The Community Library

Another bite-sized episode for you folks! A shallow dive (as opposed to a deep dive) into the world of historical fantasy fiction. I take you through a few of my favourite books that combine these two genres, and explore the ways in which they use fantasy to tell a story. The clashing of myth and reality has been coming up a lot for me recently, so you can expect more episodes on this topic! A x T...

Have you ever stumbled upon a book that brought so much more to your life than you first expected? That’s what happened to me with The Snake Pit , a 1946 novel I found in a second-hand bookstore in Vancouver. The book was a sensation when it was published, and was made into an award-winning film with Olivia de Havilland, but somehow I had never heard of it. In this episode I compare the book with...

Welcome back to The Community Library! After a little hiatus, I am back making episodes, beginning with this one all about my adventures watching old movies for a week. I watched seven black and white movies, spanning from 1931 to 1948, and documented my thoughts on each. I watched some classics – such as His Girl Friday and Frankenstein , and some lesser-known ones, such as Ladies of the Chorus a...

The end of another year means another Community Library Reading Awards! In this totally biased and unfair awards ceremony, I give awards to my most thought-provoking book, favourite lockdown read, favourite translated fiction, and more! Consider this a highlights reel of all the books I read this year. Happy New Year, and I hope you enjoy! Prefer to read than listen? You can find a list of all the...

This year’s extra-special Christmas episode features everyone’s favourite guest, my sister Kalliope! We tier rank fifteen popular Christmas songs for you, because we love Christmas songs and being judgemental. We hope you enjoy! For a full transcription of this episode, plus more links and resources, visit my website angourieslibrary.com !  Last year’s Christmas episode: 3.20 Die Hard, aka Th...

Beauties and Beasts have been falling in love all throughout mythology and folklore, but what makes Disney’s 1991 adaptation such a fan-favourite? In the next instalment of my Disney Fairy Tale series, I take you through the history of the original Beauty and the Beast fairy tale, and compare it with its Disney adaptation. From animal studies to mob mentality, we cover lots in this episode! I hope...

Who’s afraid of nonfiction? Me. It’s me. I’ve always had trouble with getting through nonfiction, but this past year I’ve actually found myself … choosing to read it? Over fiction? Who is she? So in this very chatty episode, I take you through 10 things I’ve learnt from 10 of my favourite nonfiction reads this year. Happy listening! X For a full transcription of this episode, plus more links and r...

I’ve seen Clueless so many times I can almost recite it by heart. 10 Things I Hate About You is my comfort movie, and I watched She’s the Man for my English Lit unit instead of reading the actual play, Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night . But what makes these teen flix based on classic lit so special? Why was there such a boom in this genre in the 90s? This episode we’re looking at the anatomy of a 90s l...

How many books did I read in the last three months? How many of them were translated? How many did I get from the library? All these questions answered AND MORE in this episode. As is tradition here on the podcast, every three months I take you through the stats of everything I read that quarter, because despite being a literature nerd, I also love numbers and statistics. I also highlight three of...

I launched The Community Library two and a half years ago, and in that whole time I’ve never celebrated a single anniversary. Now is as good a time as any, right? Today I’m reflecting on 10 lessons I’ve learnt through creating The Community Library podcast. I hope you enjoy x Visit my website, angourieslibrary.com for a full transcription of the episode, plus more links and resources!  Black...

This week I’m reviving an old series on the podcast and talking about everyone’s favourite finger-pricking princess: Sleeping Beauty. Once upon a time, a year ago, to be exact, at the height of Melbourne’s strict lockdown, I started a fairy tale series on the podcast in which I analysed and compared four Disney Princesses with their fairy tale counterparts. A year later, and Melbourne finds itself...

Welcome to season 5 of The Community Library! I’m your host, Angourie Rice, and I am so delighted to see returning listeners, and overjoyed to see new listeners, too! This episode is exactly what it says on the tin: a few reasons why I think it’s important to be critical of the media you love. I hope you enjoy this bite-sized episode, and I’ll see you back here in two weeks for more. A x Visit my...

