The History of Literature
Latest Episodes
565 The Roman Empire's Golden Age (with Tom Holland) | My Last Book with Honor Cargill-Martin
It was an era known as the Golden Age of Rome, when the republic-turned-empire became the wealthiest and most formidable state in the history of humankind. In this episode, Jacke talks to novelist-turned-historian Tom Holland (Rubicon: The Last Years of t
564 H.D. (with Lara Vetter)
Jacke talks to scholar and biographer Lara Vetter (H.D. (Hilda Dolittle)) about the life and works of modernist poet and avant-garde woman Hilda Dolittle, better known by her nom de plume H.D.Help support the show atpatreon.com/literatureorhistoryofli
563 Sylvia Plath (with Carl Rollyson)
Jacke talks to "serial biographer" Carl Rollyson (The Last Days of Sylvia Plath, The Life of William Faulkner) about his new book, Sylvia Plath: Day by Day: Volume 1: 1932-1955, which draws upon Plath's diaries and other writings to present Plath's life f
562 Literature Later in Life (with Myron Tuman)
Jacke starts the show with a listener email and a look at Emily Dickinson's Poem #238 ("How many times these low feet staggered - "). THEN author Myron Tuman (The Stuttering Son in Literature and Psychology: Boys and Their Fathers, Don Juan and His Daught
561 Homer and His Iliad (with Robin Lane Fox) | A Quick Hit of Witches (with Katherine Howe)
Who was Homer? And why, all these years later, do we still read his Iliad? In this episode, Jacke talks to author Robin Lane Fox (Homer and His Iliad) about his lifelong passion for this classic ancient text. PLUS Katherine Howe, editor of The Penguin Boo
560 The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving
It's the early nineteenth century, and the moon is bright, the Hudson Valley forests are full of shadows, and a lonely schoolteacher heads home on his rickety horse. All those stories he's heard about a headless horseman are just stuff and nonsense...aren
559 Washington Irving | My Last Book with Joe Skinner
Jacke takes a look at "America's first Man of Letters," Washington Irving (1783-1859), most famous for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle." PLUS Joe Skinner of American Masters: Creative Spark chooses the last book he will
558 Black Nature Writing (with Erin Sharkey)
How do we humans experience nature? And how might we experience nature differently from one another? In this episode, Jacke talks to writer, film producer, arts and abolition organizer, cultural worker, and educator Erin Sharkey about a new book of essays
557 Somerset Maugham (with Tan Twan Eng)
The English novelist, playwright, and short story writer Somerset Maugham (1874-1965) lived a life as eventful as his prodigious literary output. In this episode, Jacke takes a look at Maugham's travels and travails, following Maugham across numerous cont
556 The Story Behind a Children's Classic - Anna Sewell and the Writing of 'Black Beauty' (with Celia Brayfield)
Born in 1820, the devout Quaker Anna Sewell was in her fifties - and terminally ill - when she decided to write a book that would change the way the public viewed and treated animals. Although her novel Black Beauty has since become a familiar classic, Se