Hazel & Katniss & Harry & Starr

We missed listener Victoria's contributions to Book Club, so we're revisiting Alanna: The First Adventure to talk about a few extra scenes.

Wanna connect with the show? Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and BlueSky @HKHSPod or use the hashtag #HKHSPod:

> Brenna: @brennacgray (BlueSky) or @mittenstrings (Instagram)

> Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have a mail bag question? Email us at [email protected]  

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It's our last Book Club for the year! Brenna and Joe are joined by listeners Emma, Charlotte and Tea, Books & Chocolate to discuss Tamora Pierce's Alanna: The First Adventure (1983).

While folks warned us the book hasn't aged super well (colonialism, white saviour, gender essentialism, etc), overall we *really* liked this and can understand the nostalgia of a fantasy series with a female protagonist in the 80s. After all, Alanna is a great heroine and this is solid middle-grade fiction.

Up for discussion: bullying, menstruation, and a potential trans reading. Our big question? Where. Is. The. Adaptation?!

Wanna connect with the show? Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Bluesky @HKHSPod or use the hashtag #HKHSPod:

> Brenna: @brennacgray / @mittenstrings (Instagram)

> Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have a mail bag question? Email us at [email protected]

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

We have follow-up work from our Red, White & Royal Blue episode, including an apology (courtesy of Miriam) about Casey McQuiston's pronouns, and three points about characters and politics (courtesy of Tea, Books & Chocolate).

Then we fold in one additional thought about Charlie & Ben in Heartstopper S02 (courtesy of Jeremy).

Wanna connect with the show? Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and BlueSky @HKHSPod or use the hashtag #HKHSPod:

> Brenna: @brennacgray (BlueSky) or @mittenstrings (Instagram)

> Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have a mail bag question? Email us at [email protected] 

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Brenna and (moreso) Joe discuss listener Andrew's response about Joe feeling bad for Ben in Heartstopper S02.

Wanna connect with the show? Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and BlueSky @HKHSPod or use the hashtag #HKHSPod:

> Brenna: @brennacgray (BlueSky) or @mittenstrings (Instagram)

> Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have a mail bag question? Email us at [email protected] 

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Brenna and Joe are late to Casey McQuiston's phenom Red, White & Royal Blue which has just been adapted to film by Matthew López for Amazon.

We're fans of this fun, flirty read which tackles a few substantive topics in a low-key fashion.

The film...isn't working for us unfortunately. Despite stars Taylor Zakhar Perez and Nicholas Galitzine's best efforts, there's no romantic electricity here. Throw in cheap production values and a undercooked queer-revenge villain and the film is sadly undercooked. (And don't get us started on Uma's accent!)

Wanna connect with the show? Follow us on Insta, Bluesky and Twitter @HKHSPod or use the hashtag #HKHSPod:

> Brenna: @brennacgray

> Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have a mail bag question? Email us at [email protected] 

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We couldn't help but discuss Becky Albertalli's new book Imogen, Obviously which feels like a semi-autobiographical account of the author's own experiences coming out as bisexual.

Yes there's fluffy, bubblegum romance, but Albertalli is doing something far more complicated with the book's "villain" Gretchen and her dangerous gatekeeping of queer identities. It's really fascinating!

Wanna connect with the show? Follow us on Twitter @HKHSPod or use the hashtag #HKHSPod:

> Brenna: @brennacgray

> Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have a mail bag question? Email us at [email protected]

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Who's ready for Paris?! Brenna and Joe return to the world of Alice Oseman's Heartstopper for S02 of the Netflix series, which loosely corresponds to Volumes 3 & 4 of the comic.

There's hickey drama, more queer teachers and even more diversity in the LGBTQIA umbrella. But while we're loving more Tao and Elle, Joe is frustrated by how quickly Isaac's "coming out" is handled and he finds the Ben subplot lacking. Thankfully the soundtrack and the kissing remains on point!

Wanna connect with the show? Follow us on Twitter @HKHSPod or use the hashtag #HKHSPod:

> Brenna: @brennacgray

> Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have a mail bag question or a comment about book club? Email us at [email protected] or tweet us your responses before the following deadlines:

> Alanna: The First Adventure (Tamora Pierce, 2006) - Submit by Aug 11

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Thanks to listener Laura's recommendation, Brenna and Joe check out Clémentine Beauvais' delightful Piglettes (2015) about three fat girls who bike to Paris.

There's nothing lost in translation because the witty wordplay shines through in this fun, breezy, feminist book. While Brenna has issues with how Mireille treats the other girls and Joe desires cathartic punishment, we're both appreciative that the girls don't change who they are and the only "lesson" learned is the value of friendship.

Wanna connect with the show? Follow us on Twitter @HKHSPod or use the hashtag #HKHSPod:

> Brenna: @brennacgray

> Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have a mail bag question or a comment about book club? Email us at [email protected] or tweet us your responses before the following deadlines:

> Alanna: The First Adventure (Tamora Pierce, 2006) - Submit by Aug 11

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Thanks to listener Miriam, we're tackling John Marsden's Tomorrow, When The War Began (1993), as well as its 2010 film adaptation by Stuart Beattie and the Brendan Maher-directed season of TV from 2016.

This massive Australian hit is highly teachable, though don't go looking for commentary on colonialism or political curiosity from its teenage protagonists. The film is a big budget action film that Joe prefers, while Brenna likes the direction and relationship between the kids in the TV series, even if both adaptations lean into uncomfortable racism in their depiction of the invading force. Yikes!

Plus: let no one doubt Brenna's commitment to podcasting because Brenna was on tornado watch when we recorded this episode (listen to the outtakes for proof!)

Wanna connect with the show? Follow us on Twitter @HKHSPod or use the hashtag #HKHSPod:

> Brenna: @brennacgray

> Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have a mail bag question or a comment about book club? Email us at [email protected] or tweet us your responses before the following deadlines:

> Alanna: The First Adventure (Tamora Pierce, 2006) - Submit by Aug 11

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

This week's mailbag is courtesy of listener Victoria, who asks if it's possible for literature to incite change anymore. Despite Brenna and Joe's initial melancholy outlook, John Green's interest in tuberculosis and the power of individual readers (plus the vital importance of YA) offers a possible sunny outlook.

Wanna connect with the show? Follow us on Twitter @HKHSPod or use the hashtag #HKHSPod:

> Brenna: @brennacgray

> Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have a mail bag question or a comment about book club? Email us at [email protected] or tweet us your responses before the following deadlines:

> Alanna: The First Adventure (Tamora Pierce, 2006) - Submit by Aug 11

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