how to win the lottery s22e1 – blood on the forge by william attaway
welcome to pennsylvania! before talking about blood on the forge by william attaway, joey starts things out with a pennsylvania quiz for shreds, who then offers some historical context for this novel (and others that it’s in conversation with). we talk about the novel’s exploration of masculinity through big mat, the unspoken love triangle at the core of the story, and the looming sense of dread hanging over all three moss brothers. we talk about how the novel evokes the landscape: blue color work, dirty and sweaty, using the language of the place. shreds mentions how the union busting feels like a mirror to 2026 events. we talk about the linguistic power of names (and slurs and other derogatory phrases), the shared trauma and ptsd of life in those times, and the cinematic nature that would lead to an adaptation — including who we’d like to see adapt it.
reading list for season twenty-two
blood on the forge by william attaway
appointment in samarra by john o’hara
ways to hide in winter by sarah st. vincent
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