1676440811
Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast

Advertise on podcast: Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast

Rating
★★★★★
4.7
from
62 reviews
Categories
Country
United States
This podcast has
133 episodes
Language
English
Date created
2023/03/09
Latest episode
2026/09/25
Average duration
159 min.
Release period
10 days

Description

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.

Unlock Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast podcast Email contact info,
Listeners & Audience details

Email contact information

Direct podcast contact details

Listeners

Audience numbers & engagement insights

Audience details

Podcast Insights

Podcast episodes

Check latest episodes from Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast podcast


Against the Day: Ch. 42
2026/09/25
At last, somewhere rational, even on a map, Göttingen! What a lovely place to set the scene for romance for Kit, and to finally get to know the real star of the show, Yashmeen. Oh, o-oh. Never mind. Is it all just history and math, now? Wow. Great job, with the "podcast dedicated to books" there. Next episode: Ch. 43-44 (p. 605-637) 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 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/ Spreadshop: https://mapping-the-zone.myspreadshop.com/ Editing/production by Max Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com
Bonus Episode - Heather Parry
2026/09/11
Visit Heather Parry's Substack (general observations on eggs): https://substack.com/@heatherparry 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 https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/salmons-run/id6789264747 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/ Spreadshop: https://mapping-the-zone.myspreadshop.com/ Editing/production by Max Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com
Infinite Jest: "The Powdered Milk Fiasco"
2026/09/01
Next episode: Pages 698-808 (ending at “...his face unspeakable”) 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 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/
Against the Day: Ch. 40-41
2026/08/28
That—over there! Is it... the Q weapon? Wait, what's it do, anyway? What has the Hanseatic League got to do with a 20-sided die now? Where is Dally? Hold it, who is she kissing? Ugh, my head. Pairing recommendation: an NSAID Next episode: Ch. 42-43 (p. 589-615) 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: M. Son of the Century by Antonio Scurati TV: Mussolini: Son of the Century https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/salmons-run/id6789264747 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/ Spreadshop: https://mapping-the-zone.myspreadshop.com/ Editing/production by Max Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com
Bonus Episode: Adaptations (and The Odyssey... a bit)
2026/08/21
We like to talk, so we thought we'd record ourselves yapping about the Christopher Nolan adaptation of The Odyssey (and adaptations in general). 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 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/ Spreadshop: https://mapping-the-zone.myspreadshop.com/ Editing/production by Max Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com
Against the Day: Ch. 38-39
2026/08/14
While the lines have been set since the first pages of this novel, it seems some of our hosts feel it's only recently fully caught wind in its sails, and the lot of them seem pleased as punch. What that means for you, dear listener, is plenty of history, of course! Really, what would you do without us? Next episode: Ch. 40-41 (p. 557-588) 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 https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/salmons-run/id6789264747 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/ Editing/production by Max Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com
Infinite Jest: "I always end up finding more than I thought I would"
2026/08/01
Another month means another 100ish page section of Infinite Jest! This month features uncomfortable hugs, uncomfortable drugs, Randy Lenz being the absolute worst, Michael Pemulis being close to the absolute worst, and more backstory than you can shake a large wooden spoon ideal for eating granola with at. Next episode: Pages 601 - 698 (ending at “She could barely stand to think about them, even at the best of times, which the present was not.”) 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: The Chaos Machine by Max Fisher Film/TV: The Wire (HBO) 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
Against the Day: Ch. 36-37
2026/07/31
For the first time, listen to the crew of your fair show abdicate their preferred fine-toothed approach! Is it fair? You be the judge! Are you offended? Tell us! Engage! Engage like your lives depend on it! But worry not, kind audience, for the "Stupendica" and its ports of call are so historically salient to satisfy any apparently-endless craving for contextualization and discussion. Bon appetit! Next episode: Ch. 38-39 (p. 525-557) 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: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/salmons-run/id6789264747 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/ Editing/production by Max Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com
Against the Day: Ch. 34-35
2026/07/17
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: Films/TV: Burn These Books (https://www.youtube.com/@BurnTheseBooks) Music: Brazil (dir. Terry Gilliam, 1985); Dark City (dir. Alex Proyas, 1998) 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/ Editing and production by Max (Thanks Max!) Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com
Against the Day: Ch. 32-33
2026/07/03
After some much-needed psychic rehabilitation, the whole crew is back together, and like Lindsay and the other Chums reuniting, we're diving in deep straight off the bat. Things do get twisted, perhaps even time itself, with a tinker like Merle at Candlebrow up to his elbows in the stuff. Please have your textbooks with you. Next episode: Ch. 34-35 (p. 460-488) 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: Films/TV: Burn These Books (https://www.youtube.com/@BurnTheseBooks) Music: Brazil (dir. Terry Gilliam, 1985); Dark City (dir. Alex Proyas, 1998) 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/ Edited by: Max (thanks Max!) Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com
Infinite Jest: Il ne faut plus qu'on pursuive le bonheur
2026/07/01
How is a book this long, still this good, this far in? Gately gets a job, Marathe and Steeply converse and wax philosophical, and a young JOI helps his dad move a mattress. Put your empty glass of peppered tomato juice down somewhere and join us in this latest episode. Next episode: Pages 503-601 (ending at “Orin’s smile wasn’t as cool as he though as he told the seated figure that that was a matter of opinion.”) 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: Forget the Alamo, by Bryan Burrough, Chris Tomlinson, and Jason Stanford; David Foster Wallace's Infinite Jest: A Reader's Guide, by Stephen J. Burn; A Reader's Companion to Infinite Jest, by Robert Bell and William Dowling; Elegant Complexity: A Study of David Foster Wallce's Infinite Jest, by Greg Carlise Film/TV: Short Cuts (dir. Robert Altman, 1993) 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
Infinite Jest: "Like Last Time, Only Moreso"
2026/06/01
Next episode: Pages 410 - 503 (ending at “This was how I first became interested in the possibilities of annulation.”) 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: Film/TV: Twin Peaks: The Return (2017; dir. David Lynch) 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
Bonus Episode - Billy Woods "Hiding Places"
2026/05/29
Finally wrapping up our hiatus episodes, Will is back, and he's stirring the pot again. Inside, listeners will find a lyrical brief on billy woods & Kenny Segal's Hiding Places, making this a meaningful step in the evolution of our show, as it lasts longer than the subject matter. The better thing to do may be to just listen to the album. You know you want to.​ 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 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
Bonus Episode - The Franchiser by Stanley Elkin
2026/05/22
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 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
Bonus Episode - R.A. Lafferty
2026/05/15
On this week's bonus episode, Luke discusses the short stories, novels, and life of R.A. Lafferty. Give it a listen? Yeah, you should. 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 You can also subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts to get early access to our Infinite Jest series as well as any other bonus episodes/series we do down the road (or just to support us!) 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

