this week, not on an island.
Hi friends -
Hope you're well and that you had a great weekend.
I started off the weekend pissed off at Love Island with Chelley and Ace getting kicked off. My friend referred to me as a crash-out because I deleted TikTok in the process. My algorithm had too much Love Island content, and I didn't want to be bothered by it. I have since returned to TikTok, but I'm currently limiting my time there. However, I'm glad that Love Island is over.
Now that we've got that over and done with, let's get into this week's recommendations.
📚 READING RECOMMENDATIONS THIS WEEK:
First, the National Book Festival has been announced, and I am excited. While I am always overwhelmed by the number of people in attendance, going to the festival is one of my favorite things about living in the DMV. Here is one of my favorite sessions from last year with author James McBride.
Secondly, in last week's newsletter, I recommended Becoming Baba: Fatherhood, Faith, and Finding Meaning in America by Aymann Ismail. After reading it, I have few thoughts to share. What I loved most about this book was learning about Aymann's upbringing in New Jersey and how he navigated the balance between his faith and his environment. His reflections on his relationship with his wife and the other relationships in his life were interesting to read about. This book was also funny, well written and easy to follow so I would recommend checking it out.
The next book on my list this week is The Beginner's Guide to Dying by Simon Boas, out today. This book is being compared to When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi, which I loved. Here's a description of the book:
In his mid-40s, aid worker Simon Boas was diagnosed with incurable cancer–it had been caught too late, and spread throughout his body. But he was determined to die as he had learned to live–optimistically, thinking the best of people, and prioritizing what matters in life. Deemed “a funny, touching meditation on death” by the Sunday Times, this warm and wise book offers lessons for all of us in how to approach life.
BOOKS OUT TODAY:
My Train Leaves at Three by Natalie Guerrero
By a striking new voice in fiction, an electric coming-of-age novel that explores grief, family, sexuality, and love as an ambitious young woman from Washington Heights tries to make it on Broadway.
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A FEW OTHER THINGS TO READ:
A Day in The Life of A Gen Z Worker, The Atlantic
From Girl Boss to No Boss, The New York Times
Does Your Life Need More Whimsy?, The Good Trade
Every Thought We Had About Love Island USA Season 7, The Cut
🎧 MUSIC RECOMMENDATIONS THIS WEEK:
Last Friday, there was so much new music released, and as a music lover, it was a great day. I was thankful that all the albums I had been anticipating were all good and worth the wait. I’m going to share a few notes on some of my favorite albums from the week below, but also want to say one thing:
I have a new summer playlist, which you can listen to via Spotify or Apple.
Now that I got that out of the way, let’s get into some of my favorite releases from last week.
Giveon - BELOVED (Spotify | Apple)
I once told someone that Giveon's voice sounded like he was lying on his back and singing through a hollow tree. While I still think that's a valid description of his voice, it's not a diss because I love how unique his voice is (he's from Long Beach, not the UK – just sharing). With his new album, Beloved, he continues the momentum from his debut album, Give or Take, and crafts what, to me, is a perfect album. I've seen reviews saying that he is bringing back '70s R&B, and I can somewhat understand it. The production on the album, mixed with the songwriting, is perfect. While I enjoyed the album from start to finish, here are a few of my standout songs from the album:
Clipse - Let God Sort Em Out (Spotify | Apple)
I feel like I read and watched everything that came out as part of the Clipse album rollout – it was truthfully perfect and worth being studied. Some of my favorites were their Tiny Desk, their interview with Ebro, their interview with Pharrell for Complex and their interview on the New York Times Popcast. This album is their first album in 15 years and it did not disappoint. Here were some of my favorites:
Kokoroko - Tuff Times Never Last (Spotify | Apple | Bandcamp)
Truthfully, I don’t know what to say about this album. A few weeks ago I mentioned that this was one of my most anticipated albums of the summer, and it’s perfect. It’s beautiful. It’s magical. It’s wonderful.
Other music I listened to and enjoyed last week:
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A FEW OTHER THINGS TO LISTEN TO:
Still listening to Justin Bieber’s Swag. Will let you know my thoughts next week.
*WATCH* This is something to watch but the Labubu craze is weird. They aren’t cute like beanie babies and are on the same scale of a Furby which I never understood. With that, I thought this CNBC video about the Labubu toy craze was interesting and kind of answered some of the questions I had about them.
Good episode of Girls Gotta Eat podcast from earlier this week about dating and relationships.
I cackled during this episode of the “Glamour Trash: A Celebrity Memoir Podcast.” In it, Chelsea talks about Love Island and says that Austin from the show looks like what it would look like if someone drew a hot guy on paper with their left hand. I’m not sure why it makes me laugh so hard, but it’s also a very accurate description.