Required Readcast
26 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 2 years ago - ★★★★★ - 23 ratingsWhy the f*** did we read this book? Join Denver comediennes/book nerds Jessica Austgen and Lauren Bahlman as they dive back into the required reading list to see which books are still awesome... and which scarred us for life. (Spoiler: The Outsiders is great and Tess of the D'Urbervilles can suck it.)
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Episodes
#24: The Old Man and the Sea
August 10, 2021 14:15 - 51 minutes - 94.2 MBIt's time for that classic summer beach read, The Old Man and the Sea, by Ernest Hemingway! Grab your fishing pole and Xanax, and join Jess and Lauren as they debrief the most demoralizing fishing story ever written. (Thanks for nothing, Papa.) Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and pick up a copy of A Wrinkle in Time to join in on our next month's book! Theme music and lyrics by Max McEwan and Noah Wilson, vocals by Erin C. Willis.
#23: An Inspector Calls
February 02, 2021 14:46 - 1 hour - 110 MBIt's our first listener-requested title: An Inspector Calls by JB Priestley! This play was new to our hosts, but required for students in the UK, which makes for a delightfully British-ish episode. Join Lauren and Jess as they explore this "Compulsory Classic," expand their slang-vocabulary and examine all the different ways in which rich old British people can be assholes. Thanks for the request, Beth! Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and get your copy of Bram Stoker's Dracula...
#22: The Little Match Girl
December 24, 2020 01:51 - 49 minutes - 91 MBIt's our traditional bummer of a holiday episode with The Little Match Girl by Hans Christian Andersen! Join Lauren and Jess as they sympathize with our frozen little heroine, strategize smarter match-selling methods and try to muster up a little holiday cheer this late in 2020. Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and get your copy of Bram Stoker's Dracula ready so you can join us in January for some gothic goodness. Theme music and lyrics by Max McEwan and Noah Wilson, vocals by...
#21: Pride & Prejudice (and Persuasion!)
September 22, 2020 01:33 - 1 hour - 164 MBCome for the Pride, stay for the Prejudice (and Persuasion!) Join Lauren and Jess for a foray into the ultimate romantic comedy, Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice... with a little bit of Persuasion thrown in there for good measure. Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and get your copy of Bram Stoker's Dracula ready so you can read along for our October episode. Theme music and lyrics by Max McEwan and Noah Wilson, vocals by Erin C. Willis.
Season Three Sneak Peek!
September 01, 2020 22:34 - 5 minutes - 9.5 MBJoin your hosts Lauren Bahlman and Jessica Austgen for a sneak peek at the titles for Season Three of Required Readcast. Sept: Pride & Prejudice (& Persuasion!) Oct: Dracula Nov: An Inspector Calls December: Les Miserables Volume Two: Cosette
#20: The Baby-Sitter's Club #1 (Kristy's Great Idea)
June 13, 2020 22:37 - 56 minutes - 103 MBIs the Baby-Sitters Club great literature? No. Is it a soothing, easy read during COVID times? Hells, yes. Join Lauren and Jess as they (remotely) reminisce about this treasured childhood series, discuss the finer points of living in suburban Connecticut and wonder if Kristy Thomas might be responsible for the current gig economy. Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and stay tuned for our next title! Theme music and lyrics by Max McEwan and Noah Wilson, vocals by Erin C. Willis.
#19: The Catcher in the Rye
January 28, 2020 15:52 - 51 minutes - 93.4 MBHey you crumby phonies! Jess and Lauren tackle their most-requested title, J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye. Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and check out Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar for our next episode! Theme music and lyrics by Max McEwan and Noah Wilson, vocals by Erin C. Willis.
#18: How The Grinch Stole Christmas
December 21, 2019 03:09 - 1 hour - 114 MBGet those tiny hearts ready, because they're about to grow THREE WHOLE SIZES with holiday cheer! Join Lauren and Jess and they discuss the holiday classic, Dr. Seuss' How The Grinch Stole Christmas. Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and send us your suggestions for Season Three! Theme music and lyrics by Max McEwan and Noah Wilson, vocals by Erin C. Willis.
