Hot Takes on the Classics

Hosted ByEmily Maeda & Tim McIntosh

Hot Takes on the Classics is no dusty, academic approach to great books. It’s a gossipy, exciting discussion about the best literature ever written. Hosted by Tim and Emily, who are veteran teachers and long-time friends, Hot Takes is packed with playful debate, meaningful speculation, and hearty laughs.

Hot Takes on the Classics is no dusty, academic approach to great books. It’s a gossipy, exciting discussion about the best literature ever written. Hosted by Tim and Emily, who are veteran teachers and long-time friends, Hot Takes is packed with playful debate, meaningful speculation, and hearty laughs.

(You may also enjoy Tim’s “The Play’s the Thing” show with CiRCE.)


All Episodes

Episode 20: All Quiet on The Western Front by Erich Marie Remarque: The Anti-War Protest Novel

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Emily Maeda and Tim McIntosh explore All Quiet on the Western Front, Erich Maria Remarque’s searing anti-war novel that...

Episode 19: Killer Angels by Michael Shaara: The Last Humane War?

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Emily Maeda and Tim McIntosh explore Michael Shaara’s The Killer Angels, the Pulitzer Prize-winning historical novel that brings the...

Episode 18: Joan of Arc: Don’t Send a Man to Do a Woman’s Job

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Emily Maeda and Tim McIntosh delve into Mark Twain’s Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc, an unexpected and deeply...

Episode 17: On War by Clausewitz: The Years That War Changed

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Emily Maeda and Tim McIntosh unpack Carl von Clausewitz’s On War, a foundational text in military theory. They explore...

Episode 16: War and Peace: How to Defeat Napoleon? Do Nothing

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Emily Maeda and Tim McIntosh tackle Leo Tolstoy’s monumental War and Peace. They explore how Tolstoy weaves the lives...

Episode 15: Depicting War in Art and Music: Of Fallen Heroes and Epic Battles

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Emily Maeda and Tim McIntosh shift their focus to the depiction of war in art and music. They explore...

Episode 14: Paradise Lost: The Cosmic Battle of Good and Evil

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Emily Maeda and Tim McIntosh delve into John Milton’s Paradise Lost, a towering epic of English literature that grapples...

Episode 13: Henry V – Shakespeare: A Young Prince Delivers the Greatest Speech on War

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Emily Maeda and Tim McIntosh delve into Shakespeare’s Henry V, a play that captures the remarkable transformation of Prince...

Episode 12: Song of Roland/Pope Urban/Life of Charlemagne: Battles that Become Legends

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Emily Maeda and Tim McIntosh explore The Song of Roland, a medieval French epic that epitomizes bravery, loyalty, and...