Episode 46: Sean Williams; guru of speculative fiction and fantasy + Kylie Cardell dissects the “gloriously unhinged” work of Miranda July and Rachel Yoder

Sean Williams, author of 5 million words, is famous for his hugely successful forays into the worlds of Star Wars, Dr Who, the Marvel Universe, but did you know he also writes ghost stories for young readers? ”Honour Among Ghosts” and “Her Perilous Mansion” are exciting, mysterious, witty and clever reads, officially for 8-12 year olds, but really for anyone who enjoys a rollicking adventure.

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It’s a case of “Art vs Mother’ in two “gloriously unhinged…yet deeply philosophical” novels celebrated by our special guest Associate Professor Kylie Cardell. In “Nightbitch” Rachel Yoder’s protagonist unleashes her inner canine to navigate the new imperatives of motherhood. In “All Fours” Miranda July’s heroine, also at a hormonal crossroad, finds a space to explore who she is and what she will make of her changing reality.

Guests

Sean Williams, author of “Her Perilous Mansion” and “Honour Among Ghosts”. He’s the NYTimes Bestselling author of 50 books and over 120 short stories.

Associate Professor Kylie Cardell teaches and researches life narrative with the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, Flinders University. She's the author of “Dear World: Contemporary Uses of the Diary” and Editor (with Kate Douglas) of “Telling Tales: Autobiography of Childhood and Youth”. She’s also the essays Editor for the Australian scholarly journal, “Life Writing”.

Other books that get a mention:

Sarah mentions “Shantaram” by Gregory David Roberts.

Michaela mentions “Three Wild Dogs and the Truth” by Markus Zusak and Robbie Arnott’s books, “Dusk” and “Limberlost”

Sean mentions author Georgette Heyer, his own books “Ink” and “Impossible Music” and the series he co-wrote with Garth Nix, “Troubletwisters”

Nikki mentions Hilary Mantel’s books “Wolf Hall” and “Bring up the Bodies” and Anne Patchett’s books “Tom Lake”, “The Dutch House”, “These Precious Days”, “Commonwealth” and “Bel Canto”. She also mentions “Shoe Dog” by Nike’s founder, Phil Knight.

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