Three Percent Podcast

In this episode--covering Tómas Jónsson's fourth composition book--a number of the themes of the overall novel are put on display: Tómas's relationship to his body, the way he tries to create a narrative for himself, possible injustices he's suffered during his life, the way his lodgers are like an army, and more. And there's no one better to help parse these elements than author and critic Scott Esposito. He joins Chad and Lytton for an episode that may be a bit long, but is stuffed full of insight about this Icelandic masterpiece.   Also discussed in this episode is Scott's interview with Lytton for Conversational Reading.   Feel free to comment on this episode--or on the book in general--either on this post, or at the official GoodReads Group.   Tómas Jónsson, Bestseller is available at better bookstores everywhere, and you can also order it directly from Open Letter, where you can get 20% off by entering 2MONTH in the discount field at checkout.   Follow Open Letter, Chad Post, and Lytton Smith for more t

This week, Ph.D. candidate Anastasia Nikolis joins Chad and Lytton to talk about the real meat of Tómas Jónsson, Bestseller--chamber pot usage! They also discuss the way our grumpy narrator's mind works, the way he finds beauty in ambiguity, how Lytton translated a very specific word game, and a couple cues to help keep track of "when" particular sections are taking place. A lively and learned episode--just like the novel itself.   Feel free to comment on this episode--or on the book in general--either on this post, or at the official GoodReads Group.   Tómas Jónsson, Bestseller is available at better bookstores everywhere, and you can also order it directly from Open Letter, where you can get 20% off by entering 2MONTH in the discount field at checkout.   Follow Open Letter, Chad Post, Lytton Smith, and for more thoughts and information about upcoming guests. And listen to Anastasia's poetry podcast, Black Box Poetry, to hear more of her thoughts about writing and literature.   You can find all Two Month Rev

And with this episode, we launch the second season of the Two Month Review! Over a ten-week period, we will be breaking down Tómas Jónsson, Bestseller by Guðbergur Bergsson, helping explain and explore what makes this book (often referred to as "Iceland's Ulysses") so influential and interesting. This season, translator, poet, and professor Lytton Smith will join Chad Post to talk about the book, along with a variety of guests, including a number of booksellers, critics, and readers. The full reading schedule can be found here, but in this particular episode, Lytton and Chad provide some background information about the book, Bergsson's career, and Icelandic literature as a whole. They're joined this week by Brian Wood, who, as usual, is entertaining and funny while also asking really important questions that help provide a context for approaching this novel.   Feel free to comment on this episode--or on the book in general--either on this post, or at the official GoodReads Group.   Tómas Jónsson, Bestseller

On this episode of the Three Percent Podcast, Chad and Tom talk about Peter Straub's 2010 article about genre, the existence (or not) of translation as a genre, Hudson Bookstore's attempt to co-op the indie bookstore "ethos," and this stupid infographic. They also touch on Women in Translation month (with promises of future data to analyze), and the Rochester Plates promotion.   This week's music is "Destroy This Poem" by Hallelujah the Hills.   As always, feel free to send any and all comments or questions to: threepercentpodcast@gmail.com. Also, if there are articles you'd like us to read and analyze (or just make fun of), send those along as well.   And if you like the podcast, tell a friend and rate us or leave a review on iTunes!

As a special bonus episode, both Rodrigo Fresán and Will Vanderhyden joined Chad and Brian to talk about The Invented Part as a whole, the first season of the Two Month Review, what's next in the trilogy, technology's revenge on Rodrigo, David Lynch, and, how to write jacket copy.    Feel free to comment on this episode--or on the book in general--either on this post, or at the official GoodReads Group.   The Invented Part is avaialble at better bookstores everywhere, and you can also order it directly from Open Letter, where you can get 20% off by entering 2MONTH in the discount field at checkout.   The next season will focus on Tómas Jónsson, Bestseller by Guðbergur Bergsson. Get your copy now from Open Letter (use 2MONTH at checkout!) or from your favorite book retailer. More info on that reading schedule will be available next week.   Follow Open Letter, Chad Post, Brian Wood and Will Vanderhyden on Twitter for more thoughts and information about upcoming guests.   And you can find all Two Month Review po

