Book · 1902 · British
A Tale of Two Cities
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens has been mentioned in 12 episodes across 9 podcasts (1 episode recommends it and 11 episodes discuss it), through . Most frequently brought up by Dean Koontz (1 episode), Daniel Priestley (3 episodes) and Ben Bowlin (1 episode) on How I Write (2 episodes), The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett (2 episodes) and This Week in Startups (2 episodes).
- episodes
- 12
- podcasts
- 9
- people
- 10
- episode recommends it
- 1
And I chose Tale of Two Cities. And I just became utterly captivated with it.
Questions about A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
Who recommends A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens on podcasts?
Dean Koontz (1 episode) has recommended A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens on podcasts. In all, 10 people brought it up across 9 podcasts (1 person recommended it).
Which podcasts mention A Tale of Two Cities the most?
How I Write (2 episodes), The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett (2 episodes), This Week in Startups (2 episodes), Behind the Bastards (1 episode) and Modern Wisdom (1 episode), among 9 podcasts in all.
Is A Tale of Two Cities recommended, or only discussed?
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens was recommended in 1 episode and discussed without a recommendation in 11 episodes, as of 2026-09-30.
What do people say about A Tale of Two Cities?
Dean Koontz on How I Write (2025-05-07): "And I chose Tale of Two Cities. And I just became utterly captivated with it."
When was A Tale of Two Cities last mentioned on a podcast?
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens was last discussed on Tetragrammaton with Rick Rubin by Frank Miller on 2026-09-30.
What they say about it
- Famous opening line“it was the best of times”3
The best things said about it
A Tale of Two Cities is topical.
He wasn't afraid of emotion.
The opening line of the book is it was the best of times it was the worst of times.
Now, Nolan also took a lot from the Tale of Two Cities. Uh this probably more than anything else, the dark knight rises is actually based on the tale of two cities. Um a passage of which is read at the end of the film.
Where and when it comes up
How it comes up
10 people who brought it up
Why people recommend it
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens is a classic historical novel set against the backdrop of the French Revolution, exploring themes of sacrifice, resurrection, and extreme societal upheaval. Dean Koontz shared on How I Write that he read the novel later in life and became utterly captivated by it, praising Dickens for his willingness to embrace deep emotion in literary works such as this, Oliver Twist, and Great Expectations. R.F. Kuang also discussed the novel on How I Write, admitting that she had only recently read it and developed a great appreciation for its dramatic, soap-opera-like elements. Furthermore, Daniel Priestley repeatedly referenced the novel across multiple podcasts, including The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett and Modern Wisdom, to illustrate massive historical transitions. He famously quoted its opening line, stating that it was the best of times and the worst of times, using the metaphor to describe contemporary wealth inequality, industrial revolutions, and the sweeping social transformations brought about by modern technological shifts.
Every mention
Dean Koontz And I chose Tale of Two Cities. And I just became utterly captivated with it. 1
“And I chose Tale of Two Cities. And I just became utterly captivated with it.”
“And uh, I chose Tale of Two Cities.”
“Oliver Twist Great Expectations Tale of Two Cities he wasn't afraid of emotion”
Daniel Priestley and um you know there's a there's a book Charles Dickens wrot wrote called The Tale of Two Cities and the o… 3
“There's the tale of two cities revolutions French revolution comes along.”
“and um you know there's a there's a book Charles Dickens wrot wrote called The Tale of Two Cities and the opening line of the book is it was the best of times it was the worst of times”
“and um you know there's a there's a book Charles Dickens wrote called The Tale of Two Cities and the opening line of the book is it was the best of times it was the worst of times”
“I mean he had that famous book called The Tale of Two Cities it was the best of times it was the worst of times was the opening line”
Ben Bowlin guys history this week has channeled Charles Dickens it's uh we're siphoning the sentiment of 1859 because… 1
“guys history this week has channeled Charles Dickens it's uh we're siphoning the sentiment of 1859 because uh because history is literally doing this”
Brewster Kahle whereas with books we would print thousands or tens of thousands and they'd be distributed across libraries… 1
“whereas with books we would print thousands or tens of thousands and they'd be distributed across libraries so if somebody's copy was burnt of you know uh a tale of two cities we know there were other copies somewhere”
Dav Pilkey and so the themes and motifs of of Dickens especially from A Tale of Two Cities is starting to show up in t… 1
“and so the themes and motifs of of Dickens especially from A Tale of Two Cities is starting to show up in their work”
Frank Miller If you do something topical based on what's going on in the world today, does that make it too disposable?… 1
“If you do something topical based on what's going on in the world today, does that make it too disposable? A tale of Two Cities is topical. Heroditus is topical. If you do a story about something that's going on right around you, you're still doing a story about people facing conflict”
Garrison Davis Now, Nolan also took a lot from the Tale of Two Cities. Uh this probably more than anything else, the dark… 1
“Now, Nolan also took a lot from the Tale of Two Cities. Uh this probably more than anything else, the dark knight rises is actually based on the tale of two cities. Um a passage of which is read at the end of the film”
Jason Calacanis um or if you were to read Charles Dickens you can just be transformed into you know intelligence cities or… 1
“um or if you were to read Charles Dickens you can just be transformed into you know intelligence cities or something like that they don't get to have that experience”
R.F. Kuang A Tale of Two Cities was one of the Dickens books that I like embarrassingly hadn't read until like two yea… 1
“A Tale of Two Cities was one of the Dickens books that I like embarrassingly hadn't read until like two years ago.”
Susan Cain she introduced her to a tale of two cities the book um but she also like spoke the words of the book out loud 1
“she introduced her to a tale of two cities the book um but she also like spoke the words of the book out loud”
Other mentions (14: passing, ad reads, own books)
“This is a city which symbolizes a period in our shared history or what Charles Dickens might have called a tale of two Georges.”
“You go full tale of two cities at the beginning of that piece. It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.”
“He grew up in the Tale of Two Cities, and to this day, he will still pull me aside in a restaurant and say, "Hey, Dad."”
“it's kind of cliche right the uh Charles Dickens um Tale of Two Cities right the best of times it was the best of times it was the worst of times but I think it's important to say that man”
“A Tail of 2 cities is next at 200 million”
“A Tale of Two stories I gotta add that to the list you know it was a tale of two stories um if I used to know how that went how did I just forget that I like panicked I was like oh God Bill you're gonna use an expression whatever you do don't [__] use do it wrong a”
“whatever you do don't [ __ ] use do it wrong a tail of Two Cities not two stories”
“because there are some public domain books I could just read a towel of Two Cities that'd be hilarious citizens”
“so uh Charles Dickens which is you know he wrote Oliver he wrote A Tale of Two Cities he wrote a Christmas I mean he wrote a bunch of stuff and I think he wrote A Tale of Two Cities”
“I am a tale of two cities, a tale of red titties over here for old freckles.”
“because it was a tale of two cities uh in the uber and lyft race”
“I was in Houston then I was in Austin a Tale of Two Cities”
“so London seemed to be an obvious choice because of our interest and our love of uh a tale of two cities uh Charles Dickens”
“and I thought I might follow that up with another book about the French Revolution that I've never gotten around to A Tale of Two Cities which I have now bought and left prominently on my bedside table as a kind of prompt like a to-do list”