Swords & Starfish!

Join Brittney and Joshua as they talk about sci-fi and fantasy books near or in the ocean! And also... a conversation about yaks?

QUICK NOTE: This episode's audio quality was pretty rough, so be sure to check out the transcript if you'd like!: Swords & Starfish! (buzzsprout.com)

Joshua's Picks:

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
The Deep by Nick Cutter

Brittney's Picks:

The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw
Fractured Tide by Leslie Lutz

Podcast Website: https://swordsstarships.buzzsprout.com
Instagram: Brittney and Joshua (@swordsnstarships) • Instagram photos and videos
Email: Starships@coosbaylibrary.org

Our Library's Facebook Page: Coos Bay Public Library | Facebook
Coos Bay Public Library's Instagram: CoosBayLibrary (@coosbaylibrary) • Instagram photos and videos

Find us at:

Podcast Website: https://swordsstarships.buzzsprout.com
Instagram: Brittney and Joshua (@swordsnstarships) • Instagram photos and videos
Email: Starships@coosbaylibrary.org

Our Library's Facebook Page: Coos Bay Public Library | Facebook
Coos Bay Public Library's Instagram: CoosBayLibrary (@coosbaylibrary) • Instagram photos and videos

Transcript

Brittney [00:00:00] Hey, everybody, it's Brittney here, just a note about today's episode... Mistakes were made when we were recording, so the audio is pretty bad. But we are going to release a transcript for you to read along, if that's what you prefer. Also, at the end of today's episode, Joshua and I talk about Yaks, and we talk about them for quite a long time. So we cut it and we put it at the very, very end after the music. So feel free to listen to that if you have a little bit extra time. Alrighty here's the show. 

 Brittney [00:00:33] Hee hee, podcast! I'm not a witch, I'm a podcaster! 

 Joshua [00:00:39] I'm Joshua. 

 Brittney [00:00:40] And I'm Brittney, and we're two librarians who talk about sci-fi and fantasy, and a little bit of everything else. 

 Brittney [00:00:48] OK world, here we go. 

 Joshua [00:00:51] Ready.  Vocal warm ups. Red leather, yellow and red leather, yellow leather, unique New York, unique New York. 

 Brittney [00:01:03] I know that one. OK, who- are we starting? 

 Joshua [00:01:06] Yeah. 

 Brittney [00:01:07] Should we say hello, everybody? 

 Joshua [00:01:10] Yeah! OK, let's- take one. Chop? 

 Brittney [00:01:13] Chop. 

 Joshua [00:01:13] Hello, everybody. 

 Brittney [00:01:15] Hiii, Welcome back. 

 Joshua [00:01:16] Welcome back. 

 Brittney [00:01:17] We- Joshua and I have new set up for our microphones. 

 Joshua [00:01:21] It's very amazing. 

 Brittney [00:01:22] We might have to take a picture. It's little clip-on mics, and we have clipped it on to our masks. Looks like we have little warts on the end of our faces. But it's not a wart, it's our mic! Here, I'll take a picture of you.

 Joshua [00:01:34] See, this is why I can't do- have nice things.  

 Brittney [00:01:37] "This is why I can't have nice things..." Ok I got you. Don't even worry about it, I'll take a picture of you. Oh, can you go like this, can you give me a side profile? Yeaaaahhh.... 

 Joshua [00:01:51] Should I do a side eye? I like where I'm smiling, but you can't even see my face.

 Brittney [00:01:51] You're smizing. You're smiling with your eyes. Very Tyra Banks. You know what the only problem with this setup is now? If I have to burp I can't lean away.

 Joshua [00:02:01] But that's OK. I mean, we'll fix that in editing. And if it adds to the color of the podcast, then we'll keep it in. 

 Brittney [00:02:09] Brittney's burps. So colorful. Joshua, what are we talking about today? 

 Joshua [00:02:13] Today we're talking about books that feature oceans or some sort of water body. 

 Brittney [00:02:20] That's why today's podcast is called Swords and Starfish. And that- it came from me mispronouncing Swords and Starships, I said Swords and Starfish. And then I was like "Joshua can we actually make that an episode?" and you were like, Yes! So that's why we're here. 

 Joshua [00:02:37] Because genius is- is sometimes it's like a bolt of lightning, it just hits. 

 Brittney [00:02:43] It hits you. 

 Brittney [00:02:43] Yeah. We're like,"Underwater, let's do this." And also we live on the coast, so it's... 

 Joshua [00:02:49] Exactly. Exactly. And it's like, well, this episode is going to come out in August. So it's like the dog days of summer. So everybody wants to be in the water. And yeah, that's why we're going to talk about, some refreshing water books. 

Brittney [00:03:03] "Some water books." Aw man, we should've talked about Water World. But that's ok. 

 Joshua [00:03:07] Oh god, that movie. 

 Brittney [00:03:09] I don't know that I've seen that in its entirety. But I did see the Waterworld feature like at Disneyland. That was kinda fun.

 Joshua [00:03:16] Universal Studios. 

 Brittney [00:03:17] Thank you. 

 Joshua [00:03:18] Fun fact. When when I was living in Indonesia, they have Universal Studios in Singapore. And I went there and there was like- you saw the Waterworld... thing? The show. It was pretty awesome. They like, threw water on people... 

 Brittney [00:03:37] Oh yeah. You were in the Splash Zone? 

 Joshua [00:03:38] Yeah, of course. Because I was like, I'm going to tell my friends, we should sit in the splash zone and they were like "no, we don't want to get wet!" And I'm like that's the point, to get wet! But then I regretted it because they had like those those waters, those water bikes? And they like sideswiped the crowd. And I was like... It just hit us full on. 

 Brittney [00:03:59] You were like "Help." 

 Joshua [00:03:59] Yeah... 

 Brittney [00:03:59] You were like "That's my day..." 

 Joshua [00:04:01] It was horrible. I mean it was fun but... 

 Brittney [00:04:02] But now I'm drenched, thanks. 

 Joshua [00:04:05] Like Singapore is super hot. So it's like easily 90 plus plus 90 percent humidity. So the rest of the day we're still wet because there's no chance of getting dry. 

 Brittney [00:04:17] Yeah? Sounds like a nightmare. 

 Joshua [00:04:23] It was a mistake. But I had fun. 

 Brittney [00:04:25] Good. Ok, so who's going first today? 

 Joshua [00:04:27] Um... I think I am. 

 Brittney [00:04:28] I think you are too, because I think, if I remember correctly... I mean it all blurs together. But I think I was going first and then you sang me a song [last time], to go first. 

 Joshua [00:04:37] This is probably true. Yes. 

 Brittney [00:04:39] Either that or I'm making it up like "you get to go first!" So we're gonna vote for you. 

 Joshua [00:04:43] OK. The books I picked... Because we grew up on the ocean, right? I mean, we visited as children. So we have an idea of where the ocean is both a beautiful place, a fun place to spend your time... But it's also a little bit dangerous. Like, I'm sure your parents imparted you with like, don't turn your back on the ocean- 

 Brittney [00:05:04] Don't turn your back, yeah. 

