Bonnets At Dawn
181 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 1 year ago - ★★★★★ - 120 ratingsAusten vs. Brontë is a literary thunderdome! Listen each week as Lauren and Hannah compare and contrast the lives, work and fandoms of the Jane Austen and the Brontë sisters.
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Episodes
Best Reads of 2022, pt2: Jane Austen and the Porter Sisters w/Devoney Looser and Nikki Payne
January 03, 2023 01:15 - 1 hour - 96.8 MBThis week, we’re talking about forgotten novelists, scandalous carriage rides, and Jane Austen with two of our favorite authors. First up, Devoney Looser tells us more about Jane and Maria Porter, the subjects of her nonfiction book Sister Novelists: The Trailblazing Sisters, Who Paved The Way for Austen and the Brontës. And later, we are joined by Nikki Payne, who discusses her modern Austen retelling Pride and Protest.
Best Reads of 2022, pt1: Louisa & Emily, Romance Reads, and Old Iron Press
December 27, 2022 04:09 - 59 minutes - 81.6 MBIn this action-packed episode, we discuss our favorite reads of 2022, YOUR favorite reads of 2022, and interview some very special literary guests. First up - authors Lorraine Tosiello and Jane Cavolina discuss their book, "The Bee and the Fly: The Improbable Correspondence of Louisa May Alcott and Emily Dickinson". Roseann Backlin from Love’s Sweet Arrow recommends some romance novels we should pick up in 2023, and Eliza Tudor from Old Iron Press talks about retooled classics and the books s...
S6, E12: George Eliot and Silas Marner, pt 4
December 05, 2022 02:07 - 1 hour - 85.2 MBThis week, we’ve come to the end of our Silas Marner read-along! Voice actress Katie Mosley joins us one last time as we recap chapters 17-22 and discuss all of the Silas Marner adaptations, including Steve Martin’s A Simple Twist of Fate.
S6, E11: George Eliot and Silas Marner, pt 3
November 27, 2022 01:20 - 40 minutes - 56.1 MBWe’re still banging on about George Eliot and Silas Marner! This week, we recap chapters 13 -16, talk nature and Wordsworth, and are rejoined by voice actress Katie Mosley as the voice of George Eliot.
S6, E10: George Eliot, her entanglements, and Silas Marner, pt 2
November 20, 2022 04:18 - 1 hour - 83.4 MBThis week, we continue our discussion on George Eliot, her entanglements, and Silas Marner. The book is getting very Eastenders as we recap chapters 5-12 and are rejoined by voice actress Katie Mosley as the voice of George Eliot to highlight our favorite quotes from the book.
S6, E9: George Eliot, her entanglements, and Silas Marner, pt 1
November 12, 2022 19:25 - 52 minutes - 72 MBFor the next few weeks, we’ll be discussing George Eliot, her entanglements, and reading Silas Marner through a fairytale lens. This week, we recap chapters 1-4, and are rejoined by voice actress Katie Mosley as the voice of George Eliot to highlight our favorite passages of the book.
B@D Mixtape #3: Sense of Place
November 04, 2022 23:13 - 32 minutes - 74.3 MBThis week we’ve specially selected pieces with a strong sense of place by Zitkala Sa, Alice Dunbar Nelson, Emily Lawless, and George Eliot for another B@D Mixtape. Come with us as we explore an English country garden, the Yankton Reservation, a bustling alleyway in New Orleans, and a quiet London drawing room. Special thanks to Sassy, Katie, Desiree, and _HAP_ from Freesound.org
B@D MIxtape #2: A Haunted House?
October 28, 2022 16:29 - 36 minutes - 50.8 MBThis week, we’ve curated a selection of haunting short stories and poems by Virginia Woolf, Amy Levy, Edna St. Vincent Millay, and Emily Dickinson, for another B@D Mixtape - part podcast, part audiobook.
