Seinfeld Book Report

Donald receives “The Letter,” the 21st episode of season three. With special guest Lacey Rowland, they talk about art production, the USA Today, the foundations of cringe comedy, minks, the perils of growing up in 90s, and Neil Simon’s Chapter Two. 

Lacey Rowland (they/them) is a multidisciplinary artist from the Gem State. Their writing has been published in Moss, Tahoma Literary Review, Cutbank, Pleiades, Hobart and elsewhere. They’ve been awarded residencies with the⁠ Mineral School⁠ and⁠ Wildacres⁠. Lacey received their MFA in Fiction from Oregon State University.

Here are the texts and authors discussed in this episode:

• Chapter Two by Neil Simon

• The Past Ten: An Anthology

• César Aira & Percival Everett

• Olivia Laing

• Capote & Harper Lee

• Basquiat & Keith Haring

• I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson

• Giuseppe Arcimboldo

• USA Today

• The National Enquirer

• The New York Times

• The Washington Post

• The Idaho Statesman

Donald checks in with “The Good Samaritan,” the 19/20th episode of season three. With special guest Lauren Myers-Hinkle, they talk about the 90s masculinity crisis, etiquette breaches, The French Connection and Zorba the Greek, and their film adaptations. 

Lauren Myers-Hinkle writes poetry that reimagines history and cinematic experience. She was a finalist for the Missouri Review’s Jeffrey E. Smith Editors’ Prize, Tupelo Quarterly’s Prize for Cross-Disciplinary Writing, and the American Literary Review's poetry award. Lauren’s poems and literary journalism have appeared in such publications as Tupelo Quarterly, RHINO, Carve Magazine, and the Writer’s Chronicle. She serves as Poetry Editor of The Maine Review and earned an MFA in Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts. Prior to the MFA, she completed graduate work in Cinema and Media Studies at the University of Chicago.

Here are the texts and authors discussed in this episode:

• The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
• The French Connection by Robin Moore
• Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis
• The Book Censor’s Library by Bothayna Al-Essa
• Back to the Future Part III (1990)
• The Secret of My Success (1987)
• Emily Post

Donald chats up “The Boyfriend,” the 17th and 18th episodes of season three. With special guests Tomás Q. Morín & Erin Evans, they discuss handshakes, friendship tiers, and books that inspired Oliver Stone’s JFK (1991).

Tomás Q. Morín has written so many books that he can’t even list them all here. If you know you know. He once swung a dead cat and hit ten new books that are yet to come out. He’s got hair that you’ll be jealous of, but will never touch. And a laugh so booming you’d think it was god himself. Because it is. You can find him when you look in the mirror and blow yourself a kiss.

Award-winning poet Erin Evans received the Francine Ringold Award for New Writers from Nimrod-International Journal. Her work has also appeared in Defunct, Revel, and A Mouthful of Salt. She’s at work on a multigenerational novel about women who are out of fucks to give. She lives in Vermont with her two beautiful and brilliant kids. You can find her out with lanterns looking for herself. 

Here are the texts and authors discussed in this episode:

• Fernando A. Flores
• Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
• On the Trail of the Assassins by Jim Garrison
• Crossfire: The Plot That Killed Kennedy by Jim Marrs
• I'm Keith Hernandez: A Memoir by Keith Hernandez

Donald says yes to the “The Fix-up,” the sixteenth episode of season three. With extra special guest, Sena Quist (his sister), they talk about Seinfeld’s continued love for the New York Times, and the best-selling book of all time, The Bible.

Here are the texts and authors discussed in this episode:

• Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets
• Entrances and Exits by Michael Richards
• The Justice League

Donald boards  “The Subway,” the thirteenth episode of season three. He talks about Death of a Salesman and George Costanza’s similarities to one of Arthur Miller’s saddest characters. He also reflects on the legacy of  The New York Times and comedian Dick Gregory .

Here are the texts and authors discussed in this episode:

• Great Expectations - Vinson Cunningham
• Death of a Salesman - Arthur Miller
• The New York Times
• Dick Gregory's Natural Diet for Folks Who Eat: Cookin' with Mother Nature!  - Dick Gregory

Donald zooms in on “The Red Dot,” the twelfth episode of season three. With extra special guest Nicole Brown, they talk about office romances, character inconsistencies, and learn about John D. MacDonald’s novel, The Executioners, which inspired the Cape Fear movies. 

Here are the books and/or authors discussed in this episode:

Sylvia Plath

Ted Hughes

Entrances and Exits by Michael Richards

Donald checks out “The Library”, the fifth episode of season three. He chats about the pervy talent of Henry Miller, an important lesson from Kwame Dawes, and the only American institution that makes him feel a sense of patriotism. 

Here are texts and authors discussed:

Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller

Tropic of Capricorn by Henry Miller

The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen 

Kwame Dawes

Anaïs Nin

Donald boards “The Dog,” the fourth episode of season three. He takes a stab at discussing Stephen King’s first foray into scary animals, and begins the search for Edward H. Murray and Yukon Joe. Donald also prattles a bit about life as an academic. 

Here are the books and authors discussed in this episode:

Cujo by Stephen King

On Writing by Stephen King

Wanderer of the Wilderness, Yukon Joe by Edward H. Murray

“Class is Canceled Until Further Notice While I Do My Job” by Laura McCullough

Donald searches “The Truth,” the second episode of season three. He reflects on the legacy of a really good book review by Thomas Carlyle and Kramer’s appreciation for literary film adaptations. Donald also shares a few of his biggest fears. 

Mister Miracle by Tom King 

The Road Less Traveled by M. Scott Peck

Anton Chekhov

Thomas Carlyle 

The Life of Samuel Johnson by James Boswell

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey

Donald heads into “The Baby Shower,” the tenth episode of season two. He asks what’s the deal with Gwyneth Paltrow, discusses the paths taken by Robert Frost, and tries to make sense of Doctor Zhivago. 

Here are the books and authors discussed in this episode:

HumanKind: A Hopeful History by Rutger Bregman

Marina Abramovic

"The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost

Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak