Storyshaped

Well, this was a hoot - as you'd expect from a guest like Jenny McLachlan, author of the BRILLIANT, bestselling ROAR books, as well as Dead Good Detectives, Stink (Worst. Fairy. Ever) and a whole load more. Jenny began her writing career with amazing YA books, before graduating into equally amazing Middle Grade novels and early readers - so, she has written across the ages, and with equal aplomb in all. She's funny, her characters are memorable, her stories are equal parts heartfelt and hilarious, and this chat was exactly the same. Come with us as we get to know the powerhouse that is Jenny McLachlan, and find out her answer to our perennial question: Are You Storyshaped?

Find Jenny online:

www.jennymclachlan.com

Her Twitter

Books mentioned in this week's episode include Jenny's own:

Flirty Dancing

Love Bomb

Star Struck

Stargazing for Beginners

Sunkissed

Truly, Wildly, Deeply

The Land of Roar

Return to Roar

The Battle for Roar

Dead Good Detectives

Pet Quest

The Jumpy Bumpy Feeling

The Quack in the Kitchen

There's a Chicken in my Bookbag

Zoom to the Moon,

Stink: Worst. Fairy. Ever.

And the stories that shaped her include:

Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad

Topsy and Tim, by Jean and Gareth Anderson

Helpers, Alfie, Moving Molly, and Dogger by Shirley Hughes

The work of Jackie Collins

The work of Jilly Cooper

Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte

The work of Jane Austen

The work of Charles Dickens

The Beano comic

Pippin in Playland comic

Annuals: Twinkle, Bunty, Mandy

Bella magazine

Just Seventeen magazine

Angus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison

The work of Jacqueline Wilson

Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte

Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare

Circe, by Madeleine Miller

The Silence of the Girls, by Pat Barker

Utterly Dark and the Face of the Deep, by Philip Reeve

The work of M.G. Leonard (check out our podcast chat with M.G. here)

TV influences:

Succession

Game of Thrones

Saving Lives at Sea (TV documentary)

Print Media:

Joseph Coelho: I set out to find the happiness I felt as a child, and it worked

Our podcast bookshop in Ireland is Halfway Up the Stairs: www.halfwayupthestairs.ie

In the UK, check out our storefront on: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/Storyshaped. Disclaimer: If you buy books linked to our site, we may earn a commission from bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops.

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

We had great fun this week sitting down with award-winning author Jasbinder Bilan on the podcast! We discussed her formation in India and Britain, the importance of oral storytelling and family stories, and the stories that helped her to grow up to write beautiful, immersive, richly textured books which celebrate all facets of her heritage and culture. Come with us as we walk with Jasbinder through the landscapes of her life, and find out how she's Storyshaped.

Books mentioned in this week's episode include Jasbinder's own:

Asha and the Spirit Bird

Tamarind and the Star of Ishta

Aarti and the Blue Gods

Xanthe and the Ruby Crown

India Incredible India (illustrated by Nina Chakrabarti)

And the stories which shaped her include:

The wonderful stories told to her by her grandma, and the real-life stories experienced by her family - including the story of Oma the Wild Monkey, who took Jasbinder's brother up a tree!

Skyhawk, by Gill Lewis

The work of Emma Carroll

The Hobbit, by JRR Tolkien

The Chronicles of Narnia, by CS Lewis

From Spare Oom to Ward Robe by Katherine Langrish

A collection of Greek myths, with Pegasus on the cover!

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, particularly an edition translated by Simon Armitage and illustrated by Clive Hickes-Jenkins

A wide range of mythology, and also stories told through songs

Journey to Jo'burg, by Beverley Naidoo

Wild Song, by Candy Gourlay

Stolen History: The Truth about the British Empire and How it Shaped Us, by Sathnam Sanghera

The Last Whale, by Chris Vick

Our podcast bookshop in Ireland is Halfway Up the Stairs: www.halfwayupthestairs.ie

In the UK, check out our storefront on: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/Storyshaped. Disclaimer: If you buy books linked to our site, we may earn a commission from bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops.

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

Sinéad had the great privilege of sitting down with Leona Forde this week! Leona's the author of the brilliant Milly McCarthy series (Gill Books), including Milly McCarthy is a Complete Catastrophe (2023) and the forthcoming Milly McCarthy and the Irish Dancing Disaster. Leona is a teacher, a mam, and a very busy author, and we had a great chat about music, storytelling, her teaching philosophies, her writing process, and how she does it all. Settle in and let's find out together how Leona is Storyshaped!

