Best Recs #7 🔔
Austen, British pubs, and The Wedding People
Hear ye! Hear ye!
The end of the academic year is nigh!
This is just in time for what is predicted to be one of the hottest summers on record in Hong Kong, and likely for most countries in the Northern Hemisphere. (I read recently that some places in India have already hit 45 degrees Celsius.) You’d think that all of this heat and the accompanying effects might concern governments around the world, but when you’ve got the leader of at least one nation who doesn’t believe in climate change, then instead you see news stories about Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fights taking place at the White House.
Anyway, here is the latest Best Recs, an occasional round-up type post where I share some stuff that I’ve been enjoying.
If there is anything that you want to share, please let me know in the comments (especially for summer reading)!
Sarah
Austen-mania
A short while ago, I finished watching The Other Bennet Sister. After reading the book during the pandemic, I was looking forward to the series when it was announced last year.
And readers, I loved it.
Even my husband enjoyed it, as well as my dad who watched it with my mum. Nice bonding material across the generations, there.
Mary was played with tenderness by Ella Bruccoleri, but there was a cheekiness to the performance, too. I particularly enjoyed the scenes between Mary and her aunt and uncle, Mr and Mrs Gardiner (Richard Coyle and Indira Varma).
Meanwhile, Ruth Jones played a formidable Mrs Bennett as compared to the (excellent and) highly vexed Alison Steadman from the 1995 BBC adaptation of ‘Pride and Prejudice’.
At times, Jones’s Mrs Bennet was cruel in how she interacted with Mary, making some scenes difficult to watch. Yet, in some ways, Jones’s portrayal and the accompanying backstory provided a unique perspective to Mrs Bennet’s life, one that you certainly wouldn’t learn from the original book by Austen. And without giving away too much away, I did feel some empathy for the character, as well as for Caroline Bingley (yep, she has a key role!).
This was television at its best.
Donkey Kong Bananaza!
Despite a desire to purchase a Nintendo Switch 2 since its release, I held off. It’s high cost, as well as continuing to enjoy the games on my Switch 1 meant that the purchase felt unnecessary. But when I learned that there would be several titles that I was interested in playing that were only available on the newer hardware, I couldn’t resist.
On the day of purchase at my favourite gaming shop in Wan Chai, I picked up the Final Fantasy VII Remake: Intergrade (not as much fun as I thought it would be, after enjoying the original game, but let’s see what Rebirth is like), and the new Donkey Kong Bananza.
I’ve barely touched FF7 because DK Bananza is ridiculously fun. The graphics are gorgeous and the story is entertaining, if some of the tasks become a little repetitive as you progress. You basically spend your time smashing stuff, collecting bananas, and upgrading DK so that you can transform into other hybrid animals, e.g., gorilla and a snake.
I’m now hoping for a revamped Banjo-Kazooie.
Recent-ish reads and listens
This piece from Rosie Spinks on how a project will save you.
The Kylie documentary, which prompted me to revisit some of my favourite Kylie tracks 💃❤️
Do you often feel that much of your spare time is spent doing busy work, e.g., filling in online surveys about something that happened recently at work (that no-one is going to read!), or spending ages communicating with chatbots to update your payment details for something? This piece from the NY Times will remind you that most people are in the same position. Is AI helping with the work? Maybe not.
I devoured the Everything is Fake (and Nobody Cares) podcast.
After returning from a recent work trip, I went a little crazy in a book store in preparation for some summer travel. I have started with The Wedding People.
And to finish. TLC. Salt-N-Pepa AND En Vogue. Fabulous.
Have a great week! Hit the ❤️ if you liked this post. And here’s what subscribers have received recently:
Enjoy your hard-earned summer holidays!
The Other Bennet Sister sounds right up my alley! Thanks, Sarah!