From the Lighthouse

Valentine's Day Special: The Wretched Cant of Love

Are you a Valentine's Day sap or a grinch? This week, Stephanie, Michelle and Jimmy are joined by Associate Professor Hsu-Ming Teo to talk about all things romance. They discuss Austen, why murder makes romance novels more interesting, why good real estate matters, and Michelle get the giggles over deer. 

For more info visit our website at: https://www.fromthelighthouse.org

Special Event: A Day of Literature, Music & Culture at M on the Bund

A special From the Lighthouse presentation: an evening of poetry and song in China! Featuring Toby Davidson, Jane Messer and Hsu-Ming Teo reading their works, with musical accompaniment by Shu-Cheen Yu.

For more info visit our website at: https://www.fromthelighthouse.org

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that you need not have an excuse to pod about Pride and Prejudice

Do we really need an excuse to talk about Pride and Prejudice? Stephanie is joined by Dr Lee O'Brien and Dr Geoff Payne to talk about everybody's favourite novel and gush about the enduring genius of Jane Austen. 

For more info visit our website at: https://www.fromthelighthouse.org/

Best Books of 2017

What were your best books of 2017? This week, Stephanie and Michelle contemplate their year in reading.

For more info visit our website at: https://www.fromthelighthouse.org/

Sing, O Muse, of the books we loathe: Literary Confessions pt. 1

What books do you absolutely hate? What books have you pretended to have read? Which books are you ashamed of loving? This week, Stephanie, Michelle and Jimmy let the silly season go to their heads entirely and spill all their deepest, darkest secrets. Shh, don't tell anyone.

The Novel and the Navy: Celebrating 200 Years of Jane Austen's Persuasion and Northanger Abbey

Jane Austen's novels Persuasion and Northanger Abbey were published posthumously in December 1817. To celebrate the 200th anniversary of these novels that bookend Austen's career, Stephanie is joined by Dr Geoff Payne to discuss Anne Elliot, Catherine Morland, the novel, and the Navy.

For more info visit our website at: https://www.fromthelighthouse.org/

The Power of Love, or Why We Read Romance Novels

Romance fiction is often unfairly maligned as silly and escapist, largely because of its association with a female readership, but in terms of popularity, nothing beats romance. This week, Stephanie and Jimmy discuss the phenomenal power of the romance novel with romance expert Associate Professor Hsu-Ming Teo. 

For more info visit our website at: https://www.fromthelighthouse.org/

How Jean Rhys's Wide Sargasso Sea has Ruined Mr. Rochester Forever

Jean Rhys's lyrical, beautiful novel Wide Sargasso Sea is a prequel of sorts to Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre, focusing on the story of Mr. Rochester's first wife. This week, Stephanie and Michelle discuss Jamaica, Jane Eyre, and how Jean Rhys ruined Mr. Rochester for them both forever. 

A Time for Lear: The Rise in Popularity of Shakespeare's King Lear

King Lear is one of Shakespeare's most beloved plays, but also one of his bleakest. This week, Stephanie and Michelle are joined by Shakespearean scholar and Renaissance man, Professor Tony Cousins to discuss Lear, Cordelia, lame eighteenth-century reworkings of the play, and why King Lear became the play de jour after WWII.

Kazuo Ishiguro: An Artist of the Nobel World

Kazuo Ishiguro was recently awarded the 2017 Nobel Prize for Literature. This week, Stephanie, Michelle and Jimmy commend the Nobel Prize committee for their excellent choice. They talk Japanese cinema, floating worlds, perfect novels, and Stephanie offends Bob Dylan fans.