Books mentioned in this episode include Leona's own:

Milly McCarthy is a Complete Catastrophe

And the stories that shaped her include:

The folktales and mythology she learned from her grandmother, Mrs Maureen Herbert

The music, traditional ballads and songs played by her father and her family members

The song Leona mentions is this one:

Dublin in the Rare Oul Times by the Dubliners

The Famous Five, by Enid Blyton

The Secret Seven, by Enid Blyton

Revolting Rhymes, by Roald Dahl

The Cremation of Sam McGee, by Robert W. Service

Under the Hawthorn Tree, by Marita Conlon McKenna

Across the Barricades, by Joan Lingard

The Herbalist, by Niamh Boyce

On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous, by Ocean Vuong

The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne

The Secret Scripture, by Sebastian Barry

Small Things Like These, by Claire Keegan

Foster, by Claire Keegan

The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton

Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley, by Timothy White

Oi Puppies, by Kes Grey

Be Wild, Little One, by Olivia Hope and Daniel Egnéus

Fidget the Wonder Dog, by Patricia Forde and Rachel Saunders

The Little Bee Charmer of Henrietta Street, by Sarah Webb

A Game of Life or Death, by Triona Campbell

The Time Tider, by Sinéad O'Hart

Lessons in Chemistry, by Bonnie Garmus

All the Broken Places, by John Boyne

The Queen of Dirt Island by Donal Ryan

Trespasses, by Louise Kennedy

Short Stories by Frank O'Connor

Our podcast bookshop in Ireland is Halfway Up the Stairs: www.halfwayupthestairs.ie

In the UK, check out our storefront on: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/Storyshaped. Disclaimer: If you buy books linked to our site, we may earn a commission from bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops.

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

This week, we had the joy of sitting down with Vashti Hardy, author of some of our *favourite* books of all time, to discuss the stories that have shaped her life and her prolific career to date. This episode turned into a masterclass, as Vashti generously shared some of the tips, tricks and techniques that help her to create her wonderful work, and the love for books and stories just fizzes out of every word of this interview. Enjoy this wonderful, warm, and (we hope) inspiring chat with one of the most talented authors around and - if you enjoy it! - do please share it, and spread the word. Let's grow the Storyshaped community!

Books mentioned in this week's episode include Vashti's own:

The Brightstorm Chronicles (Brightstorm, Darkwhispers, Firesong, and Serpent of the Sands)

Wildspark

Crowfall

The Harley Hitch Series

The Griffin Gate Series

And the stories which have shaped her include:

My Naughty Little Sister, by Dorothy Edwards, ill. Shirley Hughes

The Hungry Caterpillar, by Eric Carle

Rebecca's World, by Terry Nation

Mold and the Poison Plot, by Lorraine Gregory

Ghost Stories, by Pamela Oldfield

Chocky, and Day of the Triffids, by John Wyndham

Rebecca, by Daphne du Maurier

I Capture the Castle, by Dodie Smith

Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte

The work of Marcus Sedgwick

The Cone Gatherers, by Robin Jenkins

Z for Zachariah, by Robert C. O'Brien

The Sisterhood, by Katherine Bradley

Her Dark Wings, by Melinda Salisbury

The Girl Who Broke the Sea, by A Connors

Wild: Tales from Early Medieval Britain, by Amy Jeffs

Movie influences include: Star Wars

Our podcast bookshop in Ireland is Halfway Up the Stairs: www.halfwayupthestairs.ie

In the UK, check out our storefront on: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/Storyshaped. Disclaimer: If you buy books linked to our site, we may earn a commission from bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops.

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

This week, we're speaking with the lovely H.S. (Helle) Norup about the stories which shaped her, and it's a stroll through folklore, faerie hills, and fantastical worlds. Come with us as we talk about the differences between modern children's books and classic books from our childhoods, the intersections between languages and how one would go about translating 'lashings of ginger beer' into Danish, and a children's book so influential (and controversial) that it was discussed in parliament! Settle in, grab your hat, and get Storyshaped with us.

