Banned Book Club

Get "MAUS" by clicking the link below and support local book stores.
https://bookshop.org/a/57229/9780679406419

In this episode we examine ‘Maus’, the recently banned Pulitzer Prize winning graphic novel by Art Spiegelman. It tells the story of a son trying to reconnect with his father while the shadow of the Holocaust looms heavily in the background. By not hammering the inherent emotion of source material, ‘Maus’ inavedertantly becomes the most heart rending depiction of the Holocaust we’ve seen. Join us as we explore Speigelman’s masterpiece, and try to understand the reasons for it baffling ban.



0:58 Intro

2:12 Synopsis 

4:05 Why it got banned

5:30 The style of the novel

8:00 What the story is ACTUALLY about 

10:10 The many layers of Maus 

10:27 Midroll

12:50 The relationship between Vladek and Art 

15:20 Art Spiegelman’s Experience writing Maus

18:00 People’s misinterpretation of Maus 

20:05 Why Maus should be part of school curriculum 

21:30 The importance of reading banned books

23:11 Outro 

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Get "The Stranger" by clicking the link below and support local book stores.
https://bookshop.org/a/57229/9780679720201


In this episode we investigate “The Stranger” - Albert Camus’ most famous and most controversial novel. The story, really a prolonged meditation on the death of meaning — follows Mersault - an unassuming businessman who’s passivity knows no bounds. But his apathetic approach to life quickly takes him to the edge of the law, of common morality, and of the society he’s born into; culminating in a murder trial that he’s destined to lose. Join us as we try to understand Mersault, and all the “isms” that this novel made famous - existentialism, moral relativism, nihilism, absurdism. It might be the case that these “isms” have shaped the default way most of us see the world today. Don’t underestimate the influence of banned books.




1:50 Intro
2:50 Why this novel is important
4:50 About Albert Camus
8:50 About the novel / Meursault 
12:15 Why its banned
13:30 Camus’ style
17:52 Absurdism explained
18:11 Midroll
20:15 Camus’ relationship with God
23:00 Did Meursault feel remorse for what he had done?
26:15 The motif of heat/the sun
32:12 Is there meaning to life or is life truly absurd?
39:05 Morality, Ethics, and Truth 
41:40 Final Thoughts
42:43 Outro

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Get "The Inferno" by clicking the link below and support local book stores.
https://bookshop.org/a/57229/9780451531391

In this episode we cover "The Inferno" by Dante Alighieri; inestimably influential, highly controversial since its release in the 1400’s . . . it is after all about Hell, hell with a capital H. This first segment of the three part "comedia" follows Dante and his poetic guide, Virgil —through the nine circles of hell. Each circle corresponds to a particular sin, and gets progressively more horrifying down to the 9th circle where Dante encounters satan himself, frozen in a lake of ice. Join us as we examine this masterpiece allegory of human dysfunction, and try to make sense of these words — "the path to paradise begins in hell"

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Get "The Hobbit" by clicking the link below and support local book stores.
https://bookshop.org/a/57229/97805479...

In this episode we investigate the grandfather of modern fantasy literature, J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit”— probably the most wholesome banned book we’ve covered! The story follows Bilbo, who’s convinced by a wizard to leave the sheltered comfort of his “hobbit hole” and reclaim a treasure guarded by the great dragon Smaug. Is this simply another rote exercise of “the hero’s journey”? Or has Tolkien’s epic transcend itself? —Does the cultural response to this myth point to some greater truth?

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Get "American Psycho" by clicking the link below and support local book stores.
https://bookshop.org/a/57229/9780679735779

In this episode we ‘dissect’ American Psycho, a divisive novel from one of America’s most transgressive authors - Brett Easton Ellis. Set in the era of 80’s excess, Psycho follows Patrick Bateman - a young high-powered business man who also happens to be a deranged serial murderer. This novel ignores plot and narrative structure in favor of aesthetics and social commentary. But does it rise above its own desire to shock and deliver something worthwhile? The answer will depend on your capacity for abyss staring.


0:00 - Intro
2:20 - Plot
3:15 - Who is Patrick Bateman 
4:30 - Why it’s banned
6:50 - The importance of Phil Collins/music in the novel 
9:50 - American Consumerism
11:25 - Why this is a great satire 
14:05 - What is this book trying to warn us about?
21:08 - Did the book earn its violence?
31:15 - Mid roll
31:30 - Did the murders actually happen?
34:40 - Jean & Evelyn 
36:55 - is the novel misogynistic?
38:52 - Cynicism/Nihilism in the novel 
44:00 - Idolizing Psychos 
46:36 - Final thoughts

Every sale supports local bookstores.
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Get "Dune" by clicking the link below and support local book stores.
https://bookshop.org/a/57229/9780441013593

This episode covers Frank Herbert’s “Dune”, the seminal sci-fi novel that inspired Star Wars and shaped the genre as we know it today. Dune follows young Paul Atreides as he ascends from destitution to the galactic throne. To do this he must navigate the hostile desert environment of Arrakis, as well as a precarious political landscape of feudal houses vying for control of the “spice” found on the planet. This is a classic hero’s journey set in an expertly detailed world, but does Dune subvert its sci-fi conventions and move readers towards something greater? Does it even need to?

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Get "Lolita" by clicking the link bellow and support local book stores.
https://bookshop.org/a/57229/9780679723165

In this episode, we cover Vladimir Nabokov's infamous novel “Lolita”. According to Vanity Fair, this book is considered to be “the only convincing love story of this century.” The novel is famous for its controversial subject: pedophilia. Humbert Humbert, the novel’s unreliable narrator and protagonist is obsessed with nymphets - specifically 12-year-old Dolores Haze, whom he nicknames Lolita. Join us as we discuss the importance of this novel and why you shouldn’t turn your nose up at it just because of its delicate plot.

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In this episode we discuss “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger, which tells the story of American literature’s most famous unreliable narrator Holden Caulfield. Is Holden just a whiny teenager? Or is he one of the most brilliant characters in modern fiction? Join us to find out.

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In this episode we discuss Ham on Rye by Charles Bukowski. This semi-autobiographical story centers around the childhood of Bukowski’s alter ego, Henry Chinaski. It is a coming of age story devoid of sunshine, rainbows, hugs, and moral platitudes. The book is filled instead with humor, action, and everyday madness. Join us as we explore this origin story of one of America’s greatest curmudgeons, if you have the stomach for it.

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What better way to celebrate Valentine’s Day than with a lovely novel about the death of all romance and meaning! Join us in this mini-sode, where we cover “The Rules of Attraction”, the second novel from one of America’s most controversial writers, Bret Easton Ellis.

Every sale supports local bookstores.
Bookshop is on a mission to financially support your local, independent bookstores.
Socially Conscious. Fast Shipping. Huge Selection.
https://bookshop.org/shop/bannedbookclub

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