39 – Homework is Due Monday, Please Ignore the Faeries

Never the Twins Shall Meet

This week, we return from our lengthy and unplanned hiatus with the world’s! nichest! episode! That’s right, we’re talking about Among Others by Jo Walton, Ballad by Maggie Stiefvater, and Tam Lin by Pamela Dean, three fantasy novels set on school campuses that blend faerie folklore and coming-of-age stories. Topics of discussion include how each book puts their own spin on the supernatural and the folkloric, tragically canceled book series, reproductive rights, and where on a college campus you’re most likely to run into a faerie. (And yes, this episode was meant to be released several months ago, as our discussion at the beginning indicates. Oops.)

Other media mentioned

• Greta and Valdin by Rebecca K Reilly
• La Chimera dir. Alica Rohrwacher
• Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy by John le Carre
• Challengers dir. Luca Guadagnino
• Dead Boy Detectives (Netflix show)
• You Let Me In by Camilla Bruce (creepy faerie book Lulu couldn’t remember the name of)
• The Wicker King by K. Ancrum
• Aye and Gomorrah by Samuel R. Delany
• Catwings by Ursula K. Le Guin
• The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater
• Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
• The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
• Chime by franny billingsley
• The Hounds of Ulster by Maggie Stiefvater
• Apotheosis (concept, not katabasis)
• A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin
• StarCrossed by elizabeth bunce
• The Oracles of Delphi Keep by Victoria Laurie
• How to Train Your Dragon
• Lord of the Rings (film & books)
• Fire and Hemlock by Diana Wynne Jones
• A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
• An Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson

Content warnings: discussions of sibling death, parental abuse, a car crash, pregnancy and abortion, suicide, and dubious sexual consent