Story structure is what makes us love stories in the first place. We love a nice set of bookends. We root for characters who save cats. A hero's journey "there and back again" resonates with the human psyche. In this episode, Clare and Hannah talk about several kinds of story structures, including Three-Act, Five-Act, Chiastic, Save the Cat, and the Hero's Journey. Some of the books we mention in this episode: The Heroine’s Journey by Gail Carriger Save the Cat! by Blake Snyder Screenpl...

This episode, Clare and Hannah talk about Flannery O'Connor's first novel, Wise Blood, published in 1952. O'Connor's stories are rich with symbolism, from a beat-up jalopy of a car to a stolen gorilla suit, and from a preacher's blindness to a shrunken mummified body in a museum. It's a darkly comic and often grotesque ride. Flannery O’Connor has her own section at Clare’s Bookshop.org page. Click through if you’d like to get your own copy of Wise Blood or any other book by and about O’Connor...

Does it dry up like A Game of Thrones in the sun? Or fester like A Wise Man's Fear, and then run? Clare and Hannah talk about book series that authors have left unfinished, and the repercussions of that. Should authors be obligated to finish their stories? Should Patrick Rothfuss and George R.R. Martin be locked in a remote cabin together until they finish their series that have gone fifteen years without their concluding volumes? Would it be going too far to hire Kathy Bates to l...

Clare and Hannah struggle to untangle the final book in C.S. Lewis' Space Trilogy: That Hideous Strength. Clare declares this book did not require a wizard. Hannah finally discovers a romantic subplot she's invested in. Once again, we mention The Abolition of Man, but only because Lewis mentioned it first. Get your own copy of That Hideous Strength at Clare’s Bookshop.org shop. We’d love to hear your thoughts! Click here to send us a text message! Support the show We pro...

After reading Perelandra, Clare and Hannah have been thinking about creation myths. In this episode, Hannah shares the whacky ideas the Greeks, Norse, and Chinese cultures had about how the world came to be. Listener discretion advised for the following reasons: We mention the raunchy aspects of Greek mythology.Both hosts devolve into wailing the saxophone riff from "Careless Whispers."Hannah was left unsupervized on-mic for aproximately 27 seconds.We’d love to hear your thoughts! Click...

Clare and Hannah continue their journey through Deep Heaven with C.S. Lewis, to a pure and unfallen planet where everyone is naked without shame. Seriously. The only clothed person in this entire book is literally the Devil. The planet is Perelandra—what we call Venus—a newly created Paradise, complete with a “human” King and Queen to be its stewards. But the Ancient Enemy, Satan, inflamed with Envy and bent on destruction, high-tails it there on a mission of corruption and evil. This time, E...

Clare and Hannah have a close encounter! In this episode we go over C.S. Lewis' five kinds of science fiction, as detailed in his essay, "On Science Fiction.” For complete show notes, including a list of the books we discussed, click through to the episode page on the Splanchnics website. CSL’s essay “On Science Fiction” appears in the collection entitled Of Other Worlds. If you’d like to get your own copy of this or any of the books we mentioned, check out Clare’s Bookshop.org page and...

In this book club episode, Clare and Hannah travel into space and try not to embarass themselves as they discuss C.S. Lewis's science fiction classic, Out of the Silent Planet. Naturally, they mention The Abolition of Man. For complete show notes, including a list of the books we discussed and one of the most beautiful passages Lewis wrote, click through to the episode page on the Splanchnics website. If you’d like to get your own copy of Out of the Silent Planet, or any of the books we...

Clare and Hannah both share a song that rocked their world. Hannah tries to rap (sort of), and Clare tells the story of the 10,000-pound haircut. Like the comments section of George Michael's "Careless Whisper," we hope you find this episode charmingly, wholesomely, vaguely off-color. The songs: “Change” by NF. “Careless Whisper” by Wham! featuring George Michael, 1984 Sexy Sax Man Support the show We provide links and other resources to help you find and enjoy the things we talked abou...

Clare and Hannah take on Jekyll and Hyde in a battle of Victorian proportions. In other words, we slink furtively through darkened doorways, scandalize young housemaids sitting up past their bedtime, and write letters to our lawyers with the tantalizing instruction: "Do not open until I have died or disappeared under mysterious circumstances." Get your own copy of this Robert Louis Stevenson classic, here at Clare's Bookshop.org store! Or, since Jekyll & Hyde is in the public...

