Sinéad had the great privilege of sitting down with Leona Forde this week! Leona's the author of the brilliant Milly McCarthy series (Gill Books), including Milly McCarthy is a Complete Catastrophe (2023) and the forthcoming Milly McCarthy and the Irish Dancing Disaster. Leona is a teacher, a mam, and a very busy author, and we had a great chat about music, storytelling, her teaching philosophies, her writing process, and how she does it all. Settle in and let's find out together how Leona is Storyshaped!

Books mentioned in this episode include Leona's own:

Milly McCarthy is a Complete Catastrophe

And the stories that shaped her include:

The folktales and mythology she learned from her grandmother, Mrs Maureen Herbert

The music, traditional ballads and songs played by her father and her family members

The song Leona mentions is this one:

Dublin in the Rare Oul Times by the Dubliners

The Famous Five, by Enid Blyton

The Secret Seven, by Enid Blyton

Revolting Rhymes, by Roald Dahl

The Cremation of Sam McGee, by Robert W. Service

Under the Hawthorn Tree, by Marita Conlon McKenna

Across the Barricades, by Joan Lingard

The Herbalist, by Niamh Boyce

On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous, by Ocean Vuong

The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne

The Secret Scripture, by Sebastian Barry

Small Things Like These, by Claire Keegan

Foster, by Claire Keegan

The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton

Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley, by Timothy White

Oi Puppies, by Kes Grey

Be Wild, Little One, by Olivia Hope and Daniel Egnéus

Fidget the Wonder Dog, by Patricia Forde and Rachel Saunders

The Little Bee Charmer of Henrietta Street, by Sarah Webb

A Game of Life or Death, by Triona Campbell

The Time Tider, by Sinéad O'Hart

Lessons in Chemistry, by Bonnie Garmus

All the Broken Places, by John Boyne

The Queen of Dirt Island by Donal Ryan

Trespasses, by Louise Kennedy

Short Stories by Frank O'Connor

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