Tag: reading

We tend to joke a lot about “content,” “grit,” and “scenes” in books. But today, we’re having a serious conversation (as serious as we get anyway) about the place of questionable content in fiction, if there is actually a legitimate place at all. Listen in as we get think-piece-y while discussing:

• If we should make distinctions between violent and sexual content
• What we do when we get caught off-guard by explicit content in a book
• Why it’s not good for fiction to get preachy
• If explicit content is a crutch for trash writing
• Whether or not James Bond is a sociopath
• Aaron and Barnabas’ recommendations for a fiction series for Dave to read

As always, thanks to Lagares Roasters for partnering with us to make the Table of (mal)Contents blend. Pick up a bag (or 12) today.

A few of the books we discussed on this episode

• The Century Trilogy by Ken Follett
• The Coroman Strike series by Robert Galbraith
• The Conquerer series by Conn Iggulden
• Ashtown Burials by N. D. Wilson
• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
• Struck by Russ Ramsey
• Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield
• A Gentleman’s Game: A Queen & Country Novel by Greg Rucka

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• Leave a five-star rating and review on Apple Podcasts. This only takes a second and will go a long way to helping other people find the show.
• If you know someone who would benefit from listening, share the show on your favorite social media network.
• Give us a follow on Twitter at @malContentsPod
• We use affiliate links from Amazon to help us pay for the costs of producing and hosting the podcast. Be sure to purchase a book or ten that we talk about on every episode.
• Interested in sponsoring Table of (mal)Contents? Let’s talk via email or DM @malContentsPod on Twitter.

We love our listeners—you are as much a part of this show as we are, with your questions, feedback, and more than a little shade that gets thrown at us. On today’s episode, we introduce a new way for you to participate in the show with our illiteracy helpline! With the help of Google Voice, we set up a new number for you to call in with your questions, and asked a few of you to test it out. And boy, did you ask some great questions! Listen in as we discuss:

• How Barnabas’ personality lines up with the temperament of a cat
• What book we would wipe out of existence if we could
• Which movie based on a book we think are better than the original book
• How we organize our books
• What books we didn’t expect to like but we wound up really enjoying (or vice versa)
• A challenge for you: help us get to 100 reviews on iTunes

As always, thanks to our sponsors:

• Lagares Roasters has partnered with us to make the Table of (mal)Contents blend. Pick up a bag (or 12) today.
• Gospel-Centered Discipleship, which produces resources to help make, mature, and multiply disciples of Jesus. Check out gcdiscipleship.com/books and enjoy a special discount on all ebooks by using the coupon MALCONTENT at check out.

And if you have a question for the show, call our illiteracy helpline at 615-538-7473 and leave us a message. Your question may be featured on a future episode.

A few of the books that we discussed today (that we wouldn’t wipe out of existence):

• Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
• Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
• The Cold Dish by Craig Johnson

Sharing and supporting the show

• Leave a five-star rating and review on Apple Podcasts. This only takes a second and will go a long way to helping other people find the show.
• If you know someone who would benefit from listening, share the show on your favorite social media network.
• Give us a follow on Twitter at @malContentsPod
• We use affiliate links from Amazon to help us pay for the costs of producing and hosting the podcast. Be sure to purchase a book or ten that we talk about on every episode.
• Interested in sponsoring Table of (mal)Contents? Let’s talk via email or DM @malContentsPod on Twitter.

The three of us read a lot of books, but even as guys who really like to read, there are too many books that are just way too long. Maybe you feel the same way. So today, we’re back in the studio in Nashville to talk about some of our favorite books that are quick reads. Listen in as we discuss:

• How do we define “short” books?
• Are celebrity memoirs actually any good?
• How do we really feel about the books we are “encouraged” to read by our bosses?
• What is the best time of year to be in Nashville?
• Who will take the title of Most-Referenced Author from Leif Enger?
• Who is the most self-promo-y podcaster out there?
• Should we call Conan O’Brien’s podcast hotline and invite him on our show?

As always, thanks to our sponsors:

• Lagares Roasters has partnered with us to make the Table of (mal)Contents blend. Pick up a bag (or 12) today.
• Gospel-Centered Discipleship, which produces resources to help make, mature, and multiply disciples of Jesus. Check out gcdiscipleship.com/books and enjoy a special discount on all ebooks by using the coupon MALCONTENT at check out.

