Hazel & Katniss & Harry & Starr

Just in time for spooky season, we go hunting for bodies in King's novella (or is it a novel?), as well as Rob Reiner's seminal 80s film, which boasts an all-star cast of young male actors (RIP River Phoenix)

Up for discussion: the meanness of Castle Rock and the tragic backstories (and future lives) of these protagonists; the purpose of that infamous pie-eating contest; disagreements over the success of John Cusack's Denny and Richard Dreyfuss' narrator, and speculation about switching the year of the text from 1960 (in the novella) to 1959 (in the film).

Wanna connect with the show? Use #HKHSPod on Twitter:

• Brenna: @brennacgray
• Joe: @bstolemyremote
• Michael: @michaelroffman

Have something longer to say or a minisode topic? Email us at [email protected]. See you on the page and on the screen!

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

On the advice of Max (and liberally stealing a page from Joe's friends' podcast - thanks Talk Movie To Me) we're putting the careers of Kevin Williamson and Judy Blume under the microscope to consider how and why they've made an impact in YA.

Homework:

Brenna:

• Lucky Penny by Anath Hirsch & Yuko Ota
• Giant Days by John Allison
• A History of My Brief Body by Billy-Ray Belcourt

Joe: 

• Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

Wanna connect with the show? Use #HKHSPod on Twitter:

• Brenna: @brennacgray
• Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have something longer to say or a minisode topic? Email us at [email protected]. See you on the page and on the screen!

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Someone has finally sunk some money into a new Indigenous YA adaptation and we couldn't be more excited! After attempting to tackle the sprawling, slow burn narrative of Robinson's book (don't call it magical realism), Brenna and Joe discuss why this tale needed to be adapted by an Indigenous creative. Expect lots of gushing praise for break out Joel Oulette, as well as Crystle Lightning.

Plus: the complicated history of other Canadian Indigenous YA properties, janky FX and four new squares on the YA BINGO board. Can you spell "abuse"?

Wanna connect with the show? Use #HKHSPod on Twitter:

• Brenna: @brennacgray
• Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have something longer to say or a minisode topic? Email us at [email protected]. See you on the page and on the screen!

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

After a fortuitous series of social media connections, Meredith Russo joins us for a chat that encompasses a little bit of class politics, a little bit of video gaming and a little bit of punning.

In addition to giving us an overview of her career, Meredith tells us about the ways that fiction is always already autobiography, how her work addresses the traditional depictions of the American South and why we expect trauma (but not romance) in trans YA narratives.

Plus: Meredith's "secret plan" to turn up the heat on cis readers with each successive book, rants about the watering down of YA and also…the ridiculousness of Rent, the musical!

Wanna connect with the show? Use #HKHSPod on Twitter:

• Brenna: @brennacgray
• Joe: @bstolemyremote
• Meredith: @Mer_Squared / Meredith's Patreon

Have something longer to say or a minisode topic? Email us at [email protected]. See you on the page and on the screen!

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

As requested by listeners, we're kicking off a new season of the pod with a book that combines manic pixie dream people with healthy doses of ableism! Strap yourselves in for a mixed episode from Brenna and a downright hostile episode from Joe, who finds both texts "baffling."

Up for discussion: Haley's many blandly titled projects, Niven's confounding creative decisions adapting her own text, Justice Smith's chest hair, Elle Fanning's Urban Outfitters glasses and bad, BAD parents and friends.

Wanna connect with the show? Use #HKHSPod on Twitter:

• Brenna: @brennacgray
• Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have something longer to say or a minisode topic? Email us at [email protected]. See you on the page and on the screen!

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

Ready for a 40 year run down of Degrassi? Well Brenna has you covered as she walks Joe through the cultural importance of the series, its evolution across multiple broadcasters (public and private), how it handled sensitive topics in non-patronizing, but still teen-friendly ways and why suddenly we may need to consider a future episode on Road to Avonlea!

Episodes (if you wanna watch along with Joe)

Degrassi High 

• "It Creeps"
• Abortion arc 1 & 2
• HIV/AIDS arc 1 & 2

Degrassi: The Next Generation

• School Shooting arc 1 & 2:
• Trans arc 1 & 2

Wanna connect with the show? Use #HKHSPod on Twitter:

• Brenna: @brennacgray
• Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have something longer to say or a minisode topic? Email us at [email protected]. See you on the page and on the screen!

