Hazel & Katniss & Harry & Starr is a weekly Canadian podcast about young adult literature, their film and television adaptations, and everything in between. Now in its sixth season, the podcast—hosted by film critic Joe Lipsett and English professor Brenna Clarke-Gray—aims to highlight the cultural worth of young adult and middle-grade texts, with a focus on Canadian, Indigenous and minority creatives and stories.
Join us weekly for deep dives, as well as a round of YA BINGO.
Book 6, Chapter 13: The Shamer’s Daughter
Thanks to listener Charlotte, we’re checking out The Shamer’s Daughter, book one in Lene Kaaberbøl’s The Shamer Chronicles, as well its 2015 film adaptation by Kenneth Kainz.
This medieval fantasy novel has a fantastic protagonist, strong female friendships, and complex moral stakes. The film is less memorable: it is a little too grey and happy to forego politics for explosions, but it does keep the book’s dark ending.
Plus: why Brenna won’t forgive the puritans who complain about the book’s language.
Read on for more about this week’s episode from co-host Joe Lipsett:
Fun fact: Brenna hates walking in books. I’m sure it’s residual PTSD from reading Tolkien, but every time we read a fantasy book, it comes up. (See: our recent episodes on Love and Monsters or Tomorrow, When The War Began)
Thankfully The Shamer’s Daughter doesn’t have a ton of random walking. It’s actually a very tight Middle Grade/YA book that is quite a bit darker than most of the content we see in North America. When listener Charlotte recommended it, she warned us that it involved complicated morals and storylines and she was absolutely right; aside from the strong female friendships, that’s definitely the most appealing part about this Danish series starter.
Don’t be surprised if we wind up covering the second entry – not because the film was good, but because we want to read another of Kaaberbøl’s books! –JL
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