Miles from Nowhere | Nami mun

episode SUMMARY:

In the first official episode of the Books for Men podcast, host Douglas Vigliotti introduces the purpose of the show, which is to inspire more men to read and bring together male readers. He discusses his decision to feature the novel Miles From Nowhere by Nami Mun as the first book on the podcast. Vigliotti acknowledges that the protagonist of the novel, a teenage Korean girl navigating the streets of New York City in the 1980s, may be challenging for male readers to relate to. However, he emphasizes that the point of reading is to step into the shoes of characters different from oneself and gain new perspectives. He describes Miles From Nowhere as a gritty, raw, and impactful novel that offers a snapshot of reality. Vigliotti addresses potential concerns about the book being incomplete and explains that the story is character-driven rather than plot-driven. Vigliotti also discusses the tactile nature of physical books and recommends reading Miles From Nowhere in paperback format. He praises the author, Nami Mun, for her sensibilities and lean, powerful prose. Vigliotti concludes by reminding listeners to subscribe to the podcast and share it with others who enjoy reading. As a bonus, he shares two passages from Miles From Nowhere that highlight the themes of hope and grief in the novel.

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Welcome back. This is the first official episode of Books for Men, a podcast to inspire more men to read and bring together men who do. So. You'll hear me say that at the top of every episode for two reasons, primarily. One, I wanna make sure that all new listeners clearly understand what this show is intended to be and also what it's all about. And two, I wanna make it so you can share the message with family and friends to help support the cause because it is one that I feel is super, super important to society as a whole. And I hope you feel the same way. So with that being said, I had a decision to make on what kind of book I wanted to feature as the first episode. You know, I could have went with non-fiction, something that was kind of easier to engage with, or I could have went with a fiction book that was maybe like a layup fiction, something like a Stephen King, you know, where guaranteed to say, oh yeah, that book is pretty entertaining, but you know, I don't wanna set the precedent that I am gonna be giving you layups all the time, or things that are going to, uh, not challenge you in a way to expand your reading.

(01:27)

And so I said, you know, let me throw you for a loop and let me feature my favorite novel or at least one of my favorite novels Miles From Nowhere by Naomi Mun. And so there are a couple of things with this novel that will probably trip you up right from the get-go. It's called Spade a Spade. The protagonist is a teenage Korean girl, and she is traveling the streets of New York City in the 1980s. And so right away, you know, uh, stepping into the shoes of this protagonist is going to be challenging, especially for a man because you know, you're gonna find a lot of differences, right? Obviously, it's gonna be hard to step into those shoes. With that being said, that is the point of reading in general, right? Is to step into shoes other than your own and experience things that will open your eyes or potentially bring new perspective to the way that you see something.

(02:30)

And do not repeat, do not let differences or the dissimilarity of the protagonist stop you from reading this book. This book is amazing. It is gritty. It is raw. It is subtle at the same time. Every word, every sentence is poignant and impactful in a way that I quite honestly just have not in many other novels. And that's why it is one of my favorite novels and why I am very proud to recommend this book to anybody who is willing to read it. And one of the other things that I should mention that may trip you up, especially if you're not used to literary work, and this would be classified as literary fiction. And when I use that term literary fiction, I pretty much mean that the story is more character-driven as opposed to plot-driven, right? And so in genre books, the plot is driving the story forward, whereas in literary work, it's more about the character, the depth of the character.

(03:43)

Not to say that genre books can't go deep, you know, they have a fancy term for that in the literary world called upmarket fiction, which they kind of made up to bridge the industry. But terminology sometimes is, is kind of worthless. It's like, is the book good or is it not good? Right? With that being said, I will classify each book so that way you clearly understand the genre, and this is literary fiction, and primarily it's character-driven versus plot-driven. You know, it also focuses a lot on themes and the style of the writing. It's more, uh, adventurous, I would say, than a genre book would be. Not in the sense of what could potentially happen, but in the style of how the book is written and the risk that the author is taking, they're less popular because they don't follow an exact formula, so to speak.

(04:38)

Whereas the, you know, you know, when you're reading a genre book, and I think that there are usages for both. And so I alluded to that in the trailer of this podcast, right? You're gonna definitely get a heavy dosage of genre books, genre fiction, as well as literary fiction, as well as everything else. You know, cause like I had mentioned, I, I read all of it and I think that it could all be very entertaining in the right context. But it's a perfect segue into the second thing that I think will trip you up with this book potentially. And that is the idea that it is incomplete. And so I have a little trouble with this idea. I've read some reviews that would suggest it to be so, but in books of this nature, you have to look at it as it's a snapshot of reality, or it's a sliver of reality.

(05:28)

Not all literary work is like that, but primarily realist literary work is, its sole purpose is not designed to just tell you a story to completely entertain you. It's designed to give you a snapshot of reality. And the book definitely has a beginning, a middle, and an end. But I've read some reviews that say it's incomplete. And so I want to address this quickly and set the stage properly that in any story I believe, and so do a lot of masters of craft that I have read that when a protagonist is going through a change, because in all stories, protagonists want something and they go through a change, when that change is complete, the story can end. And so in that way, I think that this book is more than complete. And so I don't wanna ruin the story for you because I want you to read it and you can make that decision on your own.

(06:27)

I'm just addressing some of the things that, especially if you're not used to reading literary work may trip you up when you read it, right? And because unlike a genre book, it doesn't have a bow tied directly on everything. There's a little bit more ambiguity and a little less clarity. But you should know that this book is not totally unapproachable for literary work. And by that, I mean that the book is easy to read, right? I mean, it's written in the first person. It follows June sequence after sequence set piece after set piece. And so you're never really lost throughout it. Sure, you're challenged a bit, and you might find some really inconvenient or hard pills to swallow as you read through some of the tribulations and the hard times that June the protagonist goes through on her journey of discovery, so to speak, which leads me perfectly into perhaps my favorite quote from the book. "Life's only as bad as you make it out to be. It's got nothing to do with the way it is."

