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<rss xmlns:itunes="http://www.itunes.com/dtds/podcast-1.0.dtd" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:podcast="https://podcastindex.org/namespace/1.0" xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" version="2.0"><channel><title>Buddenbrooks</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/buddenbrooks--7088638</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><atom:link href="https://www.spreaker.com/show/7088638/episodes/feed" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><language>en</language><category>Books</category><copyright>Copyright Literary Fiction Genre</copyright><image><url>https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg</url><title>Buddenbrooks</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/buddenbrooks--7088638</link></image><lastBuildDate>Mon, 07 Sep 2026 09:12:53 +0000</lastBuildDate><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:owner><itunes:name>Literary Fiction Genre</itunes:name><itunes:email>spreaker64@podcastlibrary.org</itunes:email></itunes:owner><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:category text="Arts"><itunes:category text="Books"/></itunes:category><itunes:category text="History"/><itunes:category text="Society &amp; Culture"/><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><podcast:guid>db5f67fa-cce8-5ed1-859f-1a61fe2b338c</podcast:guid><itunes:type>episodic</itunes:type><item><title>Circular Study-Anna Katharine Green</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/circular-study-anna-katharine-green--74392144</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74392144</guid><pubDate>Mon, 07 Sep 2026 09:01:09 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74392144/circular_study_anna_katharine_green.mp3" length="180323319" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>22518</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Histories, Volume 1-Polybius</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/histories-volume-1-polybius--74363394</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74363394</guid><pubDate>Sun, 06 Sep 2026 09:00:50 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74363394/histories_volume_1_polybius.mp3" length="182097178" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>22739</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Country House-John Galsworthy</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/country-house-john-galsworthy--74342030</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74342030</guid><pubDate>Sat, 05 Sep 2026 09:00:44 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74342030/country_house_john_galsworthy.mp3" length="262503019" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>32780</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Lady With the Dog and Other Stories-Anton Chekhov</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/lady-with-the-dog-and-other-stories-anton-chekhov--74314483</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74314483</guid><pubDate>Fri, 04 Sep 2026 09:00:50 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74314483/7080_lady_with_the_dog_and_other_stories_anton_chekhov.mp3" length="98985368" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>12361</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Saga of Erik the Red (Reeves Translation)-Unknown</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/saga-of-erik-the-red-reeves-translation-unknown--74295073</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74295073</guid><pubDate>Thu, 03 Sep 2026 09:00:46 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74295073/saga_of_erik_the_red_reeves_translation_unknown.mp3" length="41381417" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>5167</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>History of the United States, Vol. III-Charles Austin Beard, Mary Ritter Beard</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/history-of-the-united-states-vol-iii-charles-austin-beard-mary-ritter-beard--74273094</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74273094</guid><pubDate>Wed, 02 Sep 2026 09:00:55 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74273094/history_of_the_united_states_vol_iii_charles_austin_beard_mary_ritter_beard.mp3" length="98693711" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>12324</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Unknown Masterpiece-Honoré de Balzac</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/unknown-masterpiece-honore-de-balzac--74255243</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74255243</guid><pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 09:00:45 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74255243/20981_unknown_masterpiece_honore_de_balzac.mp3" length="41407466" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>5171</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Unknown Masterpiece-Honoré de Balzac</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/unknown-masterpiece-honore-de-balzac--74255261</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74255261</guid><pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 09:00:44 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74255261/20981_unknown_masterpiece_honore_de_balzac.mp3" length="41407466" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>5171</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Crux-Charlotte Perkins Gilman</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/crux-charlotte-perkins-gilman--74237967</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74237967</guid><pubDate>Mon, 31 Aug 2026 09:00:50 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74237967/crux_charlotte_perkins_gilman.mp3" length="167012030" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>20856</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Collection of Letters (Dramatic Reading)-Jane Austen</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/collection-of-letters-dramatic-reading-jane-austen--74222122</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74222122</guid><pubDate>Sun, 30 Aug 2026 09:00:42 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74222122/collection_of_letters_dramatic_reading_jane_austen.mp3" length="23761272" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>2967</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Journey of Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca-Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/journey-of-alvar-nunez-cabeza-de-vaca-alvar-nunez-cabeza-de-vaca--74196478</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74196478</guid><pubDate>Sat, 29 Aug 2026 09:00:48 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74196478/4770_journey_of_alvar_nu_n_ez_cabeza_de_vaca_alvar_nu_n_ez_cabeza_de_vaca.mp3" length="124525246" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>15550</itunes:duration><itunes:keywords>ez</itunes:keywords><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Wounds