Hello Fellow Kids

Mara and Josh travel back in time to 1943 and explore big ideas like prejudice, trauma, and truth in Lauren Wolk's Wolf Hollow. Be warned: some of our discussion ventures into territory that may be upsetting for some listeners. Also discussed: The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Great Wolf Lodge, "Funky Cold Medina", You're Next, and the dearth of pirate fiction. Next month we will be reading Teen...

Hope y'all are prepped on the first three books, because we're diving right into the fourth Fablehaven novel! Let's see what Brandon Mull treats us with this time. Also discussed: Stanley Tucci, The Happening, lactose-free milk, Butters from South Park, flat-earthers, and Dobby. Next month we will be reading Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk. Contact us at hfkpodcast@gmail.com or @hfkpodcast on Twitter a...

We needed a bit of a palette cleanser this month, so we dove into Molly Knox Ostertag's graphic novel The Witch Boy. Join us as we get to know Aster, Charlie, and the dark forces at play in this quick allegorical read. Also discussed: Toadies, aprons, Addams Family Values, Bluebeard, serial Westerns, and horny nuns. Next month we will be reading Fablehaven: Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuary by Brand...

Surprise! It's another bonus episode, this time about the new novel Prepped by Bethany Mangle. Join Mara and Josh as they explore the ins and outs of love in a doomsday community. Also discussed: Gone Girl, Alan Moore, Scientology, sleepovers, Danimals, Heelys, and "Teenage Dirtbag" by Wheatus. Contact us at hfkpodcast@gmail.com or @hfkpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. We're also on GoodReads: www...

Mara and Josh finish off Jenny Han's trilogy with Always and Forever, Lara Jean, just in time for the new movie on Netflix! Will Lara Jean and Peter stay together? Will Dr. Covey find true love? Will John Ambrose McClaren's name get even longer? Find out here! Also discussed: Jenny Nicholson, grunge music, 10,000 Maniacs, IMDB trivia, barbershop quartets, and the Five Love Languages. Next month we...

Mara and Josh start the year off right with Philip Pullman's Clockwork, a novella about how the past sets the future in motion. Let's hope all the horrors we went through in 2020 helped fix this coming year, yeah? Also discussed: Billie Eilish, Juice WRLD, the Secret, Geico commercials, Gwent, and maple syrup. Next month we will be reading Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han. Contact us at...

Mara and Josh finish out the year with a return to the world of Small Spaces in this winter-themed sequel by Katherine Arden! How does the chill of a haunted ski lodge stack up against leagues of living scarecrows? Listen and find out! Also discussed: wifi, Jimmy Fallon, Flowers in the Attic, "Mother Knows Best", Balrog wings, and a gritty reboot of Rip Van Winkle. Next month we will be reading Cl...

Happy Halloween, y'all! To celebrate the spooky season, Josh and Mara take a look back at some of the things that freaked them out as children, and decide if those things still scare them today. Make sure you keep the lights on for this one! Also discussed: Jaws, school libraries, big kid beds, Tim Allen's The Shaggy Dog, bad babysitters, and the Hamburger Helper glove. Content warning: while our...

Mara and Josh are leaving the big city for rural Virginia to discover the true meaning of bravery! Or, maybe just hang out with some birds named after child stars. Take your pick. Also discussed: Daredevil, The Karate Kid, chickens, Wacky Races, bad pet names, and lettuce butts. Next month (or possibly the end of this month) we'll be taking a break from reading and instead discussing the spookiest...

In a strange turn of events, Josh and Mara discuss a book about books! Join them as they explore the rise and fall of the YA paperback scene with Gabrielle Moss's Paperback Crush: The Totally Radical History of '80s and '90s teen fiction. Also discussed: Archie comics, Hank the Cowdog, Friends, finding Playboys in the woods, Chris Christie, and getting picked last in kickball. Next month we will b...

Josh and Mara delve into mystical lands and learn what it means to be... The Children of Blood and Bone (by Tomi Adeyemi). How does the beefiest book of their podcasting career stack up? Find out! Also discussed: Gladiator, eye surgery, Rage Against the Machine, relative temperatures, and John Boyega. Next month we will be reading Paperback Crush: The Totally Radical History of '80s and '90s Teen...

The grand finale of our Penderwicks coverage! "But wait," you say, "aren't there five books in the series?" Well, we'll get to that. Also discussed: Yellowcard, Toby Keith, cartoon crushes, The Brave Little Toaster, furries, and boys named Jacob. Next month we will be reading The Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi. Contact us at hfkpodcast@gmail.com or @hfkpodcast on Twitter and Instagram....

Who is the mysterious Marquis of Schofield? Why is everyone so interested in a blue chocolate pot? And why doesn't Kate get her name in the title, but Cecelia does? All this and more will be answered in this month's episode of Hello Fellow Kids! Also discussed: Gossip Girl, Gigi Hadid, negging, NFL touchdown celebration dances, and the fringe benefits of being under lockdown. Next month we will be...

