Podcast appearances and mentions of angelina stanford

In this week's Short Story Summer Remix from Season 1, Angelina Stanford and Cindy Rollins discuss Guy de Maupassant's short story "The Necklace." Before getting into the short story discussion, Cindy and Angelina chat about what a "commonplace book" is and how they each go about recording quotes and thoughts. First off, Angelina gives us a little background on the author Guy de Maupassant and some information on French naturalism. Then she digs into her thoughts on how this story is a fairy tale in reverse and what that might mean in context. Cindy points out the perfection of de Maupassant's writing and his economy of style. They also bring up some of the formal elements of the story, particularly the key role the reversal takes in the plot. The main themes they find in "The Necklace" touch on common human struggles with ambition, discontentment, loss, suffering and gratitude. Check out the schedule for the podcast's summer episodes on our Upcoming Events page. Sign up for the newsletter at HouseofHumaneLetters.com to stay in the know about all the exciting new things we have coming up! Don't forget that you can find the full show notes for this episode at https://theliterary.life/335. 

Today on The Literary Life, we continue our summer short story series of episodes from the archives. In this episode, Cindy Rollins and Angelina Stanford are joined by Angelina's husband, Thomas Banks. This week's selection for our summer series is Joseph Addison's "The Adventures of a Shilling." Their conversation kicks off with an attempt at defining the "essay" form and giving a brief history on its development. Thomas shares a little background information on Joseph Addison and his writing, as well as several other essayists who came before and after Addison. Thomas also talks about why essays are a significant part of his reading life. The conversation also spins off into a discussion of the importance of how we spend our leisure time.  Finally, our hosts chat about this week's essay, which gives highlights of England's history from the perspective of a silver coin. Addison's tale is full of humor and satire, as well as layers of social commentary and pathos.  For the full show notes on this episode, including book links, quotes, and today's poem, please visit https://theliterary.life/334.  If you want to connect more with Cindy, you can visit MorningTimeforMoms.com. You can also check out Angelina and Thomas' current classes and summer events at HouseofHumaneLetters.com.  Check out the schedule for the podcast's summer episodes on our Upcoming Events page.

On The Literary Life today we continue our re-airing of a series from our "Summer of the Short Story" that originally aired way back in Season 1 of the podcast! This week's episode features Angelina Stanford and Cindy Rollins discussing G. K. Chesterton's essay "A Defence of Penny Dreadfuls." Angelina opens with a brief history of the Victorian era and the more prevalent availability of the novel to the masses. She also gives several examples of the "penny dreadful." Cindy and Angelina discuss why they agree with Chesterton that people need these simple, even formulaic stories. They remind us that childhood is a time for good books, not a time to worry about reading all the "Great Books." Another topic that Cindy and Angelina chat about is the importance of developing imagination. They talk about the truth that fiction and story-telling are necessary parts of human culture. Cindy highlights the importance of the heroic adventure stories for boys. Angelina brings out the point that the elite critic is out of touch with the masses who long for stories of good winning over evil. The penny dreadful should not be judged as art, since that was never what it was intended to be. If you want to find replays of the 2019 Back to School online conference referenced in this episode, you can purchase them in Cindy's shop at MorningTimeforMoms.com. You can also find out about all the current classes and summer events happening at HouseofHumaneLetters.com. For the full show notes on this episode, please visit https://theliterary.life/332. 

On today's episode of The Literary Life, our hosts Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks are joined by Jenn Rogers for a new discussion of "On Fairy Stories" by J.R.R. Tolkien. After sharing some opening commonplace quotes, Jenn gives us background and context for how "On Fairy Stories" comes to us today. She talks about the conversations being had by Tolkien and other philologists and folklorists that set the stage for this essay. Angelina highlights the idea of the Tree of Tales and its importance to understanding all of literature. Other topics they discuss together include sub-creation, the soup of story, the real versus the ordinary, recovery and escape, plus so much more! Don't forget to check out everything going on over at HouseofHumaneLetters.com to stay up to date on all the upcoming new summer classes and webinars, including Heather Goodman's May webinar on Mary Poppins. To view the full show notes for this episode, please visit https://theliterary.life/329. 

This week on The Literary Life, we are re-airing an episode from the archives featuring a discussion of J.R.R. Tolkien's essay "On Fairy Stories" between Angelina Stanford, Cindy Rollins, and Thomas Banks. Angelina sets the stage for this discussion by orienting us to the context for the essay by Tolkien as a critique of what is considered a fairy story. She points out the difference between cautionary tales like those by Charles Perrault and the German folk and fairy tales collected by the Grimm Brothers. Our hosts highlight Tolkien's definition of true fairy stories, ones that take place in the "perilous realm" and involve a journey element. He critiques Andrew Lang as including many stories as fairy tale that are not truly fairy stories. They also discuss topics from the essay including sub-creation, magic and spells, suspension of disbelief, and children's responses to fairy stories. Join us again next week for an additional "update" episode on this same essay with Jenn Rogers. Don't forget to check out everything going on over at HouseofHumaneLetters.com to stay up to date on all the upcoming new summer classes and webinars! Cindy also has some exciting things happening at MorningTimeforMoms.com, including registration for her summer discipleship group. For the full show notes for this episode, see our podcast website at https://theliterarylife/328. 

This week on The Literary Life Podcast, we have a special episode in which our hosts Angelina Stanford, Thomas Banks, and Cindy Rollins and joined by poet, priest, scholar, and musician Malcolm Guite. Together they discuss not only Father Guite's newest book, Galahad and the Grail, but also the underlying ideas of why stories matter and what power they have in our lives. Malcolm Guite shares some thoughts on the value of both metrical poetry and the ballad form, as well as his own composition habits. He retells the Arthurian legend his own mother told him as a child and how this story is a powerful picture of the Gospel. Other topics they explore are how we see gospel echoes in "pre-Christian" stories, what it is like to have people find new layers of meaning in your writing, Join us again next week for an episode from the vault on Tolkien's "Why Read Fairy Stories," which will be followed by an additional "update" episode on the same essay with Jenn Rogers. Don't forget to check out everything going on over at HouseofHumaneLetters.com to stay up to date on all the upcoming new summer classes and webinars! Cindy also has some exciting things happening at MorningTimeforMoms.com, including registration for her summer discipleship group. And for the full show notes on this episode, please visit https://theliterary.life/327. 

On this week's episode of The Literary Life, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks will discuss Pope's mock epic poem, "The Rape of the Lock." They begin the conversation by talking about two types of satire to set us up for an accurate understand of this poem. They also talk about the form of a mock epic poem and a burlesque. This conversation brings out the various allusions to classical heroic epic poems juxtaposed with the frivolous in this story. You can check out all the latest offerings of mini-classes and webinars, including Heather Goodman's upcoming webinar on P.L. Travers' Mary Poppins, at HouseofHumaneLetters.com. For more show notes, please visit https://theliterary.life/326. 

Today on The Literary Life podcast, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks share an introduction to the Neo-Classical Poets, including Alexander Pope, and their poetry. First off, they establish a definition of the Neo-classical period both in terms of time and of culture. In addition, Angelina points out some ways in which the coming of the Enlightenment throws off ideals of the Medievals in favor of those of the Greeks and Romans. Another topic they highlight is the popularity of the satire in this period, as well as the prevelance of the printed word. After this general introduction to the period, Thomas shares a biographical sketch of Alexander Pope. Join us back again here next week when we will discuss Pope's mock epic poem, "The Rape of the Lock." You can check out all the latest offerings of mini-classes and webinars, including Jenn Roger's webinar on C. S. Lewis' The Pilgrim's Regress, at HouseofHumaneLetters.com. For the full show notes for this episode, please visit our podcast website at https://theliterary.life/325. 

On The Literary Life Podcast with Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks this week, we will wrap up our discussion of Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. After sharing their commonplace quote for this week, Thomas and Angelina jump right into recapping the important plot points of this last section of the book. They start with some contrasts between St. John and Rochester, then they talk about the journey of the soul and the image of marriage. They also consider the parallels of her return to Thornfield and the reversals in these scenes, as well as how Brontë fulfills the various fairy tale endings she set up earlier in the book. You can check out all the latest offerings of mini-classes and webinars, both upcoming and recorded in the past. Find everything at HouseofHumaneLetters.com, where you can also sign up for the HHL newsletter to stay in the loop about all the latest happenings! Join us back here next week for an introduction to Alexander Pope and the Neo-classical Poets, followed by an episode on Pope's "The Rape of the Lock". In May, we will have a special guest interview of Malcolm Guite all about his new book, Galahad and the Grail. You can check out the full version of our show notes for this episode at https://theliteray.life/324. 

This week on The Literary Life Podcast with Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks, we continue our series on Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre. In today's episode, they talk about the main plot points and follow threads of meaning in chapters 27-33. Some of the ideas they discuss include Romanticism in literature, Rochester's Byronic qualities, pictures of Jane's awakening, the eucatastrophe in this section of the book, parallels to the story of Cupid and Psyche, and more contrasts between fire and ice. You can check out all the latest offerings of mini-classes and webinars, both upcoming and recorded in the past. Find everything at HouseofHumaneLetters.com, where you can also sign up for the HHL newsletter to stay in the loop about all the latest happenings! Don't forget to visit https://theliterary.life/323 for the full show notes for this episode.

Neste episódio do PodClássica, reunimos um time de professoras para enfrentar uma das maiores polêmicas entre pais cristãos: a saga Harry Potter. Discutimos o que a Bíblia realmente condena quando fala de magia, o papel da fantasia na formação das crianças e o que acontece quando tentamos eliminar toda a magia das histórias. Pelo caminho, descobrimos elementos surpreendentes escondidos na obra de J.K. Rowling que você provavelmente nunca tinha notado. Neste episódio, Anne Kathleen e Barbara Lores recebem as professoras Juliana Poiares, Renata Knupp e nossa convidada especial Bárbara Ehler Andrade, mestre em Literatura Inglesa pela Universidade de Oxford e doutoranda em Artes Liberais pela Faulkner University. Recursos mencionados no episódio:

On today's episode of The Literary Life Podcast with Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks, we continue our series on Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. Before jumping into chapters 6-12, Angelina and Thomas re-cap chapter 5 so that they can keep the entire Lowood School storyline together. They discuss the character of Helen and how she mirrors Jane, as well as the images of fire and ice throughout this book. In looking at the character of Miss Temple, they also highlight her as the picture of a well-ordered person. When Jane arrives at Thornfield, we find more fairy tale and Gothic novel elements, specifically the reference to the story of Bluebeard. Finally, when Mr. Rochester is introduced, Angelina shares some thoughts on the medieval understanding of the soul and the passions. Registration is now open for all year-long classes at The House of Human Letters! You can also check out all the latest offerings of mini-classes and webinars, both upcoming and recorded in the past. Find everything at HouseofHumaneLetters.com. Please visit our podcast website for the full show notes on this episode: https://theliterary.life/320. 

Welcome to The Literary Life Podcast with Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. This week we begin our much-anticipated series on Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë! After sharing their commonplace quotes, Angelina and Thomas set the stage for this book by covering some of Charlotte Brontë's personal and literary background. Angelina points out some symbolic things that we will be looking for in this book, as well as the important fact that it is a journey story. They also discuss the history and characteristics of the Gothic novel. In discussing the first five chapters of Jane Eyre, Angelina again highlights repeated scenes that will show Jane's spiritual development throughout the story, while Thomas makes some comparisons of this book to other stories such as Mansfield Park and Pamela. You can check out all the latest offerings of mini-classes and webinars, both upcoming and recorded in the past, at HouseofHumaneLetters.com. Click here to find the episodes we published covering Anne Brontë's book Agnes Grey. You can also listen to our series on Mansfield Park here. For the full show notes on this episode, including book links, today's poem, and commonplace quotes, please visit https://theliterary.life/319. 

Today on The Literary Life podcast, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks are here to offer some helpful ideas for reading Shakespeare plays and how to approach the Bard. They start off sharing their own stories of first being exposed to Shakespeare. Next, Thomas and Angelina address the idea that Shakespeare is too high-brow for the ordinary reader. Angelina also gives her hot take on whether you should watch or read a Shakespeare play first. She also tells some stories about reading the Bard with her children and students. Some other helpful topics they cover are the different types of plays and their forms, the cosmology behind the plays, and potential problems with some modern interpretations of Shakespearean drama.  Please visit our website to view the full show notes for this episode with links to previous episodes we have done on Shakespeare, as well as the books mentioned as resources in this discussion: https://theliterary.life/318.  Join us back again here next week when we begin our series covering Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë! You can check out all the latest offerings of mini-classes and webinars, both upcoming and recorded in the past, at HouseofHumaneLetters.com.

On The Literary Life Podcast this week, Angelina and Thomas are pleased to have special guest Dr. Michael Drout joining them to discuss his book The Tower and the Ruin: J. R. R. Tolkien's Creation. Together they talk about the background for writing this book and who Drout intended his audience to be. They also share thoughts on the current academic trends and the state of the humanities and literary studies in higher education. Other topics they cover include high modernism, literary criticism, realism and fantasy, and critical reviews of Tolkien's work. Don't forget to share this episode with the hashtag #LitLifeTolkien on Facebook or Instagram to be entered to win a copy of The Tower and the Ruin! There is still time to join a few more live sessions of this year's Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, "The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human". Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. As always, these sessions are also recorded, so you can purchase lifetime access and view the past videos anytime! Finally, you can also still sign up for Dr. Michael Drout's "Viking and Old Norse Culture" and get the recordings for the opening classes you may have missed. For the full show notes for this episode, please visit https://theliterary.life/313. 

Welcome to an another great episode from the archives of The Literary Life podcast! This week we bring you an interview our hosts had with special guest Dr. Vigen Guroian, retired professor of Religious Studies and Orthodox Christianity at the University of Virginia and author of twelve book and numerous scholarly articles. Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks discuss with Dr. Guroian the new edition of his book, Tending the Heart of Virtue. They start out talking about how the first edition of this book came about, which leads into a discussion about the current approach to fairy tales and children's stories in both academia and the publishing industry.  Other topics of conversation include the problem with reducing stories down to a moral, story as mystery, the place of fairy tales in classical education, and the Biblical literacy of the authors of fairy tales. Dr. Guroian also shares his thoughts on people like John Ruskin and Rudyard Kipling. Finally, he shares some suggestions on finding good editions of fairy tale collections.  There is still time to register for this year's upcoming annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, "The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human". Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. To view the full show notes, including book links, visit https://theliterary.life/312. 

This week on The Literary Life Podcast, Angelina and Thomas are joined by their friend and colleague Dr. Jason Baxter to talk about his newest book coming soon from Cassiodorus Press, Falling Inward. After sharing their commonplace quotes, Angelina asks Jason why he wanted to update and republish this work that he originally wrote several years ago. They discuss what is different about the idea of falling inward versus navel gazing, the role of the teacher in approaching literature in a humane way, why we should seek a pre-modern cosmology, what kinds of topics Jason explored in this book, and so much more! There is still time to register for this year's upcoming annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, "The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human". Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. You can view the full show notes for this episode at https://theliterary.life/311. 

On this week's "Best of The Literary Life Podcast" episode, host Angelina Stanford is joined by friends and fellow readers Cindy Rollins, Emily Raible, and Jone Rose to discuss how to deal with overwhelm with your literary life. Angelina opens the conversation with the acknowledgment that everyone has moments when they feel overwhelmed by the amount of things to read and to know. Jone talks about how she tries to avoid comparing herself and her reading life to that of others. Emily shares her eye-opening understanding after starting out discouraged about being "behind" in her self-education journey. Cindy talks about how she has seen the Enemy twist something that is a good gift and made it into a negative. Other encouraging and helpful ideas they discuss are the following: motivation of making connections, how to work up to more challenging books, protecting your brain and attention span, learning to enjoy the feast, and continuing the literary life for the long haul. Don't forget to check out this coming year's annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, "The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human". Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. Finally, you can also sign up now for upcoming classes such as Dr. Michael Drought's "Viking and Old Norse Culture." For full show notes, including quotes, book links, and this week's poem text, please visit https://theliterary.life/310. 

For this final episode of the 2025 season on The Literary Life Podcast, we bring you a special year-end conversation with Angelina Stanford, Cindy Rollins, and Thomas Banks all about their year in reading. Thomas talks about how most of his reading was tied to classes he taught. Cindy and Angelina talk about the reasons they didn't read as many books as they usually do in a year. They share some of their favorite non-fiction reads of the year, books that surprised them, and fiction highlights. In the course of the conversation, our hosts also make several points about reading in the literary tradition and avoiding public judgment of other people's choices in books. The House of Humane Letters Christmas sale is still on! Head over to the website to peruse the discounted webinars and mini-classes on sale, already discounted, no coupon code needed. Don't forget to check out this coming year's annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, "The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human". Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. Finally, you can also sign up now for upcoming classes like "Abiding in the Fields: Spenser, Milton, and the Pastoral Poetic Tradition" taught by Dr. Anne Phillips, or Dr. Michael Drought's "Viking and Old Norse Culture." To check out the full show notes for this episode, including all the books referenced, please visit https://theliterary.life/309. 

On this week's episode of The Literary Life, Thomas and Angelina bring you a preview of the books we will discuss on the upcoming season of the podcast. First, Angelina explains their approach to the podcast as they approach this next year, then she and Thomas share what literary topics and book discussions you can be looking forward to in 2026. In addition, if you are looking for a reading challenge created by our Friends and Fellows for 2026, you can find it on Patreon when you join for free! The House of Humane Letters Christmas sale is live now! Head over to the website to peruse the discounted webinars and mini-classes on sale, already discounted, no coupon code needed. Don't forget to check out this coming year's annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, "The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human". Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. To view the full show notes for this episode, please visit https://theliterary.life/308. 

This week on The Literary Life podcast, we are dipping back into the archives to bring you a delightful conversation from 2019 in which our Literary Life podcast hosts chatted all about their past year in books, as well as what they hoped to read in the coming year. Cindy, Angelina and Thomas began by sharing some commonplace quotes from books they read in 2019. They discussed their strategies for planning their reading goals and how they curate their "to be read" lists. Each of our hosts also shared some highlights from their year in books. Angelina then introduced The Literary Life Podcast 20 for 2020 Reading Challenge. She talked about how to approach this reading challenge. Then our hosts talked a little about each category in the challenge and gave some of their possible book picks for the challenge. Cindy mentioned a list of Shakespeare's plays in chronological order. She also has a list of "Books for Cultivating Honorable Boys." Happening now–the House of Humane Letters Christmas sale! Head over to the website to peruse the discounted webinars and mini-classes on sale, already discounted, no coupon code needed. Don't forget to check out this coming year's annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, "The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human". Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. For the full show notes for this episode, including book links, quotes, and today's poem, please visit our website at https://theliterary.life/307. 

Welcome back to The Literary Life podcast and one of our "best of" episodes from the vault! Due to the busyness of the holiday season, we thought this would be the perfect time to bring you a replay from our archives instead of starting a brand new book discussion series. This week, we re-air the inaugural episode of The Literary Life, in which Cindy and Angelina introduce the podcast and what they mean when they talk about having a "literary life." Each of them share how stories have shaped their personal lives, as well as how they believe stories have the power to shape culture. You can find and listen to the other 3 introductory episodes of The Literary Life mentioned in this replay at the links below- Episode 2: The Interview Episode Episode 3: The Importance of Detective Fiction Episode 4: Gaudy Night, Ch. 1-3 Happening now–the House of Humane Letters Christmas sale! Head over to the website to peruse the discounted webinars and mini-classes on sale, already discounted, no coupon code needed. Don't forget to check out this coming year's annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, "The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human". Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. Finally, you can also sign up now for upcoming classes like "Abiding in the Fields: Spenser, Milton, and the Pastoral Poetic Tradition" taught by Dr. Anne Phillips, or Dr. Michael Drought's "Viking and Old Norse Culture." For the full show notes of this episode, including quotes, book links, and this week's poem, please visit https://theliterary.life/306. 

On this week's episode of The Literary Life podcast, Angelina Stanford, Thomas Banks, and Atlee Northmore talk about their favorite film adaptations of books they like and why they think these are worthy adaptations. Genres of movies they discuss include adaptations of classic books, kids and family films, film noir favorites, beloved directors, and so much more. They also share some "hot takes" on movies they liked better than the books, and vice versa. We hope this lighthearted, chatty episode will be a little treat for your listening enjoyment during this holiday season. Join us back here again next week for the beginning of our new series on Moliere's Don Juan. Happening now–the House of Humane Letters Christmas sale! Head over to the website to peruse the discounted webinars and mini-classes on sale, already discounted, no coupon code needed. Don't forget to check out this coming year's annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, "The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human". Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. For the full show notes of this episode, please visit https://theliterary.life/305. 

Welcome back to The Literary Life podcast and our series on Aldous Huxley's Brave New World. Angelina Stanford, Thomas Banks, and Ella Hornstra open the conversation by sharing their commonplace quotes, then jump into the book discussion with some connections between Huxley and Lewis Carroll and how Brave New World is like Alice in Wonderland. Angelina also teaches about the medieval conception of the tripartite soul and how it relates to this story, as well as making some distinctions between literary satire and parody. They talk about more of the pictures of Freudian principles as illustrated in this society, as well as the way in which the characters live like machines. Ella goes into a little introductory information on Shakespeare's The Tempest and its connections to Brave New World to keep in mind as we continue reading. Don't forget to check out this coming year's annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, "The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human". Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. Also, we are excited to announce the upcoming spring course with Dr. Michael Drout, Viking and Old Norse Culture. Learn more and register at HouseofHumaneLetters.com. To view the full show notes for this episode, including book links, quotes and more, please visit https://theliterary.life/302. 

Welcome back to The Literary Life podcast with Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks! They are joined by Ella Hornstra for the beginning of a new series on Aldous Huxley's Brave New World. Thomas and Ella kick off the book discussion with a little biographical background on Huxley and dispel the myth that he belonged to the Bloomsbury Group. Angelina gives some literary history of the period in which Huxley wrote, as well as some thoughts on satire as a response to an age of overwhelming optimism. She also highlights the literary and cultural influences that Huxley satirizes in this novel, including Wells, Ford, and Freud. Visit the HouseofHumaneLetters.com to sign up for all the upcoming and past mini-classes and webinars taught by Angelina, Thomas, and their colleagues! Don't forget to check out this coming year's annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, "The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human". Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. To view the full show notes for this episode, including commonplace quotes and today's poem, please visit https://theliterary.life/301. 

Welcome back to The Literary Life podcast today and our series on Bram Stoker's Dracula. This week Angelina Stanford, Cindy Rollins, and Thomas Banks cover chapters 8-11 of the book. Angelina explains both the “New Woman” and “Angel in the House” ideas of the Victorian era and makes some observations about Dr. Seward's interactions with Renfield in contrast to the nuns ministrations to Jonathan Harker. We are also introduced to Dr. Van Helsing in this section of the book as the foil for Dracula, and we quickly learn that he is more than just a medical man. Our hosts discuss Stoker's own medical knowledge and both the historical and metaphorical context of the blood transfusion procedures in these chapters. Be sure to check out all that is happening at The House of Humane Letters and Morning Time for Moms in this season so you don't miss out on all their current offerings! And to view the full show notes for this episode, please visit https://theliterary.life/298. 

On this week's episode of The Literary Life Podcast, Angelina Stanford is joined as always by Thomas Banks and Cindy Rollins for the opening of their series on Bram Stoker's Dracula. Today our hosts focus on the background and historical context for this piece of literature, as well as going over the highlights of the first two chapters. They talk about the question of the role of the monster in literature in modernity versus its historical interpretation. Understanding the form of the Gothic novel and the time period in which this book was written are important aspects of approaching Dracula.  Keep listening next week for more about how to read this book. We will be covering chapters 3-7.  To view the full show notes for this episode, please visit https://theliterary.life/296.  Get the latest news from House of Humane Letters by signing up for their e-newsletter today! We are excited to announce this coming year's annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, “The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human”. Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks.

Today on The Literary Life podcast Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks continue their two-part series on Christina Rossetti's narrative poem “Goblin Market.” They begin discussing this poem by connecting it with the larger conversation on art and the literary tradition, pointing out the flaws of modern ways of reading. Angelina emphasizes the importance of understanding this poem, as well as other classic works of fantasy, in terms of the fairy world and how symbolism and allegory work in fairy tales. After these preliminary thoughts, they go into more detail about this poem, including the obvious picture of the Fall, the vampire imagery, other Scriptural allusions, and the false versus the true Eucharist. Join us back here next week for our Dracula series reboot and more examples of how to read well! And for the full show notes for this week's episode, please visit https://theliterary.life/295.  Visit the HouseofHumaneLetters.com to sign up for all the upcoming and past mini-classes and webinars taught by Angelina, Thomas, and their colleagues! We are excited to announce this coming year's annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, “The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human”. Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks.

Welcome back to The Literary Life Podcast! This week we begin a brief, two-episode series covering Christina Rossetti's narrative poem "Goblin Market." Our hosts, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks, look at the life and family background of Christina Rossetti, highlighting her devout Christian faith as key to understanding her poetry. Thomas shares the dates for the Victorian and Pre-Raphaelite periods in terms of art and literature. Angelina asks what the form of this poem is as we approach this together, and she and Thomas propose a few connections and preliminary ideas they have about "Goblin Market" before we dive into the full text. Join us next week as they walk through the poem together and further discuss how to read this work as well as so much more! Visit the HouseofHumaneLetters.com to sign up for all the upcoming and past mini-classes and webinars taught by Angelina, Thomas, and their colleagues! We are excited to announce this coming year's annual Literary Life Online Conference, happening January 23-30, 2026, "The Letter Killeth, but the Spirit Quickeneth: Reading Like a Human". Our speakers will be Dr. Jason Baxter, Jenn Rogers, Dr. Anne Phillips, and, of course, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. And to view the full show notes for this episode, please visit https://theliterary.life/294. 

On today's episode of The Literary Life podcast, our hosts Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks attempt to get us closer to an answer to the question "What is the literary tradition?" After acknowledging the difficulty of approaching this question, Angelina shares an analogy for understanding the literary tradition as differing degrees of ability to see. The first big idea she wants us to consider is that literature is not a closed system but is a coherent, consistent, self-referential world of literature. Thomas and Angelina also discuss the resonances and symbols of the tradition, the problem with works of literature as self-expression, and how the tradition upholds the imagination, plus so much more! Don't forget to check out of full show notes for quotes, today's poem, and links to books and more! Visit https://theliterary.life/293. 

Welcome to The Literary Life Podcast and a new series featuring the book The Age of Innocence. Our hosts, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks introduce us to American Gilded Age author, Edith Wharton, the "First Lady of American Letters." They also share their own experiences with reading Wharton's stories, novels, and letters, as well as some background on the time period and cultural context in which she was writing. In discussing the first several chapters of this book, Angelina and Thomas point out small details and subtleties that Wharton uses to give us hints about the characters and situations she presents. Visit the HouseofHumaneLetters.com to sign up for all the upcoming and past mini-classes and webinars taught by Angelina, Thomas, and their colleagues! To view the full show notes for this episode, including book links, commonplace quotes, and today's poem, please visit https://theliterary.life/289. 

Today on The Literary Life podcast, we begin a new series of episodes on The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling with our hosts Angelina Stanford, Cindy Rollins, and Thomas Banks! After sharing their commonplace quotes, each of them talks about their own reading histories with Rudyard Kipling's work. Thomas gives us some biographical information about Kipling and sets up the literary period in which he wrote. They then begin talking about the structure and form of this book as it is set up as a series of short stories as beast fables. Angelina shares some of the mythic and fairy tale elements she noticed while reading this first story, “Mowgli's Brothers.” They also discuss some of the challenges we face reading stories written in a different time and place without imposing our current views on all the literature of the period. Check out this year's Back to School Online Conference, “Educating the Freeborn,” over at MorningTimeforMoms.com to get registered and hear all of this year's amazing speakers! To view the full show notes for this episode complete with book links, quotes, and today's poem, please visit https://theliterary.life/285. 

Welcome back to The Literary Life podcast and our series on J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter: Book 1. After sharing some thoughts on detective fiction as it relates to Rowling, our hosts Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks discuss chapters 8-12. Some of the ideas they share are the following: Homeric echos and classical allusions in this book, the identity quest, the significance of characters' names, the four houses and the bestiary, the three parts of the soul, the Christian influence on Rowling's stories. Angelina also seeks to teach something about symbolism and structure of literature and art as seen through the Harry Potter books.  Visit HouseofHumaneLetters.com for updates on classes with Angelina, Thomas, and other members of their teaching team. To view the full show notes for this episode including book links, quotes and today's poem, please visit https://theliterary.life/281. 

On today's episode on The Literary Life podcast, we bring you a special re-mix of our popular series on Harry Potter: Book 1 by J. K. Rowling, with hosts Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks. After sharing a little on their own backgrounds as teachers and their commonplace quotations for the week, Angelina and Thomas open the book discussion with some introductory information on this book and series. They address the controversy surrounding these books in Christian circles. For our previous episode on magic, listen to our Best of Series Episode 168: Wizards, Witches and Magic, Oh My! Angelina sets up this series with some background on children's publishing in the 1990s, the why there are differences in the British and American editions, the basis for this book in the classic literary tradition, the form and structure of stories. They also share some thoughts on these first couple of chapters. Join us again next week for chapters 3-7!  Visit HouseofHumaneLetters.com for updates on classes with Angelina, Thomas, and other members of their teaching team.  To view the full show notes for this episode, including links to books mentioned, today's commonplace quotes, and poem, please visit https://theliterary.life/279. 

On this week's episode of The Literary Life, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks chat with their student Natalia Testa about her literary life. She is a rising homeschool junior living in Houston, Texas. She enjoys researching obscure manuscripts, classical languages and all things Lord Peter Wimsey. Angelina kicks off the conversation asking about Natalia's childhood reading memories and how she became interested in ancient history and literature. They also discuss how the research bug bit Natalia, as well as her thoughts about reading books that seem “above” a child's level. Other topics of conversation is how Natalia found Dorothy Sayers and fell in love with detective novels, how she started taking classes with House of Humane Letters, and how she deals with a reading slump. Please visit HouseofHumaneLetters.com to check out all the past and upcoming classes, conferences, and webinars mentioned in this episode. To view the full show notes for this episode, complete with poems, quotes, and book links, please visit https://theliterary.life/278. 

Today on The Literary Life podcast, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks have a much-awaited conversation all about Angelina's own literary life and education. Thomas gets to ask the tough questions and put Angelina on the spot in this episode! She begins by sharing her childhood love of books and what her favorite books were when she was young. They then discuss the turning point Angelina had when she read A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle. She also talk about the reason she so disliked literary analysis when it was introduced in high school and continues to speak out against the new criticism to this day. Thomas and Angelina then turn to her experience in higher education and how she ended up studying and teaching literature. She highlights the impact Flannery O'Connor had on her, as well as studying with Burton Raffel. After describing her graduate school experience, Angelina shares how and why she walked away from that path to teach her own children and eventually start a school. Finally, looking at what House of Humane Letters, she talks about the joy and blessing of doing what she loves with people who care about the same books and ideas she does. Please visit HouseofHumaneLetters.com to check out all the past and upcoming classes, conferences, and webinars mentioned in this episode. To view the full show notes including links to all the books mentioned, head over to our podcast webpage at https://theliterary.life/275. 

This week on The Literary Life Podcast, our hosts Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks are back with a new “Literary Life of…” interview, this time with their teaching colleague at House of Humane Letters, Dr. Anne Phillips. In addition to her classes at HHL, you can also find Dr. Phillips writing on Substack. Angelina starts off the conversation asking Anne about her reading life growing up and her homeschool experience. She talks about how she came to love the Greek myths and started pursuing Latin. The three of them discuss how having a diet of truly good literature cultivates discernment in reading less valuable books. They also share thoughts on writing as imitation and the great importance of having good ideas over knowing particular forms. Anne also talks about her college and graduate school experiences and the challenges of being in academia in our current culture. They wrap up the conversation with a little look into what Dr. Phillips reading life looks like now as a working, homeschooling mother and wife. To register for Dr. Phillips and Jenn Rogers' upcoming mini-class, “The Great Divide”, please visit HouseofHumaneLetters.com. To view the full show notes for this episode, along with all the books mentioned, please visit our website at https://theliterary.life/274. 

Welcome back to The Literary Life podcast with Angelina Stanford, Cindy Rollins and Thomas Banks. This week we are bringing you another episode from the vault, this time part one of our series on The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim. Thomas gives some interesting biographical information about von Arnim, and Angelina shares some perspective on appreciating the art and the life of artist. Cindy highlights the fact that we see only caricatures of the women in England, and it isn't until they get to Italy that we begin to see their real selves. Angelina also points out that all the women are on identity quests in this story. Angelina unpacks some of the metaphors in this book and the Dante-esque images, in addition to the key place beauty has in the story.  Don't forget to sign up for this year's Literary Life Online Conference coming up later this month! Register today for “Living Language: Why Words Matter” at HouseofHumaneLetters.com for full live or later access. To view the full show notes for this episode, please visit our website at https://theliterary.life/282. 

This week on The Literary Life, we bring you a gem from the archives. In this episode hosts Angelina Stanford, Thomas Banks, and Cindy Rollins discuss “How Much Land Does a Man Need?” by Leo Tolstoy. To start off the discussion of this short story, Thomas gives us some background to help answer Angelina's question about why this story seems so very different from other Tolstoy works. Angelina shares how to approach this story like a parable. Cindy brings up the question of the difference between ambition and vocation in terms of contentment.  The Literary Life Online Conference “Living Language: Why Words Matter” is coming up this month, so now is the time to register for lifetime access. Head over the HouseofHumaneLetters.com to sign up today! Don't forget to visit our website at https://theliterary.life/270 for the full show notes for this episode.

This week's episode is a continuation of Cindy Rollins and Angelina Stanford's discussion of An Experiment in Criticism by C. S. Lewis. They start with an exploration of the difference between loving a book and evaluating a book as a work of art, followed by an explanation of Lewis' idea that works of art do not teach us. Angelina goes in depth about why it is not our job as readers to find the “nugget of truth” in a book. Cindy brings up Lewis' point about “using” literature as an academic tool, versus “receiving” literature as a work of art. In covering chapter 9, Angelina and Cindy dig into the dangers of rushing to express an opinion about what we read, rather than getting ourselves out of the way when approaching a book. Cindy points to the many similarities between what Lewis says in these chapters and what Charlotte Mason says about true education.  The seventh annual Literary Life Online Conference is coming very soon! Please visit HouseofHumaneLetters.com to sign up for that as well as all the other upcoming webinars of 2025! To view the full show notes for this episode, please visit https://theliterary.life/267/. 

This week on The Literary Life Podcast, we bring you the first installment of our series reprising C. S. Lewis' An Experiment in Criticism. Join us over the next few weeks as we replay the original discussions of this book hosted by Angelina Stanford and Cindy Rollins. Then come back for a new episode at the end of the series in which Angelina and Thomas Banks will add some further thoughts and clarity in reply to questions listeners have had over the years. The seventh annual Literary Life Online Conference is now open for registration. Please visit HouseofHumaneLetters.com to sign up for that as well as all the other upcoming webinars of 2025! Angelina and Cindy discuss Lewis' approach to literature and the point of this book being a critique more of readers than of books. Some main ideas they bring out of the first chapter are the importance of rereading, the fact that real readers will carve out time for books, how books have the power to change us, and the way readers can't help but talk about books. Cindy highlights the connection between Lewis critique of the literati and Mr. Bons in “The Celestial Omnibus.” Angelina talks about the challenge of keeping the love of literature for those whose profession it is to teach it, especially in the modern American university culture.  Our hosts discuss the idea of reading to improve oneself as opposed to submitting to the experience of reading a challenging book. Angelina makes the point that it is about motive and whether or not you are trying to control the outcome. The benefits are the byproducts. From chapter 3, Angelina and Cindy contemplate how we approach art and the need to get ourselves out of the way so that we can enter the work of art. Finally, they cover the five characteristics of the unliterary reader according to Lewis. For the full show notes of this episode, including links to books mentioned, please visit our website at https://theliterary.life/265. 

Welcome back to our series on Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing here on The Literary Life Podcast. Our hosts, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks, open the episode with some thoughts on disguises and appearance versus reality in Shakespeare. They talk about how the eavesdropping in this play works together with the things not being as they seem. Angelina shares some clarifying ideas on discussing characters and their function in the story without pulling them out of the story and psychoanalyzing them. Other topics they discuss in this episode are: the importance of the song lyrics in this play, Dogberry and his companions, Claudio's instability, and the shape of comedy. Join us next week for the final two acts of Much Ado About Nothing. To see the full show notes for this episode, including links to resources mentioned this week, please visit https://www.theliterary.life/262. 

Welcome to The Literary Life Podcast and our first book series of 2025, covering Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare. Our hosts, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks begin by sharing their commonplace quotes, then lead into a little biographical background on William Shakespeare and the way in which he wrote his plays. They also talk a little about Elizabethan period drama as a whole, as well as how Shakespeare bucked the standards of form for the time period. Some other topics they cover are how Shakespeare was received in his time, how later literary periods saw his influence decrease and increase, and Elizabethan cosmology and the setting of the Globe Theatre. To view the full show notes for this episode, including links to all the books mentioned, please visit https://theliterary.life/260/.   

Welcome to this special preview episode of The Literary Life Podcast! In this episode, our hosts Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks share the books and topics you can look forward to in the upcoming 2025 season of the podcast. This episode was recorded live with the Patreon supporters for our December All Fellows Eve. In addition to giving a taste of what to expect in the coming year, they also look back at the past year and touch on a few favorite books covered in 2024. In this coming year we plan to have several new “Literary Life of…” interviews, as well as several topical episodes discussing ideas such as classical education, the literary tradition, and what to do when you don't like the characters in a book. A few book titles that we will be covering in 2025 include: The Age of Innocence, The Jungle Book, and Moliere's Don Juan. For complete show notes and links to all the books mentioned, please visit https://theliterary.life/254/. 

Welcome back to The Literary Life Podcast and a new series on Oscar Wilde's play An Ideal Husband. This week hosts Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks will give an introduction to Oscar Wilde and the time period in which he wrote this play, then discuss Act 1. They discuss the cultural pendulum swing that happened in the Late Victorian period into the Edwardian era, as well as the Aesthetic Movement as it relates to literary development. As they begin the discussion of this play itself, they talk about how Wilde wrote his plays not just for the stage but also to be read. Thomas and Angelina talk a little about each character who is introduced in this first act and make some notes about the elements also found in Greek plays. To view the full show notes including links to any previous episodes and books mentioned in this episode, please visit our website at https://theliterary.life/252/. 

This week on The Literary Life Podcast we are pleased to bring you a conversation hosts Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks had with Dr. Jason Baxter, author of the new book Why Literature Matters from Cassiodorus Press. You can find out more about Dr. Baxter and his other books at JasonMBaxter.com. Together they discuss how this book came about and the importance of knowing who your audience is. They share some hopes for this book to reach those who don't understand why literature is still worthwhile in our current culture. Angelina brings up the challenges of reading in this fast-paced, consumeristic age. Jason uses metaphors of gardening and learning a piece of music to think about reading and understanding as a process requiring time and perseverance. Please visit our website for complete show notes including commonplace quotes, book links, and this week's poem at https://theliterary.life/251/. 

Welcome back to The Literary Life podcast! Due to a scheduling conflict, this week we are re-airing a previous episode with Dr. Jason Baxter, author of the new book Why Literature Matters from Cassiodorus Press. Angelina Stanford, Cindy Rollins, and Thomas Banks sit down for a special conversation with Jason Baxter. Jason is a speaker, writer, and college professor who writes primarily on medieval thought and is especially interested in Lewis' ideas. You can find out more about him and his books at JasonMBaxter.com. Our hosts and Jason discuss a wide range of ideas, including the values of literature, the sacramental view of reality, why it is important to understand medieval thought, the "problem" of paganism in Lewis' writings, and how to approach reading ancient and medieval literature. To see all the books and get the full show notes for today's episode, visit our website for the complete show notes here: https://www.theliterary.life/250/.

On The Literary Life podcast this week, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks begin their newest series, this time discussing Samuel Taylor Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner. First, Thomas and Angelina speak to the question of different editions of this poem, then they dive into the background on Coleridge, William Wordsworth, and the lyrical ballads. They discuss the artistic and cultural moment in which Coleridge is writing, particularly the Romantic period in literature. Angelina talks about the Romantics and why they used so much medieval language and used allegory so heavily. She shares some examples of the writers in this vein seeking to rediscover and return to ancient tradition and stories. Thomas also considers Coleridge as a poet and a person. Finally, they give some helpful information and tips for those approaching this text for the first time. To see all the books and get the full show notes for today's episode, visit our website for the complete show notes here: https://www.theliterary.life/247/.

Today's episode of The Literary Life podcast is one in our “Best of The Literary Life” series. This week's remix is a conversation from 2019 between Angelina Stanford and Cindy Rollins in which they discuss Dorothy L. Sayers' essay “Are Women Human?“ They explore the ideas that Sayers wrestles with in the essay, including: the Victorian view of women, the significance of the industrial revolution, the human need for meaningful occupation, and the early feminist movement and women's suffrage. Angelina and Cindy also discuss the history of women's work inside and outside of the home and how they have been impacted by industry and our production-consumption culture. They take a fascinating look at the effects of the Enlightenment on women in the modern western world, as well as the problem of over-generalization and categorizing people according to classes. Finally, Cindy and Angelina highlight the importance of asking yourself the question: “Who am I supposed to be as a mother and a woman?” To see all the books and links mentioned in today's episode, visit our website for the complete show notes here: https://www.theliterary.life/246/.

Today on The Literary Life podcast, hosts Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks wrap up their series on Murder Must Advertise by Dorothy L. Sayers. To begin the conversation, Thomas shares his reaction on finishing this book. Angelina then dives into her discoveries of Alice in Wonderland references throughout all of Sayers' detective books. They talk about how the cricket game relates to the whole story arc, review the descent and parody imagery ideas from last episode, and look at Lord Peter's arrest and its significance in the form of the romance. More topics they cover in these final chapters include the ascent imagery, Tallboy's confession, the act of justice in the detective novel, and how the ending of this book is actually quite fitting. We hope you have enjoyed this series and will be picking up more Sayers novels soon! To see all the books and links mentioned in today's episode, visit our website for the complete show notes here: https://theliterary.life/245/.