 Joshua [00:05:05] To always be aware of where you are with the ocean because it's treacherous. 

 Brittney [00:05:10] Yeah, and don't go too deep because you don't know if there's an undercurrent. 

 Joshua [00:05:12] That's right. That's right. I mean, that's the things we live with living on the coast. So I took that in mind in the books that I picked. So I picked one that expresses the majesty and the fun of the ocean, but also one that reveals its darker and dangerous side. 

 Brittney [00:05:31] Ooh... I'm here for it. 

 Joshua [00:05:31] So the first book I picked is uh, The Primary of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon. 

 Brittney [00:05:36] I'm excited because I've heard good things about this book.

 Joshua [00:05:39] It is! It's on the whole, I think it's a very good book. And I really appreciate her, and I will definitely read more of her work. So a little thing about Samantha Shannon, and she's a younger lady, she's a British author. She got her book deal, her first book deal, while she was still in Oxford University. I say that with a little bit of jealousy in my voice,  did you notice that? I'm like,  she's in University, Oxford University, and she has a book deal. But that's cool, because she earned it, and she's a good writer. She claims- this is intense. She claims to have written her first book 15 hours a day. She was like saying she's addicted to writing. So she would like- 

 Brittney [00:06:19] I want that problem. 

 Joshua [00:06:20] -sit down and write write write, and couldn't stop until she had like raccoon eyes and stuff. Yes, that could be you! 

 Brittney [00:06:25] I want that problem. 

 Joshua [00:06:26] Just be healthy! I hope she ate.

 Brittney [00:06:29] She probably did, had her little cheezits on the side. 

 Joshua [00:06:30] Cheezits! 

 Brittney [00:06:31] Every four pages I write, I have a cheezit. Anyhoo, continue on. 

 Joshua [00:06:37] She's probably known for her dystopian fiction. Not so much for her fantasy. I think this is her first fantasy book. So you might've heard of The Bone Season, which is a series- no? OK, well, never mind. Well, it has been optioned by Gollum himself up, Anthony Serkis, or Andy Serkis... who is- he's now a producer, so now he's producing all these shows. I think it'll be on Netflix, eventually. 

 Brittney [00:07:03] I would say he's only allowed to produce if he uses his Gollum voice when giving direction. 

 Joshua [00:07:07] Feel it, Precious... Oh my god, that's so scary! 

 Brittney [00:07:13] That was very good, go Joshua! I think we found our new Gollum. 

 Joshua [00:07:18] I'll do voiceover for Gollum in any library activity. 

 Brittney [00:07:23] Poor Andy Serkis. He said he had to drink so much tea, when doing Gollum. 

 Joshua [00:07:27] Oh, yeah, because he- he was full-on. So anyway, Priory! Uh, this book is a big book. Yeah, it's a hunker. It's as big as a doorstop. Probably could act as one. About eight hundred plus pages. And it takes place mostly in the west and the east of this imaginary world. The west is the virtuedom of Inys, and it's been at peace with its neighbors for generations, after the defeat of the nameless one, the evil fire dragon of the West. 

 Brittney [00:08:00] Ooh, Dragons. Here for it. 

 Joshua [00:08:01] So at this point, he's been dead for thousands of years and he's in prison. I mean not really dead. He's in prison...  In a little capsule under the sea, I guess? 

 Brittney [00:08:11] Oh, ok. That's fun, that's interesting. 

 Joshua [00:08:14] But he will remain in prison so long as- there is a queen that sits upon the throne... of the virtuedom. 

 Brittney [00:08:21] I think I know what's gonna happen... 

 Joshua [00:08:21] Yes, well, in the east... Dragons and humans live peacefully. Except the dragons are dragons of air and water. They're like more of the conception of Japanese or Chinese or Korean style dragons, whereas the the West has more Western style dragons... Antagonistic. In the East they're friendly, and they are companions to the legendary Dragon Riders. And one of our main characters, Tane, has trained her whole life to be one. And the book opens in the east, where one night she's on the beach, just like, doing her last minute training, studying before her big test. And then all of a sudden, a man is marooned on the beach. This is a bad thing because in the east, foreigners are not allowed. It's a closed society. So she's faced with a dilemma. Do I just leave him? Do I kill him? Which, y'know, is what the law would say she would have to do. 

 Brittney [00:09:23] That's hardcore! 

 Joshua [00:09:23] It's so hardcore. But her humanity wins out and she's like, I'm just going to help this fool.  

 Brittney [00:09:31] Yeah. Buddy, you're not supposed to be here... 

 Joshua [00:09:33] Yeah! Imma have to help this fool! So she takes him and leaves him with a trusted... "Trusted" friend. I did air quotes because... I won't get into it but you'll find out if you read the book. 

 Brittney [00:09:47] Yeah. Turns out that trusted friend is also a fool? 

 Joshua [00:09:52] Yeah, pretty much, pretty much. She risks her future as a dragon rider, and her her life to save this guy. So you may get a sense that this book follows different perspectives. So with each chapter, we switch a perspective among four different people. The main perspectives, are Tane of the east and a woman named Eadaz, or Ead of the west. Now Ead is a spy in the queen's court. And she's making sure that all is well in Virtuedom. So she's there to keep tabs on the queen and make sure she doesn't die- 

 Brittney [00:10:29] Make sure her butt is on the throne. 

 Joshua [00:10:30] Yes, Her butt is on the throne. Yeah, that there's no, no possible assassins who want to remove her for whatever reason. 

 Brittney [00:10:37] Yeah. If you're a person of high power, you gotta have like, your security. 

 Joshua [00:10:41] Yeah, you gotta have people watching your back. She comes from a land of Erysyr which is a little bit south of the virtuedom of Inys, and Erysr is where the Priory is, the Priory of the Orange Tree. And it is a group of women who devote their life to studying illegal magic and slaying dragons. So apparently, even though the nameless one is gone, they are still like little lesser dragons running around causing trouble. So they're the ones that go out there and kill those. So there's there's a couple more perspectives, but they're not important to what I'm talking about today. So what I liked about this book was the relationship that developed between the queen and Ead. I've heard it described that it's like enemies to friends- but lovers. But I don't- I didn't get that. I just thought it was more like opposites attract. But the queen is kind of like very haughty and she throws tantrums when she doesn't get her way. But that doesn't turn Ead off. She's kind of like "oh she's kind of cute when she's angry." 

 Brittney [00:11:42] There's somebody for everbody! 

 Joshua [00:11:46] Exactly! And the queen likes Ead because Ead doesn't let her get away with her crap. Like the queen knows when she throws tantrums, she's being ridiculous. 

 Brittney [00:11:53] Question. Ead is the spy...? 

 Joshua [00:11:57] Yes, Ead is the spy, sorry. 

 Brittney [00:11:59] So is the spy and the dragon rider from the other side, different people? 

 Joshua [00:12:02] They're different people. Sorry I didn't make that clear. But they're, they're existing in different parts of the world. They do meet later on... 

 Brittney [00:12:11] I just wanted to make sure we're talking about two separate people. 

 Joshua [00:12:15] Yes, two separate people, sorry. 

