Aug 29, 2018
This week's references include:
Waterloo - the upcoming battle in 1815, and the song by ABBA
We think Tolstoy would have liked ABBA's fatalism...
At Waterloo Napoleon did surrender
Oh yeah
And I have met my destiny in quite a similar
way
The history book on the shelf
Is always repeating itself
Waterloo I...
Aug 21, 2018
Which moments have been Pierre's worst? Is Tolstoy an unreliable narrator? Jennie heralds Gossip Girl's value in raising lexile levels! And Alex insists that what the 1812 Moscow fire really needs is zombies.
This week's references include:
Joseph Joffre, commander in chief of the French forces on the Western front...
Aug 15, 2018
Alex is back from Vermont and the gang's all together again! This week we tackle Pierre's near fatal observance of the Battle of Boradino, Tolstoy's retconning of relationships and deepening of his themes, why the serfs wouldn't let Marya leave her estate, and Andrei's dangerous bitey emotions.
References include:
Aug 9, 2018
This week's episode, guest engineered by Pete, covers: plotty-plots, humans humaning, and the contrast between the philosophical aspects of the novel and the character growth.
References this episode:
What is snuff? According to Encyclopedia Britannica, it's a form of powdered preparation of tobacco used by inhalation...
Aug 2, 2018
A note about the sound - We had to record in a different room this week, which resulted in some funny acoustics and weird occasional noises. And Alex is getting over a cold, so there is occasional coughing...
This week's references include:
Brief histories of Russian Ballet and Russian Opera...