Welcome to Night Vale - 235 - Book Club

Episode Date: October 1, 2023

A review of Victor Hugo's Les Misérables Weather: “Halflight“ by Juliana Finch The voice of Tamika Flynn is Symphony Sanders Original episode art by Jessica Hayworth Read episode transcripts NEW Night Vale live show. Dates/Cities/Tix Our newest podcast, UNLICENSED, available now! Patreon is how we exist! If you can, please help us keep making this show. Music: Disparition Logo: Rob Wilson Written by Joseph Fink & Jeffrey Cranor Narrated by Cecil Baldwin Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Check out our books, live shows, store, membership program, and official recap show at welcometonightvale.com A production of Night Vale Presents. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Howdy y'all. It is Jeffrey Craneer. I'm not sure which episode of Welcome to Nightville you're listening to, but I am speaking to you from April of 2026. And I'm here to tell you we're going to be in Europe. If you want to see Nightville live and you're going to be in Europe, come check us out at the end of May. We're going to be in Edinburgh on May the 27th. We will be in Manchester on the 28th, London on the 29th, and Amsterdam on May the 30th. Just go to Welcome to Nightville.com slash live to see the show dates and to get your tickets. This is. our newest Nightville live show Murder Night in Blood Forest. It is so much fun. Please come check it out. Also, coming up this month here in April, it is the return of Alice Isn't Dead, brand new episodes of our other crazy hit podcast. This is written by Joseph Fink, produced and with music by disparition and starring Jacique and Nicole. So make sure you are still subscribed to Alice Isn't Dead and go get those on April the 13th as new episodes come out. Finally, speaking of other shows, Do you want to hear us talk about other things? We have three other really great chat shows.

First of all, there's Good Morning Nightvale for all of your Nightville needs. You can hear Hal, Meg, and Symphony talk about every single episode in order of Welcome to Nightvail. Also, we have Random Horror Number Nine. That is me and Nightville star Cecil Baldwin talking about horror movies one at a time in a random order. And then Joseph and Meg do best worst, which is a really fun podcast where they look at hit TV shows and they review the best rated on a IMDB, the worst rated on IMDB, and if you're a Patreon member, they will review the middlest rated on IMDB. So check out all of those at Nightvillepresents.com or just wherever you get your podcast. And hey, thanks. It's okay to judge a book by its cover, especially if that

cover is made from questionable leather. Welcome to Nightvale. I thought it might be fun to bring our listening community closer together by hosting a regular book club. wherein we all read the same book and then have a discussion here on the air about it. It's kind of like in third grade when we all had to read the 784-page tome, the metaphysics of unity and collective consciousness by 18th century philosopher Juergen von Schlitzenhaus, and then discuss it in front of the class while a deep voice from a loudspeaker gave commentary along the way. Remember how much closer we all got in elementary school because of that helpful feedback? Remember when the loudspeaker would shout things like,

wrong and ethical crime at us and we would start crying? And none of our classmates would speak up for us because of fear of retribution, especially a one-week exile to the arena of re-understanding. Yes, reading truly is fundamental. So, let's start a book club. For that, I've brought my friend and city council member, Tamika Flynn. Hi, Tamika. Hi, Cecil. Thanks for having me. Hey, don't wander off. Just stay in the studio, okay?

Oh, I see you've brought along the lost boy that you're fostering, the one Carlos and I found in Grove Park last month. Yeah, he's been great, but it's also been a real learning curve for me. He's very curious, always wandering off. He wants to see what's in the dumpster. He wants to know where the tunnel off route 800 goes. He wants to see what's at the bottom of the pit of fun. The pit of fun reopened? Yep. Well, that's not good. No, I think we're going to have to re-institute the lottery. Yeek. Well, it is our civic duty after all.

