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This is not a word-for-word transcribing of this episode.
Two heroes in my world, teen librarians from Mulberry Public Library come to talk to me about fantasy books, movies and shows among other topics.
Conversation about fantasy shows:
Shadow and Bone
Obi Wan Kanobi
Stranger Things
Rings of Power
Lord of the Rings/Hobbit
Harry Potter
Sarah has watched Harry Potter, Stranger Things and Lord of the Rings movies, but not Hobbit or other shows.
Aleisha has not watched any of the shows. Is not a fantasy fan.
Rings of Power is a spin off of Galadrial's character in Lord of the Rings. Has a twist at the end.
My favorite show, Sanditon, also has a huge cliffhanger at the end. Because of Sanditon Sisterhood, a group I am a part of, we got two more seasons of show after it was cancelled. But main guy in show quit the show. So, ruined the show for me. Can watch on PBS Masterpiece on Amazon Prime.
Not caught up on Stranger Things, because I'm watching all the other shows.
Sofia encourages Aleisha to watch Star Wars, and to start with the older Star Wars movies. Sarah agrees to watch the older movies first but because of camera work. The comparison between the cinematography of the older movies and the newer ones is huge.
Sarah can't get into the Mandalorian show, but Sofia loves the little baby Grogu and says she has to try to watch again.
Aleisha watches The Chosen, a show about Jesus. She also watches the show, Freaks and Geeks, a show about the 80's. She watches shows and reads books about things in real life.
Fairy Tale Reimaginings are popular in shows and books. Cinder, a popular book series about cyborgs and a Cinderella story is the most popular book series being checked out of library.
Sofia is a fan of clean romance, non-spice, but other most popular book being checked out is a Holly Black book, Cruel Prince, which has sex and inappropriate material in her books.
Taylor Swift's songs have cuss words in her new album and Sofia is upset she has them in her songs because of her teen influence. Sarah was surprised at the language, too. Aleisha is not a Swifty, a Taylor Swift fan. Sarah thinks Taylor Swift is trying to rebrand herself from a teen idol to a more adult star.
Pride and Prejudice movie with Kiera Knightly is well loved by Aleisha, Sarah and Sofia.
Bridgerton is a great show, but they have to fast forward quite a bit because of sex scenes.
Sofia's book, Dream Weaver, is a book about good battling evil in the dream world. Dream Weavers weave peaceful dreams for humans whereas Outcasts create nightmares.
Aleisha, even though she hasn't read fantasy, has read Dream Weaver. It is her first fantasy book she's read. She loved it and wants Sofia to finish the series. She loves how Sofia incorporated God into it. She says it makes her think but it's not too unrealistic. And loves how Sofia incorporated God's truth into the book.
Sofia says everything the Maker says in the book is Scripture. Sofia talks about a teen volunteer happened to come in the library and saw her book, unpublished, sitting next to her and asked to read it. When asked later who his favorite character was, he answered, the Maker. He said he loves how you can talk to the Maker and he talks back to you. Sofia told him he can have that now with the Lord, and that is who the Maker is in her book.
Sarah is reading the book now and is at the scene where Del kisses Ari and confesses he's been going in her dreams. Loves being immersed in the world of fantasy.
Sofia says how the number one problem in teen relationships is that teens have 24/7 access to each other by cell phone. Can contact by Snapchat, Instagram or text or calling each other.
What is the world going to be like in twenty years? It's changed so much in the past twenty years. Parents need to build boundaries, so their teens are protected.
Aleisha talks about wanting to help teach her future kids have boundaries because she had to teach herself boundaries.
Sofia says teens need to discover themselves, not through social media and other people's opinions, but through life experiences, themselves.
Sofia's new book is on preorder on Amazon, called, Terra, An Elemental Series, Book One. Will be available to read on Valentine's Day next year, so February 14th, 2023.
Aleisha asked if Sofia is going to finish Dream Weaver series. Sofia said later, not now. Her mind is full of new series right now. Dream Weaver was written in 2008, so she needs to refresh herself with the series after Terra series is finished.
Sofia's love for Christ is her fuel for the books she writes. Christ's love is so huge, she wants to communicate that love to teens and young adults in her books.
What is the easiest and hardest thing about being teen librarians?
Aleisha says the easiest thing is talking to them, getting to know them, helping make them comfortable. The hardest thing is talking to them, too. They have a lot they are hiding and dealing with alone. She has to be careful how to talk to them.
Sarah says the easiest thing is talking to them for her, too. Building connections with them by talking about what they check out and what t-shirts they wear and what programs they are involved in. Checking in with them on how programs went. The hardest thing is keeping up with how much change they're going through. Their clothing style and world is constantly changing for them.
Most checked out book genre is fantasy and fantasy book series.
When Sofia was the teen librarian, Sarah says teens were checking out books, but even more so now. They are checking out ten books at a time.
Mulberry Public Library does not have a Teen Advisory Board but do have teen volunteers. Don't have a lot of room for more, but other libraries might have chances for volunteer service hours.
Test Your Knowledge Fantasy Quiz:
In the Rings of Power show, which character most resembles the Hobbits from the Lord of the Rings series?
a/ Frodo
B. Harfoot
C. Bilbo
D. Mithril
Sarah answered D, Aleisha, C. Both were wrong, answer is B.
2. In Obi Wan Kanobi, Princess Leia trusts Obi Wan Kanobi implicitly when she meets him.
A. True
B. False
Sarah answered B, Aleisha, B. Both answered correct.
3. Who is Luke Skywalker's father in Star Wars?
A. Yoda
B. Obi Wan Kanobi
C. Duke Skywalker
D. Darth Vador
Sarah answered D, Aleisha, D. Both answered correct.
4. Who is the first wizard Harry Potter meets?
A. Dumbledore
B. Hermione Granger
C. Hagrid
D. Darth Vador
Sarah answered C, Aleisha, B. Sarah was correct, not Aleisha.
5. Is Dune set in a desert on Earth?
A. Yes
B. No
Sarah answered B, Aleisha, A. Sarah was correct.
6. Who does Hermione Granger fall in love with?
A. Ron Weasley
B. Harry Potter
C. Draco Malfoy
D. Dobby
Sarah answered A, Aleisha, A. Both were correct.
7. In Stranger Things, does Will die?
A. Yes
B. No
Sarah answered B, Aleisha, B. Both were correct.
8. In the Lord of the Rings, what does Gollum call the Ring of Power?
A. The Ring
B. Special
C. Stupid Thing
D. Precious
Sarah answered D, Aleisha, D. Both were correct.
9. Is Eragon the name of a dragon in the book series?
A. Yes
B. No
Sarah answered B, Aleisha B. Both were correct.
10. What is the name of one of the houses in Hogwarts in the Harry Potter books?
A. Gryffindor
B. Hufflepuff
C. Ravenclaw
D. Slytherin
E. All of the Above
Sarah answered E, Aleisha, E. Both were correct.
Sarah scored a 90%, Aleisha, a 70%.
Aleisha passed the test even though she doesn't watch fantasy.
Sofia wrote the quiz with the thought that any teen who wants to be on her show can take the quiz so she can know what their knowledge is with fantasy.
Sarah has a podcast called, The Mulberry Book Drop, with her co-worker, Bethany. It's about the wide topic of books, covering a lot of different material about all things books. Can find it on Apple Podcast, Spotify, Google Podcast, Stitcher and more.