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Down The Rabbit Hole

Down The Rabbit Hole

By Down the Rabbit Hole Radio

DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE is a podcast for grown-ups who love children's books.

Each week, our hosts Caroline Carpenter, Hannah Love, Charlie Morris and Sam Sedgman welcome special guests for wide-ranging chats about our new discoveries and perennial favourites, from picture books to young adult novels and everything in-between.
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Currently playing episode

21 December 2021 | Episode 93: Christmas Special

Down The Rabbit HoleDec 21, 2021

00:00
48:53
Bears with Hannah Gold and Sophy Henn
Sep 26, 202345:41
Feminism in YA with Laura Bates and Holly Bourne

Feminism in YA with Laura Bates and Holly Bourne

This week we're joined by two brilliant writers to discuss the role feminism has played in Young Adult novels.

Laura Bates, creator of Everyday Sexism and the author of Men Who Hate Women now brings us Sisters of Sword and Shadow, an epic YA fantasy reimagining Arthurian legend with a fearless sisterhood of knights.

And Holly Bourne, bestselling author of Am I Normal Yet? and The Places I've Cried in Public, returns to our bookshelves with You Could Be So Pretty, a gripping dystopian thriller that puts modern beauty standards under the microscope.

Together we talk through the challenges and opportunities YA fiction presents when engaging with feminism, and share some of our favourite recommendations for YA books that are written by and about women.

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This episode was produced by Hannah Love.

Our music is Hustle by Kevin MacLeod from ⁠incompetech.com⁠, licensed by Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0

Sep 19, 202339:54
Fantasy Trilogies with Kiran Millwood Hargrave and Katherine Rundell

Fantasy Trilogies with Kiran Millwood Hargrave and Katherine Rundell

Down the Rabbit Hole is back for a new season! And we begin with wild and untamed adventures, courtesy of two incredible authors and friends of the podcast: Kiran Millwood Hargrave and Katherine Rundell, who join us to talk about their brand new fantasy trilogies being released this autumn: In the Shadow of the Wolf Queen and Impossible Creatures.


We ask - why is three the magic number? Which are the greatest children's fantasy trilogies of all time? When is a trilogy not a trilogy? And can you even call yourself a fantasy author if your book doesn't have a map at the front?


Let us know what you make of the show – or pitch us some new ideas for future episodes – on Twitter or Instagram ⁠@dtrhradio⁠. Plus, don't forget to check out our website at ⁠dtrhradio.com⁠.

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This episode was produced by Hannah Love.

Our music is Hustle by Kevin MacLeod from ⁠incompetech.com⁠, licensed by Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0


Sep 12, 202350:28
Killer Reads with Maureen Johnson and Ravena Guron
Dec 27, 202231:27
Reimagining London with Patrice Lawrence and SF Said

Reimagining London with Patrice Lawrence and SF Said

Grab your A to Z, mind the gap, and watch out for dragons guarding the city gates. On today's episode of Down the Rabbit Hole we're taking a trip to the edge of reality, and exploring stories that reimagine London by blending fantasy and history together. And in this sprawling city of myth and legend, who's to say where the boundary is?

Helping Sam swim through the long-buried rivers underneath the Square Mile and the West End are two spectacular special guests: the authors Patrice Lawrence and SF Said, whose recent novels The Elemental Detectives and Tyger both shake up London's history like a snow globe to merge fantasy and reality into exceptional storytelling.

Let us know what you make of the show – or pitch us some new ideas for future episodes – on Twitter or Instagram @dtrhradio. Plus, don't forget to check out our website at dtrhradio.com.

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This episode was produced by Sam Sedgman.

Our music is Hustle by Kevin MacLeod from incompetech.com, licensed by Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0


Dec 20, 202250:41
Christmas Countdown with Special Guests

Christmas Countdown with Special Guests

Caroline, Charlie, Hannah and Sam gather round the tree for our annual Christmas spectacular! An extra-special bumper episode packed with holiday treats and book recommendations, as well as three very special authors and illustrators who've popped down the chimney to share some particularly festive tales. Plus, we chat about some of our favourite books from 2022.

Follow Mel Taylor-Bessent at @MelTBessent

Follow Steven Butler at @sbutlerbooks

Follow David Litchfield at @dc_litchfield

Let us know what you make of the show – or pitch us some new ideas for future episodes – on Twitter or Instagram @dtrhradio. Plus, don't forget to check out our website at dtrhradio.com.

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This episode was produced by Hannah Love.

