In the final episode of our season on Juvenile and YA Fiction, the entire CenterForLit crew gathers to reminisce about how they got hooked on reading as children. We also discuss how to go about guiding young readers through the current environment of juvenile and YA literature. Referenced Works: You can support the CenterForLit Podcast Network by making a purchase through our affiliate programs! American Adventure Stories for Boys Forever Island by Patrick D. Smith A Little...

Emily joins Ian in this episode to talk about our first author who writes solely in the YA genre: John Green. They discuss what makes his work so different from others we’ve covered this season and what that means for parents and readers who want to benefit from his rich, literary voice. Referenced Works: You can support the CenterForLit Podcast Network by making a purchase through our affiliate programs! Turtles All the Way Down Longing for an Absent God: Faith and Doubt in Great...

In this episode, Megan joins Ian to talk about the magic of Jeanne Birdsall’s Penderwicks series. They discuss what it is about this series that appeals so well to audiences of all ages and what that can teach us about good writing for young readers. Referenced Works: You can support the CenterForLit Podcast Network by making a purchase through our affiliate programs! The Penderwicks Boxed Set The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy ...

What can CenterForLit’s favorite children’s author teach us about the difference between juvenile and YA fiction? Adam and Missy sit down with Ian in this episode to talk about what makes the work of Gary D. Schmidt so special. Referenced Works: You can support the CenterForLit Podcast Network by making a purchase through our affiliate programs! BiblioFiles Episode #19: An Interview with Author Gary D. Schmidt Orbiting Jupiter Okay for Now The Labors of Hercules Beal ...

The next genre we're discussing this season has a special place in Andrews family lore. By tradition, each new generation is handed a mystery novel as they come of age to encourage a lifetime love of reading. Adam joins Ian in this episode to discuss his own affinity for the genre, and the two reminisce about their first encounters with detective fiction. Referenced Works: You can support the CenterForLit Podcast Network by making a purchase through our affiliate programs! The Murder...

No other genre has been influenced by the emergence of YA fiction quite like dystopian literature. In this episode, Megan and Emily join Ian to compare recent dystopian contributions aimed at young adults like Divergent and The Hunger Games to 20th century classics like 1984 and Lord of the Flies. Referenced Works: You can support the CenterForLit Podcast Network by making a purchase through our affiliate programs! The How to Eat an Elephant podcast The Hunger Games by Suzanne...

Emily and Megan join Ian for a conversation about our culture's fascination with the monstrous. They discuss how we progressed from the beasts of Greek and Anglo-Saxon mythology all the way to love-struck vampires and werewolves, and they ask why it is that humans remain so intrigued with the mystery and danger of the Other. Referenced Works: You can support the CenterForLit Podcast Network by making a purchase through our affiliate programs! The Passenger by Cormac McCarthy Twilight...

In this episode, Ian and Megan sit down to talk about what is arguably the most popular genre among young readers today: fantasy literature. They discuss the history leading up to the state of fantasy today, the unique thematic features of world-building, and their own childhood obsession with these books. Referenced Works: You can support the CenterForLit Podcast Network by making a purchase through our affiliate programs! The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald The...

The first corner of juvenile literature we are exploring this season is historical fiction! Adam (our resident historian) and Missy (the one who stuffed the Andrews shelves full of historical fiction titles) join Ian for a conversation about what makes a good contribution to this genre, how the art of literature relates to the study of history at this age level, and which titles stand out as family favorites. Referenced Works: You can support the CenterForLit Podcast Network by making a...

BiblioFiles is back! To launch our season on Juvenile and YA Fiction, Adam and Missy join Ian for a conversation about the state of literature for young readers today. What is the difference between a “juvenile” and “YA” classification? Should such a differentiation between genres exist in the first place? The CenterForLit Directors talk about the history of the split, their concerns for such specialization in the publishing industry, and a few ways they also see YA fiction currently being...

BiblioFiles is back at long last with a new season on juvenile and YA fiction! Look for our first episode to drop on Friday September 15th. Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/333790777396633 We love hearing your questions and comments! You can contact us by emailing [email protected], or you can visit our website www.centerforlit.com to find even more ways to participate in the conversation.

In this wrap-up episode to our season “At the Moves,” the CenterForLit crew members take turns casting their own literary film adaptations and offering final thoughts on the genre. Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/333790777396633Shop BiblioFiles: www.centerforlit.com/the-bibliofiles-shop We love hearing your questions and comments! You can contact us by emailing [email protected], or you can visit our website www.centerforlit.com to find even more ways to...

