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Description
A literary analysis podcast, centred in speculative fiction.
Some books are more than a simple story. They hide timeless themes and allegories full of meaning that are always worth discussing—but doing so requires dedication and keen eye for details. Join Australia-based author Livia J. Elliot as she conducts literary and thematic analyses of speculative and literary fiction to find what lays beyond the plot, decipher their invisible meaning, and reflect on their symbolism. If you are a fan of fantasy or sci-fi books, new or old, traditional or self-published, this is the show for you!
Be mindful. Books Undone contains spoilers for the books discussed, which vary in each episode.
40 Episodes
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Watchmen: the greatest graphic novel ever written, a Rorschach test on morality where every character’s goodness is afflicted with greyness and nuance. Join me in a terrific group discussion with Jarrod (from The Fantasy Thinker), and Britton (from smectite).My Substack: https://liviajelliot.substack.comGet The Omens of War: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DNN94R17
Joe, like Plato's escaped prisoner, is forced to confront a possibility that his world is not the 'real' one at all. In this podcast, I analyse Ubik's layered realities.Subscribe to my newsletter: https://liviajelliot.substack.com
"The goal that led him on was not impossible, though it was clearly supernatural: he wanted to dream a man." This is the premise of another mind-blowing, reality-bending short-story by Jorge Luis Borges: The Circular Ruins.Join me in a Guests Talk with a dream cast of guests: Jarrod (from The Fantasy Thinker), Kris (from A Fictional Escapist), P.L. Stuart (author of A Drowned Kingdom Saga), Jose (from José's Fantasy Worlds), and Dr Philip Chase (author of The Edan Trilogy).Subscribe to my newsletter: https://liviajelliot.substack.comBooks mentioned (in order):"Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid" by Douglas R. Hofstadter"Stop Doing That Sh*t: End Self-Sabotage" by Gary John Biship"A Drowned Kingdom" by P.L. Stuart"The Way of Edan" by Phillip ChaseMovies mentioned (in order):"Inception" by Christopher Nolan
We are slowly losing our ability to question ourselves—our likes, our preferences, our judgements on literature... and from there, we're one step away from no longer questioning why we hate something. After all, "What do you despise? By this are you truly known". This episode is actually a response to fellow BookTuber Britton from SomeOkieDude. Back in April (2025) he spoke about political commentary in fiction and made quite a compelling call of action: "[...] if there is a book or show that rubbed you the wrong way, I want you to sit back and think about why it did that. What was it about this piece of media that offended you so much?"Let's get this idea undone.Transcript & newsletter: https://liviajelliot.substack.com
Join me as I chat with Amy Minton about the author-narrator-character relation, focal distance in framed narratives and multi-timeline stories, and how to ground your reader... and perhaps frustrate them, but in good measure. This is a spoiler-lite episode focused on the craft, and we'll mention plenty of examples.Find Amy at: https://www.youtube.com/@Talking_StoryCheck my Substack: https://liviajelliot.substack.comBOOKS & SHORT STORIES MENTIONED:"Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley"Cloud Atlas" by David Mitchell"The Kingkiller Chronicles" by Patrick Rothfuss"Slaughterhouse Five" by Kurt Vonnegut"Maus" by Art Spiegelman"City of Thieves" by David Benioff"Heat" by Joyce Carol Oates"Friend of my Youth" by Alice Munro"Dolores Claiborne" by Stephen King"The Garden of Forking Paths" by Jorge Luis Borges"The Book of the New Sun" by Gene Wolfe"The Dregs" by Thomas J. Devens
Annihilation is a challenge to humanity's perennial navel-gazing. It confronts us with the terrifying idea that the universe is not hostile—it simply doesn't care about us. In this episode, I will discuss three way sin which it challenges the biologist's (and thus the reader's) reality.You can find the full transcript, all citations, and get my free novella at: https://liviajelliot.substack.com
Snail on the Slope has a turbulent history, but the Strutgastkys themselves considered it as "the most perfect and the most valuable of [their] works". Let's get this book undone; we will review my proposed interpretation, and also the authors' intended one.Subscribe to my newsletter: https://liviajelliot.substack.com
"Take it back. I want ignorance again. What is the limit of human comprehension? How much can the abyss stare back at you before you flinch?" This is one of the many open questions explored in DISCOVERY, a cosmic horror debut by JAJ Minton.In this interview, we first dive into the process of crafting a book as a team, and then we dive into some of the key themes, including a human-centric world, religions and cults (including a cult to AIs), the characters own personal discovery, and the permanence of conflict and struggle.Subscribe to my newsletter: https://liviajelliot.substack.com/
Author Spotlights are back, and in this episode I'm in conversation with Bert-Oliver Boehmer, author of the Galacticide series--a modern-but-classical military sci-fi with a dash of first-contact, galactic politics, and fast-paced action.Join to my newsletter to get bite-sized bookish deep-dives and a free novella, THE GENESIS OF CHANGE: https://liviajelliot.com/FIND THE GALACTICIDE SERIES: https://www.galacticide.comREAD MY INTERACTIVE STORIES:On Android: https://bit.ly/unearthedstoriesOn iOS: https://apple.co/48IcnYm
