The Seven Moons of Msaali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka

This is the very last of the 2022 Booker Prize long list that I read, and it is also the winner. I started off not loving this, and feeling as I often do, which is that the best of the bunch did not cross the finish line first. This year I am less certain of it--this is a very good book, and it is also a bit unusual in a good way. This is set in Sri Lanka in the 1980's, which is a time of civil unrest and violence, both of which pervade the novel. Maali, the son of a Sinhalese father and a burgher mother, is a freelance photographer who loves his trusted Nikon camera, a gambler in high-stakes poker, a gay man and an atheist. He is not everyone's image of a hero, and at the start of the novel he wakes up dead. The rest of the novel he spends sorting out how exactly this happened to him, and then plotting revenge on those who killed him and how to get the photographs that got him killed out into the world. It is equal parts comic and tragic, so the very best mix, in other words. And in the end, there is always reincarnation.

The Martha Mitchell Effect (2022)

I was in junior high when Nixon resigned as president, and I have to say that while it was a lived experience, I really knew nothing of politics. So this film was eye opening, and reiterates that Trump is the most recent bad guy in the White House, he was operating from Nixon's playbook. In 1968, when Richard Nixon was elected the 37th president of the United States, Margaret Mitchell came to Washington with her husband John N. Mitchell, a former law partner of Nixon’s who, having run his successful campaign, the president had just named his Attorney General. But while the Mitchells moved into the Watergate Complex and beltway society, Martha had no use for the usual duties and decorum of a Washington wife. Instead, she made expressive quotes to the media, and cultivated late-night telephone relationships with journalists and favored newspapers. In a doggedly anti-press administration, Mitchell saw her role as one of openness, to which papers and pop media responded. Mitchell even appeared in a sketch on a 1971 episode of Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In alongside Lily Tomlin. But when the reporter HelenThomas printed Mitchell’s negative assessment of the Vietnam War, trouble ensued. No one could be seen to buck the GOP party line. From the Watergate break in to Nixon's resignation and her husband's arrest, the attempt to shut her up and how she evaded that is priceless.

Uncommon Type by Tom Hanks

I got this out of my library after I read Ann Patchett's collection of essays, These Precious Days, where she talks about being asked to review this collection, and her immediate hesitation about doing so--which I totally get. She seems to be a bit shy in some ways, and then what if you hate the book? Especially in this case, where the actor is so good at that craft and so deeply likable? She describes being relieved that she enjoyed them and then goes on to describe ways that her life and his were loosely intertwined for a while afterwards. including him reading her book 'The Dutch House' for the audio book. These are 17 well told stories that he reads, which adds to the enjoyment--I know because I had this out as a book and an audiobook at the same time so I had a chance to compare. Good acting is about good storytelling, so maybe it shouldn’t be a surprise that he can dream up a multitude of characters and worlds for them to inhabit. The stories are surprisingly varied, with a typewriter taking a starring or a supporting role more often than would happen by chance in the 21st century, which actually made me think about having one briefly. Then I came to my senses, but was happy that I read this.

Haulout (2022)

I am doing some posts this year on some of the Oscar nominated shorts that I especially liked, and this is one of them. This is a sad story, when all is said and done, but it's captured so beautifully that it is hypnotic to watch. The title is a reference to the process known as "haulout", during which various sea mammals emerge from the water and spend time resting on rocks, beaches, and ice. This short film follows one man who is in a small wooden hut up in the Siberian Arctic to observe and mark the crisis that is happening. It is in Russian, but there is almost no narration, so while there are subtitles, there is not much reading. He's living up there studying the walruses and their annual haulout. Unfortunately this mean he witnesses first hand the chaotic effects of climate change on Pacific walruses. These poor creatures end up stuffed, without an extra square inch between any of them, on this beach. It's awful. For the record, this is new – usually they rest on sea ice or icebergs. But there is none left due to climate change. So there are 100,000 of them on this tiny spit of land, exhausted and hungry, some of them dying. This is where we humans have left them.

Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands by Kate Beaton

This is a beautiful, thoughtful, understated graphic memoir that starts and finishes almost exactly how you would expect it to go, and yet it is compelling, magical in a bleak way, and altogether worth reading. The story begins in a community where every way for people to make money has left, so its youth have reluctantly followed suit. The goal is to make enough money to get back, but it almost never happens. The story resonates in the United States, but the author is from Cape Breton Island, on Canada’s eastern shore, where coal was once king; the industry’s sinking fortunes are also stripping the financial hopes of Nova Scotians and nearby Newfoundlanders. She has crushing student debt, and decides to go for the big money in the oil sands. For women who migrate to work in the bitumen-rich tar sands of northern Alberta, there were many ways for the gritty environment to turn toxic. This has always been true, of course, and the only thing unique is in the telling. She depicts the experience of being far outnumbered by men, dealing with the leering attentions of some male co-workers, and the loneliness and isolation of these stimulus deprived environments so well. It is less gruesome than it might be, and more thoughtful than I expected. I am not well read when it comes to graphic novels, but I loved this one.

Le Pupille (2022)

This is the first of the short Live Action movies that I have watched, but it is so charming on the surface with so much depth of commentary that I really hope it wins. It takes place in an orphanage in Bologna, featuring the Church of San Barbaziano and the stunning portico of San Luca. It is Christmas Eve, the nuns are just what you would suspect--controling, ostensibly focused on the Lord, but really take pleasure in their power over the children, and they are ramping up for the annual nativity pagent, where the convent raises money. The biggest yield is a Zuppa Inglese (an Italian trifle that you should try in Bologna after you have had the ragu the city is famous for), an enomormous and mouth wateringly beautiful creation that the nuns see fit to deprive the kids of, and it's hilarious end. The church does not look good here, but everyone else does. A word on the portico--Bologna is home to dozens, if not hundreds of stunning porticos, but this one is the longest in the world, and well worth walking should you find yourself nearby. The featuring of UNESCO World Heritage sites in films is a wonderful thing. And the cinematography is spectacular to boot.

The Immortal King Rao by Vauhina Vara

There are three components to this novel, and two of them I very much liked and one I did not. The novel follows King’s origin story as a child growing up on an Indian coconut plantation known as the Garden; his arrival in America and meteoric rise to prominence as the head of the world-redefining Coconut Computer Corporation; and the dystopian future where the blending of technology and life has gone a step or two too far. The story is narrated by King’s daughter, Athena, who, like King, grows up without a mother and possesses an uncanny kinship with advanced technology. Athena’s account is framed as a confession, made while in prison for a crime that should be impossible but isn't in this constructed future time. King Rao is born under a bad star. His mother, Radha, becomes pregnant as the result of rape, then dies in childbirth. The baby is left in the care of her sister, Sita, who is also forced to take on the burden of Radha’s no-good husband. The family is Dalit but succeeds in spite of this, but only to a point. King has massive talents which bring him to the US and to great success. The undercurrent is that while King tries to use his gifts for the greater good, there is a huge monetary component that corrupts it all. His naivete about that is his downfall.

Gochujang Chicken With Broccoli

This is quick to put together, flavorful because the gochujang has a complex flavor already mixed together and ready to use, and can be easily scaled up or down. I used it when we had a packet of Costco chicken thawed and used some of it for a BBQ chicken pizza, and used what was leftover for this. 2tablespoons canola oil 1½pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1½-inch pieces Kosher salt and black pepper 1(2-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and cut into matchsticks (about ⅓ cup) ½ cup unsweetened coconut milk 1-2 tsp. sugar 2 tablespoons gochujang paste 2 tablespoons soy sauce 1 pound broccoli florets, cut into 2-inch pieces Cooked rice, for serving Sliced scallions or chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish Step 1 In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high. Season chicken with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden all over, about 3 minutes. Add ginger and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 2 minutes. Step 2 Add coconut milk, sugar, gochujang and soy sauce and bring to a simmer, stirring until gochujang dissolves. Gently simmer over medium-low heat, stirring, until chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Step 3 Meanwhile, in a saucepan of salted boiling water, blanch broccoli until crisp-tender, 2 minutes. Drain. Step 4 Divide chicken and broccoli among plates; spoon with sauce. Serve with rice.

