Literary Devices

A book club in your earbuds, Literary Devices is a podcast that brings you in-depth discussions on all kinds of books, from contemporary literature to young adult novels to non-fiction tomes. Hosted by Jessica McGale-Cooper and Marysia Wojcik.

Episode 9 - No Baggage

Let's talk about minimalism, travel, and grand experiments today with Clara Bensen's memoir, No Baggage: A Minimalist Tale of Love and Wandering. Trigger warning: Brief mentions of anxiety and depression. Edited by Ryan McGale.Artwork by Bryan Cooper. Next book: Iscariot by Tosca Lee.

12-06
52:20

Episode 8 - Turtles All the Way Down

Let's talk mental health and the nature of the self with John Green's Turtles All the Way Down. Trigger warning for talk of intense anxiety. Edited and produced by Ryan McGale.Music by Ryan McGale.Art by Bryan Cooper. The Name Therapist by Duana TahaTrue You - Invisibilia (This is the episode that is named, and is a good episode, but isn't the one Jessica was thinking of)The Personality Myth - Invisibilia (This is the episode Jessica was actually referencing!)

09-27
01:02:03

Episode 7 - The Witches of New York

Witches and ghosts and villainous, misogynistic preachers, oh my! Join Jessica and Marysia as they explore themes of feminism and religion in Ami McKay's spiritualist, occultist novel, The Witches of New York. Theme song, editing, and production by Ryan McGale.Artwork by Bryan Cooper.

08-26
41:50

Episode 6 - Circe

Goddesses, witches, more myths than you can count: dive back into Greek mythology with this month's discussion of Circe by Madeline Miller. Trigger warning: discussions of sexual violence (because Greek mythology is a patriarchal hellscape).Hosted by Jessica McGale-Cooper and Marysia Wojcik.Editing, production, and music by Ryan McGale.Art by Bryan Cooper.Next month's book is The Witches of New York by Ami McKay.

04-18
01:02:45

Episode 5 - The Song of Achilles

Jump into the world of Greek mythology and The Iliad in our discussion of Madeline Miller's phenomenal novel, The Song of Achilles. Trigger warning: discussions of violence, depictions of war, and sexual assault. Production, editing, and music by Ryan McGale.Art by Bryan Cooper.

03-06
48:17

Episode 4 - Bringing Up Bébé

Introducing my new co-host, Marysia Wójcik! Join us for a discussion on parenting styles, raising children in a foreign country, and fatphobia surrounding pregnant people and mothers in particular in Bringing Up Bébé by Pamela Druckerman. NOTE: We talk a lot about fatphobia and gender norms, etc, but realized afterwards that we were using a lot of ableist language while doing so. We would like to point out that this is something that we are working on in ourselves and will do better to a...

02-06
44:07

Episode 3 - Favourite Reads of 2018

Books mentioned: Beartown by Frederik BackmanThe Girl in the Tower (and The Bear and the Nightingale) by Katherine ArdenHalf of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi AdichiThe Power by Naomi AldermanAnd I Darken, Now I Rise, and Bright We Burn by Kiersten WhiteThis Savage Song and Our Dark Duet by Victoria SchwabNeverwhere by Neil GaimanPachinko by Min Jin LeeNext book to be discussed: Bringing Up Bebe by Pamela DruckermanEditing, production, and music by Ryan McGaleArt by Bryan Cooper

01-04
14:35

Episode 2 - All the Bright Places

An in-depth discussion of the novel All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven.Trigger Warning: suicideGenre: Young Adult (YA) fictionMusic by Ryan McGale.Production by Ryan McGale.Artwork by Bryan Cooper. Be sure to send your feedback and thoughts on the book to literarydevicespodcast@gmail.com. Next book: Bringing Up Bebe by Pamela Druckerman

11-07
23:12

Episode 1 - A Man Called Ove

A discussion of the novel A Man Called Ove by Frederik Backman. Trigger warning: Some discussions of suicide. Thanks to Ryan McGale for the theme song and editing help. Logo designed by Bryan Cooper. Next episode's book is All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven.

10-23
22:08

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