S6, E8: The Haunting Tales of Charlotte Riddell with Dr. Melissa Edmundson
October 21, 2022 03:01 - 47 minutes - 65.1 MBThis week, spooky story specialist Dr. Melissa Edmundson talks to us about her Broadview edition of The Uninhabited House by Charlotte Riddell and helps us understand why the Victorians were so obsessed with ghost stories. We also discuss “Business Gothic'' and recommend some scary stories by Edith Nesbit.
S6, E7: Race, Romance, and Empire in the short works of Louisa May Alcott and Dinah Craik
June 29, 2022 03:10 - 52 minutes - 72.4 MBThis week, we are discussing My Contraband by Louisa May Alcott and The Half-Caste by Dinah Craik. These stories may seem different on the surface, but share quite a few similarities. We talk about how these authors handle interracial relationships, the East India Company, and make comparisons to Sense & Sensibility and Jane Eyre. Spoilers ahead. You can find both stories for free online if you’d like to read before listening.
S6, E6: Otherness and Horror in Wuthering Heights w/Dr. Lydia Craig
June 20, 2022 03:27 - 1 hour - 97.4 MBThis week is all about the beloved/hated novel, Wuthering Heights! We sat down with Dr. Lydia Craig to discuss Tylney Hall (a possible source text and inspiration for WH) and reading Heathcliff as a person of color. We also talk adaptations, Wuthering Heights as horror, Charlotte Brontë’s Villette, and the musical Cats.
S6, E5: Nella Larsen's Passing
June 12, 2022 02:48 - 1 hour - 99.7 MBFINALLY. This week, we’re talking about Passing by Nella Larsen. We also compare and contrast it to the 2021 film adaptation by Rebecca Hall and the short story Passing by Langston Hughes. Spoilers ahead.
S6, E4: The Medicine, Murder, and Afrofuturism in Of One Blood w/Dr. Eurie Dahn & Dr. Brian Sweeney
May 30, 2022 03:36 - 1 hour - 108 MBThis week is all about Pauline Hopkins! Hopkins was an author, activist, and editor, who served as the driving force behind The Colored American magazine and her serialized novel, Of One Blood, has been described at Black Panther meets Indiana Jones. We’re joined by Eurie Dahn and Brian Sweeney to discuss this fascinating novel, early speculative fiction, as well as The Colored American Magazine, which they are currently digitizing here: http://coloredamerican.org/
S6, E3: Harriet Jacobs and Frances Harper w/Dr. Koritha Mitchell
May 23, 2022 03:32 - 1 hour - 102 MBThis week, we’re continuing our conversation about Harriet Beecher Stowe and performative activism. And we are joined by Dr. Koritha Mitchell to discuss her upcoming edition of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, as well as the connections between Frances Harper and Harriet Jacobs.
S6, E2: Abolitionist literature and Anti-Slavery Bazaars with Felicia Gabriele
May 15, 2022 21:13 - 1 hour - 112 MBThis week, we’re talking about the business of abolitionist literature. We start by discussing the author and activist Lydia Maria Child and her short story The Quadroons. Then, PhD candidate Felicia Gabriele joins us to discuss her Rambling article entitled “The Problem of Fashionable Abolition: Performative Allyship Then and Now.”
S6, E1: Harriet Beeecher Stowe’s Pink & White Tyranny!
May 08, 2022 18:33 - 1 hour - 84.6 MBWe’re baaack! This week, we’re going on a micro-mini-roadtrip to Harriet Beecher Stowe’s House in Cincinnati and talking about one of one of her most baffling books - Pink & White Tyranny (great band name, btw). We can’t tell if this novel is a Mansfield Park fanfic or response to Wuthering Heights. Listen in and let us know! Spoilers ahead!
