Discussion Notes: The Sellout

Next Month’s novel is Sleeping on Jupiter by Anuradha Roy

Rated: Explicit for Adult Themes and Language

Our guest this month couldn’t make it, but Anais, Maya, and Gerald dove in to this dark satire by Paul Beatty.

The Sellout follows a black, urban farmer who, in an effort to restore the black community in his hometown of Dickens, decides to segregate his community. The novel touches on other dark moments in American black history such as slavery, minstrel entertainment, and the civil rights movement. Gerald enjoyed the novel for its fresh prose, humor, and sheer entertainment value, but, as an outsider to both the black experience and United States history, struggled to connect with the references and message on a personal level. Anais was delighted by the courage in the social commentary and the stream-of-consciousness narrative. Maya loved the slam poetry roots evident in the language, and the use of black culture’s ‘inside voice’, and related several points in the novel to her own experience as a black woman in the United States.

If you have any recommendations for the bookclub, please let us know in the comments. We also have a voicemail system on the website. If you would like to leave a voicemail please click the green bar that says voicemail on the left. We may play your comment live on the show, unless you tell us not to. We air the first Friday of every month and discuss the books on twitter using #LRHBC

Discussion Notes: Your Heart is a Muscle The Size of a Fist

Next Month’s novel is The Sellout by Paul Beatty

Rated: Clean

This month author Michael La Ronn joins us to discuss Sunil Yapa’s novel, Your Heart is a Muscle The Size of a Fist. In addition to being a poet and author of fantasy novels, Michael is a host on the To Be Read Podcast.

Your Heart Is a Muscle the Size of a Fist is a fiction novel set during the 1999 WTO protests in Seattle. With a small cast of characters, Sunil Yapa successfully examines the events of that eventful day as well as touching on themes of family and community. This debut novel successfully breaks rules in an engaging and rewarding way. Michael fit right into the Literary Roadhouse with his insightful in-depth analysis. Anais considered the politics of the novel interesting but wonders how it would be received by less liberal audiences, while Michael and Gerald found it balanced without the common political novel missteps.

If you have any suggestions for the new bookclub please let us know in the comments. We also have a voicemail system on the website; if you would like to leave a voicemail and perhaps have us play your comments about this book, please click the green bar that says voicemail. We air the first Friday of every month and discuss the books on twitter using #LRHBookclub

Rated: This episode has adult themes but does not have adult language

Yay! The Literary Roadhouse Bookclub is here and this month we discussed the novel Inheritance by Lan Samantha Chang. Tamara Woods joins us for this weeks bookclub discussion with wonderful input on the language and intimacy of the story. A poet, writer and founder of the Reverie Journal, Tamara reads deeply and we see that in this show. She is also the future host of our upcoming poetry podcast that will launch this summer. Inheritance was loved by the entire podcast and we enjoyed discussing the themes of family, identity, war and control. For the next month’s episode we will discuss Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist.

If you have any suggestions for the new bookclub please let us know in the comments. We also have a voicemail system on the website; if you would like to leave a voicemail and perhaps have us play your comments about Inheritance, please click the green bar that says voicemail. We air the first Friday of every month and discuss the books on twitter using #LRHBookclub

Rated Explicit for Adult Themes and Language

This month Roz Morris joins us as guest co-host. She is a ghost writer, writing teacher and author of My Memories of a Future Life and Lifeform Three. She was a wonderful addition to this weeks discussion lending her experience as a writing teacher and all around well-read person to deepen our analysis of Fates and Furies. To find more information about her, please visit her website.

While Anais, Gerald and Maya enjoyed the novel, both Maya and Roz had issues with some parts of this much talked about piece. We discuss our differences, ideas, the language and structure in depth so do not listen if you want to avoid spoilers.

Yay! The Literary Roadhouse Bookclub is here and this month we discussed Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff. It led to quite the debate and I can’t wait for the next book. For the next month’s episode we will discuss Inheritance: A Novel by Lan Samantha Chang.

If you have any suggestions for the new bookclub please let us know in the comments. We also have a voicemail system on the website; if you would like to leave a voicemail and perhaps have us play your comments about Inheritance, please click the green bar that says voicemail. We air the first Friday of every month and discuss the books on twitter using #LRHBookclub

Discussion Notes: The Heart Goes Last

Rated Explicit

Yay!  The Literary Roadhouse Bookclub is here and we discussed The Heart Goes Last by Margaret Atwood. It led to quite the debate and I can’t wait for the next book. For the next month’s episode we will discuss Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff.

If you have any suggestions for the new bookclub please let us know in the comments. We also have a voicemail system on the website; if you would like to leave a voicemail and perhaps have us play your comments about Fates and Furies or The Heart Goes Last, please click the green bar that says voicemail. We air the first Friday of every month and discuss the books on twitter using #LRHBookclub

Additional Books Mentioned:

The Handmaids Tale

The MaddAddam Trilogy