As June comes to a close, I’m trying something a little different. My thought is that at the end of the end of the months I will feature a little recap of the month that was: what I read, what I bought, what I watched…you get the picture. All in, June was FAST. Birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, boiling hot New York City weather, book edits, freelance hustle, toddlers toddling. I am so lucky that most of what June was made of was good stuff, but things were packed to the brim.
Here’s a look at my media consumption this month.
Also here’s just a nice picture from this month.
The Sunday Read’s most clicked link of the month: The poem “I’m not a religious person but” by Chen Chen. I absolutely love that what you all clicked on the most was a poem.
The books I read
Revolution Sunday, by Wendy Guerra
I’m reading lots and lots of books about Cuba—as I work on revisions for my own book about Cuba—and this one was a rare re-read. Generally I’m not a re-reader but this book is so complicated and nuanced and packed, packed, packed with subtle references I felt I had no choice. I bow down to Guerra’s talent. The story is about a writer in Havana who through a strange sequence of events (this book is all about strange sequences of events) discovers that her parents are not who she thought they were—and that their identity has been kept from her because of the Revolution. It’s about much more than that, but that’s the gist.
Havana: Autobiography of a City by Alfredo José Estrada
I told you I was reading a lot about Cuba. This book is exactly what it sounds like—a history, er autobiography, of Havana. I’m not sure I would recommend it unless you, like me, are trying to scrape every interesting historical detail that you can about a place. Still I enjoyed it! And did lots of underlining while I read.
Die Hot with a Vengeance: Essays on Vanity by Sable Yong
I read this one for you, dear readers, and I have an interview with Sable landing on the newsletter in the next few days. Sable is my age, almost exactly, and came up on the internet (both personally and professionally) at the same time that I did. She worked for years as a beauty editor, most notably for Allure, and her debut essay collection is a rumination on beauty: the industry, our obsession with it, what it even means in the first place. More to come about Sable and this thought-provoking book (which comes out on July 9).
The movies I watched
I’ll admit I’ve been in a movie lull but I’m slowly dipping my toe back in.
A favorite. A classic. The absolute perfect version of the old-friends-spending-a-weekend-together-in-a-house movie. Also the cast: young Glenn Close, young Kevin Kline, young Jeff Goldblum. Also the star they cut: this was meant to be Kevin Costner’s breakout role but the film’s final version only includes him as a corpse for a few seconds and you don’t even see his face. Just a bit of trivia for you. Things turned out fine for Kevin.
I went to a screening of this film—which is hitting both theaters and Netflix in September—so more about it closer to the release date. It’s the cast though that piqued my interest: Natasha Lyonne, Elizabeth Olsen, and Carrie Coon starring as sisters who reunite in their childhood apartment to pre-mourn their father’s very certain death.
The shows I watched
My TV watching truly oscillates between high and deeply, deeply low.
I wanted so badly to hate The Valley but by golly I love it. It is the TV version of candy, and if you are a reality lover not watching The Valley you are missing out on some of the very best garbage. Also, over on Vulture they published an apology for not recapping The Valley from the start of the season because they didn’t expect it to be the glorious spectacle that it is. Brian Moylan writes, “The Valley is actually good and I was wrong.” Apology accepted.
I really do love this show. I know everyone was diehard about this season and while I liked it a whole lot, I thought it teetered into schmaltz territory by the end. Still, two of the best female characters on TV make this a very worthy watch.
The Kardashians
I don’t know why I watch this anymore but I do. And I’ll watch it until it is no longer on the air, and then I’ll watch reruns. Sue me.
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Somehow this show slid under the radar for me, but as its final season aired I realized this was a part of the zeitgeist that I didn’t want to miss. Worth the hype, but I’m sure you knew that already.
Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trial
My husband is a documentary producer and his latest project was this docu-series for Netflix about Hitler. The title kind of says it all, so it should come as no surprise that this is a HEAVY watch. But a fascinating one too. It also scares the absolute shit out of a person to see the bone-chilling parallels between the rise of Hitler and the rise of Trump.
Stuff I spent my money on
I’m adding this in because I’m nosey about what other people spend money on, and I’d gander that you’re nosey too. I also honestly don’t buy that much stuff, so when I do buy things I’ve thought about them a lot/done a lot of research/they are exactly what I’m looking for etc. etc. etc.
Little Excavator by Anna Dewdney
My sons (who are 2 years old) are completely obsessed with construction equipment and their favorite vehicle is, inexplicably, the excavator. When I saw this book in Books Are Magic written by the same writer who wrote Llama Llama Red Pajama, it was like the parting of the seas. We have since read it 75 million times.
A first aid kid for the stroller
My nanny asked me to buy this and I literally buy her whatever she wants. This tiny first aid kit has already proven immensely useful.
I am an evangelist for these swim diapers. My boys have been using them for their entire lives, sans any poop leakage into any swimming venue. A win. They are washable and cute. I keep buying them in the next size up. If this is useful information to you, I like the ones with snaps.
I wanted a place to write down basically no more than a sentence a day about what’s happening in my kids’ lives. This 5 year diary is doing the trick. I want to remember things like: Lyle was so scared of the lawnmower he had to leave the Botanic Gardens. That stuff is gold. And that’s the stuff that disappears unless you write it down.
See you next Sunday. xo
I felt the same way about Hacks. I love the show and the characters but I felt this season wasn’t satisfying enough for me. I did love the twist at the end!