Concavity Show

For Episode 87, Matt and Dave are joined by the Jonathan Lethem, who has a new short story collection out on September 23rd, A Different Kind of Tension. We discuss it, many of his novels and his non-fiction writing, his committment to craft, teaching, bookselling, and much more. You can order his new book here, or at your friendly local bookseller. Visit Jonathan's website. Visit Jonathan's Instagram. Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow

In Episode 86, Matt Bucher not only co-hosts, but guests as the author of interest, whose new novel, a follow-up to The Belan Deck, has just recently released. Matt's latest book is a Marksonian treatise on the marking, measuring, and allocation of time, and is sure to delight listeners of our show. You can purchase Matt's excellent sophomore release here: Bookshop.org Barnes & Noble Alienated Majesty Bookstore (Austin, TX) Book People (Austin, TX) Matt's Websites: mattbucher.com simpleranger.net buchrtumblr.com Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow

In Episode 85, we're joined by Camille Bordas, whose recent novel The Material explores what a fictionalized MFA program in stand-up comedy might look like. It's funny (as you might imagine) and philosophical, exploring some of the great cultural questions of our (and just about any other) time. You can find out more about Camille on her website, where eight of her New Yorker short stories are linked. Her English language novels are both available on bookshop.org. Camille's Chicago piece we mention on the 2024 Democratic National Convention is here. Camille is on Instagram a little bit here. Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow

In Episode 84, the incredible Sergio De La Pava joins Dave and Matt to talk about his latest novel, Every Arc Bends Its Radian, out now from Simon & Schuster. We also discuss David Lynch and his recent passing, deep sea life, and haunted hotels, among many other things. You can find Sergio's website here. Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

Join Matt and Dave as they look back at the best of their year in reading during 2024, each with a list of ten(ish) books they found compelling and noteworthy. Stay tuned for the Patreon bonus episode in two weeks that covers all other things we liked this year in pop-culture. As always, this episode comes with a playlist of our favorite songs of 2024: Apple Music - https://music.apple.com/ca/playlist/concavity-show-best-of-2024/pl.u-pMylAeRi4KoErM Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5fVLMtsQSVBCLQUbDxhUFM?si=FaHzQsz8ThCZLMtAWO81tg Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

In this episode, Matt speaks with Lauren Elkin about her new novel, Scaffolding. They discuss Lacan, marriage, and why Paris is so damn literary, among other things. Lauren Elkin is a French and American writer and translator, most recently the author of the novel Scaffolding (FSG), a New York Times Editor's Choice which the Observer called both "erudite" and "horny." Previous books include Art Monsters: Unruly Bodies in Feminist Art, No. 91/92: Notes on a Parisian Commute, and Flâneuse: Women Walk the City, which was a finalist for the 2018 PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay, a New York Times Editor’s Choice and a Notable Books of 2017, a Radio 4 Book of the Week, and a best book of 2016 by the Guardian, the Financial Times, the New Statesman, and the Observer. Her writings on books, art, and culture have appeared in a variety of publications including the London Review of Books, the New York Times, Granta, Harper’s, Le Monde, the Times Literary Supplement, Les Inrockuptibles, and Frieze, and her essay "This is the Beginning of Writing," published in the Sewanee Review, was awarded notable distinction in the Best American Essays of 2019, edited by Rebecca Solnit. Her website is: https://www.laurenelkin.com/ You can find her on BlueSky here: https://bsky.app/profile/laurenelkin.bsky.social The Spotify playlist she created for the novel is here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3saYDj2BSKyCFWGXsUhCTZ?si=f7a471a0e77e45bc Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

We're delighted to present our conversation with the remarkable Benjamín Labatut for Episode 81, in which we primarily discuss his 2023 non-fiction novel The MANIAC, its primary figure John von Neumann, the madness and magic of fiction, and the limits and future of science and the human mind. Run, don't walk to buy Benjamín's two English-language books: When We Cease to Understand the World The MANIAC Extra special thanks to Cameron Waller of Penguin Random House Canada (@cameronsbookshelf) for (a) putting us onto Benjamín's work in a personal way, and (b) making this conversation with Benjamín possible. Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

