Three Recs, self-improvement edition
A hilarious Aussie romcom show, an investigative Cold War podcast, a heartwarming mockumentary series
Happy Friday, kids!
It has been a week, and I am so glad to have a quiet weekend planned. The third season of The Witcher just came out, so I will absolutely be binging that and spending a few days with Henry Cavill. (But seriously, The Witcher is a delight, and way funnier and weirder than it had to be.)
I will also be listening to some audiobooks, which have become a go-to for me in the last year and a half. Though I’ve been a podcast listener for a long time, I always associated audiobooks with family road trips when I was a kid – delightful, but not for daily city life. And then, two years into covid, when my anxiety reached the point where I was verging on insomnia, I decided to put on the most soothing audiobooks I could think of: Agatha Christie.
We can argue about whether or not murder mysteries are calming and dig into my evidently twisted psychology another time. The point is, they worked, and I opened the door to audiobooks. Since then, I’ve listened to probably two-thirds of Christie’s oeuvre, as well as a number of nonfiction books and essay collections, which all feel to me like podcasts.
But I still kind of have a mental block on most fiction. I’ve said that it’s because I value the experience of reading those words on the page. Of experiencing the book as the author created it, unadulterated. Of being able to revel in the language in a way I might not if I’m hearing someone else read it.
My husband disagrees. He reads lots of fiction audiobooks – from literary fiction to pulpy spy novels, and everything in between – and he doesn’t find the experience diminishing. If anything, he finds it can bring to life books that might otherwise be difficult to follow or a bit of a slog. A talented actor performing dialogue can imbue the words with layers and meaning that aren’t always obvious on the page. As someone who thinks about how actors will perform my own writing, I can see the point.
So it was appropriate when, last week, a friend sent me this Atlantic piece about audiobooks. According to the writer, this debate isn’t a new one. In fact, for the last century, there have been snobs suggesting that reading should be hard work, that it shouldn’t be as absorbing as audiobooks almost inherently are. Because I have spent a number of years trying to unlearn some snobby tendencies – and because, as a writer, I believe your first job is to entertain your audience – this immediately prompted me to question my biases.
What is the point of a novel if not to be a story that pulls you in? Perhaps you as the writer have something to say, but no one will ever hear it if they’re not absorbed in the read.
According to the piece, audiobooks are booming. Since I will always be in favor of anything that gets more people reading, watching, and listening to stories, I think it’s time for me to expand my audiobook sphere beyond Agatha Christie and nonfiction. I’ll report back.
One tiny follow-up rec:
Back in April, I recommended Corruptible, a nonfiction book about who gets power and how it changes us. So I was delighted last week to discover that the author, Brian Klaas, also has a Substack! I especially enjoyed his piece about the Russian sorta-coup.
Rec 1
Colin from Accounts (TV)
All of you who like your warm and fuzzy – but still smart and hilarious – shows, queue up this Aussie romcom ASAP. I’ve heard it compared to Catastrophe, which is broadly apt (at least, the first season of Catastrophe), in that it’s got that same sort of “two struggling, flawed people just doing their best are forced together and hijinks ensue.”
The setup is that a brewery owner and a med student are forced together by a dog that gets hit by a car (technically he hits the dog, but there’s a debate that’s a plot point). They both feel responsible and so end up paying for his surgery and sharing custody of him. Naturally, everything goes wrong, they’re both kind of hot messes, and so of course they’re going to fall for each other. Also: the dog is adorable!
I don’t watch much (any?) Australian TV, but this feels quite distinctly Aussie. The stars are also the creators and writers, and they’re married in real life – fortunately, their chemistry translates to the screen. The show doesn’t shy away from the harder, darker stuff, and there are some cringe humor moments, but the overall effect is so heartwarming and funny that it all balances out quite nicely. Extra bonus: it’s 8 half-hour episodes. So you could binge in an afternoon, though I’d personally recommend spacing it out a bit just to savor it.
And now, an apology to the Americans: It’s not out in the US yet, and I have no idea when it will be. So either get a VPN and watch it in the UK or Australia, or keep an eye out for it.
Where to watch: BBC iPlayer (UK)
Rec 2
Wind of Change (podcast)
Bit of a legacy rec here: this Crooked Media pod by New Yorker journalist Patrick Radden Keefe was one of my favorite lockdown listens in 2020. (And by lockdown listen, I mean I listened to it on my hour-plus walks into central London that summer.) And yet, it’s one of those things that I still recommend all the time. I think I’ve recommended it twice this week. It's possibly my platonic ideal of an investigative podcast.
The premise is that Radden Keefe, during his years of researching articles and books, had heard a rumor from a contact that the CIA had written a song (Wind of Change) by a German metal band (The Scorpions) that became a pro-democracy anthem in Soviet bloc states in 1990. So he sets out to try to figure out if the rumor is true.
His quest takes him down some strange and fascinating rabbit holes, and we catch glimpses of some now mostly-forgotten parts of Soviet culture. He talks to some real characters – including the lead singer of the Scorpions, who wrote the song – who lead him down even more paths. It’s a compelling journey, and one I would have kept going on for longer than the show lasted. But, fundamentally, he’s never going to get a satisfying answer. And, in the end, it really doesn’t matter. Which is all kind of the point.
Where to listen: wherever you listen to podcasts
Rec 3
Jury Duty (TV)
I’m sure the Americans are going to tell me I’m late to the party, but this breakout hit only just now finally came out in the UK and I absolutely loved it, so I’m reccing it even if that’s like so April.
Here’s the deal: It’s sort of a mockumentary about a jury in a (civil?) trial, and everyone in it is an actor – except one guy, who thinks it’s real. They worked quite hard to make it not be mean – it’s funny, but it’s also really quite sweet – and it helps that the main guy is just a really good dude. It turns out that they cast a genuinely kind, caring, and curious person to be the heart of the show, which blew away even the writers, producers, and other actors.
I’m sure you have lots of questions – What did he think was happening? How did he not realize it was fake? – but I promise the show answers them all. One thing he’s said in interviews since is that, yes, a lot of weird stuff happened, but it’s way more nuts to think that everything is fake and you’re in a reality show than it is to just think a lot of weird shit is happening. Something about this – and the show itself – feels like an antidote to all the crazy circulating in society these days. That when you just get a bunch of weird strangers together, kindness and human connection can prevail.
Oh, and someone give James Marsden an award for being able to make fun of himself!
Where to watch: Amazon Freevee (US), Amazon Prime (UK)
That’s all for this week! What are you reading/watching/listening to that I should be aware of? Drop me a line (or comment) to let me know if you check out any of my recs and what you think.
Please spread the word and I’ll see you in a couple weeks!
xo
Kate
Did someone share this with you?
I'm a weird one because I find audiobooks so difficult to concentrate! If it's not music or an interview style podcast, or an audiobook memoir, I find it extremely difficult to focus and not let my mind wander.