Episode 2 - Jerusalem: The Boroughs (Part 1)
Intro - We have a few opening points to make before we get started with the text. Hugh gives his overall opinions on huge works and and this book specifically. The guys talk some about the differences between Modernism and Postmodernism.
The Prelude: A Work in Progress (skip to 12:20) - We are introduced to siblings Alma and Mick Warren. And the town of Northampton. And Dodderidge Chapel, with its weird freight door.
Chapter 1: A Host of Angels (skip to 32:20) - We follow the Warren kids’ great-grandfather, Ern Vernall, as he is visited by an Angel (angle?) and proceeds to lose his mind.
Chapter 2: ASBOs of Desire (skip to 47:45) - We spend the day with adorable and delightful Marla, as she appreciates true art, seeks to alleviate her hungers, and make a dollar or two in the process.
Chapter 3: Rough Sleepers (skip to 67:55) - We spend the same day with Freddie Allen, who used to be in the life, but who is not so much anymore. He likes Puck’s Hats, ladies, and watching trilliards.
Welcome to The Hashish and Superiority Book Club, a podcast where we hope to tackle the large and weighty tomes of great (or not so great) fiction we find pertinent to the modern world - heretofore to be referred to as Hell World. Each season of the podcast will tackle either one large work or one author, dissecting what makes them lasting and important to the modern hellscape.
We are Kickers of Elves (kickersofelves.com, @kickerspodcasts), a group of podcasting thirtysomething sad bastards consisting of Wade Bowen (@bogmad), James Nolen (@jamesnolen), and Hugh Crawford (@hughbotcrawford).
For Season 1, we have decided to read the entire 600,000 word, 1300pg doorstop by Alan Moore named Jerusalem (2016).
Music Used:
“Theme Song” by James
“Transition 1” by James
“The River” by Bruce Springsteen
“Transition 2” by James
“Sheila” by Jamie T
Closing Song: “Don’t Fall In” by Kate Tempest
Publisher Blurb:
Begging comparisons to Tolstoy and Joyce, this “magnificent, sprawling cosmic epic” (Guardian) by Alan Moore—the genre-defying, “groundbreaking, hairy genius of our generation” (NPR)—takes its place among the most notable works of contemporary English literature. In decaying Northampton, eternity loiters between housing projects. Among saints, kings, prostitutes, and derelicts, a timeline unravels: second-century fiends wait in urine-scented stairwells, delinquent specters undermine a century with tunnels, and in upstairs parlors, laborers with golden blood reduce fate to a snooker tournament. Through the labyrinthine streets and pages of Jerusalem tread ghosts singing hymns of wealth and poverty. They celebrate the English language, challenge mortality post-Einstein, and insist upon their slum as Blake’s eternal holy city in “Moore’s apotheosis, a fourth-dimensional symphony” (Entertainment Weekly). This “brilliant . . . monumentally ambitious” tale from the gutter is “a massive literary achievement for our time—and maybe for all times simultaneously” (Washington Post).
Some links to purchase the book:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BX7S1M2/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1 (We hate these robber barons, especially Jeff Bezos. Don’t use Amazon if you can help it, but we are huge hypocrites for James and Hugh both recommend reading the book on Kindle.)
Powell’s https://www.powells.com/book/-9781631494727
If you like this podcast, we hope you check out our other ongoing podcasts covering every single episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (The Rules of Acquisition) and our highly critical struggle session with Star Trek: Discovery (A Discovery Home Companion).
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