Submission and cross-dressing: Tennyson’s The Princess

We're in the 19th century for the Really Like This Book podcast scripts catch-up, in the Victorian era, when the British Poet Laureate, Alfred, Lord Tennyson, published an epic poem called The Princess, on the subject of what to do about bizarre ideas about women's education, independence, and silly things like that. The submission of Victorian women … Continue reading Submission and cross-dressing: Tennyson’s The Princess →

Woman causes Oxford mayhem: Max Beerbohm’s Zuleika Dobson

This Really Like this Book podcast scripts catch-up is about the incomparable Zuleika Dobson by Max Beerbohm, from 1911. Tremble at the tale of her assault on the august traditions of Oxford and its university, when she made every student fall in love with her, and worse, after which she went home to have a relaxing bath before taking … Continue reading Woman causes Oxford mayhem: Max Beerbohm’s Zuleika Dobson →

Mark Twain’s A Yankee in King Arthur’s Court

Launching into a new miniseries of podcast scripts from Why I Really Like This Book, the next few weeks will see a long and enjoyable wallow in stories about King Arthur. This will include early British history, fantasies about Merlin, and the utterly compelling theory that when the Romans pulled out of Britain, somehow the Saxon … Continue reading Mark Twain’s A Yankee in King Arthur’s Court →