Two Month Review

Sometimes a pen is just a pen, and sometimes it’s a magical object that might contain all of Dr. Francia’s madness. Although this week’s episode covers pages 166–216, most of the time is spent on the Compiler’s note starting on page 197, in which “the Compiler” finally becomes a fully-fledged character—one who is in possession of the Supreme Dictator’s pen. Kaija, Brian, and Chad talk about how this adds a new dimension to the novel and helps to frame the various threads we’re following (Francia’s dying days, the history of Paraguay gaining independence, the occult, Francia’s reign of terror, etc.). They also discuss Latin American and French influences in the writing, isolationism and nationalism, and much more!

This week’s music is a song about dictators called “L.O.S.E.R.”

Next week’s episode will cover through page 269. If you want to follow along, the complete schedule can be found here.

You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad W. Post, Kaija Straumanis, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests. If you haven’t already, subscribe to the Three Percent substack for information about Open Letter Books and literature in translation writ large.

Also consider subscribing to the Mining the Dalkey Archive substack and its respective podcast (Apple, Spotify) for all things Dalkey Archive.

Speculation about the Supreme Dictator and his pet skull dominates this episode of the Two Month Review, although it also includes a comparison between Francia and Alex Jones, an assessment of Francia’s argument as to why he should lead the independence movement, stray thoughts about the Compiler, and a bit about the interplay between the Supreme Dictator’s representation of himself and his reign, and the historical documents that exist.

This week’s music is “Skulls” by The Lemonheads.

Next week’s episode will cover through page 216. If you want to follow along, the complete schedule can be found here.

You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad W. Post, Kaija Straumanis, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests. If you haven’t already, subscribe to the Three Percent substack for information about Open Letter Books and literature in translation writ large.

Also consider subscribing to the Mining the Dalkey Archive substack and its respective podcast (Apple, Spotify) for all things Dalkey Archive.

If you’re reading this book and feel lost—you’re not alone! Chad spends most of this podcast talking over everyone and sharing his research about the history of Paraguay circa 1810, which is when a good chunk of this week’s section of the book (pages 56-110) takes place. After somewhat getting their bearings (this is a difficult book!), the crew talk about circles, meteors/aeroliths, writing and power, the occult, predictions for the rest of the novel, and much more. If you’re struggling with this novel, this episode should provide a few toeholds to understanding Roa Bastos’s—and Dr. Francia’s—world.

This week’s music is “I Won’t Let You Down” by Barry Can’t Swim.

Next week’s episode will cover through page 165. If you want to follow along, the complete schedule can be found here.

You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad W. Post, Kaija Straumanis, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests. If you haven’t already, subscribe to the Three Percent substack for information about Open Letter Books and literature in translation writ large.

Also consider subscribing to the Mining the Dalkey Archive substack and its respective podcast (Apple, Spotify) for all things Dalkey Archive.

The new season kicks off with an overview of Augusto Roa Bastos's life, some background on this season's dictator, Dr. Francia of Paraguay, and a bit of table setting as to how this book came to be. Then, Chad, Brian, and Kaija dive into the book’s chaotic humor and presentation, the presence of the occult in the first chapter of the book, and what makes this novel challenging to read.

This episode’s music is “Cult of Personality” by Living Color.

You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad W. Post, Kaija Straumanis, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests. And subscribe to the Three Percent substack for information about Open Letter Books and literature in translation writ large.

Also consider subscribing to the Mining the Dalkey Archive substack and its respective podcast (Apple, Spotify) about all things Dalkey Archive.

Ted Morrissey (The Tunnel at 25, A Lesson Before Writing podcast) returns to help Kaija, Chad, and Brian close out this three-month-long discussion about William H. Gass’s The Tunnel. They discuss the book’s structure, its ending, hoarding and alcoholism, the lack of academic attention paid to the book, the value of the audiobook’s liner notes, and more!

This episode’s music is “I Wish I Was Sober” by Frightened Rabbit.

TMR will be back in mid-February with season 30 featuring I, The Supreme by Augusto Roa Bastos & Helen Lane. The complete schedule for season 30 will be available in the near future, but get your copies now and join along!

You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad W. Post, Kaija Straumanis, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests. And subscribe to the Three Percent substack for information about Open Letter Books and literature in translation writ large.

Also consider subscribing to the Mining the Dalkey Archive substack and its respective podcast (Apple, Spotify) about all things Dalkey Archive.