Find Helle online:

www.hsnorup.com

Twitter: H.S. Norup

Books mentioned in this week's episode include Helle's own:

The Missing Barbegazi (Pushkin Children's)

The Hungry Ghost (Pushkin Children's)

Into the Faerie Hill (Pushkin Children's)

And the books which shaped her include:

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

The Never Ending Story by Michael Ende

The Brothers Lionheart by Astrid Lindgren

Ronja the Robber's Daughter by Astrid Lindgren

Emil and the Detectives by Eric Kastner

Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren

The Famous Five by Enid Blyton

The work of Agatha Christie

A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula le Guin

Dune by Frank Herbert

His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman

Unraveller by Frances Hardinge

"Fairy tales are more than true - not because they tell us dragons exist, but because they tell us dragons can be beaten." Neil Gaiman, misquoting G.K. Chesterton

Our podcast bookshop in Ireland is Halfway Up the Stairs: www.halfwayupthestairs.ie

In the UK, check out our storefront on: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/Storyshaped. Disclaimer: If you buy books linked to our site, we may earn a commission from bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops.

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

This week we're sitting down with Julie Pike, the author of the fantastical, magical, exciting (and slightly gruesome-but-great!) MG novel The Last Spell Breather (OUP, 2019). We talk stories, spaces, the landscape of Wales, the far-flung destinations that Julie has ventured to, how she once possibly helped to save a life (!), the impact of social class on authors' self-perceptions, and how important it is to show children that there are no limits to what they can achieve. Please join us as we get to know Julie and her book, and discover how Storyshaped she is.

Books mentioned in this week's episode include Julie's own:

The Last Spell Breather (OUP, 2019)

And the stories that shaped her include:

Chris Addison's blog 'Two Ways into a Theatre'

Brandon Sanderson's blogs on how to write magic systems:

Sanderson's First Law

Sanderson's Second Law

Sanderson's Third Law

An episode of Dr Who (with Tom Baker as the Doctor) which featured fish monsters:

Dr Who: Full Circle

The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton

Lirael by Garth Nix

Sabriel by Garth Nix

Abhorsen by Garth Nix

The books of Barbara Cartland, Arthur Conan Doyle, and Georgette Heyer

A Most Improper Magick by Stephanie Burgis

A Tangle of Magicks by Stephanie Burgis

A Reckless Magick by Stephanie Burgis

Journey to the Centre of the Earth by Jules Verne

The Cadfael Chronicles (series) by Ellis Peters

Star Trek

Mixed Magics by Diana Wynne Jones

Mysteries of the Unknown: Monsters, Ghosts and UFOs by Carey Miller, Christopher Maynard, Ted Wilding-White

Our podcast bookshop in Ireland is Halfway Up the Stairs: www.halfwayupthestairs.ie

In the UK, check out our storefront on: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/Storyshaped. Disclaimer: If you buy books linked to our site, we may earn a commission from bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops.

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

For this episode, get ready to giggle! We had so much fun talking to Sabine Adeyinka, where we discuss boarding school stories from Nigeria to the UK, the brilliance of comics, the vital importance of curiosity, and the direct inspiration Sabine can draw between the stories that shaped her as a young reader and the creative work she has gone on to make. Settle down and join us for an hour of pure bookish happiness, and find out how Sabine is Storyshaped.

Books mentioned in this episode include Sabine's own:

Jummy at the River School

And the stories that shaped her include:

Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe

Malory Towers, by Enid Blyton

St. Clare's, by Enid Blyton

Aké: The Years of Childhood, by Wole Soyinka

The Beano comic

Tin Tin, by Hergé

Archie and Veronica (comic), created by Bob Montana and John L. Goldwater

The Wind in the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame; ill. Ernest Shepard, Arthur Ransome, Charles van Sandwyck

Becoming, by Michelle Obama

To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

Go Set a Watchman, by Harper Lee

The books of Efua Traoré

Half of a Yellow Sun, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

The Bible

Our podcast bookshop in Ireland is Halfway Up the Stairs: www.halfwayupthestairs.ie

In the UK, check out our storefront on: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/Storyshaped. Disclaimer: If you buy books linked to our site, we may earn a commission from bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops.

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

This week, we lose the run of ourselves (verrrry slightly) as we sit down with an undisputed legend - Frances Hardinge. Frances is the author of ten acclaimed and brilliant novels for young adults, the winner of the Costa Book Award (only the second children's author to do so, besides Philip Pullman), and the wearer of an assortment of extremely excellent hats. We wish to put it on record that she wore her hat throughout our conversation - as is only right and proper! Come with us as we take a walk through the absolutely amazing literary landscape that has shaped and formed Frances and her books, and forgive our (alright, Sinéad's) excited fangirling. (She regrets nothing.)

