75 episodes
Booking Back Penn & Friends
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- Arts
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4.6 • 11 Ratings
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Do you long for those schoolyard days where you had all the time in the world to finish a good book? This podcast revisits the books that gave us happiness as children and maybe even later as adults!
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The Face on the Milk Carton: "She was a mind floating in an ocean of confusion."
Penn and Joy discuss this cut classic by Caroline B. Cooney, which riveted the imaginations of teens across the country. After all, don't all kids wonder if they're secretly adopted? Whether you watched the Lifetime movie or read the novel as a teen, travel back and see if it was as good as you remember it.
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Monster: "They're strangers but they still find reasons to hurt each other."
Penn and Joy talk "Monster" by Walter Dean Myers. A story unique in that it is a first time read for both ladies, it is a highly acclaimed and highly banned book in America. When Black teenager Steve is falsely accused of participating in a murder of a shopkeeper in his neighborhood, the reader follows his journey through the criminal justice system in New York City. Heartbreaking and poignant, get ready to tear up and rage against injustice.
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The Joy Luck Club: "Then you must teach my daughter this same lesson. How to lose your innocence but not your hope. How to laugh forever."
Penn and Joy discuss the classic "The Joy Luck Club" by Amy Tan. The complicated relationship between mother and daughter transcends any culture. From tales of the mothers in China, to their adaptation to America, and to the struggle of their Chinese-American daughters, it is a riveting read.
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Flowers for Algernon: "There are so many doors to open. I am impatient to begin."
Cry with Joy and Penn as they discuss Daniel Keyes classic work "Flowers for Algernon." Can you imagine science making you smarter, changing your life, and to lose it all? That is the heartbreak of this short story turned novel.
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Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: "We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams."
Happy 2024! What better way to kick off the year than with reading Roald Dahl's "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory?" Grab your favorite piece of chocolate and listen in as Penn and Joy discuss their favorite parts, movie adaptation, and Wona-isms!
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A Christmas Story: "I had woven a tapestry of obscenity that as far as I know is still hanging in space over Lake Michigan."
Want to extend that Christmas feeling? Recap "A Christmas Story," by Jean Shepherd with Penn and Joy as they delve into the book that inspired the classic movie. Grab a smooth cup of Ovaltine and listen in; just don't shoot your eye out!
Customer Reviews
The perfect dose of nostalgia mixed with modern takes
I love how this podcast uses the books they review as jumping off points for discussions of their childhoods and upbringings - it’s really well done and adds a personal element to each episode. I love the trivia and discussion of adaptations as well, and that they always look at things from a modern lens (how is the book being perceived in current times with adult readers). Super fun to listen to!
So much nostalgia
My favorite new podcast! Love listening to this on my commute and rediscovering childhood favorite books.
Wayback machine!
I enjoy that the books are popular Children’s books that I did read as a kid! Learned some new info on background and movie trivia. Enjoy the soothing voices as well, very calming!