PodcastsArtsMapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast

Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast

Thomas Pynchon books discussed here!
Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast
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109 episodes

  • Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast

    Against the Day: Ch. 29

    13/03/2026 | 2h 34 mins.
    Time: var. moments of social cavitation
    Location: var. locales of New Old Mexico, esp. northern
    Subject: Quiselgur, El Chavalito "Frank Traverse"
    Concerns:
    - rigid and constricted manifolds
    - succulent flora
    - turnabout
    Recommendations:
    - Continue observation
    - Maintain separation from subject "QR"
    - Apply steady pressure along lines of cleavage
    If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.
    https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone
    If you enjoyed our discussion, please check out the following media that relates to these chapters:
    Music: Hermanos Gutierrez El Bueno Y El Malo (2022)
    Film/TV: Acid westerns of Alejandro Jodorowsky (El Topo, The Holy Mountain)
    As always, thanks so much for listening!
    Email: ⁠[email protected]
    Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social
    Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/
    Merch: mapping-the-zone.myspreadshop.com
    Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit)bradspersecond.com
  • Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast

    Infinite Jest: Eating Granola With A Large Wooden Spoon

    08/03/2026 | 2h 15 mins.
    If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.
    https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone
    If you enjoyed our discussion, please check out the following media that relates to these chapters:
    Interview with Michael Silverblatt: David Foster Wallace on Bookworm (1996-2006)YouTube · M.J. NichollsSep 22, 2021
    String Theory by David Foster Wallace
    As always, thanks so much for listening!
    Email: ⁠[email protected]
    Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social
    Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/
    Merch: mapping-the-zone.myspreadshop.com
    Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit)bradspersecond.com
  • Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast

    Infinite Jest: Eating Granola With A Large Wooden Spoon (v 2.0)

    05/03/2026 | 2h 15 mins.
    Nothing new about this episode, despite the 2.0 in the name. We had some problems with the original being Apple Podcasts exclusive, so the workaround was in changing the title (slightly).
    If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.
    https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone
    If you enjoyed our discussion, please check out the following media that relates to these chapters:
    Interview with Michael Silverblatt: David Foster Wallace on Bookworm (1996-2006)YouTube · M.J. NichollsSep 22, 2021
    String Theory by David Foster Wallace
    As always, thanks so much for listening!
    Email: ⁠[email protected]
    Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social
    Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/
    Merch: mapping-the-zone.myspreadshop.com
    Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit)bradspersecond.com
  • Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast

    Against the Day: Ch. 28

    13/02/2026 | 2h 45 mins.
    Before setting sail, we check in on the bouncing baby Jesse and the newlyweds who made him. Things aren't going too hot for the young family, the line between reciprocal sacrifice and foolheadedness seeming blurrier every day, and that's without getting into the vigilantism. But now they've parted ways, for the kid's own good, and as Reef eyes his duty to gallivant overseas, the crew shuffles paper in the form of talking politics.
    If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.
    https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone
    If you enjoyed our discussion, please check out the following media that relates to these chapters:
    Books: B. Traven’s Jungle novels:
    Government (1931)
    The Carreta (1931)
    March to the Monteria (a.k.a. March to Caobaland) (1933)
    Trozas (1936)
    The Rebellion of the Hanged (1936; first English pub. 1952)
    General from the Jungle (1940)
    Music: Go listen to jass/jazz music
    As always, thanks so much for listening!
    Email: ⁠[email protected]
    Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social
    Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/
    Merch: mapping-the-zone.myspreadshop.com
    Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit)bradspersecond.com
  • Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast

    Infinite Jest: Wherein We Begin By Beginning

    01/02/2026 | 1h 33 mins.
    Thirty years ago, a monumental book was published which shook the literary world and completely revolutionized post-modern fiction. Not Margaret Atwood's Alias Grace, or the first book in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series, and it wasn't Fight Club (1996 was a pretty stacked year for media). David Foster Wallace's magnum opus, Infinite Jest was released on 01 Feb 1996 and has remained a staple in the "books you should read" discussion ever since.
    On this first of many episodes covering the book, Kate and Cody discuss the author, his life, his work, and what this book meant to the literature world both then and thirty years later.
    If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.
    https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone
    If you enjoyed our discussion, please check out the following media that relates to these chapters:
    Link to the Infinite Jest trailer (2024): https://youtu.be/gW39U8nxoQU?si=UcO_avdROTly6NAa
    Film/TV: The Wire (2002-2008)
    As always, thanks so much for listening!
    Email: ⁠[email protected]
    Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social
    Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/
    Merch: mapping-the-zone.myspreadshop.com
    Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit)bradspersecond.com

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About Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast

Each episode, we take a deep-dive into the book we are focusing on—we explore the references, characters, plot, and everything in between from a non-scholarly point of view. We are just four fans who love these books and can talk about them endlessly.
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