Intro   Hi and welcome to Books Between - a podcast for teachers, parents, librarians, and anyone who wants to connect middle grade readers between 8-12 to books they’ll love.  I’m your host, Corrina Allen - a 5th grade teacher, a mom of two girls, and enjoying a gloriously (and weirdly) warm Winter Break. It hit 70 degrees today. In Syracuse. In February. Hey - I’ll take it! This is Episode #18 and today we have a interview with genre fiction book critic Paul Goat Allen, I’ll discuss three novels featuring spunky female leads, and then I’ll answer a question about the books featured on our last episode on March Book Madness. Main Topic - Interview with Paul Goat Allen Today on the show I am welcoming book critic extraordinaire, genre fiction writing professor, writer, and my husband - Paul Goat Allen!   Here are some of the books we talking about in the interview segment of today’s episode: Fenway & Hattie by Victoria Coe Wings of Fire Series by Tui Sutherland Harry Potter Series by JK Rowlings Midnight Without a Moon by Linda Williams Jackson Ghost by Jason Reynolds Percy Jackson Series  by Laurel Snyder Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs Orphan Island by Laurel Snyder Scar Island by Dan Gemeinhart Lord of the Flies by William Golding A Canticle for Leibowtiz by Walter M. Miller, Jr. The Inquisitor’s Tale by Adam Gidwitz The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkein The Elric Saga by Michael Moorcock The Earthsea Trilogy  by Ursula K. Le Guin The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkein The elements on the  “The Genre Fiction Book Reviewer’s Hierarchy of Needs” Readability (narrative clarity, fluidity,a coherent storyline, brisk pacing)   Immersion (focus on world building, overall description) Characters Depth ( three dimensional , interesting, and emotionally connective characters) Plot Intricacy (Impressively constructed storyline replete with plot twists) Originality & Innovation (innovative narrative element - unconventional protagonist, new twist on an old mythos, etc.)   The Message (profound, spiritual, existential enlightenment) Book Talk - Three Novels Featuring Spunky Girls In this part of the show, I share with you three books centered around a theme and discuss three things to love about each book. This week I’ll be talking about three fantastic contemporary debut middle grade novels featuring female protagonists who are full of spirit and determination. Even if, for a couple of them, it takes some time to embrace and harness that inner courage. The books this week are Gertie’s Leap to Greatness by Kate Beasley, Frazzled: Everyday Disasters and Impending Doom by Booki Vivat, and A Rambler Steals Home by Carter Higgins. Frazzled: Everyday Disasters and Impending Doom This week, I’ll be going in order of release date so I’ll start with the September 2016 debut Frazzled: Everyday Disasters and Impending Doom by Booki Vivat. Doesn’t that subtitle perfectly capture that middle school feeling where everything seems awful but the adults in your life just blow it off as no big deal?  That is precisely the problem the main character, Abbie Wu, faces as she grapples with starting middle school. To Abbie, middle school is just another awful “middle” thing - like the middle seat in the car, the Middle Ages, and… being the middle child. She is stuck between her soccer star perfect older brother and her cute can’t do anything wrong younger sister. I knew this book was a winner when my daughter started reading it over my shoulder. Here are three things to love about Frazzled:   How perfectly this book captures the frustrations of that first middle school year. Like the awful lunches, that awkward feeling of not knowing the kids in your class, and not knowing which electives to pick. Abbie’s two best friends are Logan, genius gamer kid who joins the Coding Club. And Maxine, confident Teen Vogue reader who, of course, chooses drama as her elective. But Abbie doesn’t have a clear “thing” that’s she good at like her fr