Episode · The Book Review · 2018-07-06
Books mentioned on An Inside View of Putin
Pamela Paul discussed From Cold War to Hot Peace by Michael McFaul, My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh, and The English and their history by Robert Tombs. Ottessa Moshfegh discussed Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh. Greg Cowles discussed Ulysses by James Joyce and The Odyssey. John Williams recommended Epitaph of a Small Winner by Machado de Assis. Rumaan Alam recommended The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai, Buddenbrooks by Thomas Mann, and Nicotine by Nell Zink, and discussed Transactions in a foreign currency by Deborah Eisenberg.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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From Cold War to Hot Peace
From Cold War to Hot Peace by Michael McFaul is a political memoir detailing the author's experiences as the United States Ambassador to Russia and his decades of engagement with Russian foreign policy.
Discussed“Michael McFall will be here to talk about his new book from Cold War to hot peace”
Where to get it
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My Year of Rest and Relaxation
My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh is a darkly comic and provocative novel about a privileged young New York woman who attempts to hibernate for an entire year using a cocktail of heavy psychiatric pharmaceuticals.
Discussed“that's the main character's plan in the novel my year of rest and relaxation”
Where to get it
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Eileen
Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh is a dark, provocative debut novel about a troubled young woman working in a juvenile detention facility who becomes entangled in a sinister disappearance.
Discussed“I published a novel called eileene in 2015 and it was the first time that I had any media attention”
Where to get it
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Ulysses
James Joyce's landmark modernist novel Ulysses chronicles an ordinary day in the life of Leopold Bloom in Dublin, mapping human consciousness and daily existence through a revolutionary stream-of-consciousness technique.
Discussed“I have gotten many many emails saying do not give up on James Joyce so I have not given up on ulyses”
Where to get it
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The Odyssey
The Odyssey by Homer is an epic ancient Greek poem that follows the arduous ten-year journey of Odysseus as he attempts to return home to Ithaca after the Trojan War, encountering mythical creatures, divine wrath, and numerous trials along the way.
Discussed“I am persevering what I have done in response to suggestions from a number of our listeners and co-workers as well is supplemented ulyses with a recent translation of Homer's Odyssey it's Emily Wilson's new translation”
Where to get it
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Epitaph of a Small Winner
Epitaph of a Small Winner, also widely known under its alternate title The Posthumous Memoirs of Brás Cubas, is a classic satirical novel by Brazilian author Machado de Assis.
Recommended“and this is about a it's called Epitaph of a small winner and it was published I think under a different title which many people know it by which is something like the postumus Memoirs of BRZ cubis who is the the narrator”
Where to get it
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The Great Believers
The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai is a powerful, emotionally devastating novel that chronicles the devastating impact of the AIDS crisis on the arts community in 1980s Chicago alongside a parallel storyline in modern-day Paris.
Recommended“I just finished reading the great Believers by Rebecca McKai which came out earlier this month and got a beautiful review in the book review by Michael Cunningham”
Where to get it
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Buddenbrooks
Buddenbrooks by Thomas Mann is a sweeping historical novel that chronicles the decline of a prosperous merchant family across four generations in northern Germany.
Recommended“I mean the best book I ever read on vacation was B and Brooks by Thomas M which is like such a nerdy but it's such a beautiful book to get lost in”
Where to get it
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Transactions in a foreign currency
Transactions in a foreign currency is the debut short story collection by Deborah Eisenberg, showcasing her sharp wit and remarkable command of narrative voice.
Discussed“and at the same time was reading a book of stories called transactions in a foreign currency which is Deborah eisenberg's first collection”
Where to get it
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Nicotine
Nicotine is a satirical novel by Nell Zink that explores counterculture, family estrangement, and smoking through the life of a young woman named Penny Baker.
Recommended“I have two more books that I wanted to mention because after reading this big serious book I wanted something really different and so I read novel by Nel zinc called nicotine”
Where to get it
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The English and their history
The English and Their History by Robert Tombs is a comprehensive historical volume that chronicles the evolution of English identity, politics, and culture over centuries.
Discussed“I would probably be with us for a while and and I and I think I will be because I'm only about well in honesty I'm not halfway through the book which is the English and their history by Robert Toms”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (4) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“I thought of you because there's a a passing reference to the woman in white which I know you talked about on this podcast um within the past year or so”
“she says the novel belongs in that tradition of narrative buffoonery the talkative firstperson voice attempting to ingratiate itself with readers which runs from Tristram Shandy through in our own century”
“and then she mentioned some books that I also love like sao's confessions of Zeno and and her robbles too loud a Solitude and even Samuel Becket she mentions”
“I Read Moby Dick on the beach I we let's do a future podcast on reading Moby Dick on the beach”