For your stray attention this weekend...

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Hello,

I remain on a go-slow, which means I’m watching way more films than usual. This week, I really enjoyed/was slightly dismantled by the Swedish original of A Man Called Ove, which was bitterly funny, sweet and tragic, just like life.

I don’t generally watch many movies though. That’s partly because I’m not very good at sitting still, and partly because I lose track of the characters very quickly. Jason Adam Katzenstein’s cartoon on watching films while face-blind evoked cries of recognition from me - like me, he muddles characters, and this often fundamentally changes the story. I regularly complain that most actors look the same - white, mousy-haired, bland-featured (which I think is what attractive often reads to me), slim-built. If one of them changes what they’re wearing, I’m basically lost. The theatre is even worse. This is why I’m so fond of books.

One of the many films I watched lately was The Lost King, the story of the woman who became obsessed with finding the grave of Richard III, and finally did, under a car park in Leicester (although it’s worth noting that there have been complaints that the archaeologists involved were unfairly treated). I was therefore excited to see that another amateur might have deciphered the earliest human handwriting, after spotting repeated patterns of marks in cave paintings across Europe. This not only reveals the ways that our ancestors hunted, but also their understanding of the lunar calendar, and how they made it fit with the solar year. I, for one, look forward to the inevitable movie.

Hanif Kureishi’s lively mind is still finding characters, even as he lies in hospital coming to terms with paralysis. After a fall in Rome on Boxing Day, he awoke with a broken neck, and may never be able to move his arms again. It’s a horrifying thought, even though he wryly remarks that it could prove a useful way out of writer’s block. I wish him well, and hope that his trenchant humour helps him through. He writes The Kureishi Chronicles here.

I love the podcast Bring Birds Back, and this week, they shared an excellent episode from Constant Wonder about mockingbirds, whose song often mimicks that of other birds, and appears to be unnecessarily complex. The question is, why? It’s a fascinating listen. Incidentally, Shreik of the Week is a brilliant newsletter to follow on here if you want to get to know birdsong.

Some of my favourite writers have landed on Substack recently. Kerri ní Dochartaigh, is writing Scéal, capturing her magical view of the world. Her forthcoming book, Cacophany of Bone, is eerily beautiful and crackles with magic. Meanwhile, Maggie Smith has just started her own newsletter, For Dear Life - so get in early! I can’t wait to get my mitts on a copy of Maggie’s new book, You Could Make This Place Beautiful. You can listen to both Kerri and Maggie talking to me on The Wintering Sessions.

Well, that should keep you occupied for a little while. I need to decide what to watch next. I quite fancy Everything Everywhere All At Once. Any tips?

Take care,

Katherine x

P.S. I’m talking to Dorte Nors on Patreon tomorrow - do join us!

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