Not even a stay-at-home order can stop the hype train for Brandon Mull's Fablehaven: Grip of the Shadow Plague! ...though it can severely affect the audio quality. Also discussed: Indiana Jones, school nightmares, writing tropes, Animal Crossing, smallpox, and unlicensed Calvin and Hobbes merchandise. Contact us at hfkpodcast@gmail.com or @hfkpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. We're also on GoodRea...

Thanks to a pair of advance copies, Josh and Mara tackle Suzanne Park's debut novel The Perfect Escape. Their thoughts? A chaotically mixed bag that you just have to open for yourself! Also discussed: Simone Giertz, diet books, World War Z, Robert T. Kiyosaki, butt pain, and The Wolf of Wall Street's Quaalude scene. Next month we will finally, for real this time, be reading Fablehaven: Grip of the...

In this atypical episode, Josh and Mara talk for a bit about Heavy Vinyl: Riot on the Radio by Carly Usdin, Nina Vakueda, Irene Flores, and Rebecca Nalty. After that, we just kind of talk about whatever. And there's singing. Lots of singing. Also discussed: Eminem, Hanson, Tim Gunn, "Where's My Juul?", Empire Records, NKOTBSB, and the concept of giving peace a chance. Despite what we may have ment...

To celebrate the release of the film, we're releasing a bonus epsiode on Jenny Han's P.S. I Still Love You! This is that episode! If you want a second helping of romance and teen slice-of-life adventures, this is the podcast for you! Also discussed: Calvin and Hobbes, Attack on Titan, breast-induced back pain, the Great Gatsby, sharing bathrooms, and young Robert Redford. For our next regular epis...

Love is in the air for people who aren't Mara and Josh! This month, we're taking a look at Jenny Han's To All the Boys I've Loved Before. Hopefully it fulfills our desires for a pleasant, fluffy read. Also discussed: Jordan Peele, school dress codes, Olympic village sex orgies, gingham, vomiting into a teacup, and Lara Croft, Tomb Raider. No word yet on our March book, but we will be reading this...

Happy new decade! To celebrate, Mara and Josh read an anthology: A Glory of Unicorns, edited by Bruce Coville. How did this collection stack up? Not great. But listen and find out why! Also discussed: baby books, bowl cuts, Wicked, Chuck Tingle, salmonella, and Kate McKinnon as Colleen Rafferty. Next month we will be reading To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han. Contact us at hfkpodcast@...

To close out 2019, Mara and Josh sat down and discussed their personal favorite kids/YA/teen reads from over the years. Maybe these lists will explain why they still read books written for middle-schoolers. Also discussed: sensitivity readers, boy bands, Rasputina, paper clip currency, cartoon theme songs, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Next month we will be reading A Glory of Unicorns, an anthology ed...

For their latest bonus episode, Josh and Mara took a look at an advance copy of Kimberly Gabriel's Every Stolen Breath--available today! How did they like this teen thriller about anonymous swarms of teenagers punching tourists to death? Listen and find out! Also discussed: Vines, text message lingo, John Mulaney, skipping school, and the Scream franchise. Contact us at hfkpodcast@gmail.com or @hf...

Halloween has come and gone, but the pumpkin patch is forever. Join Mara and Josh as they discuss the new graphic novel Pumpkinheads, by Rainbow Rowell and Faith Erin Hicks. Also discussed: John Green, first impressions, rom-com tropes, regional foods, and the agony of finding a winter book. Next month we will be taking a break from full-book reviews and will be discussing some of our favorite YA...

As the leaves turn brown and fall away, Mara and Josh cozy up for a chilling new read: Small Spaces by Katherine Arden. Will they be able to survive the terrors that await them in the scarecrow-filled fields? Find out in this episode! Also discussed: Mariah Carey, Greek mythology, eye doctors, Millie Bobby Brown, and the definition of a money order. Next month we will be reading Pumpkinheads by Ra...

Time to check up on Cleo and Pseudo-Alex in their post-alien invasion world! How does the sequel stack up to the first book? Find out here, and listen to our exclusive interview with writer Matt Mair Lowery and artist Cassie Anderson. Also discussed: childhood forts, Weird Al, the Troubles, album covers, and snacks. Next month we will be reading Small Spaces by Katherine Arden, and releasing on th...

Cassie Anderson is back in the saddle with Josh and Mara on this weird three-saddled horse that is Bonus Episode 4! Did the hosts find the book to be as extraordinary as its title suggests? Find out now! Also discussed: Charlie the Unicorn, accidental catchphrases, James McAvoy, the Cheetah Girls, and hands. Contact us at hfkpodcast@gmail.com or @hfkpodcast on Twitter and Instagram. We're also on...