 Brittney [00:12:15] No, you're good. 

 Joshua [00:12:15] So Tane in the east, she's the Dragon Rider. Ead is the Dragon Slayer in the west. So I also enjoyed that Tane's part, especially when Tane gets to her dragon that she rides. Her dragon, I'm going to butcher this name, is Nyathimun, I think? 

 Brittney [00:12:32] That sounds great. I'll take it. 

 Joshua [00:12:34] So their bond is really cool. They start to develop a really close bond. They're more like sisters rather than like, y'know like, horse and master kind of thing. But they're like, they like listen to each other's advice and things like that- it was very sweet. And I felt for these characters so strongly, especially when bad things started to happen to Tane and her dragon friend. I felt kinda rattled by that. OK, so the best part of the book is when we get to the ocean, because there's pirates, there's a search for secret lost treasure, and there's a battle in the ocean, it's so cool. So like probably near the middle half the book, Tane is found out. The leaders of her country found out that she's been harboring a fugitive foreigner-

 Brittney [00:13:21] The fool. 

 Joshua [00:13:21] Yeah, the fool! Because he can't keep his mouth shut! No... And she kind of gets exiled. 

 Brittney [00:13:28] Oh! 

 Joshua [00:13:29] Yeah, Yeah... And she gets exiled to this island, and she loses her dragon. 

 Brittney [00:13:33] Ooooh... 

 Joshua [00:13:34] Yeah. I hope this isn't spoiling anything, but it's very important for what I'm going to talk about here. Because she does eventually decide to leave her imprisonment, and she comes into contact with these scary pirates. And they are so scary. They are called, this is pretty awesome, a good name for a pirate fleet I think, the Golden Empress and the Fleet of the Tiger Eye. 

 Brittney [00:13:54] Yes! Yes please! 

 Joshua [00:13:57] And they poach dragons. Yeah. So apparently there's a thriving black market for dragon skin. 

 Brittney [00:14:07] Oh, that's a bummer. 

 Joshua [00:14:08] So they clash when they capture Nyathimun, who was Tane's dragon. 

 Brittney [00:14:13] Noooo! Mess em' up, mess em' up! 

 Joshua [00:14:16] But it gets even it gets crazier because, Tane, she strikes a deal with the golden empress. They'll let Nyathimun go if they help her find this treasure that will grant the empress immortality, that will make her the true golden empress. 

 Brittney [00:14:31] This is very Pirates of the Caribbean. Don't touch the gold, you'll turn into a zombie. 

 Joshua [00:14:36] Exactly. I'm not going to tell you what happens, but it is pretty fun. 

 Brittney [00:14:43] It's crazy, Johnny Depp comes along... 

 Joshua [00:14:44] It's true! It's true... And what follows is a riveting adventure on the high seas, going to uncharted lands and seeing strange and cool things. And that's just like after all the craziness in the first half of the book. It's so epic. And that's why and that's why I picked it, because it's like the best part of the book takes place in the ocean and it's just wild. You know, you get, you get that sense of... You get the sense of a fantasy world where things are just so... OK. So what I like about fantasy worlds that take us on a sea voyage is that you get to spend some time inhabiting a really strange and unusual place, but then when you go on a sea voyage, you go somewhere stranger. 

 Brittney [00:15:27] Yeah, yeah! 

 Joshua [00:15:28] Stranger, because it's weird for the characters too, like, "where am I going!?" Does that make sense? 

 Brittney [00:15:34] Yeah, yeah... fantasy is fun. 

 Joshua [00:15:38] Just some things that you should be aware of, things that I didn't particularly like. I don't know if it had to be so long because as as you get a sense, a lot happens in this book. 

 Brittney [00:15:48] Yeah. Eight hundred pages. 

 Joshua [00:15:50] And it's just chock full of all these ideas that are great. But I don't know if they all go well together. 

 Brittney [00:15:57] Should it have been split into two books, maybe? 

 Joshua [00:15:59] That's what I'm thinking. I'm thinking it should have been at least a duology, possibly a trilogy? Because when one event happens, we don't really spend much time consolidating the importance of that event before we jaunt off somewhere else and something else big happens. So there's not really any closure that we get from each particular scene. It just sort of like this happens, and then this happens, and then this happens... And we don't get a time for reflection. I think that's important. Also, the the bad guy? The nameless one... He's like evil for the sake of evil. He wants to destroy everything because he's evil and he's evil because he wants to destroy everything. 

 Brittney [00:16:39] He's not very complex. 

 Joshua [00:16:40] No, he's a very one dimensional character. And I think, while that was OK for epic fantasy back in the day... Nowadays, we like a little nuance, especially in our villains, you know? Especially since this nameless one has a following. But why would you follow somebody who just wants to kill everyone? Doesn't make sense. Other than that it is such an adventure and it's so much fun. 

 Brittney [00:17:03] Yeah. Especially if you want a chunky book. 

 Joshua [00:17:04] Exactly. 

 Brittney [00:17:04] It'll last you awhile, hopefully. It depends on how voracious of a reader you are. 

 Joshua [00:17:12] It took me a month to finish this. 

 Brittney [00:17:14] Yeah, I believe it. 

 Joshua [00:17:14] Because I'm a slow reader. 

 Brittney [00:17:16] Whatever. It was a month that was well spent. 

 Joshua [00:17:18] I agree. 

 Brittney [00:17:20] OK, my turn?

 Joshua [00:17:21] Yeah, your turn. Go for it. 

 Brittney [00:17:22] OK, so I am reviewing The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw. This is a ghost story...  

 Joshua [00:17:30] I've heard of this. 

 Brittney [00:17:31] She was the 2019 Oregon Book Award winner, and she actually lives in Oregon. And this book takes place on the Oregon coast in the fictional town called Sparrow. And it's really cool, because like the town itself, it's like stuck between the ocean and the mountains. So it's like really cut off from every other place. 

 Joshua [00:17:51] It kinda sounds like Coos Bay. 

 Brittney [00:17:52] I know, it does! I think that's part of the reason I love this book. And when I was looking at reviews again, because has been a couple years since I- like I own it, but it's been a couple of years. A lot of people were saying this book is really atmospheric, like there is almost a distance between you and the main character the whole time. But the way she describes things is amazing. Like at one point, Penny is our main character, and Penny lives on this tiny, tiny little island right off the coast. She has a boat in to go to school and stuff, which is kind of fun. But she was talking about how she was boating in, and there were sunken ships below her. Like, ooh, that's cool! So, and on her island, her and her mom are in charge of the lighthouse. 

 Joshua [00:18:35] Oh, OK. So, my gosh, I, I think this is so awesome because I've always wanted to live in a lighthouse. 

 Brittney [00:18:41] Me too! I just love the idea of like being windswept in my shawl, in the lighthouse, looking out. 

 Joshua [00:18:50] The view of the lighthouse casting its light into the depths of the night ocean... 

 Brittney [00:18:55] Into the abyss! So like this book, it's very atmospheric, it's beautiful. So in this book, a couple of hundred years ago there was these three girls called the Swan sisters. Short Story- long story short, they were too hot. All men fall in love with them. Everybody else got pissed, and so the townspeople were like "witches!" And they tied rocks to their ankles and threw them into the harbor. 

