how to win the lottery: a book club podcast

our season on the internet continues with literally show me a healthy person by darcie wilder. joey is joined by “the man with no name,” and we begin by dissecting his way of listening to our show before declaring we’re a tub talk recap podcast now. we discuss how the novel is a narrative of a frame of mind (and how that’s tied to the internet), what reading this book feels like, and the book’s humor and its profound sadness. we talk about the global thoughts darcie hits on and how it (maybe!) informs who she (the writer) is. we break down the grammar of the internet and being good at twitter and talk about seeing a familiar type of writing in an unexpected place. bob brags about his many online friends and compliments the novel’s immaculate structure.

reading list for season three

a touch of jen by beth morgan

the shore by katie runde

literally show me a healthy person by darcie wilder

17776 by jon bois

snow crash by neal stephenson

no one is talking about this by patricia lockwood

amygdalatropolis by b r yeager

shitstorm by fernando sdrigotti

things have gotten worse since we last spoke by eric larocca

liveblog by megan boyle

neuromancer by william gibson

fake accounts by lauren oyler

we had to remove this post by hanna bervoets

please note: this conversation contains spoilers for both mount chicago and the instructions.

on today’s installment of tips and tricks to win the lottery, we talk to adam levin, author of mount chicago and the instructions. we compare adam levin to adam levine before talking about the literal influence of the adam’s writing (and how it feels like a magic trick) and the inclusion of pop culture in his work. adam schools bobby on charli xcx before they bond over james ellroy and before joey praises bobby in a ramble that doesn’t quite land on a question. adam talks about the intertwining nature of characters and narrators and face characters, how his childhood (and living near the john hughes suburbs) informed his writing, and how to make literature uncomfortable. we talk about bullying, the process of re-reading, and being surprised as a reader (and how rare that becomes). adam crafts a mini-module and shares his favorite delillo and roth novels.

reading list for season three

a touch of jen by beth morgan

the shore by katie runde

literally show me a healthy person by darcie wilder

the novelist by jordan castro

17776 by jon bois

snow crash by neal stephenson

no one is talking about this by patricia lockwood

amygdalatropolis by b r yeager

shitstorm by fernando sdrigotti

things have gotten worse since we last spoke by eric larocca

liveblog by megan boyle

neuromancer by william gibson

fake accounts by lauren oyler

we had to remove this post by hanna bervoets

we’re taking a slight detour this module (and returning to the work of adam levin) for a bonus episode about mount chicago. we compare mount chicago to the instructions, rank some birds, and hear why bob hates robert redford. we discuss autobiography as a metafictional trick, the idea of the “face” of a narrative, and finding context in an author’s work. we discuss behaviorism, acid and shitting, and beavers and ducks and alternate reality. joey praises entourage. bob makes a plea to adam levin before explaining his reading process.

adam’s mini-module picks:

europeana: a brief history of the twentieth century by patrik ouredník

magnetic field(s) by ron loewinsohn

inherited disorders: stories, parables & problems by adam ehrlich sachs

the organs of sense by adam ehrlich sachs

how to behave in a crowd by camille bordas

ghost engine by christian tebordo

the apology by christian tebordo

the divers’ game by jesse ball

autoportrait by jesse ball

autoportrait by edouard leve

reading list for season three

a touch of jen by beth morgan

the shore by katie runde

literally show me a healthy person by darcie wilder

17776 by jon bois

snow crash by neal stephenson

no one is talking about this by patricia lockwood

amygdalatropolis by b r yeager

shitstorm by fernando sdrigotti

things have gotten worse since we last spoke by eric larocca

liveblog by megan boyle

neuromancer by william gibson

fake accounts by lauren oyler

we had to remove this post by hanna bervoets

we continued our season about the internet last week with katie runde’s the shore, and today we’re talking to katie about the jersey shore, boardwalk games, and catfishing your mom. we talk about how to avoid writing misery porn, different generations of internet, and the types of deception the characters in the shore embody. katie talks about how her life experiences (and tech advancements) shifted the narrative as she wrote the book. we talk about mount airy lodge. joey demands a favor.

katie’s mini-module picks, themed around the shore:

we are not ourselves by matthew thomas

goodbye vitamin by rachel khong

the swimmers by julie otsuka

smacked by eilene zimmerman

rock the boat by beck dorey-stein

the girl’s guide to hunting and fishing by melissa bank

reading list for season three

a touch of jen by beth morgan

the shore by katie runde

literally show me a healthy person by darcie wilder

17776 by jon bois

snow crash by neal stephenson

no one is talking about this by patricia lockwood

amygdalatropolis by b r yeager

shitstorm by fernando sdrigotti

things have gotten worse since we last spoke by eric larocca

liveblog by megan boyle

neuromancer by william gibson

fake accounts by lauren oyler

we had to remove this post by hanna bervoets

our internet module continues as we seek community in online forums and talk about the shore by katie runde. after struggling with scheduling details that no one needs to know or care about, we talk about the epistolary nature of the shore (and the timeless quality of that). bob does a terrible james joyce impression and we talk about the american sniper, chris kyle. we discuss the ethics of our online existence, whether the end punts on the hard stuff (and if it matters), and how closely the novel reflects shore life.

