The Book of Genesis begins with the creation of the universe and ends with the death of Jacob, patriarch of the Israelites. Between these two events, successive generations confront the moral tests set for them by God, and in doing so usher in the Abrahamic religious tradition. In Reading Genesis, Marilynne Robinson argues for the continued relevance of Genesis as a foundational text of Western culture. James Butler joins Malin to discuss Robinson’s account in the light of a long, rich and conflicted history of interpretation.

Find further reading on the episode page: https://lrb.me/genesispod

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Learn more about the Royal Literary Fund here: https://rlf.org.uk/

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Discover the LRB's subscription podcast, Close Readings, and audiobooks: https://lrb.me/audiopod

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In the 160s CE, Rome was struck by a devastating disease which, a new book argues, may have been the world’s first pandemic. Galen began his career treating ’the protracted plague’ with viper flesh, opium and urine, but despite his extensive documentation, we still don’t know what a modern diagnosis would be. Josephine Quinn joins Malin to discuss contemporary theories about the Antonine Plague and what ice cores and amulets can tell us about the disease’s impact.

Further reading on the episode page: https://lrb.me/romanplaguepod

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Discover the LRB's subscription podcast, Close Readings, and audiobooks: https://lrb.me/audiopod

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When Wittgenstein published his Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus in 1921, he claimed to have solved all philosophical problems. One problem that hasn’t been solved though is how best to translate this notoriously difficult work. The expiry of the book’s copyright in 2021 has brought three new English translations in less than a year, each grappling with the difficulties posed by a philosopher who frequently undermined his own use of language to demonstrate the limitations of what can be represented. Adrian Moore joins Malin Hay to discuss what Wittgenstein hoped to achieve with the only work he published in his lifetime and to consider how much we should trust his assertion that everything it contains is nonsensical.

Find further reading and listening on the episode page: https://lrb.me/tractatuspod

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Discover the LRB's subscription podcast, Close Readings, and audiobooks: https://lrb.me/audiopod

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Patrick McGuinness reads his diary from our 6th June issue about his family’s hometown of Bouillon in Belgium. He reflects on the linguistic and national barriers he crossed to return there each year; on the changes wrought on the town by the end of the industrial era; and on the ways that history and global politics can shape a locality beyond recognition.

Read the diary here: https://lrb.me/mcguinnesspod

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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The worst thing you can say to anyone who works in hospitality, Mendez writes, is ‘Maybe you’ll meet someone!’ But a chance encounter while waiting tables lead to their new niche. In this episode, Mendez reads their recent piece about the art of audiobook narration and how they became the voice of Pelé.

Find the original piece and further reading on the episode page: https://lrb.me/mendezpod

Learn more about the Charleston Trust: https://www.charleston.org.uk/exhibition/anne-rothenstein/

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John Lanchester, Tom Crewe and Florence Sutcliffe-Braithwaite join James Butler to dissect Keir Starmer's victory and the historic collapse of the Conservative Party. They discuss what the result tells us about the needs and frustrations of the country, the ways in which the new Labour government might achieve some of the things it’s promised and why comparisons with Harold Wilson have been so prevalent.

Read Tom Crewe on fourteen years of the Tories:

https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v46/n12/tom-crewe/carnival-of-self-harm

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