Fantasy Book Swap
40 episodes - English - Latest episode: 8 months ago - ★★★★★ - 1 ratingAli Baker and a guest discuss children's fantasy fiction. The guest chooses a favourite for Ali, and Ali chooses a complementing contemporary book. Jokes and the occasional swear word may ensue. Please contact [email protected], @fantasyswap on Twitter or https://www.facebook.com/Fantasybookswap. Ask questions, make comments and join in the discussion!
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Episodes
Ep 37: Totally Elemental with Esther MacCallum-Stewart, Chair of Glasgow 2024 WorldCon
September 27, 2023 16:54 - 1 hour - 91 MBAli’s choice: The Boggart by Susan Cooper. Ali’s edition with cat tax. Esther’s choice: Like a Charm by Elle McNicoll Elle’s novel A Kind of Spark was adapted by CBBC. Several members of the cast are neurodiverse. Information about dyspraxia here Elle McNicholl’s website Esther and Ali mention a lot of books and other media! Hilary McKay’s Casson family books, Terry Pratchett’s Only You Can Save Mankind, the spinning room in Poltergeist, You’re Wrong About… podcast on the Amityville hor...
Ep 36: Ghosts, machines and aliens with Kit Power
August 15, 2023 21:01 - 1 hour - 124 MBKit’s choice: The Tripods by John Christopher Ali’s choice: Wildspark by Vashti Hardy Kit’s Patreon Kit’s page on Amazon Kit reads his essay on The Tripods on his podcast feed The British Fantasy Society award shortlist Thanks as always to Steve Vapour Trails. Check out his radio show on Radio Lewes here! Thank you to Danny for the fresh new idents, and to Jack Sadler-Johnson for the use of his beautiful track Bliss. I have signed up for Ko-Fi. For the month of September I have pled...
Ep 35: A Confusion of Susans with Juliet Kemp
July 28, 2023 17:22 - 1 hour - 84.8 MBJuliet’s choice: We Didn’t Mean to Go to Sea by Arthur Ransome. There is a small display related to the Swallows and Amazons at the Ruskin Museum in Coniston, in the Lake District. It’s not far from Hill Top, Beatrix Potter’s house near Ambleside. Ali’s choice: The Strangeworlds Travel Agency: The Edge of the Ocean by L. D. Lapinski. I talked to Phil Dyson about the first book in the series, way back in episode 2! Find links to Juliet’s social media and information about their books from t...
34: Dragons and radical empathy with Trip Galey
July 14, 2023 11:18 - 1 hour - 145 MBTrip’s choice: Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher by Bruce Coville Ali’s choice: How To Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell The full list of Magic Shop books here Cressida Cowell’s Wizard of Once books and new book, Which Way to Anywhere have more diverse casts. My now 14-year-old as Hiccup when he was 5. He cosplayed Hiccup at his first Eastercon. The note that Mr Elives gives Jeremy and the magical librarian Hyacinth Priest from the US edition of Jeremy Thatcher. Illustrator: Gary A. L...
Ep 33: A refreshing lack of Wizard Dads with SJ Groenewegen
May 23, 2023 12:33 - 57 minutes - 78.3 MBEpisode 33- A refreshing lack of Wizard Dads with S.J. Groenewegen SJ’s choice: Andra by Louise Lawrence, with the ABC TV cover Ali’s choice: Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao SJ’s website: https://www.sjgroenewegen.co.uk Pre-order The Disinformation War here @nyssa1968 – twitter Reachingforthevoid - tumblr https://mitpress.mit.edu/9781913380809/ - links to pre-orders/orders for the Disinformation War, out on 13 June. SJ will be at Super Relaxed Fantasy Club on 13 June at...
Ep 32 Imaginary horse husbands with Kari Sperring
April 11, 2023 13:47 - 57 minutes - 131 MBKari’s choice: The Silver Brumby by Elyne Mitchell This is the edition that Kari has We talk about the illustrations, by Ralph Thompson: Kookaburra and Wombat Ali’s choice: Abyssinia by Ursula Dubosarsky A doll’s dress at Rouse Hill Farm Estate, New South Wales Other books mentioned in the episode Marguerite Henry’s Misty of Chincoteague The Pullein-Thompson sisters Ruby Ferguson’s Jill books and sequels by Jane Badger, righting the wrongs of Jill being exiled from the world of ponie...
