Entertainment

What We’re...

...Reading

The Whispers by Ashley Audrain

In alternating points of view, The Whispers follows the lives of four women through a week that changes their lives in unexpected ways. The novel is replete with enough twisty reveals to keep the reader hooked, while also cleverly exploring what it means to be a wife, a mother, and indeed, a woman. Audrain manages to find humanity in our biggest flaws in a way that makes even the most antagonistic character understandable, if not relatable. The Whispers is a perfect fall read for cozy nights by the fire.

Old Friends: Endless Love by William McDonald

Released in April 2023, this book is a collection of short stories that explore love and loss in beautiful, poignant prose. Its characters are crafted in a way that makes them feel extremely real, ethereal, and holy, while each individual narrative feels more important than the last. This book will absolutely make you smile and cry, while experiencing every emotion in between.

...Listening To

Olivia Rodrigo: Guts

In June, the lead single Vampire on Olivia Rodrigo’s latest album Guts was met with universally positive reviews. The song layers Rodrigo’s beautiful, lilting vocals over simple piano chords with a distinctly vintage feel to tell the story of a toxic relationship. When the song breaks down into its harder, faster, angrier riffs, it comes from a somewhat unexpected place. This shift alone suggests that the full body of work in Guts will delight and surprise listeners.

Willie Nelson: Bluegrass

It is hard to understand how something as familiar as Willie Nelson’s most popular songs could manage to feel fresh, but somehow on this album, the artist succeeds in recreating his work in a way that makes it feel new and alive. On Bluegrass, Nelson has selected 12 of his songs to rework with a bluegrass vibe, and in the process created something that his old and new audiences will enjoy.

...Watching

Lessons In Chemistry (Apple TV+, October 13)

Based on the novel by the same name, Lessons in Chemistry is set in the 1950s and will inevitably make viewers ask if it is based on a true story. It is not. But the story, which follows scientist Elizabeth Zott (played by Brie Larson), will feel very real–especially to those who lived through that era in history. Zott dreams of being a scientist, but when she is fired from her lab, she accepts a job as a host on a TV cooking show and sets out to teach her fans about chemistry in a whole new way.

All the Light We Cannot See (Netflix, November 2)

This long-awaited series is based on Anthony Doerr’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel by the same name, and stars Mark Ruffalo as an unexpected hero when he flees Paris during World War II to save a legendary diamond from the Nazis. Written by Peaky Blinders’ writer Steven Knight, this four-part series is expected to be what everyone will be watching this fall.

By Vanessa Hutchison

Today's Transitions / Fall 2023