Retronauts Episode 525: Worlds of Power
Now you're reading with power.
You can probably guess, given my deep love for and frequent contributions to Retronauts, that I grew up very much in a manner that most would describe as "nerdy." I dreaded the great outdoors, performed poorly in all things physical, and spent a majority of my free time watching television or playing video games.
Despite this extreme indoor kid lifestyle, I was never much of a reader. Comics, yes, comic books remain a passion of mine, but novels? Reams of paper bound together with nothing but words printed on them? They couldn't hold a candle to Star Trek or Super Mario Bros. 2.
I've gotten better about enjoying time with a good book and the subject of this week's Retronauts certainly has my attention. Adapting feature films into novels is challenging enough, but once upon a time, a man named Seth Godin thought that video game novelizations could draw more kids into exploring basic literacy.
Noted author Nadia Oxford sits in the hosting chair for this look at the Worlds of Power series of children's literature, joined by Gary Butterfield who has written original works very much in the spirit of these juvenile texts.
Description: Nadia talks to special guest Gary Butterfield about the Worlds of Power books that were the jewels of '80s book fairs. These short game novelizations have their quirks, but they're still teaching us a lot about education versus marketing.
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MP3, 33 MB | 1:03:42 Direct download Retronauts on iTunes Retronauts at Audioboom
Editing thanks go to Greg Leahy.