A few of the books we discussed today:

• The Secret Diary of Hendrick Groen, 83 1/4 Years Old
• Shopgirl by Steve Martin
• The War of Art, Do the Work, and Nobody Wants to Read Your ****by Stephen Pressfield
• I Must Say by Martin Short
• Churchill by Paul Johnson
• The Pursuit of God by A. W. Tozer
• April 1865 by Jay Winik
• Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
• The Great Divorce and A Grief Observed by C. S. Lewis
• The Gospel and Marriage and the Mystery of the Gospel by Ray Ortlund
• Lincoln on Leadership by Donald Phillips
• The Elements of Style by Strunk and White
• Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman
• The Green Ember series by S. D. Smith
• Awaiting a Savior by Aaron Armstrong
• A River Runs Through It by Norman Maclean
• The Search for God and Guinness by Stephen Mansfield
• It Worked for Me by Colin Powell
• The Lion’s Gate by Stephen Pressfield

Sharing and supporting the show

• Leave a five-star rating and review on Apple Podcasts. This only takes a second and will go a long way to helping other people find the show.
• If you know someone who would benefit from listening, share the show on your favorite social media network.
• Give us a follow on Twitter at @malContentsPod
• We use affiliate links from Amazon to help us pay for the costs of producing and hosting the podcast. Be sure to purchase a book or ten that we talk about on every episode.
• Interested in sponsoring Table of (mal)Contents? Let’s talk via email or DM @malContentsPod on Twitter.

All of us live around Nashville, but sometimes it takes traveling to Indianapolis to make magic happen. That’s what happens on this episode of Table of (mal)Contents, as Russ Ramsey joins us for a great chat about the art of writing, and that time he wrote a letter to Annie Dillard. Listen in as we discuss:

• The magical time in the mid-90s when all the baseball players were juicing
• Russ’ book being endorsed by Leif Enger
• Are we doing readers a disservice by making them easier to read?
• The secret to having a bestselling book among evangelicals
• Why Christians need to be grounded in the rules of narrative in order to understand the Bible
• The social contract between readers and writers
• The origin of the phrase “the world is her oyster”
• Where to start reading Annie Dillard

A few of the books we discussed in this episode:

• The Abundance by Annie Dillard
• Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard
• The Living by Annie Dillard
• Teaching a Stone to Talk by Annie Dillard
• The Advent of the Lamb, The Passion of the King of Glory, and The Mission of the Body of Christ by Russ Ramsey
• Struck by Russ Ramsey
• The Story of Christianity by Justo L. Gonzalez
• The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby
• Don’t Panic: Douglas Adams and the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Neil Gaiman
• The Flash Vol. 9: Reckoning of the Forces by Joshua Williamson

And, as always, thanks to Lagares Roasters for partnering with us to make the Table of (mal)Contents blend. Pick up a bag (or 12) today.

Sharing and supporting the show

• Leave a five-star rating and review on Apple Podcasts. This only takes a second and will go a long way to helping other people find the show.
• If you know someone who would benefit from listening, share the show on your favorite social media network.
• Give us a follow on Twitter at @malContentsPod
• We use affiliate links from Amazon to help us pay for the costs of producing and hosting the podcast. Be sure to purchase a book or ten that we talk about on every episode.
• Interested in sponsoring Table of (mal)Contents? Let’s talk via email or DM @malContentsPod on Twitter.

A little while ago, Dave and I recorded a couple of special episodes of Reading Writers. They were, in fact, the final two episodes of season 3 of the show. But rather than doing this whole “releasing them on time” thing, I went and had a big project get in the way. 

So, we’re releasing the first of these two episodes today. In this episode, Dave and I discuss something incredibly important, especially for folks living a busy lifestyle: how do you fit reading into the margins of life? 

Although we don’t discuss too many books this time around, we do still give a shout-out to a couple we’re both reading:

• Shoe Dog by Phil Knight
• Gay Girl, Good God by Jackie Hill Perry
• The Art of Rest by Adam Mabry
  

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