B@D Mixtape #1: Poems About Authors
April 30, 2022 17:34 - 30 minutes - 42.5 MBHey, hey, we’re back with a new format! This is the first Bonnets at Dawn Mixtape, which is part audiobook and part podcast. In honor of National Poetry Month, we have asked some excellent voice actors to read poems about authors. Listen to hear what Dorothy Parker wrote about Harriet Beecher Stowe, a Tribute to George Sand by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, a spooky poem about the Brontë sisters, and more! Music Credits: Sad Heaven Piano #3 by PSOVOD Lo Fi 01 by Szmalix Lo-Fo Tokyo by YellowT...
S5, Bonus: Best Reads of 2021, aka The Holiday Holiday Special
December 28, 2021 00:56 - 1 hour - 68.6 MBThis week, Dr. Arielle Zibrak and Dr. Sarah Mesle join us to discuss our love of Kate Winslet, The Holiday, the pleasures of knitwear, and our favorite reads of 2021. We also talk about romcoms, Austen and Ephron, comfort reading, and read just a few of your amazing book recommendations.
S5.3, E5: Guilty Pleasures and Critical Bonnet Studies with Dr. Arielle Zibrak
December 13, 2021 00:17 - 1 hour - 60.6 MBWe’re wrapping up our mini-series on Sex, Scandal, and Social Climbers with Dr. Arielle Zibrak, who is here to discuss the role of bonnets in 19th century literature, bodice rippers, and guilty pleasures. We also carry on our discussion about race in literature, Taylor Swift, and even get into Jane Austen’s Emma and Keanu Reeves. Find Arielle on the internet at https://www.ariellezibrak.com/
S5.3, E4: Scandal and Coffee and Mary Robinson with Clio O’Sullivan
December 05, 2021 17:04 - 33 minutes - 30.4 MBThis week, we’re talking ghosts, gossip, and gambling with Clio O’Sullivan from Chawton House Library! We discuss the scandalous actress and author Mary Robinson and the connection she shares with Scottish botanical illustrator Elizabeth Blackwell.
S5.3, E3: Elizabeth Montagu and Bluestocking Drama w/Dr. Jack Orchard & Dr. Anna Louise Senkiw
November 29, 2021 00:37 - 58 minutes - 53.6 MBThis week, we are talking to Dr. Jack Orchard and Dr. Anna Louise Senkiw, who are currently working on digitizing the letters of Elizabeth Montagu, noted literary influencer and Queen of the Bluestockings. We also discuss the poet Ann Yearsley, her feud with Hannah More, and how she is like Taylor Swift. You can access Montagu’s letters online at http://emco.swansea.ac.uk/home/ And find Jack on Twitter @Jarona7
S5.3, E2: Elizabeth Barrett Browning with Dr. Fiona Sampson
November 20, 2021 21:22 - 1 hour - 62.6 MBThis week, we’re welcoming Dr. Fiona Sampson back to the show to discuss her new book entitled Two-Way Mirror: The Life of Elizabeth Barrett Browning. We also get into specifics regarding EBB’s family money, illness, legacy, and what should be included in her biopic.
S5.3, E1: Upstarts, Social Climbers, and Alicia LeFanu’s Fashionable Connections w/Dr. Lydia Craig
November 12, 2021 19:52 - 1 hour - 61.6 MBWe’re kicking off our mini-season on Sex, Scandal, and Money with an episode about social climbers, upstarts, and Jamaican heirs in Regency England. We cover a lot in this one including Sanditon’s Miss Lambe, Leigh Hunt’s Black ancestry, Charles Dickens, the scandalous life of George Eliot, the Real Housewives, and Alicia LeFanu’s novel Fashionable Connexions with our pal, Dr. Lydia Craig. Minor spoilers for Fashionable Connexions, which you can read online via Google Books.
S5, Bonus: The Letters of Pride and Prejudice and Little Women with Barbara Heller
November 06, 2021 18:18 - 57 minutes - 52.6 MBThis week, we’re bringing together Dr. Eleanor Rust and curator Barabara Heller for an in depth discussion about the process behind creating the letters for the Pride and Prejudice and Little Women Letters editions for Chronicle Books. We also discuss Barbara’s job as a set decorator for television and film, calligraphy and postal history.
