The Re-Read: Pip Harry and Ellie Marney

We're switching things up for Season 9: Welcome to The Re-Read. In this mini-season, we check in with a selection of past guests to find out what they've been working on. Expect lots of books, some babies and plenty of chat.

This season works a little differently, without book recommendations from us at the start of each episode. But we promise you'll still get plenty of books added to your TBR!

Interview 1: Pip Harry

After we spoke to Pip Harry about her 2017 YA novel, Because of You, she moved to Singapore for several years and has only recently returned to Australia. She’s also been busy on the publishing front...

She published a verse novel for young teens, Are You There Budda?, in 2021. But Pip has also moved into middle grade fiction, including the 2020 CBCA children’s book of the year for younger readers - The Little Wave, which was published in 2019 - and her latest book, August and Jones, published in June this year.

You can follow Pip on Instagram @piphaz

In this interview, we chat about:

• How Pip went from writing YA to writing verse novels for middle-grade audiences
• The gorgeous real-life friendship that inspired Pip's latest book, August and Jones
• Making disability visible through storytelling and working

August and Jones is available now. Thank you to UQP for sending us copies of the book in preparation for the interview.

Interview 2: Ellie Marney

Ellie Marney is the bestselling and award winning author of the Every series, and she’s been very busy since we spoke to her about self publishing No Limits back in 2017. With White Night in 2018, The Circus Hearts series, None Shall Sleep in 2020, The Killing Code in 2022 and Some Shall Break coming in 2023.

You can follow @elliemarney on Instagram

In this interview, we chat about:

• What Ellie's been up to since she first spoke to us five years ago
• The evolution of the #LoveOzYA movement
• Writing 'a YA Silence of the Lambs' and how that helped Ellie crack the US market
• Ellie's 2022 book The Killing Code and codebreaking in WWII
• Inside the wild world of Washington in WWII

The Killing Code is available now. Some Shall Break will be available in June.

Books and other things mentioned:

• The Weight of Water by Sarah Crossan
• Unnecessary Drama by Nina Kenwood (listen to our chat with Nina here)
• The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak
• You Can't Ask That (TV series)
• Fighting Words by Kimberley Brubaker-Bradley (listen to our chat here)
• Silence of the Lambs (film)
• Mindhunter (TV series)
• Mindhunter by John Douglas
• The Imitation Game (film)
• The Bletchley Circle (TV series)
• Code Girls by Liza Mundy
• The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary
• Redhanded (podcast)
• Real Crime Profile (podcast)

Connect with us on Instagram: @betterwordspod