The Catcher in the Rye

When Juan Borgia died in 1497, his father, Pope Alexander VI, swore he’d find the killer. But just two weeks later, the Pope suddenly closed the case – without naming or punishing the murderer. The Pope might have covered up the killer’s identity for political reasons… or because ...  Show more

By the time she was 25, Mary, Queen of Scots had lost her thrones in two countries, France and Scotland. And officially, she was executed for conspiring to take a third throne: England’s. But was Mary naive enough to get caught committing treason? Or was she a shrewd politician w ...  Show more

From the early 20th century author Algernon Blackwood comes a chilling story of how an innocent mistake subjected a young man to an otherworldly encounter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices 

Today’s quote comes from the dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451. In a society in which books are burned and reading is criminal, is there any value to the written word? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices 

A convicted murderer - sentenced to life in prison - decides to start publishing children’s books, short stories, and even a memoir. The elite literary community soaks in every word and praises him for becoming a reformed man in prison. 

They even sta ...

Books are often viewed as the pinnacle of civilization; war, on the other hand, is where civilization breaks down. What happens when these two forces encounter one another? In this episode, Jacke talks to esteemed literary historian Andrew Pettegree about his new book, The Book a ...  Show more