If you follow me on Instagram you may have seen that I absolutely lost my mind over the book “Darling Girl” a couple of weeks ago. It’s a modern day examination of the Peter Pan fairy tale, in which Wendy Darling’s granddaughter Holly must take on Peter Pan in order to save her daughter’s life. I think it’s such a clever take on the story, with fresh characters and a mature, nuanced look at the real heart of the story. Today, the author of that marvelous book, Liz Michalski, is here to talk to me about the original Peter Pan and why she wrote her take on it. Along the way we discussed her love of the fantastic in every day life, the joy and grief of sending our adult children into the world, the often tragic life of author J.M. Barrie and how it influenced his strange literary world, and why “Peter Pan” is the Best Book Ever. Follow the Best Book Ever Podcast on Instagram or on the Best Book Ever Website Host: Julie Strauss Website/Instagram Guest: Liz Michalski Website/Instagram/Twitter/Facebook Want to be a guest on the Best Book Ever Podcast? Go here! Discussed in this episode: Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie Darling Girl: A Novel of Peter Pan by Liz Michalski Fun with Dick and Jane The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien Taproot: A Story About a Gardener and a Ghost by Keezy Young Disney’s Peter Pan Peter Pan (2003 Live action movie) If you are looking for more iterations of Peter Pan, there is also a sort of prequel 2015 movie with Hugh Jackman, and of course, Hook with Robin Williams. They all have really different vibes! The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell Other Birds by Sarah Addison Allen Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen (Note: Some of the above links are affiliate links. If you shop using my affiliate link on Bookshop, a portion of your purchase will go to me, at no extra expense to you. Thank you for supporting indie bookstores and for helping to keep the Best Book Ever Podcast in business!) This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bestbookeverpodcast.substack.com

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