Who wanted to be one of The Boxcar Children growing up? Boxcar Ashley and Boxcar Kaycee sure did, and today they’re talking about the first book in the series and #116 The Ghost at the Drive-In. Topics of discussion also include their teenage hack for staying out past curfew, why a group of kids with no supervision would continue to follow the rules of society, and the cultural differences between when The Boxcar Children was initially released in 1924 and its resurgence in 1942. Plus, Kaycee has a theory about why the Boxcar Children keep running into so many different mysteries.

Special thanks to Professor Michelle Anne Abate for sending some excellent research materials on The Boxcar Children!

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Visit The Book Bundler for all your Boxcar Children needs (and whatever other used books pique your interest!). Use offer code TOALLTHEYA for 20% off.

Sources:

Abate, M. A. (2016). Not Hoovervilles, But Hooch: Gertrude Chandler Warner’s The Boxcar Children and the Roaring Twenties. Children's Literature in Education, 47(3), 257–266. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10583-016-9275-5

If an orange VHS tape and composition notebook hits you right in the childhood nostalgia, this is the episode for you. Reoccurring guest and friend Samantha Koshiol joins Kaycee to discuss the 1996 children’s classic movie Harriet the Spy. Harriet is truly an icon, a legend, and she opens the door for Kaycee and Sam to talk about being a weird kid, learning about relationships through MTV dating shows, and writing. Plus, Kaycee shares everything she’s learned about the literary character of Harriet and the woman who created her, Louise Fitzhugh.

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Read Sam's book Long Legs in the Twin Cities

Sources:

Merry Christmas, ya filthy animals! Kaycee’s made this holiday episode a family affair with her sister and cousin, and they’re talking the 1992 classic Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. The cousins dish about their favorite holiday movie that’s stuck with them well into their adult lives, the 90s toys they coveted, and why bricks make the best weapons against burglars trying to ruin Christmas for children.

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A crime…for Christmas?! Today on the pod, Nancy Drew and Bess team up with the Hardy Boys to solve a mystery (kinda…). Kaycee is joined by her sometimes co-host Ashley and their Hardy Boys (aka their husbands) as they investigate how easy chocolate stains are to get rid of, falling in love with lying parkourists (is that the word for one who parkours?), and how many times someone can get kidnapped before it becomes overkill.

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A new era of Nancy Drew is upon us with The Nancy Drew Files. Kaycee welcomes Nancy Drew fan and former 80s teenager Aunt Krista on to talk about Secrets Can Kill. They discuss 21 Jump Streeting (before it was cool), basic-boyfriend Ned, and 80s fashion galore. Plus, a new segment enters the chat: Is Nancy Drew Good At Her Job?

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Time to Nancy Drew it UP! Host Kaycee is joined by her BFF and fellow mystery solver Ashley (disclaimer: they've never actually solved a mystery) to talk about the first-ever Nancy Drew book, The Secret of the Old Clock. Adventure abounds with boat explosions! Probate law! White savior complexes!!!  They're on the case of what makes this teen girl detective such a pop culture staple almost a hundred years later.

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Visit thebookbundler.com for all your Nancy Drew needs. Use code TOALLTHEYA for 20% off.

Sources:

Fribush, Rebecca S. (2018): The Riddle of the Revised Novels: Nancy Drew in the Depression and Cold War. Carnegie Mellon University. Journal contribution. https://doi.org/10.1184/R1/6712304.v1

Reinhardt, Claudia, and Bill Ganzel. “Foodways in Rural America during the Great Depression.” Farming in the 1930s, 2003, https://livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe30s/life_07.html.

Dive into a new season with host Kaycee Racer as she discusses the whodunnits and conundrums of girl detective stories like Nancy Drew, Harriet the Spy, and more. 

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Listeners, you are in for a treat with this episode about the 90s TGIF classic Sabrina the Teenage Witch. Join host Kaycee and author Vanessa Abigail Lambert (Cider Mill Coven) in talking about the episodes they loved, their favorite characters, and a little glimpse into their 90s childhoods. It's a magical trip down memory lane.

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Check out signed copies of the novel on cidermillcoven.com

This week, host Kaycee covers a movie that is near and dear to her heart with husband of the pod Ryan. They talk mother-daughter relationships, teen movies, and the genius of Wes Craven. It's a real Scream!

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Showing some love to the paperbacks of the 90s with R.L. Stein's Goosebumps series. In this episode, we dissect The Curse of Camp Cold Lake and what it tells us about childhood fears, sleepaway camps, and how awkward it is to be twelve years old. Guest BFF Ashley joins host Kaycee in talking about how Goosebumps shaped their young lives.

Revisit the 90s and your childhood nostalgia with Goosebumps bundles at thebookbundler.com. Get 20% off with code TOALLTHEYA.

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Footnotes

1. Kraus, Daniel. “Monsters, Murder, and Morality: A Graveside Chat about YA Horror Fiction.” Booklist, vol. 110, no. 18, May 2014, pp. 62–63.