In Walks a Woman

There will be SPOILERS, so if you’ve gotten this far in life without hearing about the ending to this novel o' novels, don’t push your luck further:  go block off a month to read it, and then hit play!Sonja and Vanessa are thrilled to welcome their dear friend, Rev. Heather Coates, who fell in love with Russian literature, and was eager (willing?) to re-read Tolstoy’s 1878 (in full book form) novel about a love affair that spans the hundreds of miles between Moscow and St. Petersburg.  Heather offers some tips on how to navigate the names in Russian novels, and Sonja offers a little bio of Tolstoy.  In our lively discussion, we ask if this is the best novel ever written–as many have said it is.  Can you have this novel without the railway?  Is it a novel about a person or a culture?  Can Tolstoy love Anna and kill her at the same time? Should this novel even be named after Anna?  And what does her slice of the story add to the “fallen woman” narrative? Should you read this novel?  And is it possible to read without vodka breaks?Along the way, Heather finds some mushrooms for Sonja, Sonja reveals she’s a romantic after all, and Vanessa finds a way to link a character to Jay Gastby–again. REFERENCES:If you are interested in Tolstoy taking down Shakespeare, here is a link to "Tolstoy on Shakespeare:  A Critical Essay on Shakespeare" –emphasis on the word “critical”. It was published in 1906, four years before Tolstoy dies, so well into his super religious/cranky old man phase, which explains a lot.Also, please know that we are always thinking about how a writer’s biography intersects with their work, and Tolstoy is no exception.  While we give a brief overview of Tolstoy here, we are aware that he and his wife, Sophia Tolstaya, was a writer and artist in her own right, and by all accounts, absolutely essential to Tolstoy’s success as a writer (and, perhaps, day-to-day survival as a human). It is ironic that a man who could “write” women so well was terrible at treating his own wife well.  It is one of the famous awful marriages in literature.  Just search Tolstoy+Sophia+marriage, and loads of articles will come up.  Also, if you are interested in hearing from Sophia herself, she was a life-long diarist, and there are translations of her diaries and a full biography available in English. 

Spoiler alert!!! Many literary-curious readers have Flaubert’s 1857 debut novel, Madame Bovary, in their TBR stack.  If that’s you, circle back to us after you’ve read this landmark of realism. This episode offers a concise Flaubert biography, a sense of why this novel is considered important in the context of literary history, and whether or not you might want to read it.  In terms of the fallen-woman narrative, we explore the role fantasy plays in women’s societal downfall.  Is being a member of a lending library a precursor to disaster? Or does society fail women by educating them and then trapping them in mundane lives as wives and mothers? Is Emma Bovary a victim?  Or is Emma Bovary a woman with agency who recklessly discards a perfectly wholesome life with a devoted husband, respectability, financial security, and a lovely, healthy child? In pursuing these questions, Flaubert claims to be objective…but can he be?  Along the way, Sonja shares TMI about truffles, and Vanessa doubts the wisdom of Dr. Bovary’s ride-with-a-hottie-in-the-woods remedy for curing a nervous wife.

Sonja and Vanessa have never gone to the movies together.  They made their debut screening Maggie Gyllenhaal’s THE BRIDE! (2026).  This review does contain SPOILERS, so go see the film first.  We discuss this visually stunning movie that is kinda punk, kinda comic book, kinda Bonnie & Clyde, kinda 1930’s musical, kinda Natural Born Killers, kinda Mel Brooks, kinda The Purple Rose of Cairo, kinda…well, you get the idea. It is a veritable movie feast. Jessie Buckley and Christian Bale set out on a bold, life and death adventure, and we have lots of thoughts about it, so join us for an intelligent and empathetic assessment of Gyllenhaal’s second directorial effort.Along the way, Sonja expands her fantasies, and Vanessa closes her eyes.

What’s it like to live as a fallen woman in a small town?  We’ll fill you in, so SPOILERS AHOY! Hester Prynne, protagonist of The Scarlet Letter, is 100% a fallen woman, and that exact term comes up in the novel. If you had to read Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter in high school (and if you live in the United States, you probably couldn’t escape it), remember that it’s good to face your fears.  Let’s hold hands and be brave and return to Salem, Puritans, and meteors writing capital A’s in the sky.  Why are the meteors doing this?  Naturally, Nature echoes the embroidered “A” that Hester famously wears as a punishment for having a child out of wedlock.  In this lively discussion, Sonja and Vanessa will explore what dimension Hawthorne’s telling of Hester’s life adds to the fallen woman narrative.  Is it in any way a feminist story?  What do the novel and the historical record suggest about Hawthorne’s own feelings about women?  Should you read the novel?  When you do, should you skip over “The Custom House,” which is the introduction to the novel, or is it worth reading?  And if you read this book under duress back in high school…is it worth a second read?  And do we–in 2026–still shame women and give them the equivalent of a “scarlet letter”?Along the way, Sonja expresses distaste for the word “bosom” and then goes on to say it repeatedly, and Vanessa can’t help wondering how energetic the right Reverend Aruthur Dimmesdale is in bed. REFERENCES:Here is a link to Nina Baym's article on Hawthorne's Feminism on JSTOR. If you make a free membership, we’re pretty sure you can read it online for free.  Here is a link to an appreciation of Nina Baym from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, on the occasion of her passing in 2018.  It helps one appreciate how much she contributed to our appreciation of women’s literature.  One critic in the article says, “She changed the way a generation of scholars of American literature came to understand 19th-century women’s writing.” No small accomplishment!

This review has something for everyone.  If you hated it, we got you.  If you loved it, we got you.  Sonja and Vanessa don’t agree on everything, and this is one of those things.  Settle in and cheer for your side, and then close it out with a hug and gratitude for conversations in which we can say what we truly feel, not agree, and yet not go to war over it.  Along the way, Sonja asks for a dehumidifier, and Vanessa makes some good historical points about aspic. 

