TMR 21.6: "Interview with a Mirror" [Same Bed Different Dreams]

The first episode of the new season of the Two Month Review—covering Alexis Wright's Praiseworthy (New Directions, And Other Stories, Giramondo)—start off with Chad crapping on golf, then rolls on into book design and books as objects, the pacing and rhythms of Wright's work, its humor, its orality, what ancillary information is beneficial, and how the introduction of the two children really snap the first section into place as a reading experience.

This week's music is "Sham System (The Limiñanas Rework)" by Al-Qasar.

You can find all previous seasons of TMR on our YouTube channel and you can support us at Patreon and get bonus content before anyone else, along with other rewards, the opportunity to easily communicate with the hosts, etc. And please subcribe and rate us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Tune in next week for more banter and analysis live on YouTube where we will be covering pages 68-133.

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We've reached the end which, in Chad and Brian's opinion, Ed Park totally lands. There's Friday the 13th talk. Reagan makes an appearance. The structure of the book is revisited. As are all the ideas of mirrors and patrimony, assassins and conspiracy theories.

Note: Information about the "Opening the Channel" translation and creative flow retreat being organized by former co-host Katie Whittemore discussed on this episode is available here.

This week's music is from Jodie Foster's Army.

You can find all previous seasons of TMR on our YouTube channel and you can support us at Patreon and get bonus content before anyone else, along with other rewards, the opportunity to easily communicate with the hosts, etc. And please subcribe and rate us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Stay tuned for information on Season 22 featuring Praiseworthy by Alexis Wright.

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The threads all come together in this week's section as the book barrels toward its conclusion. On this episode, Chad describes his visualization of the book's structure, Tim Hortons and Dunkin Donuts get crapped on, 2333 gets a new meaning, the Moonies make an appearance, as does Ronald Reagan (boo, hiss), Philip Roth, and PDK. Also, a Sleeper Awakes. Just remember, dreams are everything that's not online.

Note: Information about the "Opening the Channel" translation and creative flow retreat being organized by former co-host Katie Whittemore discussed on this episode is available here.

This week's music is peak TMR music times. "Tim Hortons" by Pretty Gary. 

You can find all previous seasons of TMR on our YouTube channel and you can support us at Patreon and get bonus content before anyone else, along with other rewards, the opportunity to easily communicate with the hosts, etc. And please subcribe and rate us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Tune in next week for "MOON IS A MENACE" which wrap up the book and introduce season 22. (Full schedule here.)

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The large image associated with this post is a still from I've Got a Secret courtesy of Google's image search, CBS, and maybe Winston cigarettes?

Korean food, Grocery Games, VCR tapes, screenplays, gazebos, a thumb drive, Amsterdam, and the statement, "TRANSLATION IS A LONG CON."

This week's music is "I'll Be Your Mirror" by Velvet Underground.

You can find all previous seasons of TMR on our YouTube channel and you can support us at Patreon and get bonus content before anyone else, along with other rewards, the opportunity to easily communicate with the hosts, etc. And please subcribe and rate us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Tune in next week for "Taro Tsujimoto," which will cover through page 450. (Full schedule here.)

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The connections proliferate and the threading together of the three sections continues. Interactive rights to 2333 are finally, properly sold; the mystery surrounding Echo grows; and The Buffalo Evening News brings the concept of "fake news" to a whole new level. That and more in this week's episode.

This week's music is "Simulation Swarm" by Big Thief.

You can find all previous seasons of TMR on our YouTube channel and you can support us at Patreon and get bonus content before anyone else, along with other rewards, the opportunity to easily communicate with the hosts, etc. And please subcribe and rate us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Tune in next week for "Interview with a Mirror," which will cover through page 382. (Full schedule here.)

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Brian's back and everyone is (mostly) healthy. They talk about Korean history, double (or triple) agents, the idea of history as coincidence or plot, North and South Korea, and more.

This week's music is "Two States" by Pavement.

You can find all previous seasons of TMR on our YouTube channel and you can support us at Patreon and get bonus content before anyone else, along with other rewards, the opportunity to easily communicate with the hosts, etc. And please subcribe and rate us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Tune in next week for "A-Bomb Destroys Downtown Buffalo," which will cover through page 342. (Full schedule here.)

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad Post, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests.

Protect yourself: There's a chance you'll catch Chad's illness simply by listening to this episode. An episode in which he tries to recap a number of elements of the book—the 2333 game, the louse, wildwording—to Kaija Straumanis amid coughing fits and a dissolving brain. He also shares the most bizarre dream he's ever had, which is something else.

This week's music is "Gospel for a New Century" by Yves Tumor. Whose 2023 album, Praise a Lord Who Chews But Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds) is quite brilliant.

You can find all previous seasons of TMR on our YouTube channel and you can support us at Patreon and get bonus content before anyone else, along with other rewards, the opportunity to easily communicate with the hosts, etc. And please subcribe and rate us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Tune in next week for "The Second Bae," which will cover through page 256.

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From their respective hotel rooms, Chad and Brian talk about science fiction, 2/3/33 (and 2/6/66??), conspiracy vs. coincidence, Ohtani and Lee, the ASS black satchel, the assassinations we don't learn much about in high school, Hegemon, more KPG connections, and the (not great) alt-newspaper of the week.

This week's music is "Something Soon" by Car Seat Headrest.

You can find all previous seasons of TMR on our YouTube channel and you can support us at Patreon and get bonus content before anyone else, along with other rewards, the opportunity to easily communicate with the hosts, etc. And please subcribe and rate us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Tune in next week for "Wildwording," which will cover up to page 206.

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad Post, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests.

The large image associated with this post is from the Druthers newspaper discussed on the show, and which we won't be linking to.

Season 21 of the Two Month Review kicks off with a discussion of Taylor Swift and the demise of alt-weeklies, then segues into a long discussion about the opening party scene in Same Bed Different Dreams. Chad and Brian talk about what's real and not in both the party scene and the "Dream One" section about the Korean Provisional Government, and start picking out various echos or motifs in the text—some of which won't come to fruition for several episodes .  . . 

This week's music is "Debra" by Jockstrap.

You can find all previous seasons of TMR on our YouTube channel and you can support us at Patreon and get bonus content before anyone else, along with other rewards, the opportunity to easily communicate with the hosts, etc. And please rate us—wherever you get your podcasts!

Tune in next week for "2333," which will cover up to page 155.

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad Post, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests.

Brian and Chad break down the ending of Mulligan Stew, discuss how this is one of maybe 2-3 endings by books featured on TMR that truly works, banter about possible titles for next season, get a little strange, and analyze what works and doesn't work about the AI generated jacket copy. (Oh, metaphors.)

This week's music is "Web in Front" by Archers of Loaf. ("And there's a chance that things could get weird" is basically the thesis statement for this podcat.)

You can find all previous seasons of TMR on our YouTube channel and you can support us at Patreon and get bonus content before anyone else, along with other rewards, the opportunity to easily communicate with the hosts, etc. And please rate us—wherever you get your podcasts!

Tune in . . . sometime soon for Season 21! We don't have a book locked in yet, so if you have suggestions, send them along! 

Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad Post, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests.