Book #51 of 2021: The Listerdale Mystery by Agatha Christie A fine collection of short stories, although perhaps a bit too similar to one another overall. Despite the title, these are not mysteries in author Agatha Christie’s usual sense; there are no investigations or clues that a clever reader can race to put together before …
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Book #50 of 2021: Overground Railroad: The Green Book and the Roots of Black Travel in America by Candacy Taylor A fascinating deep dive into The Negro Motorist Green Book, a guide that was self-published by a small press from 1936 to 1966 with lists of businesses around the country that had been verified safe …
TV #19 of 2021: Justified, season 2 I like the idea of the Bennett hillbilly crime family — as well as Margo Martindale’s powerhouse portrayal of its cagey yet honorable clan matriarch — but the surrounding plot is messy and uneven, and a number of writing decisions leave me frustrated. I don’t mind making the …
TV #18 of 2021: The Queen’s Gambit An outstanding character study and period piece, offering the same sort of lush mid-twentieth-century design details that bring the era to life on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. The main focus here, however, is on our complicated protagonist, a brilliant but lonely young prodigy struggling to understand the world …
Book #49 of 2021: You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson This is a really cute #ownvoices queer love story, and while it’s a little hard to suspend my disbelief that a race for prom queen could be this intense — or that the nerdy protagonist is pinning all of her scholarship …
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Book #48 of 2021: The Plague Cycle: The Unending War Between Humanity and Infectious Disease by Charles Kenny An informative yet somewhat dry overview of the history of pandemics, focusing less on the science of disease origin, spread, and containment / cure, and more on the human policy response (or lack thereof). I’d recommend this …
Book #47 of 2021: Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor by Steven Moffat This 2018 novelization of the Doctor Who 50th anniversary special is a whole lot of fun. Although it doesn’t take the opportunity like the similar Russell T. Davies “Rose” adaptation to cheekily sneak in some post-facto canon nods, author Steven Moffat …
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Book #46 of 2021: No Time Like the Future: An Optimist Considers Mortality by Michael J. Fox I think most people probably have a fondness for actor Michael J. Fox, due to lingering affection for the beloved characters he’s played, sympathy for the early-onset Parkinson’s disease that reoriented his career and continues to affect his …
Book #45 of 2021: Infinity Blade: Awakening by Brandon Sanderson This 2011 media tie-in novella is an odd curiosity, even with author Brandon Sanderson bringing his usual talents to the task. It takes place in-between two mobile games to apparently bridge their stories together, and I imagine it would read better for an audience familiar …
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Book #44 of 2021: The Beauty of What Remains: How Our Greatest Fear Becomes Our Greatest Gift by Steve Leder A powerful meditation on saying goodbye to loved ones who are dead or dying, and learning how to carry on without them. Author Steve Leder is a rabbi who has spent decades counseling his congregants …
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