January Culture Wrap Up

02/02/2021

Right. It may have felt like it lasted forever but January is finally over! It has been…okay! Personally I’ve been all over the place during the first month of the year but I have drawn pleasure from not drinking (not quite Dry January but very limited alcohol January), eating pretty healthily (cut out all animal products except eggs plus processed food and refined sugar) and working out (Merci, Pamela Reif for your terrifyingly difficult workouts that leave you dry as a bone and myself dripping with sweat). I finally watched Grace and Frankie which I LOVE, though I agree with the general view that it becomes very silly in its later episodes. I’m still totally in love with the two women and all the little explorations of growing old so I cannot stop watching. I started watching the new Will and Grace which I was so excited for but personally found it way too farcical. I’m not sure if it’s a new thing or if my tastes have changed.

As always reading has been a core element of my month and I’ve had some great reads. I’ll probably review some of these in more detail but here’s a brief round up:

Natives by Akala - ★★★★★ 🎧

This is a book I’ve held off on reviewing because I’m not really sure how to. I listened to this on audio because I’m a fan of Akala’s dulcet tones. It might be one I re-buy in the future in paperback since audio doesn’t really allow you to stop and underline things to come back to which feels absolutely necessary in this read. What I loved most about this book is how he blends memoir and history to explore the impact of Empire on the lived experiences of Black people in the UK. It’s a very personal book but it’s also jam packed with facts and figures. Together they meld to create a sort of witness statement and history lesson in one. Akala grew up near where I did and I was particularly affected by the chasm between his experiences and mine.

The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris - ★★★★

This was so great! A really, really fresh thriller that focuses on the publishing industry in New York and specifically zones in on what it’s like to be a Black author or editor. It has such an interesting twist that’s quite sci-fi and had a great variety of Black women narrators exploring the issue from different generations and viewpoints. This is one of the best fiction books I’ve read in terms of how it explores diversity, whitewashing and the Black experience in modern Western society and I totally recommend it. My full review is HERE.

Quichotte by Salman Rushdie - ★★★★★

I’ve always been vaguely interested in Salman Rushdie because he’s such an important figure in the literary world. This however was my very first Rushdie read. My husband bought us both copies for Christmas so that we could read it together (I’m a voracious reader but he needed a bit of a boost to start enjoying it again). This is an absolutely wild journey of a book. It’s based on Cervante’s Don Quixote but it follows a fictional Quichotte who is a travelling salesman in love with a chat show host who he decides to find and win over. His creator, known mostly as ‘Author’ is a middle aged Indian-American spy thriller writer. The result is a totally unique novel that explores the concept of home, immigration, fame, opium abuse, paedophilia, family, death, love and so much more. I’ll absolutely be reading more Rushdie.

Mrs Everything by Jennifer Weiner - ★★★★★

This is a pretty big claim because I’ve read a lot of great stuff this month but this may well be my number one. I read this novel along with two of my best female friends which was the PERFECT way to enjoy this multi-generational family saga centered around two sisters (Beth and Jo). The novel begins in the 1950s with Beth and Jo living with their parents in Detroit and travels through to the modern day when both sisters are adults with their own families. There’s no one single storyline, instead its sort of about everything that makes up a life, but the core issue is what it means to be a woman and how that’s changed over time. At the top of the book, Beth is the perfect daughter and Jo is the disappointment. How these opinions help to shape their futures and how they rail against them are both explored in fascinating detail. The twists and turns are so well done by Weiner and I cannot recommend this book more.

Leave The World Behind - ★★★★

I’ve already popped a full review up HERE for this one so I won’t harp on. Suffice to say this was another really great read. I know - what a month for books right!? There was something totally unique about this and (the unsatisfying ending aside) I’m keen to read more Rumaan Alam in the future. However it left me way more shaken than a book usually does. I can deal fine with twisty, turny thrillers but this was so much more realistic and the sense of fear was so creeping and surprising. Therefore, while I thought this was a top notch read that I’d recommend, I’d also suggest putting it aside for now if you’re not keen to feel a bit wobbly.

SIDE NOTE:

• Article: I also re-read this beautiful piece in Vanity Fair by Jesamyn Ward. It’s heart-breaking but incredibly well written.

• Podcast: I’ve been listening to I’m Not a Monster by BBC Panorama and PBS Frontline which is fascinating.

• Radio: I enjoyed Elizabeth Day’s interview with Raven Leilani on BBC Radio 4’s Open Book. I’m a fan of Elizabeth and it’s great to hear her lovely interview style in a different format from How To Fail and I’m about to start Lelani’s debut novel Luster.

• Livestream: I’ve been watching the livestreams of Mischief Movie Night In. I’m a bit biased as my husband is in the company but it’s been such a fun, interactive experience after months of passively watching TV.