In The Rain; War Stories-Stephen Crane</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/wounds-in-the-rain-war-stories-stephen-crane--74167507</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74167507</guid><pubDate>Fri, 28 Aug 2026 09:00:56 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74167507/wounds_in_the_rain_war_stories_stephen_crane.mp3" length="240631822" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>30049</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Guelphs and Ghibellines A Short History of Mediaeval Italy from 1250-1409-Oscar Browning</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/guelphs-and-ghibellines-a-short-history-of-mediaeval-italy-from-1250-1409-oscar-browning--74138687</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74138687</guid><pubDate>Thu, 27 Aug 2026 09:00:52 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74138687/guelphs_and_ghibellines_a_short_history_of_mediaeval_italy_from_1250_1409_oscar_browning.mp3" length="193852883" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>24208</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Armand Durand-Rosanna Eleanor Leprohon</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/armand-durand-rosanna-eleanor-leprohon--74086189</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74086189</guid><pubDate>Wed, 26 Aug 2026 09:00:58 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74086189/armand_durand_rosanna_eleanor_leprohon.mp3" length="221955412" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>27717</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Two Years in the Forbidden City-Der Ling Yu</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/two-years-in-the-forbidden-city-der-ling-yu--74061764</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74061764</guid><pubDate>Tue, 25 Aug 2026 09:00:45 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74061764/two_years_in_the_forbidden_city_der_ling_yu.mp3" length="276517218" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>34530</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Hagar's Daughter. A Story of Southern Caste Prejudice-Pauline Elizabeth Hopkins</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/hagar-s-daughter-a-story-of-southern-caste-prejudice-pauline-elizabeth-hopkins--74037279</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74037279</guid><pubDate>Mon, 24 Aug 2026 09:01:58 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74037279/6702_hagar_s_daughter_a_story_of_southern_caste_prejudice_pauline_elizabeth_hopkins.mp3" length="248991600" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>31093</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Wild and Romantic: Early Guides to the English Lake District-Brown, Cumberland, Dalton, Gray, Pennant, Walker, Young</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/wild-and-romantic-early-guides-to-the-english-lake-district-brown-cumberland-dalton-gray-pennant-walker-young--74015389</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/74015389</guid><pubDate>Sun, 23 Aug 2026 09:01:57 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74015389/wild_and_romantic_early_guides_to_the_english_lake_district_brown_cumberland_dalton_gray_pennant_walker_young.mp3" length="64324160" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>8032</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>It's a Good Old World-Bruce Barton</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/it-s-a-good-old-world-bruce-barton--73990516</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73990516</guid><pubDate>Sat, 22 Aug 2026 09:01:27 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/73990516/it_s_a_good_old_world_bruce_barton.mp3" length="96197475" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>12013</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Gamester-Edward Moore</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/gamester-edward-moore--73967433</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73967433</guid><pubDate>Fri, 21 Aug 2026 09:01:31 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/73967433/gamester_edward_moore.mp3" length="76377348" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>9538</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Ball at Sceaux-Honoré de Balzac</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/ball-at-sceaux-honore-de-balzac--73944911</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73944911</guid><pubDate>Thu, 20 Aug 2026 09:01:37 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/73944911/ball_at_sceaux_honore_de_balzac.mp3" length="78637454" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>9820</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>History of the United States, Vol. II Conflict &amp; Independence-Charles Austin Beard, Mary Ritter Beard</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/history-of-the-united-states-vol-ii-conflict-independence-charles-austin-beard-mary-ritter-beard--73920040</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73920040</guid><pubDate>Wed, 19 Aug 2026 09:01:17 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/73920040/history_of_the_united_states_vol_ii_conflict_independence_charles_austin_beard_mary_ritter_beard.mp3" length="65829803" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>8220</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Ivory Tower-Henry James</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/ivory-tower-henry-james--73895373</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73895373</guid><pubDate>Tue, 18 Aug 2026 09:01:37 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/73895373/ivory_tower_henry_james.mp3" length="245790273" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>30693</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Frankenstein; or The Modern Prometheus (1818)-Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/frankenstein-or-the-modern-prometheus-1818-mary-wollstonecraft-shelley--73871334</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73871334</guid><pubDate>Mon, 17 Aug 2026 09:01:31 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/73871334/frankenstein_or_the_modern_prometheus_1818_mary_wollstonecraft_shelley.mp3" length="230931723" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>28838</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Stories of the Victoria Cross-Frank Mundell</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/stories-of-the-victoria-cross-frank-mundell--73851395</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73851395</guid><pubDate>Sun, 16 Aug 2026 09:01:28 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/73851395/stories_of_the_victoria_cross_frank_mundell.mp3" length="116150650" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>14504</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>History