My guest this week is Alice Slater, former bookseller, and author of Death of a Bookseller and Let the Bad Times Roll, which is out now in paperback. Alice chose Melvin Burgess’ seminal 1996 YA novel, Junk. We talk about looking at older books through a modern lens, unlikeable characters and second album syndrome as novelists. 

You can find Alice’s and my own books on my Bookshop page: https://uk.bookshop.org/lists/bookwandering-the-podcast

The podcast is produced by Adam Collier with artwork by Hester Kitchen. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Former children's laureate and poet Joseph Coelho joins me to talk about Raymond Brigg's beloved Christmas classic, The Snowman. We talk about festive traditions, some of Brigg's other work including When the Wind Blows, and about the importance of poetry for young people.

You can find a selection of Joseph's books along with The Snowman and my own work at: https://uk.bookshop.org/lists/bookwandering-the-podcast

The podcast is produced by Adam Collier with artwork by Hester Kitchen. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Debut novelist Rochelle Dowden-Lord joins me to talk about Kasper in the Glitter, Philip Ridleys' gloriously odd 1994 children's book that's illustrated by Chris Riddell. We talk about the importance of weird children's books, researching wine, and have a frank chat about our experiences of being published while working in the book industry. Please note this episode contains an instance of very strong language. 

Lush, Rochelle's Nero Prize shortlisted novel, is out now and you can find it alongside my books at: https://uk.bookshop.org/lists/bookwandering-the-podcast

The podcast is produced by Adam Collier with artwork by Hester Kitchen. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lioness captain Leah Williamson and her co-writer and cousin Jordan Glover join me this week to talk about The Lord of the Rings.

We talk about how Leah takes inspiration from Aragorn as the England captain, fancy dress family parties, and the Lost Lionesses of the 1971 Women’s World Cup who inspired their most recent book.  

You can find The Wonder Team series, The Lords of the Rings and my own books at: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/acaseforbooks

The podcast is produced by Adam Collier with artwork by Hester Kitchen. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bestselling author and founder of the Women's Prize Kate Mosse joins me this week to talk about Frances Hodgson Burnett's 1911 classic, The Secret Garden. We talk about pirate queens and little princesses, spiky girls and gardens, and how Kate chose who to include in her anthology.

You can find Feminist History for Every Day of the Year, The Secret Garden and my own books at: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/acaseforbooks

The podcast is produced by Adam Collier with artwork by Hester Kitchen. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Award-winning writer and playwright Piers Torday joins me this week to talk about The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame. We discuss talking animals, whether the book can be read through a queer lens, and how children's fiction has evolved over the last hundred years.

You can find Midnight Treasure, The Wind in the Willows and my own books at: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/acaseforbooks

The podcast is produced by Adam Collier with artwork by Hester Kitchen. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bestselling author of books for children and teenagers (and my best friend) Katherine Webber joins me to talk about the Alanna books by Tamora Pierce, officially known as the Song of the Lioness Quartet. We talk about age gap romances, why maps are brilliant as a read and tricky as a writer, and mermaids. 

Captain of Fates, a standalone spin-off from the Twin Crowns series, is out now. You can find that and the Alanna books, along with my books at: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/acaseforbooks

The podcast is produced by Adam Collier with artwork by Hester Kitchen. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Climate justice activist, speaker and writer Mikaela Loach joins me this week to talk about The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, the YA dystopian phenomenon. We talk about how the series radicalised Mikaela, reluctant heroes and different ways of resisting justice. (There are spoilers for the original trilogy, but none for The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes or Sunrise on the Reaping.) 

Mikaela's book for young people about the climate crisis and what we can do, Climate Is Just the Start is out now. You can find that and The Hunger Games along with my own books at: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/acaseforbooks

The podcast is produced by Adam Collier with artwork by Hester Kitchen. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Actor, comedian and writer Harry Trevaldwyn joins me to talk about Twilight, Stephenie Meyer's iconic 2005 YA vampire novel. We talk about Harry's obsession with the book as a teenager, the spirit of Georgia Nicholson, hoa hoa season and why it's so vital to have queer YA love stories. 

Harry's debut YA romcom, The Romantic Tragedies of a Drama King is out now. 

You can find The Romantic Tragedies of a Drama King, Twilight and my own books here:  https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/acaseforbooks 

The podcast is produced by Adam Collier with artwork by Hester Kitchen. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Award-winning author Rachel Khong joins me to talk about Half Magic, Edward Eager's 1954 fantasy classic about a family who find a coin that grants them half wishes. Rachel is the author of Goodbye, Vitamin and most recently Real Americans, which is out now in paperback. We talk about Eager's love of E. Nesbit, why Rachel went back to Half Magic when writing Real Americans and how to write magic in literary fiction. 

You can find Real Americans and my own books on my Bookshop page, although Half Magic is out of print in the UK currently:  https://uk.bookshop.org/lists/bookwandering-the-podcast

The podcast is produced by Adam Collier with artwork by Hester Kitchen. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.