Dance With Me is one of my most personal books, and having a narrator that could translate the literary elements while giving life to a diverse cast was incredibly important. Join me as I chat to audiobook narrator Alison Phoenix, and deep-dive into the perks of audiobook narration.DANCE WITH ME is available on Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/liviajelliot/dance-with-meFind Alison Phoenix:- Website: https://alisonphoenixnarration.wordpress.com/- Audible: https://www.audible.com/search?searchNarrator=Alison+Phoenix
Is life purposeless and meaningless? Can we survive when our purpose is shattered? Those are some of the questions presented in a cerebral book, a gem of Scottish fiction: 'Walking on Glass' by Iain Banks. Let's get this book undone!TRANSCRIPT:All the links are in the transcript here: https://liviajelliot.com/blog/2025/02-podcast-walking-on-glassREAD MY INTERACTIVE STORIES:- On Android: https://bit.ly/unearthedstories- On iOS: https://apple.co/48IcnYm
Are books political? I think we're asking the wrong question. Let's dive in!Join to my newsletter to get bite-sized bookish deep-dives and a free novella, The Genesis of Change: https://liviajelliot.com/newsletter/web/TRANSCRIPT:All the links are in the transcript here: https://liviajelliot.com/blog/2025/01-podcast-political-booksREAD MY INTERACTIVE STORIES:- On Android: https://bit.ly/unearthedstories- On iOS: https://apple.co/48IcnYm
Cyberpunk is back, and we're discussing "The Escher Man", with SPFBO semi-finalist Sarah K Balstrup, FanFi addict reviewer Charlie Cavendish, and the author himself, T.R. Napper.Join to my newsletter for bite-sized bookish deep dives (and get a free novella!: https://liviajelliot.com/newsletter/web/READ MY INTERACTIVE STORIES:On Android: https://bit.ly/unearthedstoriesOn iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/unearthed-stories/id6474701738SOME OF THE PAPERS AND BOOKS MENTIONED:https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38694651/https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22522805-the-buried-gianthttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59808603-the-mountain-in-the-seahttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54120408-klara-and-the-sunhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/63183008-the-way-of-unity
We're going back to the Borgesian Labyrinths with "The Garden of Forking Paths." My guests today are Varsha (from Reading by the Rainy Mountain), Jarrod (from The Fantasy Thinker), and Britton (aka SomeOkieDude).Join to my newsletter for bite-sized bookish deep dives (and get a free novella!: https://liviajelliot.com/newsletter/web/READ MY INTERACTIVE STORIES:- On Android: https://bit.ly/unearthedstories- On iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/unearthed-stories/id6474701738
A discussion on the relationship between memory and identity, as presented in The Escher Man, the latest cyberpunk release from T.R. Napper.Join to my newsletter to get bite-sized bookish deep-dives and a free novella: https://liviajelliot.com/newsletter/web/TRANSCRIPT: https://liviajelliot.com/blog/2024/20-podcast-escher-manAll the links are in the transcript here!READ MY INTERACTIVE STORIES:- On Android: https://bit.ly/unearthedstories- On iOS: https://apple.co/48IcnYm
A cross-over discussion about ideas, deconstructing V's iconic phrase and analysing it under the light of V for Vendetta itself, 1984, and The Dispossessed.Join to my newsletter to get bite-sized bookish deep-dives and a free novella: https://liviajelliot.com/newsletter/web/TRANSCRIPT: https://liviajelliot.com/blog/2024/19-podcast-bulletproofideas All the links are in the transcript here!READ MY INTERACTIVE STORIES:On Android: https://bit.ly/unearthedstoriesOn iOS: https://apple.co/48IcnYm
Today, we're discussing one of the most famous graphic novels out there--V for Vendetta. Not for the faint of heart, and one piece that remains as timeless as 1984. My guests today are Varsha (from Reading by the Rainy Mountain), Jarrod (from The Fantasy Thinker), and Britton (aka SomeOkieDude).Join to my newsletter for bite-sized bookish deep dives (and get a free novella!: https://liviajelliot.com/newsletter/web/READ MY INTERACTIVE STORIES:- On Android: https://bit.ly/unearthedstories- On iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/unearthed-stories/id6474701738
This time, the Spotlight is on the Doctor of Cyberpunk himself, Ditmar award-winning author, and fellow Aussie, T.R. Napper. Today we're discussing his novella, Ghosts of the Neon God.Join to my newsletter to get bite-sized bookish deep-dives and a free novella, THE GENESIS OF CHANGE: https://liviajelliot.com/FIND T.R. Napper: http://www.nappertime.com/READ MY INTERACTIVE STORIES:> On Android: https://bit.ly/unearthedstories> On iOS: https://apple.co/48IcnYm
In this episode, I discuss reading for world-building, as presented by Ada Palmer on her foreword for The Book of the New Soon. This is a short episode, and spoiler-lite.Join to my newsletter to get bite-sized bookish deep-dives and a free novella: https://liviajelliot.com/newsletter/web/TRANSCRIPT: https://liviajelliot.com/blog/2024/17-podcast-worldbuilding All the links are in the transcript here!READ MY INTERACTIVE STORIES:On Android: https://bit.ly/unearthedstoriesOn iOS: https://apple.co/48IcnYm
It's time for another spotlight, this time featuring author C.B.Lansdell as we talk about her prequel novella, The Tidelings of Dras Sayve. We also touch some topics about her debut book Far Removed, but those are spoiler-free!Join to my newsletter to get bite-sized bookish deep-dives and a free novella: https://liviajelliot.com/FIND CB LANSDELL:> All links: https://cblansdell.com/links/> Far Removed: https://books2read.com/farremoved/READ MY INTERACTIVE STORIES:> On Android: https://bit.ly/unearthedstories> On iOS: https://apple.co/48IcnYm
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