Books mentioned in this episode include Frances's own:

Fly By Night

Twilight Robbery

Gullstruck Island

Verdigris Deep

A Face Like Glass

Cuckoo Song

The Lie Tree

A Skinful of Shadows

Deeplight

Unraveller

The stories that have shaped Frances include:

The Hungry Caterpillar, by Eric Carle

James and the Giant Peach, by Roald Dahl

Alice in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams

The Colour of Magic, by Terry Pratchett

The Time of the Ghost, by Diana Wynne Jones

The Thirteen Clocks, by James Thurber

The Moomintroll series of stories, by Tove Jansson

Watership Down, by Richard Adams

The Bear and the Nightingale, by Katherine Arden

The Girl in the Tower, by Katherine Arden

Her Dark Wings, by Melinda Salisbury

Leila and the Blue Fox, by Kiran Millwood Hargrave and Tom de Freston

And the collected work of H. Mills West (listen to the episode to find the touching reason why this writer's work is included.)

Our podcast bookshop in Ireland is Halfway Up the Stairs: www.halfwayupthestairs.ie

In the UK, check out our storefront on: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/Storyshaped. Disclaimer: If you buy books linked to our site, we may earn a commission from bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops.

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

WELCOME TO SEASON 2!

Storyshaped is back - and we're landing with a bang. We open Season 2 with a Deep Dive into one of the most significant books in the lives of your fearless co-hosts - Pat O'Shea's The Hounds of the Morrigan. Fifteen years in the writing, this masterpiece of Irish children's literature was utterly formative for both Susan and Sinéad, and in this episode they rejoice in the opportunity to discuss it with one another. You'll hear about natural magic, talking donkeys, triple-aspect goddesses, beleaguered Garda Sergeants, mysterious bookshops, scrying glasses, Swapping Day, and so much more. Join us and be swept away by the magic of this wonderful book (which we do our best not to spoil - fingers crossed!) and get settled in for a new season of your favourite children's literature podcast.

Welcome back! We're so glad to be here.

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This week - the final episode of Season 1, Storyshaped fans! - Susan and Sinéad are indulging themselves with a Deep Dive into one of the books that profoundly shaped both of them. We're discussing Susan Cooper's 1973 classic The Dark Is Rising, which is a book that Susan describes as being part of her soul. It's an incredible story about a boy named Will Stanton, who steps into his power as an Old One on his eleventh birthday - and it involves such a wealth of mythology, folklore, allusions to medieval texts, and other stuff that pleases our nerdy hearts, that this episode was the MOST fun to record. Please do come with us as we dive deep into this beautiful book, which has Storyshaped us both, and get ready to whisper with us:

When the Dark comes rising, six shall turn it back,

Three from the circle, three from the track;

Wood, bronze, iron, water, fire, stone;

Five will return, and one go alone...

Many different editions of Susan Cooper's classic book exist, but this is a recent edition which might be easily accessible: The Dark Is Rising

Biographical details about Cooper's life and work are drawn from her website: The Lost Land of Susan Cooper

We draw on Heritage Artefacts of County Cork by Denis Power and Mary Sleeman (2022) for some of our insights into the mandala symbol

Referenced in the episode is this blog post: https://consolationofreading.wordpress.com/tag/piers-plowman/

We also make reference to A Guidebook to Piers Plowman by Anna Baldwin, Palgrave Macmillan, 2007

Susan draws on Britannic Myths by Steven O'Brien and Joe Machine (ill.) in our discussion of Herne the Hunter and Wayland Smith

The podcast dramatisation of The Dark is Rising can be found on Spotify here: BBC Sounds Robert MacFarlane The Dark is Rising Adaptation

And the brilliant Backlisted Podcast episode with Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris is here: Backlisted Podcast

Thank you all so much for listening to Season 1 of Storyshaped! We're delighted to have reached so many ears, and we hope to reach many more in Season 2 - we'll be back in 2023 with more guest interviews and lots more bookish joy. Until then: all our best wishes for the Festive Season to everyone who celebrates, however you celebrate, and whatever you're doing: make sure to find a nice quiet corner to curl up in with a good book.

Our podcast bookshop in Ireland is Halfway Up the Stairs: www.halfwayupthestairs.ie

In the UK, check out our storefront on: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/Storyshaped. Disclaimer: If you buy books linked to our site, we may earn a commission from bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops.

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