After Sappho by Selby Wynne Schwartz

I am not 100% sure that I got the message in this book, the second to last nominee for the 2022 Booker Prize longlist that I have read. The collective voice of women is at the center of this book, from Sappho up into the early 21st century, their voices are intermixed throughout. Virginia Woolf, one of my favorites when I was a young woman and thought that everything was possible, is part of a chorus that forms the narrative voice, calling for a collective experience of being female across history. The book comprises biographical fragments of the lives of historically vocal independent women, moving us mainly forwards through time from 1880s Italy, where the baby who will grow up to be Italian poet Lina Poletti begins, to 1920s Paris and London. We encounter Natalie Barney, Romaine Brooks, Sarah Bernhardt, Isadora Duncan, Nancy Cunard, Gertrude Stein and Radclyffe Hall. Poletti has a leading role and is a shape-shifting, visionary, apparently seducing most of the great women of her age. I enjoyed this, and I am deeply sympathetic to the message within, but I did not love it.

Triangle of Sadness (2022)

First of all, I am not sure I get this movie. I had an 'aha' moment when I read that it is in the Parasite vein--which makes sense, but Parasite was oh so much better than this, with gore that had more bang for the effect than what is on display here. Secondly, it is way way too long--by an hour I would say. A three hour tour, so to speak. Seems longer. Every aspect of the story telling is just a bit too long, and while I haven't watched all of the nominees in the Best Original Screenplay category, the other three I have seen are all better than this. This is a three act story. The opening act introduces us to Carl and Yaya, two people who are 'influencers'. We get a sense of who they are before we enter act two, which is on a luxury yacht--their passage is paid by sponsors, but the rest of the passengers are wildly rich, and there is an Upstairs, Downstairs thing going on with the crew and passengers, and then within the crew there is a caste system as well. The final act is one in which the whole hierarchy is set on its head, and what happens then. Again, interesting paradigm, but way too long.

We Don't Know Ourselves by Fintan O'Toole

The history of Ireland as seen through the clear eyes of one of it's citizens is what we have here. It starts to be a detailed history after WWII and the set up is one of poverty and under-industrialization. Between 1949 and 1956 the GDP of the countries of the common market had grown by 42%, Britain by 21%, Ireland by only 8%. Emigration was high and marriage was low. The population was at an all-time low of 2.8 million in 1961, by which time Ireland had to decide whether to open itself to free trade or remain as a protected and very isolated space. So Ireland opened up, later joining the European Union, and all the good that comes to poor countries with those changes came to Ireland, but socially it remained a very restrictive society, with everything, including education, dominated by the Catholic church. The author is particularly sardonic on the subject of what the letter of the law was in Ireland and what the actuality on the ground was when it came to things like contraception and abortion--but the treatment of women in general and women who got pregnant out of wedlock in particular is both dead on, and in 2022 America strangely prescient of what was to come in the United States. There is a good deal of corruption in politics that is unflinchingly described, and familiar. Money in politics is dangerous and yet another thing we Americans haven't learned very well. This is a good read, especially if you have a love of or a bit of the Irish in you.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)

The death of Chadwick Boseman is front and center in this sequel to the original, and as a result, the void must be filled and a new Black Panther comes into being. Unfortunately, there is just way too much of almost everything in this movie, which clocks in at 160 minutes--thank goodness I watched it streaming on Disney+ so I could get up and walk around a few times! Where the original is fluid and breathtakingly gorgeous, the sequel is a bit wooden and full of itself. The seemingly endless script is chock-full of ideas and themes, and in typical Marvel style, kind of hard to follow. Then, rather than fighting their common enemy (white colonists), two kingdoms helmed by people of color are pitted against each other (an idea that never thematically lands), and the film must delve into the cultural pain that still exists from the historical annihilation of Central and South America’s Indigenous kingdoms. Not cool. Finally, there is the time investment. Other than the lush costuming and hairstyles, it is orquestrated fight scenes or funeral dirges. Just too much. It is not alone in movies nominated this year that are 30-60 minutes too long, and the goal of getting it all in in under an hour and forty minutes should be the standard!

