EP38: Tom Hanks, Workplace Novels, and the Bleakness of Mars

Live from the Book Shop: John Updike's Ghost

Hannah is back from a three-day weekend up at Sugarloaf, thanks to the efforts of our friendly booksellers, and ready to talk books, such as "Rough Sleepers," next month's book club pick — because book club is back! Three people showed up to talk "Noor" (it's not just for employees!). But we quickly transition to a discussion of workplace novels like "Homebodies" (you're late! It's 9:02) and "Everything's Fine," which have Hannah remembering her most-recent mean boss and Sam regretting his life choices in general. To that end, Tom Hanks' workplace is the movie set, and his new book is for sure a "love letter to moviemaking," though that doesn't land for Sam, who doesn't love movies, but the comic books that are tucked into the text land pretty well. Then we finish up with a discussion of "It. Goes. So. Fast.," which has Hannah weeping in the car while Sam wonders about the infantalizing of children, and "Girlfriend on Mars," which is way more bleak than Sam was expecting given Emily St. John Mandel's awesome blurb. Maybe we're transcending '90s cynicism finally? Though "Heart-Shaped Box" is a Nirvana song, and the Paul Westerberg song that Hannah heard is actually "Dyslexic Heart," and Sam, per usual, has misremembered.