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Every book Colum McCann recommended on podcasts
Colum McCann appeared on The Book Review to discuss his literary career, his creative process, and the milestones of world literature. Speaking about his novel Twist, McCann explained the origin of the narrative, revealing that the idea of undersea cables came before the characters and ultimately shaped the plot. He also reflected on statements he previously made in his book Letters to a Young Writer, noting his past assertion that conventional plot mechanisms can sometimes be juvenile. Expanding into broader literary territory, McCann cited Don DeLillo's Underworld as one of the definitive and great novels of the twentieth century, placing it alongside other monumental works. Furthermore, he discussed James Joyce's Ulysses, focusing on its famous twenty-four-hour timeline of walking around Dublin as a defining structural element that exemplifies the unique manipulation of time and human experience in literature. Throughout his appearance, McCann offered profound insights into the mechanics of storytelling, the evolution of his own bibliography, and the enduring masterworks that continue to influence contemporary writers and readers alike, cementing his deep engagement with both craft and literary history.
Books recommended by Colum McCann
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Letters to a young writer
Discussed“But also, interestingly, in that book, Letters to Young Writer, that you quote, I also said that plot is juvenile.”
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Twist
Discussed“to be honest with this book with twist which came first the cables or the characters cables came first”
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Ulysses
Ulysses by James Joyce is a monumental modernist novel that chronicles a single day in the life of Leopold Bloom in Dublin, mirroring the structure of Homer's Odyssey.
Discussed“And I do I do think if you didn't talk about Ulisses, it's 24 hours and walking around. That's the plot of the book.”
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Underworld
Underworld is a sprawling, multi-layered masterpiece by Don DeLillo that examines the second half of the twentieth century in America through the lens of a single baseball and a trajectory of waste, nuclear threat, and cultural anxiety.
Discussed“And so for me one of the the great novels along with Ulisses and there are a few others and in fact I would I I would venture to say that Underworld by Don Dilo is one of the other great novels of the 20th century.”
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Books Colum McCann wrote
Appearances
| Episode | Podcast | Date | Books |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colum McCann on Undersea Cables and His New Novel "Twist" | The Book Review | 2025-04-04 | 4 |