Show Notes
This week Marlon and Jake go back in time-way, way back-and revisit the myths and legends that have terrified and tantalized us for centuries. Gods and monsters. The powerful and the petty. The shape-shifting and the rampantly naked. From ancient Greece and Africa to Jamaica and Ireland, Marlon and Jake explore the world's myths and legends-how they persist and how we absorb, sanitize and subvert them. Whether it's Jason and the Golden Fleece, the trickster Anansi, or the non-consenting kiss in Sleeping Beauty, Marlon and Jake get real about fairy tales and folklore. And for all Black Leopard, Red Wolf fans, tune in to learn more about which of these traditions influenced Marlon's epic fantasy and how he's turning the wicked witch trope on its head in the trilogy's next novel!
Select titles mentioned in this episode:
- The Greek Myths - The Labors of Hercules - Jason and the Golden Fleece - Daedelus and Icarus - Bullfinch's Mythology - African Myths of Origin - Anansi the Spider - Apep and Ra - Black Heart Man - Rolling Calf - Sukuyan - The Complete Grimm's Fairy Tales - Snow White - Rapunzel - Sleeping Beauty - Hansel and Gretel - The Twelve Dancing Princesses - The Little Mermaid - The Little Match Girl - Hans Christian Andersen's Fairy Tales - Irish Fairy and Folk Tales by William Butler Yeats
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Marlon and Jake discuss the books they’d banish from school reading lists—not ban but give a well-earned time out. They consider why the Bible shouldn’t make the cut, why mythology deserves to expand beyond the Greeks and Romans, and what kinds of books actually resonate with high school readers. Plus: why being a great book doesn’t necessarily make something a great book to teach—and whether length should matter.
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Marlon and Jake explore the books that have helped define who they are, choosing four that capture different parts of their personalities and lives. They unpack how reading can shape our understanding of identity, community, and growing up—and change the way we see ourselves and each other. Tune in as they reflect on books they encountered at exactly the right (or wrong) time and the stories that made the world around them feel a little bigger.