The History of Literature Podcast is a member of the Podglamorate Network and LIT Hub Radio.

Hello, today on the program it's a four-course literary feast. A note from a 17th century scientist on why we read

literature, a conversation with an expert in the Russian Gothic, and the Queen of Black

Historical Fiction chooses the last book she will ever read.

Plus, Mike Palandrome tells us why he reads Folktale Thearist Vladimir Prop. That's all coming up today on the history of literature.

Okay, here we go. Welcome to the podcast. I'm Jack Wilson at your service. That's your

host and guide and general good-natured presider over accidents, as Orson Wells might say.

We have an action-packed show.

Today we're going to start with the passage from none other than Galileo Galilee.

Yeah, that guy.

That astronomer and all-round giant of science

who saw the craters and mountains on the moon

and informed us of the phases of Venus and Jupiter's moons and gave us the pendulum clock.

He was the first man to look out at the Milky Way and say, hey, this isn't just a general hazy light out there.

This is, that's thousands and thousands of stars.

Imagine that, as he did first.

And you might think that such a man who was in his laboratory and working with his

telescope and performing calculations all day, you might think, well, who would have time for the arts with such a busy schedule?

Or maybe, maybe it would be a general diversion for it, maybe you had a friend or a neighbor or a loved one who dragged him

kicking and screaming to a concert now and then get him out of the house and he said

hey this is a distraction from my real work. Well, if you thought

that, if that's your view of scientists, in this case at least, you would be wrong. He also, Galileo also gave us this beautiful

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