Sweet Valley Diaries

Guest Megan Collier has probing questions, and Marissa has probing answers. With so much deep thought about the mechanics of Sweet Valley, this episode is a veritable "Sweet Valley University!" Err, no, that's already a thing. A veritable "Sweet Valley College!" Shit. No. "Sweet Valley Academy?" ••• More about the Lex app. InstaPsycho on Lifetime Advertising Inquiries:...

Not sure which Book 39 the rest of you read, but Marissa and her guest, Megan Collier, read the version where Penny Ayala has a crush on Elizabeth, Neil Freemount (FREEMOUNT!) has eyes for Kirk Anderson, and Jessica and Lila both learn their lesson for good this time. It's pure fantasyland over here.    Some music in this episode by Purple Planet . Thanks! Advertising Inquiries: https://redcir...

Nora and Marissa talk about studying abroad, just to drive the gravity of Liz's mistake home. Music credit: Meanwhile in Bavaria by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Elizabeth Wakefield has the opportunity of a lifetime on her hands: get out of Sweet Valley and see the world (specifically, Interlochen, Switzerland). Obviously, she must be stopped. The only way out of Sweet Valley is if your parents move to Vermont, or in a body bag. Marissa is joined by Nora (Hanna) Bigelow to discuss this travesty. Also, Winston wins the lottery in this one. Advertising Inqui...

Meridith and Marissa discuss the parallels between the Sweet Valley of RUMORS and the worlds of Jane Austen and Regency Romance. Somehow, the obvious comparisons to  Emma go unmentioned. Also, serious question: Why didn't Mrs. Reister just tell everyone she was a widow?  Research discoveries: The Debutante Ball in the Age of Instagram "The women can bring their own escorts, or if they do n...

Susan Stewart is somebody, but is she *a* somebody, or is she a nobody? Nobody knows. Until somebody shows up and shows everybody who’s anybody what it really means to be somebody. Meridith Halsey is our guest. Murphy Brown and Dan Quayle This episode features music from Purple Planet . Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

What is a social enterprise? What if your host had an older sister who was bad at humanities? Who is the bigger asshole in LAST CHANCE, Peter or Jessica? Though it may be hard to believe, answers to these questions AND MORE await when Marissa Wasseluk-Stuart returns for this bonus episode. Further reading: More about First Book     Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Did you hear that Johanna Porter is coming back to Sweet Valley High? Oh, you didn’t even hear that she’d dropped out? Or that she even existed? Well it’s a good thing Sweet Valley Diaries is here to help you get a clue. In this episode, 2 Marissas join forces to sympathize with Johanna, compare Wakefields, and count the red flags on Johanna’s misguided crush, textbook mansplainer Peter DeHaven. W...

Literally the only podcast where a serious commentary on football (erm, soccer) journalism blends seamlessly into a discussion of fictional teen Elizabeth Wakefield's Eyes and Ears column.    Further reading: "Deviance in Sports" Starts in Youth Rush Hour Crush Is Cutco an MLM?   Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Marissa is joined by her friend, geography scholar and fellow University of Chicago alumnus Samuel Brandt, for history's most erudite discussion of fictional teen Aaron Dallas and his soccer/divorce-related emotional problems. But more importantly: this is the Tofu-Glo Book!!!!!!!!!!!! Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Elizabeth Schmidt returns to think about high school romance, FORBIDDEN LOVE's lessons for star-crossed teens, and Marissa's lifelong romantic angst. Plus, listener emails and snarky book reviews! Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

You've barely heard of Maria Santelli and you've got no idea who Michael Harris is. All you need to know is this: they are in love, it's a secret, it's as romantic as all hell, everybody in their high school is talking about it...and also they are in high school, their parents don't know they're dating, and this is all a terrible idea. Elizabeth Schmidt joins Marissa to gos...

umbers ( exclamation, slang ): "Oooh man, you're in trouble!" Used colloquially in Albuquerque, NM and environs, primarily between children, or adults who are being ironic Marissa and her cousins, Meghan and Corrie, consider their girlhood tactics for avoiding getting caught making mistakes. Hope our parents aren't listening to this one! Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com...

