Island Idylls

36 - The Gothic Lit of Flannery O’Connor Sep 17, 2021

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35 - Hemingway, Regret, and Death Aug 18, 2021

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34 - “Look it Up!” - A Dive Into the Dictionary Jul 28, 2021

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33 - The Great Fitzgerald Jun 16, 2021

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32 - God & Meaning May 18, 2021

Nine Stories

Catcher in the Rye

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31 - J. D. Salinger & Bananafish Apr 28, 2021

Nine Stories

Catcher in the Rye

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30 - Who is Irwin Shaw? Apr 07, 2021

Rich Man, Poor Man

The Young Lions

Short Stories: Five Decades

IRWIN SHAW, EXTOLLED FOR SHORT STORIES, DIES by Herbert Mitgang, New York Times Obituary

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29 - What is Art? Feb 17, 2021

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28 - Pale Horse, Pale Rider - Katherine Anne Porter Jan 27, 2021

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27 - Capote’s A Christmas Memory Jan 06, 2021

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26 - Stevenson and the Short Story Dec 16, 2020

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25 - Introduction to the Short Story Dec 02, 2020

Episode 25 tackles the subject of the short story. What is it (yes, of course, it’s short)? But there’s more to it than that. In this episode Barry defines terms and gives us a crash course in some of the most important, twentieth-century, writers.

In Episode 26 we’ll take a deep dive into Barry’s introduction to The Complete Short Stories of Robert Louis Stevenson.

One more thing: if you missed the writers Barry talked about in this episode, here’s a guide:

Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864)

Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894)

Katherine Ann Porter (1890-1980)

F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1949)

D. H. Lawrence (1880-1930)

William Faulkner (1897-1962)

Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961)

Richard Wright (1908-1960)

Eudora Welty (1909-2001)

Truman Capote (1924-1984)

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24 - Anna Karenina Sep 16, 2020

As Barry and Aaron think about season three, drop them a note at islandidylls@gmail.com and let them know what you think of Island Idylls. Meanwhile, listen and enjoy!

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23 - Leo Tolstoy: Art as Mission? Sep 02, 2020

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22 - Ellison, Baldwin, and Black Lives Matter Aug 12, 2020

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21 - Edith Wharton's Ethan Frome Jul 15, 2020

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20 - The Art of Writing II Jul 01, 2020

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19 - Camus and the Meaning of Life Jun 15, 2020

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18 - Character Matters May 11, 2020

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17 - Tender is the Night Apr 22, 2020

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16 - Fitzgerald and the Jazz Age Apr 08, 2020

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15 - Anatomy of a Story Mar 25, 2020

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14 - Lawrence, Sons and Lovers Mar 11, 2020

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13 - D. H. Lawrence & Pornography Feb 26, 2020

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12 - Great Black Writers Jan 22, 2020

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11 - The Art of Writing Jan 08, 2020

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10 - Marriage in The Portrait Dec 11, 2019

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09 - Henry James, “The Master” Nov 28, 2019

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08 - The Art of Reading Nov 06, 2019

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07 - Thoreau’s Walden Oct 23, 2019

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06 - Stone Mother, Part Three Oct 09, 2019

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05 - Stone Mother, Part Two Sep 25, 2019

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04 - Stone Mother, Part One Sep 11, 2019

Everybody has a story, but most people don’t write them down. Barry did! In his memoir, Stone Mother, Barry shares what he remembers about his early years. A family that escaped persecution in Poland. Growing up poor. Being alone. Being Jewish. Escaping New York. In this episode, Aaron asks his father to define a memoir. Why doesn’t his memoir read like a novel? Does it matter? They move on to discuss why his family preferred not to discuss the Old Country they left behind to settle in America and how Barry came to be shaped by the Holocaust (he prefers the Hebrew term, shoah). We meet Barry’s father, known as Zeyde, a man of deep, Jewish faith deeply respected by children and neighbors alike. We also meet Ephrain, Barry’s father, a kind but indifferent man. We only briefly meet Barry’s mother--the person who shaped him the most. It’s a conversation about family history, but it’s also a window into the thoughts of an immigrant, a Jewish-American, navigating life in the New World.

03 - Breaking Down the “System” Aug 30, 2019

Barry and Aaron dive into the deep end of the pool as they discuss Robert Louis Stevenson’s poem, “System,” found in his famous Child’s Garden of Verses. What do most people think about religion? Is it a “system” that blesses the good and punishes the bad--as the poem suggests? Barry argues Stevenson found comfort (and helped scores of others find comfort) by rejecting this system and seeing Chance as the backdrop of the universe. Resigning oneself to the unknown is the only way one will be better. Aaron presses the question of what the Old and New Testament actually teach about providence and chance, not a tit-for-tat “system,” but a theology of mysterious providence and divine grace. On the answer to these questions, father and son agree to differ, and that’s what makes Island Idylls so interesting. Robert Louis Stevenson, “System”: Every night my prayers I say. And get my dinner every day; And every day that I’ve been good, I get an orange after food. The child that is not clean and neat, With lots of toys and things to eat, He is a naughty child I’m sure-- Or else his dear papa is poor.

02 - Introducing Barry Menikoff Aug 14, 2019

As a newly minted PhD at the young age of 26, less than 25 years after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Barry said goodbye to Madison, and found himself teaching Hawaiians just a few miles off Waikiki Beach. There are worse places to work!

Today, Barry is known as a renowned Robert Louis Stevenson scholar. Thanks to his plain prose and books like Treasure Island, the Scottish writer had been primarily considered a children’s author. Barry challenged that narrative and reintroduced Stevenson to a new generation of readers.

In the months ahead, Island Idylls will be exploring several works that have stood the test of time. This episode helps us understand why Barry is a reliable guide.

For some of Barry’s writings, check out his introductions to the following works by Robert Louis Stevenson: The Beach of Falesa, The Complete Stories of Robert Louis Stevenson, Kidnapped, and David Balfour. See also Menikoff, Narrating Scotland: The Imagination of Robert Louis Stevenson. To prepare for upcoming conversations, consider reading the memoir of his Brooklyn years, Stone Mother.

Finally, the Stevenson poem Aaron and Barry struggled to recall is called, “System,” and goes like this:

Every night my prayers I say.
And get my dinner every day;
And every day that I’ve been good,
I get an orange after food.

The child that is not clean and neat,
With lots of toys and things to eat,
He is a naughty child I’m sure--
Or else his dear papa is poor.

01 - Introducing Island Idylls Jul 30, 2019

You’ve found Island Idylls! In this inaugural episode, Barry and Aaron get to the bottom of the title. What island are they talking about (hint: Aloha) and what exactly is an “idyll”? They explain the origin of the podcast. Long story short, it begins with a father who spent his life as an English professor and a son who loves to ask lots of questions. Barry is a literature expert, and Aaron gets him to discuss the importance of expertise in a world where the transfer of knowledge has been democratized. There is so much to be thankful for in this data-driven digital age, but there’s a time to kick back and learn from those who have given extended time to study a particular subject. Aaron and Barry explain what sets this podcast apart. It’s not just that they are father and son--thought that’s fun. But the one asking the questions--the son--is, gasp, an evangelical pastor. The one answering grew up on the streets of Brooklyn in an orthodox Jewish community. It’s always a lively conversation.

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