Beth Garrod guest post

 

I'm delighted to host one of my favourite contemporary YA authors, Beth Garrod, on my blog today. Beth's YA books are hilarious, warm and uplifting, so they're perfect if you're looking for a fun read. 

Sister Switch is Beth's middle-grade debut, and I'm so excited to read it! It's a modern take on Freaky Friday about two sisters who accidentally swap bodies and have to learn to live as each other if they're going to get out of this mess!

Beth has written a fantastic playlist to get you in the mood for reading Sister Switch or if you happen to find yourself trapped in a sibling's body...

The Ultimate Body Swap Playlist

If you ever find yourself looking in the mirror and seeing the wrong face staring back, I suggest you immediately seek medical help. However, if you decide not to do that and opt for some music based therapy instead, then here are some body-swap bangers to help you get through this challenging time.

*Warning* this playlist makes no musical sense, but maybe that’s *exactly* what would be needed to land you back in the right body….

Shout Out To My Ex – Little Mix

Shout out to my ex… body that is. Because someone would be walking around it in right now and JUST IMAGINE all the damage they could be doing. In fact, maybe don’t. You’ll have enough on your plate trying to figure out how to switch back, without wondering if your body is going around telling your boss what they really think, or bamboozling your best mate by suggesting you switch movie night for the gym.

Back For Good – Take That

And now we’re taking it right back – waaaay back to when the X Factor was not even a twinkle in the Barlow’s eye. But you can bawl along to this ballad whilst staring at photos of you in happier times. In the supermarket! On the sofa! Even an under the chin selfie. What you’d give to be back in the right body (even from those angles). And then you can queue up Could It Be Magic too - maybe something about stallions in the sun could sort it out?

Good 4 U – Olivia Rodrigo

Well, good for you, you look happy and healthy, not me. I’m stuck in your body wondering if I’ll ever be able to wear my own pants again.

Sure, that’s not quite the lyrics, but singing along to this at full volume makes most things feel better tbh.

Willow Smith – Whip My Hair

Now, this is a bit of a Willow Smith throwback, but frankly if I was trying to invoke a mysterious magical hairdresser – just like Lily and Erin in Sister Switch – then who knows. Maybe a hair-based helicopter is exactly what’s needed to summon The Hairy Godmother? And even if not, it would be nice to at least see if a new body could unleash some previously untapped dancing potential.

That’s Not Me – Skepta

Sure, Skepta was maybe not talking about swapping into his sibling’s bods (although he doesn’t have an all-round over-achieving family), but I would definitely be prone to shouting this every time I saw myself doing something I would never normally do. Drink coffee? That’s not me! Wear not-flat shoes? That’s not me! Looking like a mess? No, that’s… no that is me.

So there you have it – some body swap bops to get you through any body-switch nightmare. Although, maybe head for a medical practitioner before reaching for a playlist…

Thanks so much for joining us, Beth! I love discovering new songs to add to my playlists. I just hope I don't need them for a body-swapping incident...