# How to Tackle Intimidating Books, with Emily Wilson

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/zero-to-well-read-7458054/how-to-tackle-intimidating-books-with-emily-wilson
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/zero-to-well-read-7458054/how-to-tackle-intimidating-books-with-emily-wilson.md
Podcast: [Zero to Well-Read](https://stenobird.com/podcast/zero-to-well-read-7458054)
Published: 2026-06-09T09:15:00+00:00
Episode link: https://bookriot.com/listen/how-to-tackle-intimidating-books-with-emily-wilson/
Audio file: https://traffic.megaphone.fm/ARML5604715118.mp3
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/zero-to-well-read-7458054/episodes/how-to-tackle-intimidating-books-with-emily-wilson
Duration seconds: 3022

## Resource

It's a dilemma every reader has faced: what do you do when you really want to read a big, intimidating book, but you don't know how to get started? Jeff and Rebecca sit down with Emily Wilson—classics professor, MacArthur Fellow, and the first woman to publish a full English translation of The Odyssey—for a conversation about how to conquer bookish imposter syndrome, what to look for when you're choosing between multiple editions of translations of a classic work, and why it's worth it to work through challenging reads. Come for the pro tips, stay for Dr. Wilson reading in Greek. Subscribe to our free newsletter, and become a member for access to early, ad-free listening and bonus content. Follow Zero to Well-Read on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. Email us: zerotowellread@bookriot.com Thank you to ThriftBooks for being the presenting sponsor of this season of Zero to Well-Read! Zero to Well-Read is a proud member of the Airwave Podcast Network. This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission. Thanks to our sponsor, Quince! Go to Quince.com/wellread for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Now available in Canada, too! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/zero-to-well-read-7458054/episodes/how-to-tackle-intimidating-books-with-emily-wilson/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/zero-to-well-read-7458054/how-to-tackle-intimidating-books-with-emily-wilson.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.