Ep 31 Getting rid of parents and grumpy magical helpers with Kate Towner
November 05, 2022 14:00 - 1 hour - 88.8 MBKate’s choice: The House of Arden by E. Nesbit Ali’s choice: Aru Shah and the End of Time by Roshani Chokshi The Mahabharat has been dramatized twice for TV. This is the one I watched in the 1980s. If you want to read the other great Sanskrit epic, the Ramayana, I recommend this graphic novel version told from Sita’s perspective. A new biography of Edith Nesbit was published in 2019. The House of Arden was dramatized for BBC radio in 1989. You can buy an audiobook collection of Nesbit a...
Ep 30: Hot Gladiators and Plague Gods
October 11, 2022 20:22 - 1 hour - 114 MBA bumper episode of 1 hr 20! Matt and Nina from Even the Trunchbull come to mine, after I guested on their podcast discussing Joan Aiken's Nightbirds on Nantucket and the lovely picture book Peggoty Po. Matt and Nina’s book: Slaves of the Mastery by William Nicholson Ali’s book: City of the Plague God by Sarwat Chadda Book covers- compare Slaves of the Mastery with The Hunger Games The cover that would have put Matt off, which reminded me of Stephen Pearson’s classic posters Follow Eve...
Moomintroll and a china rabbit with Laura Mauro at FantasyCon 2022
September 25, 2022 13:33 - 45 minutes - 62.2 MBThis episode was recorded live at FantasyCon 2022 so the sound is a little echoey Laura is a games writer, Manga translator and the award-winning author of Sing Your Sadness Deep (2019) among other wonderful things. You can follow her on Twitter here, and find out more at LauraMauro.com Laura’s choice: Moominland Midwinter by Tove Jansson Ali’s choice: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo We mention Tove Jansson’s biography by Boel Westin I really love Kate DiCamill...
Ep 28: Two horse girls’ training montages with Caroline Mersey
September 01, 2022 12:55 - 1 hour - 85.4 MBTwo quick warnings: This episode contains mentions of sexual assault and abduction. Please proceed with care. It was recorded over the bank holiday in Brighton. Caroline and I attempted to find a quiet corner of a pub to record in during a day out, and despite fiddling with editing there is background noise. Caroline’s choice: The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley. Sadly, it seems to be out of print in the UK, and it doesn’t appear to be available as an audio book or in ebook format, which is ...
Ep 27: The Anti-Reepicheep League with Ang Rosin
August 12, 2022 20:06 - 1 hour - 110 MBThe Anti-Reepicheep League shownotes Ang’s choice: Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O’Brien Ali’s choice: The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents by Terry Pratchett Ang and Ali are book twins How I imagine Sardines doing his dance Reepicheep: ugh The Secret of NIMH is very weird The Trailer for the upcoming animated film of Amazing Maurice Follow Ang on Twitter @ang_grrr Thank you to everyone who reviewed! I know people reviewed on other platforms and I really appre...
Ep 26: Fairies and witches and toads, oh my!
July 29, 2022 20:08 - 1 hour - 53.5 MBShow notes ep 26 Fairies and witches and toads, oh my! Kit’s choice: The Stream that Stood Still by Beverley Nichols (who is a man! And he had quite the life). Ali’s choice: Otherland by Louie Stowell. Louie’s very funny The Dragon in the Library was one of the books discussed in Episode 1, with Helena McCallum Kit’s book, In the Heart of Hidden Things, can be bought as a hardback or ePub. Kindle edition here and audiobook via Audible here. You can see Jenna Barton’s artwork here. Oth...