For episode 80, we welcome Jessica Anthony back to the show. She has long been one of our favorite writers and she returns this month with a new novel titled The Most (out July 30 from Little Brown). Jessica Anthony is the author of three books of fiction, most recently the novel Enter the Aardvark, a finalist for the New England Book Award in Fiction. Her debut, The Convalescent, won the inaugural McSweeney’s Amanda Davis Highwire Fiction Award in 2004. A recipient of the Creative Capital Award in Literature, Anthony wrote The Most while guarding the Mária Valéria Bridge in Štúrovo, Slovakia. She lives in Portland, Maine. Preorder the book on Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-most-jessica-anthony/20862156?ean=9780316576376 You can see some of the upcoming events for the novel here: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/contributor/jessica-anthony/ Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

In this episode, Matt Bucher interviews Matt Lowell of the band Lo Moon. They discuss the genesis of Lo Moon's new hit song, "Water." Lowell shares how he discovered David Foster Wallace's writing and he also breaks down his collaborative writing process. Later, he digs into some of his literary influences and the two Matts discuss Salinger, Fitzgerald, Knausgaard, and more. You can order the new album on vinyl here: https://www.lomoonofficial.com/ and there you can learn more about Lo Moon’s 2024 tour schedule here: https://lomoon.komi.io/. Check out their private fan community, Raincoat Chronicles. You can keep up with Lo Moon on X: https://twitter.com/lomoon Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

In this episode, Matt interviews Don Hough. Don is the author of a collection of short stories titled The Funeral Girl, a collection of essays called The Exact Right Word, and a new correspondence collection called All the Best. They discuss how The Funeral Girl is influenced by David Foster Wallace’s work, how Don discovered DFW, James Cameron’s Titanic, Labute’s In the Company of Men, Alexander Theroux, Jonathan Franzen, Taylor Swift, and much much more. You can follow Don on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/DHSayer His blog is here: http://donhoughauthor.blogspot.com And be sure to order his books: The Funeral Girl: https://www.amazon.com/Funeral-Girl-Don-Hough/dp/1541008553 All The Best: https://www.amazon.com/All-Best-Correspondence-Don-Hough/dp/B0D251Q6NK Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

In this episode, Dave and Matt sit down with Adam Levin to discuss the publication of the Bar Mitzvah edition of that great novel, The Instructions. They discuss growing up in the land of Bar Mitzvahs, the writing process, and what happens to Gurion, among other things. Adam Levin's website is: https://www.adamlevinadamlevin.com/ You can order the new edition of the book direct from McSweeney's here: https://store.mcsweeneys.net/products/the-instructions-bar-mitzvah-edition?taxon_id=1 And here's a friends-and-family discount code for 25% off: mazeltov The Material is the new novel from Camille Bordas. Adam Levin is the author of the novels The Instructions, Bubblegum, and Mount Chicago, as well as the story collection, Hot Pink. His writing has appeared in numerous publications, including The New Yorker, McSweeney’s, and Playboy. He has been a New York Public Library Young Lions Fiction Award winner, a recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, and a National Jewish Book Award finalist. He lives in Chicago. Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

It's our favorite annual episode on the show, when we get to look back at the best of our year in reading with someone else who has read cool stuff. This time it's with Ben Diamond, a very keen listener and patron from London, who for three years running has sent us an annual best of his year recording, always full of interesting books, shows, music, and films. We had an awesome conversation with Ben that we hope you'll enjoy. Stay tuned for the Patreon bonus episode in two weeks that covers all other things we liked this year in pop-culture. As always, this episode comes with a playlist of our favorite songs of 2023: Apple Music - https://music.apple.com/ca/playlist/best-of-2023/pl.u-yZyVDNACYq2akv Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6Uq1526MP5mLBVI4zM0e5j?si=59d0bc52f08e41aa Quick reference Top Fives Ben: 1. The Instructions by Adam Levin 2. Something Happened by Joseph Heller 3. Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan 4. Porn: An Oral History by Polly Barton 5. Anything that Moves by Jamie Stewart Dave: 1. THE MANIAC by Benjamín Labatut 2. The Netanyahus by Joshua Cohen 3. The Rabbit Hutch by Tess Gunty 4. Magnetic Fields by Ron Loewinsohn 5. The Passenger & Stella Maris by Cormac McCarthy Matt: 1. Dayswork by Chris Bachelder and Jennifer Habel 2. Chaotic Good by Lee Klein 3. Diana: My Graphic Obsession by Sivan Piatigorsky-Roth 4. The Deluge by Stephen Markley 5. America Fantastica by Tim O'Brien Contact Ben Diamond: ben.diamond@gmail.com Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