of the United States, Vol. VI-Charles Austin Beard, Mary Ritter Beard</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/history-of-the-united-states-vol-vi-charles-austin-beard-mary-ritter-beard--73834601</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73834601</guid><pubDate>Sat, 15 Aug 2026 09:02:11 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/73834601/history_of_the_united_states_vol_vi_charles_austin_beard_mary_ritter_beard.mp3" length="133099771" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>16621</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>That Office Boy-Francis J. Finn, S.J</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/that-office-boy-francis-j-finn-s-j--73797714</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73797714</guid><pubDate>Tue, 11 Aug 2026 04:33:04 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/73797714/that_office_boy_francis_j_finn_s_j.mp3" length="137288877" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>17144</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Shadow-Line-Joseph Conrad</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/shadow-line-joseph-conrad--73342319</link><description><![CDATA["Shadow-Line" by Joseph Conrad delves into the profound journey of self-discovery and the transition from youth to maturity, exploring the complexities of human experience and the challenges that accompany personal growth. This timeless narrative resonates with listeners today as it grapples with themes of identity, responsibility, and the struggle against the unknown. Conrad's rich prose invites reflection on the universal trials of navigating life's shadowy boundaries, making it a compelling listen for those seeking insight into the human condition. The enduring nature of these themes ensures that "Shadow-Line" remains relevant, offering a poignant exploration of the darker facets of existence and the quest for meaning.]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/73342319</guid><pubDate>Sun, 02 Aug 2026 16:43:08 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/73342319/shadow_line_joseph_conrad.mp3" length="111923338" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>"Shadow-Line" by Joseph Conrad delves into the profound journey of self-discovery and the transition from youth to maturity, exploring the complexities of human experience and the challenges that accompany personal growth. This timeless narrative...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA["Shadow-Line" by Joseph Conrad delves into the profound journey of self-discovery and the transition from youth to maturity, exploring the complexities of human experience and the challenges that accompany personal growth. This timeless narrative resonates with listeners today as it grapples with themes of identity, responsibility, and the struggle against the unknown. Conrad's rich prose invites reflection on the universal trials of navigating life's shadowy boundaries, making it a compelling listen for those seeking insight into the human condition. The enduring nature of these themes ensures that "Shadow-Line" remains relevant, offering a poignant exploration of the darker facets of existence and the quest for meaning.]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>13976</itunes:duration><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Buddenbrooks - Thomas Mann - Part 3</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/buddenbrooks-thomas-mann-part-3--72390100</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/72390100</guid><pubDate>Mon, 08 Jun 2026 09:00:30 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/72390100/buddenbrooks_thomas_mann_part_3.mp3" length="282617137" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>35328</itunes:duration><itunes:keywords>buddenbrook,buddenbrooks,citation,decline,family,literary,mann,novel,propelling,wholesale</itunes:keywords><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Buddenbrooks - Thomas Mann - Part 2</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/buddenbrooks-thomas-mann-part-2--72390098</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/72390098</guid><pubDate>Sun, 07 Jun 2026 09:00:22 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/72390098/buddenbrooks_thomas_mann_part_2.mp3" length="274786670" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>34349</itunes:duration><itunes:keywords>buddenbrook,buddenbrooks,citation,decline,family,literary,mann,novel,propelling,wholesale</itunes:keywords><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item><item><title>Buddenbrooks - Thomas Mann - Part 1</title><link>https://www.spreaker.com/episode/buddenbrooks-thomas-mann-part-1--72390097</link><description><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></description><guid isPermaLink="false">https://api.spreaker.com/episode/72390097</guid><pubDate>Sat, 06 Jun 2026 16:39:39 +0000</pubDate><enclosure url="https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/72390097/buddenbrooks_thomas_mann_part_1.mp3" length="282135218" type="audio/mpeg"/><itunes:author>Thomas Mann</itunes:author><itunes:subtitle>When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the...</itunes:subtitle><itunes:summary><![CDATA[When Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1929), the citation made special mention of his first novel, “Buddenbrooks,” published in 1901, describing it as “the first great novel of the 20th century.” Events in the novel center on the Buddenbrook family, bourgeois owners of a wholesale grain enterprise in the northern German city of Lübeck. (The city is never named as such, but detailed references to landmarks leave no doubt that the setting is closely based on Mann’s hometown, just as the story is inspired by the Mann family history.) We follow four generations of Buddenbrooks through the middle decades of the 19th century. The novel is subtitled “The Decline of a Family.” This “decline” occurs through subtle interplay of character and circumstance. Family members — individuals each with their own romantic, social, and artistic interests — struggle to adapt to the expectations of the “family firm” and to the evolving conditions of German society in the 1800s. Mann views his characters with both irony and intense empathy, propelling the reader’s journey through this momentous narrative. - Summary by Bruce Pirie]]></itunes:summary><itunes:duration>35267</itunes:duration><itunes:keywords>buddenbrook,buddenbrooks,citation,decline,family,literary,mann,novel,propelling,wholesale</itunes:keywords><itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit><itunes:image href="https://d3wo5wojvuv7l.cloudfront.net/t_rss_itunes_square_1400/images.spreaker.com/original/40b398b4ad4eb9d86955ca2a7241de7b.jpg"/><itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType></item></channel></rss>
