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PODCAST

Books of Titans Podcast

Welcome to the Books of Titans Podcast where I (Erik Rostad) seek truth & beauty in the Immortal Books. My goal is to read the Great Books written by 200 authors over the next 15 years and share what I’m learning. I’ll talk a bit about each book, tie ideas together from a variety of genres, and share the one thing I always hope to remember from each of the Immortal Books. www.booksoftitans.com

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All Episodes

28:06

How Has This Reading Project Changed Me?

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/01/24

I received this set of questions from Brenda Slomka late in 2024. I couldn’t immediately answer them on Twitter X, so I decided to ponder them a bit and give a thoughtful response in this podcast episode. I’m glad I did it as it gave me a chance to take a step back and look at how the past 8 years of this reading project have impacted me.Here are the four questions:* What are you learning about yourself as you read?* Has your heart changed with these readings?* How has your view on the

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33:52

2025: The Reading Year Ahead

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/01/17

READING YEAR THEME: GREEK TRAGEDIES, COMEDIES, HISTORY, AND PHILOSOPHY2025 is the year I shift from the Greek playwrights into the philosophers. It’s year 3 of my 15-year Immortal Books reading project, where I read the greatest books ever written in chronological order.In this episode, I share my plan for the year, give a brief history of this reading project, and highlight the books I’m most excited, scared, and curious about for 2025.I mention a Short Great Books reading group I’m leading this

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28:38

The Intellectual Life by A.G. Sertillanges

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/01/10

Love the eternal books that express eternal truths. ~ A.G. SertillangesHave you found yourself lost in mid-life? Not sure what direction to take? No focus or purpose? This is a book about continuing intellectual curiosity throughout life, of lifelong learning. It’s a book with practical advice on how to pursue the life of the mind. I wish I had read this book in my teens.The author, A.G. Sertillanges, says this life is possible with just two hours a day. But what you quickly realize is that

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55:37

2024 Reading Year Recap

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/01/03

Each year, I stack all of the books from the previous year’s reading list next to me and reminisce over the reading year. It’s one of my favorite yearly podcast episodes and it’s a great way for you to hear about some books to add to your reading list.2024 was My Big Fat Greek Reading List. I’m reading through The Great Books The Immortal Books in chronological order over the next 15 years, and the time frame for this year was all Greek. Greek epic poetry, Greek tragedies, histories, and even

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23:56

Van Gogh Has a Broken Heart by Russ Ramsey

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/12/27

I used to think that great art had to have come from a great-souled artist with an honorable life. How else would you be able to forge David out of a slab of marble or compose an entire opera in your head? A minimum of a pure mind combined with superhuman abilities must have been required, right?Actually, art is oftentimes forged through intense suffering in the life of the artist. It’s suffering we know well as we also experience it to varying degrees. That’s the power of this book. It highlights

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31:21

The Art of Teaching by Gilbert Highet

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/12/20

This book was suggested by a friend of mine named William Leachman. He’s a bonafide teacher, as in he has students and teaches them in a building that says school on the outside of it. He told me I should read this book and he told me that I’m a teacher.I bristled at that. I’m not a professional. I don’t teach eager students at the local high school. But after reading this book, I hesitantly acknowledge that I am indeed a teacher. I’m a teacher to my children, to those I work with, and perhaps to

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33:00

Hellenika by Xenophon

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/12/13

“And after this, not many days later…”Xenophon begins his history with these words. The “after this…” refers to the writings of Thucydides, which abruptly end in the midst of the Peloponnesian War in 411BC. Xenophon takes up the mantle and takes us first to the end of the Peloponnesian War in 404BC and then on to 362BC.Xenophon’s work takes us through the decline of the Athenian empire into the rise of the Spartans, Boeotians, and then Thebans. Throughout the work, the Persians are making their

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26:23

Theo of Golden by Allen Levi

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/12/06

Theo of Golden is a man “fully invested in the art of living.” He’s a character you want to emulate. A good man whose kindness is made up of “little, nameless, unremembered acts.” As the reader, we get to see how these small, daily acts weave throughout a small, fictional, Georgia town.This book was gifted to me by a publisher well acquainted with the written word. It’s her job to quickly work through books and see if they have merit. She read this book and then promptly read it four additional

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51:20

The Peloponnesian War by Thucydides

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/11/22

Prior to reading Thucydides’ Peloponnesian War, I envisioned a sort of Braveheart-like battle with lines of Athenians rushing towards lines of Spartans. That’s not even close to what happened. Most battles were proxy battles far from either Athens or Sparta and many battles were fought by sea.The Peloponnesian War took place between 431 - 404BC. This work covers years 431 - 411BC, abruptly ends mid-year, and is then picked up by Xenophon in Hellenika.Thucydides uses speeches (141 of them) to add

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36:43

Andromache by Euripides

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/11/15

If you were to rank the individual suffering of those in Greek Literature, Andromache would easily rise to the top of that list. She lost her father, 7 brothers, and husband Hector to one man, Achilles. Her son was thrown from the walls of Troy. To top off the suffering cake, she was then forced to marry the son of her husband’s murderer, Neoptolemus.This tragedy begins with Andromache grasping the alter of Thetis in Thessaly, begging for her life. Her and Neoptolemus have had a son, which has made