So, Tamika, tell our listeners what book we're talking about today. I thought we should start our book club with a classic of American folk literature. Less miserables by famed Chicago writer Victor Hugo. Oh, I'm so. So excited. Now, I've never read this novel before, but I did see the musical back in the 90s. I remember there was a spinning stage, a giant chandelier that crashed down, and a witch who sang a song about meat pies? Yes. The musical was a faithful retelling of the novel. Victor Hugo, in fact, wrote all the music for it, but instruments hadn't been invented in the 1800s,

So it wasn't fully staged until 1980 when the TR808 drum machine was developed and music finally became possible. Sadly, Hugo never got to see his masterpiece realized. Well, let's get into it, shall we? Hey, where did he go? I'm sorry, Cecil. He wandered off again. Hang on. Sure thing. While Tamika is looking for the boy, let's get to some breaking news. The National Weather Service has issued a high winds warning for our area in effect till midnight tonight.

They're expecting wind gusts of up to 60 miles per hour here in the valley. They have also issued a sandstorm watch, though they don't believe it will get to that point. But they do caution, we should all be prepared to kill our doppelgangers should they arrive in a blinding cloud of dust once again. Yikes, let's hope not. I can't deal with facing my double again. And poor Tomika would have to deal with two boys. That sounds impossible. The National Weather Service also announced they developed a new sport called Floaty Ball,

wherein they attach themselves to weather balloons and then throw balls at each other. They're especially excited to play the game today when the winds are super volatile. Weather conditions make the game, said NWS spokesman Matt McLaren. Think about how fun it is to watch football in the snow or basketball during a tropical storm or ice hockey in a flash flood. So, everyone be careful out there. Oh, good, she found him.

Yeah, he was trying to bet the cats in the station bathroom, but they were all hissing and swiping at him. He didn't seem affected by it at all. He's such an enigma. You know, when we chose Les Miserables for our book club, I knew I'd have to go to the library to check it out. Ooh, the library. Right, but you know me, I'm always ready for a showdown with those librarians.

I got my bandolier, my machete, some librarians spray, and my community radio tote bag full of flash grenades. I was all set for an epic battle, and I was extra prepared because I had to take the boy with me. But when we entered the library, nothing. I could hear the librarians slithering around the stacks. I saw one skittering up the wall. This is normal stuff, of course.

They get into their hunting positions when people come in to find a good read. But as we snuck forward, it sounded as if the librarians were moving away from us. Like they were scared. Well, to be fair, Tamika, you do have a reputation. Right? I thought that, too, at first. But their fear of me has always been a respectful fear. They still engage me in combat.

They still try to sink their pincers into me. But they know they can't be sloppy about it. But this... This was different. As we walked through the stacks, not a single librarian pounced. In fact, I made eye contact with one. It was hiding just behind the spiritual self-help section. It glowered at me.

And then it caught sight of this little guy. And when it did, the librarian raced out of there. Uh, speaking of the little guy, where did the boy go? Again? I'm sorry, Cecil. No, no worries. I have a child myself. It's not easy. Take your time.

While Tamika's away, this would be a good time to have a look at traffic. The high winds have created quite a bit of debris on the roadways. Over on Galloway, right in front of the Chipotle, there's a pile of lumber that was blown off a flatbed truck. On Somerset and Earl near the dog park, there's a glowing outline of a woman in Victorian robes. And at McDowell and Maple, two dogs are tugging at a sock that gusted in from a nearby county. The dogs won't leave the road at all until they determine the rightful winner of the sock. These wins are bad, folks, so drive carefully. Okay, I'm back. Wow, that was close.

What happened? Well, I found him digging in your station's supply closet. He had uncoiled all of the ox cables. Oh, that'll be easy to put back. He also found a bunch of foam microphone covers, which he was trying to eat. You know, they don't taste as good as they look. But he also discovered a box of rusty switchblades. Why do you have a box of old switchblades in your supply closet?

Oh, sound effects. Of course. Well, I found the boy holding one of the knives and droning, Knife, while grinning ear to ear. It was the first time I'd seen him smile. Aw. It was very cute, but also very scary. Aw.