We did it! After two months, eleven episodes, and a half dozen different guests, Brian and Chand finished their discussion of Rodrigo Fresán's The Invented Part! Joining them this week to wrap things up is Valerie Miles, translator, publisher, co-founder of Granta en Español, and editor of A Thousand Forests in One Acorn. She's also friends with Rodrigo and offers amazing insight into this wild, stuffed chapter in which we return to the beginning ("How to end. Or better: How to end?") while The Writer flies through the skies, revisiting all the rants he made at a recent conference, and the spectacular attack from his archnemesis IKEA. There's a lot more to this section though--especially how it relates to the structure of the overall book.   Feel free to comment on this episode--or on the book in general--either on this post, or at the official GoodReads Group.   The Invented Part is avaialble at better bookstores everywhere, and you can also order it directly from Open Letter, where you can get 20% off by en

It's another 2MR review with just Chad and Brian! Similar to the previous guest-less episode, this one goes a bit off the rails . . . Although this time around it gets a lot darker, as they talk about Chekov, Girl, Night, Swimming Pool, Etc., a scream descending from the skies, John Cheever's writing prompt, and much much more.   Feel free to comment on this episode--or on the book in general--either on this post, or at the official GoodReads Group.   The Invented Part is avaialble at better bookstores everywhere, and you can also order it directly from Open Letter, where you can get 20% off by entering 2MONTH in the discount field at checkout.   Follow Open Letter, Chad Post, and Brian Wood on Twitter for more thoughts and information about upcoming guests.   And you can find all Two Month Review posts by clicking here.   The music for the first season of Two Month Review is "Big Sky" by The Kinks.   

On this week's Two Month Review, Tom Roberge from Riffraff and the Three Percent Podcast joins Chad and Brian talk about 2001: A Space Odyssey, Pink Floyd, potential errors and non-errors, cultural touchstones that serve to define friendships, the overall structure of this chapter of The Invented Part, and Tom's experience coming on the podcast having read only these forty pages of the novel. And, as per usual, Chad sneaks in a few Twin Peaks references.   Feel free to comment on this episode--or on the book in general--either on this post, or at the official GoodReads Group.   The Invented Part is avaialble at better bookstores everywhere, and you can also order it directly from Open Letter, where you can get 20% off by entering 2MONTH in the discount field at checkout.   Follow Open Letter, Chad Post, Brian Wood, and "The" Tom Roberge on Twitter for more thoughts and information about upcoming guests.   And you can find all Two Month Review posts by clicking here.   The music for the first season of Two Mon

Now that half of 2017 is over, Chad and Tom take a minute to reflect back on major stories, trends, and books from the first six months of the year. The conversation is quite lively (listen in to hear Chad lose his mind after reading the latest "Book Match" column), and covers issues of bookstore ownership, publicity and the state of book culture, the precarious state of nonprofit publishing, and Yadier Molina's horrible neck tattoo.   A few recommendations from this week's show: Such Small Hands by Andrés Barba, translated from the Spanish by Lisa Dillman GLOW on Netflix "Stadium Club" by Mark Mulroney   This week's music is a clip from "The Ballad of Costa Concordia" by Car Seat Headrest.   As always, feel free to send any and all comments or questions to: threepercentpodcast@gmail.com. Also, if there are articles you'd like us to read and analyze (or just make fun of), send those along as well.   And if you like the podcast, tell a friend and rate us or leave a review on iTunes!

On this week's Two Month Review, Chad and Brian talk about F. Scott Fitzgerald and Tender Is the Night, puzzles, how to properly introduce the show, the Modern Library list of top 100 novels of the twentieth century, Booth Tarkington, and much more more.   Feel free to comment on this episode--or on the book in general--either on this post, or at the official GoodReads Group.   The Invented Part is avaialble at better bookstores everywhere, and you can also order it directly from Open Letter, where you can get 20% off by entering 2MONTH in the discount field at checkout.   Follow Open Letter, Chad Post, and Brian Wood on Twitter for more thoughts and information about upcoming guests.   And you can find all Two Month Review posts by clicking here.   The music for the first season of Two Month Review is "Big Sky" by The Kinks.    

