Rick sez, “Lev Grossman and Rick Kleffel speak about Grossman’s latest book (MP3 link), The Magician King, and its roots in both C. S. Lewis and Evelyn Waugh. Grossman talks about the book as a fantasy that takes the magical utopian aspects seriously and then sends them up with snarky, 21st-century prose. The problem with his magical otherworld, Fillory, he says, is that there are no problems. There are no Enlightenment-style reforms to enact. There are, however, talking animals, and Grossman offers his thoughts on how to create beasts that speak.”