Cordelivres Criticism Club

Indirect Books
  • 3.5 (2)
  • Arts
  • Updated Weekly

The Cordelivres Club is an ongoing series of literary criticism from Indirect Books. Join us each week for a fresh look at novels and short stores with an eye towards the literary art--all from a revolutionary perspective. 1882literary.substack.com

  1. Apr 9

    Lingering in the Chambers of the Sea: Alex, Brian, and PRUFROCK

    In this episode of the Free and Direct Podcast, we are joined by repeat guest Brian Heston and our very own Associate Poetry Editor Alexandra Romero, to break down T. S. Eliot’s The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock. Alex and Brian lead us through a close reading of Prufrock, among the most significant poems of the 20th century, and a cornerstone of Modernist literature. We also get into Eliot’s life and times, along with a consideration of his legacy—and that of Prufrock—into contemporary poetry. At Indirect Books we’ve recently opened our first poetry contest, the 2026 J. Alfred Prufrock Prize, which occasioned this episode. Alex talks about what she finds in Eliot’s work that inspires this contest, and what we’re looking for in submissions. At one point Brian discusses the myth of “the existential peasant.” It’s a great episode. Get full access to Indirect Books at 1882literary.substack.com/subscribe

  2. Apr 2

    Diane Josefowicz on GUARDIANS AND SAINTS

    Welcome to this week’s episode of Cordelivres club! Today, we are joined by recurring guest Diane Josefowicz and Indirect Books’ new Publicist, Millie Oliver! We discuss Diane’s new book, Guardians and Saints, and the way she explores character, time, and place. We had Diane on an early episode to talk about her novel L’Air du Temps (1985), and in today’s show we get into the ways she has traced her protagonist across multiple books. We also hit on how childhood connections influence storytelling and arrangements evolve into short stories and the vagaries of language. Millie will be reviewing Diane’s novel for L’Esprit, and that made for a great discussion on the show. I hope you enjoy this conversation, and in the meantime—stay critical. Merci ! Get full access to Indirect Books at 1882literary.substack.com/subscribe

    Diane Josefowicz on GUARDIANS AND SAINTS

  3. Mar 26

    A Poisonous Little Tale: Eliza Marley and THE TURN OF THE SCREW

    Nothing was more natural than that these things should be the other things they absolutely were not. I hope you enjoy this conversation, and in the meantime—stay critical. Merci ! Thanks for reading! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work. Get full access to Indirect Books at 1882literary.substack.com/subscribe

    A Poisonous Little Tale: Eliza Marley and THE TURN OF THE SCREW

  4. Mar 20

    Sensitized To Linguistic Difference: Rebecca Ruth Gould on Translation and STRANGERS

    I hope you enjoy this conversation, and in the meantime—stay critical. Merci ! Thanks for reading! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work. Get full access to Indirect Books at 1882literary.substack.com/subscribe

    Sensitized To Linguistic Difference: Rebecca Ruth Gould on Translation and STRANGERS

  5. Mar 12

    Fear No More The Heat O' The Sun: The Linguistic Surface of MRS DALLOWAY [Part Two]

    Fear no more the heat o’ the sun, Nor the furious winter’s rages; Our Mrs Dalloway series rolls on into 2026 with critic extraordinaire Nicole Gantz joining the show to bring her expertise and lens to the novel. This is Part Two of our discussion with Nicole, looking at the book’s linguistic surface and the various ways in which Woolf structures her architecture to offer an insightful look at what’s happening compositionally. Check out Part One from a couple of weeks ago, and we have Part Three planned, featuring another special guest, in the coming weeks. I hope you enjoy this conversation, and in the meantime—stay critical. Merci ! Thanks for reading! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work. Get full access to Indirect Books at 1882literary.substack.com/subscribe

    Fear No More The Heat O' The Sun: The Linguistic Surface of MRS DALLOWAY [Part Two]

  6. Feb 26

    Fear No More The Heat O' The Sun: The Linguistic Surface of MRS DALLOWAY [Part One]

    Fear no more the heat o’ the sun, Nor the furious winter’s rages; Our Mrs Dalloway series rolls on into 2026 with critic extraordinaire Nicole Gantz joining the show to bring her expertise and lens to the novel. Nicole focuses on the book’s linguistic surface and the various ways in which Woolf structures her architecture to offer an insightful look at what’s happening compositionally. This post is Part One of our conversation, which abruptly ends upon my making an excellent Hatchards joke. Part Two will be out next week, picking up right where we left off, and we’ve a Part Three planned with another special guest in the coming weeks. I hope you enjoy this conversation, and in the meantime—stay critical. Merci ! Thanks for reading! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work. Get full access to Indirect Books at 1882literary.substack.com/subscribe

    Fear No More The Heat O' The Sun: The Linguistic Surface of MRS DALLOWAY [Part One]

  7. Feb 5

    The Sculptural Rightness of Her Limbs: Rachel Cusk's The Bradshaw Variations

    And it comes over her in a rush, the memory of what it used to feel like, being alive. This episode is our first look at a novel by Rachel Cusk, my favorite writer (or co-favorite, with Woolf), and, à mon avis, the most important novelist of the 21st century. We talk about The Bradshaw Variations, from 2009, looking at how Cusk’s narration and its interest in philosophical depth power the book. We talk about how her use of free indirect style—one more attuned to an “observational mirroring” rather than the messier, more associative syntactic refraction of, say, Woolf—enables her to cover an entire year in the lives of several perspective characters while still getting us close to them. We read out a few passages and talk about the ways that art—what it is and why it matters—gets into this novel. I would definitely encourage everyone to check it out; it’s a great first Cusk book if you’ve never read her. Some really incredible lines and passages all over this one. Stay tuned for the Substack post with complete show notes in a few days, and in the meantime—stay critical. Merci ! Get full access to Indirect Books at 1882literary.substack.com/subscribe

    The Sculptural Rightness of Her Limbs: Rachel Cusk's The Bradshaw Variations

  8. Jan 29

    Known Associates and Unknown Associates: MILKMAN with Devyn Andrews

    This episode features the formidable friend of the journal, Devyn Andrews, joining the show to discuss Anna Burns’ Milkman. Devyn—Issue Seven L’Esprit contributor and fellow veteran of the UIC Program for Writers—brings her singular insight to this incredible novel and its very strange, highly compelling use of first-person. We get into the novel and break down its use of homodiegetic narration, and nearly make it out of the first chapter in the process. It’s an incredible novel and the first in our (possible?) series Indirect After Dark, which may or may not continue! In any event, it was a very fun conversation, and I hope you all enjoy it. In the meantime, check out Devyn’s website and, of course, stay critical! Thanks for reading! This post is public, so feel free to share it. Get full access to Indirect Books at 1882literary.substack.com/subscribe

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Ratings & Reviews

3.5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

The Cordelivres Club is an ongoing series of literary criticism from Indirect Books. Join us each week for a fresh look at novels and short stores with an eye towards the literary art--all from a revolutionary perspective. 1882literary.substack.com

Information

  • Creator
    Indirect Books
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    24
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Indirect Books
  • Show Website
    Cordelivres Criticism Club

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