an August consumed
The Lit List No. 13
Hi pals,
In an attempt to post more regularly, I’m trying a roundup of all things consumed in August, both books and otherwise. Mostly my brain was occupied by the interminable Formula 1 summer break aka silly season, and you’re not spared from several F1-related bullet points below, but I did manage to read a few books and waste both my time and money.
books
Aquariums of Pyongyang: 10 Years in the North Korean Gulag by Kang Chol-hwan — a pretty grim account of, you guessed it, 10 years in the North Korean gulag. I appreciated the author’s efforts to portray what’s happening in North Korea as a humanitarian crisis as much as, if not more than, a nuclear and geopolitical one. I do think it’s interesting, though, that many accounts of North Korean defectors mention gratitude toward the U.S. There’s a lot I don’t know or understand, but the America love feels a little misplaced considering the U.S.’s role in the circumstances that allowed for all of this, and it also feels too simplistic and unproductive to suggest that the solution to a communist dictatorship is unchecked capitalism.
Just By Looking at Him by Ryan O’Connell — my friends and I are very into marathon brunches. I believe our record is 10 hours. This book is like hours 7 through 10 of a chaotic, gay marathon brunch where Real Housewives is playing in the background, and I mean that in the best way.
Life Ceremony by Sayaka Murata — a quirky short story collection that you won’t want to read while eating any sort of meat! It’s meant to showcase the odd in the ordinary and the ordinary in the odd, as far has human customs and beliefs go — I think. I definitely didn’t understand all of the stories, and I wonder if some of the disconnect I felt was due to the writing style or the translation. Overall, though, it was entertaining.
Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield — my fav of the month, and it even got a rare stand-alone review on insta. It was as moody and atmospheric as it was eerie, which aren’t qualities I’d expect in a love story, but ultimately, that’s what it was. I went in expecting some real deep sea Planet Earth shit and was initially disappointed that this isn’t exactly that, but I got over myself to appreciate the mystery and poetry for what it is.
Space Invaders by Nona Fernández — a very quick (like one-sitting quick) translated read, which I picked up after reading and loving the author’s The Twilight Zone last month. I guess I didn’t realize the two books are semi-related, because while enjoyable, Space Invaders almost felt like Nona testing the waters before fully developing the themes and plots in The Twilight Zone.
non-book reading
The Rise of the Worker Productivity Score in the NYT — I’m hearing from more and more people that their employers are implementing some sort of time-tracking system. This interactive article explains why it’s not only demoralizing for workers at all levels but also just not the most accurate measurement of productivity. The time tracking the article does on you while you read really adds some perspective.
Lewis Hamilton is on the cover of September’s Vanity Fair, and everyone already knows I’m unfortunately and unhealthily obsessed with Formula 1. This cover + spread took me out. I wish Lewis himself would take me out next. And, if Lewis gets nervous driving normal cars on normal roads, then it’s okay that I do too!!!
Don’t worry, Lewis isn’t the only wealthy, thick-necked, European driving diva for me! The Ferrari boys (Charlos <3) also got a spread in GQ, and even though I wish they were featured more (always more), the look inside Ferrari itself was really interesting.
Oh wait, there’s more! Daniel Ricciardo rounds out my quartet of favorite drivers with his Men’s Heath cover, though you have to be a subscriber to view the online article, and sry, who subscribes to Men’s Health? As devastated as I am that now I can’t see his workouts, I’m even more devastated that he might not have a seat next year.
Sick to Our Stomachs: Why Does Everyone Have IBS? — I believe I first saw this article in Swati/BookSnailMail’s truly excellent newsletter, and I felt immediately attacked at the headline as an IBS hottie myself. But actually, why DOES it seem like suddenly everyone has IBS? Why does it suddenly seem cool? No one thought it was cool when I pooped in my pants, but okay. In all seriousness, this shit (ha) has caused me a lot of literal and emotional pain over many years, which made me feel kind of vindicated when all the cool girlies were proudly declaring their own IBS struggles, until I realized this is yet another thing we’ve commodified. But this article breaks down some of the science behind what sometimes feels like a fake health issue and adds some important cultural context and implications. Anyway, off to drink an oat milk latte and claim I don’t do dairy because of my IBS while also eating a buttery grilled cheese before doubling over an hour later and proclaiming that this is so unfair!
tv/movies
The Afterparty — we watched this Apple TV+ show on a whim because it’s got a great cast, but it was actually pretty funny. Plus, the episodes are 30 minutes, which is almost a prerequisite at this point to get me to watch a TV show. If you recommend a show with hourlong episodes, there is a really good chance I will never watch it. I just can’t.
As part of our exhausting, never-ending endeavor to watch all the movies set in D.C., we knocked The President’s Analyst (it probably made a lot more sense in the 60s) and Enemy of the State (a classic Will Smith action-thriller thing) off the list. If you’re actually interested in which movies I included, I’m happy to send you all 94 of them.
If you’re thinking to yourself, hey, I haven’t cringed in awhile, scroll up and read my IBS ramblings. If that’s not enough, turn on Not Okay, feat. Cringe Queen Zoey Deutch.
Licorice Pizza — are we supposed to think the illegal age gap is romantic and cute because the genders are reversed and it’s the 70s? Sry pls no
Apparently there was a Cary Grant Day this month on TCM, which meant a reason to watch one of my comfort movies, North by Northwest.
things I spent my money on
the video game Stray, which my friends and I played together and soon realized wasn’t just a cute little game about stray cats. My gremlin cat Gomez had fun watching it, though.
a paint-by-number project, but for adults, supposedly. I found one through this etsy shop, but the world of assisted painting is your oyster. If you like your relaxation to actually be stressful because it feels more comfortable that way, I’d recommend.
two books: Trust by Hernan Diaz, which I am so excited for, and I Will Die in a Foreign Land by Kalani Pickhart, which I didn’t realize has the most devastating cover until after I bought it so I can’t wait to cry over some illustrated sheep.
sorry to say this and also capitalism is bad, fast fashion is bad, we don’t need more clothes, etc., but I bought a pair of these abercrombie jeans and don’t want to gatekeep jeans that actually work for millennials who are over skinny jeans but still want to actually feel their age.
etc.
Chromatica Ball was incredible and provided many opportunities to do the Father Son and House of Gucci sign of the cross, and I was reminded why I tried to change the spelling of my name to Stefani in high school when my Lady Gaga phase first began.
A very great perk of living in DC is all the free stuff, Smithsonian zoo included. I KNOW zoos are problematic and sad but sometimes I am problematic and sad also. Plus, they sell expensive alcohol now with exotic names like zoojito. And watching hordes of people scramble to see the pandas, the clear zoo VIPs with a ridiculously large enclosure but who still chose to hang out inside a tiny room, was just the kind of social experiment I needed to feel bad about things.
If you’re in D.C. or visiting, I recommend checking out the Planet Word museum. It’s a small museum, but it’s interactive and well put together, and it’s connected to a restaurant with a negroni patio (which would be great, if I liked negronis).
Anyway, I accidentally just wrote a combination of a diary plus one of those annual family holiday letters that go into way too much embarrassing detail.
Happy September! Please send me things to consume this month so that my next recap isn’t this.