In each episode I discuss around 100 pages from the works of American writers. Contact me at hundredpagescast@gmail.com
In this episode we look at a novel (slightly out of chronological order), "The World Jones Made." This novel takes on three interelated themes: precognition/mutation, the frontier, and individualism in a totalitarian state.
Part two of my look at "White Fang" and we get to see the relationship between modern civilization, law, and violence. Where does kindness and love come from in a world defined by hierarchy and violence?
In this episode of the Philip K. Dick Book Club, we look at "Small Town". What does this story say about family, urban planning, and suburbia?
On the surface, White Fang is the opposite of The Call of the Wild, but in many ways J-Lo is dealing with many of the same issues. Join me, the she-wolf, White Fang, and One Eye as we see what it is like to face scarcity and violence.
Or do we already know that thanks to the lessons of capitalism.
Once again Philip K. DIck takes on segregation and race relations. But is the answer he provides in "James P. Crow" right? I worry that this is a story Richard Spencer can get behind.
My comments on Jack London's signature text, The Call of the Wild. Was the original J-Lo talking about dogs, wolves, or us?
Part of a series of 1953-1955 short stories exploring marriage by Philip K. Dick. "Beyond the Door" combines a critique of clock time with a critique of the bourgie marriage.
Dick's first great story of posthumanism and mutants is "The Golden Man." Can humans coexist with Humanity+?
Part two of my overview of Jack London's John Barleycorn. The focus of this episode is the "White Logic" and London's depression.
Four essays by Jack London are also briefly explored.
In "Jon's World," Philip K. Dick wrote a followup to "Second Variety." While the humans one the war, the survivors are put in a position of prefering an alterantive timeline where the war never started, even if it means the end of all they knew.
Jack London's brilliant autobiography on alcohol, John Barleycorn, Or Alcoholic Memoirs, is a book about many things, including male socialibility and working class culture. One of my favorite books by London.
Philip K. Dick explores the Biblical story of Noah, the suburban family, and post-traumatic stress in his short story "The Builder."
The final episode on Jack London's Martin Eden. What happens when our lonely writer finds success?
In this episode we examine the Philip K. Dick story "The Short Happy Life of the Brown Oxford." What does this story tell us abour family? Consumerism? Technology? Work? A silly story on first glance acually has a lot to tell us.
Part three of a series on Jack London's Martin Eden. In this part, we explore Eden's frustrations, his new friendships, and the decline of his romantic life.
In "The Crystal Crypt", Philip K. Dick explores the arms race and the "spy v. spy" dynamic of the Cold War. But does Dick have more to say about the city and the state?
In this episode I look at the second hundred pages of Jack London's masterpiece Martin Eden. What are the challenges of becoming a writer in the face of the impersonal publishing industry? How does an artist face poverty?
In this episode of the Philip K. Dick Club we look at "A Present for Pat", cargo cults, and alien gods.
In this episode we meet Martin Eden and the struggles of a working class man to become a published writer.
We look at "The Hanging Stranger," Philip K. Dick's story of lynching and state power. And it has Lovecraftian creatures in it. What happens when we story accepting the cruelities essential to the systerms we live in?
In the second part of The Iron Heel, Jack London takes us to the events surrounding the first uprising, or the Chicago Commune. How does the Oligarchy survive this and other threats? How much of London's novel is true to life? Are we facing our own Iron Heel today?