Lessons by Ian McEwan

This is a tale of sexual abuse in a young boy. In life these mostly involve young boys being raped by men, but the story here of an early teen boy and his mid-20's piano teacher is not as rare as you might think, and when I see it professionally, it has this same long shadow cast across a lifetime, with a slightly different bent from other trauma, but no less life changing. This is a life long portrayal of Roland Baines and the way a too-early sexual experience permanently stains Roland’s romantic expectations. In his aching memories of his months of endless sex, we see Miss Cornell’s perverse desires through the boy’s pride excitement. To us, she’s a fiend of manipulation, but to young Roland — adrift in a world bracing for nuclear annihilation sparked by Kennedy or Khrushchev — Miss Cornell looks like salvation itself. He drops all his academic desires at her behest and becomes a bit of a sexual slave, something he is delirious about at the time, but comes to see, eventually, as having rewired his brain differently and left him with little in the way of ability to be in an intimate relationship of any kind.

Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio (2022)

The man who gave us Pan's Labyrinth has taken some fantastical elements that he wowed us with there and made this amazing version of a well known story--there have been 2 Pinocchio's in the last couple of years, so if you were hazy on the details, you could have caught up. Del Toro's lifelong commitment to turning the figments of his imagination into physical realities makes his decision to opt for stop-motion for his first animated feature an obvious one--it is well suited to the awkwardness of a wooden boy as well. Glorious in its tactile fabrication, this epitomizes the melding of tale and technique into a cohesive philosophical unit. For a story about imperfect fathers and sons, this method capitalizes on the irreplicable quality of the human touch one frame at a time. Decidedly more mature in tone than previous animated iterations of Carlo Collodi's 19th-century fable, though no less stirring or disarming, this version transports the characters first just a few years ahead of the original story into the future to the early 1900s, as the Great War ravages Europe. This gives a platform from which to comment on fascism, something that iyou would hope we had moved beyond, but which keeps rearing it's ugly head. Pinocchio's personality emerges over the course of the film and is my favorite of the versions that I have seen. Del Toro is a gentle champion of the misunderstood to those whose appearance, origin, or worldview isolate them from the homogeneity of the masses. In this wooden boy, he finds a walking and talking symbol for the indomitable power of nature, of chance, of the unpredictable factors that can enrich our days even if they weren't precisely what we had hoped for. Even if you think you have seen enough of the wooden boy who comes to life, you really shouldn't miss this one.

Lucy By The Sea by Elizabeth Strout

This is yet another quiet, introspective book of the world seen through the eyes of Lucy Barton. It follow upon the heels of Oh William! but they could be read out of order and each of the books stand alone, but they are greater than the sum of their parts, because they are a reflection on the world as seen through the eyes of a quiet, thoughtful woman who has her toe in a lot of ponds. There is a lot to think about in this, not the least of it why on earth Lucy follows William, but then, she married him once, they share children, and the love of her life has died and left her grieving and mostly alone. She is the sharer of the secret of William's mother's life before him and the half sister he didn't know he had, didn't know his mother had in her. The book is a land mine of secrets, some of which are fleshed out and some are left for the reader to think through. Then there is the pandemic, which is what drives the narrative here, a reflection on how the world changed, how we learned a lot about our neighbors based on who thought only of themselves and those who thought of others. It is about how it can blow things up and how it can make strange bedfellows. This is wonderful and understated, and well worth thinking about after you close the book.