 Joshua [00:19:19] PEOPLE! Don't, don't project your insecurities on others. 

 Brittney [00:19:24] "Those girls are too hot!" 

 Joshua [00:19:24] No, no! That's terrible. 

 Brittney [00:19:28] And to be fair, some of the girls were like, sleeping with married men... 

 Joshua [00:19:32] Ok, I mean... 

 Brittney [00:19:33] I mean, it takes two to tango. 

 Joshua [00:19:34] Exactly. Two to tango. What did they do to the married men? Probably nothing. 

 Brittney [00:19:39] They were like, "She was a witch, we couldn't help it. She was too hot." So they chucked 'em into the ocean. But now, every year since it's happened, every summer, they call it Swan season... Three boys drown. And the theory is that the ghost of the girls come and inhabit three living girls, and they lure those boys into the ocean and drown them. It's hard core. 

 Joshua [00:20:04] Whoa. 

 Brittney [00:20:04] Yeah, they're like it's the Swan sister's revenge every summer: Swan season. And so Swan season's about to happen. And Penny... It's like she believes in it, but she doesn't take too much notice of it. Maybe it helps because she's a girl, y'know? She's like "I'm not a boy, I won't drown." 

 Joshua [00:20:21] "I'm fine." 

 Brittney [00:20:26] "I'm fine. It's fine." The teens have this crazy ritual at the of beginning Swan season where they all jump into the ocean and come back out. And I'm like, why would you do that? Why would you go get possessed by a Swan girl? 

 Joshua [00:20:35] Because they want to show off, that's why. 

 Brittney [00:20:37] And I'm like...Oh my gosh, you guys are dumb. And, she notices this new boy has come to town, he hasn't really gone to her school or anything. She has a conversation with him and he's like, I need to find work. And just he's a little cagey about why he's there, but he's like, I don't have a place to stay and I need to find a place to work. She's like, "Mmmm...I'm kind of nervous that he might be a victim." She was like, you can come stay at my- she has like a little house, like a little guest house. So the book kind of turns into like a whodunit murder mystery. And you're kinda learning that this boy, Bo, he has a history from other boys dying and why he's there... And she's like "Why is he actually here... And where are the Swan sisters, how can I keep him alive?" So it's interesting because it kinda goes back and forth between what happened with the Swan Sisters back in the day and what's going on now. So it's good. It's atmospheric. I would say the love story is not that strong. I feel like I say that a lot with these books, I'm very picky with my love stories. I wasn't mad at this love story. I was just like... It's not the main feature. It's all about the place. It's good. It's definitely a fun little ghosty story. And a twist that I didn't see coming. 

 Joshua [00:21:56] Ooh, I like it. I like books that play on questions like... It sounds like there's an established lore to this town, but, you know, other people might hear about it and take advantage of that to do whatever dark thing they do. Ooh, so exciting! 

 Brittney [00:22:13] Because like, the boys do start drowning. You're like, noooo!!

 Joshua [00:22:15] Yeah. It's like... it keeps you off guard, and you're like "what's happening?" I like it, I like that mystery element. 

 Brittney [00:22:24] Yeah, is there a Swan sister about? What's going on....? And like, the teens are starting to band into different groups, because like they think this girl might be a Swan sister. So they take her hostage. Oh, yeah. It's very Salem witch trials. 

 Joshua [00:22:36] Oh snap, ok... 

 Brittney [00:22:38] Yeah... 

 Joshua [00:22:38] That's exciting. 

 Brittney [00:22:39] Yeah... Yeah. And actually, Shea Earnshaw- what's today? 

 Joshua [00:22:43] Today is the 18th... of June.

 Brittney [00:22:47] So Shea Earnshaw, she was on... I think it was Twitter. And she was like "Swan season is almost at an end!" Because she like names the dates of Swan season, so she's giving a free book away or whatever. So Swan season just ended. 

 Joshua [00:22:59] I mean that's cool, but also kinda creepy. 

 Brittney [00:23:03] Oh yeah, oh I love it. I love it. And I would say her other book... Oh I don't remember what it is, it's like Wildwood or something, but instead the ocean it takes place in a place that's like Crater Lake. Like through the woods up in the mountains. That one's, again, very atmospheric and ghosty. Very fun. I highly recommend taking a look at her books if you love the ocean, if you have appreciation for the Oregon coast, it's it's great. I loved it. 

 Joshua [00:23:28] Yes, that sounds great. It sounds like she's she's an Oregonian through and through. She highlights all the cool aspects of our state. The rugged coast.. The mountains and the forests... I'm excited to where she goes next. 

 Brittney [00:23:43] Yeah. Yeah. She has another book coming out and I don't remember what it's called. She did two young adult books... A History of Wild Places, is the new one. 

 Joshua [00:23:51] Sounds cool, like it. 

 Brittney [00:23:53] And she has a great Instagram. She takes pictures of herself, and she looks like she's having the best time writing. She's like, "I'm out in the woods today... And I'm taking a picture, and then Imma get back to writing next to my candle." I'm like, Oh my God, can I have your life? That's amazing! 

 Joshua [00:24:08] My next book... OK. People. 

 Brittney [00:24:12] ...People. 

 Joshua [00:24:13]  This book is not going to be for everybody. I have to say right now. It's The Deep by Nick Cutter. A thing you need to know about Nick Cutter: he doesn't pull any punches. 

 Brittney [00:24:25] Oh, I know this dude! 

 Joshua [00:24:27] He's probably one of the most graphic horror writers, producing right now. He does not spare you any details. He's very visual as a writer, which can be fun for the writer. But when you're talking about the certain subject matter he's talking about, especially in this book, you need to be aware. So I'm going to give you some trigger warnings, before you pick up this book. That being said, he is an excellent writer. I enjoyed his work, his words, how he spins the story together... But the imagery he creates and the subject matter he deals with is really hard. And I am- I consider myself a high tolerance. But this was almost a bridge too far for me. 

 Brittney [00:25:13] So probably not a book for me, because my tolerance is not high right now. 

 Joshua [00:25:16] Brittney, I don't think you should ever read anything by Nick Cutter... 

 Brittney [00:25:20] Oh no! 

 Joshua [00:25:20] You will not be happy. 

 Brittney [00:25:22] Thanks Joshua. 

 Joshua [00:25:22] So a little thing about Nick Cutter. He's a pretty interesting guy. Nick Cutter is not his name, it's a pen name for the writer, Craig Davidson, who is a Canadian author. A funny story about Craig, so he published a book called The Fighter, it was his debut Novel. And to do research for that, he took steroids for six weeks. 

 Brittney [00:25:42] What?! Why?

 Joshua [00:25:43] So he... knew what the character was going through, I guess? 

 Brittney [00:25:47] That's one way to mess up your body. 

 Joshua [00:25:49] Wait. To promote the book, he organized a fully sanctioned boxing match against a poet. The poet Michael Knox, who is a poet from Canada. And later, a match against the American novelist Jonathan Ames. 

