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A Legion of Horribles; or Cormac McCarthy, The Cannibal Owl, and the Art of Fiction

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Novelist Aaron Gwyn joins the show to discuss the fiction of Cormac McCarthy. Why is McCarthy’s Blood Meridian a great American novel? What does Gwyn make of recent revelations about McCarthy’s personal life? Plus, Gwyn reads from and discusses his compelling new novella, The Cannibal Owl. What is the history, and what are the Comanche traditions, behind the work? Gwyn, who teaches creative writing and contemporary literature at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, also discusses how students have changed over the past twenty years, the most important advice he gives young writers, and his favorite Van Halen album.

This episode is brought to you by the Gaza Largo Club—the Crown Jewel of Palestine!

Show Notes:

· “What Is the Best Work of American Fiction of the Last 25 Years?” (New York Times)
· Aaron Gwyn’s course lectures on McCarthy’s Blood Meridian
· Harold Bloom talks to Brian Lamb about Blood Meridian (C-SPAN)
· B.R. Myers on Cormac McCarthy’s “andelopes”
· “Cormac McCarthy’s Secret Muse Breaks Her Silence After Half a Century: ‘I Loved Him. He Was My Safety.’” (Vanity Fair)
· Aaron Gwyn’s novella, The Cannibal Owl (Belle Point Press)
· Method & Madness Podcast with Aaron Gwyn and Brad Kelly
· Follow Aaron on TwitterX: @AmericanGwyn

Opening and closing music: Brendan Benson, “Spit It Out,” used with permission from the artist.

Host:
Christopher J. Scalia