Have You Discovered Podcasts Yet?
Podcasts? You’ve heard of them, but never actually heard one, right? Join the crowd! I mean…how do you come up with these little stinkers, anway? What do you do with them once you find them? Well, the good news is that podcasts are available on almost every topic in existence. And, they’re free! If you have iTunes, you’re all set. You can find one in their podcast section, click Subscribe, and watch each new episode automatically download to your iPod for listening at your convenience (in the car, at the gym, yard work, etc). If you don’t have iTunes, you can download the MP3 file to your MP3 player or computer, and just treat it like a song file, if nothing else. I want to share about three podcasts that have caught my ear lately:
Shadowmagic - I am only about a third of the way thru this, but I love it. The word “delightful” is the best term I can come up with to describe it. John Lenahan hails from Philadelphia, but has ended up somehow in the UK, and “has never quite made it back”. His story is told from the viewpoint of a teenage boy. It’s gentle, subtle, witty, funny and fascinating…all at the same time. And owing to Lenahan’s acting skills, his delivery is simply “spot on”. Recommended for teens through adults (mild profanity/low-key violence). Just sit back and love this. And tell a friend!
7th Son - J.C. Hutchins wrote this sci-fi/thriller trilogy between 2002-2004 and the podcasts of his reading were made available over the last two years. The story involves human cloning, mind control/mind transfer, political intrigue, world domination, nuclear weapons and oil markets…but despite all those heavy topics, at its heart, it’s a very human story. It’s well-written and the audio version is engaging. Hutchins is not a professional narrator, but his well-defined characterizations still earn him a B+. The podcast had over 30,000 subscribers and a million downloads, and because of this amazing success, the story is due to be released in print in 2009 by St. Martins Press. This is definitely for adult audiences only (profanity and violence).
Playing for Keeps - And finally, a very human superhero story. Keepsie Branson owns a bar in a city where superheroes and supervillians really aren’t all THAT special…you see them every day, and you’re just not that impressed. Turns out that she was in “superhero school” herself, but her superpower was deemed too insignificant for her to be a real hero…which tends to leave a sour taste in one’s mouth. But, one day, her little power suddenly becomes very relevant, to both the heroes and the villains. This is an ongoing story and podcast…so I don’t know where it goes from here, but I’m enjoying it a lot. It’s read by the author, Mur Lafferty, and she does a very nice job with the delivery. This one is also for a mostly adult audience (mature themes).