In Episode 75 we welcome poet Diego Báez back onto the show, to discuss his fantastic forthcoming book of poetry, Yaguareté White, which releases from University of Arizona Press on February 20, 2024. You can pre-order it directly from the publisher or from Bookshop.org Follow Diego on Twitter Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

In this episode with speak with bestselling writer and journalist David Lipsky. To David Foster Wallace fans, Lipsky is, of course, familiar as the author of Although Of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself which was the basis of the 2015 film The End of the Tour. David Lipsky is a contributing editor at Rolling Stone. His fiction and nonfiction have appeared in The New Yorker, Harper's, The Best American Short Stories, The Best American Magazine Writing, The New York Times, The New York Times Book Review, and many others. He contributes to NPR's All Things Considered, and is the recipient of a Lambert Fellowship, a Media Award from GLAAD, and a National Magazine Award. He's the author of the novel The Art Fair; a collection, Three Thousand Dollars; and the bestselling nonfiction book Absolutely American, which was a Time magazine Best Book of the Year. His new book, The Parrot and the Igloo: Climate and the Science of Denial is out now from Norton. The book examines the roots of climate change in popular thought, reaching back to the invention of electricity and the global impacts of technology. Lipsky profiles the scientists and characters who have taken up climate science and those who work to deny the effects of carbon and warming. The New York Times described the book, saying Lipsky "spins top-flight climate literature into cliffhanger entertainment." The extensive notes to the book, which he mentions in this episode, can be found at https://www.theparrotandtheigloo.com/ (Thank you to Kory Hill for technical assistance.)

In this bonus episode, we have a special audio production from British literary scholar Saul Leslie and American writer Wendy Liu. What do you think David Foster Wallace was really like in a tennis match? You are invited to listen to a tennis commentary of a fictional match played between David Foster Wallace and Martin Amis. This audio piece was part of DFW2023, held in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. It was written and presented by Saul Leslie, and features commentary by fictional Wimbledon champion and writer Elsa Canetti (voiced by Wendy Liu), and a guest 'courtside' appearance from literary academic Beci Carver. Hopefully this gives you a sense of what it would be like if Amis and Wallace really did play against one another. As for who is ultimately triumphant, you’ll have to listen to find out! Be sure to check out this pamphlet for more details about the tennis match and the audio production. Follow Saul: Email - sileslie@liverpool.ac.uk. Twitter - @postpost_its Follow Wendy: Twitter - @dellsystem Website - https://dellsystem.me/

In Episode 73, Dave welcomes special guest Matt Bucher on the show to discuss his debut novel, The Belan Deck. Buy Matt's book here: https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-belan-deck-matt-bucher/19943822?ean=9798888623428 Biblioklept review: https://biblioklept.org/2023/06/02/matt-buchers-the-belan-deck-is-an-unexpectedly-moving-argument-for-humanity-and-serious-triviality/ The Belan Deck on Goodreads (featuring reviews by many of our amazing listeners, like Phillip Freedenberg, Jack Waters, and Richie Speiser): https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/128126023-the-belan-deck Erick Eckel review: https://erikeckel.com/2023/06/18/the-belan-deck-hints-of-microserfs-in-an-ai-age/ Jay Innis Murray review/interview: https://www.thevisionarycompany.net/blog/the-afterlife-of-anecdotes-a-review-of-the-belan-deck-by-matt-bucher Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

