how to win the lottery: a book club podcast
Episodes
the moviegoer by walker percy
23 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
we’re kicking off our first “suck shit, sufjan stevens” module by heading down to louisiana for a three-book season, kicking off with the movie...
season four theme and reading list
16 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
we're embracing our inner lottery and gambling spirit with the fourth season of the pod. (if you don't want to have the theme spoiled, just listen to ...
fake accounts by lauren oyler
09 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
our internet module comes to a close with fake accounts by lauren oyler — and yet another great author instagram handle. we share praise for the t...
we had to remove this post by hanna bervoets
26 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
our internet module is nearing its end, and today we’re talking about we had to remove this post by hanna bervoets. we talk about the value of rea...
neuromancer by william gibson
12 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
our mini sci-fi module (maybe not really a thing) within our broader internet module continues with neuromancer by william gibson. after checking in...
things have gotten worse since we last spoke by eric larocca
29 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
recorded in spooky season, releasing in the most wonderful time of the year (according to that one song), our internet module continues with things ha...
allie rowbottom interview (author of aesthetica)
22 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
after covering her work last week, we spoke with allie rowbottom, author of aesthetica and jell-o girls. joey and allie share some memories about h...
aesthetica by allie rowbottom
15 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
the newest episode of lotto pod is also the newest book we’ll cover this season: aesthetica by allie rowbottom. first, some news: shreds is dead; ...
no one is talking about this by patricia lockwood
01 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
can a dog be twins? our next stop in our internet module is no one is talking about this by patricia lockwood. we talk about how the novel’s conte...
snow crash by neal stephenson
17 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
we’re headed back in time (?) to go forward in time (maybe?) to the metaverse (definitely) to talk about snow crash by neal stephenson. we talk ab...
17776 by jon bois
03 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
our internet module continues as we talk about 17776 by jon bois. is it a book? what defines a book? we get into it. after shreds kickflip mctwists hi...
liveblog by megan boyle
20 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
our internet module continues with our longest book this season (and one of our favorites we’ve covered so far): liveblog by megan boyle. (our int...
the novelist by jordan castro
06 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
our internet module heads toward another brand new novel as we share (kind of!) conflicting opinions about the novelist by jordan castro. we talk ab...
fernando sdrigotti interview (author of shitstorm)
29 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
we’re joined by fernando sdrigotti, author of shitstorm, to talk about his writing and how “the algorithm loves a shitstorm.” we find out about...
shitstorm by fernando sdrigotti
22 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
sorry, tipper gore! our internet module continues with shitstorm by fernando sdrigotti, and the google ban is still being upheld. it’s not christm...
b.r. yeager interview (author of amygdalatropolis)
15 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
this episode of how to win the lottery starts in media res, which is fancy speak for “in the middle of the action.” (this may be wildly wrong, bu...
amygdalatropolis by b.r. yeager
08 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
our internet season continues with amygdalatropolis by b.r. yeager, which tackles a topic new to literature. (note: this episode has a content warni...
darcie wilder interview (author of literally show me a healthy person)
01 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
literally show me a healthy person by darcie wilder is one of our favorite books this season, and today we’re talking to darcie all about it (and a...
adam levin interview (author of the instructions and mount chicago)
18 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
please note: this conversation contains spoilers for both mount chicago and the instructions. on today’s installment of tips and tricks to win th...
mount chicago by adam levin
11 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
we’re taking a slight detour this module (and returning to the work of adam levin) for a bonus episode about mount chicago. we compare mount chica...
katie runde interview (author of the shore)
04 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
we continued our season about the internet last week with katie runde’s the shore, and today we’re talking to katie about the jersey shore, board...
the shore by katie runde
28 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
our internet module continues as we seek community in online forums and talk about the shore by katie runde. after struggling with scheduling detail...
beth morgan interview (author of a touch of jen)
21 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
we kicked off our third season with a touch of jen by beth morgan, and today we’re talking to beth about her novel. we find out what she thinks of...
a touch of jen by beth morgan
14 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
we're kicking off our season about the internet with a touch of jen by beth morgan. we start by naming famous remys, wondering who the titular "jen" i...
season three theme and reading list
30 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
we're logging onto the internet for season three of how to win the lottery. all of our books prominently feature the internet and online life. find th...
bud smith interview (author of teenager)
23 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
we’re following up last week’s episode on teenager by bud smith by talking to bud about his work (and his friendship with bobby). we talk about ...
teenager by bud smith
16 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
our campus season (officially) wraps up with teenager by bud smith, which follows the first how to win the lottery field trip. after serge gainsbo...
either/or by elif batuman
02 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
campus season continues with either/or, our second elif batuman novel in a row, and this time, we’re following selin’s sophomore year at harvard....
