Songs and Tales: A Literary Guide to Middle Earth

Songs and Tales: A Literary Guide to Middle Earth

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Songs and Tales: A Literary Guide to Middle Earth episodes

  • Episode 35 - Nenya Business

    “ALL SHALL LOVE THIS EPISODE AND DESPAIR.” Wow, a direct quote from the book, folks. Let’s give it up for Galadriel. We wish we could say Clara and Aaron discuss more than everyone’s favorite spooky golden lady, but that would be a lie. The conversation in this episode revolves solely around her, as does everything in Lothlorien it seems. And hey, why shouldn’t it? She’s worked hard to get where she is and we must respect it. 

    Twitter: @songsntalespod 

    Instagram: @songsandtalespod 

    1 hr 20 min
  • Episode 34 - Let Sleeping Balrogs Lie

    Aaron is back on board with Tolkien and all it took was Gandalf dying. If you didn’t know, a Balrog kills him. And why that Balrog isn’t better friends with Sauron is something that Clara really struggles to understand. This episode isn’t all doom boom though, the Fellowship makes it to Lothlorien where we’re all forced to ponder the merits and drawbacks of isolationism. What is this, an Intro to World War One class? Plus, due to some technical difficulties, Aaron sounds like he’s coming to us live from the bottom of The Black Pit itself. How’s that for dedication?

    Twitter: @songsntalespod 

    Instagram: @songsandtalespod


    1 hr 13 min
  • Episode 33 - Hello Darkness Mine Old Friend

    Clara and Aaron delve into a dwarven mine's worth of questions and find nearly as many theories as they do dwarf corpses. Is Elrond being intentionally vague to cultivate his persona, or does he actually just not know as much as he pretends to? Why are we treated to yet another Beren and Luthien reference? Just how literal is that big, red star Frodo sees? And is Boromir becoming a himbo with a heart of gold? Plus, Aaron lets loose with a heat-seeker missile of a take straight up J.R.R.'s tailpipe. Will the breaking of the podcast result?

    Twitter: @songsntalespod 

    Instagram: @songsandtalespod


    1 hr 5 min
  • Episode 32 - Circling Back to Mordor
    We finally learn the answer to the question "has anything ever been solved by a committee?" Frodo and the Fellowship get on-boarded to Elrond's Slack channel, but find it's full of contradictory memories and Bilbo's rubbish poetry. Plus, Clara and Aaron worry Saruman's homemade ring makes him appear a little desperate.
    Twitter: @songsntalespod 
    Instagram: @songsandtalespod
    1 hr 8 min
  • Episode 31 - Stabbed through the arm by a Morgul Blade! Frodo is in bad shape!

    If you had a stab wound you’d probably rush or be rushed to the emergency room. You probably wouldn’t sort of casually wander around in the woods for quite a few days. Unless you’re Frodo Baggins who after taking a pretty nasty shiv to the shoulder seems sort of content to let Strider lead him around on a pony and tell him stories about how Middle Earth used to be. Bad poetry is the best medicine, right?

    Twitter: @songsntalespod 

    Instagram: @songsandtalespod

    1 hr 17 min
  • Episode 30 - The King of the Prancing Pony

    Come in, come in, what’re you having? A whiskey? A pint? A very silly episode? Well, we can get you one of those things. Your loopy co-hosts follow along as our intrepid hobbit heroes venture out into the wide world of Big People and quickly learn that dancing on tables in bars almost always gets you in trouble. Especially when the barman is an agent of the Dark Lord (just kidding … or are they?). Listen and find out! 

    Twitter: @songsntalespod 

    Instagram: @songsandtalespod

    1 hr 20 min
  • Episode 29 - Roll Out the Barrows

    Things are getting spooky scary this week. Turn on a light and clutch your teddy bears as your hosts delve into a discussion of the Barrow Downs and their frightening residents, The Barrow Wights. What are these spooky things? Where did they come from? What are they up to? Clara and Aaron try to (and mostly succeed in) answering some of these questions. Plus, the Hobbits enjoy a naked lunch. 

    Twitter: @songsntalespod

    Instagram: @songsandtalespod


    1 hr 14 min
  • Episode 28 - Fat Man in a Little (Blue) Coat

    Hey dol! Merry dol! Ring a dong dillo it's time to figure out this chap Tom Bombadil[o]. This week Clara and Aaron tackle one of the most enduring enigmas of the Tolkienverse. So hop along our little friends up the Withywindle, follow along on your Kindles, and join us as we try to solve this riddle of Old Tom Bombadil[o] and the River-daughter.

    Sources:

    Who Is Tom Bombadil by Rangerfromthenorth

    http://whoistombombadil.blogspot.com/

    Twitter: @songsntalespod

    Instagram: @songsandtalespod

    1 hr 15 min
  • Episode 27 – A Mushcut to Hedgerooms

    The Hobbits’ travels begin to take them further afield this week and Clara and Aaron’s discussion goes rambling right along with them (at least we’ll blame it on that). They chat about everything from why the Black Riders are so dang awkward (and creepy!) to the science behind how trees communicate (it’s got to be telepathy, right?), with a lot in between. Plus, Aaron makes some lewd comments about Frodo in the bathtub.

    Twitter: @songsntalespod

    Instagram: @songsandtalespod

    1 hr 9 min
  • Episode 26 - Bag End? No. This is just the Bag-inning

    Comb the hairs on the tops of your feet and pack your pipe to the brim with Longbottom Leaf, because we've finally made it to the Shire! This week we are concerned about Hobbits and their habits: How did they "forget" their original language? Is there a rigid class system in the Shire? (The Pod's Resident Red says "yes.") And how is it that Golum is so much creepier than we remembered? Clara and Aaron also start a discussion about the One Ring that will in no way drag on inconclusively until we finish Return of the King.

    Twitter: @songsntalespod

    Instagram: @songsandtalespod

    1 hr 9 min

About Songs and Tales: A Literary Guide to Middle Earth

From the publisher's feed

Clara and Aaron revisit the works of J.R.R. Tolkien with a focus on the literary merits, historical contexts, and biographical influences in the trilogy, the Simarillion, and many of his other…