S5, Bonus: B@D Literary Ghost Tour
October 29, 2021 03:40 - 46 minutes - 43 MBWe’re back with an expanded version of our 2020 B@D Live Literary Ghost Tour! This week, we’re talking about spooky books, the ghost of Charles Dickens, and whether or not Anne Brontë is haunting a certain staircase in New York.
S5.2, Episode 6: Harriet Beecher Stowe Onscreen w/Fourth Wall Films
August 22, 2021 01:04 - 1 hour - 64.1 MBThis action-packed episode is our first ever entirely dedicated to Harriet Beecher Stowe. We discuss Harriet’s time in Cincinnati, the unauthorized stage adaptations of Uncle Tom’s Cabin, and her connection to The King and I. We also interview Kelly and Tammy Rundle from Fourth Wall Films about their documentary Becoming Harriet Beecher Stowe, as well as their docu-drama about Stowe, entitled Sons & Daughters of Thunder.
S5.2, Episode 5: Adapting Sense and Sensibility w/playwright Sharmini Kumar
August 14, 2021 02:59 - 1 hour - 83 MBThis week, we are talking to playwright Sharmini Kumar about the origins of 24 Carrot Productions, as well as the challenges of adapting Austen to stage, and diversifying her productions. We also read from Emma Thompson’s Sense and Sensibility production diaries, and Lauren realizes that she is actually a Marianne.
S5.2, Episode 4: Austen vs Brontë Onstage w/ playwright Christina Calvit
August 08, 2021 00:24 - 44 minutes - 40.3 MBThis week, we’re talking to Christina Calvit from Lifeline Theatre about adapting Austen and Brontë for the stage.
S5.2, Episode 3: Wild Nights with filmmaker Madeleine Olnek
July 30, 2021 04:23 - 58 minutes - 53.1 MBThis week, we’re continuing our discussion about Emily Dickinson and the art of adaptation with filmmaker Madeleine Olnek. Olnek wrote and directed the romantic comedy Wild Nights with Emily starring Molly Shannon as Dickinson. You can find out more about the film, including where to stream or purchase it, at http://www.wildnightswithemily.com/
S5.2, Episode 2: Emily Dickinson on Film
July 23, 2021 04:25 - 1 hour - 60.9 MBThis week, we’re comparing and contrasting the ways Emily Dickinson has been portrayed on screen in Dickinson, Wild Nights with Emily, and A Quiet Passion. For those that are worried about spoilers - we do a basic synopsis of each, and discuss some moments that we like (or don’t like). Light spoilers for Dickinson, medium for Wild Nights, and heavy for A Quiet Passion.
S5.2, Episode 1: Comic Adaptations w/artists Kaley Bales and Glynnis Fawkes
July 16, 2021 02:31 - 1 hour - 69.3 MBWe’re back and this season we are discussing stage, film, and comic adaptations! This week, we’re talking about literary biopics, Brontë vibes, and comics, with artists Kaley Bales and Glynnis Fawkes. Bales is the illustrator for our book, Why She Wrote, and Glynnis is the writer/illustrator of Charlotte Brontë Before Jane Eyre.
S5, E4: L.M. Montgomery and Regionalism w/special guest Dr. Trinna Frever
May 27, 2021 03:50 - 1 hour - 60.3 MBThis week, we’ve invited L.M. Montgomery scholar Dr. Trinna Frever back to break down regionalism for us. We start with L.M. Montgomery and The Blue Castle and work our way towards a discussion about Zora Neale Hurston, Sarah Orne Jewett, and Willa Cather and what they all have in common. We also discuss James Thurber, F. Scott Fitzgerald, William Wordsworth, Washington Irving Louisa May Alcott, Margaret Fuller, Ernest Hemingway, and Alice Carey, which might be a record for us in terms of nam...