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

We're finally getting around to a listener request. Poor Kadija requested Holes ages ago, but we're finally ready to tackle the story of poor Stanley Yelnats.

Up for discussion: how femininity is used as a weapon, as well as the absence of mothers and maternal figures. We're very impressed at the readability of Sachar's book considering it's basically a take-down of the prison industrial system. 

Plus: Jenny explains why the book is a cornerstone of a Texas education (and that the film is popular on TikTok?!); Joe gets judgey of people with neck tattoos, and, finally, why Sachar's incredibly faithful screenplay and those missing pounds on Shia LaBoeuf's Stanley wind up hurting the film.

Wanna connect with the show? Use #HKHSPod on Twitter:

• Brenna: @brennacgray
• Joe: @bstolemyremote
• Jenny: @jennyleighx33

Have something longer to say or a minisode topic? Email us at [email protected]. See you on the page and on the screen!

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

Right off the top, we're super excited for Michelle Latimer's Trickster (click for the trailer), an adaptation of Eden Robinson's Son of a Trickster.

Brenna:

1. Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam, Exonerated Five (Sept 1)
2. Charming as a Verb by Ben Phillipe (Sept 8)
3. Thoughts and Prayers by Bryan Bliss (Sept 29)

Honourable mentions: bookstore theme! 

• This Is All Your Fault by Aminah Mae Safi 
• Recommended for You by Laura Silverman

Joe:

1. Never Look Back by Lilliam Rivera (Sept 15)
2. Early Departures by Justin A. Reynolds (Sept 22)
3. I Hope You’re Listening by Tom Ryan (Oct 6)

Honourable Mentions: 

• Even If We Break by  Marieke Nijkamp (Author of This Is Where It Ends) (Sept 15)
• Come on In (Anthology) Edited by Adi Alsaid (Oct 13)

Wanna connect with the show? Use #HKHSPod on Twitter:

• Brenna: @brennacgray
• Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have something longer to say or a minisode topic? Email us at [email protected]. See you on the page and on the screen!

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

After hearing so much about what this book means to fans - particularly young girls - Brenna and Joe are surprised to discover that it has not aged with. Blame the current pandemic, but a story that prioritizes individuality above all else doesn't quite the same way in a society that refuses to even wear a mask for the greater good.

There's also the strange critique of communism/totalitarianism that is also an unabashed ode to Christianity that doesn't quite sit well. Thankfully we can see why Meg Murry is a friend to all smart, outsider girls (even if her last name is misspelled. Lol). 

The film doesn't fare too much better. Joe wonders if the issue is screenwriter Jennifer Lee's background in animation, while Brenna takes issue with the tired fan-service and janky FX. But we like the diverse casting, practical set design, costumes and make-up. It's all a big toss-up!

Wanna connect with the show? Use #HKHSPod on Twitter:

• Brenna: @brennacgray
• Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have something longer to say or a minisode topic? Email us at [email protected]. See you on the page and on the screen!

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

To celebrate the great Kirsten Dunst/Gabrielle Union showdown of 2000, Joe makes Brenna watch Bring It On ! While some of the racial politics and its approach to queerness haven't aged particularly well, we appreciate the white girls coming in second, a competitive approach to female rivalry and a bounty of sassy dialogue.

Faring less well is director Laura Terruso and writer Alison Peck's Work It (2020) which exists solely as a vehicle for Sabrina Carpenter, whom Joe describes as a charisma vacuum. Thankfully we have the comedically styling of Liza Koshy's Jas and the cuteness of PS I Still Love You's Jordan Fischer to ease over the many, MANY bumpy parts.

Homework:

Friend of the show Miriam recommends f/f YA books:

• Queer horror: Wilder Girls by Rory Power, Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand, and The Devouring Gray by Christine Lynn Herman
• Juliet Takes A Breath by Gabby Rivera
• We are Okay by Nina LaCour

Brenna catches us up on: 

• Yes, No, Maybe So by Becky Albertalli and Alisha Sayeed
• Internment by Samira Ahmed
• Love, Creekwood by Becky Albertalli
• Tomboy’s Survival Guide by Ivan E. Coyote
• Don’t Stand So Close To Me by Eric Walters
• The Prince and The Dressmaker by Jen Wang

Wanna connect with the show? Use #HKHSPod on Twitter:

• Brenna: @brennacgray
• Joe: @bstolemyremote

Have something longer to say or a minisode topic? Email us at [email protected]. See you on the page and on the screen!

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