This week, Jonathan Lethem (Motherless Brooklyn, Chronic City) joins Chad and Brian to talk about The Writer's trip to a hospital, where he assumes something horrible is happening, which is countered by a gushing forth of new story ideas. Jonathan tells of his own experience coming up with one of his most famous books while recovering from an operation, tells of how he first met and bonded with Rodrigo Fresán, and talks about Believeniks!. This is a really meaty, fascinating episode about being a writer, mortality, Fresán's incredible talent, and much more.   Feel free to comment on this episode--or on the book in general--either on this post, or at the official GoodReads Group.   The Invented Part is avaialble at better bookstores everywhere, and you can also order it directly from Open Letter, where you can get 20% off by entering 2MONTH in the discount field at checkout.   Follow Open Letter, Chad Post, and Brian Wood on Twitter for more thoughts and information about upcoming guests. And you can find out

This week, Speculative Fiction in Translation founder and Best Translated Book Award judge Rachel Cordasco joins Chad and Brian to talk about the nature of time, deals with the devil, conflagrations, and writerly desires, or, in other words, the third part of "The Place Where the Sea Ends So the Forest Can Begin" in Rodrigo Fresán's The Invented Part. A very elegant section of the book following the wild, giant green cow bit that came before, the three hosts enthusiastically break down some of the plot clues included in this section, and what makes this book so damn good. (Stay till the very end to hear Rachel's enthusiasm take her over!)   Feel free to comment on this episode--or on the book in general--either on this post, or at the official GoodReads Group.   The Invented Part is avaialble at better bookstores everywhere, including Volumes Bookcafe. You can also order it directly from Open Letter, where you can get 20% off by entering 2MONTH in the discount field at checkout.   Follow Open Letter, Chad Pos

This week's episode is all about Penelope and her experiences with the Karmas. (And a Big Green Cow.) A lot of the Odyssey, Wuthering Heights, and William Burroughs are in this section, which is hilariously dissected by Brian, Chad, and their guest, Tom Flynn, the manager of Volumes Bookcafe in Chicago. One of the funniest--and most free-flowing, almost beat-like--sections of the book to date, this section explains a lot of the causes for Penelope's madness, while parodying an ultra-rich family of backstabbing, self-involved, frustratingly funny characters--many of whom make great material for a novel . . .   Feel free to comment on this episode--or on the book in general--either on this post, or at the official GoodReads Group.   The Invented Part is avaialble at better bookstores everywhere, including Volumes Bookcafe. You can also order it directly from Open Letter, where you can get 20% off by entering 2MONTH in the discount field at checkout.   Follow Open Letter, Chad Post, Brian Wood, and Volumes Bookc

Delayed for a couple weeks due to travel and work schedules, Chad and Tom are back to talk about the inaugural Albertine Prize (won by Antoine Volodine's Bardo or Not Bardo, translated by J. T. Mahany), Houellebecq's no show, and BookExpo and the forthcoming New York Rights Fair. They also talk a bit about the Two Month Review--the new subpodcast you can find in this same feed--and Tom's forthcoming appearance on the show. There's also witty banter galore, a bit of NBA Finals talk, and more.   This week's music is "Unicorn Tolerance" by The Mountain Goats.   As always, feel free to send any and all comments or questions to: threepercentpodcast@gmail.com. Also, if there are articles you'd like us to read and analyze (or just make fun of), send those along as well.   And if you like the podcast, tell a friend and rate us or leave a review on iTunes!

This week, author and journalist Mark Binelli joins Chad and Brian to discuss the first part of the second section of Rodrigo Fresán's The Invented Part. In "The Place Where the Seas Ends So the Forest Can Begin," we meet The Young Man and The Young Woman, who are making a movie about The Writer after his disappearance/death/whatever. From discussion of "irreal realism" to writing classes to the idea of a sitcom about writers, this week's discussion delights in The Writer's ideas about writing and reading, and the hints this chapter contains about the rest of the book.   Feel free to comment on this episode--or on the book in general--either on this post, or at the official GoodReads Group.   The Invented Part is avaialble at better bookstores everywhere, including from Open Letter directly, where you can get 20% off by entering 2MONTH in the discount field at checkout.   Follow Open Letter, Chad Post, Brian Wood, and Mark Binelli on Twitter for more thoughts and information about upcoming guests.   Also, cli

