The Anatomy of Desire by L.R. Dorn

The Big Book Club Podcast from Arlington Public Library

This is the first episode of our third season, and “The Anatomy of Desire” is the perfect book to introduce our fall reading theme and schedule. In season two we tackled a variety of western classics and foundational texts. With this book we’re beginning to explore the work built on those foundations. Published in May, 2021, “The Anatomy of Desire” is a modern reimagining of Theodore Dreiser’s classic crime drama, “An American Tragedy,” which we read earlier this year.

Reminder: this is a spoiler-filled podcast. So if you’re not into that kind of thing, read the book first and come back later.

Episode Links

"Anatomy of Desire" by L.R. Dorn

Reading

Pete – ”A Lush and Seething Hell” by John Hornor Jacobs

Jennie - “Hani and Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating" by Adiba Jaigirdar and “To Sir, with Love” by Lauren Layne

Megan – “Empire of Pain: the Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty” by Patrick Radden Keefe and “Bombshell” by Sarah MacLean

Tell us what YOU think about this book, or anything else you’re reading, in our GoodReads or Facebook groups, or talk to us on twitter using the #BigBookPodcast hashtag.

If you’d like to make a suggestion for future reading send us your recommendations on the Big Book Club Podcast page on the Arlington Public Library website.

Upcoming Books:

"The Ballad of Black Tom" by Victor LaValle and "The Horror at Red Hook" by H.P. Lovecraft

"The Balled of Black Tom" has been described as "a novella of sorcery and skullduggery in Jazz Age New York."

From the publisher: People move to New York looking for magic and nothing will convince them it isn't there. Charles Thomas Tester hustles to put food on the table, keep the roof over his father's head, from Harlem to Flushing Meadows to Red Hook. He knows what magic a suit can cast, the invisibility a guitar case can provide, and the curse written on his skin that attracts the eye of wealthy white folks and their cops. But when he delivers an occult tome to a reclusive sorceress in the heart of Queens, Tom opens a door to a deeper realm of magic, and earns the attention of things best left sleeping.A storm that might swallow the world is building in Brooklyn. Will Black Tom live to see it break?