This is a very serious episode. Clare and Hannah tackle a topic that is probably far beyond them, but that's never stopped them before. Today we discuss the difference between tragedy and evil. Hannah brings up vampires because at least she knows something about those. Support the show We provide these resources to help you find and enjoy the things we talked about on this episode! Note that some of these may include “affiliate” links to books and other products. When you click through and pu...

Clare and Hannah each share another song that rocked their worlds. Clare's song is a universal story about the plight of the working poor, just as relevant today as it was forty years ago. Hannah spends most of her allotted time describing what happens if you trespass at a war vet's house and pester his wife (You get shot, that's what). Also, her song made both of us cry a little. Hannah’s song: “I Can’t Help But Wonder” by Jorge Rivera-Herrans Clare’s song: “Fast Car” written and perform...

Clare and Hannah look back on 2024 as the year that blew their minds every other day. A few examples: The day that Israel blew the pants off their enemies.The presidential candidate who almost got his head blown off on live television.Amazing health discoveries that will keep you from blowing up the bathroom at your in-laws' house. Links: “Stopping or reducing dietary fiber intake reduces constipation and its associated symptoms” (Sorry if that’s TMI…) The Brilliance of ‘Operation Grim Bee...

Clare and Hannah read H.G. Wells' "The Island of Dr. Moreau," and discuss universal themes like the hubris of science, the true nature of humanity, and their uncanny ability to shoehorn a C.S. Lewis shoutout into any discussion. Get your own copy of The Island of Dr. Moreau. Support the show We provide these resources to help you find and enjoy the things we talked about on this episode! Note that some of these may include “affiliate” links to books and other products. When you clic...

Clare and Hannah share their experiences practicing martial arts. By share their experiences, we mean they soared with exquisite grace through a grove of bamboo trees, exchanging blows that shook the surrounding wilderness and awakened a long-dormant volcano. The Karate Kid Collection. Includes the original 1984 Karate Kid and its two sequels, plus the 2010 remake starring Jaden Smith. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Little boy trying to break a board in tae kwon do—so cute!!...

Clare and Hannah return with another book club, this time covering Joseph Heller's Catch 22, a satirical commentary on corporate malfeasance, nonsense, incompetence and bureaucracy. A classic war novel that coined a phrase still prominent in the modern zeitgeist, Catch 22 left Clare feeling like a dummy and convinced Hannah that she does indeed have a twisted brain. In other words, a bit of light reading for your summer. Get your own copy of Catch-22 by Joseph Heller Support the show We p...

In this breakfast chat, Clare shares a truly embarrassing story from a fellow veterinarian. Names and locations have been changed to protect those involved from further shame. This episode may be troubling for more squeamish listeners, as it contains terms like: uterine horn, testicles, castration, cervix, and litter-bearing animals. Also, Hannah ate spaghetti throughout this recording. For more funny vet stories, have you ever read All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot? This ...

In part 2 of our series on the kings and queens of England, Clare and Hannah talk about two kings who embodied the term, "man-child." Henry II spent his entire wedding reception goofing off with his best friend and ignoring everybody else, including his new queen. Richard II surrounded himself with his favorite sycophants, spent a ridiculous amount of his country's money on clothes, and commissioned a religious icon featuring...himself. Support the show We provide these resources to h...

Hannah takes the "reigns" for part 1 in a series about the kings and queens of England. Because royalty in England just cycled through the same three names over and over, today we learn about two kings named Henry: Henry II: the highlights of his reign were murdering his best friend in a cathedral, getting whipped within an inch of his life in the same cathedral, and giving a gorgeous castle to a six year-old out of spite. We talk about several movies: Becket (1964, starring Peter O'Toole a...

Clare shares a song that terrifies both her and the man who wrote it. Hannah's song of choice did not so much rock her world as haunt her every waking moment for two weeks straight. Clare's song: "Cat's in the Cradle." Music, lyrics, and performance by Harry Chapin. In December of 1974 it was the Number 1 song on the Billboard Top 100. The link includes a brief interview with Chapin's widow and with his son, followed by a live performance of the song. The comments below the video are both h...