Sometimes you read a book from 1940 and you get a little upset about how relevant its characters and themes remain more than 80 years later. Sometimes! McCullers' debut novel explores capitalism, alienation, and poverty in the American South at the tail end of the Great Depression. Our theme music was composed by Nick Lerangis. Follow @overduepod on Instagram and Bluesky Advertise on Overdue See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ..read more

Often grouped with the other plays in García Lorca's unfinished "rural trilogy," The House of Bernarda Alba is a claustrophobic drama about control, conformity, and one mother's intimidating cane. Which daughter will get Pepe? Will that horse stop kicking the wall? Will grandma ever be free?? These questions and more on this week's episode. This episode is sponsored by Squarespace. Go to squarespace.com/overdue for 10% of your first purchase of a website or domain. Our theme music was composed by Nick Lerangis. Follow @overduepod on Instagram and Bluesky Advertise ..read more

For our latest show-within-a-show, we'll revisit Ancient Greece through Emily Wilson's new translation of Homer's The Iliad. We'll be reading it a few books at a time and having a more in-depth chat about it than we do about most books. These two episodes cover Books 10-14. Episode 5: It's time for a three-fer! This little triptych of books explores the combat of the Iliad from a few different perspectives: Stealth (Book 10): Diomedes and Odysseus engaging in feats of derring-do. Non-lethal Damage (Book 11): Greeks and Trojans alike suffer setbacks but most of the Dramatis Personae survive. Si ..read more

This week we travel back to Bois Sauvage to revisit the work of acclaimed author Jesmyn Ward. Sing, Unburied, Sing introduces us to a family on hard times, preparing to welcome back a member from prison while also grappling with the ghosts that demand their attention. For more discussion of Jesmyn Ward, head to Ep 283 - Salvage the Bones. This episode is sponsored by Squarespace. Go to squarespace.com/overdue for 10% of your first purchase of a website or domain. Our theme music was composed by Nick Lerangis. Follow @overduepod on Instagram and Bluesky Advertise o ..read more

Isaac Asimov's short story collection-turned-novel has very little to do with the mid-2000s Will Smith movie adaptation, which is a good thing. It's a lot less about robots rising up and killing their creators, and more about the law of unintended consequences. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/overdue and get on your way to being your best self. Our theme music was composed by Nick Lerangis. Follow @overduepod on Instagram and Bluesky Advertise on Overdue See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and Califo ..read more

"We just found this bear at the train station and he seems cool? Like he's good at shopping and staring at people. Let's bring him home! Don't mind all the mess he makes." That's probably what the Browns said to themselves upon first spying a charming little bear at Paddington Station. Celebrate Children's Book Week with us by diving into the first appearance of this marmalade-loving lil scamp. This episode is sponsored by Squarespace. Go to squarespace.com/overdue for 10% of your first purchase of a website or domain. Our theme music was composed by Nick Lerangis. Follow @overd ..read more

Did you know that before Gillian Flynn brought us the book Gone Girl, the movie Gone Girl, and the concept of "Gone Girl-ing" someone, she wrote a murder mystery about a different kind of unhealthy family dynamic! This episode briefly discusses self-harm. This episode is sponsored by Aura Frames. Visit AuraFrames.com and use code OVERDUE at checkout to get $30-off plus free shipping on their best-selling frame. Terms and conditions apply. Our theme music was composed by Nick Lerangis. Follow @overduepod on Instagram and Bluesky Advertise on Overdue See Privacy Policy at htt ..read more

This graphic memoir (ahem) This collection of comics chronicles the life of an Iranian girl named Marji, whose experiences are heavily based on those of author Marjane Satrapi. Satrapi lived through the Islamic Revolution in Iran and its authoritarian aftermath, and her story is one of resistance, education, and the difficulty of finding yourself amidst societal upheaval. Note: our discussion is based on reading the Complete Persepolis, which combines Volume 1: The Story of a Childhood with Volume 2: The Story of a Return. This episode is sponsored by Squarespace. Go to squarespace.com/ov ..read more

Holes! We all need 'em, we all love 'em. This is a book where a boy is sentenced to dig a bunch of holes out in the desert because he was accused and convicted of a crime he didn't commit. That's bad! But he also discovers a little something about himself and his family, and makes a new friend. That's good! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ..read more

Lo's award-winning novel seeks to shine a light on marginalized experiences from mid-century San Francisco. What's most impressive is how she's synthesized all of her research into a couple of fresh, compelling characters - allowing the story to honor the historical record without feeling overly bound by it. Our theme music was composed by Nick Lerangis. Follow @overduepod on Instagram and Bluesky Advertise on Overdue See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ..read more