I am so glad she mentioned Kafka's 'The Trial'. One of my favorite books! Donna Tartt is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors (forgive me... I'm only halfway through The Goldfinch -- my first Tartt book).

16:09 OMG this is painful indeed. Donna Tartt begging the *interviewer* to ask her a question...to which he answers: "I don't know....I have to think about this one". After which *he walks away?!* YIKES. Zero preparation. He hasn't read the book, nor prepared any questions?

Love the chemistry between Donna and the secondary interviewer. Like others have said I wish that the guy in the middle took a step back and stopped interrupting the discussion. Otherwise so lovely to hear Donna talk about her biggest influence... a shame she doesn't do more interviews.

Poor Donna Tartt, she obviously had so much to say, but they kept talking about dumb trivial stuff

Everytime I listen to DT, I pick up a few more brilliant 5 dollar words like 'virtuousic'. She's a wonderful, adorable brainiac.

I'm inspired to read this book thanks to the wonderful Donna.

Donna Tartt has a phenomenal persona.

This was not nearly long enough for such a masterpiece.

Wow... I would have loved to hear this interview without the insecurities of the main guy getting in the way.

DONNA TARTT IS A GENIUS. BRILLIANT. AN ARTISTE EXTRAORDINAIRE.

The main guy is completely out of place next to Ms. Tartt. He should have been fired immediately. You don't tell such a master mind that "it's too many details".

Dear me.... Has the presenter read anything?! Does he have any interest in literature? Did he know anything about Donna Tartt before he found her on his guest list, and thought, "Who's she..?" This guy should so NOT be presenting this programme...!!!

Well done, and thank you. I share your mania, having read the novel every summer since University in the 1980s.

Virginia Blaine has an excellent discussion of the role of the "dual narration" in Harold Bloom's "Modern Criticisms" collection. (Published in 1987, Chelsea House - originally Spring of 1985 in Literature and History, volume 11.)

Ogh, I love her so much. I wanna be friends with her 😭 and this interviewer on the right has some cute things to say. Bloke in the middle, however, is a whole mess. Honestly, it takes immense hubris to come so unprepared and clueless into such a situation. I don't think he realizes who he's speaking with.

Bleak House deserves so much more. Thrilled Donna Tartt gets it.

I guess everybody is right about these two clueless hipsters, even so I haven't seen her have this much fun in any other interview and really enjoyed the video! They did something right..

neither pf these guys know anything about books and literature, strange they should be chosen to interview such a heavy weight as DT. Her deconstruction of the novel and Dickensian is fascinating, and opened my mind up to his peculiar genius

I love Donna tartt's interviews. Such a sharp, witty mind! Also the guy in the middle made things so awkward 😭 I can't believe he just walked off like that...and for what? He was so unprofessional. Donna Tartt handled this very well. The guy in the middle was so intense, so...jealous? I don't know what his problem was. Was he trying to be funny?

I know these interviewers weren’t the best but Donna Tartt seems to be having fun

It’s fun to listen to her charming Mississippi accent become attenuated over time in the interviews. Walking into Bennington College (New England) for the first time-she probably made a striking impression on everyone.

For me, Dickens is always the genius who penned 'A Tale of Two Cities'. P.S. Donna is amazing.

My sympathy to Donna Tartt - trying give a simplified version of any Dickens story. There are usually so many subplots, it's not easy to decide what is the main plot. Jarndyce v Jarndyce was not satisfactorily explained - the real point is that these estates were milked dry by the lawyers. Well done for trying Donna, in very trying circumstances.

RIP her beautiful Mississippi accent

This interview is so painful to watch.

Bleak house is my favorite Dickens book.

“Dude, check . this . out ! I got this job to host this book thing with some chick named Donna something, Tart maybe, like cake. So yeah, will talk about classic book, that writer Charles Dickens who wrote about poor kids begging for more foods blah blah blah and so on.” “But you don’t understand literature.” “Shhh! I’ll just read the Wikipedia. Nobody’s going to know. I got paid anyway. Oh, I will make jokes too by saying the audience are illiterate, but just for a laugh.” “But it’s no...” “Dude, you support me or nah?”

Who is the guy with glasses Donna talks about Dickens with??? He looks really nice and as interested in Dickens as her

Fair play to Tartt, but the two guys interviewing her are a terrible combination of the smug and the trivial.

wow this was hurting me physically

Some people cant listen

Gorgeous woman!

Very good!

My impression is that people, mostly male, who are interviewing Donna Tartt, are very patronizing, a bit condescending with her. I don't understand it, because she's an incredible smart person.

Most of y'all are so pressed in this comment section

Is dude in the middle jealous that the other guy and tartt are connecting?

I liked Bleak House, but I liked Great Expectations a lot more. My favourite character was Mr Guppy, and I liked Jo too. Interesting about Esther Summerson being an unreliable witness. How is she unreliable? She has a certain perspective, to be sure, but I would call her opinions fair comment. She is not like Pip from Great Expectations, who definitely is a bit of an unreliable narrator.

Are the two gentlemen for real ? Of course people have read Dickens!

What's the guy in the middle's problem? He's acting like he's six and they took away his favourite toy.

This is an older discussion and I just came upon it. The interviewers are truly awful. I will still watch and listen to DT, but these guys are making it a trying experience.

What an awful interview !!!! Bleak House is a wonderful novel which I read in sixth year at school . It is a complicated plot that deserves a more extended discussion than his .

250 million euros for Donna tartt. Be thankful for it, I have to share my billion with 5 people.

Squandered opportunity. "Too many details," he said. It took him until nearly the end to catch on that she was chiding him. I think there are plenty of us who abhor illiterates with the attention span of swipe who think they speak for the group. Rude little boys.

Is the host getting paid to make this panel as short as possible

Of course the interviewers are dutch guys...

Why did they choose these people to discuss if they all didn’t read it… the guy in the middle was awful.

The seating arrangement was totally wrong! She should have been seated to the far right, and the two guys should be seated on the left and in the middle. If she sat on the far right of the screen, she'd have no problem saw by every one of the audiences. Yet what we saw in this one was she's always away from the camera and only part of the audiences could see her face or profile, the people sat on the left could only saw part of her right profile. I just couldn't believe these production team so brainless to arrange such stupid seating position.

When Donna Tartt tells the interviewer how to pronounce the case name, she incorrectly calls it "Jarndyce versus Jarndyce". In fact, we say "Jarndyce and Jarndyce" even though it is written "Jarndyce v Jarndyce".

4th grade is 8 - 9 years old . For those who are not from Trumpland

She Lost her mid 90's southern accent

Emma Woodhouse is the first unreliable narrator in Literature. 'Emma'- Jane Austen.

What a bad interviewer!

You DID NOT read Oliver Twist in 3rd/4th grade!

The interviewers/hosts need to work on their game.