CanonBallz Podcast

Ulysses, Part 3

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 22 Jul 2018 20:51:00 -0700

Ben, Gemma, and Hillary have a lot of questions about Molly Bloom, and wonder if Leo's famed gift of empathy extends to women at all. Gemma pitches a Bad Gritty Reboot that turns Ulysses into an anthology TV series with each "chapter" written, directed, and produced by an entirely different group of people.

Ulysses, Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 29 Jun 2018 05:22:00 -0700

Ben, Gemma, and Hillary have a lot of questions about ULYSSES. Why does it contain a 200-page play? What is Leo Bloom's greatest gift as a human being and hero, besides being able to turn literally any moment in time into a sexual fantasy? What does "style-for-style's-sake" mean?

Ulysses, Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 18 Jun 2018 05:27:00 -0700

Ben, Gemma, and Hillary prepare themselves to read ULYSSES. Hillary walks us through the obscenity court cases surrounding it, Ben compares it to "Family Guy," and Gemma finds herself defending the fun of inside jokes.

The Odyssey, Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 4 Jun 2018 05:49:00 -0700

So ... Odysseus has PTSD, right? That's what Ben, Gemma, and Danielle speculate as they finish The Odyssey. Generally, it's considered untoward to murder a bunch of people in your house, even if they have been bad guests. Just ask the blind cyclops from the first episode. But is Homer's entire poem just a lesson in etiquette? Listen to find out.

The Odyssey, Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 21 May 2018 05:50:00 -0700

Ben, Gemma, and special guest Danielle Sheehan tackle the most classic of all classics over the next two episodes -- THE ODYSSEY, by Homer, the foundational text of the Western canon. Is it the story of a complicated man trying to get home, or the story of a dad who went out for cigarettes and came back 20 years later? In Books 1-12, the story we think of as "The Odyssey" is told, but what happens next?

Wuthering Heights

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 3 May 2018 21:03:00 -0700

CanonBallz returns with Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights, a delirious nightmare of a novel that is a true delight to read. Is Heathcliff an actual demon? Why didn't the Lintons just move? How could anyone read this as a love story? Seriously, stop reading this as a love story. Stop.

The Great Gatsby

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 13 Apr 2018 05:10:00 -0700

Update: CanonBallz is back, and from now on it will update every other Friday. The new schedule begins with THE GREAT GATSBY, a book you may have hated in high school but is pretty short so you might as well read it again as an adult. It is, unsurprisingly, Great, even though it's pretty clear to Ben, Gemma, and Charlie that everyone would have gone Nazi.

Ethan Frome

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 22 Feb 2018 06:01:00 -0800

Ben and Gemma discuss the bleakest book you ever had to read in high school, Edith Wharton's ETHAN FROME. Is it too sad? Is it as sad as life itself is supposed to be? Ben loves it, Gemma is exhausted by it, and both declare they probably don't need to go sledding any time soon.

The Scarlet Letter, Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 13 Feb 2018 21:21:00 -0800

In honor of Valentine's Day, Ben, Gemma, and Sarah finish up their exploration of everyone's favorite adulterous canon relationship. The real devil might also be involved! Is Arthur Dimmesdale a moral coward? Almost certainly. Does this mean all men are useless? We leave it up to you.

The Scarlet Letter, Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 6 Feb 2018 05:58:00 -0800

Ben and Gemma welcome Sarah Kuhn to talk about everyone's (least) favorite high school literature classic -- THE SCARLET LETTER. Is it a romance, a huge bummer, or a smug warren of symbolism? Why can't it be all three? Ben pitches a gritty reboot/revenge drama and Gemma and Sarah insist that at least in this world, magic is totally real.

Pride and Prejudice, Pt. 2

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 30 Jan 2018 05:55:00 -0800

Ben and Gemma are back, joined by special guest Lauryn McCarter. This week, they try to figure out which PRIDE AND PREJUDICE character would be the best wingperson (it's Mrs. Bennet, come on), and compare Mr. Collins to one of your least favorite NYT columnists. They also praise romantic relationships with real growth, and eviscerate some terrible adaptations of the novel.

Pride and Prejudice, Pt. 1

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 16 Jan 2018 05:34:00 -0800

Ben and Gemma welcome special guest Lauryn McCarter to discuss the classic of all classics -- PRIDE AND PREJUDICE. Sure, it may start with the most famous first line in literature (and maybe even about marriage?) but is getting hitched really so great? And on the scale of mild trash to just the worst, how awful is Caroline Bingley?

Lolita, Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 9 Jan 2018 06:04:00 -0800

Ben and Gemma finish LOLITA, and wonder if Nabakov's assertion that the novel only exists for aesthetic value can ever really be true. Is it really trying to indict all relationships between men and women, or is it, as Nabakov says, just a way to dip into an experience that should never really exist outside of fiction. Yeah, you guessed it -- this one's a little light on jokes.