Shoyu Dip with Sesame Crunch

This is a simple and delicious dip that you can put almost anything in, but is a wonderful foil for fresh vegetables of every sort. It comes from Sheldon' Simeon's Cool Real Hawai'i, a cookbook I highly recommend for both the stories and the recipes, and his restaurant on Maui, Tim Roof, is a must eat at place on the island, being bot very affordable and exceptionally delicious. My friend who introduced me to it has an Airbnb experience that includes a cheese and charcuterie spread and this is in constant rotation. It is both a little bit unique and quite delicious. For the Shoyu Dip With Sesame Crunch: 1 cup mayonnaise 2 tablespoons shoyu (soy sauce) 2 teaspoons Lemon Olive Oil (recipe follows) 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest (from 1 lemon) 3 teaspoons toasted sesame oil Freshly ground black pepper 2 tablespoons roasted sesame seeds 1 tablespoon sugar 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 2 pounds assorted vegetables for serving For the Lemon Olive Oil: 2 lemons, thoroughly scrubbed in hot water 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, shoyu, lemon oil, lemon zest, and 2 teaspoons of sesame oil. Season to taste with pepper and transfer the mixture to a serving bowl. Drizzle with the remaining 1 teaspoon sesame oil. Heat a small nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the sesame seeds, sugar, and salt. Cook, stirring constantly, until the sugar has melted and has caramelized around the sesame seeds, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove this from the pan to a plate, let cool, then crush it up and sprinkle over the dip. Serve with your assortment of vegetables.

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

This is a pitch perfect depiction of the uphill Sisyphean battle that a woman who aimed to be an educated professional in the 1950's. Our hero is Elizabeth Zott, a brilliant student of chemistry who is treated like a servant rather than a scientist in the lab, and who's quest to complete her PhD. is ended when her advisor attempts to rape her and is thwarted by her stabbing him with a pencil--which is viewed as a crime because no one believes her. This is a sobering and hilariously improbable tale of her life and career that I loved from start to finish. The misogyny on display here is very easy to believe given the continued prevalence today--it is just a daily grind for millions of women in the workplace, and this is just a lot of fun and very sad at the same time. Do not miss it.

The Banshees of Inisherin (2022)

This very dark movie is something that I am not entirely sure I get. I read a review that no one does self loathing better than the Irish and that might well be the case. The film is in the region of the Danes when it comes to gruesome being almost expected. Another compared Colin Farrel and Brendan Gleeson to the modern day Laurel and Hardy, based on this film and their previous work together, In Bruges. To me, this is not comedy of exasperatio so much as it is desperation. The place is the island of Inisherin, just off the coast of Ireland, but insulated from the Civil War that is raging in 1923. Colm and Pádraic are feuding, but Pádraic knows not why, and Colm is not about to expand on his wish to be left alone. What follows is both horrific and inevitable, and we are glued to it even though we do not want to watch. The scenery, the cinematography, and the score are all pitch perfect backdrops to the tragic comedy that unfolds.

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Levin

What Macbeth opines in his “tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow” soliloquy speaks to the relentlessness and futility of life. That in some ways sums up the subtext of this book, which is essentially a love triangle in the modern world. The twist here is that the main characters are gamers, and in the gaming world there is the possibility of infinite rebirth and infinite redemption. In the virtual world, death is not the end and losing is but a chance to try again; there are endless chances, endless restarts. You do not have to be a gamer to see the appeal. The story begins around the turn of the most recent century, when two college students, Sam and Sadie bump into each other at a train station. The pair haven’t spoken since childhood, when they met in the games room of a hospital, Sadie a visitor and Sam a patient. They were very close for a time, but have a significant falling out that is without resolution, so when they meet up again, they have an intense past that shapes their future. The book revolves around them making, and with the help of Sam's roommate Marx, marketing and selling a video game. They go on to do much more of that, all the while Sam and Sadie's relationship is one that flounders. There are many difficult truths that they can talk about, but Sam's psychological and physical injuries prevent them from addressing their past. This is a very charming book and I highly recommend it.

The Spoils of Travel

I live in a small Midwestern town, which has more resources available than many it's size, but one of the very best things about traveling away from this town is bringing back the things that we enjoyed about our destination that can be transported back with us. There are so many things that cannot--an abundance of seafood being the thing we love to indulge in when we travel. When I retire I hope to live in some cities for longer than is possible as a full time employee, and the cities that I dream about doing this in are almost universally on the water--not quite all, but over 90% of them. This is the haul from a recent trip to the Emilia-Romagna region in Italy, where we opted out of much in the way of clothes (our apartment had a washing machine and a very good drying rack) and instead brought home the three things the region is known for--proscuitto, parmesano-reggiano, and balsamic vinegar (not pictured, as we had it shipped). It has been such a treat to have these on hand and available. Now we have to try to perfect our tortelloni game, and eat a bit more pasta than before we went and the trip will live on!

