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Home > MashReads Podcast > 'The Idiot' and Russian literature you should read
Podcast: MashReads Podcast
Episode:

'The Idiot' and Russian literature you should read
Category: Arts
Duration: 00:55:56
Publish Date: 2017-07-11 22:39:52
Description:
This week on the MashReads Podcast, we read and discuss Elif Batuman's new novel The Idiot.
 
The book follows the year in the life of Selin, a Turkish-American freshman at Harvard. As Selin goes throughout her freshman year who is growing up, navigating an infatuation/ relationship with a senior student who is from Hungary, and examining existence and language in the world by studying linguistics.
 
"It is plotless, it's mundane and quiet and calm, and it's very internal, and it's kind of wonderful," says Peter.
 
Then, inspired by The Idiot, which follows conventions of Russian literature, we discuss impactful and formative Russian literature that you should read, including The Brothers Karamazov and Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky and Forty Rooms by Olga Grushin.
 
Then, as always, we close the show with recommendations:
  • Aliza recommends catching up on Game of Thrones. MJ piggiebacks off of that and also recommends Funny or Die's Game of Thrones recap series "Gay of Thrones."
  • Peter recommends Edgar Wright's new movie Baby Driver.
  • MJ has a host of microrecommendations including: reading The New York Times Magazine's Letters of Recommendation and listening to Carly Rae Jepsen's album Emotion when you're having a bad day.

And finally, we have a MashReads book club book of the month: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi. Yaa is going to be talking to MashReads IRL on July 25 at 6:30pm ET in our New York City HQ. If you'd like to attend, RSVP here.
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