 Brittney [00:26:04] OK, that's kind of fun. 

 Joshua [00:26:06] I mean, it's really fun. What a way to promote your book, you just have a fight! It's like, whoa. 

 Brittney [00:26:12] This guy's intense. 

 Joshua [00:26:15] Both the boxing matches... he lost. Not to say that he got knocked out because, they're probably well protected. But still- 

 Brittney [00:26:27] It's amazing. 

 Joshua [00:26:29] It's so intense. And then you get a sense of what kind of writer he is. So trigger warnings about this book. If you don't like reading about animals in pain or being killed, do not read this book. If you do not like to read descriptions of child abuse, do not read this book. If you don't like reading about blood and gory deaths, do not read this book. 

 Brittney [00:26:52] Wow. This is the book for the intense reader. 

 Joshua [00:26:54] For the intense reader! And I listened to it as an audiobook so that like, turned the volume up to 11. 

 Brittney [00:27:04] Did you have to up the speed?

 Joshua [00:27:05] Oh I always up the speed. I can't, I can't listen to a book that's normal speed, they talk too slow. 

 Brittney [00:27:11] That's really funny. 

 Joshua [00:27:16] So also, this book takes place with a pandemic. 

 Brittney [00:27:22] Oh, that's kinda fun. 

 Joshua [00:27:22] Yay! 

 Brittney [00:27:22] Whoo! 

 Joshua [00:27:24] So the world is dying. A plague called the Gets, short for Forgets, has ravaged every country with an incurable condition. It is a disease that attacks the memory centers of your brain. 

 Brittney [00:27:36] Like Alzheimers? 

 Joshua [00:27:36] Yeah, like Alzherimer's, yeah. You slowly forget. You lose your short term memory, then your long term memory, and then you forget how your body functions. So if you don't die from starvation or thirst, you suffocate because you forget to breathe. Pretty intense. 

 Brittney [00:27:54] That is intense. 

 Joshua [00:27:56] Hoping for a cure. Governments are pouring money into this deep sea research on a mysterious and recently discovered substance called ambrosia. And it's like this gelatinous thing that's fleshy colored. It's kind of gross. I'm making weird claw motions-. 

 Brittney [00:28:12] You're making jellyfish hands at me. Squishy, mmmmm!

 Joshua [00:28:21] It can only be found in the Mariana Trench, the deepest part of the ocean called the Challenger Deep. 

 Brittney [00:28:26] Of course. 

 Joshua [00:28:27] Yes. So, Luke Nelson, who's our main character, we follow his perspective throughout the story. He's contacted by the military overseers of this project that's taking place in the Mariana Trench. There's an undersea laboratory at the very bottom of the trench, and that's where his brother, who is an accomplished scientist, is working with two other scientists. So the military contacts him with this cryptic message from his brother asking for help. And Clayton, Clayton is Luke's brother, is the lead scientist and the surface has lost contact with the undersea lab. So, bad. 

 Brittney [00:29:07] Of course. 

 Joshua [00:29:07] And it's been four weeks. 

 Brittney [00:29:08] This is very Aliens. 

 Joshua [00:29:10] Oh, yeah. It's like Aliens meets the Abyss meets The Shining. OK, so for the sake of humanity, Luke decides to be like "Ok, I'll go to see my brother!" And so he enters the crushing, crushing depths of the realm of eternal night as it's quite dark. It's so dark. 

 Brittney [00:29:34] And there's horrifying creatures down there. Like oarfish, and anglers, and goblin sharks... Let me tell you all about it! 

 Joshua [00:29:43] Yeah. OK, sorry, sidetrack, again. Have you ever seen... The Blue Planet? Richard Attenborough?

 Brittney [00:29:50] I've seen at least chunks if I haven't seen the whole thing.

 Joshua [00:29:52] OK, so there is one called The Deep... oddly enough the title of this book... That he filmed. He did underwater photography of the Mariana Trench. Oh my God. It's so creepy the way the fish like, move through the darkness. They're like, horrifying ghosts, it's so crazy.

 Brittney [00:30:12] Picture aliens, and that's our ocean. 

 Joshua [00:30:14] It's the most alien atmosphere... 

 Brittney [00:30:18] Ever. 

 Joshua [00:30:19] In our- yeah, that we know of. And it's like part of our natural world. It's intense. 

 Brittney [00:30:29] Guess where we don't go? Down there. Not like this dude!

 Joshua [00:30:32] No, this dude did it. I felt connected with the characters going through this book. They're sympathetic. And he gives you a background of the traumatic experiences, Luke and Clayton experience terrible child abuse from their mother. Again, it's described in vivid detail. So that was hard to get through. But when he switches between the present and the past, that just creates so much tension. You just feel like the pressure that is like inside this underwater space is crushing pressure, is like you're experiencing it as a reader. Because like psychologically you're dealing with the horrible trauma of child abuse, but also the scary part that's going on in the sea lab. It's like uuugh! So the monster in the story, ok. It's like this.... So Ambrosia is important because it kind of like melds with whatever living thing it touches, and it doesn't really make a copy of it, it kind of life becomes it? And replaces the... thing? But what's weird about it is that it's impervious to the pressure of the underwater world. It's impervious to any kind of atmospheric thing that happens to it, like it can't burn, and it can't suffocate. It can't catch a disease. So they want to find out, like, why is it like that, and what can we use from that to- 

 Brittney [00:31:50] It sounds like a sentient, immortal flesh. 

 Joshua [00:31:50] Exactly. Exactly. You hit it, nail on the head. 

 Brittney [00:31:54] YES! 

 Joshua [00:31:55] The ambrosia is not what we assume is just like a single celled organism. It has an intelligence behind it, and it's freakishly old intelligence. And that's where the real terror comes in, because this monster's doing some terrible experiments of its own on the scientists- 

 Brittney [00:32:13] The ambrosia?! 

 Joshua [00:32:14] Yes, yes. So there's a part with some bees... Oh, my God, I ugh. 

 Brittney [00:32:23] Not good? 

 Joshua [00:32:23] I thought I was OK with bees until that scene in the book. 

 Brittney [00:32:27] It's like, let me mess up bees for you, forever. 

 Joshua [00:32:28] And oh my God. There's also a part where he describes like a centipede. I have a mortal fear of centipedes. So there's a scene where Luke, he remembers a time when Luke's child was in a crib and he starts crying because he's being bitten repeatedly by a centipede. Whoooo! 

 Brittney [00:32:50] Aw, poor kiddo! 

 Joshua [00:32:50] It's so freaky. So, yeah, you have the tension of the past, the terror of the present, and also this idea that you can't escape this underwater world. You can't just walk out the lab because... 

 Brittney [00:33:02] You're stuck. 

Joshua [00:33:02] Where are you going to go? Into the crushing deep of the dark ocean? No!

 Brittney [00:33:07] Nighty night forever. 

 Joshua [00:33:10] Exactly. Yeah, I picked this book because it's representative of the mystery and the danger that exists in our oceans. If you feel really strong, you want to test yourself, pick this one up. Otherwise I think you could give it a miss. 