Hokolua Road by Elizabeth Hand

This is a well written book that is part "who done it" and part "who should lay claim to a Hawaiian paradise"? Sounds like a volatile blend, and the former propels you swiftly though the novel while the later leaves you thinking about the long struggle between native Hawaiians and those who exploit them and the land. Woven into the mix is the fact that there is little in the way of law enforcement in many isolated stretches of the islands, that the locals don't trust outsiders, and that protecting tourism means that a lot of truths get buried along the way. The book is populated with quite a few very likable characters and is a pleasure to read, if a bit of a nail biter at times. The book opens at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Grady life in rural Maine has frozen. As carpenter and former EMT, his job opportunities have evaporated and he is basically homeless. So, when his brother sends him a Craigslist ad for a live-in caretaker on a billionaire’s swanky Hawaiian island property, Grady applies — and lands it with one casual interview and nary a background check. Warning bells are going off for him, but he accepts--from his arrival onward things are slightly off, and if not for the supportive people he meets and his lack of financial resources, he would have high tailed it out of there. As it happens he stays and all his skills are required to get through. This is a thriller with a lot of subtext.

The Sea Beast (2022)

This movie is a bit of a mixed bag for me. It certainly didn't make the cut for the top 5 animated movies that I have seen this year, but it was in the top 10, so it is worthy. On the up side, the story is strong on the Moby Dick themes, with a little bit of How To Train Your Dragon thrown in, and the animation itself has some of the lushness that the later films are known for. Maisie Brumble, whose parents were apparently killed at sea in a monster attack, runs away from an orphanage to stow away with Captain Crow, his first mate Jacob, and the pleasingly diverse crew of the Inevitable--there are women and women of color in charge without a hint of sexual tension to boot. The women are just competent and do their jobs. Refreshing, really. But when Jacob and Maisie get lost at sea, Maisie Crow and the rest are on a quest to kill the Red Bluster, a giant creature they end up becoming friends with the Red Bluster, which complicates everything. Overall, I liked it more than the rest of my family, and it is definitely filled with gorgeous animation, rdprcially water animation, and positive themes.

You Made A Fool Of Death WIth Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi

This is well written, and the plot line is overall within the realm of what happens in life. Trauma has a binding effect that is powerful, mostly because trauma is so isolating and so intense. It is hard for other people to relate, and the vast majority do not want to talk about it. And beware, anyone who tells you this is a romance has completely missed the central themes of this book. The main character, Feyi, is in her late twenties, living in Brooklyn in New York. For the last five years, she’s been merely existing, rather than living since her husband died in a car accident that left her with barely a scratch, less than a year after they got married. She has made a decision that she needs to get back into the relationship game, and let's just say she has a couple of initial forays (which are graphically described, so if you are into that, this book has a lot going on in that department, and well done) and when she takes a do or die plunge it has a lot that is cringe worthy about it, but a lot to think about as well. This was a bumpy read for me, but others might very well love it.

Wendall and Wild (2022)

OMG I loved this on so many levels, and I am so disappointed that it did not make the cut for an Oscar nomination. There are elements of Coraline in the animation (which it turns out the animators are one and the same so that checks out) with a story that has plots within subplots and a damning verdict on the private prison industrial complex, a cast that is mostly of color, and whip smart dialogue to keep the adults in the room engaged. In a nutshell, it is a tale about scheming demon brothers Wendell (Keegan-Michael Key) and Wild (Jordan Peele) -- who enlist the aid of 13-year-old Kat Elliot -- a tough teen with a load of guilt related to the death of her parents -- to summon them to the Land of the Living. But what Kat demands in return leads to a brilliantly bizarre and comedic adventure like no other, an animated fantasy that defies the law of life and death, all told through the handmade artistry of stop motion. This is wildly imaginative and so much fun to watch as it careens to its conclusion, do not miss it.

