Touch the Cube

Book 5 - The Predator

Marco takes his first stab at narration when he's not busy refusing the call to action. Our shorms provide a recap and discuss the DNA-deep treat-lust of human teens, the genre of Animorph-ian farce, and the incompetence of Yeerk expeditionary forces. In Thoughspeak, Caleb mindcasts about the concept of the panopticon and the paranoid surveillance logic that drives narration of the whole series.  Max (he/him) [https://bsky.app/profile/maximoverdrive.bsky.social] Thaddeus (she/her) [https://bsky.app/profile/thaddeus.zone] Caleb (he/him) [http://hebanongames.bsky.social/]

Book 4 - The Message

It's time to get aquatic and rescue some Andalites! Our hosts dream-SOS a summary of the first Cassie book and discuss the addition of the sixth Animorph: Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill For < Thoughtspeak >, Max takes us through the Utopian Scholastic aesthetic that so dominated the world of the characters and their young audience. Max (he/him) [https://bsky.app/profile/maximoverdrive.bsky.social] Thaddeus (she/her) [https://bsky.app/profile/thaddeus.zone] Caleb (he/him) [http://hebanongames.bsky.social/]

Book 3 - The Encounter

It's the first Tobias book! Our underground podcasting cell talks about hawk-4-hawk, light ecoterrorism, and nepo Yeerks, delighting as KA Applegate follows Chandler's immortal writing advice: "When in doubt, have a hawk fly through the window with a dracon beam." In , Thaddeus introduces us to New Criticism with some big feelings about Tobias as a metaphor for trans experience. HOSTS Max (he/him) [https://bsky.app/profile/maximoverdrive.bsky.social] Thaddeus (she/her) [https://bsky.app/profile/thaddeus.zone] Caleb (he/him) [http://hebanongames.bsky.social/]

Book 2 - The Visitor

We delve into Book 2 - The Visitor this week, our first foray into the mind of the most militant of Animorphs. Rachel takes control as Fluffer the feline spy, and we get our first look into the interior workings of the Yeerk conspiracy (and also learn Visser Three is a cat guy). In , Max introduces us to Francis Fukiyama and "The End of History": the cultural "logic" saturating both the setting of the Animorphs and its late 90's readers.

Interview with Gretchen Felker-Martin

The Cookbook has the privilege of interviewing Gretchen Felker-Martin [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gretchen_Felker-Martin] (she/her), award-winning and bestselling author of Manhunt [https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250794659/manhunt/], Cuckoo [https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250794666/cuckoo/], and Black Flame [https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250348012/blackflame/].  We talk about the influence of Animorphs on her upcoming novel CHIMERA [https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250347978/chimera/], as well as the shifting landscape of children's literature, the perils of adaptation, the best morph for a night on the town, and much, much more. HOSTS Thad (she/her) [https://bsky.app/profile/thaddeus.zone] Caleb (he/him) [http://hebanongames.bsky.social/] Check out The Animorph's Cookbook Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/AnimorphsCookbook] for early access for future episodes.