reading list for season three

a touch of jen by beth morgan

the shore by katie runde

literally show me a healthy person by darcie wilder

17776 by jon bois

snow crash by neal stephenson

no one is talking about this by patricia lockwood

amygdalatropolis by b r yeager

shitstorm by fernando sdrigotti

things have gotten worse since we last spoke by eric larocca

liveblog by megan boyle

neuromancer by william gibson

fake accounts by lauren oyler

we had to remove this post by hanna bervoets

we kicked off our third season with a touch of jen by beth morgan, and today we’re talking to beth about her novel. we find out what she thinks of the internet, her thoughts on the novel’s specific time and place, and how she wanted to subvert the hero’s journey. bobby and beth talk about exclamation points before she psychoanalyzes him for receiving this book as a gift. beth discusses the movies that shaped the way she wrote the novel, joey brings up nicolas cage with bangs, and bobby is happy to accept “no” for an answer. beth talks about getting frustrated about the possibilities on this plane of existence.

we're kicking off our season about the internet with a touch of jen by beth morgan. we start by naming famous remys, wondering who the titular "jen" is, and work through a loud groan coming from outside joey's house. we talk about despising remy (yet relating to him), being caught off guard by the novel's unexpected twists, and trying to make sense of the novel's third act. joey talks about why he loved it (spoilers!) and bobby compliments beth morgan on her use the exclamation point (and her ability to adapt internet conversations into the novel). we talk about how season three of our podcast is different from the first two. joey embarrasses bob. a new emailer appears.

reading list for season three

a touch of jen by beth morgan

the shore by katie runde

literally show me a healthy person by darcie wilder

17776 by jon bois

snow crash by neal stephenson

no one is talking about this by patricia lockwood

amygdalatropolis by b r yeager

shitstorm by fernando sdrigotti

things have gotten worse since we last spoke by eric larocca

liveblog by megan boyle

neuromancer by william gibson

fake accounts by lauren oyler

we had to remove this post by hanna bervoets

we're logging onto the internet for season three of how to win the lottery. all of our books prominently feature the internet and online life. find the full reading list below, and email in your thoughts about any of these books to [email protected]. as always, keep reading, and -- like bobby says -- "get off the internet."

reading list for season three

a touch of jen by beth morgan

the shore by katie runde

literally show me a healthy person by darcie wilder

17776 by jon bois

snow crash by neal stephenson

no one is talking about this by patricia lockwood

amygdalatropolis by b r yeager

shitstorm by fernando sdrigotti

things have gotten worse since we last spoke by eric larocca

liveblog by megan boyle

neuromancer by william gibson

fake accounts by lauren oyler

we had to remove this post by hanna bervoets

we’re following up last week’s episode on teenager by bud smith by talking to bud about his work (and his friendship with bobby). we talk about new jersey, bud rejecting bobby’s criticisms of a previous draft of teenager, and bud’s process of re-writing (and re-typing) his novel. bud shares thoughts on writing to keep yourself interested (and surprised), lessons learned from teaching writing, and working with his wife rae buleri on the novel’s art. we all struggle to pronounce a word. bud shares picks for his mini-module:

don quixote by miguel de cervantes saavedra

norwood by charles portis

lonesome dove by larry mcmurtry

short letter, long farewell by peter handke

fair play by tove jansson

to the lighthouse by virginia woolf

our campus season (officially) wraps up with teenager by bud smith, which follows the first how to win the lottery field trip. after serge gainsbourg drops by, we talk about elvis, the “lovers on the run” template, and how the book dissects american systems failing people. we talk about the novel’s underlying darkness, its cinematic nature, and how it demystifies grand american myths. our podcast finds a new villain, we imagine teenager as a movie (and a video game), and we talk about “famous cuck ned carson.”

reading list for season two

the bell jar by sylvia plath, 11/4

prep by curtis sittenfeld, 11/18

the art of fielding by chad harbach, 12/2

nickel boys by colson whitehead, 12/16

the virgins by pamela erens, 12/30

my education by susan choi, 1/13

giles goat-boy by john barth, 1/27

end zone by don delillo, 2/10

loner by teddy wayne, 2/24

the secret history by donna tartt, 3/10

sweet days of discipline by fleur jaeggy, 3/24

college novel by blake middleton, 4/7

real life by brandon taylor, 4/21

the instructions by adam levin, 5/5

the idiot by elif batuman, 5/19

either/or by elif batuman, 6/2

teenager by bud smith, 6/16