Leave it to Jeeves might not be a recognisable title today – but its author P.G. Wodehouse has fans across eras: from Hilaire Belloc and Evelyn Waugh to Douglas Adams and J.K. Rowling.

Luke, Kiara and Victoria dive in to Leave it to Jeeves, exploring the sitcom-before-the-sitcom, and the (often humourous) difference of communication between men and women.

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Read Leave it to Jeeves.

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The Man from Snowy River by “Banjo” Paterson is one of Australia’s most famous poems – it even features on Australia’s $10 note!

Luke, Kiara and Victoria explore Banjo Paterson’s The Man From Snowy River, discussing the Australian culture featured in the poem, the heroic nature of the protagonist, and whether “the man” himself was a Catholic.

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Read The Man From Snowy River.

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The Hobbit stands as J.R.R. Tolkien’s breakthrough novel – remaining not only the book with lead to The Lord of the Rings but a classic fantasy work in its own right.

Luke, Kiara and Victoria discuss J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, exploring the difference between film and books as media, the glamour of evil, and the richness of culture as found in Tolkien’s world.

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References within this episode:

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A Modest Proposal is an infamous satire which attempts to solve the problems of Ireland in a cool-headed economic manner – with repugnant results.

Luke, Kiara and Victoria explore at Jonathan Swift’s A Modest Proposal, looking at the shortcomings of a purely economic approach to the human person, the purpose of satire, and whether large families are to blame for poverty in the developing world.

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Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness has become a mainstay of high school and university reading – not least because of its raw depiction of colonialism in central Africa.

Luke, Kiara and Victoria look at Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, discussing the pitfalls of (quasi) first-person narrative, racial discourse without and surrounding the text, and why you should almost never use the term “In Africa…”.

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This week Catholics Read are getting in to the Christmas season by exploring the Dr Seuss classic: “How the Grinch Stole Christmas!”.

Luke, Kiara and Victoria discuss Dr Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, explaining the ironic commercialisation of Christmas, the text’s fantastic qualities for children (and adults), and how anyone of any character can undergo a conversion.

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G.K. Chesterton has written a mountain of works, but one of his short essays is the unexpectedly insightful On Lying in Bed.

Luke and Victoria discuss G.K. Chesterton’s On Lying in Bed, exploring multiculturalism, the right to life, and leisure as a truly human pursuit.

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Journalist and writer Mitch Albom is perhaps best known for his memoir Tuesdays with Morrie, but his first step into fiction was with the 2003 book The Five People You Meet in Heaven.

Luke, Kiara and Victoria explore Mitch Albom’s The Five People You Meet in Heaven, discussing the lessons of life, the endurance of love, and the Catholic understanding of heaven and its relationship to life here on earth.

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Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven is perhaps one of the most famous American poems, helping identify Poe today with melancholy and eerie poetry.

Luke, Kiara and Victoria discuss Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven, touching on melancholy in poetry, possible influences on the poem, and the ability of art predict the direction of philosophy and history.

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