Our music is Hustle by Kevin MacLeod from incompetech.com, licensed by Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0

Dec 13, 202201:01:07
Mid-season update!
Nov 29, 202201:05
Supervillains with Maz Evans and Louie Stowell
Nov 22, 202248:15
Dragons with Caryl Lewis and David Owen

Dragons with Caryl Lewis and David Owen

This week, we're getting our claws into a trend that's oh so hot right now - dragons! Join Caroline and Sam, along with special author guests Caryl Lewis and David Owen, on a flight through some of our favourite stories featuring these roar-some creatures as well as a deep dive into the mythology surrounding them, all while firing out more puns than you can shake a scaly tail at. Plus, discover what we're all reading at the moment, and find out what kind of dragons we'd want to light up our lives.

Let us know what you make of the show – or pitch us some new ideas for future episodes – on Twitter or Instagram @dtrhradio. Plus, don't forget to check out our website at dtrhradio.com.

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This episode was produced by Caroline Carpenter.

Our music is Hustle by Kevin MacLeod from incompetech.com, licensed by Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0

Nov 15, 202243:08
Autumn with Katya Balen and M. G. Leonard

Autumn with Katya Balen and M. G. Leonard

Grab your chunky knitwear and wellington boots, everyone! This week we're getting cozy and jumping into a big pile of leaves to celebrate the best of autumnal children's books. Joining us around the bonfire are Katya Balen, winner of the 2022 Carnegie Medal for October, October and M. G. Leonard, bestselling author of the prize-winning The Twitchers series. Listen as we explore why autumn provides such fertile ground for children's books, why it's 100% definitely the BEST season of them all (sorry Spring), and ponder why it's oddly underrepresented in the canon of classics. Plus, discover what we're all reading at the moment, and find out which one of us has a rather stern chicken on our desk.

Let us know what you make of the show – or pitch us some new ideas for future episodes – on Twitter or Instagram @dtrhradio. Plus, don't forget to check out our website at dtrhradio.com.

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This episode was produced by Sam Sedgman.

Our music is Hustle by Kevin MacLeod from incompetech.com, licensed by Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0

Nov 08, 202246:22
Halloween with Frances Hardinge and Martin Brown

Halloween with Frances Hardinge and Martin Brown

Kicking off the new season, Hannah and Sam are joined by Frances Hardinge and Martin Brown to talk all things spooky. Get ready for a deep dive into curses and ghosts, and prepare yourself to hear the answers to questions such as 'which gentle children's classic terrified one of our guests?' 'why can adding colour to an illustration make it more scary?' and 'Just how many types of scary ARE there in children's books?'

Nov 01, 202256:49
Independent Bookshop Week Special with Namina Forna and Round Table Books
Jun 19, 202222:56
Stories from Other Times with Emma Carroll and Michelle Paver
Apr 26, 202252:38
Our 100th Birthday Party! With Imogen Russell-Williams and Katherine Webber
Apr 19, 202244:45
Magical Creatures and Animal Companions with Lee Newbery
Apr 05, 202242:41
Kid Lit: Assemble! with Daisy May Johnson and Piers Torday
Mar 22, 202237:53
Pirates and Smugglers with Annabelle Sami and Alex Wheatle

Pirates and Smugglers with Annabelle Sami and Alex Wheatle

Avast, me hearties! Climb aboard ship as we set sail for adventure on this week's show with an episode all about timeless stories of pirates and smugglers.

Captain Charlie Morris is pouring out the grog and First Mate Hannah Love is swabbing the poop deck to welcome about two very special guests: Alex Wheatle, author of Kemosha of the Caribbean, and Annabelle Sami, author of the Agent Zaiba Investigates series, and its most recent instalment, The Smuggler's Secret.

Follow Down the Rabbit Hole on Twitter and Instagram, and check out our website at dtrhradio.com.

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This episode was produced by Charlie Morris.

Our music is Hustle by Kevin MacLeod from incompetech.com, licensed by Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0

Mar 08, 202254:07
How to Survive a YA Dystopia with Melinda Salisbury and Sanne Vliegenthart

How to Survive a YA Dystopia with Melinda Salisbury and Sanne Vliegenthart

Grab your ration kits and your longbows, listeners - there's danger out there! Today we are delving into the perilous world of Young Adult dystopias, as Caroline and Charlie consider which warped futures and apocalyptic presents they would have most luck surviving. (Spoilers - not many!)

Joining them on their hazardous fight for survival are bestselling Young Adult author Melinda Salisbury, and dystopia enthusiast and BookTuber Sanne Vliegenthart, also known as Books and Quills.

Follow Down the Rabbit Hole on Twitter and Instagram, and check out our website at dtrhradio.com.

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This episode was produced by Caroline Carpenter.

