Roman talks with José Vergara about Joyce's influence on Soviet and post-Soviet Russian literature. We talk literary heritage, the dangers of translating Ulysses under Stalin, the birth of Social Realism (and its ugly stepsister, Capitalist Primitivism), the schizophrenic nature of the late Soviet period, émigré writing, and Joyce's continued influence on contemporary Russian writers. A fascinating talk that sheds much light on both Joyce and Russian lit.
Writers discussed include: Yury Olesha, Vladimir Nabokov, Andrei Bitov, Sasha Sokolov, and Mikhail Shishkin (cameos of sorts by Victor Pelevin and William Gaddis).  
José's book, "All future plunges to the past : James Joyce in Russian literature," was published by Cornell University Press in 2021. https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501759901/all-future-plunges-to-the-past/

James Joyce in Russian Literature - Episode No. 45

Is it common practice to lie in a memoir? Not for accomplished memoirists, according to Mary Karr. The Art of Memoir, in part a how-to book, distills 30 years of teaching and writing memoir.
    


Mary Karr: The Art of Memoir

It has been a science fiction phenomenon. President Obama loved it, it's a perennial Powell's Books best-seller. We debate its merits and drill down on "hard" vs. "soft" science fiction. We talk about the Thucydides Trap, who fears aliens, the history of science fiction in the west and Roman's karma with Philip K. Dick. Music: “Sunday Smooth" by Scott Buckley, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License - www.scottbuckley.com.au.

The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu - Episode No. 17

Feeling Bookish Podcast focuses on maximalist, innovative novels and literature in translation. Periodic interviews with critics, writers and translators. Hosted by Roman Tsivkin and Robert Fay. Produced by Heston Hoffman. Email: robertfay23 at gmail

The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu - Episode No. 17

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