3 books, 3 movies, 3 songs + 1 prediction

Cultural recommendations from a British Swede with Norwegian heritage

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I have been writing so much lately. But since I haven’t sent you a newsletter since… August 2021(!?), I can’t blame you for not knowing that. It has also been almost exclusively in Swedish (sorry).

I have also been reading a lot more books and listening to a lot of music. Which brings me to what this newsletter once was intended for and named after – my recommendations.

With that in mind – below are some things that I’d like to recommend!

/Björn

Three books that stayed with me after I finished them

When We Cease to Understand the World by Benjamín Labatut
One of the best and most fascinating books I have ever read. It moves seamlessly between fact and fiction to create something quite unique. A book I will read again.

The Guest by Emma Cline
A novel which follows a young woman through a series of serendipitous encounters. It has a stressful feeling throughout the whole book – a bit like watching The Bear. Stressful, but in a good way. Hard to put down.

Unscripted: The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy by James B Stewart and Rachel Abrams
If you like Succession, this is the book for you (and if you don’t, why are you reading this?) Logan Roy and Sandy Furness are both partially based on Sumner Redstone, the patriarch behind CBS and Paramount, and this book captures his escapades. The real story is incredibly juicy.

Three movies that made me think

The Zone of Interest by Jonathan Glazer
Perhaps no one has missed this one, but just in case you have: see it. The setting is a Nazi commandant that lives next to Auschwitz with his family. Life goes on, and on the other side of the adjacent wall – it ends. Also, I’ve never watched a movie with sound design like this.

Aftersun by Charlotte Wells
A father and daughter go on vacation together, seemingly to create the illusion of normality. But real life simmers in the background. A beautiful and somewhat tragic illustration of the juxtaposition between being a parent and an adult.

Past Lives by Celine Song
A sort of modern day “Sliding Doors”, without the clichés. About a potential life that gets lost and then makes a new appearance. The one that got away? Or perhaps the one that could never have been?

Three songs that I’ve been playing over and over

Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 58 by Young Miko
The Argentinian producer Bizarrap has a series where he invites artists to collaborate. The best one I’ve seen is with the Puerto Rican rapper Young Miko who has an incredible flow on this one.

Bye by Ariana Grande
The best track from Ariana’s new album that just dropped. Classic pop, but so well-produced.

Deeper Well by Kacey Musgraves
Likely the artist I’ve listened the most to over the last few years. The dark post-divorce album Star-Crossed was a favourite of mine, but she seems to have turned a corner now. A simple, but beautiful melody.

One prediction I have made

Embarrassing AI mistakes could knock out top executive (in Swedish here)

After a series of embarrassing mishaps, I think Sundar Pichai – the CEO of Google – will step down before the end of the year. Being late to the AI game is okay. But being bad at it – even in its infancy – is not.