#katherine applegate

[ape-apocalypse]

POV - You're watching Planet Of The Apes and you start siding with the apes over the humans

[andalitean]

ALL of the animorphs audiobooks are available NOW on libro.fm!!!

(via Katherine Applegate! )

[kooldewd123]

At the start of each Animorphs book, before the first chapter begins, there is a page. On it is a simple acknowledgement. Two names. The first name is Michael - Katherine Applegate's husband and co-writer on the series. The second name is that of a boy. This name belongs to their son. Or, should I say, belonged to their son. Because they don't have a son anymore. They have a daughter. Every time I pick up an Animorphs book, I can't help but linger on this page as I quite literally hold her deadname in my hands. It's a peculiarly beautiful feeling. Peculiar because the context behind that name makes it seem all the more personal. I feel like I've violated her privacy simply by knowing it, even though it's openly out there for anyone to read. But beautiful because dammit, doesn't this represent this series's relationship with the queer community so well? Animorphs is often regarded as a queer (and especially trans) narrative, despite the fact that such subtext was completely unintentional. Applegate did not write Animorphs to be queer media, but she's embraced the fact that it has became so in the hands of the fans. How perfectly fitting is it, then, that she unknowingly dedicated the entire series to a trans woman?

[jadziadykes]

HIIIIIIII I MET KATHERINE APPLEGATE TODAY!!!!! She was an absolute delight the entire time despite a very hot room and a very long signing line. You could tell all the kids AND adults in the room were enamored with her lol. 11 year old me I hope you're watching 👍

[ultrakeencollectionbreadfan]

Animorphs interior images, Book 1-6.

[trooperoftheeuph]

Today I’m thankful for Katherine Applegate, for writing Animorphs and also being a gem of a human being that protects trans people

[ryan-nerdy-goober]

[zorawitch]

Love seeing posts about Animorphs on here simply bc I think KA Applegate deserves the praise. Met her once, she’s a very sweet person.

Picture me, age 10/11. I am abnormally tall. I am very blond. I most definitely have braces and no volume control. I walk up to this acclaimed author at a book signing and immediately start talking about my Warrior Cats fan fiction. My mother instinctively tries to drag me away.

And KA Applegate not only seems genuinely interested, but tells me to keep writing. And for the next two years every time I had writers block I would just go “Katherine Applegate told you to keep writing!” and promptly scribble out the most horrendous stuff known to man.

[milquetoast-zeitgeist]

I saw a post today, from another Animorphs fan, who got the chance to meet K.A. Applegate; and he said 'they say never to meet your idols, except Katherine Applegate'.

She truly is an underrated treasure of humanity.

Months ago, I had the serendipitous and very unexpected opportunity to go to an event she was at, 12 minutes from my house.

I was delirious with excitement. I don't think even I understood the awesome emotional enormity of what I'd gotten the privilege to experience.

Tonight I did. I'm crying as I write this, with the realization that I got to meet (and got a hug from!) the author who shaped my young adulthood.

I mean, I can take you to the exact geographic spot on the planet Earth, where I was sitting in 6th grade (USAmerican), and I saw the Animorphs book one advertisement in the scholastic book flyer.

I didn't know it then, but what I felt was the fulcrum of destiny weighing on me, and I chose to commit myself to those books. And like almost every other reader, I was forever changed.

I never, in a million gazillion years, in my most wild imaginings, even in the absolute heights of my young adult flights of fancy, did I ever think I'd get within miles of Katherine Applegate. Let alone get to hug her, as a thank you for changing my life!

We, the Animorphs fandom, are truly one of the most dedicated and blessed and undervalued and underappreciated fandoms. But we're all family, knit together by struggle, and pain, and bonds of friendship and connections that run deeper than family.

To all my fellow friends, family, and fellow shorms.

You matter

[joemerl]

It's so weird that after Animorphs, K.A. Applegate started writing books that are actually appropriate for children.

[gallyg]

Forever grateful for how Katherine Applegate handles fan questions.

[andalitean]

Link to bookshop here :)

[seventhofcrows]

Book Recs if You Really Liked The Wild Robot

All of these are novels who either have animal characters, are about robots, or are sci-fi with similar vibes! Each has its own section!