Ep 25: Timeslips and dreams with Tony Keen
July 03, 2022 14:10 - 57 minutes - 91.6 MBApologies for the sound: it was incredibly hot in the kitchen in Hove so we recorded with the window open, so there is some traffic noise in the background. Tony’s choice: Tom’s Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce Ali’s choice: The Freedom Maze by Delia Sherman Tony mentions the difference in portrayal of Roman slavery in Spartacus and Gladiator; can we only empathise if the protagonist is enslaved unjustly? More information on Spartacus here with links to information about screenwriter Da...
Ep 24: Look into my eyes with Russell Smith
June 16, 2022 19:04 - 1 hour - 87.2 MBRussell’s book: The Demon Headmaster by Gillian Cross Ali’s book: Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston Catherine Butler wrote a paper about mind control in children’s literature and you can read it here Russell and I talk about the new series of The Demon Headmaster. You can watch it on BBC iPlayer. Information about the 1990s series can be found here There is a second Amari book on the way. I like the look of this and I saw this on Twitter Follow Russell at @RASmithPSL, and hi...
Ep 23 Sweet Polly Oliver goes Over The Hills: Sharpe and Monstrous Regiment
June 03, 2022 10:13 - 30 minutes - 42.1 MBSpoilers for Monstrous Regiment in this episode! Please note that some women who went to war disguised as men lived as men for the rest of their lives (such as James Barry) while others returned to living as women after their service. Sergeant Jackrum may be considered the former; he may have considered himself a trans man, if such terms were available to him in Discworld. Alistair’s choice: Sharpe’s Eagle by Bernard Cornwell Ali’s choice: Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett During th...
Ep 22: I’m just a teenage necromancer, baby
May 10, 2022 21:44 - 1 hour - 95.4 MBI recorded this episode after having Covid, which affected my asthma. Apologies for the audible wheezing. Scott’s choice: A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula Le Guin Ali’s choice: Sabriel by Garth Nix Buy from your local bookseller, such as Bert’s Books in Swindon! The awful adaptation of A Wizard of Earthsea: Legend of Earthsea and a much better one: Tales from Earthsea Vetch is indeed a plant. HP Lovecraft Band’s song Country Boy and Bleeker Street Scott mentions the Caryl Churchill p...
Episode 21: Fantasy Book Swap Live!!! at Reclamation 2022, with Tasha Suri
April 21, 2022 10:05 - 1 hour - 82.6 MBShownotes Recorded at Reclamation 2022, the British Science Fiction and Fantasy Fan convention. Join us next year with Conversation 2023! With guest Tasha Suri Tasha’s pick: Alanna, The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce Ali’s pick: Utterly Dark and the Face of the Deep by Philip Reeve Follow Tasha on Twitter and Instagram Many thanks to everyone who got up before 10:30am on Bank Holiday Monday to be at the recording! And thanks to you for listening.
Deploy Emergency Podcast
April 07, 2022 13:10 - 8 minutes - 12.2 MBA very short emergency podcast due to life, the pandemic and the general state of things that have disrupted my recording schedule. How rude. This episode is inspired by Octothorpe’s episode 54, Embrace the Sweat, where in discussion about Naomi Novik’s A Deadly Education Alison suggested that it was the first book to challenge the classism of the Harry Potter series. I disagree! You can find out more about Jonathan Stroud here. I think he’s a fantastic author. The first of the Bartimaeus ...
Ep 19: Fairytale retellings and socialist fantasy with Ali Williams
March 18, 2022 21:17 - 1 hour - 105 MBPlease note that there is mention of transphobia in this episode. Warning: there is mild swearing and a lot of cackling. Ali Williams’s book: Beauty by Robin McKinley Ali Baker’s book: Magyk by Angie Sage Robin McKinley’s website here Angie Sage’s website here This is Laurie Pink, Angie Sage’s child, who is an artist: https://mobile.twitter.com/lauriepink Ali Williams’s website: https://www.aliwilliams.org/ where you can find links to her lectures, Romancing the Discourse, her ed...