#17: Little Women
August 09, 2019 02:12 - 1 hour - 148 MBOh wow, these lil bitches are charming AF! (Except Amy, she sucks) Join Jessica and Lauren for the wholesome feminist goodness that is Louisa May Alcott's Little Women. Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and send us your suggestions for Season Three! Theme music and lyrics by Max McEwan and Noah Wilson, vocals by Erin C. Willis.
#16: A Midsummer Night's Dream
June 03, 2019 14:20 - 53 minutes - 97.6 MBHold on to your butts (er...asses?) and head into the woods with Jessica and Lauren as they discuss William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and brush up on Louisa May Alcott's Little Women for our next episode! Theme music and lyrics by Max McEwan and Noah Wilson, vocals by Erin C. Willis.
#15: 1984 (with Sean Scrutchins)
March 25, 2019 15:43 - 1 hour - 134 MBBig Brother definitely does not approve of this episode. Join Lauren, Jess and special guest Sean Scrutchins (Winston Smith in the Benchmark Theater production) as they talk through George Orwell's horrifyingly prescient 1984. Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and keep pushing through Victor Hugo's Les Miserables, because we're talking Volume Two: Cosette on the next episode. Theme music and lyrics by Max McEwan and Noah Wilson, vocals by Erin C. Willis.
#14: Les Miserables Vol. One
February 25, 2019 15:38 - 1 hour - 121 MBIs this the saddest book ever? Well... yeah. It's kinda in the title. Join Jess and Lauren for the first volume of Victor Hugo's Les Miserables, a bummer of an epic novel that will make you super glad that you're not a single mother in old-timey France. Silver lining: there's a marmot! Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and join us next month for George Orwell's 1984 at our very first live show on March 18th.
#13: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
January 28, 2019 21:28 - 1 hour - 133 MBNew year, new magical country. Come through the wardrobe with Jess and Lauren as we explore C.S. Lewis' first story in Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Dont' forget to put on your fur coat, your most British-ish accent and pack an extra helping or two of Turkish Delight (What the effing eff IS Turkish Delight anyway?). Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and join us next month for a (the first chunk of) Victor Hugo's Les Miserables. Required Readcast is...
#12: A Christmas Carol
December 23, 2018 18:05 - 1 hour - 135 MBGod bless us, everyone! For the year end episode, Lauren and Jess tackle the most essential of all holiday stories: Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Have a cup of holiday cheer (meaning: booze) and join us for a spooky holiday ghost story made even spookier by the spectre of unmoved Elves of Shelves, Victorian Era swingers parties and terminally ill urchins. Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and shoot us a message suggesting books for us to cover in 2019 Required Readcast is...
#11: The Gift of the Magi
December 18, 2018 16:05 - 51 minutes - 95.2 MBNothing will ruin your holiday spirit like O. Henry's The Gift of the Magi, a bummer of a short story about Christmas shopping gone horribly awry! In this episode, Jess and Lauren get real sad, discuss terrible gifts of holidays past, and someone dies from the TB... but there is the briefest mention of otters to brighten the mood! Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and pick up Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol and read along for our next holiday themed episode! Required Readcas...
#10: Matilda
December 04, 2018 18:39 - 57 minutes - 105 MBLauren and Jess both agree: there's nothing revolting about Roald Dahl's Matilda. Listen in as your hosts talk newts vs. salamanders, discuss truly terrible teachers and marvel over the vocal stylings of one Miss Kate Winslet. Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and get your hands on O. Henry's short (like, REALLY short) story, The Gift of the Magi. Required Readcast is brought to you by the good people at Sexpot Comedy. Theme music and lyrics by Max McEwan and Noah Wilson, voc...
#9: Lord of the Flies
September 12, 2018 20:40 - 1 hour - 121 MBWhat could be worse than an island full of feral schoolboys? Nothing. Nothing is worse than that. Jess and Lauren are back for for Season Two with one of the most horrifying novels to ever be assigned in a classroom: William Golding's The Lord of the Flies. Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and crack open your copy of Roald Dahl's Matilda for our next episode! Required Readcast is brought to you by the good people at Sexpot Comedy. Theme music and lyrics by Max McEwan and Noa...
#8: Charlotte's Web
June 16, 2018 15:05 - 1 hour - 145 MBCharlotte's Web by E.B. White is an enduring tale about the power of friendship... and a great way to introducing children to the concept of mortality! Jess and Lauren sob their way through this childhood classic as they talk animal husbandry, the danger of barn swings and weigh the pros and cons of visiting your local fair. Bring your tissues, this episode is a hard one.----more----Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and stay tuned for our summer reading list! Season Two is comi...