This week, Jeremy Garber from Powells Books joins Chad and Brian to discuss the first section of Rodrigo Fresán's The Invented Part. This section, entitled "The Real Character," introduces us to the main character of the book--known here as The Boy, and later as The Writer--as well as some of the major themes of the novel. Wide-ranging and very fun, the discussion touches on The Boy's epic list of thoughts and ideas (such as "It Jell-O animal, vegetal, mineral, or interplanetary?"), on the two versions of F. Scott Fitzgerald's Tender Is the Night, Gerald and Sara Murphy, the idea of "the invented part," turning off our cell phones, and much more.   Next week's guest will be Mark Binelli (Sacco and Vanzetti Must Die!, Screamin' Jay Hawkins' All-Time Greatest Hits, Detroit City Is the Place to Be), and will cover the first section of the second part of the novel, pages 46-98 of "Place Where the Sea Ends So the Forest Can Begin."   Feel free to comment on this episode--or on the book in general--either on this p

Translator Will Vanderhyden joins Chad and Brian to provide an overview of Rodrigo Fresán's work--especially The Invented Part. They discuss some of his earlier works (including Kensington Gardens, which is available in an English translation), different pop culture touchstones running throughout his oeuvre, related authors, and ways to approach The Invented Part.   They also talk a bit about the schedule and the future Two Month Review podcasts. The entire reading schedule is listed below, but for the next episode (June 1st), Chad and Brian will be joined by bookseller and Best Translated Book Award just Jeremy Garber to talk about "The Real Character," pages 1-45.   Here's the complete rundown of Two Month Review podcasts for The Invented Part: June 1: "The Real Character" (1-45) June 8: "Place Where the Sea Ends" (Part 1) (46-98) June 15: "Place Where the Sea Ends" (Parts 2) (99-207) June 22: "Place Where the Sea Ends" (Parts 3) (208-229) June 29: "A Few Things You Happen to Think About" (230-300) July 6:

In this week's episode, following an unintentional s***storm started on social media, Chad and Tom talk about the obligations of publishers and freelance translators, the cascade of things that can go wrong in the publication process, the necessary sales needed for translations to break even (and how likely that is/isn't), and a variety of new models publishers could employ to stay afloat.   This week's music is "Murder Me Rachael" by The National.    As always, feel free to send any and all comments or questions to: threepercentpodcast@gmail.com. Also, if there are articles you'd like us to read and analyze (or just make fun of), send those along as well.   And if you like the podcast, tell a friend and rate us or leave a review on iTunes!

Punctuated by toddler Isak's comments about Barney, Chad Post, Brian Wood, and Lytton Smith discuss the main motivations behind the upcoming "Two Month Review" podcasts, which will be released weekly starting in later this month, and will focus on a single book for a eight or nine week period.   As noted in this post, Rodrigo Fresán’s The Invented Part will be the first featured book (episodes released every Tuesday from 5/16 through 7/27), and Guðbergur Bergsson’s Tómas Jónsson, Bestseller will be the second (8/3-9/28).   In addition to these weekly podcasts, there is a GoodReads Group where anyone following along can post comments, questions, or other opinions.   Additionally, we are offering a 20% discount on orders of these two books from the Open Letter website. Just enter 2MONTH in the discount field at checkout. And since these are already back from the printer, we'll ship them out ASAP--well in advance of the official pub dates.   The music for the first season of Two Month Review is "Big Sky" by The

In this week's episode, Chad and Tom talk about their first ever episode, the new Granta list of Best Young American Novelists, and books they're looking forward to reading this summer. They also introduce the "Two Month Review"--a new series of weekly mini-episodes launching on Tuesday.   Here's a (fairly) complete list of the new books discussed on this episode: October by China Miéville Wolf Hunt by Ivailo Petrov Beasts Head for Home by Kobo Abe Warning to the Crocodiles by António Lobo Antunes Map Drawn by a Spy by Guillermo Cabrera Infante The Secret History of Twin Peaks by Mark Frost   And the authors and books Chad and/or Tom want to reread: Ulysses by James Joyce Absalom, Absalom! by William Faulkner Hopscotch by Julio Cortázar Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov Philip K. Dick, generally Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson This week's music is "The Two of Us" by The Jesus and Mary Chain.   As always, feel free to send any and all comments or questions to: threepercentpodcast@gmail.com. Also, if there are arti