After a brief hiatus, I am back with a very late quarterly reading stats episode! In this episode I talk you through my reading stats from the past three months, plus I highlight three favourite reads! 4.10 Quarterly Reading Stats #1 Visit my website, Angourie's Library , for more links and resources related to the episode!  Black Lives Matter resources Pay the Rent My Instagram , Goodreads a...

Lorde’s song Green Light is not about the infamous green light featured in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel The Great Gatsby … So then why do so many people think it is? In this week’s audio essay, I analyse and compare the green lights in both Green Light and The Great Gatsby . I try to understand why, like Gatsby, artists and audiences keep coming back to the green light. Visit my website, Angou...

Our May book club discussion is here! This month our pick was the 1961 novella The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark. I hope you enjoy! Visit my website, Angourie's Library , for more links and resources.  Black Lives Matter resources Pay the Rent My Instagram , Goodreads and StoryGraph The Community Library’s Instagram Cover artwork is by Ashley Ronning Ashley’s Instagram , website ,...

At the start of 2021, I stopped giving books a star rating. Why? Listen to find out! Our May book club pick is The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark. This 1961 modern classic novella is about the eccentric teacher, Miss Jean Brodie, and the six pupils she takes under her wing. I’ll be discussing this on Sunday the 30th of May, so I hope you read along with me! Links My website, Angourie's...

Don’t know where to start with Jane Austen? You’ve come to the right place! Welcome to the second instalment of a new series on The Community Library: Author Spotlight! This week I’m talking about one of the most influential authors in the English language: Jane Austen. I’ll give you a simple rundown of her novels, and recommend which one you should start with if you’re new, or if you’re already a...

April’s book club pick was the nonfiction book Disfigured: On Fairy Tales, Disability and Making Space by Amanda Leduc. In this episode I discuss my thoughts on the book, and summarise some of its key ideas and concepts. I hope you enjoy! Our May book club pick is The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark. This 1961 modern classic novella is about the eccentric teacher, Miss Jean Brodie, and t...

Don’t know where to start with an acclaimed author? Welcome to the first of a new series on The Community Library: Author Spotlight! This first episode is about YA contemporary author Elizabeth Acevedo. I talk about her career as an author, give you a rundown of all three of her novels, plus I recommend where to start with her works. I hope you enjoy! April’s book club pick is the nonfiction book...

How has the first quarter of the year gone for you? Mine has definitely had its ups and downs, but I’m glad to be spending some time with my family for the Easter long weekend. In this episode I chat you through some of my reading statistics, and three of my favourite books I read in the last three months. I hope you enjoy x April’s book club pick is the nonfiction book Disfigured: On Fairy Tales,...

Our book club discussion is finally here! My friend Maija and I discuss the YA graphic novel Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi – the art style, the coming-of-age storyline, and our different experiences with graphic novels. I hope you enjoy! For a full transcription of the episode, visit my website Angourie's Library . April’s book club pick is the nonfiction book Disfigured: On Fairy Tales, Disabilit...

Never have I ever … read a graphic novel. Well, that’s not technically true. I read a few when I was a kid, but on the whole I am very unknowledgeable about the world of graphic novels. And because this topic has come highly requested by the listeners, this week I did a graphic novel marathon and read four ! I read a YA romance, a gritty memoir, a collection of short horror stories, and an adaptat...

Why do I hate the phrase “But that’s the point?” In this short essay-style episode, I unpack the anatomy of this phrase, its use, and why it should forever be banned. Not to be dramatic. CONTENT WARNING: In this episode I discuss violence against women and domestic abuse. For a full transcription of the episode, plus links to references and resources, visit my website Angourie's Library . Black Li...

What did you all think of February’s book club pick, Grown by Tiffany D. Jackson? I loved it – such a powerful story about music, fame and power. I also talk about some of the discussion topics you suggested on Instagram! Our book club pick for March is Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi (vol. 1 only). This is a YA graphic novel about the author’s experience growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolu...

What’s a 400-year-old poem got to do with a 2012 breakup song? Well, more than you might think … This week I critically analyse and compare Shakespeare’s Sonnet 35 and Taylor Swift’s I Knew You Were Trouble . I discuss iambic pentameter, double standards, and the importance of analysing our pop culture. I hope you enjoy! Our book club pick for February is Grown by Tiffany D. Jackson. This is a YA...