We finally managed to get a chance to chat to Paddy Donnelly, and we're thrilled about it! Paddy's been on our 'MUST HAVE' guest-list since the podcast started, and we've never managed to nab him... until now. Tune in as we talk through his incredible body of work, his unconventional approach to getting his start in the publishing industry, his brilliant life advice, and his insights into his own work. It was a warm and wonderful chat, which we're delighted to share with you. Are you ready to Get Storyshaped?

Books mentioned in this week's episode include Paddy's own:

Dodos Are Not Extinct

HOM

The Vanishing Lake

The Golden Hare

Fox and Son Tailers

Badger Books

Míp

Scunc agus Smúirín...

And many more! Check out Paddy's website, lefft.com, for full listings

And the stories which shaped him include:

Full Moon Soup, by Alastair Graham

Full Moon Afloat, by Alastair Graham

Dinosaurs! Magazine

Palaeoart: Visions of the Prehistoric Past, by Zoe Lescase and Walton Ford, pub. Taschen Books

Watership Down, by Richard Adams

The Animals of Farthing Wood, by Colin Dann

Run With the Wind, by Tom McCaughren

Run Swift, Run Free, by Tom McCaughren

Run to Earth, by Tom McCaughren

Dodos are Forever, by Dick King-Smith

Irish Birds (encyclopedia)

Don't Trust Fish, by Neil Sharpson and Dan Santat

Sleep Tight, Disgusting Blob, by Huw Aaron

The Circles in the Sky, by Karl James Mountford

Island, by Mark Janssen

Felix and the Future Agency, by Rachel Morrisroe

Our podcast bookshop in Ireland is Halfway Up the Stairs: www.halfwayupthestairs.ie. You might also like to check out www.kennys.ie for free shipping within the Republic of Ireland!

In the UK, check out our storefront on: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/Storyshaped. Disclaimer: If you buy books linked to our site, we may earn a commission from bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops.

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Today's episode is a special World Book Day celebratory release, where we had the JOY of chatting to school librarian, CILIP Judge and Chair-Elect, and general wonder-worker Alison King. Alison is a librarian in a school in Wales, and her passion for her job - and her abiding love of books and stories - comes through so strongly in everything she does (this interview being no exception). Come with us as we learn about the books and stories which helped shape Alison into the wonderful story-advocate she is today - and learn, along with us, all about the National Year of Reading, and how you can get involved!

#GoAllIn!

Happy World Book Day, Storyshapers!

Books mentioned in this week's episode include:

The 'Story a Day' books - a story for every day of the year

Storyteller magazine and cassettes: the mp3s of the stories can be found here

Josie Smith at the Seaside, by Magdalen Nabb and illustrated by Pirkko Vainio

The Animals of Farthing Wood, by Colin Dann

Animal Ark, by Lucy Daniels

The Enchanted Wood, by Enid Blyton

The Magic Faraway Tree, by Enid Blyton

The Baby-Sitters' Club, by Ann M. Martin

The Last Zookeeper, by Aaron Becker

Drama, by Raina Telgemaier

Heartstopper, by Alice Oseman

Glasgow Boys, by Margaret McDonald

Run Rebel, by Manjeet Mann

Look Both Ways, by Jason Reynolds

The work of Laura Bates

The work of Holly Bourne

The Blue Book of Nebo, by Manon Steffan Ros

Lark, by Anthony McGowan

Tales from the Inner City, by Shaun Tan

Small in the City, by Sydney Smith

Howard's End is on the Landing, by Susan Hill

The Remains of the Day, by Kazuo Ishiguro

Little Women, by Louisa M. Alcott

Blue Sisters, by Coco Mellors

Hello Beautiful, by Ann Napolitano

The Places I've Cried in Public, by Holly Bourne

Gone for Good, by Sarah Crossan

Shorelines, by Ruth Ennis

Magical Boy, by Kao

Pumpkinheads, by Rainbow Rowell and Faith Erin Hicks

Why Did My Brain Make Me Say It? by Sarah Ziman

Letters from the Upside, by Katya Balen

Sirens, by Emilia Hart

Introducing Mrs Collins, by Rachel Parris

A Million Tiny Missiles, by Lucas Maxwell

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This week, we got to speak to the Queen of Crime herself, Fleur Hitchcock! Fleur shared some of her brilliant tips and tricks to writing her novels, as well as letting us in on a secret or two (hint: you might be surprised by the authors she's never read!) We discuss setting, Scandi noir vs. 'cosy' crime, the vital importance of pony books, and a wonderful connection to the great Nina Bawden. Get your crime-solving hats on, and join in the fun!

Find Fleur online at her agent's website: The Shaw Agency

Stories mentioned this week include some of Fleur's own:

Shrunk!

Dear Scarlett

Murder at Wintertide

Murder at Snowfall

... and many more

And the stories which shaped her include:

The work of Malcolm Saville

The Silver Sword, by Ian Seraillier

Richard Scarry's Storybook Dictionary

Ant and Bee, by Angela Banner, illustrated by Bryan Ward

Andy Pandy - originally a BBC television show; later a comic strip in Robin magazine

The Batman comics/character, created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane

The Superman comics/character, created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster

The Green Lantern comics/character, created by Bill Finger and Martin Nodell

The Justice League comics/characters, originally conceived by Sheldon Mayer and Gardner Fox

Tintin: Explorers on the Moon, by Hergé

Asterix, created by René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo

Tammy, and June - comics originally published by Fleetway between 1971 and 1984

Bunty - comic originally published by DC Thompson and Co between 1958 and 2001

James and the Giant Peach, by Roald Dahl, illustrated by Michel Simeon (1967)

The Otterbury Incident, by Cecil Day-Lewis, illustrated by Edward Ardizzone

Nightbirds on Nantucket, by Joan Aiken

Black Hearts in Battersea, by Joan Aiken

The work of Josephine, Christine, and Diane Pullein-Thompson

National Velvet, by Enid Bagnold, illustrated by Lauriane Jones

The Manual of Horsemanship, and Keeping a Pony at Grass, published by the British Pony Society

The Ponies of Bunts, by Marjorie Mary Oliver

The work of Dick Francis

Flambards, by KM Peyton

Black Beauty, by Anna Sewell

The work of Henry Treece

Eagle of the Ninth, by Rosemary Sutcliffe

Boys' Own books belonging to Fleur's uncles

The work of Nina Bawden

The work of Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, James Elroy, Louis L'Amour , James Herbert, Stephen King, Rachel Ward, Belinda Bauer

A Wizard of Earthsea, by Ursula le Guin

The Dark is Rising, by Susan Cooper

The Kelpie's Pearls, by Mollie Hunter, illustrated by Charles Keeping

Stig of the Dump, by Clive King, illustrated by Edward Ardizzone

Our podcast bookshop in Ireland is Halfway Up the Stairs: www.halfwayupthestairs.ie. You might also like to check out www.kennys.ie for free shipping within the Republic of Ireland!

In the UK, check out our storefront on: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/Storyshaped. Disclaimer: If you buy books linked to our site, we may earn a commission from bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.