PODCAST · arts
Sophomore Lit
by John McCoy
John McCoy and a guest host read books you might have been assigned in high school, or college, or other stuff you might have read when you were a kid. The theming is loose!
Episodes
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196: Dorothy Parker Stories
Beauty is only skin deep, but podcasts go clean to the bone. Shaenon K. Garrity discusses four short stories by Dorothy Parker. Host John McCoy with Shaenon K. Garrity.
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195: Tennyson Poems
I cannot rest from podcasting. Jill Hoffman returns to discuss three poems by Alfred, Lord Tennyson: “Charge of the Light Brigade” (1854), “Lady of Shalott” (1832, 1842), and “Ulysses” (1833). Host John McCoy with Jill Hoffman.
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194: Choose Your Own Adventures
What’s life without choices? How about books that are nothing but choices? Ross Cleaver discusses the choose-your-own genre with examples from both the U.S. and the U.K.: Edward Packard’s The Cave of Time (1978) and Ian Livingstone and Steve Jackson’s The Warlock of Firetop Mountain (1982). Host...
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193: Poe and Doyle: Dupin vs. Holmes
Which detective is better, Edgar Allan Poe’s Auguste Dupin or Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes? I mean it’s obviously Holmes but that won’t stop Jacob Haller discussing two genre defining stories, Poe’s “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” (1841) and Doyle’s “The Adventure of the Speckled Band”...
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192: Hamlet
There are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamt of in our podcasts. First-time co-host Tim Read discusses William Shakespeare’s most famous tragedy, Hamlet (c. 1600). Host John McCoy with Tim Read.
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191: Asterix and Cleopatra
Zut alors! Ross Cleaver returns to discuss the totally historically accurate Asterix and Cleopatra (Astérix et Cléopâtre) by René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo (serialized starting in 1963). Host John McCoy with Ross Cleaver.
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190: The Wheel on the School
Storkin’ it up! First-time co-host Jill Hoffman discusses Meindert De Jong’s Newbury-winning book, The Wheel on the School (1954). Host John McCoy with Jill Hoffman.
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189: Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
Jelani Sims returns to talk about Mildred D. Taylor’s heartbreaking Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry (1977). Host John McCoy with Jelani Sims.
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188: Archy and Mehitabel
boss these podcasts are getting out of hand the other day i heard dan mccoy and his much older brother discussing archy and mehitabel by which i mean the column by don marquis that started in 1916 and then was collected into a book if you could call it that in 1927 Host John McCoy with Dan McCoy.
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187: The Apology
Love of wisdom means never having to say you’re sorry. Professor Marina McCoy joins her husband to discuss Plato’s The Apology (c. 399-90 BCE). Host John McCoy with Marina McCoy.
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186: "Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman
First-time co-host Daniel Heddendorf joins in to discuss clocks and jellybeans in Harlan Ellison’s short story, “‘Repent, Harlequin!’ Said the Ticktockman” (1965). Host John McCoy with Daniel Heddendorf.
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185: The Third Policeman
I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride it where I like. Shaenon K. Garrity returns to discuss Flan O’Brien’s enigmatic The Third Policeman (written 1940, published 1967). Host John McCoy with Shaenon K. Garrity.
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184: I am the Cheese
Hope you’re not lactose intolerant! Matt Skuta returns to discuss John Cormier’s I am the Cheese (1977). Host John McCoy with Matt Skuta.
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183: Christmas Special: "A Christmas Turkey"
What, the one as big as me? Marina McCoy makes her holiday return to discuss Mário de Andrade’s sweet-and-salty “A Christmas Turkey” (1956). Host John McCoy with Marina McCoy.
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182: The Watch House
Who watches the Watch House? Not us, the book is better. Ross Cleaver returns to discuss Robert Westall’s The Watch House (1977). Host John McCoy with Ross Cleaver.
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181: Thanksgiving Special: Protest Songs
The answer, my friend…is not a lyric in the any of the songs the McCoy Brothers discuss. For this annual drunk Thanksgiving Special, Rob, Dan, and John talk about Where Have All the Flowers Gone?, One Tin Soldier, and Alice’s Restaurant. Host John McCoy with Rob McCoy and Dan McCoy.
