My 2023 Best Reads Update + Watchies

I’ve been lucky enough to find some worth-sharing books that I believe everyone could enjoy, or at the very least, appreciate. After simple research and some important spamming from Social Media, I came across a few controversial books with mixed reviews.

People loved them or hated them in equal parts. Some consider them overrated, and some believed them to be too tough, even extremely “triggering”.

ANIMAL – BY LISA TADEO

Few books have shocked me as greatly as this one. The writing style is so electric that, despite disliking the main character, I couldn’t help but feel an emotional connection to her.

I read it so fast that I devoured the 336 pages in a very short time. The tale follows the life of a traumatised young woman after seeing an ex-lover shoot himself in front of her.

We follow her moving her entire life to LA, where she is looking for someone for a very dark reason.

All the trigger warnings people cry about are completely valid. The book is dark and intense, sometimes too uncomfortable. And really good.

However, it’s so absorbing that it didn’t take me long before burning my nose back in the book again. I loved this book, I wouldn’t read it again but I will recommend it to everyone.

MY YEAR OF REST AND RELAXATION – BY OTESSA MOSHFEGH

After finishing Animal, I truly needed a “mental break” book. I wanted to find a book where nothing happens, a book with no horrific events or turnarounds.

I wanted to find a book to sit and chill and read without disrupting my digestion.

My Year Of Sleep And Relaxation follows an attractive, rich, young woman that is too depressed and tired to work. Her main goal in life is to sleep. So she takes as many pills as she can get her hands on to sleep for days.

I liked the beginning of the book. However, as opposed to the previous book, the hero of this tale evoked zero empathy from me. She’s completely unrelatable and uninteresting so I disliked her for most of the book.

Yet, the story is so beautifully written that despite nothing much happening for most of the book, I relished reading every part of it.

The ending was horrendous. I understand that this type of ending can grab some people’s emotions. But in my opinion, it was unoriginal, too predictable and pretty disappointing compared to the highly eloquent and enjoyable narration.

THE DRY – BY JANE HARPER

Given the fact that I am currently living in the land of the kangaroos, I thought it was the right time to read some Australian literature.

The Dry is a mystery novel that follows Aaron Falk, a police officer that goes back to his hometown to attend the funeral of his best friend after he’s killed his wife, and their child and committed suicide.

Some people were comparing this book to Sharp Objects, which is one of my favourite books ever (as well as the tv show).

Despite the use of some “Australian slang” expressions, this is also an effortless read.

I did not like the ending, but if you are looking for an easy-to-read thriller with loads of “back to the past” flashbacks you will enjoy this one.

Felling too lazy to read? And now let’s go into the Big Screen

Since I have been a huge fan of Succession for years, it was fair to mention it now that the show has been discontinued. Waiting for Monday night to watch a Succession episode is something I am going to deeply miss, but I am extremely happy to confirm that I adored the ending.

It was brave, realistic and very well-backed. I don’t want to give unnecessary spoilers, but I can’t think of a better ending for this show. Any podcast that has made a review of this ending will list all of the reasons why I believe it is so perfect.

What do you guys think?

The same goes for Barry. Another piece of art that ended forever on the same week as Succession. I understood and felt more than happy with the conclusion of the story. I also found pretty funny the recap of the characters years after the “big thing” happens.

I have not watched too many movies lately. Perhaps because I haven’t done much research?

All and all, It has been difficult to find trailers that catch my interest, so most of my choices are TV Shows.

THE HATCHING

I mention this strange film because you need to watch it if you are looking for something different.

The movie focuses on a Finnish family living in the suburbs. The mom is a blogger that puts quite some effort into making sure her little girl wins a gymnastics competition.

Everything changes when the girl decides to nurse an egg and the bird grows inside.

BLACK MIRROR

I was feeling pretty negative about this TV Show. After watching the last season, I decided that the path this show had taken was not for me anymore. Most of the stories didn’t appeal to me and I found the episodes pretty boring compared to the ones from the first season.

However, I decided to give it a try and I am positively surprised. It is a pretty short season and, as well as the other ones, every episode has a completely different story. As always, there were a couple of episodes that I would have skipped, but overall I think it is an enjoyable show to watch.

ANATOMY OF A FALL

Since it was Sydney’s Cinema Festival just a couple of weeks ago, I decided to get some tickets for one of the movies.

Anatomy of a Fall is a French movie based on a criminal case after a man is found dead next to his family’s home and everything signals that the death is the result of a crime committed by his wife.

DROPS OF GOD

I just started watching this TV Show and I am only 3 episodes in, but I considered it could be a good idea to mention it.

A woman is set to compete against an Enology expert to inherit the million-dollar winery that belonged to her estranged father. 

Is there any movie that you have watched recently and would like to recommend?