Still playing catch-up from our incredibly weird year. I’m not sure it was a bad year, because we got rid of a huge ugly problem in our lives, one we didn’t even know we had until January, and our business is thriving. Dean is healing, and we’ve made some good changes. So the year will end up being a positive one…even if I’m incredibly tired and behind on things like Recommended Reading because of it.
Well, I did the reading. You all know that. I just didn’t write up my likes. And to be completely honest, I put up the March list after leaving out one publication because I had so many recommendations from it. I wanted the March list up, so I moved everything from that magazine to April. That’s On Wisconsin for Winter of 2023. I needed to complete something, so I sacrificed accuracy for completion. Ultimately, I didn’t include everything, because some are UW specific and went into my library. But you’ll find a lot from that issue down below.
I’m slowly catching up on writing about the reading. For context, I did this reading in April, but wasn’t able to write much about it until July, August, and September. There’s a lot of great stuff here, though, and most of the articles are free. Take a look.
April 2024
Benson, Harry, “Ticket To Ride,” Vanity Fair, February 2024. I seem to be collecting a ton of articles about the Beatles first visit to the U.S. in 1964. Because it was sixty years ago, everyone is writing and sharing pictures. Harry Benson, though, was traveling with them, and saw the change from famous band to pop icons. Of all the articles I’ve seen, this is the best.
Cartwright, Lachlan, “Take The Cash or Fight? Media Moguls Split on AI Deals,” The Hollywood Reporter, February 14, 2024. I’m pointing out this article to show you (especially you creatives) that the AI fight is complicated. So many people are trying to figure out what the generative AI future will be, and some people are hedging their bets. Some of it is because of the money, but some of it reflects the uses of AI. So read this and keep it in mind as we see more and more articles on generative AI.
Coates, Ta-Nehisi, We Were Eight Years in Power, One World, 2018. Ta-Nehisi Coates’s We Were Eight Years in Power is one of the most banned books in the United States. I’d been meaning to read it for years, and finally decided, heck, I’m going to do so. My copy is now dog-eared and underlined, with lots of yellow sticky notes. It’s an important book. It’s a meditation on writing, from a man who reread the essays he wrote while Barack Obama was in office after he knew that Trump had been elected. Some of the essays—particularly the first, about Bill Cosby—were dated even then. Some have become dated by now. But so much in here is still important, still worth reading. A lot of it is uncomfortable to read as well, in a challenging and good way. And much of it is filled with truths, including one that’s important in 2024, now that we have another cadidate of color.
Like this:
For most of American history, our political system was premised on two conflicting facts—one, an oft-stated love of democracy; the other, an undemocratic white supremacy inscribed at every level of government.
Or this:
Racism is not merely a simplistic hatred. It is, more often, broad sympathy toward some and broader skepticism toward others. Black America ever lives under the skeptical eye. Hence the old admonishment to be “twice as good.” Hence the need for a special “talk” administered to black boys about how to be extra careful when relating to the police.
I found lines and paragraphs and entire pages like this, all worth underlining, all still (sadly) true. This is an amazing book, one you might want to read and discuss with friends.
Gardner, Chris, “‘I’m Bloody Tired of Hiding,'” The Hollywood Reporter, February 28, 2024. Fascinating interview with Lynda Obst, the megaproducer, who has been in the business forever. Apparently, getting older and having a cancer diagnosis has made her a lot more forthcoming. A blunt and fascinating “no-whining” interview with a woman who has succeeded in the business longer than many of us have been alive. The attitude that gets her through everything when something goes wrong? They won. We lost. Next. You know, that’s kinda my attitude too. It works.
Glicksman, Josh, “A League of Their Own,” Billboard, February 10, 2024. A fascinating roundtable, timed before the Super Bowl featuring professionals who have, over the past few years, combined music and sport to create a whole new market. I’ve circled and underlined this to death. Pay attention to the discussion of rights here, and the possibilities presented by a whole new market. Then open your mind to changes in writing and marketing. You might not see what I’ve seen here, but you might get a picture of some of it.
McManus, Karen M., One of Us is Lying, Delacorte Press, 2017. I think, considering the spring I had, this book appealed to me just from the title. Only in the book, the liar is a mystery and unfortunately, in our lives this spring, the liar was not a mystery. Still, this is a fun, fascinating mystery novel which is pretty much the Breakfast Club as a locked room mystery. (Someone dies in detention.) Good characters, good writing. I enjoyed it enough to buy the sequel.
McManus, Karen M., One of Us is Next, Delacorte Press, 2020. I really didn’t think that McManus could pull off a sequel to One of Us is Lying, but she did. The ending was a bit abrupt, but that was okay. (It wasn’t okay when I finished the next book, which just…ended.) This was a lovely way to spend an afternoon.
Mitchell, Gail “Superstar: Usher,” Billboard, February 10, 2024. Fantastic article on what it means to be an artist with a long career. I circled and underlined a lot in here. Usher discusses creativity, staying relevant, whether it’s important to stay relevant, and remaining inspired. He also discusses how to keep all you’ve done before out of your head, as well as what the expectations of you are.
The article ends with this quote:
We’re as powerful as we choose to be. That’s what got me here. I just believed and didn’t pay attention to what anybody else had to say.
If you plan to have or already have a long career, read this.
Prince, Daisy, “Barbarians at the Glades,” Vanity Fair, February 2024. Fascinating and creepy article about Palm Beach and West Palm Beach, the changes that have occurred to both communities since the arrival of MAGA has upended the old order, and a bit about generational wealth. I’m sharing because this is a time to share the unease.
Provost, Megan, “What It Means To Succeed,” On Wisconsin, Winter 2023. The interview with the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s new provost is mostly about AI and his ideas about the way that AI will alter academia and the way that research gets done. I’m collecting all this AI information; I find it fascinating. I hope you do as well.
Schmitt, Preston, “Creating The Badger Brand,” On Wisconsin, Winter 2023. Wow. This is an amazing article. The UW was one of the last major universities to license its logo. It also had some issues figuring out what the logo was. (In fact, in a future issue, a man wrote in contesting some of the information in the article. After you read it, you’ll see why.) If you want to see the complexities of trademark and licensing, check this out.
Steinhoff, Jessica, “Surprising Stories From the UW Archives,” On Wisconsin, Winter 2023. This article made me want to travel home again, if only I could. I’m not surprised at some of the stories, like the material from the Sterling Hall bombing in 1970, but others did surprise me. I didn’t know, for example, that the 602 Club was an unofficial gay bar. And I certainly didn’t know about the mandolins from 1893. Take a look, just for the cool history.