Shows / The Children's Literature Podcast
The Children's Literature Podcast
Grown-up discussion of works written for children, with lesson ideas and activities to share with kids
Episodes
- The Children's Literature Podcast
266 – Herne the Hunter
They say that in the depths of Windsor Forest, the ghost of a vengeful huntsman rides on a steed with hooves of flame, taking out his wrath on the wicked…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
265 – “The Finger” of the CORPSE BRIDE!
Welcome to my 13 Nights of Halloween, during which I will heebie your jeebies with freaky folktales. Tonight’s terrifying tale is “The Finger,” is…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
264 – Kuchisake-onna, the Woman With the Slit Mouth
Welcome to my 13 Nights of Halloween, during which I will torment you with terrible tales Tonight’s freakish bit of folklore is “Kuchisake-onna” or…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
262 – The Baba Yaga
Welcome to my 13 Nights of Halloween, where I will share frightening folktales guaranteed to scare the bejeebers out of you. Tonight’s story is “The Baba…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
261 – The Ghost Sailor
This is the second of my 13 Nights of Halloween, and tonight you will hear “The Ghost Sailor,” a folktale that comes from the Mashpee people of…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
260 – The Blue Beard
Welcome to my 13 Nights of Halloween, where I will share frightening folktales guaranteed to scare the bejeebers out of you. These are stories so scary that…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
259 – Cap O’ Rushes
This evening’s Fireside Fairy Tale is “Cap O’ Rushes,” a tale printed in English Fairy Tales, which was a collection made by Joseph…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
258 – Coyote Vs Acme Made Me Laugh AND Cry
I adored Coyote and Roadrunner cartoons as a kid. I had to respect Wile E. Coyote for never giving up, no matter how many times he was smashed, bashed…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
257 – A Close Look at the Cast of The Magician’s Nephew
This is a super deep dive into the newly released photo of the main cast of Greta Gerwig’s first Chronicles of Narnia project, which is a film adaptation…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
256 – Greta Gerwig is DEFINITELY Not Right for Narnia
I said it before. I’m saying it again. Greta Gerwig was not the right person to adapt the Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis, and Empire Magazine’s…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
255 – Taylor Swift’s “Love Story” Saved Romeo and Juliet
“Love Story” from Taylor Swift’s 2008 album Fearless takes the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet and gives it a happy ending. All it took was for…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
254 – Muppet Treasure Island
To mark the 30th birthday of Muppet Treasure Island and pay tribute to the late and eternally great Tim Curry, Tom the Tale Teller and I sat down to rewatch…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
253 – Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library
Dolly Parton was an angel on Earth, entertaining with kindness and warmth. And she spent an absolute fortune helping millions of children learn to love reading…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
252 – DC’s Lanterns Show Gets a Big NOPE From Me
I liked Green Lantern comics as a kid. I hoped rather than believed that the new TV adaptation of this DC property would be any good. It wasn’t any good.
- The Children's Literature Podcast
251 – The Paw Patrol Dino Movie Is Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
I took my six year old to see the Paw Patrol Dino Movie and I was astonished to discover that writers Cal Brunker and Bob Barlen have brilliantly adapted the…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
250 – Top 10 Shakespeare Moments in Star Trek
250 Episodes!! My goodness!! Thank you to all of you, whether you have been with the show for a long time or have just recently joined in the fun. I did a…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
249 – Great Dinosaur Mistakes
I am very delighted to have Dr. Adam S. Smith and Jonathan Emmett return as guests on my show to talk about their splendid new book Great Dinosaur Mistakes…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
248 – The Tale of Odysseus and Polyphemus
It was too windy for me to sit by the fire, so come join me as I invoke the blessings of Apollo, patron of storytellers, by sitting in front of musical…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
247 – Emily Wilson HATES Christopher Nolan’s Odyssey
Emily Wilson, translator of the unneccesarily hated and gossiped-about translation of Homer’s Odyssey, has seen Christopher Nolan’s film adaptation…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
246 – I Loved and Hated Christopher Nolan’s Odyssey
Christopher Nolan’s movies are big, loud spectacles. The Odyssey is messy and sometimes puzzling, but it is worth talking about. I can only wonder what…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
245 – Emily Wilson’s Odyssey Was Kinda Boring
There was a LOT of online hubbub about Emily Wilson’s translation of The Odyssey, which seems to be the one Christopher Nolan relied on for his upcoming…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
244 – The Death of Robin Hood is a Spiteful Mess
I am always up for an interesting new perspective on an old story. The Death of Robin Hood wasn’t interesting. It was bleak, depressing, violent…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
243 – The US Bill of Rights
I was back in the USA for the big 250th birthday celebration, so here are some thoughts I had time to share about the US Bill of Rights. I also had a quick…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
242 – Supergirl’s Mom Is Disappointed in Her
Supergirl was produced by James Gunn, directed by Craig Gillespie, and directed by Ana Nogueira. I blame all three of them equally for this very, very bad…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
241 – A Tea Party with George Orwell and Douglas Adams
Things have been crazy in the last few weeks, so let’s have a nice relaxing cup of tea with two great authors who wrote essays about Britain’s most…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
240 – Masters of the Universe Is FUN!!!
Did Masters of the Universe have the power? YES! Was it perfect? NO! Did it need to be? NO! Did it give me everything I wanted? YES!
- The Children's Literature Podcast
239 – Kat’s A+ Homework In Ten Things I Hate About You
In the film 10 Things I Hate About You, Katarina Stratford gets an assignment to rewrite Shakespeare’s Sonnet 141. Her poem that perfectly pays tribute…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
238 – Why Do Story Changes Annoy Us So Much?
Why do some stories work when they play around with the race, gender, or location of a story and its characters, and why are others an annoying mess? It has to…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
237 – 10 Things I DON’T Hate About Sonnet 141
10 Things I Hate About You was an instant teen classic, adapting Shakespeare’s play The Taming of the Shrew for a 90’s audience. The film’s…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
236 – Animal Farm, Joseph Stalin, and . . . Keir Starmer?
My friend Miguel Lopez returns to the show, taking a break from his Ph.D studies of World War II to help me understand how Animal Farm by George Orwell creates…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
235 – Animal Farm Was So Bad I Needed An Emotional Support Sandwich To Review It
Animal Farm directed by Andy Serkis and written by Nicholas Stoller is an utter abomination.
- The Children's Literature Podcast
234 – Pop Culture Roundup
Here’s my thoughts on three upcoming adaptations of children’s stories. First, the preview trailer for the new Little House on the Prairie…
- The Children's Literature Podcast
233 – NASA, Artemis and Orion!
Human beings are going back to the moon! As I recorded this episode, Artemis II was on its journey to the moon and back again, with four crew members on board…