MashReads Podcast: A love letter to fantasy readers from one of their own, Laini Taylor

Fantasy is a genre with limitless possibilities, but it's often simplified and stereotyped.

There are many readers who claim outright "I don't like fantasy," while others look down on the genre. But some of the most beloved books and series of the past hundred years — Harry Potter, The Chronicles of Narnia, Outlander, and more — have been fantasies.

But if there is anyone fighting the good fight on behalf of fantasy, it's Laini Taylor.

Not only is she an avid reader, but she's also a bestselling fantasy author (you've probably heard of her series Daughter of Smoke and Bone). Taylor's newest novel Strange the Dreamer, the first in a duology, is her love letter to fantasy readers.

Strange the Dreamer follows a young librarian and eternal dreamer, Lazlo Strange, whose seemingly impossible dreams come true, allowing him to travel to a mysterious and magical city whose stories he's obsessed over. Filled with magic, gods, and dreamers (both literal and figurative), Strange the Dreamer has everything a fantasy-lover could ask for.

In a special episode of the MashReads Podcast, MashReads spoke to Taylor about the power of fantasy (and, of course, whether it's better to have dragon wings or feathered).

As always, we close the show with recommendations. Laini recommends:

• The movie Your Name, which tells the story of a high school girl in rural Japan and a high school boy in Tokyo who swap bodies. Laini describes it as "the perfect YA novel in anime form."

If you're looking for a longer book to sink your teeth into, don't forget to check out our MashReads Book, The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley by Hannah Tinti. You can RSVP to chat with Hannah and MashReads IRL here on June 29. And if you're looking for more book news, don't forget to follow MashReads on Facebook and Twitter.