Three Not-So-Typical Recommendations

A book, a movie, and an audiobook that make you think

Happy Friday!

I’m not sure what puts me in a certain reading/watching mood. Sometimes I want things that are light and go down easy. Sometimes I want cozy or romantic or both. Sometimes I want funny. Sometimes I want scary. But lately, I’ve found myself craving things that make me think a little harder.

So, I’m going to share three things in this brainy category that I’ve loved lately. But I want to put a disclaimer. Yes, I am a romance writer. Yes, I love a wrapped-up, happy ending. However, I sometimes consume books/movies that do not give me that. These are some of those things. You have been warned. ;)

A book

First up is the book that broke me out of a fiction reading slump. I Could Live Here Forever by Hanna Halperin is literary fiction, which should mean it moves a little slower, but I raced through this in almost one sitting.

I don’t want to give away too much of the plot and I think the back cover gives away a good bit, but what I’ll say is this is the story of a complicated romantic relationship between Leah, an MFA grad student, and Charlie, a guy she meets at the grocery store. This is not a happy story, but there are glimmers of beauty and humor and love.

Also, the portrayal of Leah’s friend group from the MFA writing program made me yearn for those precious college years where you’re all potential and big dreams and your life can still be anything. Like this passage as she describes her apartment:

“Nothing matched. But it was the first time I’d lived alone, and I loved everything about my apartment. It had a working fireplace and built-in bookshelves and French doors that led into a tiny study with windows that overlooked a courtyard. Each time I walked through my front door I felt peaceful—like this was where I was supposed to be.

I felt untethered and alive in Madison in a way that I never had in Boston. I don’t know if things were actually so different in Wisconsin, or if it was because I was away from my family and everything I’d ever known, but I woke up each morning with a feeling that finally my life was happening.” - pg. 26, I Could Live Here Forever

The state of her apartment also becomes a metaphor in the story. Did I mention the writing is gorgeous?

There’s also some humor to provide levity. I loved this line about her MFA friends:

“We took ourselves so seriously that the poets stopped hanging out with us.” —pg. 27, I Could Live Here Forever

Ha. So, if you’re open to a beautifully written bittersweet/sad story, I highly recommend this one. (Also, I got this rec from Sarah’s Bookshelves Summer Reading Guide, so if you haven’t checked that out yet, it’s now live.)

What have you read lately?

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A movie

Straight Up on Netflix

I’m not sure how I found this one. Maybe it was recommended in the New York Times Watching newsletter, but I’m so glad I came across it.

Straight Up is the quirky, adorable, and sometimes sad story of Todd and Rory. Todd, who reminded me a lot of Sheldon in Big Bang Theory, has been living as a gay man, but he starts to question whether he’s gay after all. He meets Rory in the library and they bond over Gilmore Girls (you know I loved that!) and they talk like they’re in Gilmore Girls with rapid-fire dialogue. They connect as friends and eventually start dating…but it’s complicated.

This isn’t a romance in the traditional structure of a romance, but I thought it was very sweet and tender. Also, the ending is open to some interpretation, but if you’ve read any of my Loving on the Edge books or Good Girl Fail, you can probably guess what interpretation I chose to walk away with. ;) I won’t say more than that!

Have you watched anything great lately?

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An audiobook

Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma by Claire Dederer

I got this with my Libro.fm subscription and I’m so glad I did. Here’s the back cover:

From the author of the New York Times best seller Poser and the acclaimed memoir Love and Trouble, Monsters is “part memoir, part treatise, and all treat” (The New York Times). This unflinching, deeply personal book expands on Claire Dederer’s instantly viral Paris Review essay, "What Do We Do with the Art of Monstrous Men?" 
 
Can we love the work of artists such as Hemingway, Sylvia Plath, Miles Davis, Polanski, or Picasso? Should we? Dederer explores the audience's relationship with artists from Michael Jackson to Virginia Woolf, asking: How do we balance our undeniable sense of moral outrage with our equally undeniable love of the work? Is male monstrosity the same as female monstrosity? And if an artist is also a mother, does one identity inexorably, and fatally, interrupt the other? In a more troubling vein, she wonders if an artist needs to be a monster in order to create something great. Does genius deserve special dispensation? Does art have a mandate to depict the darker elements of the psyche? And what happens if the artist stares too long into the abyss? 
 
Highly topical, morally wise, honest to the core, Monsters is certain to incite a conversation about whether and how we can separate artists from their art.

I have about half an hour left of listening before I finish this one, but I feel confident in recommending it, and it was very good on audio (narrated by the author.)

I think all of us have grappled with liking something (book, movie, TV show, song, etc.) that we later find out was made by someone who turned out to be a not great person. Then you’re left with the quandary—can I still like the art if I don’t like the artist?

Dederer tackles this question in a very thoughtful, intellectual way and doesn’t tell you she has all the answers, but instead discusses all the sides and nuances of the issue. I really appreciated that kind of approach because I think it’s often turned into a you’re-on-one-side-or-the-other issue, and it’s more complex than that.

But be warned, it’s not a light listen or a before-you-go-to-sleep read. You’re going to need to have had your cup of coffee and be alert when you dive in.

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Alright, that’s all I have for you today. I hope you found something worth reading or watching. :)

And let us know what you’ve been reading, watching, or listening to!

Have a great weekend!

*Book links are affiliate links (Amazon, Libro.fm, and/or Bookshop.org), which means I earn a small commission if you buy through my links. Also, I receive advanced listening copies of some audiobooks through Libro.fm’s Influencer program. However, all reviews and opinions are my own.