S5, E3: The Blue Castle Pt 3 w/Dr. Sarah Mesle
May 12, 2021 05:06 - 1 hour - 69.7 MBHannah returns to breakdown the final chapters of The Blue Castle! Dr. Sarah Mesle shares her takeaways from the book, and we talk about sex, women’s health, Henry David Thoreau vs. John Foster vs. Susan Fenimore Cooper, and read some listener comments. It’s an action-packed episode.
S5, E2: The Blue Castle Pt 2 w/Dr. Brenton Dickieson
May 05, 2021 04:06 - 1 hour - 71.1 MBThis week, we are talking about soooo many women writers in relation to L.M. Montgomery including Christina Rossetti, Pauline Johnson, Charlotte Brontë, and Jane Austen (again). Dr. Amber Pouliot joins us in the co-host chair to discuss chapters 16-30 of The Blue Castle, Goblin Market, and sex. We also interview Dr. Brenton Dickieson, host of The Maud Cast, about L.M. Montgomery, John Foster, and Bluebeard. You can find The Maud Cast wherever you get your podcasts, or on Twitter @LMMIMaudCast.
S5, E1: The Blue Castle Read-Along Pt 1 w/Dr Kate Scarth
April 25, 2021 03:29 - 1 hour - 64.4 MBWe’re kicking off season 5 with a read-along of The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery. This week, we have not one, but two doctors in the house! Eleanor Rust joins us as co-host to discuss chapters 1-15, and Dr. Kate Scarth from the L.M. Montgomery Institute returns to talk about pairing L.M. Montgomery with Jane Austen. We also read some insightful listener comments about The Blue Castle, and discuss Isabella Valancy Crawford.
S4, Bonus Episode: Best Books of 2020 w/special guest Bea Koch from The Ripped Bodice
December 17, 2020 05:08 - 56 minutes - 51.8 MBThis week, we discuss YOUR favorite reads of 2020, and talk to Bea Koch about her book Mad & Bad: Real Heroines of The Regency. Stick around to the end for a very special announcement! And warning - this episode may contain a bit of adult language.
S4.4, E9: Pauline Hopkins & Dorothy West w/Special Guest Prof Cherene Sherrard-Johnson
December 10, 2020 05:00 - 1 hour - 68.7 MBThis week, we’re talking about the parallel lives of African American writers Pauline Hopkins and Dorothy West, and our hopes for a sexy Harlem Renaissance mini-series. Our guest, Professor Cherene Sherrard-Johnson, is the President of the Pauline Hopkins Society and the author of Dorothy West’s Paradise: A Biography of Class and Color.
S4.4, E8: The Diaries of Charlotte Forten & Louisa May Alcott
December 03, 2020 05:46 - 52 minutes - 48.2 MBThis week, we’re going back to 1854 to compare and contrast the diaries of African American activist, educator, and writer Charlotte Forten and Louisa May Alcott. These two have so much in common, and we found their journals and letters highly relatable and excellent reads.
S4.5, E7: The Lost Poetry of Sarah Piatt with Prof Elizabeth Renker and Jolie Braun
November 26, 2020 05:17 - 1 hour - 60.8 MBThis week, we’re bringing you another literary detective story. We’re talking to OSU Professor Elizabeth Renker and Special Collections Curator Jolie Braun about their work to uncover the life and work of American poet Sarah Piatt. If you’re an Emily Dickinson fan, check this one out!
S4.4, E7: The Lost Poetry of Sarah Piatt with Prof Elizabeth Renker and Jolie Braun
November 26, 2020 05:17 - 1 hour - 60.8 MBThis week, we’re bringing you another literary detective story. We’re talking to OSU Professor Elizabeth Renker and Special Collections Curator Jolie Braun about their work to uncover the life and work of American poet Sarah Piatt. If you’re an Emily Dickinson fan, check this one out!
