Michael & Ethan in a Room with Scotch

Michael & Ethan in a Room with Scotch
  • 4.6 (14)
  • Books
  • Updated Monthly

With their expertise in a grand total of 3 advanced degrees in English literature, as well as a lifetime of reading, Michael & Ethan get together every other week to drink Scotch and talk about books, but not about Scotch. You don’t need to listen in order, but just search for a book (story, play, poem, etc.) that interests you and follow along!

  1. 4d ago

    Eric, by Terry Pratchett, and Bowmore 12yo - Part 1

    Michael, Ethan, and special guest Karen discuss Eric, by Terry Pratchett, while drinking Bowmore 12yo Islay Single Malt.. In this episode: Michael opens with a reference to a pre-show joke the editor doesn’t remember, AND doesn’t have Michael’s audio for, so Michael is extra bad this time Karen has the pallet of a sugar glider/hummingbird (also she’s here) Scoptions Ethan says he’s going to do a thing/did a thing and it’s a lie but editor Ethan knows it’s a lie so that’s okay If you listen closely around 9:30 you can hear the foreshadowing of Sarah’s indignation Eventually we do discuss the book Using the Book of the New Sun to explain Discworld Discworld fits all the reading colors #smh/Karen as reverse bobblehead Eric is just acts 3 and 4 of Marlowe’s Faust Rincewind’s version of the hero’s journey: “The hero refuses the call —> The hero refuses the call —> The hero refuses the call —> etc.” Karen is a good sport FaustEric as end-of-history concept Impressive of Pratchett to predict how Christopher Nolan would retell the Odyssey 36 years beforehand Next time Michael, Ethan, and Karen will continue to discuss Eric, by Terry Pratchett! Join the discussion! Go to the Contact page and put "Scotch Talk" in the Subject line. We'd love to hear from you! And submit your homework at the Michael & Ethan in a Room with Scotch page. Join us on GoodReads! Get on our Substack! Donate to our Patreon! MUSIC & SFX: "Kessy Swings Endless - (ID 349)" by Lobo Loco. Used by permission. "The Grim Reaper - II Presto" by Aitua. Used under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License. "Thinking It Over" by Lee Rosevere. Used under an Attribution License. (Links to books & products are affiliate links.)

    Eric, by Terry Pratchett, and Bowmore 12yo - Part 1

  2. Aug 24

    JLA #10, by Gardner Fox, and Captain America #107, by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, and Craigellachie 13

    Michael, Ethan, and special guest Josh discuss Justice Leage of America #10, by Gardner Fox, and Captain America #107, by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, while drinking Craigellachie 13yo Speyside Single Malt.. In this episode: Bet you didn’t know we had a full-time Silver Age Comic Books Expert! Bet you didn’t know it was possible to read a palimpsest! Bet you didn't know DC comics were also Lovecraftian! Bet I can’t keep this format up any longer without going a little wacky! The Discovery of Phosphorus, by Joseph Wright Ths podcast brought to you by Lucky Strikes! No one can win the podcast. Gaslightinig Captain America??? We GOTTA talk about Faustus The movie Nightmare Alley may be closely related to Captain America 107, or it may be completely unrelated Is Dr. Faustus Freud? If so, is he compensating for something? Captain America should have at least checked the website first Three is a magic storytelling number Captain America=one-punch man???? Cap may not be Othello, but Dr Faustus may be Iago That said, this Dr Faustus is not Faust This Faust is just chasing clout Josh’s Faustian comic recs: Mephisto (Marvel) Aunts before pants? (No) Underworld Unleashed (DC) Text for the Faust Race Next time Michael and Ethan will discuss Eric, by Terry Pratchett! Join the discussion! Go to the Contact page and put "Scotch Talk" in the Subject line. We'd love to hear from you! And submit your homework at the Michael & Ethan in a Room with Scotch page. Join us on GoodReads! Get on our Substack! Donate to our Patreon! MUSIC & SFX: "Kessy Swings Endless - (ID 349)" by Lobo Loco. Used by permission. "The Grim Reaper - II Presto" by Aitua. Used under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License. "Thinking It Over" by Lee Rosevere. Used under an Attribution License. (Links to books & products are affiliate links.)