Lolita, Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 3 Jan 2018 06:05:00 -0800

Ben and Gemma begin LOLITA this week, diving headfirst into the best-known novel about a creepy vaguely European guy and his extremely upsetting obsession with young girls. Is Humbert Humbert a textbook sociopath, or is there more to him? Does it matter that "Humbert" is a good writer, and does that make us sympathize with him more?

Be warned -- content not appropriate for children is discussed in this episode.

2017 in Books

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 26 Dec 2017 14:29:00 -0800

There's no new book this week due to the winter holidays. But there is a mini-episode where Ben and Gemma share the five best books they read in 2017. Let us know what your favorite books of the year were, too!

The Prince and the Pauper

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 22 Dec 2017 07:25:00 -0800

Ben, Gemma, and special guest Hillary Rich dissect THE PRINCE AND THE PAUPER, Mark Twain's second-best identity swap novel. They enjoy Twain clowning on the monarchy, but wonder if he meant to write a serious examination of class or just some weird Tudor fanfiction.

Anne of Green Gables, Pt. 2

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 12 Dec 2017 10:23:00 -0800

Ben, Gemma, and Kirin finish up ANNE OF GREEN GABLES by trying to figure out if Gilbert is actually a decent guy. Ben pitches a contemporary high school reboot starring Josie Pye as Gossip Girl (it gets weird), and Kirin reminds us how the series teaches us to be empathetic and kind.

Anne of Green Gables, Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 5 Dec 2017 05:26:00 -0800

Gemma and Ben are joined this week by Kirin McCrory, who reminds them that L.M. Montgomery's classic novel is really all about learning empathy. But that doesn't really stop them from making fun of Josie Pye (who deserves it). They also choose their favorite Anne Shirley adventures, and pitch some Anne-fics that should probably never leave the dark side of the internet.

Bleak House, Pt. 4

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 30 Nov 2017 20:16:00 -0800

It's the final episode of BLEAK HOUSE! Gemma and the Bens wonder if Mr. Bucket is a good or a bad person, and if John Jarndyce is God or just an old creeper. They also decide that Esther is actually a bummer, and Gemma pitches a sprawling fanfic about Mrs. Bucket, private eye.

Next week: ANNE OF GREEN GABLES

Bleak House, Pt. 3

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 21 Nov 2017 06:17:00 -0800

We're nearly at the end of Bleak House now. In this episode, Gemma and the Bens have a lot of WTF questions about Dickens' mental state. They also want to know who shot Tulkinghorn through the heart, and why Jarndyce thought it was a good idea to propose to a woman he has known since she was a child. Are all Dickensian men are either creeps or dead? Almost certainly.

Bleak House, Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 15 Nov 2017 05:36:00 -0800

Gemma, Ben, and Ben are back with chapters 17-32 of Bleak House, catching up on what appears to be the journey of a bunch of powerful men attempting to ruin a successful woman's life. They try to unpack Dickens' extremely brutal view of marriage and introduce the Rich People Burns Power Rankings. Plus: Spontaneous human combustion!

Bleak House, Pt. 1

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 7 Nov 2017 05:51:00 -0800

Ben, Gemma, and Other Ben (Gullard, if you were wondering), begin Bleak House this month. This episode tackles chapters 1-16, in which they discuss Esther Summerson's personality, Ada's lack of one, and all the best secondary characters. Ben discovers Charles Dickens is great at roasting rich people, and Gemma pitches a terrible modern adaptation about patent trolls and app lawsuits.

Dracula, Pt. 2

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 31 Oct 2017 05:58:00 -0700

Just in time for Halloween, Ben, Gemma, and Michael put the final stake in Dracula. Mina joins the fight against ancient evil, which is great because she's smart and everyone else is dumb. There's a final battle for her soul ... but it seems just a little anti-climactic, considering the stakes. Ben writes a fanfic and Michael decides who goes Nazi. Get your garlic flowers and dive in.

Dracula, Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 13:04:00 -0700

Just in time for Halloween, Ben, Gemma, and special guest Michael Clair (master of all things spooky) jump into perhaps the most classic horror novel of all time: Dracula, by Bram Stoker. Why doesn't Jonathan Harker just listen to the peasants who tell him to stay away from that big creepy castle? Is Van Helsing a cool monster hunter or an insufferable pedant? Most importantly, how big can a bat actually get?

The Turn of the Screw

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 29 Oct 2017 10:30:00 -0700

Since it's the spookiest month of the year, Ben and Gemma decided to jump into one of the spookiest books of all time -- Henry James' The Turn of the Screw. Joined by horror aficionado Penny Cox (of Vampire Diaries and Scream), they talk about the scariest thing about the story: class issues. What's so terrifying about the ghost? He's not wearing a hat. Listen in and decide if you'd rather be Miles or Flora, or marry the governess or a "rough menial."