Our music is Hustle by Kevin MacLeod from incompetech.com, licensed by Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0

Mar 01, 202248:21
Food, Glorious Food, with Katherine Rundell and Kate Young

Food, Glorious Food, with Katherine Rundell and Kate Young

Scour the cupboards, stock the fridge, and get your marmalade sandwiches ready as we talk all about the mouthwatering delights of FOOD in children's literature! What do we remember eating in books when we were younger? Are midnight feasts all they're cracked up to be? And why doesn't real life have as many picnics in as we want it to?

Joining Sam and Caroline around the dinner table with lashings of ginger beer are the award-winning children's writer Katherine Rundell, author of beloved and bestselling books stuffed with plentiful delicious delights, and Kate Young, award-winning food writer, cook and bookworm, author of The Little Library Cookbook with recipes to bring meals from literature to life.

Come for the whipple-scrumptious fudgemallow delight, stay for the edible tarantulas. Will Katherine eat a rat? Can Kate persuade us to try a pie floater? All this, and plenty more, in this week's fully-stocked episode.

Follow Down the Rabbit Hole on Twitter and Instagram, and check out our website at dtrhradio.com

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This episode was produced by Sam Sedgman.

Our music is Hustle by Kevin MacLeod from incompetech.com, licensed by Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0


Feb 22, 202247:32
Book Crushes with Caroline O'Donoghue and Kate Saunders

Book Crushes with Caroline O'Donoghue and Kate Saunders

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! We kick off our brand new season of weekly episodes with a dreamy chat about our favourite book crushes. Who did we fancy in books growing up? How do we feel about those crushes now, as adults? Is it okay to fancy Aslan? Why is The Secret Garden so sexy? And how do today's children's books broach the subjects of love and yearning differently to the classics?

Two brilliant special guests join us for our season premiere: Caroline O'Donoghue is the host of the podcast Sentimental Garbage and author of the magical YA novel All Our Hidden Gifts. Kate Saunders is the author of Five Children on the Western Front which re-imagines E. Nesbitt's young heroes as older characters facing the spectre of war - and romance.

Follow Down the Rabbit Hole on Twitter and Instagram, and check out our website at dtrhradio.com

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This episode was produced by Hannah Love. 

Our music is Hustle by Kevin MacLeod from incompetech.com, licensed under Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0

Feb 15, 202247:36
Down the Rabbit Hole is back!
Feb 14, 202201:37
21 December 2021 | Episode 93: Christmas Special
Dec 21, 202148:53
23 November 2021 | Episode 92: Separated Parents and Blended Families
Nov 24, 202129:57
26 October 2021 | Episode 91: Vampires
Oct 26, 202139:01
28 September 2021 | Episode 90: Celebrating Black Joy
Sep 28, 202129:55
24 August 2021 | Episode 89: The Magic of Debuts
Aug 24, 202129:34
11 August 2021 | Episode 88: Summer Holiday Special
Aug 11, 202144:29
27 July 2021 | Episode 87: Grief
Jul 27, 202132:34
22 June 2021 | Episode 86: Audiobooks
Jun 22, 202135:47
25 May 2021 | Episode 85: Pride Special
May 25, 202129:53
27 April 2021 | Episode 84: Earth Day
Apr 27, 202128:41
23 March 2021 | Episode 83: Cats Vs Dogs
Mar 23, 202134:31
23 February 2021 | Episode 82: Updating the Classics
Feb 23, 202129:55
27 January 2021 | Episode 81: Meet our new team!

27 January 2021 | Episode 81: Meet our new team!

For a special handover episode, Katherine chats to the new team who'll be taking over Down the Rabbit Hole - Caroline Carpenter, Charlie Morris, Hannah Love and Sam Sedgman - including finding out all about their favourite children's books
Jan 27, 202124:03
26 December 2020 | Episode 80: Christmas Special with Frank Cottrell Boyce

26 December 2020 | Episode 80: Christmas Special with Frank Cottrell Boyce

We discuss festive favourites and the best new books of 2020 with special guest author and screenwriter Frank Cottrell Boyce, who joins us to celebrate the many ways that children's books help us to celebrate small pleasures and find the magic in ordinary things
Dec 26, 202058:39
24 November 2020 | Episode 79: Funny Books for Older Readers with Alexandra Sheppard and Simon James Green

24 November 2020 | Episode 79: Funny Books for Older Readers with Alexandra Sheppard and Simon James Green

Special guests Alexandra Sheppard and Simon James Green join Katherine and Louise to talk about funny books for older readers, including some joyful and hilarious reading recommendations to cheer up even the gloomiest day
Nov 24, 202029:30
27 October 2020 | Episode 78: Funny Books with Pamela Butchart and Michelle Robinson

27 October 2020 | Episode 78: Funny Books with Pamela Butchart and Michelle Robinson

Authors Pamela Butchart and Michelle Robinson join Katherine and Louise to talk about the children's books that make them laugh - and why funny books matter.
Oct 27, 202027:56
23 September 2020 | Episode 77: Taran Matharu

