Table of (Mal)Contents

Join Aaron Armstrong, Dave Schroeder and friends as they talk about the books they love (and many they really don't) to help you be a better reader.

Arts
Books
Religion & Spirituality
101
Pat Conroy, Loving Yourself Appropriately, & (m...
It finally happened: I (Aaron) finished the book I've been struggling to read for months, and Barnabas and I decided to talk through it while Dave was on vacation. (Because that's what friends do.) Listen in to a surprisingly earnest discussion about...
64 min
102
Great westerns, frustrating sci-fi tropes, & ca...
Things get super-nerdy—and even more middle-aged—on this episode of the show as Andrew Osenga joins us for a great conversation about science fiction, westerns, and being cat or dog people. Listen in as we discuss: Why Star Trek: The Next...
59 min
103
Midlife Crises, Ordinary Lives, and #Chafey
As you can imagine, we're all getting older and (theoretically) maturing. Well, one of us is, at any rate. In honor of my (Aaron's) 40th birthday (on August 21st), and the tendency for guys to start chucking their lives in an attempt to recapture...
77 min
104
Our favorite sidekicks, the first books in our ...
We're back in the sauna/podcast studio for another round of Q&A thanks to our friend Andy Whisenant and the fine folks at Goodreads. Listen in as we dig into the following questions: Who are our favorite sidekicks—and do Ron and Hermoine...
33 min
105
Should we reject books by authors who rejected ...
It grieves all three of us on this podcast when anyone walks away from the Christian faith. Joshua Harris' recent announcement of his "deconstruction" of his faith is just one of many that each of us—Barnabas, Dave, and me—know of and are affected...
34 min
106
Historical fiction, splitting hairs, and honori...
Over the last several months, we've mentioned a lot of works of historical fiction, but we've never really talked about historical fiction much at all: it's purpose, some of our favorite works, and does it include room for speculative fiction, too....
45 min
107
The Sewage Blaze
There are certain books so good they can only be described as transcendent. Others are cultural phenomena, but are best described as… well, you'll find out as we discuss The Notebook. That's right—all three of us have finally (mostly) read this...
51 min
108
What made us want to write, imitating others, a...
There's often something that triggers a writer's desire to write—even if that something is as simple as reading a book and saying, "I can do better than that." So what were some of those moments for Barnabas and Aaron? That's our conversation on the...
88 min
109
Christian vacation reads, movie references, & A...
We don't talk about Christian books a whole lot, which is funny since we all work in Christian publishing. But since it's "summer reading list" season from ministry leaders and websites, we decided to discuss the books would we recommend Christians...
35 min
110
Bias in biographies, sucker punching as a famil...
We love good stories—and great stories are even better when they're true. Real stories, true stories don't just pass on facts, they inspire us. Recently, Dave and I sat down with our friend Catherine Parks to talk about how biographies help us see...
51 min
111
Being Terrible at Patriotism, Canada vs America...
Fireworks, grilling, and spending time with friends. That's what you do on Canada Day, which happens to be the day we're releasing this episode. Oh, and Independence Day is this week, too, and all the Americans do that same stuff. Except bigger. And...
45 min
112
Book conventions, cat poetry, & Amazon vs humans
Not every conversation makes sense, but sometimes they really make no sense. Such is the case in this episode recorded in Birmingham a couple weeks back, where our nadir was reached after a hard day of standing in a conference hall. Listen in as we...
42 min
113
"A story has to be true to be beautiful and good"
Recently, the team was in Birmingham for a certain work-related event. Because we needed a break from what we were doing for our work-jobs, we decided to record a couple of episodes of the show… and it just so happens that an author Barnabas and I...
103 min
114
Buying vs borrowing books, loving the library, ...
In a special bonus episode, we're answering a big question that we've kind of talked about in the past, but we really felt like it would be good to hit directly: What factors determine whether we buy or borrow a book? What prompts us to buy a book...
19 min
115
Summer reading, getting fatter & happier, and w...
It's getting hot outside, which means it's the time of year when many blogs are sharing their annual Summer Reading Lists™, mostly filled with big thick theology books and historical works. Which is… fine. But is that the best way to use your...
36 min
116
The Writer’s Process, Writing Like You Speak, a...
Since Dave was being all professional and in a meeting, Barnabas and I decided to have a conversation about what might be the grossest phrase associated with writing: the writing process. What are the habits, practices, and disciplines that work for...
75 min
117
Questioning questionable content, preachy ficti...
We tend to joke a lot about "content," "grit," and "scenes" in books. But today, we're having a serious conversation (as serious as we get anyway) about the place of questionable content in fiction, if there is actually a legitimate place at all....
42 min
118
Wiping books out of existence, organizing our l...
We love our listeners—you are as much a part of this show as we are, with your questions, feedback, and more than a little shade that gets thrown at us. On today's episode, we introduce a new way for you to participate in the show with our...
48 min
119
Proposing to propose, taking chances, and the p...
Barnabas is writing a new book. Dave is helping launch a few key new titles for B&H. I'm in the midst of putting together a new book proposal for something I've wanted to write (and have been poking away at) for four-plus years. So today, we're...
56 min
120
Short books, getting self-promo-y, & enjoying S...
The three of us read a lot of books, but even as guys who really like to read, there are too many books that are just way too long. Maybe you feel the same way. So today, we're back in the studio in Nashville to talk about some of our favorite books...
47 min
121
Writing a bestseller, social contracts, & readi...
All of us live around Nashville, but sometimes it takes traveling to Indianapolis to make magic happen. That's what happens on this episode of Table of (mal)Contents, as Russ Ramsey joins us for a great chat about the art of writing, and that time he...
81 min
122
Nostalgia, mindless reading, and untapped holidays
It's a podcast crossover! Ronnie Martin of joins us in-studio in exotic Indianapolis to talk nostalgia, Christmas and romance novels, and trying to read theology. And by "in-studio" I mean "in the hallway outside the exhibit hall at TGC." Listen...
55 min
123
"Moby Dick is the reason I went into British li...
A couple weeks' back, we travelled to exotic downtown Indianapolis for TGC19. With so many book loving people in one place at the same time, we took the show on the road to chat with a few friends. On this episode, we're joined by Karen Swallow Prior...
44 min
124
Online reading groups, platform-building, and p...
The Internet taught us something new: We're missing out on some huge opportunities with online book clubs, courses, and whatnot. So we're getting our thinking caps on as we workshop some ideas for the whatnot, and bring Dave's daughter along for the...
33 min
125
Good biographies vs bad ones, the Tolkien movie...
We all love biographies and memoirs. Well, Dave and I (Aaron) do a lot more than Barnabas. But we all do love to talk about biographies and memoirs! And this week we’re joined by Dave’s daughter, Madelyn, who helps keep us on track as we discuss: ...
55 min