 Brittney [00:33:28] Or any Nick Cutter book, because I've heard that about his other books too. 

 Joshua [00:33:29] Yeah. Yeah. His other book is The Troop. And once again, bad things happen to kids, bad things happen to animals. So that's, that's a pretty steady trigger warning for most people. You might might want to miss that. But, that's why we're here. To tell you what's what in the books! So yeah, if you think you can handle that, go for it. 

 Brittney [00:33:50] Nice work. 

 Joshua [00:33:51] Thank you. 

 Brittney [00:33:52] My last book is also about a sea monster. It's- so this book is called Fractured Tide by Leslie Lutz. It was her debut novel, came out 2020. So this book was described as Lost meets Stranger Things. So Tasia, some people call her Sia, Sia works with her family on a scuba diving business. Her dad is in jail, currently, and so her mom - I was kinda mad at her mom - her mom pulled her out of school and now makes her help with the scuba diving business. So theoretically she's supposed to be doing homeschool, but she's really not. 

 Joshua [00:34:35] She's doing the school of life kinda thing?

 Brittney [00:34:37] She's doing the school of life. And, you know, it's like she, she's kind of in survival mode. Like she- they have to do as many school trips as they can to make the money flow in. And they help other people go scuba diving. So she is on a scuba diving trip with a few people and they go down to the shipwreck. And the rule is that you stay with the person, y'know, they've gone over all the basics... And she goes down there with this dude and he was actually really, really seasick. And she convinced him, she was like "put on your goggles, we'll go down low, the seasickness will go away." And she feels bad about that because this dude, he ends up not having a very good time. They're in the ship, right? And she sees an octopus and she's really excited. She's like, oh, cool. And she watches it float away. And she was in the room with the dude. She turns around and he's GONE. 

 Joshua [00:35:28] That's really bad! 

 Brittney [00:35:32] He's just gonzos. She's like "What!?" And she knows she was supposed to be keeping an eye on him but she's like "Nobody usually swims away from me!" You know? And she was down there with one other diver and the other diver's like, "I'm going to go up there and get your mom, let her know what's happening" She's like, OK, because she still sees a silt trail happening through the ship. 

 Joshua [00:35:49] The path he might've taken. 

 Brittney [00:35:50] Yeah, so she's like "I'm gonna follow that while there's still a trail." So she follows... There's this crazy scene where she goes into this room and she sees a big grouper fish, she's like, whoo, careful of it. But then she sees this green glow coming, and something inside her brain is like "You have to hide." Like that is bad. And she looks at the grouper and the grouper has hidden itself in between two walls. And it's not even looking at her anymore it's looking towards the door, like whatever is coming, it's bad. And she does, she turns off her flashlight and so she's in pitch dark down at the bottom of this dive. And there's just something in her bain that's like stay quiet, don't move... bad. 

 Joshua [00:36:30] It's a hunter. 

 Brittney [00:36:31] It's a hunter. She's like, I am prey right now, I don't know what that is. I know it's bad. So her mom ends up popping up and she has found the dude, and he's dead. Yeah. And she- she feels like she's crazy because she looks at the guy and she feels like she sees phosphorescent goo leaking out of his eyes. And she's like, what is THAT?! Like, that's not right. But it's the same kind of green glow that she saw earlier. 

 Joshua [00:36:58] That's what I was thinking. 

 Brittney [00:36:58] Yeah, not good. So they pull him back up to the top. And her mom - again, not thrilled with her mom - her mom is like, "why did you leave him?" She's like, "I didn't, like he left me." And her mom kind of just like throwing the blame on her. And part of it is her mom is upset and scared because Sia is seventeen. She's not eighteen. She's not supposed to be doing dive trips alone with adults. So immediately her mom is like, "Got the body up here... you're going to go on another trip right now with everyone else who's left." And she's like, "Mom, that's crazypants. Like, no way, there's a dude who just died." And she's like, "Sia, you know what happened last time somebody died?" She's like what? She's like "The next day, everybody else went on a dive again." She's like, she's like people get over stuff really, really fast. 

 Joshua [00:37:41] This reminds me of like- you've seen Jaws? 

 Brittney [00:37:44] Yeah. 

 Joshua [00:37:44] Where like, after the shark attack, everyone's like back in the water. 

 Brittney [00:37:47] Yeah! And that's what her mom saying. She was like, "Sia, we really depend on the money flowing in, we hopefully want still decent ratings, even though this has happened. And also when the cops come to collect the body, I want you down under the water where they can't question you." ...Right? 

 Joshua [00:38:05] This is so much pressure to put on a 17-year-old. 

 Brittney [00:38:08] And I get it. Like her mom is under a lot of pressure, like poverty and all this stuff is happening, but I was like... Don't pull her out of school! Don't be mad at her when this thing happens. I, I had issues with her mom. But anyhoo. What ends up happening is - so another boat comes and they're all kind of waiting together for the cops to come collect the body... And they were all going to go back to - actually they were going to go back to shore together to meet the cops at the shore. All the electronics... die. All the electronics die, cell phones, the boats die- 

 Joshua [00:38:43] So they're like in the middle of the ocean, everything's dead... 

 Brittney [00:38:43] Yup, everything's dead. 

 Joshua [00:38:46] You're kidding. Noooo! 

 Brittney [00:38:46]  Right? And so they're like, people are gonna know we're missing. We'll wait, we'll shoot up a flare, we'll figure this out, we'll be fine. Sia at one point - oh, and I should say the other boat came with a bunch of teens. It was like a science trip or whatever, they were like "It's the end of the year science trip!" So there's like a whole bunch of teens who are kinda... they're kind of snooty towards her. They're like, "well where are you going to go to college?"  She's like... I'm not going to college. Like, I'm going to work on the boat. They're smart, snooty teens. Not every single one. But... You know how it is. 

 Joshua [00:39:20] We know. 

 Brittney [00:39:21] Catty teens. So at one point, Sia has to go back in the water. Apparently, so when you go on a dive, a common thing - according to the book, and I think it's right, because the author is a diver - you leave an oxygen tank with supplies at 15 feet below the surface. So if you have to come back up, you can't come up too fast. Otherwise you get... 

 Joshua [00:39:46] The bends, yeah. 

 Brittney [00:39:47] Yeah, you get the bends. So if you're running out of oxygen, you at least have oxygen stuff to hang out for longer. So the mom is like, "Hey, I think that has dropped down actually too low. I don't know where it's gone." And the mom is actually going to go out and get it- 

 Joshua [00:40:01] Girl, don't. You're in a horror movie, don't do it! 

 Brittney [00:40:05] You don't even know yet, you're in a horror movie! And when Sia had told her "I saw this green glow..." or whatever, the mom was like no, you got - she called it, you got narked. Like, there was something about nitrogen buildup or whatever. 

 Joshua [00:40:16] Oh ok, yeah. 

 Brittney [00:40:17] She was like "you were seeing things" and Sia's like, yeah, you're probably right. So Sia wants to get off the boat with all these teens. And she likes being in the water, she likes going down in the dark, she's actually kinda like a thrill-seeker, she really likes it. So she's like, oh, I'll go get the stuff, don't worry about it. So she hops down there... And the other thing I should say about this book, this book is written as a letter to her dad, in jail. 

