UNspoiled! Book Club!

Hello, my good people! It's time for one of my personal childhood faves, The Enchanted Castle by Edith Nesbit! Candace wasn't as enraptured with it as I was, but that's okay. I suppose eventually I may forgive her.When I think about British children's literature, this is what I think of. And informal third-person with occasional breaks in the 4th wall (so to speak) where the author addresses the reader directly, coupled with a small group of kids and some wacky adventures involving different levels of magical interference. The Enchanted Castle is actually one of Nesbit's less popular novels, but it's my #1 favorite and I will always put it in my top 5 favorites list. Thanks a ton to all of you for listening, and if you'd like to get the book you can do so here! https://amzn.to/2t4y4Qn

Hello, my good people! It's time for one of my personal childhood faves, The Enchanted Castle by Edith Nesbit! Candace wasn't as enraptured with it as I was, but that's okay. I suppose eventually I may forgive her.When I think about British children's literature, this is what I think of. And informal third-person with occasional breaks in the 4th wall (so to speak) where the author addresses the reader directly, coupled with a small group of kids and some wacky adventures involving different levels of magical interference. The Enchanted Castle is actually one of Nesbit's less popular novels, but it's my #1 favorite and I will always put it in my top 5 favorites list. Thanks a ton to all of you for listening, and if you'd like to get the book you can do so here! https://amzn.to/2t4y4Qn

RoShawn and I have a LOT to say about this disturbing, gripping, haunting book. We both really felt spoken to by the focus of the story on mother-daughter relationships, and the slow build of mystery and upsetting details is really really effective. This is a marked departure from the pulpy, humorous sort of story the Flynn wrote with Gone Girl; Sharp Objects is like a nightmare that you can't make yourself look away from. Thank you so much to everyone who recommended this book, and I will see you next week with The Enchanted Castle!

RoShawn and I have a LOT to say about this disturbing, gripping, haunting book. We both really felt spoken to by the focus of the story on mother-daughter relationships, and the slow build of mystery and upsetting details is really really effective. This is a marked departure from the pulpy, humorous sort of story the Flynn wrote with Gone Girl; Sharp Objects is like a nightmare that you can't make yourself look away from. Thank you so much to everyone who recommended this book, and I will see you next week with The Enchanted Castle!

Alright folks. We didn't like this book. There, I said it. I just wanted to warn you in case you are very attached to this book and have a lot of loving nostalgia around it, because I figure that even something if I know is problematic but I loved it as a child, I wouldn't particularly want to listen to it get shredded to bits by folks who just discovered it. But that's pretty much what Rachel and I do, so be forewarned. Between the misogyny, fatphobia, manic-pixie-dreamgirl troping, fridging, and generally treating all the female characters pretty terribly, there just wasn't a whole lot left to like in this book, at least for me. Also, there's that weird milk scene. *shudders*Many of you will remember Rachel from her guest spot on Charlotte's Web a few months back, and if you're interested in finding more of her you can check out her Quantum Leap podcast called Beckett To The Future by going here! https://www.beckettfuturepod.com/

Alright folks. We didn't like this book. There, I said it. I just wanted to warn you in case you are very attached to this book and have a lot of loving nostalgia around it, because I figure that even something if I know is problematic but I loved it as a child, I wouldn't particularly want to listen to it get shredded to bits by folks who just discovered it. But that's pretty much what Rachel and I do, so be forewarned. Between the misogyny, fatphobia, manic-pixie-dreamgirl troping, fridging, and generally treating all the female characters pretty terribly, there just wasn't a whole lot left to like in this book, at least for me. Also, there's that weird milk scene. *shudders*Many of you will remember Rachel from her guest spot on Charlotte's Web a few months back, and if you're interested in finding more of her you can check out her Quantum Leap podcast called Beckett To The Future by going here! https://www.beckettfuturepod.com/

It's the final episode of the main UNspoiled! Book Club list for 2018, and in this episode RoShawn and I discuss Andrezej Sapkowski's The Last Wish, the first book in The Witcher series. RoShawn and I liked the mythology and stories in this book, but we had a big problem with the structure and the way the whole thing was presented. We both listened to the audiobook, which was probably part of the problem, but frankly I'm not totally convinced this would have worked that much better for me if I had sat down and read it. When we were able to follow along, we were surprised and interested to see that there are a lot of callouts and homages to some really classic fairy tales, which I don't think either of us were expecting. I really liked the concept of Witchers, who are basically for-hire monster-hunters with really intense training and even some biological alterations to make them more adept fighters. As much as I liked the universe, though, I don't think this first book was a good introduction to it and I'm left somewhat frustrated. What do you all think of this book?

It's the final episode of the main UNspoiled! Book Club list for 2018, and in this episode RoShawn and I discuss Andrezej Sapkowski's The Last Wish, the first book in The Witcher series. RoShawn and I liked the mythology and stories in this book, but we had a big problem with the structure and the way the whole thing was presented. We both listened to the audiobook, which was probably part of the problem, but frankly I'm not totally convinced this would have worked that much better for me if I had sat down and read it. When we were able to follow along, we were surprised and interested to see that there are a lot of callouts and homages to some really classic fairy tales, which I don't think either of us were expecting. I really liked the concept of Witchers, who are basically for-hire monster-hunters with really intense training and even some biological alterations to make them more adept fighters. As much as I liked the universe, though, I don't think this first book was a good introduction to it and I'm left somewhat frustrated. What do you all think of this book?