Podcast reviews

Read Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast podcast reviews


4.7 out of 5
62 reviews
★★★★★
Luke Asthelton 2026/08/20
Buttholes?
I never read Pynchon, but I do like buttholes, and they mentioned buttholes so I would give them 5 stars.
★★★★★
Yellow babber 2026/08/09
Beautiful intelligent discussions.
I’m listening to the Vineland series, and without fail I do a double take every time there’s a fake ad introduction😂
★★★★★
DanielMHII 2025/07/18
I like Luke
That’s it. I like him
★★★★★
junt 2025/04/26
Reading the Line With Podcast Jobbers *WHERE HAVE GONE?
So glad to have another TP podcast (RIP PIP). Mason and Dixon is my favorite of Pynchon's novels, and the most under explored. They examine its nooks ...
★☆☆☆☆
scottryan88 2024/12/08
Boring libs missing the point
Absolutely fantastic podcast if you want to hear a bunch of midwit libs misunderstand Pynchon and talk themselves out of believing he’s saying what is...
★★★★★
Doc Denoon 2024/11/23
Refreshing perspective
The tone of the discussion is low key and inviting, so much so that you might miss how really thoughtful the hosts are. If you already love Pynchon or...
★★★★★
wjh503 2024/08/06
Plop Go the Donkeys
The misguided, execrable anti-Journey sentiment is balanced out well by a possible appreciation for Steve Lukather.
★★★★★
huntle_ 2024/03/22
Loquacious
Two words.
★☆☆☆☆
1988pens 2023/12/05
Nvm
Nvm
★★★★★
TarheelMonk 2023/05/15
A great literature podcast!
This podcast is quickly becoming one of my favorites for in-depth analyses of literature. They have great insight and perspective. The audio quality i...
check all reviews on apple podcasts

Podcast sponsorship advertising

Start advertising on Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast relevant audience podcasts


What do you want to promote?