Portable Magic
A podcast about books, literature, reading, publishing, and more. Hosted by Emily Hughes and Kyle Deas.
Episodes
This episode, Emily and Kyle catch up on what they've been reading so far in 2016 – including a long-overdue discussion of Scott Hawkins' The Library of Mt Char.
They also discuss several new fantasy novels, Kyle's cookbook addiction, Helen Ellis' hilarious new book of short stories, and the inspiration behind the Pringles potato chip guy.
Episode Breakdown:
- 0:00 – 0...
This episode, Emily and Kyle discuss how they find the time and motivation to read, even amongst all the other distractions of modern life.
Plus, for the second year in a row, they provide a comprehensive gift list for all the last-second holiday shoppers out there.
Episode Breakdown:
- 0:00 – 10:00: What We're Reading
- 10:00 – 40:00: Finding the Motivation to Read
- 40...
This episode, Emily and Kyle discuss which contemporary books will become classics. Along the way, they touch on Infinite Jest, Harry Potter, and many, many more.
Plus, Kyle's been spending some time with Welcome to Night Vale and the newest encyclical from the Pope, while Emily's been immersed in Peter Clines' The Fold.
Episode Breakdown:
- 0:00 – 16:00: What We're Re...
This episode, we take a trip back to our awkward high-school years to discuss what we read, what we didn't, and what stuck with us.
Plus, quick thoughts on Kim Stanley Robinson's Aurora and Nicole Kornher-Stace's Archivist Wasp.
Episode Breakdown:
- 0:00 – 16:00: What We're Reading
- 16:00 – 1:20:00: Books We Read in High School
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This episode, we take a closer look at the bibliography of the amiable travel, science, and memoir writer Bill Bryson.
Plus, our quick thoughts on China Mieville, The Devil in the White City, and pop history vs. scholarly history.
Episode Breakdown:
- 0:00 – 10:00: What We're Reading
- 10:00 – 53:00: Bill Bryson
What Em...
This episode, we take a hopefully-not-too-grim look at the genre of post-apocalyptic fiction. Emily wonders why the genre attracts so many hyper-masculine writers and Kyle talks about one of his favorite and one of his least favorite novels.
No spoilers to speak of in this episode.
Episode Breakdown:
- 0:00 – 9:00: What We're Reading
- 9:00 – 1:00:00: Post-Apocalyptic F...
This episode, we take a close look at Andy Weir's hard sci-fi novel The Martian and discuss its unusual publication history, its narrative structure, and how effective we thought the book turned out to be.
Plus, Emily's been on a horror kick and Kyle's been hate-watching True Detective, so he decided to pick up Nic Pizzolatto's debut novel.
Warning: This episode contains some coarse language. Maybe don't listen with the kids aro...
This episode, we're talking about the alternative book formats: eBooks and audiobooks. We talk about our habits with each, our favorite examples of each medium, and what might be stopping these alternative formats from reaching their full potential.
Episode Breakdown:
- 0:00 – 5:00: What We're Reading
- 5:00 – 55:00: eBooks & Audiobooks
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Welcome back to Portable Magic! In this episode, we're talking about adaptations – good and bad. In the mix are The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, The Princess Bride, The Great Gatsby, Game of Thrones, and many more.
Episode Breakdown:
- 0:00 – 10:00: What We're Reading
- 10:00 – 1:00:00: Adaptations
What Emily's Readi...
We forgot to introduce ourselves this week! If you're new to the show, Portable Magic is hosted by Emily Hughes and Kyle Deas.
This episode, we take a look at short stories – our favorites, the classics, and the magic and the art behind them. Emily makes the argument that we're living in the golden age of the short story collection and Kyle wonders what happened to all the magazines that used to publish short fiction.
Plus, we t...
This episode, Kyle and Emily take a close look at horror fiction – why we read it, how it scares us, and what our favorite horror novels are. Kyle tells us what his pick is for the scariest Stephen King book and Emily talks about the books that got her into horror in the first place.
Plus, Emily follows up on her impressions of Beautiful Darkness, Kyle's pick for A Gift For A Child You Hate from Episode 2!
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This episode, Kyle and Emily talk about "literary fanfiction": the sub-genre of books by established authors that inhabit the world of older works of literature. We couldn't find a good term to refer to these sorts of books, but think of works like Ahab's Wife or Rosencrantz and Guilderstern are Dead.
Plus, they talk about the Suvudu cage match and the challenges of writing fanfiction.
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This episode, Kyle and Emily devote the whole show to discussing Tana French's debut novel In the Woods.
The discussion prior to 26 minutes or so is spoiler-free, so if you're interested in the book but haven't read it, feel free to listen that far. After that point, though, spoilers abound!
Episode Breakdown:
- 0:00 – 4:30: What We're Reading
- 4:30 – 26:00: In the Wo...
Last year, Ruth Graham published an article in Slate arguing that adults should feel embarrassed to read young-adult fiction. This episode, Emily and Kyle weigh in on the debate and talk about how to balance reading what you like with finding material that challenges you.
Plus, they talk about what books they've been reading and Kyle gets much too excited about Robert Jackson Bennett's fantasy novel City of Stairs.
This episode, Emily and Kyle dive deep into the bibliography of Neil Gaiman, including his novels (especially American Gods, Neverwhere, and Anansi Boys), his children's books, and his two episodes of Doctor Who.
Plus, they talk about what books they've been reading, including a quick follow-up from their discussion Episode Three about Jeff Vandermeer's Southern Reach trilogy.
Epi...
This week, Emily and Kyle talk about forgotten novels – books they've stumbled across, picked up at the used bookstore, or been recommended that it seems like nobody's ever heard of.
Plus, they follow up on the books they gave as gifts this year and talk about what they're reading.
Episode Breakdown:
- 0:00 – 16:00: What We're Reading
- 16:00 – 23:00: Follow-Up: Gifts...
It’s the Holiday Season, and Portable Magic has you covered! Listen to Emily and Kyle talk about the tricky act of giving books as gifts, what makes a book a great gift, and give some book recommendations for the people in your life.
Episode Breakdown:
- 0:00 – 10:00: What We're Reading
- 10:00 – 35:00: Discussion: Books as Gifts
- 35:00 – 50:00: Specific recommendations for the people in your life
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In this inaugural episode of Portable Magic, Emily and Kyle talk about reading on the road, their best and worst travel reading experiences, and ponder the mystery of the airport bookstore.
They also discuss their vision for the Portable Magic podcast and talk about what they're currently reading.
Episode Breakdown:
- 0:00 – 10:00: What We're Reading
- 10:00 – 17:00: Our Vision for the Podcast
- 17:00 – 50:00: Reading ...
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