When I find something I love, I can’t shut up about it.
From books to articles to movies to TV shows to podcasts to video games to albums to concerts to sports, I am a sponge for everything.
As a result, nothing makes me happier than when a friend comes to me and says “I’m looking for a new book to read” or “do you have any podcast recommendations?”
I wanted to share some of my favorite things, mostly because my friends are sick of me talking about them.
I try to work at least one of these things into a conversation to see if I get any bites. And if I do…I know we’re in for 2-3 hours of nerding out.
Here are 5 things I haven’t been able to shut up about recently:
Movie: Flow
I saw this movie on a whim on a random afternoon in December 2024. I figured “Hey, it’s a cartoon about a cat that got good reviews, it’s only 86 minutes long…why not?”
86 minutes later, tears streaming down my face, I felt moved in a way I hadn’t felt in a long time.
I’m thankful I sat there through the credits too, because there’s a post-credit scene that moved me even more.
Flow just won the Academy Award for best animated film, and I seriously jumped off my couch and cheered.
This film was created by Gints Zilbalodis (a delightful social media follow), who served as director, co-writer, co-producer, co-composer, editor, and cinematographer. He and his tiny team made this move on a shoestring budget, and they beat out juggernauts like Pixar and DreamWorks.
Flow is now streaming on MAX, but it’s worth paying to rent or buy. I promise you.
Just get ready to feel things, and stay through the credits!
Musicians: Incredible Covers of Already-Covered Songs.
I love finding a great cover of a song, and each one of the following led me to the next one.
I started when I first heard Noah Gunderson’s cover of Counting Crows’ “Round Here”, which broke me:
This led me, somehow, to Jorgen Dahl Moe’s angelic cover of Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark,” performed on The Voice (Norway).
The reaction of the judges is amazing:
And finally, onto a dude in glasses covering the most covered song of all time: Ben E. King’s “Stand By Me.”
I found this video when it had a few hundred thousand views, and I figured it would be a pretty damn solid cover.
What I didn’t expect was for the song to be completely reimagined in a jaw-dropping way.
After hearing this cover, I went down a DEEP Stephen Wilson Jr. rabbit hole, listening to his whole album on repeat, finding interviews and reading stories.
It led me to writing an essay, Choose Uncomfortable Growth over Comfort.
Enjoy.
BOOKS: Revisiting my favorite fantasy and sci-fi.
Last year, I reread Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn trilogy for the third time.
Whenever people come to me asking about getting into fantasy, I send them in Sanderson’s direction. Unlike The Kingkiller Chronicles or A Song of Ice and Fire, Mistborn is COMPLETE!
After watching Season 2 of Silo on AppleTV+, I decided to revisit the book on which its based: WOOL, by Hugh Howey (who is also a great social media follow). This is a killer sci-fi trilogy.
I revisited “Project Hail Mary” by Andy Weir (author of The Martian) and it solidified itself as my favorite standalone science fiction novel.
My favorite science fiction short story would be “Stories of Your Life and Others” by Ted Chiang, which became the basis for the movie Arrival.
The less you know about this, the better. If you’re a fan of The Martian, you’ll feel right at home here.
This book is mind-boggingly good.
It’s also an delightful example of an author who is completely himself. This book is full of science and corny jokes, and you can just FEEL Weir’s happiness through it.
SHOW: SHORESY (Hulu)
Take the heart and humor “Ted Lasso,” mix it with the Paul Newman comedy classic “Slapshot,” and you get “Shoresy”.
About a year ago, I finally jumped into Shoresy after hearing a few Canadians RAVING about it.
And my god, I am now a Shoresy disciple.
Season 4 just dropped, and I can’t wait to watch it with my brother (who I also got hooked on the show) in a few weeks.
A few caveats: it’s VERY Canadian, in the best way. It also has really foul language (again, in the best way possible).
It just has so much heart and soul, that after 2 episodes you will be quoting along with all of the running gags.
Each season is made up of 6 episodes of 30 minutes each. It’s low-stakes senior whale-shit amateur hockey, so a great show to unwind after watching stressful shows like “White Lotus” or “Severence!”
Documentary: RoadRunner
Hat tip to Tim Ferriss who made me aware of this documentary.
I had never seen any of Anthony Bourdain’s shows, or read any of his books. I knew lots of people who loved the man, and I knew he died tragically a few years back.
What I didn’t know was his story.
This documentary is illuminating.
It’s also heartbreaking.
It’s like watching a prequel with a great character you know isn’t in the next film, so every delightful action is accompanied by a thought of “this won’t end well.”
At one point in the film, Bourdain asks his friend David Chou during the COVID-19 lockdown:
“This is a crazy thing, but I’m curious, and my life is sort of shit now. You are successful and I am successful. And I’m wondering, are you happy?”
Here are 3 more favorite quotes:
“The greatest sin is mediocrity” – I recognize this mentality and the problems it can cause too.
“The least I can do is see the world with open eyes” as he sits in an east Asian country with a man who had his limbs blown off by American troops.
“He was always rushing, even if he had nowhere to go.” I know this restlessness. He can’t sit still, he can’t stop, he has to keep running. Trying to outrun the darkness, but you can never get far enough away.
The rest of my full review is over on Letterboxd.
You can watch this on any streaming platform, though I think it’s currently streaming free on MAX.
After watching this documentary, I started reading the book that truly put him on the map, Kitchen Confidential.
Want More Recommendations?
Hopefully one of the above things piques your interest!
I have approximately five billion more things I can’t shut up about, so I hope you enjoyed a look into the stuff that makes my brain tick.
I’m pretty active on Threads, Bluesky, and Letterboxd, so check out my Contact page for links to all of those other channels.
But I’ll do roundup posts to the newsletter too if enough people find them worthwhile!
-Steve