what makes a book scary

Hey, here’s another holiday-themed episode. We discuss a John Cheever story, “Christmas is a Sad Season for the Poor.” You can read it online, via The New Yorker, if you’re into that kind of thing. Or just listen to us yammer for an hour. That’s fun, too! We talk about all kinds of stuff. After listening to this week’s episode, you may not be any smarter, but you will definitely be one hour older.

Merry Christmas!

As always, you can stream the episode right here on our site, or download the mp3 file. You can also find us in the iTunes store, or in just about any app you might use to listen to podcasts.

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Stream Episode 207:

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Thanks for listening!

You may be asking yourself how this week’s pick is a “holiday book,” exactly. Fair question! But one which Mike explains, more or less, in the episode. It’s also one of our only forays, thus far, into the horror genre, and we talk a little about what makes a horror book scary, plus what separates real psychological horror, as opposed to the sort of blood and gore that can almost read like slaptstick. Stephen King has said that this book is one of the best horror books of the late 20th century, which is pretty high praise! Will it live up to the hype?

Also this week: A new installment of Fan Fiction corner, involving a heartwarming coffee commercial from your childhood that may be ruined soon. Sorry!

As always, you can stream the episode right here on our site, or download the mp3 file. You can also find us in the iTunes store, or in just about any app you might use to listen to podcasts.

Stream Episode 206: