Episodes

  • Table for Two: Reading Resolutions
    Jan 9 2026

    This is the twelfth episode of Library Pizza, a podcast about reading hosted by the guy writing this: Mike Meginnis.

    This week, Tracy Rae Bowling and I discussed how insane this year is already making us feel, our experiences with various youth programs, and the different kinds of reading resolutions that we might consider. The following are the links to the articles from which we borrowed the resolutions:

    1. https://theconversation.com/what-are-your-new-years-reading-resolutions-6-dedicated-readers-share-theirs-269381
    2. https://www.scarymommy.com/lifestyle/new-years-reading-resolutions-2026
    3. https://theeverygirl.com/reading-resolutions/
    4. https://www.penguinteen.com/bookish-new-years-resolutions/

    We'll see you again soon.

    Follow me on Bluesky here.

    You can and should join Disc Horse, the Library Pizza discord, at https://discord.gg/UAsDrEeWFv

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    1 hr and 15 mins
  • Personal Pan Holiday Special: Christmas in Korea
    Dec 25 2025

    This is the eleventh episode of Library Pizza, a podcast about reading hosted by the guy writing this: Mike Meginnis.

    For this week's Personal Pan Holiday Special, I decided to do something a little bit different, sharing with you an essay that I wrote about my time as a writer in residence in South Korea, plus a guide that I wrote for others who participate in the residency in the future. I hope you enjoy both, and I'll see you next year.

    Follow me on Bluesky here.

    You can and should join Disc Horse, the Library Pizza discord, at https://discord.gg/UAsDrEeWFv

    My thanks to Tracy Rae Bowling for the very dignified theme song, and my friend Blorb for the art.

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    32 mins
  • The Ministry of Culture with Buzz Poole
    Dec 11 2025

    This is the tenth episode of Library Pizza, a podcast about reading hosted by the guy writing this: Mike Meginnis.

    This week's guest is Buzz Poole, cofounder of Sandorf Passage. Texts discussed include but are not limited to:

    • Fat Man and Little Boy by Mike Meginnis
    • Strange and Perfect Account from the Permafrost by Donald Niedekker, translated by Jonathan Reeder
    • Our Man in Iraq by Robert Perišić, translated by Will Firth
    • Cat at the End of the World by Robert Perišić, translated by Vesna Maric
    • No Signal Area by Robert Perišić, translated by Ellen Elias-Bursać
    • She Who Remains by Rene Karabas, translated by Izidora Angel
    • The Radiance of the King by Camara Laye
    • Bedbugs by Martina Vidaić, translated by Ellen Elias-Bursać
    • Horror and Huge Expenses by Robert Perišić, translated by Will Firth
    • The Case of Cem by Vera Mutafchieva, translated by Angela Rodel
    • Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar
    • James by Percivel Everett
    • Stranger by C. J. Cherryh
    • The works of Magda Szabo in general, of course
    • The Driver's Seat by Muriel Spark
    • Ice by Anna Kavan
    • The Birthday Party by Laurent Mauvignier, translated by Daniel Levin Becker
    • The works of C. S. Lewis
    • The Witches by Roald Dahl

    Buzz mentions writing an article for the Lit Hub that is partly about reading to his son; it's this: "The Wisdom of Sendak: Children Are Wild, Honest, Immoral Beings".

    Follow me on Bluesky here, and Buzz here.

    You can and should join Disc Horse, the Library Pizza discord, at https://discord.gg/UAsDrEeWFv

    My thanks to Tracy Rae Bowling for the very dignified theme song, and my friend Blorb for the art.

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    1 hr and 45 mins
  • The Used Book Store, Kansas City, and Thanksgiving Special with Tracy Rae Bowling
    Nov 27 2025

    This is the ninth episode of Library Pizza, a podcast about reading hosted by the guy writing this: Mike Meginnis.

    Last week, Tracy and I took a vacation to Kansas City, where we enjoyed the art museum, two jazz clubs, several eateries, one bar, and one used book store. We discuss our experience and used book stores generally, as well as our respective bachelorette parties and the marital applications of Taco Bell hot sauce. Texts briefly discussed include Jonathan Lethem's The Arrest, Orhan Pamuk's The New Life, Michael H. Bruno's Pocket Pal, and Baroness Orczy's The Scarlet Pimpernel. Also, Lord Jim arguably catches some strays.

    Follow me on Bluesky here.

    You can and should join Disc Horse, the Library Pizza discord, at https://discord.gg/UAsDrEeWFv

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    1 hr and 15 mins
  • You Can Really Feel the Spreadsheet with Tracy Rae Bowling
    Nov 20 2025

    This is the eighth episode of Library Pizza, a podcast about reading hosted by the guy writing this: Mike Meginnis.

    This week, Tracy and I get together for a conversation on visual novels, especially The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy. Other visual novels you might want to check out: the Danganronpa series, the Zero Escape series, 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney series, The House in Fata Morgana, Dream Daddy, The Walking Dead, Batman: The Telltale Series, and other Telltale games. Disco Elysium has a lot in common with visual novels, but the writing is better.

    In the back half of the episode, Tracy and I discuss the books we're reading. Texts mentioned include Heretic by Jeanna Kadlec, God's holy Bible, the works of Eula Biss in general, Devil's Tango: How I Learned the Fukushima Step by Step by Cecile Pineda, Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (again!), and Moby-Dick; or, The Whale. Plus probably something else I'm forgetting.

    Follow me on Bluesky here.

    You can and should join Disc Horse, the Library Pizza discord, at https://discord.gg/UAsDrEeWFv

    My thanks to Tracy for the very dignified theme song, and my friend Blorb for the art.

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    1 hr and 44 mins
  • Personal Pan Pizza: Three Readings by Mike
    Nov 14 2025

    This is the seventh episode of Library Pizza, a podcast about reading hosted by the guy writing this: Mike Meginnis.

    This week's guest unfortunately fell through, so it's going up slightly late, and the format is a bit different. This time I read excerpts from three pieces:

    03:05 - "The Guy with the Eyes," a short story by Spider Robinson
    13:38 - An excerpt from The Fawn, by Magda Szabó
    31:20 - The first chapter of Iza's Ballad, by Magda Szabó

    Follow me on Bluesky here.

    You can and should join Disc Horse, the Library Pizza discord, at https://discord.gg/UAsDrEeWFv

    My thanks to Tracy Rae Bowling for the very dignified theme song, and my friend Blorb for the art.

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    52 mins
  • Criminogenic, Prosthetic Eyebrows with Ed, a Normal Man
    Nov 6 2025

    This is the sixth episode of Library Pizza, a podcast about reading hosted by the guy writing this: Mike Meginnis.

    This week's guest is Ed "from Bluesky" Roppel, one of the four cohosts of "Normal Men", the only podcast on Bluesky. He blogs at ed3d.net.

    Texts and writers discussed include but are not limited to the Foundation series, Robert Heinlein, John W. Campbell, Ben Bova, Spider Robinson (especially his story "The Guy with the Eyes"), The Sixth Column, L. Ron Hubbard, Orson Scott Card, Neuromancer, Michael Stackpole, The World According to Garp, Seeing Like a State, Moral Mazes, The Uncaccountability Machine, and László Krasznahorkai

    Follow me on Bluesky here, and Ed here.

    You can and should join Disc Horse, the Library Pizza discord, at https://discord.gg/UAsDrEeWFv

    My thanks to Tracy Rae Bowling for the very dignified theme song, and my friend Blorb for the art.

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    1 hr and 32 mins
  • Parallel Mpreg with Rachel Jane Andelman and Tracy Rae Bowling
    Oct 30 2025

    This is the fifth episode of Library Pizza, a podcast about reading hosted by the guy writing this: Mike Meginnis.

    This week's guest is Rachel Jane Andelman, a writer, performer, and improv coach in the Boston area. She has taught at ImprovBoston and Union Comedy. She currently performs improv with independent casts Tales of Enstonishment and Magic: The Gathering: The Show, as well as her stand-up act, in the Boston area and beyond.

    Follow me on Bluesky here, and Rachel here.

    You can and should join Disc Horse, the Library Pizza discord, at https://discord.gg/UAsDrEeWFv

    My thanks to Tracy Rae Bowling for the very dignified theme song, and my friend Blorb for the art.

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    1 hr and 25 mins