This Week In Recommendations - 10.08.23
Officially 32, two great reads, three new podcast shows I've been enjoying recently and how Tiktok and Youtube are not just shaping readers - it is changing the publishing industry too
👋 Welcome to this weeks edition of You Should Check Out. I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling 22 32. Yeah, it doesn’t quite have the same ring to it but I am officially 32 years old. I celebrated my birthday by going on a big walk around the park with the husband, popping in for some soup for lunch (because it is soup weather in August here), picking up some new books, pizza and takeout with my family. Super chilled out and wholesome! I saw this on IG this week and it hit me in the feels.
I think my generation seem to fear getting older yet it is something I embrace. That line about being well-acquainted with yourself at 30 stood out to me. Each year, I feel like I can reflect back on what I’ve learned, how I’ve grown and get excited to think about what lessons this next year will bring. Getting more acquainted with yourself as years go by is, imo, one of the greatest joys of life.
Anyway, enough getting older chat, here is this weeks round-up!
Reading
📚 Ok, I’m down to one book remaining from my London haul … but it is on hold just for now. Because my pre-order arrived of the first book I am about to rave about and the second was one I got for my birthday that I inhaled in one sitting. Can the rest of my August reads be as good as this please?
📖 I pre-ordered My Husband by Maud Ventura that is translated from French and a bestseller. In short, this is a story about a woman who is obsessed with her husband. Obsessed feels like an understatement. She takes her role of being his wife very seriously and despite there being no signs of him leaving her, the thought of that fills her with intense dread and anxiety. Let me just say, the book is full on. The writing style is like You meets Gone Girl. It can also be slightly repetitive at times. We get it, you love your husband. But I couldn’t put it down. I was glued to it. There was a day where I just couldn’t concentrate to read let alone do anything and I was agitated because I wanted to finish this so bad. Our unnamed protagonist is one of my favourite, chaotic female characters in a long time and wow, the last part? Mind blown. I gave this a 4.5/5 stars. Highly recommend this one!
📖 My husband bought me three books for my birthday and I ended up picking up First Love by Gwendoline Riley that has been on my wish-list for a few months now. I read her other book, My Phantoms, last year and her experimental writing intrigues me. This is a tricky book to review because there are lots of trigger warnings around abuse. Neve reflects on her key relationships from her dysfunctional marriage to a manipulative, horrible older man, her abusive father, her needy mother and a man she once had strong feelings for. It is heavy. That is the one word I would use to describe it. I gave this 3.5/5 stars. At 169 pages, I managed to read this in one go. By no means an easy read - please check the TW’s if you do dive into this. Riley is firmly on my radar now though and I will read anything she releases in the future.
Watching
🎥 I watched Before The Devil Knows Your Dead this week and it was a brilliant movie that I hadn’t heard of before. Released in 2007 starring Ethan Hawke and Phillip-Seymour Hoffman, this is story of two brothers who decide to rob their parents jewellery store and it doesn’t go to plan. It is intense, dark and the acting is phenomenal. Hoffman was such a remarkable talent and Ethan Hawke’s performance in this is one of my favourite of his. If you haven’t seen this, I highly recommend giving it a watch!
📺 Over the festive period, like everyone in the U.K it seemed, I binge-watched the British series of The Traitors. I decided to give the Australian version a go since it was on BBC iPlayer and I think I liked this better? The tasks weren’t as good but man, this group of people were so fired up. They were all so determined to win and extremely trusting so the game felt even more fierce. If you haven’t watched this show before or loved the U.K version, give this a go but be prepared to want to binge it all in one go.
🎥 And lastly, I watched the film adaptation of Never Let Me Go that I enjoyed more than I thought I would. I know that the book by Kazuo Ishiguro is so well loved. It has been on my shelf for around two years and in that time, I have attempted to read it three times and I have never been able to click with the writing. I am not going to give too much away as I think try to go into this as blind as possible. I knew what part of the plot was (because some people on IG just love to spoil books in their reviews!!!!) but the cast was superb and I’m kicking myself for not watching it sooner.
LISTENING
I thought this week, I would share some shows I’ve been listening to lately than just some episodes as I don’t have any specific episodes that have stood out this week. Here are some new recent discoveries though that I have been listening to and loving.
🎧 Virtual Book Tour is a podcast by U.S based subscription service Book of The Month. It is interviews with the authors from their monthly selections and I’ve found the conversations so far to be enjoyable and engaging plus, some of the authors that have featured lately have either been authors who I’ve read before or ones I plan to read soon. Book lovers, this is one for you.
🎧 Of course, I discovered a new, great podcast while they are currently on their summer break. Silver lining? Getting to binge their archive! Terrible, Thanks For Asking has been a recent find of mine that I’ve been wanting to rave about. This features a host of different guests telling stories that vary in nature from a parent influencer who’s decision to take his children off the internet was more complex than he thought to tragic stories around grief, leaving religion, crime and much much more. What I love about this one is not just the diversity in the stories but the way the episodes are constructed. The guests get to tell their stories without judgement and are asked questions in a delicate, respectful way. It is hosted by Nora McInerny and the format of these make it easy to digest even if the subject matter is heavy. Wonderful and one you should definitely check out!
🎧 And for anyone who enjoys pop culture podcasts, I’ve been enjoying Pop Apologists who cover all the latest celebrity/pop culture news. I do struggle to find ones I like in this genre (so many love the sound of their own voices, sorry not sorry) but these two sisters are likeable and keep the topics discussed pretty balanced.
INTERNET BROWSING
👩🏻💻 Two pieces in the Guardian that came out a couple of days apart this week was this article on how #Booktok is shaping the modern publishing industry and is driving more people to buy from independent retailers. A piece followed a couple of days later on a report that found 14-25 year olds are more likely to search Youtube to find book recommendations. I enjoy both platforms. On Tiktok, I’ve come across people who have almost identical reading taste to me so I tend to get more recommendations via there. On the flipside though, I am a Youtube Premium subscriber - the lack of ads means I don’t have to listen to my dog bark at them because that is what she does the minute any come on. There are more leisurely reading vlogs on there that I love to relax to. It is interesting to see how the boom of an app is not just positive on the industry but also encouraging another generation to read. Remember we thought all teenagers where glued to their phones nowadays? Looks like we’re wrong.
👩🏻💻 And sticking with books, I loved this article celebrating Jeanette McCurdy becoming a veteran bestseller after the success of her memoir I’m Glad My Mom Died. She is an exceptional writer and I’m excited to hear she is writing something else and when that drops, sign me up!!!
ETC/WISH-LIST
🛀 I am still enjoying being in my bath era and I’m intrigued by this product I found on Cult Beauty. It is called the Susanne Kaufmann Herbal Bath Whey. I am not a fan of bath bombs or anything too scented or gimmicky but this promises to ‘strengthen skin, promote resilience and help to relieve stress and tension.’ You only need a few tablespoons and the reviews sound good!
💪 I want to get back into working out again. I have had to spend most of this year dedicated to other areas of my health and I miss how good exercise makes me feel. And what better way to get motivated than new workout clothes! I want to invest in some good quality ones that aren’t too expensive and a couple from Bo + Tee have caught my eye.
And that is it for this weeks You Should Check Out. There is now an option to pledge any £ to You Should Check out as a nod to the time and work that goes into this Substack. And the newsletter has its own Instagram now so go follow for more content on there.
Thanks for reading. See you next Thursday!
