The Reader and the Writer

Welcome to Middlemarch! In this episode, Shari and Rhea lay the groundwork for R&W’s first yearish-long read. They discuss the author, George Eliot, the origin story of Middlemarch, and all the things they will be looking for while they read. Oh, and they try and figure out exactly what “provincial” means.To find the reading schedule, bookmarks, and other resources mentioned in the podcast, visit R&W’s Middlemarch page:For a list of R&W’s entire 2026 year of reading click here: Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, ❤️ it and share it with a friend.The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our literary work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to the final episode of R&W’s 2025 year-long read of War and Peace. It really is hard to believe it’s over (Except, if you’re Shari, it’s not. Six more Epilogue essays to go!)In this episode, Shari and Rhea discuss the way Tolstoy takes the characters off the stage in the end, and sets them squarely in the beautiful mundane of every day life. They talk about characters they wish they’d heard more from, characters they kept thinking might pop back up and play more of a role, the character Rhea loved to hate in the end. They talked about their favorite scenes and sections, as well as those places they could have done without. They talked about what part of spending an entire year with War and Peace they will miss. Oh, and what they’re looking forward to with their next (not quite) year-long read, Middlemarch, by George Eliot.Speaking of, if you haven’t seen The Reader and the Writer’s 2026 reading list in order with dates, to include our year-long reads: Middlemarch and the Harry Potter series (going into 2027), you can find it here:To follow my annotations, personal notes, and War and Peace story connections on Tolstoy’s Epilogue essays (12 essays in 12 days), start here:Thank you so much for reading along with us in 2025! And cheers to many more years of happy slow reading together. 🥂Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked what you heard, give it some ❤️ and share it with a fellow War and Peace lover like you.The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

It’s hard to believe, but it’s time for the last episode of 2025.In this episode, Rhea and Shari ask each other questions about all things R&W and books this 2025. They talk about those most memorable scenes, where they found the Great Conversation most compelling in the books they read, what story most convicted them, reminded them of who they are, and surprised them by its beauty. They discussed Shari’s MFA work and how it’s informed her labors with novel writing and R&W. They talked about what they thought they did well this first full year of R&W’s existence, and what they hope to do better in 2026. And, of course, Rhea got bonus points for the best question ever: Which two characters from any of the books we read this year would you like to see married? Oh wow… What would you say??On a personal note:Rhea and I are beyond grateful for all of you who’ve journeyed along with us this 2025. We began doing this thing a year and a half ago out of our shared love for literature and the sheer fun we have when we’re together talking about the books we’re reading. Your own love of literature and participation with us here spurs us on to continue nurturing and growing the literary work we’ve begun.2026 is already shaping up to be our best year yet (not so hard considering we’re not even two full years old)! If you haven’t seen the R&W 2026 Reading list in order, be sure to check it out:R&W’s first book is Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley. Below are the dates and reading schedule:* January 20: Frankenstein - Volume I* January 27: Frankenstein - Volume II* February 3: Frankenstein - Volume IIIThe first year-long|background read is Middlemarch, by George Eliot. Below are the first few episodes related to that book:* January 13: Welcome to Middlemarch* February 6: Middlemarch - Book 1* March 6: Middlemarch - Book 2See you next year! Until then, read wide, read well, and live always in witness to the Great Story.The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

“Hope,” he said. “Damn thing never leaves you alone.” —Paul, p. 219Welcome to the final episode of Klara and the Sun. In this episode, Shari and Rhea discuss all the motifs and how they bring to life the central question of this novel: What does it mean to be human? They talk about Klara and faith, Klara and friendship, Klara and the human heart, and what Jesus and C. S. Lewis have to say on all these matters. They discuss all the ways in which Klara, disturbingly, seemed throughout the story more human than the humans did. They discuss their own troubled reactions to the story’s ending. They talk about the difference between companionship and friendship. They talk about integration and disintegration, and how every effort at human-like connection with A.I. leads to the later, and never the former. They re-visit the Advent aspect of this story, and what Advent looks like with no Incarnation (God becoming human for us) in the end. And, Shari reads some poetry by Wendell Berry at the end.Resources cited in this episode:* The Four Loves, by C. S. Lewis* The Gospel of John, Chapter 15* Klara and the Sun in the Year of ubiquitous A.I. (from Substack MBH4H)* The Friend Necklace (Oct. 2025 review from Business Insider)Poetry Rhea was inspired to find and cite after finishing Klara and the Sun:* The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Berry* [i carry your heart with me (i carry it in] by e. e. cummings* The Sun by Mary OliverIf you haven’t seen it yet, here is R&W’s 2026 Reading List in order with (penciled in) dates:Thanks for listening to this episode of The Reader & the Writer! If you liked this episode, please give it some ❤️ and pass it along.The Reader & the Writer is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support the literary work we’re doing, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome back to Klara and the Sun. In this episode, Shari and Rhea have a LOT to talk about, beginning and ending with the troubling Frankenstein-esque turn this story has taken. They discuss faith v. rationality and the irony that a lot of faith is needed to believe in rationality. They discuss blobs and boxes and shapes in general as a motif. They discuss the Bubble Game, eyes as the window to the soul, and hedges v. fences. They discuss the mothers, Helen and Chrissy, as counterpoints of one another, and what drives each one to act as she does. They discuss Rick and Josie’s plan. They discuss Advent, Mary, courageous surrender, and what happens when waiting becomes unbearable… and all these things from a place of knowing now what Mr. Capaldi’s “portrait” of Josie truly is.Next week they will finish the book.Resource mentioned in this episode:* Rhythms of Faith, by Claude Atcho. Get full access to The Reader & the Writer at thereaderandthewriter.substack.com/subscribe