sunday scaries
h e l l o t h e o
this week’s style inspo:
what I’m clicking:
The travel companies that sell freedom to digital nomads | How my coworker found out the hard way why you should always ask about the bathroom situation before doing Ayahuasca | Did the Emma Sulkowicz the mattress girl get Redpilled? | The writer as social media influencer | What’s left of Conde Nast? | Superyachts and billionaires | The war on sex work | I accidentally uncovered a nationwide scam on Airbnb | The rise and fall of WeWork | Where are all the Bob Ross paintings? | Eco-friendly consumerism is an oxymoron
what I’m wanderlusting:
The rainbow mountains of Salta.
what I’m listening to:
I can’t get enough of the Euphoria soundtrack.
what I’m watching:
I went to see David Byrne’s American Utopia on Broadway and it was completely magical. I want to go again! If you live in New York, you MUST go. Get balcony tickets--they’re $100 and the best seats in the house.
what I’m writing about:
what I’m reading:
Erica Ferencik
Usually when I read a book, I can tell if it’s objectively a bad book or a “critically acclaimed” book. This is definitely not winning any literary awards anytime soon, but it also seems to be a cut above the sensational paperbacks you’ll find for sale at the grocery store. I truly, truly enjoyed reading this book. There’s something so visceral about the descriptions of the Amazon that it makes you feel like bugs are crawling all over you. The story is trash, the writing is not great, the characters are forgettable, but the experience of reading this book is one I can highly recommend.
Did it make me cry: No, but it did make me very scared sometimes.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: It was pretty unputdownable.
Would I recommend it: I think the only person I would recommend it to is somebody about to embark on a trip to the Amazon.
Would I read it again: No.
Would it be a good movie: This movie would be terrible and probably a little racist.
I Was Told to Come Alone: My Journey Behind the Lines of Jihad
Souad Mekhennet
I love books like this that take an incredibly complicated and sensitive subject and talk about it with stories of real people and lived experience. Part memoir, part interview, and part reporting, it’s a book about the events leading to Arab Spring and the rise of Isis. It’s a must-read for anybody curious about the Middle East and North Africa.
Did it make me cry: No.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: No.
Would I recommend it: I would recommend it to anybody who plans to travel to that part of the world or anybody interested in diplomacy and international relations.
Would I read it again: I would read the sections on specific countries again if I had relevant travel plans.
Would it be a good movie: I think you could take one of these stories and make it into a movie. There are so many tense scenes where shit almost hits the fan--it would be great acting.
Elizabeth Ames
Like so many books written by women and for women, the title and cover of this book trivializes the content. This book is like a beach read, focusing on a group of friends as they navigate post-college life in their twenties and thirties, but it’s more complicated and dark. I highly, highly recommend it to people who love books about interpersonal dramas and relationships.
Did it make me cry: I don’t remember, but maybe.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: No, but I really enjoyed reading it. I couldn’t wait to get back into this book at the end of every day.
Would I recommend it: Yes! I think it will probably be in my top 10 favorite books of the year. It’s severely underrated and I’m not sure why more people aren’t talking about this book.
Would I read it again: Probably not.
Would it be a good movie: Big Little Lies the shit out of this thing, please.
Agatha Christie
I read this book ON the Nile, which was wonderful and perfect except for the fact that I kept being confronted by her geographical plot holes. But it was still great fun--I got to see the desk where she wrote the book at the Old Cataract Hotel, which actually won a Fodor’s Finest award this year.
Did it make me cry: No.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: No.
Would I recommend it: I think if you are the type of person to like this book, you would have already read it. But if you’re going to Aswan, it’s a great vacation read.
Would I read it again: No.
Would it be a good movie: I am so excited to watch this movie on a plane next year.
Mary Beth Keane
Truly one of the most forgettable books I’ve read this year. The setting is bland, the characters are sad, and the plot is preposterous and unnecessary. But we read it for book club and some people really liked it and related to it, so maybe don’t take my advice.
Did it make me cry: I think so, actually.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: No.
Would I recommend it: No.
Would I read it again: No.
Would it be a good movie: No.
The Testaments: The Sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale
Margaret Atwood
WHY, Margaret Atwood, WHYYYYYYY did you write this book. Honestly, what was this?
Did it make me cry: No.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: No.
Would I recommend it: No.
Would I read it again: No.
Would it be a good movie: No.
Lisa Taddeo
This book put me in a reading rut and I’m still furious about it. The concept is great, but the content is horrendous. It’s some of the worst writing I have ever seen on the pages of a best-selling, critically-acclaimed hardcover book. The writing is so atrocious that it distracts from the actual book. At one point--and I’m still mad at this--the author is comparing a croissant behind the case of a patisserie “it was a perfectly shaped elbow”. I’m sorry, but in what fucking world are croissants shaped like elbows?!?!?!? This woman needs to be banned from similes and metaphors and whoever the fuck her editor is should be ashamed of themselves. I honestly think it was probably some crusty old white dude being like “I think we need a post-’Me Too’ book” and then somebody plopped this on his desk and he spellchecked it and sent it to the printer. This book has incited my rage, and I hope it incites yours, too.
Did it make me cry: No.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: No.
Would I recommend it: Do not reward the publisher by buying this book, but please check it out from the library so we can hate on it together.
Would I read it again: No.
Would it be a good movie: No.
Erin Morgenstern
This is the book that broke me out of my reading rut. Three Women left a bad taste in my mouth, but this was like maple sugar candy melting on my tongue. It’s definitely written for a niche audience (are you a fan of both The Magicians and The Night Circus with a penchant for The Secret History?). It’s like Thomas Pynchon for YA fantasy readers and I loved it.
Did it make me cry: No.
Did it make me laugh: No.
Did it make me miss a subway stop: No, but these characters were my friends and I was so excited to hang out with them every day.
Would I recommend it: I fucking adored this book, but I don’t think you will. It’s objectively NOT a great book and riddled with plot holes. It’s fun though as long as you’re not a critical thinker.
Would I read it again: Yeah. This goes in the same category of like His Dark Materials where if anything truly terrible happened to me I’d probably spend hours inside this book pretending I was in a different world.
Would it be a good movie: No. Do not make this movie. You’ll only ruin the magic.
what I’m bookclubbing: We’ll be discussing Trust Excercise by Susan Choi in January! Join us!