Brian is a poet and novelist based in Colorado, USA.

Dave and Brian chat about writing, relating (or not relating) to previous versions of oneself, mortality, grief, memory, identity, delusion, attachment, parenthood, marriage, divorce, loss, depression, solitude, nerds, my little ponies, and the philosopho-therapeutic value of literature and art.

They discuss in some detail early twentieth Japanese novels by Natsume Sōseki (“Kokoro”), Osamu Dazai (“No Longer Human”, and Ryūnosuke Akutagawa (“Kappa”).

And along the way, Brian reads to us a number of his (really excellent) poems, which Dave and Brian unpack and discuss.

Brian’s Recommendations:

Natsume Sōseki, “Kokoro” (Novel)

Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, “Kappa” (Novella)

Conway Twitty, “That’s My Job” (Song)

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