In Episode 72, we welcome friend of the show, Edith Wharton scholar, accordion/bagpiper extraordinaire, and prolific writer, Sheila Liming on to talk about her new book Hanging Out, delving into the myriad ways that unstructured hang time is a radical, life-affirming act that resists capitalist commodification. The New York Times article on Sheila and the book: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/16/style/sheila-liming-hanging-out-interview.html Sheila on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/seeshespeak Buy the book here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/717263/hanging-out-by-sheila-liming/ and here https://bookshop.org/p/books/hanging-out-the-radical-power-of-killing-time-sheila-liming/18462992?ean=9781685890056 Information about the 2023 DFW Conference in Gettysburg, June 22-24: https://dfwsociety.org/conference/ Contact Matt and Dave: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

In this episode, we talk with prolific reader and accomplished musician Evan Stephens Hall from the band Pinegrove. We discuss his top books of the year and go through a few of our own favorite reading experiences from 2022. Here is the David Foster Wallace & Richard Powers Q&A we mention. And here is the reading poriton of that event that begins with DFW talking about the “brick” in his pocket. The Pinegrove songs featured in this episode are Alaska and Habitat. Thank you to Rough Trade Records, Pinegrove and Evan Stephens Hall for permission. Here are our Concavity Show Best Songs of 2022 playlists: iTunes: https://music.apple.com/ca/playlist/best-of-2022/pl.u-EdAVv5dCaMJB7j Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1BwuTDJq2LoU8ZzdSDXSK5?si=052f5d25ed514b43 Evan, top books mentioned: A Gathering of Old Men by Ernest J. Gaines (Gaines stamp!) Morality Play by Barry Unsworth Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut Public Library by Ali Smith (and Autumn!) Breaking and Entering by Joy WIlliams Leave Society by Tao Lin Dave, top books mentioned: Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyaasi Intimacies by Katie Kitamura The Overstory by Richard Powers Autoportrait by Jesse Ball Liberation Day by George Saunders Matt, top books read this year: Robert Crews by Thomas Berger Literary Alchemist by Steve Paul We Keep the Dead Close by Becky Cooper Airport Music by Mark Tardi Zol by REYoung Evan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/evanstephenshall/ Pinegrove website: https://pinegroveband.com/ Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

In episode 70, we talk to our friend Peyton Thomas, a DFW, Louisa May Alcott, and American Girl doll enthusiast. His recent YA novel, Both Sides Now, was published in 2021, and his writing has appeared in Vanity Fair, Pitchfork, and Billboard, and many other places. Peyton is currently at work on his second novel, a contemporary interpretation of Little Women. You can read more about this forthcoming book in Oprah Daily. Peyton also hosts a podcast about Little Women called Jo's Boys. Peyton's website - https://peytonthomas.ca/ Buy Both Sides Now - https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/652876/both-sides-now-by-peyton-thomas/ Jo's Boys Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/jos-boys-a-little-women-podcast/id1610742792 Peyton's Pitchfork reviews - https://pitchfork.com/staff/peyton-thomas/albumreviews/ Peyton on Twitter - https://twitter.com/peytonology Infinite Jest Fanfiction on Archive of Our Own - https://archiveofourown.org/tags/Infinite%20Jest%20-%20David%20Foster%20Wallace/works Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/

In Episode 69, we talk to our friend Mike O'Connell about his recent collection from University of Mississippi Press, Conversations with George Saunders, and discuss Mike's background, the origins of the collection, particulars of the interviews in the book, the trajectory and flavor of Saunders' literary career, and where it all might go. Buy the Conversations book here - https://www.upress.state.ms.us/Books/C/Conversations-with-George-Saunders Buy George's brand new book, Liberation Day here - https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/564990/liberation-day-by-george-saunders/ You can find Michael online in these places: Twitter - https://twitter.com/moc Academia.edu - https://sienaheights.academia.edu/MichaelOConnell Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/books_in_2022/ Contact Dave & Matt: Email - concavityshow@gmail.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/ConcavityShow Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/concavityshow/ Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/concavityshow/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/concavityshow Threadless Merch Store - https://concavityshow.threadless.com/