    JLA #10, by Gardner Fox, and Captain America #107, by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, and Craigellachie 13

  3. Aug 10

    The Seven Strings of the Lyre, by George Sand, and Craigellachie 13yo - Part 2

    Michael and Ethan discuss The Seven Strings of the Lyre, by George Sand (also known as A Woman’s Version of the Faust Legend), while drinking Craigellachie 13yo Speyside Single Malt.. In this episode: Strong start claiming to do a chiasmus but APPARENTLY, ACTUALLY doing an Antimetabole. A lot of sports talk from two guys who know nothing about sports Inappropriately asserted man mid-life crises; unenthusiastic Masters theses We gotta talk about the lyre, and the seven strings thereof Alastor; or, the Spirit of Solitude, by Percy Bysshe Shelley (in case you also couldn’t/can’t help yourself) The Divided Soul, by Heidi White (it’s literary criticism, but also life criticism) Worry about what the Capital T “Truth“ is We do finally talk about the Lyre and its strings Man has to bottom out somewhere Shakespeare references Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and Sand references Shakespeare Rockstar gnosticism Next time Michael and Ethan will discuss two comics: Justice Leage of America #10, by Gardner Fox, and Captain America #107, by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby! Join the discussion! Go to the Contact page and put "Scotch Talk" in the Subject line. We'd love to hear from you! And submit your homework at the Michael & Ethan in a Room with Scotch page. Join us on GoodReads! Get on our Substack! Donate to our Patreon! MUSIC & SFX: "Kessy Swings Endless - (ID 349)" by Lobo Loco. Used by permission. "The Grim Reaper - II Presto" by Aitua. Used under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License. "Thinking It Over" by Lee Rosevere. Used under an Attribution License. (Links to books & products are affiliate links.)

    The Seven Strings of the Lyre, by George Sand, and Craigellachie 13yo - Part 2

  4. Jul 20

    The Seven Strings of the Lyre, by George Sand, and Craigellachie 13yo, Part 1

    Michael and Ethan discuss The Seven Strings of the Lyre, by George Sand (also known as A Woman’s Version of the Faust Legend), while drinking Craigellachie 13yo Speyside Single Malt.. In this episode: The title of this play is annoying, not George Sand’s fault A lot about fan fiction GK Chesteron’s “A Defense of Penny Dreadfuls” Madame de Stael, by Maria Fairweather The point is not to win the argument, the point is to have the argument What’s a polite way of saying “knocked around like a hockey puck”? Narrowcasting: when we engage specifically with the “Half-Blood Prince” who marked up Michael’s copy That said, the notes are potentially extremely bad (or at least highly debateable) The ur-text Ethan is thinking of is the Nag Hammadi Library, whose original English translation was published in 1978 (so Ethan was at least 12 years wrong) Magnetism Next time Michael and Ethan will continue to discuss The Seven Strings of the Lyre, by George Sand! Join the discussion! Go to the Contact page and put "Scotch Talk" in the Subject line. We'd love to hear from you! And submit your homework at the Michael & Ethan in a Room with Scotch page. Join us on GoodReads! Get on our Substack! Donate to our Patreon! MUSIC & SFX: "Kessy Swings Endless - (ID 349)" by Lobo Loco. Used by permission. "The Grim Reaper - II Presto" by Aitua. Used under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License. "Thinking It Over" by Lee Rosevere. Used under an Attribution License. (Links to books & products are affiliate links.)

    The Seven Strings of the Lyre, by George Sand, and Craigellachie 13yo, Part 1

  5. Jun 29

    "The Little Mermaid," by Hans Christian Andersen, and Craigellachie 13yo

    With special guests Kelsie, Hannah, and Jessica from the Reading Revisited podcast, Michael and Ethan discuss “The Little Mermaid” by Hans Christian Andersen, while drinking Craigellachie 13yo Speyside Single Malt.. In this episode: First and most important: NO SNITCHING There’s no rule that says you can’t mock husbands Talking about the end first Getting what you want vs. getting something better Devil’s Contract: The History of the Faustian Bargain, by Ed Simon Lowercase love vs. Uppercase Love Myths and the myths behind them Pride must suffer pain (mean) If the deal is today-only, walk away Potential uses for a mermaid’s tongue If you haven’t been reading fairy tales, they’re actually very nice Here’s one investigation into the alleged Einstein “read your children fairy tales” quote One version of the Children of Lir Andersen’s Fairy Tales as translated by Tiina Nunnelly There’s still no snitching Next time Michael and Ethan will discuss The Seven Strings of the Lyre, by George Sand! Join the discussion! Go to the Contact page and put "Scotch Talk" in the Subject line. We'd love to hear from you! And submit your homework at the Michael & Ethan in a Room with Scotch page. Join us on GoodReads! Get on our Substack! Donate to our Patreon! MUSIC & SFX: "Kessy Swings Endless - (ID 349)" by Lobo Loco. Used by permission. "The Grim Reaper - II Presto" by Aitua. Used under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License. "Thinking It Over" by Lee Rosevere. Used under an Attribution License. (Links to books & products are affiliate links.)

