Hardcover Hooligans

Angels Doing Karaoke (The Silmarillion - Part 1/3)

March 11th, 2024  |  1 hr 10 mins

book, book podcast, books, booktok, comedy, criticism, discussion, fantasy, geek, review, tolkien

If you thought fantasy couldn’t get nerdier than the appendices of Lord of the Rings, let us introduce you to The Silmarillion, by J.R.R. Tolkien, the "prequel" to Lord of the Rings. It is very cool. And beautiful. And also boring sometimes. Is it for everyone? No. Is it for anyone? Well…

Real Nerd Sh*t (The Lord of the Rings - Appendices)

February 26th, 2024  |  1 hr 7 mins

book, book podcast, books, booktok, comedy, criticism, discussion, fantasy, geek, review, tolkien

That’s right, the appendices of The Lord of the Rings have so much frickin’ nerd stuff we need a whole separate episode.

An Infamous Scouring (The Lord of the Rings - The Return of the King - Part 2/2)

February 12th, 2024  |  1 hr 35 mins

book, book podcast, books, booktok, comedy, criticism, discussion, fantasy, geek, review, tolkien

Danylo and Mc read and discuss the finale of Lord of the Rings. There's like twelve different endings, including Sharkey and the infamous Scouring of the Shire.

Doomscrolling On a Palantir (The Lord of the Rings - The Return of the King - Part 1/2)

January 29th, 2024  |  1 hr 40 mins

book, book podcast, books, booktok, comedy, criticism, discussion, fantasy, geek, review, tolkien

Mc and Danylo read Book 5 (a.k.a. the first half) of The Return of the King. Battles with orcs, battles with pirates, and battles with despair!
Plus, Mc shares an internet book culture pet peeve.

New Evil City (The Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers - Part 2/2)

January 15th, 2024  |  1 hr 15 mins

book, book podcast, books, booktok, comedy, criticism, discussion, fantasy, geek, review, tolkien

Our heroes get ever closer to Mordor, where it’s dangerous to look at the evil stuff for too long. Danylo definitely thought this part was going to be boring (it was not), and Mc gets confused about the layout of a cave. But in all sincerity, the main take is that these books definitely don’t get enough credit for their subtlety, nuance, and literary merit. It’s just good.

It’s an Entmoot, Baby (The Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers - Part 1/2)

January 1st, 2024  |  1 hr 9 mins

book, book podcast, books, booktok, comedy, criticism, discussion, fantasy, geek, review, tolkien

Danylo and Mc chug some ent-draughts and discuss the first half of The Two Towers. Dwarves love running actually, Wormtongue is the alt-right pipeline, and waving around a sword cures depression. We also meet the second and final woman in these books! Wow!

The Crypto Mines of Moria (The Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring - Part 2/2)

December 18th, 2023  |  1 hr 30 mins

book, book podcast, books, booktok, comedy, criticism, discussion, fantasy, geek, review, tolkien

Danylo and Mc read the second half of The Fellowship of the Ring, during which they try to answer the question “what if Frodo was wearing armor made of Bitcoin?”

Hiking With Haunted Jewelry (The Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring - Part 1/2)

December 4th, 2023  |  1 hr 27 mins

book, book podcast, books, booktok, comedy, criticism, discussion, fantasy, geek, review, tolkien

Danylo and Mc throw a long-expected party by reading the first book in The Lord of the Rings trilogy (we know it’s not technically a trilogy, it’s one whole story, but who cares). Danylo constantly compares the book to the movies (sorry), and Mc revisits one of his favorite books. They both have a crush on Aragorn.

How To Rob People With Riddles (The Hobbit)

November 20th, 2023  |  1 hr 28 mins

book, book podcast, books, booktok, comedy, criticism, discussion, fantasy, geek, review, tolkien

Mc and Danylo read a classic in the fantasy genre, which is also a classic in the “cheating at riddle games to get over-powered jewelry” genre.

Mistborn Is a Christian Allegory (Mistborn - The Hero of Ages - Part 2/2)

August 28th, 2023  |  1 hr 51 mins

book, comedy, criticism, discussion, fantasy, geek, review

Danylo and Mc finally finish the Mistborn Trilogy and crawl out from under the debris of the Sanderlanche™. They give their thoughts on the book and the trilogy as a whole and, oh boy, do they have a lot of thoughts.

They also “read” the novella Mistborn: A Secret History as a special “treat”.