed Mbougar Sarr, winner of the 2021 Prix Goncourt. They discuss plagiarism, fragmentation, and jokes, with lots of references to Roberto Bolaño and Yambo Ouologuem. 

XXX. Rage (or What is Achilles’s Problem?): the Iliad by Homer

What's Achilles's problem? Can we understand the classical mind? Tatiana and Niko read (arguably) the first book in the Western Canon, Homer's Iliad. They discuss glory, Homeric similes, and how war shapes our perspective on life. All your favorite Greek heroes are here!  
Small corrections: at around minute 19, Niko says 'Achilles's house' instead of 'Odysseus's house,' and around minute 26, Tatiana says Hector instead of Patroclus. 
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XXIX. Desperate and Visceral: Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolaño

Welcome to the official first episode of Season Two! Niko and Tatiana go back to their roots and start with the book that gave the podcast its name: Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolaño. They discuss impending globalization, the consequences of literature, haunting writers, and jokes.
 
Want to read along? Find out BookShop link here: https://bookshop.org/shop/desperatereaders 
 
Find us on Substack here: https://desperatereaders.substack.com/