 Joshua [00:40:38] Oh, ok. So it's like a - the technical term is an epistolary. That it's a book, that's written as a letter. 

 Brittney [00:40:46] Yeah. So it's like she'll say things like, "I shouldn't have gone in the water. I didn't know any better." You have like this - like, she knows what has happened already, so it makes it even creepier. So she goes down into the water, she's like, "If I'd I swung my light around, I would have realized what was circling me." Oh my God. It's brilliant the way she's written it. 

 Joshua [00:41:08] Yeah. 

 Brittney [00:41:08] So she sees something gray, and it shoots right at her and it knocks her in the chest. She goes, like she's remembering the creature from earlier. She goes back up, she goes to the boat. And the teens are like "Oh cool, a shark!" And Sia at this point feels dumb. She's like "I shouldn't have panicked. Like it was fine, sharks, they'll come check you out like it did with me. But it probably won't eat me."  And then they realize something weird is happening with the shark. And the shark is kinda thrashing around. And all of a sudden you see these green goo- 

 Joshua [00:41:41] It's being attacked. 

 Brittney [00:41:42] -Tendrils go over the shark, eat the shark, and pull the shark down. And you're like DANG! There it is! Whoop, there it is! 

 Joshua [00:41:45] Nice pantomime with your hands.

 Brittney [00:41:50] Yaaagh! Oh my gosh. The way she describes it reminds me of like, green gelatinous goo. It has tendrils, and it pulls the shark down. Well then it starts pulling teens down- 

 Joshua [00:42:02] Nooo! 

 Brittney [00:42:02] -And starts going over the edges of the boat and going around their ankles, yanking them off the side. 

 Joshua [00:42:08] That would be so scary. You were just hanging out with your friends talking and then all of a sudden one gets *whoop!* 

 Brittney [00:42:11] Yeah! And they're like screaming... And oh my gosh, it was crazypants. I promise I'm not going to give this whole book away. I won't give you a play by play. I made my husband sit and do play by play because I read this in a day. And every half hour I'd tell him what was happening. He was playing his video game and I was like "I HAVE to tell you what's happening, this is CRAZY!" Anyhoo. A lot of kids get eaten. She ends up getting knocked in the head and when she wakes up, she's on an island. She ends up surviving with two other teens. One's a butt, one's really nice. And then her younger brother, who's seven years old. Yeah, her baby brother was on the ship. And while they're on this island, they're kinda realizing there's something wrong with this island. There's weird time loops happening. The boy was like, "Hey, this flock of birds, watch. It's going to land right there and one's going to get in a fight with that one." And he calls it. So she's noticing all these time loops on the island. And they're obviously starving too, like they're starting to - they don't have food, and all the coconuts on the island are rotting. They stay on the edges. She thinks there's something wrong with the forest. And she said something feels really bad about it. So she offers to go get food in the ocean. They're all like, "Don't go in there, that thing's in there!" They realize she has about ten minutes in the ocean before it realizes she's in there, and it comes to get her. So she'll go and she'll get a lobster really quick, get out of the ocean, before the thing - and at night they'll see the green glow across the island. It'll be swimming around... it's crazypants! 

 Joshua [00:43:42] Thats's eerie. 

 Brittney [00:43:42] It's crazypants. And just, all this weird stuff is happening. Like I don't want to give all of it away, but... she thinks she's seeing people, and then they'll disappear. And she feels like - she's like, "I've seen these scenes before, but I don't know why..." It's crazy. It's good. 

 Joshua [00:43:58] That's such an interesting mashup. 

 Brittney [00:44:01] Yeah. It really is, when they say Stranger Things meets Lost, it's accurate. It's accurate. I, I liked it. I thought it was really good. It was like a fun thriller. 

 Joshua [00:44:12] Oh that's cool. That's cool. That's sounds like a good... Like the one I mentioned is very dark and heavy. I mean that would be a good one for... 

 Brittney [00:44:19] Yeah. This is a lighter version. Because it's still like... It's still dark. It's not doo doo, it's not happy. It's not that, but it's... It's like a thriller. 

 Joshua [00:44:30] Yeah. It sounds exciting. There's an adventure aspect. Oh gosh. 

 Brittney [00:44:35] She's a thrill seeker. It's really interesting to hear her talk about diving, how she actually likes diving in the dark. A bit like feeling like... I'm in space, I'm the only one there. It's very interesting. Some people, when I was looking at the reviews, they don't like how technical the author got with the diving aspect. I really liked it. I was like, this is interesting, I would never have known this.

 Joshua [00:44:56] It kinda lends some authenticity to the story, but also it's submersive. Where you.... Feel like you're a diver with this kind of expertise. 

 Brittney [00:45:05] Yeah. 

 Joshua [00:45:05] Because you're following a diver. 

 Brittney [00:45:07] Yeah. Yeah. I was impressed with this being the debut novel. I thought it was really good. I would say the end could have had a little bit more... The ending could have been a little stronger in my opinion. But I still wasn't mad. I wasn't mad. This is a book I would recommend to people. It was fun. 

 Joshua [00:45:23] Good. Good. I mean, this sounds like a satisfying conclusion? Sounds like a thrilling story. 

 Brittney [00:45:29] Yeah! 

 Joshua [00:45:30] Yeah, sounds great. 

 Brittney [00:45:33] It's a sea creature, that's really scary, because you don't know when it's going to pop up. You don't know. It's like, yuugh! It's fun.

 Joshua [00:45:41] Yeah. Good job Brittney! 

 Brittney [00:45:42] Thaaanks! 

 Joshua [00:45:43]  OK everybody, those are our books today. I hope it inspires you to read and bring some books to the beach. 

 Brittney [00:45:50] Yeah! 

 Joshua [00:45:51] If you're... If you're going to the beach. 

 Brittney [00:45:54] Don't get in the water! 

 Joshua [00:45:56] Don't - yes, be careful of the water. But this is solid advice: if you're scuba diving, don't leave your group. 

 Brittney [00:46:01] Don't leave your group! 

 Joshua [00:46:01] Don't do that. This is...

 Brittney [00:46:04] If you're planning on getting in the ocean at all, take a buddy.

 Joshua [00:46:07] Take a buddy, yes. Tell people where you're going, because you never know when something happens. We don't want to freak you out, but this is the truth about the ocean. It's fun, but you have to be safe. 

 Brittney [00:46:17] At the very least, if you're not going with anybody, text somebody ahead of time. Be like, "I'm planning on being back at this time. If I'm not, this is where I went." At the VERY least. I've done that with a couple hiking trips, or I went hiking by myself. And I texted a friend ahead of time, like "I'm going here. I plan on being back at this time. Please call me back." 

 Joshua [00:46:36] Recreational safety. That's what that is. And also, high tides. Don't mess around with high tides. Don't go to the beach when it's high tide, wait till it's low tide.

 Brittney [00:46:47] I heard that this, y'know since the pandemic a lot of people are going out and about, and a lot of people are... there's a lot more search and rescues happening, because people don't know what they're doing. 

