On my culture radar this month for April

This has been another killer month. Here are some of the things that I’ve loved.

FOOD BOOK OF THE MONTH

Stay for Supper. Laid-back Vegetarian Food to Share. Xanthe Ross.

This is here because it’s great and because Xanthe is my daughter, and I am super proud of her. Xanthe has worked incredibly hard to forge a successful career, cooking, writing and hosting.

NOVEL OF THE MONTH

The Ask. Sam Lipsyte.

I loved Lipsyte’s novel No One to Come Looking For You which was a blackly comedic romp through the punk underbelly of New York City. The Ask is his first novel (2010) and is terrific, too. It is very funny, dark, true and absurd.

NON-FICTION BOOK OF THE MONTH.

Careless People. A story of where I used to work. Sarah Wynn-Williams. Wynn-Williams is a New Zealand diplomat who pitched to work at Facebook in the early days. She got the job, rose up through the ranks and spent long periods beside Zuckerberg and Sandberg; and boy-oh-boy does she have some stories to share. This book exposes narcissism, greed, insanity, sexual impropriety, corruption and a truly rotten culture that cares about nothing except power and money. If you were scared of Meta before you read this, you’ll be terrified when you’ve finished it.

Incredibly Alarming but Compelling Book of the Month. All or Nothing. Michael Wolff. This extraordinary insider account of Trump’s fall from and rise to power is the best of the four books that Wolff has written on the US President. It’s equal parts horrifying, hilarious, wild and breathtaking and I have no doubt that the author is being sued by his subject. Who knows what the future holds but the past is fascinating.

Total Labour of Love of the Month. James Hamilton’s Disco Pages, 1975-1982. Edited by James Hamilton. Now, this is obscure, but maybe it will appeal to one or two of you in the way that it did to me. This remarkable book compiles around 5000 reviews of dance music in over 500 pages, all of which were written by the iconic and hugely influential James Hamilton.

FILMS.

The Rider (2017). This bleak but truly beautiful and heart-warming film is part documentary and part fiction in that uses non-professional actors to play versions of themselves. It’s a study of bronco riders, the risks that they take, their passions, relationships and love of nature and horses.

A Complete Unknown. I am not a big fan of Dylan, but I loved this film which is both beautiful to look at and deeply revealing of Dylan and his talent as well as his contrariness and determination.

PARIS

Musée D’Orsay. L’Art est dans la rue. Don’t let the title put you off, this isn’t some Banksy nonsense fest, it’s a brilliant and huge show that explores, with real style, the rapid and spectacular rise of the illustrated poster in Paris in the second half of the 19^th Century.

If you’re looking for an excuse to visit Paris (duh!), this could be it, especially when combined with what promises to be an incredible Hockney exhibition at the Foundation Louis Vuitton (9 April-19 August).

MUSIC

As ever I have updated my Playlist. I have renamed it as I can’t quite keep it to 100 songs. Excellent new music is included by Arcade Fire, Andrew Wasylyk, Panda Bear, mary in the junkyard, Jenny Hval and more. Join me here.