Ep 18: Going Underground Joan Aiken’s Is and Frances Hardinge’s A Face Like Glass
March 06, 2022 15:11 - 1 hour - 59.9 MBAisha’s book: Is by Joan Aiken Ali’s book: A Face Like Glass by Frances Hardinge You can find out about all of Joan Aiken’s books here and follow her daughter, Lizza on Twitter. Aisha mentions The Harp of Fishbones, The Kingdom under the Sea and A Necklace of Raindrops with Jan Pienkowski’s illustrations, such as these ones You can hear LeVar Burton reading ‘Furry Night’ from The People in the Castle here Frances Hardinge’s website, Facebook fan page and Twitter Ali’s editions here and...
Of Wolves and Birds with Damien Hine
February 23, 2022 20:52 - 50 minutes - 80.5 MBDamien’s choice: Wolf Brother by Michelle Paver Ali’s choice: Asha and the Spirit Bird by Jasbinder Bilan Jasbinder Bilan wrote about the inspiration she got from a trip to India here You can find Damien Hine on Twitter here and Facebook. The audiobook of Out of Atlas can be bought here. Damien will be at the British SFF convention, EasterCon. You can buy membership here, but do it soon as prices will be rising at the end of the month. Fantasy Book Swap is Hugo-eligible! If you’re a mem...
Spooky Old Houses and Ghostly Mouses
February 13, 2022 11:10 - 47 minutes - 24.8 MBThis episode has a very special guest… my dad, Michael Baker, who was 84 yesterday. You can see him wearing his favourite hat here. This photo was taken last May, on my sister Kate’s belated 50th birthday. It was absolutely freezing! Our choices were: John Masefield's The Midnight Folk Chris Riddell's Ghost Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse During the podcast I mention John Masefield’s poem Sea Fever. You can read it here. I just found this poem, The Ship and Her Makers, which seems closer...
Episode 15: Crushing on Chrestomanci
January 27, 2022 20:24 - 47 minutes - 24.8 MBAlice’s choice: Charmed Life by Diana Wynne Jones Ali’s choice: Who Let The Gods Out? by Maz Evans You can find Alice on Twitter, read her on Book Riot and read her webcomics here The most obvious example of an Agatha Christie novel with an unreliable narrator is The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. Alice mentions Robin Steven’s wonderful Murder Most Unladylike books, which I can’t recommend enough. Do you use Storygraph to log your reading? Follow me there, and see what is coming up on the podc...
Episode 14- Series 1 finale. Of spooks, skeksis and Sherlock
December 29, 2021 17:37 - 10 minutes - 5.45 MBThank you, dear listeners, for your support and interest. Fantasy Book Swap has had 1000 downloads on Podbean! Look, I have the badge to prove it! This episode has the favourite winter reading of: Nicholas Jackson Danny DC so thank you all for your contributions! I very much enjoyed listening to them. Fantasy Book Swap is taking a break until the end of January, when I will be back with Fantasy Book Swap 2: Swap Harder. Thanks, as always, to Steve Vapour Trails for production suppor...
Wolves are not the most dangerous creatures in this forest: Stephanie Shields, The Dark is Rising and Breadcrumbs
December 21, 2021 21:31 - 1 hour - 100 MBStef’s choice: The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper. Ali’s choice: Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu. See one of Erin McGuire's illustrations for Breadcrumbs here You can find Stef on Twitter and Instagram, and buy her books here https://www.cynefinroad.co.uk/shop The next episode will be the last for a bit; I’m taking a break in January and will be back in early February. Do you use Storygraph to log your reading? Follow me there, and see what is coming up on the podcast! https://app.thestorygrap...
Ep 12: Anne is not the Sansa Stark of the Famous Five- Fiona Moore on Edward Eager‘s Knight‘s Castle and Stephanie Burgis‘s The Dragon with the Chocolate Heart
December 14, 2021 19:25 - 55 minutes - 89.1 MBYou can find Fiona on Twitter, and her blog here, where you can find links to her fiction and other work. You can buy Fiona’s book on Doctor Who: The Robots of Death here. Fiona’s tiny buildings can be found on Instagram and Beau Paddington’s wardrobe on Twitter. Fiona’s choice was Edward Eager’s Knight’s Castle, which easily available in secondhand editions. However, N. M. Bodecker’s illustrations are hard to beat, so try to find an edition including them. My favourite is here. Fiona ment...
