Book: “The Other Americans” by Laila Lalami
“It tells one story, but through different perspectives. So it jumps around between eight different characters, and it doesn’t all make sense immediately what part they play in the story, but it become clear as you get further into the book.
“So you kind of build relationships with characters before you know what their full story is. I think it’s really interesting, just like that unusual storytelling structure, but also because it gives you more about characters. There’s not a single static character, they’re all pretty dynamic and they all develop at different points in the story, so you’re seeing each character in a whole [new] light at the end of the story.”
– Kaylie McLaughlin, Collegian editor-in-chief and junior in journalism and mass communications
Movie: “Knives Out”
“It’s supposed to be like a murder mystery. It’s about a wealthy family, and the head of the family is killed, or it looks like a suicide. It has a lot of really good actors in it, it’s just about them trying to figure out who killed him … It was supposed to be like a comedy too, it was pretty funny.”
-Gabby Farris, Collegian design chief and senior in nutritional sciences
Podcast: “Criminal”
“It’s like narrative journalism-style, and it’s about like really random things that people have been criminally convicted for. So there’s this story about the origin of Stockholm Syndrome, there’s one about the Herrin massacre … and there’s also just like weird things that are crimes that people haven’t been arrested for.”
– Bailey Britton, managing editor and sophomore in journalism and mass communications
Related:
Collegian Staff Picks: Your weekend entertainment guide for books, podcasts and more
Show/Documentary: “Derry Girls”
“‘Derry Girls’ is about a kind of rural Irish town during the Irish Troubles … It’s set like in the early 2000s or late 90s, and it’s about these Irish school girls who go to Catholic school, and it’s about all their little adventures. It is foul, and they do say some curse words, and so if you have young ears, probably shouldn’t watch it, but it’s really funny.”
– Nathan King, Collegian Media Group assistant advertising manager and senior in journalism and mass communications
Music: “The Man” by Taylor Swift
“You have to watch the new music video. If you haven’t heard the song yet, it’s just a really upbeat, but serious reflection on the double standards between men and women. What’s amazing about this song is just to see how much she has evolved over her career, and how she both shares her struggles and validates what others experience.”
– Rebecca Vrbas, Collegian culture editor and senior in journalism and mass communications