(07:37)

Man, how good is that quote? So if you like that quote, there are tons of words wisdom, quotes like that in the book, and that is why I want you to read it and why I think you should read it. But it's more than that. And just a little bit on the actual book now, it's a small book, it's a little book. Another thing that I think makes it approachable for some reason, little books, they feel better in your hands. They, or at least for me, they do. There's a tactile nature to every single book. And the way that a book feels in your hands really affects the readability of it, at least in my perspective. And that's always been my struggle with Kindle or with e-readers. But I know that that's totally subjective, and I don't wanna spend too much time on that because any of these books that I recommend on this show are going to be good in either hard or ebook.

(08:33)

But don't kid yourself, I will lobby for the paperback more than any style of book because of its ease of readability. I just feel like you interact with a book differently in a paperback, even more so than a hardback. I think the paperback is designed for the reader, whereas the hardback was designed for the publisher and the author to sell their item at a higher price, which is fine, you know, I don't have any problem with that, but I don't think it's as good of a reading experience. They say it's to preserve the book over time, which is definitely true. But it's from a reading experience point for me, there is nothing better than a paperback. And they got it right a long time ago with the dime-store paperbacks, with the mass market paperbacks, little books feel good in your hand.

(09:28)

And so with that being said, Miles From Nowhere, sorry for my little rant there. Miles From Nowhere is a little book and it's 300 pages, but it definitely doesn't read like 300 pages. I will say that if you get to the end of the book, which I hope you do, and I hope you read the book, and I hope you enjoy the book, there's a chapter titled Mr. McCommon. And in that chapter, I've, there's a passage at the end that, oh man, it may not only makes you cringe, but it lights you up at the same time. And I've read that chapter in isolation probably ten times that chapter alone in, in my eyes, the ending is worth the weight of the entire book. And you're not struggling throughout it because like I said, the writing is just, oh, it's so good. And one of the most interesting things about Nami Mun the writer, is that this is her only novel.

(10:28)

It was published in 2009, and since she has not published another one, and you know, I think that this says a couple of things. One, that, you know, great books can be found in every nook and corner of society. Also, never let the popularity or social relevance of an author deter you from reading their work. Because as I've already mentioned, this is hands down one of my favorite novels. And that is not a stretch. And you'll hear me share a lot of them. She'll get to know my reading list pretty well over the coming months, and years as we continue on this Books for Men Journey. Just one more thing I guess on Nami Mun is she has written a lot of short stories. So if you like her style of writing, you could still engage with some of her work. And while I mentioned short story, I should say that what this book really reminds me of for any fiction snobs out there or literary geeks out there, it reminds me of an extrapolated version of a Dennis Johnson short story, specifically any of his work from Jesus' Son, which you know, is a highly acclaimed short story collection of his. This really feels like a full story or an extrapolated version of one of those stories.

(12:00)

And so I think I've said enough about the novel, I think I, you have a pretty clear indication and a clear picture. One of the things that I wanted to mention as I wrap up here is that if you didn't like this book or this isn't your cup of tea, just hang on until next week, because as I've mentioned many times so far, I'm going to pride myself on variation and really try to vary the type of books that I showcase on the show. They won't be all modern, they won't be all classics, they won't be all one genre, although you'll start to see some similarities because I definitely have preferences. I am keeping a spreadsheet to try to make sure that I do my best to vary, and even inside the bigger categories of fiction in non-fiction, the subgenres. Um, and yeah, so I think that's all I've got for today.

(12:58)

And I wanted to remind you that you can get more information about the podcast at BooksforMen.org or even better sign up for the newsletter, which is a monthly roundup of all the books and authors that you hear on the show. And lastly, this is a podcast to inspire more men to read and bring together men who do. And the best way that you can help support that cause, that initiative, that mission is to either hit, subscribe, or follow, because this is reality and people listen to shows that have a lot of attention, subscribers, followers, et cetera. So you'll be showing the world that, hey, this is a pretty cool show. And more importantly, telling a friend or a family member about the show, especially if they're a man who reads.

(14:04)

So if you stuck around all the way to the end of this episode, I wanna reward you with a little bit of bonus content. Think of it like, the nineties cassette tapes where if you let it roll long enough, there might be something special there for you at the end. A little something that you, uh, didn't think was gonna be on the show, but ended up being there. And I always loved that. So I wanted to incorporate the year. I'm not, I might not do it always. Just wanna keep you honest and keep you listening all the way to the end. I should say that Miles From Nowhere is a book about finding hope in the grimmest of circumstances, and I couldn't think of a more important message or a better message to share on the first episode of the podcast. With that being said, here is my favorite passage from the book.

(14:53)

"I felt a tiny collapsing in my chest, and it took me a moment to correctly identify the pang, not as grief, but as jealousy. I hadn't loved my mother the way that he loved his wife. I had left her when she needed me most, and in the end, she died in a car completely alone with nothing but the sound of metal crushing her. I couldn't grieve for her, not because I didn't want to, but because I didn't deserve to. I looked at Mr. McCommon, his hand smothering his face, his chest flinching. He had no idea that grief was a reward, that it only came to those who were loyal to those who loved more than they were capable of. He had a garage full of her belongings, and all I had was my guilt. It took on its own shape and smell and nestled in the pit of my body, and it would sleep and play and walk with me for decades to come."