Cassie and Laura wrap up their The Arabian Nights era this week with a discussion of two of Cassie's favorite books of all time-- The Wrath and the Dawn and The Rose and the Dagger by Renee Ahdieh. We discuss the refreshing approach of Shahrzad as a would-be assassin, loopholes within curse loopholes, impressive trope subversions, and the surprising thing these books have in common with Pirates of the Caribbean 3. Also, spoilers for Pirates of the Caribbean 3 a little bit, I guess?

Content warnings for this episode include murder, suicide, and pregnancy loss. 

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Music: Through The Woods by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com 

Cassie and Laura discuss a looser retelling of The Arabian Nights this week -- A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston -- and touch on a variety of topics including our shared love of thread-based magic in fantasy, what kind of storytelling counts in a retelling of Shahrezad, and how the choice not to name any of the characters can be both fascinating and frustrating at the same time.

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This episode was edited by Brianna Jean.

Music: Through The Woods by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com 

Cassie and Laura continue our Arabian Nights era with book one in the Once Upon a Time series from Simon Pulse -- The Storyteller's Daughter by Cameron Dokey. There's a bit more chatter up top in this episode than usual, so if you want to get straight to the discussion and bypass Toddler Tales and the history of the Once Upon a Time series, skip to 10:55!

Laura and Cassie go off on several tangents during this discussion, but along the way, we do touch on how this novel captures the oral tradition feel inherent to Shahrazad, tricks for behavior that work on toddlers as well as spoiled kings, and how quickly public opinion can change, for better and for worse.

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Music: Through The Woods by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com 

Cassie and Laura kick off our Arabian Nights era with one of the earliest -- Shadow Spinner by Susan Fletcher. We get into the way she deftly weaves a story presenting complex topics in a way that is accessible for younger readers without talking down to them, how she represents the cycle of resentment and forgiveness, and discuss the ways we did have to stretch our suspension of disbelief once or twice.

Trigger warnings for this book include ableism and mentions of child abuse and suicide. Please read and listen responsibly.

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This episode was edited by Brianna Jean.

Music: Through The Woods by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com  

It's time to bid another farewell to our second (riches to) rags to riches girlie and introduce ourselves to the ultimate storyteller Shahrazad, in any of the many many ways her name has been spelled. Cassie and Matt start us off with our final thoughts on The Goose Girl, including our ideas for how we would like to retell the story ourselves and how easy it is for Cassie to shoehorn Anonymous Penpals into any story. Then Cassie and Laura begin a journey into a new story, 1001 Nights, also known as The Arabian Nights. We talk through the plot of the story and the many questions it brings up, then we reveal the criteria we'll be using and which retellings we'll be talking about throughout the month.

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Music: Through The Woods by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com  

Cassie, Matt, and Daurie come together to discuss the Goose Girl retelling that started it all -- The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale. Join us as we gush about the audio book, rhapsodize about how Shannon Hale names her characters, offering our opinions on the musical-in-progress, and teach you all the most important lesson you can learn from literature - what to do if you're being kidnapped.

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This episode was edited by Brianna Jean.

Music: Through The Woods by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com  

Join Matt and Cassie as we discuss Thorn by Intisar Khanani, a book with a fascinating path to publication. We discuss another intricately built world and a second veritable buffet of trauma responses, the worst version of Conrad, the power struggle inherent in who gets to choose the narrative, horses vs. Horses, and the beauty of an ambiguous ending.

Trigger warnings for this book and episode include physical and sexual assault. Please read and listen carefully. 

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This episode was edited by Brianna Jean.

Music: Through The Woods by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com  

Finally tackling one of Drew's all time favorites, Matt and Cassie come together to discuss Little Thieves by Margaret Owen, our loosest retelling this era, but a wonderful look at what happens to this story when we focus on and humanize the servant girl who forced the switch. Join us as we discuss intricate world building, incredible enemies-to-lovers banter, a veritable buffet of trauma responses, internalized privilege, and demisexual representation, and the ultimate question for this fairy tale --- does it NEED to have geese???

Trigger warnings for this book and episode include physical and sexual assault. Please read and listen carefully. 

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Music: Through The Woods by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com  

Cassie and Matt begin Goose Girl Month with the Goose Girl episode from Tom Davenport's Tales from the Brothers Grimm featuring Helen Stoltzfus, Allison Brody, Sam Carter, Gene Morrill, Bo Patterson, and more. This series from the 80s reset classic fairy tales into settings from Appalachian history, specifically in one of the earliest American settlements for The Goose Girl. We discuss how the story is interpreted for this real world setting, what other periods of American history might have worked for this story, the Salem Witch Trials, the Untitled Goose Game, and more.

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Music: Through The Woods by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com  

It's time to bid another farewell to our (riches to) rags to riches girlie and introduce ourselves to . . . ANOTHER riches to rags to riches girlie!  Cassie, Daurie, Laura, and Matt begin this episode with our final thoughts on Cinderella, and the potential for future adaptations. As always, we discuss our ideas for how we would like to retold the story ourselves. Then Cassie and Matthew begin their journey into a new story, which is The Goose Girl by the Brothers Grimm. We talk through the plot of the story and the many questions it brings up, then we reveal the criteria we'll be using for the story of The Goose Girl and which retellings we'll be talking about throughout the month! 

Join our community! View all of the benefits of joining our Patreon including the Official Of Slippers and Spindles Book Club, exclusive polls, monthly bookmarks, Zoom hangouts, and more! https://patreon.com/ofslippersandspindles 

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Music: Through The Woods by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com