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180: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead
Podcasts could happen to anyone. David Loehr discusses exits and entrances in Tom Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead (first performed 1966, published 1967). Host John McCoy with David J. Loehr.
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179: The Last Unicorn
Don’t it allways seem to go, you don’t know what unicorns you got til they’re gone. Kathy Campbell discusses Peter S. Beagle’s 1968 The Last Unicorn. Host John McCoy with Kathy Campbell.
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178: R.U.R.
BEEP boop what is… love? Well, we don’t figure this out, but John Siracusa does return to Sophomore Lit to discuss Karel Čapek’s play R.U.R. (1920), the origin of the word “robot.” Host John McCoy with John Siracusa.
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177: The Pushcart War
Brush up on the Large Object Theory of History. Shaenon K. Garrity returns to discuss Jean Merrill’s The Pushcart War (1964). Host John McCoy with Shaenon K. Garrity.
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176: Walden, or Life in the Woods
If you’re suffering from Quiet Desparation, why not listen to the not-so-quiet voices of Dan Daughhetee and me discussing Henrey David Thoreau’s Walden, or Life in the Woods (1854)? Host John McCoy with Daniel Daughetee.
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175: Elizabeth Bishop Poems
Somebody loves us all. Rosalynde Vas Dias discusses three poems by Elizabeth Bishop: “Sestina” (1956), “Filling Station” (1956), and “Crusoe in England” (1971). Host John McCoy with Rosalynde Vas Dias and Marina McCoy.
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174: The Chrysalids
Podcasts are the original voices in your head. David Dredrick discusses John Wyndham’s The Chrysalids (1955). Host John McCoy with David Dedrick.
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173: The Visit
Make money fast with this one weird trick. Glenn Fleishman discusses Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s play The Visit (1956). Host John McCoy with Glenn Fleishman.
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172: The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock
And indeed there will be time to discuss this, the most mid-life white-guy crisis poem of all. Lisa Schmeiser discusses T.S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” (1915). Host John McCoy with Lisa Schmeiser.
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171: Frank O'Connor Stories
I’ve heard it said by men of wide experience that podcasts used to be better in the old days. Kieran Healy discusses three short stories by Frank O’Connor: “First Confession,” “The Majesty of the Law,” and “Guests of the Nation.” Host John McCoy with Kieran Healy.
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170: Emily Dickinson Poems
Forever is composed of podcasts. Caroline Fulford discusses selected poems by Emily Dickinson (c. 1860-65). Host John McCoy with Caroline Fulford and Marina McCoy.
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169: The Best Christmas Pageant Ever
Cigars are always trouble. Marina McCoy discusses Barbara Robinson’s The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (1972). Host John McCoy with Marina McCoy.
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168: The Time of Your Life
Sometimes you want to go where everybody is a thread in the fabric of the human condition. Also they know your name. Phil Gonzales discusses William Saroyan’s The Time of Your Life (1939). Host John McCoy with Phil Gonzales.
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167: Thanksgiving Special: Comfort Reads
Hey, things are tough. The McCoy Bros, Rob, John, and Dan, discuss the books that get them through. Host John McCoy with Rob McCoy and Dan McCoy.
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166: The Owl Service
Ross Cleaver returns to talk owls, plates, and Welsh mythology in Alan Garner’s The Owl Service (1967). Host John McCoy with Ross Cleaver.
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165: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
This episode has many omissions, and contains much that is apocryphal, or at least wildly inaccurate. Jacob Haller tries to make sense of Douglas Adams’s The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (1979). Host John McCoy with Jacob Haller.
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164: Lysistrata
What’s more cultivated and genteel than classical theater? David Loehr discusses Aristophanes’s Lysistrata (411 B.C.E.) Host John McCoy with David J. Loehr.
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163: The Twenty-One Balloons
Because twenty would be too few and twenty-two would be ridiculous. Shaenon K. Garrity discusses William Pène du Bois’s The Twenty-One Balloons (1947). Host John McCoy with Shaenon K. Garrity.
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162: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Rain Main meets Air Bud. Dan McCoy discusses stims and happy endings and Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (2003). Host John McCoy with Dan McCoy.
