53 episodes

This is a podcast in which Professor Deulen introduces poetry to her irreverent husband, Max. Each show is a close reading of a single poem. They discuss it for a bit, allowing the conversation to take on a life of its own.

Lit from the Basement Lit from the Basement

    • Arts
    • 4.7 • 30 Ratings

This is a podcast in which Professor Deulen introduces poetry to her irreverent husband, Max. Each show is a close reading of a single poem. They discuss it for a bit, allowing the conversation to take on a life of its own.

    Show 052 KMUZ Interview as Our Last Episode for a While

    Show 052 KMUZ Interview as Our Last Episode for a While

    With the boys old enough for school, Max went and got himself a job, and now we just do not have enough time to do the show proper. We hope to drop the occasional show in the future, but are uncertain if it will be back with the release frequency from before.
    This interview was conducted at KMUZ (who have been awesome and broadcasting our show across the Willamette Valley) on February 18, 2020, a few months before we moved to Atlanta. 
    Thank you for spending time with us. 
    -Danielle & Max 

    • 28 min
    Show 051 "To the Fig Tree on 9th and Christian" by Ross Gay

    Show 051 "To the Fig Tree on 9th and Christian" by Ross Gay

    We are back from our sickness hiatus with “To the Fig Tree on 9th and Christian” by Ross Gay. Topics include: gratitude, single-scene poem, short line breaks, and figs in myth.

    • 1 hr
    Show 050 "Autobiographical: Another Draft" by Jacqueline Osherow

    Show 050 "Autobiographical: Another Draft" by Jacqueline Osherow

    For their 50th show, Danielle goes big with a long, long, powerful poem by Jacqueline Osherow. Topics include: terza rima, formalism, Willa Cather, interruptive syntax, and your present self admonishing your past self. 

    • 1 hr 3 min
    Show 049 "Yours" by Mary Robison

    Show 049 "Yours" by Mary Robison

    Owing to a house-wide plague, we are forced to pull a show from our reject pile. Please join us as we deviate from poetry to flash fiction with Mary Robison's "Yours" and as we go on way too long about personal ghost stories. Topics include: Halloween, fall, mortality, May/December romances, and failing to keep your atheist cred while discussing the supernatural. 

    • 59 min
    Show 048 "Photo of a Girl, 1988: Cyborg" by Faylita Hicks

    Show 048 "Photo of a Girl, 1988: Cyborg" by Faylita Hicks

    We discuss the poem "Photo of a Girl, 1988: Cyborg" from Faylita Hicks's debut collection Hoodwitch. Topics include: the mother figure in literature, enjambment, end-stopped lines, Afrofuturism, and the ampersand.

    • 58 min
    Show 047 "A Wonderful Bird is the Pelican" by Dixon Lanier Merritt

    Show 047 "A Wonderful Bird is the Pelican" by Dixon Lanier Merritt

    We tackle the limerick form with poetry scholar Mike Chasar as he leads a deep dive into two versions of "A Wonderful Bird is the Pelican" by Dixon Lanier Merritt. Topics include: humorous poetry, "children's" literature, the pleasures of rhyme, and the 1913 Armory Show.

    • 1 hr 1 min

Customer Reviews

4.7 out of 5
30 Ratings

30 Ratings

ogow ,

Hilarious and thoughtful

These days, it feels like few of the podcasts I listen to actually make me chuckle out loud - and so it was a pleasant surprise to smile and chuckle in the coffeeshop I was in while listening to this podcast for the first time. Max and Danielle are authentic, funny, and let their conversation steer them where it will, keeping the conversation accessible while also teaching us all a thing or two (or ten). Highly recommend!

SFPoet ,

Wow! Great Podcast!

This podcast is such an antidote for these dark times. Such a pleasure to listen to two people talk poetry in the most real and unpretentious ways. Thanks for helping make the world a brighter place!

Le Singe Psycho ,

A true listening pleasure!

I love everything about this podcast! The poetry selections are fresh and engaging, the topics are fascinating, the discussion is genuine, the personal stories are entertaining and relatable, the format and production are wonderfully refined... in short, excellent from start to finish. It leaves me pleasantly surprised and wanting more, impatiently awaiting the next episode week after week. What more can you ask from a podcast?

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