Close Reads is a book-club podcast for the incurable reader co-hosted by David Kern, Heidi White, Sean Johnson, and occasionally Tim McIntosh. We read good book...
Merry Christmas from all of us at Close Reads! In this episode we’re chatting about the final chapters of James Runcie’s lovely novel, The Great Passion. Topics of conversation include the way this book is perfect for the Christmas season, how Runcie portrays the performance of the Passion in the book, what the epilogue accomplishes, and much more. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe
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58:45
The Year in the Reading Episode
It’s that time of year! In this annual tradition we’re sharing our top five reads of 2024 (as well as a slew of honorable mentions). Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe
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1:30:12
The Great Passion: Chapters 13-18
Welcome back to our ongoing conversation about James Runcie’s The Great Passion. In this episode we discuss the book’s ongoing contemplation about the way platitude’s rarely can solve the problem of real grief; how it explores spiritual questions; the complicated nature of Catharina’s relationship with Stefan; and much more. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe
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1:04:04
The Great Passion: Chapters 7-12
Welcome back to Close Reads as we continue our discussion of James Runcie’s The Great Passion. Topics of conversation include the way Runcie introduces the book’s tragedies, how Bach teaches both the protagonist and the reader, how to tell the difference between true wisdom and pithy sayings in the story, and much more. Happy listening! This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe
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59:06
The Great Passion: Chapters 1-6
We’re on to a new book: James Runcie’s The Great Passion, a contemporary book that blends a variety of genres in a really delightful fashion. On this episode we discuss how he pulls it off. Plus: the way music is an ongoing motif in the construction of the story, why it’s such a re-readable book, how Bach is portrayed, and much more. Happy reading! This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit closereads.substack.com/subscribe
Close Reads is a book-club podcast for the incurable reader co-hosted by David Kern, Heidi White, Sean Johnson, and occasionally Tim McIntosh. We read good books and talk about them.
This is a show for amateurs in the best sense. This is not an experts show: we’re book lovers, book enthusiasts. Our goal is have empathetic and intelligent conversations about good books.
Close Reads is produced by Goldberry Studios, the podcast wing of Goldberry Books, a family-run indie bookshop in Concord, NC. closereads.substack.com
New Zealand