"Prussian Blue" - Benjamín Labatut's "When We Cease to Understand the World" (1/5)

Well, Substack, it’s finally happening! Today I launch my new literary podcast, Books Are Burning!

In this first episode of the pod, I’m joined by my sometime co-author G.J. Villa for a discussion of “Prussian Blue,” the first section of Benjamín Labatut’s When We Cease to Understand the World. Tune in to hear how Labatut weaves together such disparate elements as alchemy, tomb raiding, carmine, cyanide, arsenic, methamphetamine, poison gas, the Nazi war machine, Napoleon, Rasputin, Van Gogh’s Starry Night, Hokusai’s Great Wave, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, and the dangers of “a terrible verdure.” Of course, you’ll also learn about the strange origin of the first modern synthetic pigment, Prussian Blue—which is the color of the background on the graphic above (color code #003153). Video of the full episode and clips will be posted to my YouTube channel soon, so please subscribe if you haven’t already.

Mr. Villa will also be joining me for episodes #2-5 of BAB! as we explore the next four sections of Labatut’s fascinating book: “Schwarzschild’s Singularity,” “The Heart of the Heart,” “When We Cease to Understand the World,” and “The Night Gardener.” Stay tuned!

MW