Why We're Polarized by Ezra Klein

This book is on the 2022 Obama reading list, but it is not so much an erudite deconstruction of the political realities of identity politics as a conversation about how the truths that we know about humans and our psychological make up have been repeatedly manipulated so that we remain true to the political party that we have chosen. This book makes it clear that group identity can overrule any argument for or against an issue. If you want to bridge the gap, it’s more productive to appeal to someone’s identity than to their logic. This is especially true for political issues. He explains how political identity used to be more rooted in where you lived rather than what party you belonged to. The parties themselves were seen more as shortcuts you could use to inform your choices. Americans tended to vote for candidates who made the most sense for where they lived rather than whether they were a Democrat or Republican, which led to a lot more ticket splitting. Between 1972 and 1980, 46 percent of voters in contested districts voted for a different party House candidate from who they supported for president. By 2018, only 3 percent of voters did. What changed? The political parties themselves. For a lot of different reasons—starting with the fight for the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and including the rise of cable news—both parties have to varying degrees adopted more extreme positions over the last several decades. As a result, the party identities themselves have become more polarized and caused people to dig in more firmly. This is where he leaves us, with no solutions but a better understanding.

Puss In Boots: The Last Wish (2022)

Puss in Boots is a medieval Italian fairy tale which later spread throughout Europe and is about an anthropomorphic cat who uses trickery and deceit to gain power, wealth, and the hand of a princess in marriage for his penniless and low-born master. Italian fairy tales are experienceing a surge, what with Guillermo del Toro's new take of the Pinocchio fairy tale also being nominated as Best Animated film for the 2023 Oscars. Many know this version of the character from the Shrek movies, and then the 2011 film featuring the swahbuckling kitty. He is at once arrogant, charming, and kind of adorable when he laps up his drink from a shot glass at the bar. In the hands of Antonio Banderas, who voices him, he is equal parts suave and silly. In this sequel, Puss meets up with his old nemesis, Kitty Softpaws, and they are joined by Perrito, a Chihuahua pretending to be a cat and the three go on a mission to find the mythical Wishing Star to restore Puss’ nine lives (he is down to his last one). The magical map that takes them there suggests a wildly divergent and amusing variety of paths, depending on who’s holding it, and each is populated with lush and vibrant animation that helps snappy dialogue prop up a derivative plot. It is overall quite entertaining and beautiful visually.

A Thousand Steps Into The Night by Traci Chee

This book was short listed for the National Book Award in the YA category. The story centers on 17-year-old Otori Miuko, who thinks that she’s nothing special and completely unremarkable. She feels a bit too clumsy, a bit too plain, and far too loud for the world in which she lives. Miuko's father runs the only remaining guesthouse in the village of Nihaoi and Miuko is seen as a loving and dutiful daughter. In other words, in Awara Miuko is just another ordinary girl, in an ordinary life—until she is kissed by a demon, cursed, and transformed into a demon herself. Aided by a thieving magpie spirit named Geiki, Miuko sets out on the thousand step way to find a way to break the curse and save the world from the very engaging demon called Tujiyazai. But along the way, she can’t help but wonder if being a demon is as bad as she thinks. The pacing at the front end of the book is a bit slow, but it picks up speed nicely and the world it creates is lush and beautiful.

Turning Red (2022)

This movie is in the running for Best Animated movie in the 2023 Oscar race, which surprised me, having watched several other movies in contention for a nomination that I thought were on par or better. It takes on two themes, one of them universal and one less often tackled. The first is adolescence. The main character is thirteen-year-old Mei Lee, who is just like any other high-achieving nerd from a loving, slightly smothering Chinese-Canadian family. Then her hormones kick in. Like many kids at this pivotal moment, her emotions take on a life of their own. What sets Mei Lee apart is the fact that her emotions also take on a form of their own: at moments of extreme excitement, she turns into a large red panda. Which brings me to the other unusual component of this movie, which is that it depicts the Asian immigrant experience. This is the area where I was a little less awed by how this was handled, seeing a lot of cliches about Asians depicted. The one theme that is universal is the mother-daughter struggle--which this movie gives an inter-generationaly spin on, and the kinship of friends to rely on at this transitional age. It is worth watching, and who knows, it might even win!