CanonBallz Podcast

Gemma, Ben, and Ben are back with chapters 17-32 of Bleak House, catching up on what appears to be the journey of a bunch of powerful men attempting to ruin a successful woman's life. They try to unpack Dickens' extremely brutal view of marriage and introduce the Rich People Burns Power Rankings. Plus: Spontaneous human combustion!

Ben, Gemma, and Other Ben (Gullard, if you were wondering), begin Bleak House this month. This episode tackles chapters 1-16, in which they discuss Esther Summerson's personality, Ada's lack of one, and all the best secondary characters. Ben discovers Charles Dickens is great at roasting rich people, and Gemma pitches a terrible modern adaptation about patent trolls and app lawsuits.

Just in time for Halloween, Ben, Gemma, and Michael put the final stake in Dracula. Mina joins the fight against ancient evil, which is great because she's smart and everyone else is dumb. There's a final battle for her soul ... but it seems just a little anti-climactic, considering the stakes. Ben writes a fanfic and Michael decides who goes Nazi. Get your garlic flowers and dive in.

Just in time for Halloween, Ben, Gemma, and special guest Michael Clair (master of all things spooky) jump into perhaps the most classic horror novel of all time: Dracula, by Bram Stoker.  Why doesn't Jonathan Harker just listen to the peasants who tell him to stay away from that big creepy castle? Is Van Helsing a cool monster hunter or an insufferable pedant? Most importantly, how big can a bat actually get?

Since it's the spookiest month of the year, Ben and Gemma decided to jump into one of the spookiest books of all time -- Henry James' The Turn of the Screw. Joined by horror aficionado Penny Cox (of Vampire Diaries and Scream), they talk about the scariest thing about the story: class issues. What's so terrifying about the ghost? He's not wearing a hat. Listen in and decide if you'd rather be Miles or Flora, or marry the governess or a "rough menial."

It's time for "Little Women," Pt. 2. In this episode, Ben, Gemma, and Katy try to figure out why Jo married such a drip. They also try to figure out Beth's cause of death (saintliness? perpetual boredom?) and write their own mini-fanfics about the book.

Little Women is a foundational book for many, many readers. Are you a Jo or an Amy? You're definitely not a Beth, because you probably have a personality. Over two episodes, Ben, Gemma, and special guest Katy Boland dissect Louisa May Alcott's classic novel and ask the important questions, like "is Laurie a Nice Guy" and "why is Marmee such a bummer?"

The literary canon is vast and unending, sort of like the ocean. Or even like a particularly intimidating public pool. But don't worry. Ben Cosman and Gemma Kaneko are here to help. We're diving right into the deep end, but a bit less elegantly: Call it a canonball. It's time for a brand new book club that you can carry around in your pocket. Listen to a brief intro now and get ready for a week's worth of episodes soon.  Upcoming books: Little Women |The Turn of the Screw |Dracula