Many thanks to Erin Ayers from Over The Tabletop (which you can find out about here : https://overthetabletoppodcast.libsyn.com/) for joining me on this episode of Childhood Favorites! The Phantom Tollbooth was a book that so many people wanted to join me for, and I can really see why. It's a very unusual book that seems to combine elements of the over-the-top style of Roald Dahl and Dr. Seuss with some pretty intense elements that I would assign to a more Neil Gaiman type mind. I'm so sorry I'm releasing this recording so late, but between my trip to LA being the day after we recorded, and then being sick when I got home...well, things go away from me. I hope you enjoy the show, and I will see you all soon with The Last Wish.

Many thanks to Erin Ayers from Over The Tabletop (which you can find out about here : https://overthetabletoppodcast.libsyn.com/) for joining me on this episode of Childhood Favorites! The Phantom Tollbooth was a book that so many people wanted to join me for, and I can really see why. It's a very unusual book that seems to combine elements of the over-the-top style of Roald Dahl and Dr. Seuss with some pretty intense elements that I would assign to a more Neil Gaiman type mind. I'm so sorry I'm releasing this recording so late, but between my trip to LA being the day after we recorded, and then being sick when I got home...well, things go away from me. I hope you enjoy the show, and I will see you all soon with The Last Wish.

Listeners, Jaime and I are coming at you with an episode on Andy Weir's The Martian, a book which decided that people really wanted to know every last detail about potato farming on Mars. And you know what? That book was RIGHT. Seriously, long-time fans know that I'm super interested in the boring minutiae that goes into fictional worlds and projects, and The Martian delivers on that pedantic crap in spades and I AM HERE FOR IT. It's rather gratifying to know that this book appealed to so many people, because it means that I'm not alone in my nerdiness. Also, this was just a really interesting, tense story that managed to have high stakes while also managing to be lighthearted, which is pretty tough. So if you're interested in reading it, you can pick it up here! https://amzn.to/2ROUO1q And thanks for listening!

Listeners, Jaime and I are coming at you with an episode on Andy Weir's The Martian, a book which decided that people really wanted to know every last detail about potato farming on Mars. And you know what? That book was RIGHT. Seriously, long-time fans know that I'm super interested in the boring minutiae that goes into fictional worlds and projects, and The Martian delivers on that pedantic crap in spades and I AM HERE FOR IT. It's rather gratifying to know that this book appealed to so many people, because it means that I'm not alone in my nerdiness. Also, this was just a really interesting, tense story that managed to have high stakes while also managing to be lighthearted, which is pretty tough. So if you're interested in reading it, you can pick it up here! https://amzn.to/2ROUO1q And thanks for listening!

Hey there, you wonderful people! I'm here with Carey Anne Farrell, the author of the just-released Forward March, and co-host of the podcast You Can Go Your Own YA. Check out her book here! https://amzn.to/2SLfYyD You can find the site for her podcast here goyourownya.com and she even has a music site here! https://careyfarrell.bandcamp.com/This was a particularly fun one to read because while I have read it several times as a child, I haven't revisited it in a long time, and so much has changed about my perception of things like religion and puberty that it was totally new this time around. I liked comparing my experience to Carey's, too, because she grew up very concerned about getting her period and getting boobs, while I didn't care about that but had a ton of pressure on me regarding religion. I hope that you all enjoy the episode, and I will see you next time with The Phantom Tollbooth!

Hey there, you wonderful people! I'm here with Carey Anne Farrell, the author of the just-released Forward March, and co-host of the podcast You Can Go Your Own YA. Check out her book here! https://amzn.to/2SLfYyD You can find the site for her podcast here goyourownya.com and she even has a music site here! https://careyfarrell.bandcamp.com/This was a particularly fun one to read because while I have read it several times as a child, I haven't revisited it in a long time, and so much has changed about my perception of things like religion and puberty that it was totally new this time around. I liked comparing my experience to Carey's, too, because she grew up very concerned about getting her period and getting boobs, while I didn't care about that but had a ton of pressure on me regarding religion. I hope that you all enjoy the episode, and I will see you next time with The Phantom Tollbooth!

First of all, if you all are interested in checking out this book (and if you're looking for something fun, sexy, and fluffy, you should), here is the link to buy it! It's super cheap as a Kindle book but if you can do the audiobook I recommend it. https://amzn.to/2CKxMoJDead Until Dark is the first book in the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris, and there's a reason why it got made into a smash hit series by HBO. The heroine is sharp and funny and yet flawed, the men are hot and supernatural and involved in shady shit, and the plot is compelling, quick-paced, and feels very much like it's taking place in our world. This means that all the ugly consequences of human emotions, bigotry, and conflicting loyalties play out in the same messy way they really would, and I appreciate that. Krista was convinced I wasn't going to like this book, but I enjoyed it so much that as of today I'm about to start the fourth audiobook in the series, using up all my audible credits, and it's been a lot of fun. I think that I dismissed these books because of how outlandish the HBO show became but I'm glad that this one was upvoted by the Patrons so that I got to experience it for myself. Thanks to Krista for cohosting this one, and thanks to all of you for listening!