I got it out of his hands just in time. Who knows what he would have done with it? How do you manage having a young kid, Cecil? There's no one right answer to parenting. You just, you know, find your own way. Also, I have lots of anxiety and very little sleep. Those two things help a lot, too. Well, let's finally talk about Les Miserables.

Though I think the correct pronunciation in the Chicago accent is Les Miserables. Okay. The book opens on a young Jean Valjean, a south side kid who had to steal breadloaves to pass the time. And this upsets the mayor, Tony Javert, who is very rude. Oh, but I love the scene where Valjean. Vajon gets caught. Javar's all like, niffin a wee lo, far, we lad. I love that Midwestern dialect. So, Vajon gets arrested and spends his whole time in prison atoning for what he's done.

True, but while forgiveness of oneself and others is a central theme in this novel, we can't forget that he also uses his time in prison to start an improv comedy group. Oh, no! Yes, it's part of the moral complexity. While Valjean is a good man, the book still depicts him doing terrible things, like improv comedy. The improv troupe will come into play later in the book when the character Eponine gets introduced. Oh, that was a really sad part. She paid so much money for all of those classes and never got cast in a single comedy showcase. So she became a street urchin. Tale is oldest time.

Oh no, where did he go? Dang it! He's gone again. Oh! Wow. Okay. Well, might as well get to our sponsored ads. We have a new sponsor to our show, Dave's Kites.

Come on down to Dave's Kites. It's really windy today, and we're making all kinds of kites. Big Kites. Little Kites. One Piece Kites? Kites with lots of parts. All kinds of kites. Yep.

We're quickly becoming kite experts. and honestly, we're the only kite store in Nightvale, so where else are you going to go? We don't even know how to make kites or exactly what they look like. We just opened this morning because of the wind. We're nothing, if not opportunists, and we've certainly never tried to make kites before. So come on over to Dave's kites and tell us what a kites supposed to look like. Custom kites. That's it. We'll make you a custom kite.

You just carefully and slowly explain what kind of materials to use and how exactly to put it together, and we will make you a bespoke kite. Dave's kites. What have we gotten ourselves into? Well, he didn't go far this time at least. I found him in your control booth. He seems so interested in your radio station. Maybe he'll grow up to be a DJ just like his uncle Cecil. I'm not a DJ, Tamika.

I am a journalist. Same thing. So, we have to talk about the way this book ends. What did you make of Javert's decision? I was honestly shocked. Oh, of course. It's one of the most talked about twists in literature. Somehow, Javert went back in time to stop Valjean from stealing that bread in the first place.

But in the process, he unknowingly affected all future outcomes in the world. Simple butterfly effect stuff, but what's so tragic is that what he gets back to the future. Oh, oh, fun trivia. Did you know that Back to the Future was the original title of this novel? I did not. It's such a great title, but a little spoilery? Because at the end, Javert finds himself in an eternal loop of returning to Valjean stealing the bread, trying constantly to have the moment occur exactly as it originally did.

But every time Chavere gets back to the future, he sees that the world is very different. And it's so gut-wrenching because originally, everything turned out so happy for everyone in the book. Cosette became the first woman congressman in Illinois. Marius opened his own bowling alley in Akron. Epinine got a special street urchin scholarship from Udub. Even Valjean finally founded that improv company Second City. Oh no! Yes. While Valjean is ultimately a redeemable person, he still ends up persisting with something as absolutely unforgivable as improv comedy.

But by trying to prevent a single small crime, Javert's time meddling turned everyone into sex workers and dead soldiers during the French Revolution. And now he's doomed to an eternity of trying to write his own wrongs. What a powerful... What? Where did he go? Uh, I don't know. Oh no. There he is. Get down from there. Get down.

Listeners, the boy has gone outside where he is climbing our radio tower. Goodness, he must be 40 feet in the air now. I see Tamika going after him. She's climbing up, but she's nowhere near as quick. And oh, these winds are so strong. I can't look. Listeners, while I wait for what I hope is a daring rescue, you can listen to the weather.