Winter special trailer
December 04, 2021 15:22 - 42 seconds - 359 KBGet involved! Email your voice recording introducing your favourite winter reads to [email protected].
Ep 11: Farah Mendlesohn, Fattypuffs and Thinifers and Lightfall
November 26, 2021 20:20 - 1 hour - 86.4 MBFollow Farah on Twitter. Farah is also a co-chair for the Eastercon 2024 bid Farah co-authored Children's Fantasy Literature: An Introduction with Michael Levy, and is the author of The Intergalactic Playground: A Critical Study of Children's and Teens' Science Fiction Farah recommends The Tea Dragon Society Farah's choice: Fattypuffs and Thinifers by Andre Maurois Ali's choice: Lightfall by Tim Probert Please tell me your favourite Winter reads! Record a short voice note and email fant...
”More funny than Thomas Hardy”: John Coxon, Rebecca‘s World and Flora & Ulysses
November 11, 2021 19:15 - 52 minutes - 71.7 MBRebecca’s World by Terry Nation As John states, there is an Audible audiobook of Rebecca’s World, read by Paul Darrow, who was indeed Avon from Blakes 7. Flora and Ulysses by Kate di Camillo. There is a Disney film based on the book; see the trailer here The Tale of Despereaux trailer on YouTube John mentions Groosham Grange by Anthony Horowitz Ali mentions The Eighteenth Emergency by Betsy Byars and You’re A Bad Man, Mr Gum! by Andy Stanton Octothorpe British SFF fandom podcast with L...
Ep.9 ”Not your average hawk”: Tamora Pierce‘s Tortal universe with Ruth Hunt
October 30, 2021 14:49 - 1 hour - 103 MBGuest: my colleague Ruth Hunt. Find out more about Ruth and her research here Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce Tempests and Slaughter by Tamora Pierce The Tortall universe in chronological order- though new readers would be best off starting with Alanna: The First Adventure Tamora Pierce’s thinking about gender identity and sexuality has changed over time An interview with Tamora Pierce on Beyond the Trope podcast Ruth Hunt the Wild Mage’s wildlife photos here Thanks to Steve Vapour Trails...
Episode True 8- Virginia Preston, cricket, cake and nuns
October 17, 2021 14:30 - 57 minutes - 91.9 MBAntonia Forests’s The Cricket Term Daisy May Johnson’s How To Be Brave Fantasy Book Swap episode with Daisy The Dickens novel that we couldn’t remember was Dombey and Son, where an annoying child does indeed die The Worst Witch- Mildred unmasking the evil witches Eva Ibbotson’s books: The Journey to the River Sea is set in the Amazon rainforest Many of Angela Brazil’s books are on Project Gutenberg Nicola and Rowan discuss Dorothy L Sayers’s Murder Must Advertise. A cricket match is ...
Episode 7 ”No booty call for Merlin”: Tiffani Angus on Mary Stewart‘s The Crystal Cave and James Clammer‘s Why I Went Back
September 28, 2021 09:58 - 49 minutes - 44.9 MBContent warning for non-explicit discussion of sexual violence and mental health crises including sectioning. Recorded live at FantasyCon, so there is background noise of 3D humans, including some sound bleed of the panel in the room next door. Let's call it atmosphere! Mary Stewart's The Crystal Cave- it is in fact a quintet, not a trilogy James Clammer's Why I Went Back I got Steve and Jimmy's friendship origin story wrong- Steve was friends at university with some of Jimmy's friends, ...
Episode 8 ”No booty call for Merlin”: Tiffani Angus on Mary Stewart‘s The Crystal Cave and James Clammer‘s Why I Went Back
September 28, 2021 09:58 - 49 minutes - 44.9 MBContent warning for non-explicit discussion of sexual violence and mental health crises including sectioning. Recorded live at FantasyCon, so there is background noise of 3D humans, including some sound bleed of the panel in the room next door. Let's call it atmosphere! Mary Stewart's The Crystal Cave- it is in fact a quintet, not a trilogy James Clammer's Why I Went Back I got Steve and Jimmy's friendship origin story wrong- Steve was friends at university with some of Jimmy's friends, ...
