Hazel & Katniss & Harry & Starr

At the behest of listener Evelina, we're reading 2023's Stolen, by Sami author Ann-Helén Laestadius. C/W: graphic animal murder.

Using contributions from listeners Victoria and Tea, Books & Chocolate, we dig into this three part intergenerational tale of trauma, environmental activism, racism, and suicide. It's a very heavy book (!) but it's also thrilling and beautifully written.

Plus: queering Elsa and Minna's relationship, Lasse's suicide, Sami magic, why the ending is so unexpected, and fears for the forthcoming Netflix adaptation

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.

Thanks to listener Neera, Brenna and Joe cook up a definition of NA (New Adult), who or what falls into it, and why agents shouldn't dismissive of the category!

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

> Brenna: @brennacgray / @mittenstrings (Instagram)

> 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.

After waiting forever, Brenna and Joe finally get to watch Nick Bruno and Troy Quane's feature film adaptation of Nimona (2023) and it's...fine?

Ok, it's more than fine, but there is something missing. While the obviousness of the trans elements and the changed ending are perfect for the current political moment, the messy, interesting character flaws and unpredictable format of ND Stevenson's original comic are missing.

References:

> Sam Adams. "Nimona Is the Rare Story Hollywood Made Gayer. Is It Better?" Slate

> Caroline Cao. "Nimona’s radical page-to-screen story changes were a queer necessity." Polygon

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.

Listener Tea, Books & Chocolate asks the important question: what *is* Wattpad? Brenna and Joe discuss the platform's model, why we have issues with it, and announce a lucrative new partnership!

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.

Zzzzzz.

Oh sorry, Brenna and Joe fell asleep trying to read Jenny Han's debut YA novel The Summer I Turned Pretty and watch her seven episode Amazon TV show. Belly...is so boring and we can't make ourselves care about her romantic triangle, which is confusing because we're huge Han Stans!

Plus: Cam Cameron deserves better, back to back drunk episodes, musicality overload, and how will S02 of this show work?!

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.

Joe introduces Brenna to the silly, satirical humour of Phil Lord, Christopher Miller and Bill Lawrence's Clone High (we watched all 10 episodes of S02).

Up for discussion: the Gandhi controversy that literally got the show cancelled, how the white male creators are a model for controversy, the angular cartoon style, the wit and wordplay, our fave characters, and the musical episode!

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:

> Stolen (Ann-Helén Laestadius, 2023) - Submit by July 3

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

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

Listener Jessica writes in with details about how she used the show's Monkey Beach episode as a genre categorization exercise for her university students, which prompts Brenna and Joe to discuss our desire for the show to act as a breezy accessible academic text.

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:

> Stolen (Ann-Helén Laestadius, 2023) - Submit by July 3

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

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

Ready for more Wattpad? Brenna and Joe are utterly baffled by Arianna Godoy's 2022 novel Through My Window, as well the lack of chemistry between the leads of Marçal Forès' Netflix adaptation.

In addition to being poorly edited, the book features far too much anatomically incorrect (and dangerous!) sex. The film is better, but outside of a weirdly incestuous sex scene and a hilariously melodramatic climax, it's surprisingly snoozy. Folks, we can do better than these texts!

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:

> Stolen (Ann-Helén Laestadius, 2023) - Submit by July 3

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

We're headed Down Under to discuss Gary Lonesborough's beautiful text, Ready When You Are.

Joining us are listeners Tea, Books & Chocolate, Victoria, and Miriam (who recommended this, along with listener Toni) who praise the relationship between Jackson and Thomas, the depiction of Koori art, and how real the fictional Mish setting reads.

Plus: racism and class, hot sex, and comparisons to last month's book club.

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:

> Stolen (Ann-Helén Laestadius, 2023) - Submit by July 3

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

Brenna and Joe tag along on a Chinese quest as we read Gene Luen Yang's exquisite 2006 comic American Born Chinese and watch Kelvin Yu's eight episode Disney+ adaptation.

We *love* the comic, with its gorgeous art, confronting imagery and careful pay-off (stick with it!). The TV show is a mixed bag: the cast, including all of the stuntcasting, is great, but the narrative is both streamlined and drawn out which reduces its emotional components. And what's with the cliffhanger? We don't need a second season!

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:

> Stolen (Ann-Helén Laestadius, 2023) - Submit by July 3

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