#7: The Crucible
April 25, 2018 21:46 - 1 hour - 137 MBLauren and Jess visit Salem, Mass. for a witchy good time as they discuss The Crucible, by Arthur Miller. Grab a copy of the play and listen along as our hosts chat witchcraft, McCarthyism and what kind of snacks are best for your coven meeting/podcast recording session. Stay gold, witches! Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and check out Charlotte's Web by E.B. White for our next episode! Required Readcast is brought to you by the good people at Sexpot Comedy. Theme music and ...
#6: The Great Gatsby
April 01, 2018 16:26 - 1 hour - 124 MBHappy Easter from West Egg, Old Sport! Grab a finger bowl full of champagne and join Jess and Lauren as they hate on Daisy Buchanan, flirt via shirts, and talk drunk driving in the Jazz Age. Stay gold, Gatz! Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and check out The Crucible by Arthur Miller for our next episode! Required Readcast is brought to you by the good people at Sexpot Comedy. Theme music and lyrics by Max McEwan and Noah Wilson, vocals by Erin C. Willis.
#5: The Giver
March 15, 2018 01:55 - 1 hour - 132 MBLois Lowry's The Giver is one kick-ass piece of uptopian/dystopia fiction, but no one ever assigned it to Jess and Lauren. Weird. Join our hosts as they discuss the pros and cons of living in a kinda-cult, why you shouldn't release babies into the wild, and the injustice of not being able to name one's own (Cabbage Patch) child. ----more---- Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and check out The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald for our next episode! Required Readcast is brought...
#4: Romeo & Juliet
February 28, 2018 16:31 - 1 hour - 129 MBJoin Lauren and Jessica as they discuss the greatest murder love story ever told, Romeo and Juliet by William "It's Hard to be the Bard" Shakespeare. Put on your favorite pair of pumpkin pants and listen in as your hosts tackle irresponsible parenting methods in old-timey Italy, villainous hats and play a rousing game of MFK: Verona-style! With stories from our friends (and Romeos!) Benjamin Bonenfant and Michael Shenefelt.----more---- Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and chec...
#4: Romeo & Juliet
February 28, 2018 16:31 - 1 hour - 129 MBJoin Lauren and Jessica as they discuss the greatest murder love story ever told, Romeo and Juliet by William "It's Hard to be the Bard" Shakespeare. Put on your favorite pair of pumpkin pants and listen in as your hosts tackle irresponsible parenting methods in old-timey Italy, villainous hats and play a rousing game of MFK: Verona-style! With stories from our friends (and Romeos!) Benjamin Bonenfant and Michael Shenefelt.----more---- Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and chec...
#3: To Kill a Mockingbird
February 07, 2018 20:46 - 1 hour - 135 MBTo Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee might just be a perfect book, but that doesn't mean Lauren and Jessica don't have opinions about it! This week, we talk about our favorite/least favorite citizens of Maycomb, discuss the origins of the phrase "Hey Boo," and turn our noses up at ill-conceived sequels. ----more---- Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and check out Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare for our next episode! Required Readcast is brought to you by the good people ...
#2: The Lottery
January 10, 2018 06:22 - 56 minutes - 103 MBShirley Jackson's The Lottery is one of the most famous (and messed up) short stories of all time, so it seemed like a perfect way for Lauren and Jessica to kick off the new year of their new podcast. Grab a copy of the book and join your hosts to talk weird wedding themes, stone-throwing strategy and the great state of Vermont. With a special guest story from former soc Zachary M. Andrews!----more---- Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and check out To Kill A Mockingbird by Har...
#1: The Outsiders
December 31, 2017 06:50 - 50 minutes - 92.1 MBLauren had to read The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton in the 8th grade, Jessica never read it at all. How does the ultimate YA classic hold up after all these years? Spoiler: it stayed gold, Ponyboy. ----more---- Like us on FB, follow us on Twitter and Insta and check out The Lottery by Shirley Jackson for our next episode! Required Readcast is brought to you by the good people at Sexpot Comedy. Theme music and lyrics by Max McEwan and Noah Wilson.