This week, pervy academics, rivers, candy shops, and a bit of childhood gambling carry us through the penultimate section of Gass’s The Tunnel. Brian and Kaija kick off the episode sans Chad, who pops in toward the end and vechoes the discussion about the book’s overarching pattern of 4s, the applications of “harnessing history,” and—once again and with feeling—what is it that creates and shapes despicable and/or evil people into their despicable and/or evil selves.

This episode features two songs: “The Candy Man” by Sammy Davis, Jr., and “Wabash Cannonball” by Johnny Cash.

Next week is the final episode for this season, covering the whole of the book. Then, in mid-February, season 30 will launch and feature I, The Supreme by Augusto Roa Bastos & Helen Lane. The complete schedule for season 30 will be available in the near future, but get your copies now and join along!

You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad W. Post, Kaija Straumanis, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests. And subscribe to the Three Percent substack for information about Open Letter Books and literature in translation writ large.

Also consider subscribing to the Mining the Dalkey Archive substack and its respective podcast (Apple, Spotify) about all things Dalkey Archive.

Susu, the Book of Judges, MAGA, morality, the mirror of literature, heavy furniture . . . all of these are discussed on this week’s episode covering “Susu, I Approach You in My Dreams,” which includes the all-too-timely subsection “Being a Bigot.” Brian fills in some biblical background this week, Chad argues that reading Kohler makes you a better person, and Kaija is concerned about cats.

This episode’s music is “Coast” by Snocaps.

As we head into the end of this season, we’ll be covering a very long section next week: “Going to the River” (pages 534–632). The complete schedule (if you’re reading along in real time) can be found here.

You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad W. Post, Kaija Straumanis, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests. And subscribe to the Three Percent substack for information about Open Letter Books and literature in translation writ large.

Also consider subscribing to the Mining the Dalkey Archive substack and its respective podcast (Apple, Spotify) about all things Dalkey Archive.

Ted Morrissey (The Tunnel at 25) returns to talk about his favorite section of The Tunnel, which has some Joycean overtones, and is a little less angry than some of the other parts of the book. (See: Kohler talking about breakfast, saying nice things about Martha.) It is a section that gets into the core of Kohler’s argument in Guilt and Innocence in Hitler’s Germany—an argument that can also be summarized for our times as, “who is more evil: Trump or someone who joins ICE?” A fun way to kick off 2026 with laughs and intellectual musings, and some additional background on Gass’s relationship to academia.

This episode’s music is “This Year” by The Mountain Goats.

The next episode will drop in 2026 and will cover “Susu, I Approach You in My Dreams” (pages 475–533). The complete schedule (if you’re reading along in real time) can be found here.

You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad W. Post, Kaija Straumanis, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests. And subscribe to the Three Percent substack for information about Open Letter Books and literature in translation writ large.

Also consider subscribing to the Mining the Dalkey Archive substack and its respective podcast (Apple, Spotify) about all things Dalkey Archive.

In this section of The Tunnel, Gass looks at academia, committees, power dynamics on campus, and the “curse of colleagues.” Chad, Brian, and Kaija have a lot of fun with this section talking about how gross Kohler is, which colleague of his they most represent, whether or not any of these people are “real,” and the state of college as a public institution in 2025.

This episode’s music is “Sideboob” by English Teacher.

The next episode will drop in 2026 and will cover “Around the House” (pages 437–475). The complete schedule (if you’re reading along in real time) can be found here.

You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad W. Post, Kaija Straumanis, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests. And subscribe to the Three Percent substack for information about Open Letter Books and literature in translation writ large.

Also consider subscribing to the Mining the Dalkey Archive substack and its respective podcast (Apple, Spotify) about all things Dalkey Archive.

Lori Feathers (Interabang Books, Big Book Project) joins Kaija, Chad, and Brian to talk about “The First Winter of My Married Life” in which Kohler and Martha suffer the invasive noises of a nearby neighbor, Kohler loses his cool because of his inconsolable son, and various memories are explored thanks to a photo album. They talk about this, about how Kohler is manipulating the reader (why? to what end?), the cruel humor of the book, and much more—including the unveiling of what book we’ll be covering next season . . .

This episode’s music is “Spring and by Summer Fall” by Blonde Redhead.

Next week we’ll cover “The Curse of Colleages” (pages 386–437). The complete schedule (if you’re reading along in real time) can be found here.

You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad W. Post, Kaija Straumanis, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests. And subscribe to the Three Percent substack for information about Open Letter Books and literature in translation writ large.

Also consider subscribing to the Mining the Dalkey Archive substack and its respective podcast (Apple, Spotify) about all things Dalkey Archive.