logo
episode-header-image
May 2022
32m 9s

Howl's Moving Castle

COMPLEXLY
About this episode

Howl’s Moving Castle was the first community pick of Life’s Library! In this episode, John Green and Rosianna Halse Rojas draw connections between the magic and spellbinding characters in this novel to other children’s books. They also discuss domestic work, the Faustian dilemma, interdependence, and the framing of fate.

This episode was originally released to subscribers in January 2020. The Life’s Library Discord and subscriptions are now closed after a wonderful three years of reading together. Check out past books at www.lifeslibrarybookclub.com, Twitter, and Instagram.

Episode transcript.

Life’s Library logo by Bethany Mannion.

Up next
Dec 2022
Faces in the Crowd
In Faces in the Crowd, the narrative unfolds through multiple, fragmented perspectives, touching upon literary worlds, city life, and the ghosts that are present in our everyday lives. In this episode, John Green and Rosianna Halse Rojas discuss the symbolism of the orange tree, ... Show More
36m 57s
Dec 2022
Space Struck
“Oh! I'm sorry for stepping on your / shadow! and Please be careful! My shadow is caught in the wheels / of your shopping cart." In this episode, John Green and Rosianna Halse Rojas discuss Paige Lewis’s debut poetry collection in all of its playful, moving, relatable, romantic, ... Show More
39m 31s
Nov 2022
Blonde Roots
In Blonde Roots, Bernardine Evaristo imagines a history where “Aphrikans” enslaved “whytes.” What systems would be different, and what would remain similar? In this episode, John Green and Rosianna Halse Rojas discuss what it means to reframe historical narratives and the difficu ... Show More
29m 16s
Recommended Episodes
Dec 2021
Le Book Club de Noël : Une histoire de bonté
Si vous aimez le Book Club, vous allez dévorer Une bibliothèque féministe, notre livre co-édité avec les Editions de l’Iconoclaste, dans lequel Agathe Le Taillandier rassemble 18 femmes : chacune signe un texte dans lequel elle partage sa lecture fondatrice dans son parcours fémi ... Show More
18m 22s
May 2023
Saison 3 - 118. "La Princesse Totem" : une histoire captivante
REDIFF - June a grandi, préservée du vrai monde, élevée avec un destin tout tracé : devenir la Princesse Totem, liée pour toujours à son animal. En découvrant ce que l'on attend d'elle, elle va décider de suivre son intuition... Une héroïne à la fois sensible et puissante, portan ... Show More
10m 34s
Jul 2022
A Novel About Brilliant Young Game Designers
Gabrielle Zevin’s new novel, “Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow,” is set in the world of video game design, and follows two friends named Sadie and Sam as they collaborate on what becomes a very successful game.“A friend of mine described the book as being what it’s like to co ... Show More
49m 24s
Jan 2021
Lisa Guez : Les vertiges des contes
Lisa Guez est metteuse en scène, dramaturge et enseignante-chercheuse. Son dernier spectacle Les femmes de Barbe Bleue est présenté au CENTQUATRE-PARIS. Il est lauréat du prix du jury et du prix des lycéens au Festival Impatience 2019: “On a repris le conte de Perrault et on a es ... Show More
18m 37s
Dec 2021
Le Book Club de Noël : L’écriture comme respiration
Si vous aimez le Book Club, vous allez dévorer Une bibliothèque féministe, notre livre co-édité avec les Editions de l’Iconoclaste, dans lequel Agathe Le Taillandier rassemble 18 femmes : chacune signe un texte dans lequel elle partage sa lecture fondatrice dans son parcours fémi ... Show More
20m 24s
Nov 2020
Ep 260: A little free library with a life of its own
Sara Jones takes her role as “neighborhood library curator” seriously. In addition to selecting books for her own reading life, Sara Jones carefully curates her Little Free Library collection to reflect the reading tastes and needs of her community. She likes to feature a healthy ... Show More
53m 33s
Apr 2022
Le Book Club Présidentiel #6 : Une écologie à soi
Lucile Schmid est l’invitée de ce nouvel épisode, enregistré à La REcyclerie, un tiers-lieu d’expérimentation dédié à l’éco-responsabilité. Co-fondatrice de La fabrique écologique, un think thank qui œuvre pour le développement durable, elle a créé le Prix du Roman d’Écologie, dé ... Show More
36m 50s
Dec 2020
Interview with Leigh Bardugo
In this week’s episode, Kendra and Joce talk to Leigh Bardugo, the author of Ninth House, which is out now in paperback from Flatiron, and The Lives of Saints, which is out from Imprint. Grab one of our totes for 20% off by heading over to our Etsy Store! Thank you to The House o ... Show More
44m 40s
Aug 2022
Lisa Jewell with Isy Suttie
This week on the penguin podcast, Isy Suttie is joined by bestselling author, Lisa Jewell. Lisa joins the Penguin Podcast to discuss her latest novel, The Family Remains, the long-awaited sequel to her New York Times best-seller, The Family Upstairs. They also discuss Lisa’s deve ... Show More
56m 56s
Aug 2016
Magic Lessons Ep. 205: “Call Your Real Life By Its True Name” featuring Gary Shteyngart
This week on Magic Lessons, Elizabeth Gilbert advises Colleen, an advertising executive in New York City, who dreams of being a storyteller but fears it's a frivolous pursuit. Colleen hopes to create a one-woman show, mining stories from her childhood growing up in an Irish Catho ... Show More
1h 18m