If you’re into Women’s History, you will LOVE this episode.  Dr. Sarah Bell, Director of the newly-renovated Kansas Museum of History in Topeka, Kansas, joins IWAW and shares fascinating stories of three Kansas women:  Clarina Nichols, Annie Diggs, & Mamie Dillard.  In the 19th century, the story of women was supposed to take place–exclusively–in the “home,” and yet, everything outside the home profoundly affected women.  The only way forward was to change the narrative.  And that’s what these three women did, rewriting women’s story through writing, public speaking, teaching, and mentoring.  You may not know this, but Kansas claims a lot of “firsts” in American history, and the lives of Nichols, Diggs, and Dillard intersect with crucial 19th century issues like abolition, suffrage, reforms in women’s dress and diet, temperance, and gaining custody and property rights for women.  Dr. Bell says, “Kansas is full of surprises,” and, indeed, so is her interview.  Have you heard of the Moneka Women’s Rights Association? Do you know why voting rights and prohibiting alcohol went hand-in-hand? And what on earth was the Octagon Colony?   Dr. Bell knows!Along the way, Sonja organizes a field trip, and Vanessa explains how she got a glass bowl with a rose floating in it 25 years ago. 

Please Note that this episode contains spoilers and discussion of sexual assault.“You have to get through the first 500 pages, and then you can’t put it down,” said no one ever…except Sonja about Clarissa, the longest novel in the English language. In the mid 18th century, Samuel Richardson was living in a world that strongly believed a woman should marry the man who “ruined” her–even if the act was not consensual.  Clarissa: or, the History of a Young Lady is Richardson’s eloquent, impassioned, surprising response. Even if you have no plans to read this enormous novel, tune in to hear Sonja’s how Richardson pushed his audience to question some of their firmly-held beliefs about virginity, rape, marriage, and the definition of virtue in his tragic and compelling story. Along the way, Pamela Andrews and Clarissa Harlowe find themselves in a cage match, Sonja explains her vision for Clarissa-meets-Heated Rivalry fan fiction, and Vanessa parries with a link to Fifty Shades of Grey.

Shakespeare’s late 16th century play, MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, is a perfect literary work to illustrate the dynamic of a fallen woman.  The accusation.  The shame.  The desire for retribution.  The ruined family.  The confident accuser.  But this story, being a comedy, allows all rifts to heal, and everyone leaves happy, except for the villain, who–surprise, surprise–is literally a bastard...born of a fallen woman.  Nothing we read this season this will have a scene in which an accused virgin ends up literally on the floor as her accuser rants, nor will any other work give the virgin a do-over, so make sure you join Sonja and Vanessa as they take you through this classic treatment of the fallen woman theme.  What does Shakespeare seem to make of ruining a woman’s reputation (and quite possibly ending her life) with a rumor?  Is it always about the woman?  What recourse do she and her family have?  Can she even count on her family to defend her?  Can we go so far as to say that this nearly 430-year old play subverts patriarchy’s obsession with virginity?  Along the way, Sonja sings a song about lying men and crowns the best film version of  A CHRISTMAS CAROL, and Vanessa swipes right on a few bastards.  REFERENCES:The internet Shakespeare guru that Sonja cites is Sarah Spring, Actor & Coach, and you can find her at @shakespearemadeclear

Candice Millard shares how she learned to do deep research and the leap of faith she took to land her dream job. She explains how she knows which topics she can develop into books, including how she came across the idea for her next historical study. Millard also shares some teasers about her next book that will thrill you if you like women's stories and a bit of wartime intrigue. Click play now: this is such a special interview with one of America’s most eloquent popular historians. If you have not read one of Candice Millard's riveting historical accounts, you should run–not walk–to your local bookseller to get a copy.  Where to start?  No better place than her gripping, revelatory telling of President Garfield’s assassination attempt, in DESTINY OF THE REPUBLIC: A TALE OF MADNESS, MEDICINE AND THE MURDER OF A PRESIDENT.  Then, treat yourself to the wonderful Netflix adaptation, DEATH BY LIGHTNING.  The convention scene is fantastic, and Matthew MacFayden gives a brilliant performance as Garfield's crazed assassin.  

If you have not read any Traci Brimhall, you’ve missed out on seeing through the eyes of someone who somehow–almost magically, at points–sews disparate parts together:  grief and joy, loss and abundance, science and poetry. Yes, we take her brave and incandescent 2024 collection, LOVE PRODIGAL, as our starting point, and yes, this episode is about poetry, but that’s not all:  it’s a truly fulfilling conversation about the power of words to shape us and help us understand how to keep on living when we’ve been utterly burned to the ground.  Can we reemerge?  Can that old story of the Phoenix help us? Or do we need a new story?Traci has published 4 acclaimed poetry collections, she is a distinguished Professor of English at Kansas State University, the 2023-2026 Kansas Poet Laureate, and the 2025 Guggenheim Poet-in-Residence.  That’s all pretty impressive, but when you hear Traci, you’ll be struck by how warm, relatable, and downright funny she is.   Plus, Traci has some pretty ingenious methods to help aspiring writers find their voice. If you like poetry, you’ll love this episode.  If you are a writer–of any kind–you’ll value Traci’s insights.  If you find the creative process fascinating–as Sonja and Vanessa do–you may even find new pathways, as Traci explains her tricks for bringing that withering inner critic to heel. Along the way, we enjoy the sweet, romantic give-and-take of a physicist + poet’s love story; Vanessa requests an aubade, minus the lover, and Sonja takes another stab at poor little Bella Swan.