The dragons are delighted to welcome special guest Veronica Roth to this week's episode!
Veronica is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Divergent series, as well as two short story collections and a sci-fi YA duology. Divergent and its sequels were adapted for screen. Her most recent book is an adult fantasy novel - Chosen Ones - which launched on 7th April 2020. Chosen Ones tackles the question of what happens after a group of fated teen heroes fulfil the destiny laid out for them, which makes Veronica the perfect guest for this episode. Jules and Madeleine have looked at why the 'chosen one' trope is so popular and occasionally so reviled in a previous episode; this time the dragons look at how the trope is both wish fulfilment fantasy and telling reflection of some of the less savoury practises of the modern world. It's the 'human' in superhumans that forms the really interesting story after all. Under the microscope this week - Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Harry Potter, The Hunger Games and, of course, Chosen Ones.
Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
Episode 414: Seasons May Change - Stars Farmers & Wild Weather Calendars
Episode 413: Dragon riders & wolf speakers - the Animal Soul Bond in Speculative Fiction
Episode 412: By the Blade - the Evolution of Heroic Fantasy
Episode 411: Kitchen Heroes - Humble Protagonists who get Things Done in Speculative Fiction
Episode 410: In a Rural Dream - The Rise of Cottagecore
Episode 409: Pitched Perfectly - The Film was Better than the Book
Episode 408: There’s good news and...more good news - 2023 in review
Episode 407: Jingle Bell Rock - Storytelling through the medium of songs the Christmas edition
Episode 406: A Picture Says a Thousand Words - The Rise of the Graphic Novel
Episode 405: The Fairest of Them All - The Pursuit of Beauty as a Literary Device
Episode 404: It was Great Apart from the Ending - Beloved Fiction that Wobbled on the Dismount
Episode 403: The Old Family Business - Gangster Witches and Legacy Monster Hunters
Episode: 402 Of Gold and Hubris - Tracing the Origins of Rumpelstiltskin
Episode 401: Girls on Ice - a History of the Fridging Trope
Episode 400: Strange Fruit in the Gallant South - Exploring the Southern Gothic
Episode 399: This Set is Cursed - Strange Events Behind the Scenes at Horror Films
DD Episode 398: Joyous Companions Forever - examining the queerness of the vampire genre
Episode 397: The Beautiful and the Damned - examining the Queerness of the Vampire Genre
Ep 396: It Came from Out of the closet - The Queer Relationship with Horror
Ep 395: Weirdstones and Magic Keys - What makes a Children’s book a classic?
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Lit Society: Books and Drama
Ex Libris
Write The Book: Conversations on Craft
The Turn of the Screw
Just So Stories
Fresh Air
Myths and Legends