Holding Your Breath
The Power, an incredible memoir, the Japanese tropics, an amazing dessert, and more.
Hello there,
Since I started working at an environment-focused newsroom a few months ago, I've had something of a crash course in things I probably should have already known about. PFAS, or "forever chemicals” that are found in a dizzying array of consumer goods, including non-stick pans. Atmospheric rivers. Fortress conservation. Heat pumps. The IRA (the US legislation, not the Irish paramilitary group.) But I also learned that reporting on climate solutions benefits news consumers and their approach to climate change. I think that balance of things you need to know and things that are constructive and positive is important.
Watch
Party Down is back and incredibly, still as funny as ever. For more serious fare, I watched the first three episodes of The Power (Amazon Prime), based on the bestselling book of the same name. I thought the book was good but not great, and so far I'm enjoying the series more than the book. The gist is that teenage girls suddenly develop the ability to conduct and manipulate electricity, leading to a huge shift in power dynamics across the globe. Something about it just hits different after the peak of the pandemic and the fall of Roe.
Read
Solito is one of those books that you have a hard time putting down and find yourself thinking about in the days and weeks after you finish. It's one of the most gripping things I've ever read, and I don't think I've ever cried so hard at the end of a book.
This book is the true story of one man's journey from El Salvador to the US to be reunited with his parents after they left in the wake of the civil war. At only nine years old, Javier Zamora traveled with a coyote and a group of Salvadoran migrants by land and sea through Guatemala and Mexico and across the US-Mexico border in the Sonoran Desert. It's terrifying and devastating, and I felt like I was holding my breath until the end.
It's also unusual for a memoir: the book mostly takes place over the course of several months, while the author was nine years old, and is written in his voice as a child. It also mixes in quite a bit of Spanish and Salvadoran slang. After reading more about the author, I learned that he wrote the book after going to therapy and that he only remembered so much of his journey because of how much trauma he endured, and as part of his healing process. Given the level of detail in the book, I'm not entirely sure it all really happened as he described, but even if that’s the case, it still makes for an incredible read.
See all the recommendations here.
Follow
Through Instagram's algorithm of showing you photos that have been liked by people you follow, I recently came across Atsushi Tamura's account. He's a Japanese photographer that shoots stunning photos of tropical beaches and water scenes in the Yaeyama Islands. The photos are all very soothing and calming.
Do
Oh hey so, I still have a million lemons. So I made these lemon swirl cheesecake bars from Food & Wine. And I think they're the best things I've made this lemon season yet. Give them a try.
Until next time,
Rachel