23 September 2020 | Episode 77: Taran Matharu

Katherine and Louise chat to young adult author Taran Matharu about his 'Summoner' and 'Contender' series - and his journey from NaNoWriMo and Wattpad to New York Times bestseller.
Sep 23, 202028:28
25 August 2020 | Episode 76: Detective Stories with Robin Stevens and Sharna Jackson

25 August 2020 | Episode 76: Detective Stories with Robin Stevens and Sharna Jackson

Katherine is joined by two fellow middle grade mystery authors - Robin Stevens and Sharna Jackson - to discuss writing detective series. This month's episode celebrates the publication of the final Murder Most Unladylike book, Death Sets Sail, as well as High Rise Mystery winning the young fiction category of the Waterstones Children's Book Prize.
Aug 25, 202022:03
28 July 2020 | Episode 75: Shaun Tan

28 July 2020 | Episode 75: Shaun Tan

To celebrate his CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal win for Tales from the Inner City, Jack interviews acclaimed artist, writer and film-maker Shaun Tan
Jul 28, 202027:46
25 June 2020 | Episode 74: Independent Bookshops Special

25 June 2020 | Episode 74: Independent Bookshops Special

We celebrated Independent Bookshop Week 2020 by chatting to three independent booksellers - Katie Clapham of Storytellers Inc, Steven Pryse of Pickled Pepper Books, and Fleur Sinclair of Sevenoaks Bookshop - to hear about their experiences of bookselling during lockdown, plus their top children's and teen book recommendations
Jun 25, 202028:08
26 May 2020 | Episode 73: Children's Laureate Special with Cressida Cowell

26 May 2020 | Episode 73: Children's Laureate Special with Cressida Cowell

Waterstones Children's Laureate Cressida Cowell joins us to talk about creativity and the magic of reading - plus find out about our exciting competition for young writers
May 26, 202029:03
28 April 2020 | Episode 72: Murder Mysteries with Holly Jackson

28 April 2020 | Episode 72: Murder Mysteries with Holly Jackson

New York Times bestselling author Holly Jackson joins the gang to talk about all things murder mystery - including an insight into her writing process and new book Good Girl, Bad Blood
Apr 28, 202027:43
24 March 2020 | Episode 71: Spring Special with Levi Pinfold and Kes Gray & Jim Field

24 March 2020 | Episode 71: Spring Special with Levi Pinfold and Kes Gray & Jim Field

In this special bumper episode, Imogen interviews award-winning artist Levi Pinfold about his extraordinary books and exquisite work on Harry Potter; and Jack talks to picture book creators Kes Gray and Jim Field about their wildly brilliant Oi! partnership.
Mar 24, 202059:57
25 February 2020 | Episode 70: Jasbinder Bilan and Kesia Lupo

25 February 2020 | Episode 70: Jasbinder Bilan and Kesia Lupo

To discuss this month's crop of new children's books, Katherine and Jack are joined in the studio by two special guests - Costa Children's Book Award winner Jasbinder Bilan and her editor Kesia Lupo, who is also a young adult author.
Feb 25, 202027:57
28 January 2020 | Episode 69: New Year Special

28 January 2020 | Episode 69: New Year Special

For January's show, Louise and Jack are joined by two children's publishing insiders - Pari Thomson and Charlie Morris - to look back at some of the best books of 2019, as well as some of those you can look forward to in 2020. Plus an insight into what it's like working in the world of children's books.
Jan 28, 202028:41
26 November 2019 | Episode 68: Sara Barnard

26 November 2019 | Episode 68: Sara Barnard

Louise and Jack are joined in the studio by YA Book Prize 2019 winner Sara Barnard to review three new books for children and young people.
Nov 26, 201928:25
22 October 2019 | Episode 67: AF Harrold and Emma Yarlett

22 October 2019 | Episode 67: AF Harrold and Emma Yarlett

For Halloween, Louise, Jack and Imogen are joined by special guests AF Harrold and Emma Yarlett to discuss a trio of books about dead things, ghosts and shadows...
Oct 22, 201929:19
24 September 2019 | Episode 66: Sibeal Pounder

24 September 2019 | Episode 66: Sibeal Pounder

In this month's episode, Melissa is back in the host's chair, to discuss three new children's books with Louise and special guest author Sibeal Pounder.
Sep 24, 201926:17
23 July 2019 | Episode 65: Rebecca Cobb

23 July 2019 | Episode 65: Rebecca Cobb

Louise and Jack discuss three new children's books with this month's special guest, award-winning author-illustrator (and designer of the Down the Rabbit Hole logo!) Rebecca Cobb.
Jul 23, 201928:43