Denis Johnson has quickly become one of my favorite authors. Train Dreams blew me away, then I read Angels with you all, and I finished Jesus’ Son about a week ago. I’m nearly done with Tree of Smoke as I post this, too. I knew I wanted to do an episode on Denis Johnson’s career, so there was only one guy to call: Ted Geltner.

His biography of Denis Johnson is Flagrant, Self-Destructive Gestures (published last year).

Subscribe to the FREE Newsletter

Jeff O'Neal and Rebecca Schinsky from BookRiot join me to talk about books, the different avenues a reading journey can take, their favorite "bridge books", and what they can't wait to read next!

Check out Zero to Well Read

Timestamps:

1:04 - Can you become well read?

6:15 - How to assess books

17:04 - What is literary fiction?

23:09 - Side quests?

26:14 - What was the book that made you a reader?

31:30 - "Bridge Books"

34:17 - Reading as a muscle

36:04 - Tips for reading better

48:05 - "Finding" great authors

51:04 - The common books that get people into reading

55:01 - Cheat codes for finding new books that you're excited to read

1:00:00 - The books that Rebecca & Jeff want to read, but haven't

Don Hollway is back! This time, we're talking about Olaf Tryggvason and his new book: Hammer of the Gods.

Grab a copy of Don's book here

Support the show on Patreon

Subscribe to the FREE Newsletter

Tony Vanderhoef is a Law student at Florida State and has also gained a following on Instagram, making short-form content in the political space. He approaches American politics from a constitutional perspective, and instead of trying to rally a base and divide, he aims to bridge the divide.  

Follow Tony here

Join the Book Club

Subscribe to my newsletter

It's just Josh in this one, and he's rambling about writing, reading, and cool things that have happened.

Today I'm joined by Bob Crawford to talk about his new book, America's Founding Son; what he describes as a digestible history of John Quincy Adams. Adams is a fascinating historical character, and Bob and I talk about why he was a unique president, what made him polarizing, and how he "stood in the gap" in his own time.

Pre-order America's Founding Son here

Subscribe to my newsletter

I'm joined by historian John Garrison Marks to talk about his forthcoming book, Thy Will Be Done, which examines George Washington's complicated legacy and how it's been used in myriad political arguments throughout American history.

Preorder Thy Will Be Done here

Josh tries to build the ultimate 'Guy book' based on his Instagram habits. Also, he makes fun of old Bantam dime novels, because ads in books is hilarious. PLUS the books you should read if you want to get into literary fiction!

Join the book club: https://www.patreon.com/c/JoshReadsBooks

Timestamps:

0:00 - What I've Been Reading

4:39 - Building the ultimate Dude Book

20:10 - Gateway Books

Josh dissects which books are truly read and which are just for show. Find out what he thinks about popular titles like "Fahrenheit 451," "Dune," and "Lonesome Dove," and stick around for the Q&A that reveals the quirks of being a book influencer. 

Also, because he can't help himself, thoughts about the Civil War.

Join the book club: https://www.patreon.com/c/JoshReadsBooks

Timestamps:

0:00 - What I've been reading

8:50 - "Pretending I read it" list

21:09 - Mailbag

Subscribe to the newsletter: https://compendiumshow.substack.com/

You might think writing like Cormac McCarthy is impossible. He may seem unapproachable or unreachable. But there are a few practical 'structural' techniques he uses in his writing that we can emulate.