the idiot by elif batuman
19 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
surprise! the idiot by elif batuman is no longer our season finale, as she wrote another book about selin that we'll cover next episode: either/or. to...
the instructions by adam levin
05 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
in spite of this episode about the instructions by adam levin being our longest episode to date (by far!), it still feels woefully incomplete. how d...
real life by brandon taylor
21 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
real life by brandon taylor continues our journey through the campus semester of our podcast and marks our most recent release in this module. after ...
college novel by blake middleton (+ author interview)
07 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
campus season continues with college novel by blake middleton, and today’s episode includes our first-ever author interview! we welcome in blake a...
sweet days of discipline by fleur jaeggy
24 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
campus season continues with sweet days of discipline by fleur jaeggy, our shortest book covered on the podcast so far. after a brief spin-off to “...
devil house by john darnielle
17 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
we’ve got a new release bonus episode coming at you today as we take on the novel devil house by john darnielle. we talk about darnielle’s place...
the secret history by donna tartt
10 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
the secret history by donna tartt is a seminal campus novel and the subject of today’s episode. it’s a book we’ve both read before, and likely ...
loner by teddy wayne
24 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
bob wasn’t available for this episode so joey and “shred” (or “shreds”) do their best in his absence to cover loner by teddy wayne. we dis...
end zone by don delillo
10 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
the stadium lights are on this week as we talk about football, warfare, and language in all things in end zone by don delillo. it’s another book w...
giles goat-boy by john barth
27 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
our campus season continues with the most abstract interpretation of a campus yet in giles goat-boy by john barth, which is joey's least favorite book...
my education by susan choi
13 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
the campus season (real missed opportunity for #sponcon by not calling it the education season) continues with my education by susan choi. it’s th...
the virgins by pamela erens
30 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
the virgins by pamela erens marks new ground for the podcast: it’s the first book we’ve both read before. does that mean we’ll have more insigh...
the nickel boys by colson whitehead
16 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
season two continues onward as we head back in time (for a difficult read) as we talk about the nickel boys by colson whitehead. we talk about the b...
the art of fielding by chad harbach
02 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
we're headed out to the baseball diamond for today's episode of how to win the lottery as we talk about the art of fielding by chad harbach. after bob...
prep by curtis sittenfeld
18 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
we continue our campus season with prep by curtis sittenfeld, the first book on the pod that’s new to bobby. we talk about its spanning breadth (i...
the bell jar by sylvia plath
04 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
we're kicking off the second season (campus-themed!) of how to win the lottery with sylvia plath's classic novel the bell jar. (content warning: this ...
season two theme and reading list
21 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
we’re going back to school for season two of how to win the lottery. all of our books are campus or varsity novels. find the full reading list below...
never let me go by kazuo ishiguro
07 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
we close out our first season -- on processing pain, the ways we've hurt people, and how we've been hurt -- with kazuo ishiguro's never let me go, and...
open city by teju cole
23 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
we’re nearing the end of the first season of the podcast, and with open city by teju cole, we’ve reached out first real widespread difference of...
ducks, newburyport by lucy ellmann
09 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
the fact that we’ve been building to ducks, newburyport by lucy ellmann all season long, the fact that it’s more than 1,000 pages long, the fact...
any man by amber tamblyn
26 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
every book in the first season of how to win the lottery has dealt with heavy themes, but any man by amber tamblyn may be the heaviest one yet. in thi...
colorless tsukuru tazaki and his years of pilgrimage by haruki murakami
12 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
haruki murakami is possibly the most successful and most well-known author we'll cover this season, and our sixth stop on our book club world tour div...
simon birch (1998) (bonus episode)
05 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
we read a prayer for owen meany, so now it's time to watch the semi-adaptation, simon birch. we do the owen voice. (want more bonus episodes? go to pa...
a prayer for owen meany by john irving
29 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
bob has called a prayer for owen meany by john irving one of the best books of the 1980s, but re-reading it has elevated that praise. (joey, far less ...
memories of my father watching tv by curtis white
15 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
it’s time to remember back to your childhood (sitting behind your dad, flipping marshmallows into your mouth) because our latest book club entry is ...
you shall know our velocity! (previously re-titled as sacrament) by dave eggers
01 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
we’ve got just seven days to travel around the world, give away $32,000, and talk about you shall know our velocity! (previously re-titled as sac...
pizza girl by jean kyoung frazier
17 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
grab a slice of pepperoni and pickle pizza because it's time to talk about pizza girl by jean kyoung frazier. in our latest book club sesh, we talk ab...
death in her hands by ottessa moshfegh
03 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
our podcast book club kicks off with death in her hands by ottessa moshfegh, which tells a type of story that’s often ignored and left untold. we di...
introducing how to win the lottery
22 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
a book club, like oprah’s if oprah were two suburban guys from new jersey, or reese witherspoon’s if reese were two suburban guys from new jersey,...