Episode 35: GO BIG... or Go Home!

In this episode the BookXChange looks at the experience of reading BIG, meaty, epic-length books... books that might function well as doorstops, should you have a need for one. We dive into whether the experience of reading big books (fiction or non-fiction) is at all different from reading shorter ones; whether a reader needs to "prepare" more mentally or otherwise to take on a large tome; what the experience is like in being immersed into a story or subject that goes on for hundreds of pages; and of course, what are some of the best (and worst) experiences we've had reading longer books. Most readers can talk about the "epic" books they've loved, hated or tried their best to finish... this is the episode where your fearless (at least on paper!) literary twins roll up their sleeves and make the case for "going big or going home" when it comes to reading.

BOOKS DISCUSSED/MENTIONED/RECOMMENDED IN THIS EPISODE

What Jude is currently reading/plans to read next:

'Giving Up the Ghost,' Hilary Mantel -

'The Ox-Bow Incident,' Walter van Tilburg Clark -

What John is currently reading/plans to read next:

'Bad Dirt: Wyoming Stories 2,' Annie Proulx -

'Warlock,' Oakley Hall -

Books/Writers discussed in this episode:

'The Pillars of the Earth,' Ken Follett -

'Red Storm Rising,' Tom Clancy -

'Winter's Tale,' 'Freddy and Fredericka,' Mark Helprin -

'Weaveworld,' 'The Great and Secret Show,' 'Imajica,' Clive Barker -

'The Talisman,' Stephen King and Peter Straub -

'Koko,' Peter Straub -

'Tree of Smoke,' Denis Johnson -

'Middlemarch,' George Eliot -

'Skippy Dies,' Paul Murray -

'Barkskins,' Annie Proulx -

Various works by Dickens, Tolstoy, Hugo -

'John Adams,' 'Truman,' 'The Path Between the Seas,' David McCullough -

Planned next episode of the Book XChange podcast:

"The BXC Goes West"... on our next episode, the brothers will dive into books that have to do with the American West and all of its well-worn mythology... from classic Western novels, to more modern takes on the genre, to books that explore the landscape and history of the Western half of the United States... grab your rifle and pony and get ready to saddle up!