Unfortunately, This is America
3 quick engrossing reads, Pachinko, Old Enough, A Girl Is A Body of Water, and Amazonian TikTokers.
Hello there,
Spring has sprung, bringing us flowers, seasonal allergies, and a new COVID subvariant. I know three people in three different US cities who currently have COVID, two of whom got it at superspreader events, just like some of Washington’s elite. I regret to inform you that this pandemic is still not over. We still have not figured out how to live with this virus.
Watch
One of my favorite books ever, Pachinko, is now a TV series on Apple TV. I rarely like a movie or TV adaptation as much as the original book, but so far I have really enjoyed it. The casting is perfect, the cinematography is beautiful, and the use of multi-colored subtitles to switch between Korean and Japanese is really well done. So far, my only quibble is that the book did a better job showing hunger, which is something that stuck with me long after I finished reading.
Old Enough is a popular, long-running Japanese reality show that’s now on Netflix. Each episode is 10 to 15 minutes long and the premise is very simple: a child between the ages of two to six is sent on an errand by him or herself, or sometimes with a friend his or her age. Some of them navigate city streets, or cross a busy road, and as one reviewer put it, much of what takes place would be unthinkable in the US. That said, the children are always surrounded by camera operators, who occasionally give the kids a hand.
Apparently the show is dividing Western viewers (when I recommended it to a family member, she said she thought it was abusive), but I have found it delightful, moving, and illuminating.
Read
I gather and track books I want to read based on recommendations, books that friends are reading on Good Reads, and other random places online. But since I haven’t browsed a bookstore for a long time, I rarely just pick up a random book to take a chance on. Now though, I’m lucky to have an excellent local library that has a huge display of recommended books, and I recently snatched two of them on a whim. I’m so glad I did.
A Girl Is A Body of Water tells the story of Kirabo, a thirteen-year-old girl growing up in a rural Ugandan village during the Idi Amin era. The book follows her coming of age, and then jumps back in time briefly to mirror her grandmother’s own childhood, and touches on the themes of women’s rights, women’s relationships, and traditional cultural mores. And while the story incorporates historic events, the author quietly weaves them into the story without shoehorning them in like some historical fiction books do. It uses a lot of Luganda without fully explaining terms or phrases, which I tend to like, but I think in this case the book could have benefitted from a glossary.
Particularly during the pandemic, I’ve had a really hard time paying attention while reading, and there’s just something about this book that is utterly engrossing. I wasn’t sure whether to savor it or just burn through and chose the latter. But maybe you’ll choose to savor it.
See the full recommendations list here.
Follow
Cunhaporanga is a 22-year-old Brazilian woman who’s become a TikTok star. She sometimes does silly dances and other TikTok memes, but what really led to stardom was her everyday snippets of life in a small Tatuyo village on the banks of the Amazon near Manaus. She shows what she eats, how food is harvested and prepared, and explains some cultural rituals. (You can read more about her in The Washington Post.) Her brother jumped on the bandwagon and also shares similar videos.
Cunhaporanga and her brother Pikó are on Instagram as well as TikTok. There aren’t subtitles, but you can get the gist of some videos without translation.
Do
I recommend reading these stories that have been living rent-free in my head since I read or watched them:
The remarkable brain of a carpet cleaner who speaks 24 languages (The Washington Post). This is one of my absolute favorite stories I’ve read in a long time. I’m obsessed with languages and am desperately jealous of hyperpolyglots, and the story of this particular genius is at once fascinating and infuriating. I also loved the design of the story to include snippets of Vaughn Smith speaking different languages and to show how much he knows of each language.
If you’ve rented a car from Hertz, there could be a warrant out for your arrest (USA Today). This story made me nearly break out in hives and I immediately searched my email history to see if I’d rented from Hertz before (I had, but not in the US). Be sure to read this update once you’re done.
This is Not America by Residente. Here’s some background on what’s featured in the video, and a translation of the lyrics.
Until next time,
Rachel