 Joshua [00:46:57] They're not being safe. 

 Brittney [00:46:57] Yeah. So if you're going to do that, go with someone who's done that hike before. Text somebody ahead of time. Don't mess with high tide. Take baby steps. Don't do this hard trail, y'know? Work your way up to it. 

 Joshua [00:47:13] Bring your water. 

 Brittney [00:47:16] Oh yeah, that's a big thing. 

 Joshua [00:47:16] Stay hydrated. That's important, especially now that it's really hot in the west. Right?

 Brittney [00:47:22] Yeah. It's hot everywhere. 

 Joshua [00:47:23] Just be careful. We care about you guys, we don't want you to get hurt, when you're having fun. We want you to have fun. 

 Brittney [00:47:28] Yeah, go have fun. But take precautions. 

 Joshua [00:47:33] Yes, absolutely. 

 Brittney [00:47:33] Anyhoo, do you know what our topic is next time?

 Joshua [00:47:34] Next... Oh, gosh. You know! 

 Brittney [00:47:37] Oh, I know what it is! 

 Joshua [00:47:37] It's so fun! So we are doing, uh, we're going to be doing a movie talk. Brittney and I are going to watch a movie and we're going to talk about what happens, about our experiences with it. This is a movie that we grew up with. 

 Brittney [00:47:51] Oh yeah. 

 Joshua [00:47:51] I think it was like a big summer movie back in the 90s. 

 Brittney [00:47:55] Was it 90's or was it 80's? 

 Joshua [00:47:57] I think it was 90's. I don't think it was 80's. Maybe it was like '89, that's as far as I'll go. It's Tremors! 

 Brittney [00:48:07] Tremors! 

 Joshua [00:48:07] It's so much fun. Yeah, it's a formative one for us. I think it's probably one of the first horror movies I watched as a child. OK, so that's what we're going to do. We're going to watch Tremors, and we're going to talk about it, and give you a chance to watch it yourself, and participate in the dialog. 

 Brittney [00:48:27] So we'll be back in about two weeks. We'll talk about Tremors... And we're going to have so much fun. 

 Joshua [00:48:34] Should we review what were the books we did? 

 Brittney [00:48:35] Oh, yes. 

 Joshua [00:48:35] So I reviewed The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon, and The Deep by Nick Cutter. 

 Brittney [00:48:43] Hardcore. 

 Joshua [00:48:43]  Hardcore. 

 Brittney [00:48:43] I reviewed Fractured Tide by Leslie Lutz, and the Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw. 

 Joshua [00:48:52] Ok, thanks everybody. 

 Brittney [00:48:55] Thanks everybody, we'll see you later! Byyye! 

 Joshua [00:48:55]  Byyye! 

 Brittney [00:49:00] Thank you so much for listening. Feel free to reach out to us at our email at Starships@coosbaylibrary.org, or on Instagram at swordsnstarships (no spaces). Thanks! 

 Joshua [00:49:17] See, I wanted to talk about oxes, but we can talk about those later. 

 Brittney [00:49:21] Oxes? Oh, yaks! We can take a hot moment to talk about yaks. Ok-

 Joshua [00:49:26] Because in my mind I was thinking "Yaks, yaks, let's talk about the yaks!"

 Brittney [00:49:33] Ok... this is a really random aside. We're going to edit this, and it's going to be great, but... My parents live in Utah. And for anybody who lives in the country, you know it's really normal to borrow people's animals to eat your lawn, because when you live in the country, you usually have a decent amount of lawn. And you don't always want to mow it, especially if it's not flat. So my parents live in Utah, and their neighbors have yaks. *Yak noise* They sound like bison - 

 Joshua [00:49:59] The ones with like... they have... their bangs go over their head, they kinda look like surfers. 

 Brittney [00:50:02] Yeah. "What's up, bra?" So my parent's neighbors have yaks. Right now Utah is going through a drought. And so the neighbors have run out of grass for the yaks to eat and they don't want to keep buying feed for them. So they asked my parents "Can they come your grass?" They were like "Sweet, yeah." So the neighbors are really nice, they built a fence and everything. So my parents have yaks, they have two young yaks, and - 

 Joshua [00:50:25]  Boys? 2 boys or 2 ladies? 

 Brittney [00:50:29] I have no idea. Nonbinary. 

 Joshua [00:50:29] Nonbinary! That's right, we shouldn't have to make them choose. 

 Brittney [00:50:35] I have no idea. 

 Joshua [00:50:36] That's ok. 

 Brittney [00:50:37] But yeah. So my parents have yaks, so I have been sending Joshua yak videos. My dad was petting a yak, and it got mad, like grrrrrr! 

 Joshua [00:50:45] It was so - I was like, oh, it's so cute. And then he like, he bucked his head, and kinda gave your dad a "Don't touch me" stare. 

 Brittney [00:50:53] Oh, yeah. 

 Joshua [00:50:54] And I was like, oooh... That is not OK. 

 Brittney [00:50:57] Not a happy yak. 

 Joshua [00:50:57] That scared me.

 Brittney [00:51:00] My dad has no fear. He was like "That's a lot of hair." My dad has no fear.

 Joshua [00:51:06] He's not wrong. It was a lot of hair. 

 Brittney [00:51:08] That surfer yak.. Anyhoo. That's our yak aside. 

 Joshua [00:51:13] I love that story. I think it's so cool. 

 Brittney [00:51:15] We should put the yaks on our Instagram. 

 Joshua [00:51:18] Yes. We should. Because they're such fun animals. Be respectful of the yaks, they are powerful. 

 Brittney [00:51:24] Oh yeah. And these are like baby yaks, they're not as big as they're going to be. They broke down the fence the other day, and my dad had to go get on his dirt bike and herd them back in. 

 Joshua [00:51:32] And it was an electric fence too. 

 Brittney [00:51:33] Broke through an electric fence. 

 Joshua [00:51:35] And your dad's so cool, he's like a cowboy. 

 Brittney [00:51:38] He is a cowboy! 

 Joshua [00:51:39] You know, like back in the day when the cowboys would drive the cattle, and they would camp for a night. And they always have to like... hop on their horses and wrangle up the stragglers, or the ones that have just wandered off during the night. I'm like, yeah, that's just like your dad, he just hopped on his bike and... 

 Brittney [00:51:57] I have actually had a conversation with my dad of like, "I think you missed your calling, I think you should have been a cowboy." His pain tolerance is off the charts. He's like, broken bones and been like "Do I have to go into the hospital?" It's like, "Dad, yes you do! You have to take care of your body." He's like... Yeah, he did miss his calling. He has pulled over on road trips and just slept on the side of the road on his dirt bike. He's like "You just to make sure there's no scorpions." I'm like, Daaaaad...! 

 Joshua [00:52:28] Oh my god! 

 Brittney [00:52:28]  That's crazypants! He's the nicest man you'll ever meet. My friend described him as a stick of nice because he's really tall and skinny. She's like "Your dad's a stick of nice."  I'm like, "He is. he's also really hardcore."