It's a full-on first-cousin extravaganza! Marissa is joined by her real-life cousins Meghan Shattuck and Corrie Borgman to chat about fictional cousins Dana Larson (lead singer of The Droids!) and new-in-town Sally Larson, recently rescued from foster care a brief 13 years after entering the system. It's all just nuts and everyone is awful, we don't know what color anyone's eyes ar...

In the spirit of the NEW JESSICA, Marissa and local fashion icon Caitlin McCann reminisce about pushing wardrobe boundaries in high school and feeling at home in Los Angeles. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

While Marissa takes a Christmas break from editing, enjoy this replay of the special SPECIAL CHRISTMAS Christmas episode with Marissa and Don Flaxbart.  Happy Holidays! See you in 2020, Gladiators! Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Guest reader Caitlin McCann is back, and a lot has happened since she watched Jessica snag (and be snagged by) Bruce in Book 3: PLAYING WITH FIRE. This time, Jessica dyes her hair black and pretends to be a Francophile. Meanwhile Elizabeth imagines she’s in her own personal version of the Distracted Boyfriend Meme. The more things change, the more they stay the same in Sweet Valley, California. Ad...

If he can’t tell which twin you are, he’s probably not The One. Tim Redmond (the new voice of Jeffrey French) is back to talk twins, reminisce about juvenile fiction, and reveal relevant secrets about his past.   Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

SEASON 4 PREMIERE! The podcast is still here! Unfortunately so is Jeffrey French. Or, wait...is Jeffrey French actually kind of a catch? Marissa comes to terms with her raging case of First Romantic Coupling Loyalty Syndrome (FRCLS) while guest reader Tim Redmond is more concerned about what Mr. Collins is getting up to. Its Jess & Lila vs Liz and Enid but the real hero is a fearless 15-year-o...

Jessica and Elizabeth are live-in babysitters, living a 90-minute drive from home. But don’t worry, they still manage to make it a thrilling soap-operatic adventure, replete with double-identities, murders, and deadly rainstorms. Frank Bednarz, Esq. joins Marissa to marvel at this book and congratulate it on its simultaneous climaxes.   Music in this episode is by Marissa Flaxbart (theme song), Jo...

Relive your totally universal teenage memories of spring breaks in Cannes, France -- exploring the topless beaches, returning puppies to countesses, picking up medication for your host mother's patients...you know, all the normal spring break stuff. Kat Hazelton remembers! And she's back, all the way from the Book 1 Episode, to marvel at the way Sweet Valley has changed, and the ways it&#3...

In this last Extra Drama of Season 3, longtime Sweet Valley High reader Cherelle Solomon is back to talk earthquakes, the appeal of Sweet Valley, and the very tantalizing possibility of reading two books at literally the same time (as long as one of them is Sweet Valley).  Make sure you're subscribed to the podcast so that new episodes appear automatically in your feed when the hiatus is over!...

Ah, complicated teen friendships. Ah, high school sororities. Some experiences are universal. Avid girlhood Sweet Valley reader (and current therapist) Cherelle Solomon joins Marissa to examine this timeless text.   Reference Shelf: Joanne the Scammer The DUFF BTW, the last PBA pledge season was 26 books ago, not 16. Time flies! Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

It's tempting to say, "why are all these teen girls so awful?" But then you remember what being a teenage girl is like...which is not to say that Marissa and her guest, Denise Boylan, refrain from calling out teen girls like Amy Sutton, Jessica Wakefield, and even Elizabeth Wakefield on their bullshit. Because then, what would this podcast even be? People who we deem "cool as hell&...

While we wait for the haunting to pass (read: until we can re-record the episode recapping Book 29, BITTER RIVALS) we're reading letters from Gladiators like you. Sweet Valley Twins, Thrillers, Special Editions, Sagas, and even audiobooks all get a name drop in this very special episode.   Further listening/reading: SV Twins in-book announcement on Instagram OMG THE AUDIOBOOK Book 29 recap fro...