Episode 78 - Inkheart, by Cornelia Funke

We’re on a metafiction binge! Inkheart by Cornelia Funke has characters, readers and writers galore - and they can’t seem to stop getting mixed up in one another’s worlds. We unpack the dark and often violent situations 12-year-old protagonist Meggie finds herself in, and ponder who is the ultimate Saddest Character. This is what happens when fairy tales and real life collide - a whole lot more sociopathy than you’d expect! Cozy up with your smelly marten and listen in.

Note - Grace’s voice becomes allergy-ridden halfway through because we recorded over a couple days - enjoy?

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I shan’t embed his image here, but should you wish to gaze upon Worms, Madeleine’s mental picture of Dustfinger, you have been warned - https://pathologic.gamepedia.com/Worms

Inkeart (2008)

Parisian hot chocolate

Other episodes mentioned -

• The Great Good Thing, by Roderick Townley

• The Neverending Story, by Michael Ende

A few martens for you to enjoy

Episode 77 - The Great Good Thing, by Roderick Townley

We venture into the metafictional world of The Great Good Thing, by Roderick Townley! A story within a story, this book takes us through four generations of a family as the women write, read and retell the tale of Princess Sylvie and her daring deeds. We discuss our anxieties about characters waiting for us to read about them, wonder how the Invisible Fish feels about its role in the kingdom and even touch on one of Madeleine’s awkward high school dates at Red Lobster. Crack open the Dragon Babies book and join us (just don’t get jam on the pages)!

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Other episodes mentioned:

• The Hero and the Crown, by Robin McKinley

• The Neverending Story, by Michael Ende

Neopets gruel:

Episode 76 - The King of Attolia, by Megan Whalen Turner

We're continuing our journey through Megan Whalen Turner's Queen's Thief series! The King of Attolia continues to deceive both the reader and protagonist as Eugenides plays his best hapless fool and his guard Costis puzzles through the ensuing mess. Political intrigue abounds as we sprint from one end of the palace to the other, trying to keep the hunting dogs in their compound, thwarting assassination attempts and desperately grabbing for a crust of bread where we can get it. What is this, a metaphor for 2020?? Join us! And if you haven't heard our episodes on The Thief and The Queen of Attolia, be sure to check those out.

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The fascinating / inaccurate plot breakdown by percentage - The King of Attolia on Allreaders.com

How to Cook That Youtube channel

The Thief Being Adapted by Disney+

Our other episodes from The Queen’s Thief series -

• The Thief

• The Queen of Attolia

Episode 75 - Children of Blood and Bone, By Tomi Adeyemi

We’re SO thrilled to share our discussion of Children of Blood and Bone, by Tomi Adeyemi! We revel in the unique trio of coming of age stories showing how Zélie, Amari and Inan branch off into their young adult selves. Madeleine and Grace laugh, cry and get into a very strange discussion about the “shampoo effect” - with a book this magnificent guiding the episode, we’re fully out of control.

This book was requested by many listeners - thank you! If you’d like to make an episode request, leave a comment or email us at dragonbabiespodcast@gmail.com.

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Tomi Adeyemi’s blog post, Telling a Story That Matters

Our childhood edition of The Hobbit, contrasted with “Small Mario” -

Episode 74 - Charmed Life, by Diana Wynne Jones

In which we have a wonderful time returning to the first Chrestomanci book and remembering how it all began - with a very confused little boy, his parasitic sister and her parallel universe counterpoint. Diana Wynne Jones’ characteristically complex child protagonists are in fine form as we follow Cat, Gwendolen and Janet along on intentional and unintentional capers and world-hopping. Madeleine and Grace reflect on the stressors of childhood and the all-consuming effort to stay out of trouble, made even more complicated by a mysterious half-burned matchbook and grim specters hanging around the castle. Put on your silk dressing robe and join us!