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161: A Canticle for Leibowitz
This is the way the world ends, not with a bang but with a bunch of monks sitting around copying stuff. Jelani Sims returns to discuss Walter M. Miller Jr.’s A Canticle for Leibowitz (1959). Host John McCoy with Jelani Sims.
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160: Why I Live at the P.O.
Stick some stamps on the top of our heads. Deborah Stanish discusses Eudora Welty’s “Why I Live at the P.O.” (1941) Host John McCoy with Deborah Stanish.
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159: The Phantom Tollbooth
The most important reason for going from one place to another is to see what’s in between. Moisés Chiullán discusses Norton Juster’s The Phantom Tollbooth (1961). [We’ve re-issued this episode to correct an audio problem.] Host John McCoy with Moisés Chiullán.
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158: A Perfect Day for Bananafish
Podcasters: What Do They Know? Do They Know Things?? Let’s Find Out! Jason Snell talks about marine life in J.D. Salinger’s “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” (1948). Host John McCoy with Jason Snell.
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157: The Veldt
Lions and tigers and bea— you know what, just lions. Jordan Morris is here to discuss Ray Bradbury’s story “the Veldt” (1950). Host John McCoy with Jordan Morris.
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156: Heart of Darkness
The Podcast! The Podcast! John Holt discusses the ill-fated cruise that is Joseph Conrad’s novelette Heart of Darkness (1899). Host John McCoy with John Holt.
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155: Tom Sawyer
Though his mind is not for rent, it still is the subject of this episode. Jacob Haller discusses Mark Twain’s Tom Sawyer (1876). Host John McCoy with Jacob Haller.
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154: Wide Sargasso Sea
Actually, I need this sea in an extra wide. Caroline Fulford discusses postcolonialism and recurring fires in Jean Rhys’s Wide Sargasso Sea (1966). Host John McCoy with Caroline Fulford.
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153: The Burglar's Christmas
The Burgermeister Meisterburger has nothing on this burglar! My wife Marina joins me for our annual Christmas episode. This time we discuss Willa Cather’s “The Burglar’s Christmas” (1896). Host John McCoy with Marina McCoy.
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152: The Prince in Waiting
The waiting is the hardest part. Ross Cleaver and James Randall discuss the apocalypse, palace intrigue, and the charm of 80’s BBC television in this episode about John Christopher’s The Prince in Waiting (1970). Host John McCoy with Ross Cleaver and James Randall.
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151: Thanksgiving Special: Poor Richard's Almanack
Fish and visitors stink in three days, but podcasts are evergreen! Dan and Rob return for the annual Thanksgiving nonsense with Benjamin Franklin’s Poor Richard’s Almanack (1732-1758). Host John McCoy with Dan McCoy and Rob McCoy.
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150: Valley of the Dolls
Raggedy Ann, Barbie, Chucky—they’re all here. That’s what this book is about, right? Erin Gambrill discusses Jacqueline Susann’s Valley of the Dolls (1966). Host John McCoy.
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149: On the Beach
Why just sit around waiting for the end of the world when you can hear a podcast about it? Jelani Sims discusses Nevil Shute’s On the Beach (1957). Host John McCoy with Jelani Sims.
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148: History of the Peloponnesian War
Kids today love Thucydides, right? Anyone? Daniel Daughhetee returns to discuss this late fifth century BCE chronicle of Athens v. Sparta. Host John McCoy with Daniel Daughetee.
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147: James Thurber
It’s a naive literary podcast without any breeding, but I think you’ll be amused by its presumption. Dan Cassino discusses James Thurber’s “The Catbird Seat” (1942) and The 13 Clocks (1950). Host John McCoy with Dan Cassino.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Sophomore Lit have?
Sophomore Lit currently has 195 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Sophomore Lit about?
John McCoy and a guest host read books you might have been assigned in high school, or college, or other stuff you might have read when you were a kid. The theming is loose!
How often does Sophomore Lit release new episodes?
Sophomore Lit publishes regularly with 195 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to Sophomore Lit?
You can listen to Sophomore Lit on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Sophomore Lit?
Sophomore Lit is created and hosted by John McCoy.
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