S4.5, E6: Phillis Wheatley and Rare Books w/Special Guest Patrick Olson
November 20, 2020 05:03 - 1 hour - 64.9 MBThis week, we’re talking about rare books, forgeries, and biblio curiosities with Patrick Olson, proprietor of Olson Rare Books. We also discuss Phillis Wheatley’s legacy and the new book of poetry by Honoree´ Fanonne Jeffers entitled The Age of Phillis. Find Pat online at www.olsonrarebooks.com
S4.4, E6: Phillis Wheatley and Rare Books w/Special Guest Patrick Olson
November 20, 2020 05:03 - 1 hour - 64.9 MBThis week, we’re talking about rare books, forgeries, and biblio curiosities with Patrick Olson, proprietor of Olson Rare Books. We also discuss Phillis Wheatley’s legacy and the new book of poetry by Honoree´ Fanonne Jeffers entitled The Age of Phillis. Find Pat online at www.olsonrarebooks.com
S4.4, E5: Finding Sarah E. Farro with Lydia Craig
November 12, 2020 04:33 - 45 minutes - 41.4 MBAcademic Lydia Craig returns to the show to tell us all about her quest to piece together the life of Sarah E. Farro, the lost 19th century African American novelist. Spoilers ahead, as we discuss Farro’s book True Love: A Story of English Domestic Romance.
S4.5, E5: Finding Sarah E. Farro with Lydia Craig
November 12, 2020 04:33 - 45 minutes - 41.4 MBAcademic Lydia Craig returns to the show to tell us all about her quest to piece together the life of Sarah E. Farro, the lost 19th century African American novelist. Spoilers ahead, as we discuss Farro’s book True Love: A Story of English Domestic Romance.
S4.5, E4: Dorothy Wordsworth’s Journals with Dr. Jo Taylor
November 05, 2020 04:04 - 1 hour - 56.6 MBThis week, we are going back to the Lake District to revisit Dorothy Wordsworth. We discuss her partnership with William, relationship with nature, and dive into some of our favorite journal entries with Dr. Jo Taylor.
S4.4, E4: Dorothy Wordsworth’s Journals with Dr. Jo Taylor
November 05, 2020 04:04 - 1 hour - 56.6 MBThis week, we are going back to the Lake District to revisit Dorothy Wordsworth. We discuss her partnership with William, relationship with nature, and dive into some of our favorite journal entries with Dr. Jo Taylor.
S4.5, E3: Mathilda & Mary Shelley w/Prof Rachel Feder
October 29, 2020 02:31 - 51 minutes - 47.5 MBThis week, we’re chatting with the hilarious poet and academic Rachel Feder about Mary Shelley, Mathilda, and whether or not Percy would have been a contender on reality tv. Warning - this is a deep dive into Mathilda, so there are spoilers.
S4.4, E3: Mathilda & Mary Shelley w/Prof Rachel Feder
October 29, 2020 02:31 - 51 minutes - 47.5 MBThis week, we’re chatting with the hilarious poet and academic Rachel Feder about Mary Shelley, Mathilda, and whether or not Percy would have been a contender on reality tv. Warning - this is a deep dive into Mathilda, so there are spoilers.
S4.4, E2: The Woman of Colour w/Prof. Kerry Sinanan
October 22, 2020 02:49 - 1 hour - 55.2 MBThis week, we’re discussing The Woman of Colour: A Tale by Anonymous with Professor Kerry Sinanan. This unique 18th century text features a Black heiress in Regency England and draws comparisons to the film Belle. We talk about why it would make a great adaptation and revisit some thoughts from our Mansfield Park series.
S4.5, E2: The Woman of Colour w/Prof. Kerry Sinanan
October 22, 2020 02:49 - 1 hour - 55.2 MBThis week, we’re discussing The Woman of Colour: A Tale by Anonymous with Professor Kerry Sinanan. This unique 18th century text features a Black heiress in Regency England and draws comparisons to the film Belle. We talk about why it would make a great adaptation and revisit some thoughts from our Mansfield Park series.