  6. Jun 15

    Faust (film) by F.W. Murnau, and Tamdhu 12yo

    Michael and Ethan discuss the 1926 silent film Faust by F. W. Murnau, while drinking Tamdhu 12yo Single Malt. In this episode: Quintessential film bro stuff Everything is political with a small p, but some things are political with a capital P (especially in cinema of the Weimar Republic) Faust is saved (spoilers) Silent film may be the only genre less subtle than the musical Ethan absolutely garbles a reference to Christopher Isherwood, partly by thinking he might be Herman Hesse. Isherwood was associated with Vedantic Hinduism and his novel Goodbye to Berlin was the basis for the musical Cabaret. Emil Jannings shade (deserved) Hitler’s Monsters, by Eric Kurlander In case it was unclear: Ethan didn’t want to be watching this film, even as he was watching this film All things are Star Trek (annoying) Michael makes an unacknowledged “jam” pun If you want to read along to our recurring unlistenable segment Next time Michael and Ethan will discuss “The Little Mermaid” by Hans Christian Andersen! Join the discussion! Go to the Contact page and put "Scotch Talk" in the Subject line. We'd love to hear from you! And submit your homework at the Michael & Ethan in a Room with Scotch page. Join us on GoodReads! Get on our Substack! Donate to our Patreon! MUSIC & SFX: "Kessy Swings Endless - (ID 349)" by Lobo Loco. Used by permission. "The Grim Reaper - II Presto" by Aitua. Used under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License. "Thinking It Over" by Lee Rosevere. Used under an Attribution License. (Links to books & products are affiliate links.)

  7. May 11

    Jack Faust, by Michael Swanwich, and Tamdhu 12yo, Part 2

    Michael and Ethan discuss Jack Faust, by Michael Swanwick, while drinking Tamdhu 12yo Single Malt.. In this episode: Caliban and the Witch, by Sylvia Federici Jack Faust is Goethe’s Faust and Marlowe’s Faust and a little bit Gounod’s Faust (which is also Goethe’s Faust) Faust goes from a disciple to Pontius Pilate in one paragraph What’s behind the door?????? (it doesn’t matter) The Star Trek-ification of Faust Faust decides he is God, something that always goes super well for everybody Interjections at random times from our special guest, Michael’s cat A fun triumvirate of epigraphs! (Including Jack the Ripper) Tap into Poetry Next time Michael and Ethan will discuss F.W. Murnau’s silent film, Faust! Join the discussion! Go to the Contact page and put "Scotch Talk" in the Subject line. We'd love to hear from you! And submit your homework at the Michael & Ethan in a Room with Scotch page. Join us on GoodReads! Get on our Substack! Donate to our Patreon! MUSIC & SFX: "Kessy Swings Endless - (ID 349)" by Lobo Loco. Used by permission. "The Grim Reaper - II Presto" by Aitua. Used under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License. "Thinking It Over" by Lee Rosevere. Used under an Attribution License. (Links to books & products are affiliate links.)

  8. Apr 28

    Jack Faust, by Michael Swanwich, and Tamdhu 12yo, Part 1

    Michael and Ethan discuss Jack Faust, by Michael Swanwick, while drinking Tamdhu 12yo Single Malt.. In this episode: The End of History and the Last Man (wiki page) A theory of threads and tatters Spoilers for Office Space and Fight Club, I guess Then We Came to the End… of history? Jack Faust was published in 1997, but it makes more sense as a 2026 novel Turns out, reducing other humans to instruments of pleasure is extremely dehumanizing Leaf, by Niggle, by JRR Tolkien Ethan fails to call Michael out for using Latin, but here’s the phrase he uses (nerd) Fiction writers across the board agree: don’t try to make yourself God Speech from The Great Dictator Tap into Poetry Next time Michael and Ethan will continue discuss Jack Faust, by Michael Swanwick! Join the discussion! Go to the Contact page and put "Scotch Talk" in the Subject line. We'd love to hear from you! And submit your homework at the Michael & Ethan in a Room with Scotch page. Join us on GoodReads! Get on our Substack! Donate to our Patreon! MUSIC & SFX: "Kessy Swings Endless - (ID 349)" by Lobo Loco. Used by permission. "The Grim Reaper - II Presto" by Aitua. Used under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License. "Thinking It Over" by Lee Rosevere. Used under an Attribution License. (Links to books & products are affiliate links.)

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4.6
out of 5
14 Ratings

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With their expertise in a grand total of 3 advanced degrees in English literature, as well as a lifetime of reading, Michael & Ethan get together every other week to drink Scotch and talk about books, but not about Scotch. You don’t need to listen in order, but just search for a book (story, play, poem, etc.) that interests you and follow along!

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