This week we’re talking about what differentiates a film from a miniseries. Using our beloved BBC production of War and Peace, we discuss the strengths that this increasingly popular form brings to the art of adaptation. Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/333790777396633Shop BiblioFiles: www.centerforlit.com/the-bibliofiles-shop We love hearing your questions and comments! You can contact us by emailing [email protected], or you can visit our website...

British director Joe Wright has a unique ability to use cinematography in his film adaptations to convey what is otherwise only communicable in words. The CenterForLit crew discuss his use of the medium, the great Pride and Prejudice debate, and more in this episode of BiblioFiles. Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/333790777396633Shop BiblioFiles: www.centerforlit.com/the-bibliofiles-shop We love hearing your questions and comments! You can contact us by emailing...

n this episode, we form a mutual admiration society around a CenterForLit hero: Sir Kenneth Branagh. We talk about his directorial principles on the topic of film adaptation, why we think he’s great, and why some people disagree with us. Conversation ranges from Henry V and Much Ado About Nothing to Cinderella and Branagh’s Agatha Christie ambitions. Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/333790777396633Shop BiblioFiles: www.centerforlit.com/the-bibliofiles-shop We love...

In this episode, Missy presents the CenterForLit crew with what is, in her opinion, a bad film adaptation: the visually stunning 2008 rendition of The Tale of Despereaux. We try to pinpoint what it is that actually causes an adaptation to fail, even when the cinematic elements are on point. Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/333790777396633Shop BiblioFiles: www.centerforlit.com/the-bibliofiles-shop We love hearing your questions and comments! You can contact us by...

In this episode of BiblioFiles: At the Movies, Emily takes a shot at defending a work of responsive art. Thus far the CenterForLit crew has said that a good film adaptation at least echoes the themes of the original, but what happens when a director uses a story to say something different from the author? Learn more about Teaching the Classics. Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/333790777396633Shop BiblioFiles: www.centerforlit.com/the-bibliofiles-shop We love hearing...

Missy takes centerstage in this episode of BiblioFiles to discuss what is arguably the best film adaptation of all time: the 1962 rendition of To Kill a Mockingbird. The crew discusses what makes this classic so great, and takes a chance to hash out the differences between the mediums of novel and film. Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/333790777396633Shop BiblioFiles: www.centerforlit.com/the-bibliofiles-shop We love hearing your questions and comments! You can...

The discourse around Amazon’s Rings of Power has been fraught. So in this special crossover episode between Close Reads and BiblioFiles, David Kern and Ian Andrews try to figure out what works, what doesn’t, and why the conversation has been they way it is. Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/333790777396633Shop BiblioFiles: www.centerforlit.com/the-bibliofiles-shop We love hearing your questions and comments! You can contact us by emailing [email protected],...

Adam compares notes on the 1974 and 2013 adaptations of The Great Gatsby. Then the CenterForLit crew considers whether or not a director has a responsibility to stay faithful to the text, and the extent to which a classic story can be effectively updated for contemporary audiences. Learn more about CenterForLit’s Online Academy. Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/333790777396633Shop BiblioFiles: www.centerforlit.com/the-bibliofiles-shop We love hearing your questions...

Megan is first in the hot seat to give us her rankings of three Little Women film adaptations. We talk about the relative values of the different movies and, to our own peril, discuss whether or not it’s possible to improve on a work of literature without doing violence to it. Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/333790777396633Shop BiblioFiles: www.centerforlit.com/the-bibliofiles-shop We love hearing your questions and comments! You can contact us by emailing...

BiblioFiles is back! In the first episode of our new season, the CenterForLit crew sits down to wrap their heads around what makes a good film adaptation. What distinguishes the mediums of film and literature? And what does a movie version need to do to appease the angry mob of book lovers? Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/333790777396633Shop BiblioFiles: www.centerforlit.com/the-bibliofiles-shop We love hearing your questions and comments! You can contact us by...

Ian and Emily tease the upcoming season of BiblioFiles, set to begin airing on Friday August 26th. We’ll be talking all about the process of adapting books for the big screen: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Shop BiblioFiles: www.centerforlit.com/the-bibliofiles-shop We love hearing your questions and comments! You can contact us by emailing [email protected], or you can visit our website www.centerforlit.com to find even more ways to participate in the conversation.

Surprise! We’re jumping into your podcast feed with a special bonus episode this week. Ian recently interviewed Leslie and Carey Bustard, the masterminds behind the recently published essay collection, Wild Things and Castles in the Sky: A Guide to Choosing the Best Books for Children from Square Halo Books. Leslie and Carey talk about their vision for encouraging others to share God’s kingdom in all of its beautiful variety with the children in their lives through good books and thoughtful...