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31:10

Heracles by Euripides

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/11/08

This tragedy by Euripides was written in 420BC, 10 years after Children of Heracles. Historically, this is in the midst of the Peloponnesian War. Mythologically, it’s at the point of Heracles’ life where he is completing his 12th and final labor. While away, his family is in danger. He returns, neutralizes the danger, but becomes danger himself in the form of madness brought on by the gods. In this state, he kills his wife and children with the very bow that has brought victory in his life.Awaking

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28:08

Children of Heracles by Euripides

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/11/01

Euripides wrote this tragedy in 430BC, a fateful year that saw the beginnings of the Peloponnesian War. It’s interesting to read this play in light of the historical atmosphere. Athens was entering a war with Sparta. The Spartans traced their descent from Heracles, and in this tragedy, the children of Heracles are near Athens (in Marathon) seeking refuge. Will Athens hold to her ideals and protect the suppliants? Will force beat deliberation? Will the innocent suffer?This is a wonderful tragedy

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38:42

Hippolytus by Euripides

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/10/25

You, Aphrodite, lead captive the stubborn hearts of gods and of mortals.Aphrodite conquers all. Or nearly all. Zeus is under her spell and only a few, Athena and Artemis among them, have resisted her.Love is so powerful a force that it can even cause a step-mother to lust after her step-son. That at least is the premise for this tragedy and so the battle of Aphrodite (love, desire) is fought against Artemis (chastity) through Phaedra’s forbidden love for Hippolytus.Humans are quick to judge and

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31:18

The Speeches of Pericles

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/10/18

In Book 2 of The Peloponnesian War by Thucydides, the Athenian general Pericles gives two extraordinary speeches. One is a eulogy and the other a response to an angry and devastated populace in the midst of war and pestilence.These speeches create a beautiful blend of history and exploration. Thucydides presents the historical facts of war—the size of armies, the results of certain battles, and naval vs land strategies. But it’s the speeches that allow him to explore the mindset, beliefs,

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28:37

Leading a Reading Group

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/10/11

I just finished leading a 9-week, in-person reading group covering the Iliad. It was such a good experience. I’ve also participated in a number of groups over the years and wanted to use this podcast episode to share what I’ve learned and to hopefully encourage you to start your own reading group.Myths:* You don’t need to have all of the answers.* You don’t need to have an advanced degree.How to Prepare:* As you read the book you will cover, use different color pens/highlighters each time you read

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27:21

The Trojan Women by Euripides

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/10/04

“Sing, O Muse, a new song about Ilium, a funeral dirge accompanied by tears.”The glory of the Iliad is over. The Muses are being summoned to sing a funeral dirge, a new song of mourning for the city of Troy.This tragedy takes place in the immediate aftermath of the Trojan War. The Greeks have gotten past the famous Trojan walls, not by force but by trickery. They’ve entered the city, killed the men and children, and taken the women as slaves.In this period between the fall of Troy and the sailing

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24:56

Iphigenia in Tauris by Euripides Podcast

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/09/27

In one of the most tragic stories of Greek Mythology, Agamemnon must sacrifice his daughter Iphigenia in order to secure favorable winds from Artemis so that the Greek Army can sail to Troy and retrieve Helen. That sacrifice sets off a series of events that curse a family line and destroy Agamemnon himself.It’d be fun to imagine an alternate ending. One that doesn’t involve the utterly tragic death of Iphigenia and a father being forced to kill his own daughter.That’s what happens here. Euripides

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30:06

Alcestis by Euripides Podcast

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/09/20

Admetus can escape Hades if he can find someone to die in his place. His wife Alcestis agrees to die for him in the ultimate sacrifice. Is she in the right? Should she have been the person to take his place? Where does that leave him if she dies?These tragic elements are balanced with comedic release in the arrival of Heracles amidst this tremendous household grief. It turns this play about Necessity, marriage, and hospitality into a satyr drama to lessen the blow of the questions raised.In this

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35:07

Hecabe by Euripides Podcast

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/09/13

Hecabe has to be one of the most tragic figures in the canon. Wife and Queen of King Priam, she’s lost close to 50 sons and 50 daughters by the start of this tragedy play. Not only that, she’s lost her husband, Hector, Paris, and Troy where she was queen.This play starts with one of her only surviving sons, Polydorus, appearing as a ghost and telling of his demise. Hecabe doesn’t know he’s dead yet, but we soon find out she has something else to lament. The ghost of Achilles has demanded the

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23:44

Medea by Euripides Podcast

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2024/09/06

Medea kicks off right at the end of Jason and the Golden Fleece by Apollonius of Rhodes. Medea has just assisted Jason in subduing the dragon so that he can take the Golden Fleece. As thanks, Jason promises to marry Medea but then takes a second wife (the King’s daughter) to try to smooth things over in their new home.Unsurprisingly, Medea doesn’t take kindly to being scorned and she plots her revenge. But this isn’t Clytemnestra type revenge of killing the perpetrator. This is much darker. Her

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