Skip to content
Artwork for Curiouser and curiouser

Curiouser and curiouser

Leonie Dams

The podcast for cultivating whimsy, comfort and meaning in a world of doomscrolling. In Curiouser and Curiouser, host Leonie Dams (The Book Leo) talks about every curious thing she's currently overthinking - leading you down a little rabbit hole of internet culture, feminism, philosophy, and whimsical living. If this podcast was a cup of tea, it would contain notes of sharp cultural analysis and a big splash of magic and imagination.

Play
  • 12 episodes
  • Avg 47 min
  • English
  • April 8 · 1 hr 16 min

    solo dating: how to have fun alone & love your own company

    today my friend nina and i, two seasoned solo daters, answer your questions about going out on fun outings by yourself! how to conquer the awkwardness, the potential judgement and the boredom? we share it all in today's episode! nina's youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@NinaCatharina_

  • April 1 · 38 min

    i can't stop doomscrolling through anti-doomscroll videos

    help! i keep using technology to escape technology! articles mentioned: https://open.substack.com/pub/theunmoored/p/theyre-on-my-phone-telling-me-i-really?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web https://www.cosmo.ph/lifestyle/watching-decluttering-organizing-videos-explanation-a4462-20201113 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10516449/

  • March 18 · 41 min

    imagination is the antidote to your nihilism and nostalgia-bait

    it seems like the solution to our discontentment with the present is looking back to the past, nostalgia-bait and general nihilism. but who are we leaving behind when we escape into memories? how can we rekindle our imagination, to look forward again? sources: the ultimate hidden truth of the world - david graeber, prefaced by rebecca solnit the new age of sexism - laura bates empire of AI - karen hao Science fiction blockbuster movies – A problem or a path to urban greenery? a solarpunk manifesto https://missolivialouise.tumblr.com/post/94374063675/heres-a-thing-ive-had-around-in-my-head-for-a dead zones of the imagination - david graeber

  • March 11 · 39 min

    i will remain joyful out of spite !!!

    today we discuss a topic i've been pondering a lot the past year; joy as a means instead of an end! books and articles mentioned:ursula leguin - the ones who walk away from omelasemily henry - beach readhttps://www.filosofie.nl/filosoof-peter-venmans-de-zin-van-het-leven-is-zin-hebben-in-het-leven-frivoliteit/wendy cope - the orangebeautiful world where are you - sally rooneyfjodr dostojevski - crime and punishmentalduous huxley - brave new worldflorence given - women living deliciouslyaudre lorde - uses of the erotichttps://brightblackhoney.substack.com/p/joy-is-a-strategy-why-white-leftistsalbert camus - the myth of sisyphus

  • March 4 · 46 min

    online spaces where the internet is still FUN

    today we respond to the notion that 'the internet isn't fun anymore' and look at some online spaces that use the internet in a joyful way, without being stuck in algorithms and ads. hopefully it will help us answer the question: how can we make the internet fun again? mentioned websites: https://archive.org/ https://archiveofourown.org/ https://neocities.org/browse https://cloudhiker.net/explore https://theuselessweb.com/ https://www.ravelry.com/account/loginhttps://visdeurbel.nl/ https://www.window-swap.com/ books mentioned: empire of AI - karen hao the age of extraction - tim wu

  • February 25 · 47 min

    love analog hobby's, hate the analog trend

    finally i have an excuse to talk about all my hobbiesarticles on physical versus digital mediahttps://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11943480/pdf/life-15-00345.pdfhttps://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2Fedu0000830https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9871942/

  • February 18 · 1 hr 26 min

    the art of doing nothing

    today i am joined by Leora Aileen to discuss the philosophy and science of doing nothing books and people mentioned: vita contemplativa - byung chul han women artists: the creative process - bell hooks de openbaring van de onbenutte tijd - lieke knijnenburg the brain at rest - joseph jebelli nina's youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@NinaCatharina_/videos quirine's substack: https://quirinebrouwer.substack.com/p/all-my-friends-and-i-talk-about-is

  • February 11 · 39 min

    how to live a life of beauty, NOT overconsumption

    today we chat about finding the beauty and luxury of life without falling into overconsumption. what are some things you want to learn to see the beauty in, that go against the mainstream beauty standards? essays mentioned: women artists - bell hooks beauty laid bare - bell hookson knitting and killing my mortal enemies - this is going somewhere 🦋 Curiouser and curiouser instagram - https://www.instagram.com/curiouserandcuriouserpod/🐞 My personal instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thebookleo/💫 My book channel - https://www.youtube.com/@TheBookLeo

  • February 4 · 33 min

    don't be the main character, be a better side character

    let's get together pondering at the pond to discuss individuality, our responsibility to others and how we are always both main characters and side characters at the same time sources i got a lot of my information on Levinas from my philosophy class notes, but if you're interested in reading more, here is an apprehensive overview: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/levinas/ museum exhibit: https://www.radius-cca.org/nl/exhibitions/de-politieke-grenzen-voorbij-hoofdstuk-2-we-zijn-allemaal-holobiontshttps://panarchy.org/koestler/holon.1969.htmlcheck out alma heikkila's art: https://www.almaheikkila.net/

  • January 28 · 42 min

    confidence tips aren't actually helping you

    hello lovelies! today we chat about confidence culture and the whole confidenc industry, and how it convinces women that all their problems are due to their individual lack of gutsiness.sources:unbound - kasia urbaniaktomorrow sex will be good again - katherine angelWhat is “confidence culture” and how does it harm women? - Shani Orgad, Rosalind Gill https://www.lse.ac.uk/research/research-for-the-world/society/what-is-confidence-culture-and-how-does-it-harm-womenConfidence culture and the remaking of feminism - Shani Orgad, Rosalind Gill https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316464812_Confidence_culture_and_the_remaking_of_feminismWanting Bad Things - Andrea Long Chu, Anastasia Berg https://thepointmag.com/dialogue/wanting-bad-things-andrea-long-chu-responds-amia-srinivasan/

  • January 21 · 40 min

    'you don't owe anyone anything' & the friendship crisis

    welcome to the first episode of curiouser and curiouser! today we get curious about the friendship crisis, how much boundaries is too much boundaries and the online lie of healing as an individualistic actsources: Niamh Duffy, ‘I’ve protected my peace so much, I’ve accidentally made myself boring’ Maisa, ‘you’re a bitch and that’s why we lack community’ Tristan Harris on the Daily Show https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=675d_6WGPbo https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/07/style/friend-ai-subway-ads-new-york.html https://www.nature.com/articles/nn.3086https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14675803/ https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4290532/

Showing 1–12 of 12 episodes