They might not be raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens, but that doesn’t mean that we love them any less. Welcome back to My Favorite Things, the weekly column where we grab someone in speculative circles to gab about the greatest in geek. This week, we sit down with Meg Kassel, whose latest book, Keeper of the Bees, comes out tomorrow, September 4th, from Entangled Teen!
What does Meg love when she’s not writing books that get gorgeous covers? Spoiler alert: a video game that even terrible gamers might enjoy, a favorite retelling of a tale as old as time, an award-winning graphic novel with gorgeous artwork, and a television show whose reboot is as good as the original. Interested? Read on to learn more!
Favorite Video Game: I’m an enthusiastic but terrible gamer. I wasn’t allowed to play them as a little kid, so I never developed those important brain connections that made my fingers correspond to my brain efficiently. I’m awful. To those who wound up with my priest in their raid group during a World of Warcraft dungeon — I’m sorry for your many, many deaths. That said, my favorite video game is The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. I have beaten this game, despite my slow fingers. I don’t want to know how many hours I’ve logged, exploring the beautiful world of Hyrule. I love this game because there’s usually more than one way to solve a problem, and you can save before you know things are going to get hairy. Plus, you can teleport. And cook! And Link is so cute. The only thing that could make this game better is if you could pet the dogs.
Favorite Beauty and the Beast Retelling: I found Beauty by Robin McKinley at a library. This was some years back and it was out of print then, so I hunted down a used copy on Amazon, and I treasure it to this day. The first time I read it, I closed the cover and started it again. I still reread it every other year or so, and each time it’s like sinking into an armchair with a good friend. It’s straightforward, not deviating from the fairy tale, but the worldbuilding and personality infused into the characters makes me come back again and again.
Favorite Graphic Novel: It was the artwork that drew me to Saga by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples. The story was secondary until I started reading it. Now I don’t know which I love more. The story follows two forbidden lovers and their illegally conceived baby as they race to escape those who would kill them. It’s a familiar tale, but told beautifully, and God, the artwork.
Favorite Then and Now TV Shows: Okay, so as a little kid I loved watching Voltron: Defender of the Universe. This was the 1980s (yes, I’m that old). I’m a grown up now, and I still think the show is cool, so I was psyched a few years back when I heard there was a reboot in the works. The result: Voltron Legendary Defender is a good series, produced by Netflix, and does a great job of updating the team and expanding the backstory and world. The only thing the new series is missing is the original music sequence that played with the credits, which I want as my ringtone.
Meg Kassel is an author of paranormal and speculative books for young adults. A New Jersey native, Meg graduated from Parson’s School of Design and worked as a graphic designer before embracing her true passion, writing. She now lives in a log house in the Maine woods with her family and is busy at work on her next novel. A fan of ’80s cartoons, original Netflix series, daydreaming, and ancient mythology, Meg has always been fascinated and inspired by the fantastic, the creepy, and the futuristic. When she’s not writing, Meg is reading, hanging out with her husband and daughter, hiding her peanut butter cups, or walking her rescue mutt, Luna.
Author photo credit to Peter Macijaukas
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The covers of Meg’s books are STUNNING.