For Fink the Fox Enjoyers (Animal Characters)

A Wolf Called Wander by Rosanne Parry

Pax by Sara Pennypacker

The entire Redwall series by Brian Jacques.

The One and Only Ivan series by Katherine Applegate and/or the Endling series by the same author.

Maxmillian Fly by Angie Sage

Watership Down by Richard Adams

Roz Lovers (Technology/Science Fiction)

The City of Ember series by Jeanne DuPrau

A Rover's Story by Jasmine Warga

The Ungifted series by Gordon Korman (Also known as the author of Restart)

The Overthrow series by Kenneth Oppel (Book #1 is titled Bloom)

People Who Really Like Brightbill (Books with Birds and/or Underdogs)

Coo by Kaela Noel

The Someday Birds by Sally J. Pla (Has an autistic character, too!)

Flora and Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo

The Tale of Despereaux also by Kate DiCamillo.

I really tried to mix and mention between some already mentioned contenders like Pax while also giving you some newer, less recommended reads that can fill the void in your Wild Robot heart. In my opinion? A Wolf Called Wander and/or Pax should be adapted into film someday, especially since The Wild Robot now has franchise potential now that it broke the box office. I feel like people who really liked Fink (Like I do!) would enjoy more films about foxes who survive through environmental and social issues like war and abandonment. But also, The City of Ember gives off huge Roz vibes and I feel like even if someone hasn't read or watched The Wild Robot, they would still enjoy how dystopian the story is. Also, Bloom should have a fandom. It's great.

Thank you for reading onto the end of this fan-made post! Have a very nice day or night. Bye!

SeventhofCrows

[island-in-ignorance]

Animorph quote I think we need right now

"'This is not the time for panic' she said. 'It is the time for each of us to reach into our souls and pull out the courage we may not even know we possess. Our enemy is strong. But we are stronger, because we are fighting for our lives and our freedom. For our very existence.'"

-Animorph #51: The Absolute by K.A Applegate

[carriagelamp]

Winter reading is the cosiest reading, I love getting to read next to the Christmas tree when the lights are on! As usual, I tried to squeeze at least a couple Christmas reads in because I enjoy seasonally appropriate stories~

And Then, Boom!

An unexpectedly good read! This is a middle grade novel that I picked up on a whim because I had some time to kill and it was there. I figured I’d read the first bit and then be done with it, but I enjoyed it enough to get it out of the library and finish — it helps that it’s all written in free verse poetry and therefore a very quick read. I feel like free verse fiction books have become more and more common lately... as a kid the only ones I can think of off hand were those books like Crank written by Ellen Hopkins, but I’ve read a handful now that have been written in verse.

This book is about a boy who comes from a dysfunctional family. His father isn’t in the picture and his mom is neglectful — she’ll get “the itch” and then up and leave — so he primarily grew up with his grandmother. However in his life he frequently experiences “and then… boom!” moments, when a sudden disaster turns everything on its head. When his mother’s arrested, when his grandmother loses her house and they have to live out of their car, they're all “booms” he needs to weather. The book explorers some of those ups and downs and the difficulty of being a child who lives in poverty until the biggest and then, boom moment happens: his grandmother dies.

The Anxious Generation

My favourite book from this month; I’ve heard a lot of people talking about it and have been very eagerly awaiting my hold at the library to come in. It's a popsci account of Haidt’s research into the sudden increase in childhood anxiety that started spiking in the 2010s, and how smartphones and social media may play a significant role in it. As someone right on the cusp of this age bracket, I found it both an interesting insight into what’s affecting the younger generation, and also a sometimes uncomfortable spotlight on my own experiences and anxieties.

The main argument this book makes, despite the focus on childhood exposure to tablet devices and social media, is less about the internet and much more about the experiences children are being allowed. He points out how much less freedom and independence children are being afforded now, and how overprotective parenting is becoming more and more the norm. Children aren’t being allowed to take risks — not physical risks, but also not social risks. They don’t have time to play independently and unsupervised, they don’t get given chances to make social mistakes and learn how to repair them on their own and without adult mediation, and that’s having a serious impact on their ability to build and maintain relationships going forward in life. This is compounded by technology that further draws them away from important real world interactions and milestones.

