Close Reads Podcast

Feb 04 2025 430 ep. 70 mins 386

Close Reads Podcast artwork

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.

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A Tale of Two Cities: Book 2, Chapters 1-6

Feb 04 2025 73 mins

We’re back with another conversation on Charles Dickens’ classical novel, and this time we discuss the introduction of Sidney Carton and Charles Darnay—and the way Dickens employs doubling to develop them as characters alongside the key themes of the book. Plus: a great Dickens-ism, a few wonderful scenes, chat on Dickens and dialogue, questions about how Dickens writes women

A Tale of Two Cities: Book 1, Chapters 1-6

Jan 27 2025 73 mins

Over the years, many of you have asked us to discuss a Dickens novel and it’s finally time! Over the next several episodes we are going to dig into A Tale of Two Cities. But fair warning: as we get into the book we do spend some time explaining why we’re not necessarily Dickens enthusiasts, before getting into what really works well. (Don’t worry, we won’t dwell further on

The Bridge of San Luis Rey Q&A

Jan 23 2025 78 mins

You had questions about The Bridge of San Luis Rey; we did our best to answer them. Thanks for tuning in to this series! Up next: A Tale of Two Cities. Please note: no video for this episode. 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

The Bridge of San Luis Rey: To the End

Jan 13 2025 70 mins

It’s time to dig into the end of Thornton Wilder’s lovely novel and in this episode we’re discussing the impact (and epilogue-like nature) of the final chapter, the spiritual contemplations inherent in the narrative, the way Wilder manages to say something powerful about the nature of love, and much more. Happy listening!Video editionA quick note on video: some listeners have

The Bridge of San Luis Rey: Parts 1-3

Jan 06 2025 51 mins

Welcome to the first episode of 2025 here on Close Reads! Our first book of the year is a short but powerful contemplation of , well, the meaning of life and death. Great way to kick off a new year . . . Topics of conversation include whether this is an unbearably sad book, the complex (mirrored) relationships at the core of the story, the nesting doll structure of the narrative, t

The Great Passion: Q&A Episode

Dec 30 2024 83 mins

We’ve come to the end of our series on James Runcie’s novel, The Great Passion, which (as usual) means it’s time for a Q&A episode and this time we have a very special guest: our friend Greg Wilbur, who happens to a conductor and composer who has also authored a biography of Bach himself. Greg joined us to chat about his experience with The Great Passion and to answer some of

The Great Passion: To the End

Dec 23 2024 58 mins

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 p

The Year in the Reading Episode

Dec 21 2024 90 mins

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

The Great Passion: Chapters 13-18

Dec 16 2024 64 mins

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 yo

The Great Passion: Chapters 7-12

Dec 09 2024 59 mins

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