It's Lit!

Culture Series / 2 Seasons

It’s Lit! is a series of smart, funny video essays about our favorite books and why we love to read. Hosted by Lindsay Ellis and Princess Weekes, the series delves into topics like the evolution of YA, how science fiction mirrors our own anxieties, and why the book is sometimes just a _bit_ better than the movie.

8m 47s

The Beauty and Anguish of Les Misérables!

S1 E13 / 8m 47s

Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables is one of history’s most famous novels and one of the longest-running musicals in Broadway history. On this special episode of It’s Lit! we explore how Les Miserable became both a national and revolutionary anthem, and so publicly adored that all 1,900 pages never went out of print.

Food & Fiction: Memorable Meals in Literature

S1 E10 / 8m 58s

Food varies wildly from place to place and from culture to culture; since humans are such sensory creatures, using words to evoke the experience of eating is an excellent way to bring a text to life.

How Fantasy Reflects Our World

S1 E5 / 6m

Fantasy novels are more than just hundreds of pages worth of swords and magic! Okay, there's some of that. But it's also a lens to what our society finds important to our pasts, our presents, and future.

An Ode to the Romance Novel

S1 E4 / 5m 53s

Love it or hate it, the romance novel is the highest grossing literary genre. Its history is long and winding (like your favorite romance novel), and romance novels are full of tropes reflected upon its history. It has been the subject of intrigue, derision, and shame in literary discourse long before the modern genre as we know it existed.

Why Sci Fi is a Mirror on Society

S1 E3 / 6m 10s

While science fiction is associated with Mars, robots, and cyberpunk, its origin story is shaped throughout several centuries. Check out the origin of science fiction with Lindsay Ellis!

The Evolution of YA

S1 E2 / 5m 43s

Young Adult Fiction (YA) is dominating literature, and more young people are reading now than ever before. Lindsay Ellis explores how YA carved a place in publishing with It's Lit! from PBS Digital Studios.

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