It's just enough to travel by. Never get to kiss her before midnight. When she wants you, she'll just pick. She knows you're gonna let it slide. You can be wrong. Had made it all the way to the top of our tower, almost 100 feet in the air. On a single narrow ladder, Tamika climbed after him.

At the very tip, she found the boy with the whole of his body wrapped around the transmitter itself. She thought he was frightened from the height and was hanging on for dear life. But when she reached him, she saw he was making a dull, undulating hum, like he himself were transmitting the radio waves. He hugged the transmitter tight, like a baby koala to a raccoon it thinks is its mother. Tamika pulled him away and told him that they had to get down. He resisted.

He said that he loved the feeling of that transmitting. that when he touched it, he understood everything. He understood the wind, the earth, the stars, and the far reaches of space. He even understood himself. He wanted to bring the transmitter home to carry the magical object with him. Tamika refused, but when she took his hand to begin the long, precarious journey back down the ladder, he pulled away from her. And as he did, he lost his.

his footing and fell. Tamika caught him by his legs. The force of his catch sent Tomika herself, tumbling backward, with only the backs of her knees on a ladder rung, keeping them aloft. Upside down, and losing strength in her hands, Tamika thought, this is it, we're done, but I can't let go, even if it means my own doom, I can't let go. Just when she couldn't hold him any longer, she saw it. A weather balloon zipping past.

Tied to this weather balloon was National Weather Service spokesman Matt McLaren, who was not even looking at the stranded Tomika and child. He was chucking balls at other guys on weather balloons and shouting floaty ball every time he hit one of them. Always the quick thinker, Tomika kept one hand on the boy, and with her other hand, grabbed onto McLaren. His momentum pulled Tomika and the boy right off the tower, and they dangled from the weather balloon until the weight dragged them back down safely to the ground. As they reached the earth, McLaren said, you know that's a foul, right? I get two free floaty flings for that. Tamika just hugged him and said, sure, guy, you should do that.

So, she took the boy by the hand and said, let's go home and read a book, quietly together. The boy nodded and asked if they could read something happier than the one about the miserable musical people. Tamika said, sure. What do you think about reading the Joy Luck Club? So, this concludes our first edition of Book Club. It's been an exciting debut. We'll have to do it again. And, you know, I think Tomika had a good idea. Let's read Amy Tans, The Joy Luck Club for next time. It's so much more pleasant than Les Miserables. It sounds like it's about a group of people who experience nothing but joy and luck. Stay tuned next for the cracking open of a spine.

Probably a book's spine. Hopefully. Good night, Night Vale. Good night. Welcome to Night Vale as a production of Nightvale Presents. It is written by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Craneer and produced by Disparition. The voice of Tamika Flynn is Symphony Sanders. The voice of Night Vale is Cecil Baldwin.

Original music by Dyspiration. All of it can be found at dispirition.bancamp.com. This episode's weather was Halflight by Juliana Finch. Find out more at Juliana Finch.com and see her on tour with us as the live weather in just a few days. Comments, questions, email us at info at welcome to nightbill.com. or follow us on Twitter, I guess, at Nightfail Radio, and on Instagram at Nightfail Official. We now have a TikTok at Nightfail official as well.

Most importantly, check out Welcome to Nightfail.com, where we have a twice-monthly mailing list that is the best way to keep up to date directly from us to you. You can learn about things like our brand new live show, The Attic, touring right now. Today's proverb, dance like no one is watching. Just pretend you're completely invisible. Maybe do a heist, too. See what you can get away with. Hi, I'm here to tell you about Good Morning Night Vale. Welcome to Night Vale's official recap show and unofficial best friend food podcast.

Join me, Meg Bashwinner and fellow try hosts, Hal Lublin and Symphony Sanders, as we dissect all of the cool, squishy and slimy bits of every episode of Welcome to Nightvale. Come for the insightful and hilarious commentary and stay for all of the weird and wild behind-the-scenes stories. Good morning Nightfail, with new episodes every other Thursday. Get it wherever you get your podcasts. Yes, even there.