January sucks and I am here to talk about why! 😀 If you need a more positive tagline than that, I can’t help you.
In this episode, I talk about teachin’ Jes Baker’s memoir Landwhale: On Turning Insults into Nicknames, Why Body Image is Hard, and How Diets Can Kiss My Ass. Topics of interest include: memoir, rhetorical appeals (logos, ethos, pathos), “health” and “wellness” (heavy scare quotes), body politics, and fat activism. Plus, I talk about a self-reflection assignment I use when I teach this text.
- Order Landwhale from your local bookstore. In Saskatoon, I like Turning the Tide and McNally Robinson.
- Check out the Witch, Please episode I refer to at the beginning of the episode, as well as the Secret Feminist Agenda episode I use in my assignment. Both podcasts are developed and hosted (for SFA) or co-hosted (for WP, with Marcelle Kosman) by fantastic podcaster Hannah McGregor and you should listen to them.
- Read more about the rhetorical appeals: Logos, Pathos, and Ethos.
- Here’s more about the ACCUTE panel on Pandemic & Institution: Mental Health/Invisible Disability and more about Andrew McEwan’s work beyond that panel. You should also read his piece “Beyond ‘Wellness’: How Bell Let’s Talk Limits Our Understanding of Mental Illness.”
- Follow Jaris Swidrovich on Twitter or Instagram.
The podcast music is by Dyalla Swain, whose work you can find here. The podcast graphics are by @muskrathands.
Email me at teachinbookspod@gmail.com or follow the podcast on Twitter and Instagram @TeachinBooksPod. I post extra content, like audiograms and behind-the-scenes stuff, on both accounts, more frequently on Insta, so follow me there for more teachin’ books fun!
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**The transcript for this episode is available here.**