Episode 6 Fran Dowd: Puffin Club, Hobberdy Dick, The Wee Free Men and More!
September 18, 2021 12:20 - 1 hour - 111 MBShow notes Episode 6 Hobberdy Dick song by Rod Anderson https://www.reverbnation.com/rodanderson The Wee Free Men (from Steeleye Span’s Wintersmith album) https://youtu.be/ybsZpSn1grg Sheffield Science Fiction and Fantasy Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/2388189214 History of the Puffin Club https://puffinclub.co.uk/history Link to K. M. Briggs’ papers and correspondence at University of Leeds https://explore.library.leeds.ac.uk/special-collections-explore/6579 Terry Pratchett’...
Episode 5 Daisy May Johnson, Five Children and It and The Time of Green Magic
September 06, 2021 19:10 - 39 minutes - 63.3 MBUnfortunately, we had technical difficulties recording this episode, so it is slightly shorter than usual. Quick correction: Nesbit’s relationship doesn’t seem to have been poly. It has been described as an open relationship, but her husband Hubert Bland’s affairs don’t seem to have been with her consent. Nesbit Five Children and It. My edition is the Puffin Classics one published in 2008, with the foreword by Quentin Blake, but really poor-quality reproductions of illustrations. Hilary M...
Episode 4 Steve Brooks The Trigan Empire and Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl The Graphic Novel
August 30, 2021 14:25 - 1 hour - 108 MBCONTENT WARNING- this episode discusses racism and orientalism in the context of children’s comics. Look and Learn Book of The Trigan Empire 1973- Some Trigan Empire books have been republished by Rebellion Publishers, owners of 2000AD https://2000ad.com/news/out-now-the-trigan-empire-vol-1/ Eoin Colfer’s Artemis Fowl: The Graphic Novel by Michael Moreci and Stephen Gilpin. We know that there is a film; we haven’t been able to bring ourselves to watch it. The names of the characters in Di...
Episode 3 Alison Scott, Marianne Dreams and Tamarind and the Star of Ishta
August 16, 2021 17:38 - 1 hour - 116 MBIn which Ali gets the name of the podcast wrong twice! Marianne Dreams by Catherine Storr Tamarind and the Star of Ishta by Jasbinder Bilan, @jasinbath on Twitter We also mention Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, Catherine Storr's The Chinese Egg and Marianne and Mark, and Jasbinder Bilan's Asha and the Spirit Bird. Alison's book recommendation list: https://www.facebook.com/alison.scott.3998/posts/10158236430174766 Stow Shirts on Etsy Octothorpe podcast (where news of Punctuation 3 is lik...
Ep 2 Phil Dyson Howl's Moving Castle and Strangeworlds Travel Agency
July 27, 2021 19:53 - 1 hour - 98.4 MBIn this episode, Phil and Ali discuss Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones and Strangeworlds Travel Agency by L.D. Lapinski. Please note that we spoil some important points of both books! Of course the first Chrestomanci book is Charmed Life! Please don't shout at me. You can find Phil @phildyson on Twitter. Find out more about EasterCon 22 @reclamation2022 and https://reclamation2022.co.uk/. You email Phil via the site. As always, Letters of Comment welcome via fantasybookswap@gma...
S1 Ep1 Helena McCallum Trees, libraries and dragons
July 14, 2021 10:39 - 1 hour - 98.5 MBHello! Welcome to Fantasy Book Club's first episode, in which SFF conrunner, creative writing tutor and pandemic warrior Helena McCallum and Ali discuss childhood comfort reading, accessing books from libraries and jumble sales, Collins children's classics, punishment of unruly bodies in children's literature and the education of wizards. Enjoy! With thanks to Helena McCallum (@adela_terrell). Music- Bliss by Jack Sadler-Johnson, with many thanks Production support by Steve Vapour Trails ...
Trailer
July 01, 2021 17:17 - 23 seconds - 202 KBTrailer! Coming soon from a kitchen in Hove... chat, jokes, social justice and Mild Peril!