It’s a very well-written book and I highly recommend picking it up. Whether or not you agree with every claim that's made, I found it gave me a lot to think about and most of his arguments are well-reasoned. I think it’s valuable to look at how it may be impacting people, both so we can do better by the children our society is raising and so we can do better by ourselves.

Behind the Screens: Illustrated Floor Plans and Scenes from the Best TV Shows of All Time

This was a fun coffee table book. The author researched different sets from iconic showsacross TV history and managed to create cohesive floorplans for them. Each section talks a bit about the show, what made it important for Western television, and some of the details that went into each blueprint. Some of the shows include: The Simpsons, The Office, Seinfeld, Friends, I Love Lucy, Sesame Street, Schitt’s Creek, Killing Even, Sherlock, The Golden Girls… you get it. There’s lots!

The Disabled Tyrant’s Beloved Pet Fish v2

This series continues to be ridiculous! I already have the third book sitting on my shelf, waiting for its turn to be read so I'm pretty bought in!

Li Yu gets isekai’d into a webnovel… but as a pet fish rather than any sort of character. Despite this he’s tasked with trying to help the “tyrannical” Prince Jing. In this book Li Yu has begun to get used to his role, gets more opportunities to transform into  a human, and has even officially met Prince Jing as a human. Li Yu is convinced that he’s being very very sneaky and that Prince Jing has no idea he’s both a human and a fish. Prince Jing is convinced he has somehow acquired a carp spirit and is being very respectful about not mentioning it since his fish clearly doesn’t want it to be known. However if his carp spirit wanted to be a bit more forward about siphoning off his life force, Prince Jing is very ready and willing 👀👀👀

Dracula Daily

For anyone who's been living under a rock unfamiliar with Dracula Daily, it's an "internet book club" that started a few years back during the pandemic. It's the entire, original novel of Dracula as written by Bram Stoker, but re-arranged by Matt Kirkland so that it is being told in chronological order instead, each new entry to the story being emailed to readers on the day it would actually be happening.

When Dracula Daily first started I had read Dracula literally the summer before, so it was too early for a reread but now enough time's passed that I figured I should buy the physical edition that was released and try to follow along this year. It was a ton of fun! The physical copy is nice because it’s included a ton of art, memes, and posts people made while doing Dracula Daily in previous years, so it was a lot of fun getting to see people’s insights as I read along! Obviously I didn’t quite stay perfectly up to date, hence me including this with my December reads rather than my November ones, but I was generally fairly synched up and it really did add to the tension… waiting to see what happened to one character when big gaps of time might elapse between letters or journal entries. This is a very amusing way to read Dracula, I think I even enjoyed it more than the traditional way.

Dragons at Crumbling Castle and other stories

A collection of some of Terry Pratchett’s old children’s short stories. Not a lot to say about it — it was fine. They’re fun little stories, and Pratchett’s talent as an author always shines through, no matter what he finds things to be satirical or clever about, things that make you laugh along with or actually stop to consider. By they are, ultimately, from earlier in his career and just short stories for kids so they obviously don't have as much meat on their bones as his other work. Still, it made for a nice audiobook to listen to at bedtime.

Juniper’s Christmas

A really cute Christmas novel, I read it at the very beginning of the month to start getting into a festive mood. In this story, Santa has long since retired but many people still miss and honour him. Juniper’s family, who works as caretakers in a city park, are one such family and they host a “Santa Vigil” every year that's one part Christmas festivities and one part a time for people to donate to support disadvantaged people in their community. However when officials threaten to shut down the vigil, Juniper’s mom goes missing, and a mysterious, gift-giving woodsman appears Juniper finds herself thrust into a action-filled Christmas adventure around London. This book as comically evil villains, flying reindeer, good social messages, and lots of magic! A very worthwhile read!

Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation (MDZS) v1

@redoftheturks has made and posted fan-audiobooks of the entire MDZS (and TGCF!) series!!! So really, it was completely impossible for me not to start rereading it, not when it was delivered up to me on a silver platter like that! And honestly what a blessing 🙏 this has been helping me unwind during some high-stress nonsense that's been cropping up over the past month. No matter how bad things are going for me, at least I know things are going worse and weirder for Wei Wuxian. And it is such an excellent reading. I swear this is just going to be how I imagine Wei Wuxian’s voice from now on, it’s so perfect. More than anything (maybe it's rereading with a fuller understanding of the characters and story, or maybe it's thanks for the great line delivery) it's really making me appreciate how much fun Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji are having together which I'm not sure I fully grasped my first time around.

Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation follows Wei Wuxian, the feared and powerful creator of demonic cultivation, who was finally killed before he could rain any more terror down on the world. The story starts 13 years after his death, with Wei Wuxian very unexpectedly waking up in a new body, in the middle of a strange, supernatural murder mystery, and with a need to hide his presence before people start coming for his head again. It should all go great!!! right?

Out of My Mind

This is a book I’ve been peripherally aware of for a while and knew was supposed to be a pretty good middle grade novel, so I figured I’d finally read it. It was… fine. The story is about Melody who has cerebral palsy, and it follows her time in grade five and the difficulties she has in connecting to her peers and communicating the thoughts in her head. Everyone expects very little of her, but things begin to change when she gets a new computer to replace her old communication board and suddenly has a whole new range of communication options open up to her… and gives her a chance to show just how much she actually knows in time for the big trivia contest that her school competes in annually.

It’s a fine book, well-written, and I certainly don’t regret reading it but I can’t say it did much for me. Of course, I’m not the target demographic and I’ve never been a huge fan of contemporary fiction, so take my opinion with a grain of salt.

Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street

A fun nonfiction book that looks into all the people, work, and thought that went into the creation of Sesame Street. Honestly when I think of Sesame Street I do tend to just think of it as Jim Henson’s creation, so it was shocking to realise how late in the planning process he actually joined! So many people went into creating this show, and it was all done in such an intense, methodical way! They really were determined to try to bring early childhood education to disenfranchised families who couldn’t afford things like preschool. They had no idea if it could even be done, if this would be a failed project or not, and in the process they created a cultural behemoth! I really enjoyed reading this and learning about it all! ...And it gives you an excuse to think about the muppets, which, in my opinion, is always welcome <3

This Winter

I’ve been meaning to read this Heartstopper novella for ages, and am glad that I finally did. It’s a cute little story set between book 4 and book 5 (or is a prequel for Solitaire, though I haven't read that novel), which focuses in on Charlie’s on-going struggles with / recovery from his eating disorder during the holidays, his anxieties, and his relationship with Nick. It manages to touch on some serious or emotional topics, while also being sugary sweet and heartwarming in a way you want your Christmas stories to be. You get to see all three of the Spring children’s POVs throughout the course of the novella, which is a nice treat since that’s not something the graphic novels can really deliver.

Willodeen

Another book that was… fine. I do love Katherine Applegate’s works and I have no complaints against this one. It was a lovely story set in a world separate from ours that seems to be going through its own form of industrial (or at least steam related) revolution. It follows Willodeen, who was orphaned after a fire swept through her village and destroyer her home, killing her parents in the process. Fires like this are an on-going problem for the village which is struggling from climate change that is affecting everything from crops to the migration of hummingbears which their tourism industry relies on. While everyone else is worrying about the adorable hummingbears though, Willodeen is concerned for the disappearance of the screechers — an ugly, loud, smelly pest that most villagers are happy to kill and drive away.

The book is a very beautifully written story that looks at environmental change, charismatic vs uncharismatic species and how they fit together, and what a community can do for each other. I enjoyed reading it, it was clever, and it was quick. However my main complaint is that it feels like the novel equivalent of Oscar-bait. Very very beautiful and meaningful and it knows it, and it feels a little… hollow. Not fully formed. But whatever.

[enthusispastic]

Considering every animal that you have either touched, or had the opportunity to touch in the last month (allowing the acquisition trance to overrule safety measures aside from trespassing).

Of course, in the tags or replies, share what animals you're using for each!