What we loved: February 2025
It may be the shortest month, but we squeezed so much reading in!
February flew past but somehow both Caitlin and I managed to sneak in some holidays and plenty of reading!
We spent a few days on a Welsh island and a few in Liverpool, where I got to re-live my teenage hyperfixation on The Beatles. Our friend (and fellow Beatles obsessive) travelled with us, so it was a treat to share the experience with her. My favourite thing was visiting the childhood homes of John and Paul – I did this tour back in 2017 and it was still just as fascinating.
I also had the chance to work for a day at the inaugural Waterstones Children’s Book Festival in Lincoln. It was gorgeous to see so many young readers enthusiastically sharing their love for books and favourite authors. I also got to meet my childhood favourite author, Jacqueline Wilson. She remains the Queen of children’s literature and I was stunned and so grateful to be able to spend a few minutes with her.
If you’re not familiar with her work, just take a look at the iconic way she announced a new adult sequel to The Illustrated Mum.
What did you enjoy reading, watching and listening to in January? Leave us a comment and tell us what you can’t stop thinking about!
*denotes review copy
Reading
Fundamentally by Nussaibah Younis*
Fundamentally is a darkly comic satire that’s probably going to prove a bit marmite for some, but absolutely clicked for me.
Nadia is a newly minted lecturer who’s accepted a job with the UN in Iraq, rehabilitating ISIS brides. Sure, she wants to help people. But she’s also fleeing life in London after a chaotic relationship and breakup. Her experiences in Iraq also force her to reflect on her relationships with faith, religion and, most importantly, her mother. These memories are woven through the present-day storyline and really add emotional depth to this story.
Almost as soon as Nadia arrives in Iraq her rose-tinted vision of “making a difference” is blinded by layers upon layers of bureaucratic red tape. These observations felt (and I suspect are) spot on because Nadia’s professional life and Iraq experience is based on the author’s career.
The writing was sharp and witty, but there was a warmth in Nadia’s character that I just loved. The other characters perhaps felt slightly less fleshed out, a little caricature-ish but honestly that didn’t bother me because I was so invested in Nadia and in this writing style. For me, this was an excellent reading experience: a smart, genuinely funny contemporary novel giving me a completely fresh take on a topic.
– Michelle
The Matchmaker by Saman Shad
Took this one off my shelf and TBR, so glad I finally had the chance to enjoy it! The Matchmaker follows Saima, who’s modern and progressive take on matchmaking in Sydney’s desi community is a bit much for some of the more traditional parents, so her business is struggling, even though she’s got more than enough wedding invites to prove her methods work. But then a wealthy family ask her to stealthily set up their bachelor son without him knowing his parents are interfering. When Kal meets Saima, he starts questioning everything he thought he knew about heritage, culture, and love. Can this matchmaker see the match that’s right in front of her? You’re not wrong if you guess no, but then yes - and it’s very sweet and adorable along the way.
– Caitlin
Red Flags by Sophie Jo*
Red Flags was such a delightful older YA rom-com – if 10 Things I Hate About You is your vibe, then I think you’re going to love this too!
Polly flees at even a hint of a red flag in a man. Her friends, desperate to get her to rethink her precise “dream man” list challenge her to date someone for two months. Meanwhile, Cam is just as picky and gets issued an equal challenge: the next person he dates needs to be the one who calls it off.
So, unknowingly they hit a stalemate. But is this time actually going to show that not every niggle is necessarily a red flag? This ticked all the rom com boxes: great dialogue, loveable characters, and a well-paced plot.
There was also more emotional depth than I expected. Cam lives with his grandfather after a difficult upbringing with his mum the way this was explored was my favourite element of the book.
– Michelle
The Cicada House by Ella Ward*
As a separate note to start - the main character’s name is Caitlin. I don’t know if I’ve ever read a book where the main character shares my name and it was kind of strange - are names normally in books so much? I felt like it was every second word, like when you think you hear someone calling you from across a room. Anyway, this Caitlin is very different to me - she’s English, just turned 40 and is getting divorced. So she runs away to Australia for the summer. Described as if Richard Curtis watched Seachange, shared a cold beer with Dolly Alderton, and together they wrote The Time Traveller's Wife. I can’t describe it better than that. This is a beautiful and warm novel about starting over, finding yourself, making friends, and home. But also swimming in the ocean, sand between your toes, the sun warming you up, and the refreshing feeling of all of those things.
– Caitlin
Watching
Apple Cider Vinegar
It feels like the whole world was also watching this series, but the Belle Gibson scandal is my personal Roman Empire. I really loved the way Apple Cider Vinegar approached what is an incredibly emotive story.
I don’t know what else I can say about the series that hasn’t been said already except that it’s so incredibly compelling, utterly bingeable viewing. I appreciated the approach of composite characters and the ‘Mila’ character – for storytelling purposes they needed to bend the truth here but I think they’re still fairly representing reality.
The strange coked up PR guy could have been cut, but overall there wouldn’t be much I’d change about this. If you’re in Australia and found it interesting, make sure you read The Woman Who Fooled the World.
– Michelle
Conclave
This was incredible. So sharp, brilliant performances, really tense, and amazing visuals. All those Cardinals in red lined up, or walking under their umbrellas, the contrast of the sisters in blue. After the Pope’s death, Ralph Fiennes plays Cardinal Lawrence who is in charge of the conclave where they all vote for who the next Pope will be. The entire film is these men, the Cardinals from all over the world, whispering to each other, forming alliances, and conspiring for their top choice. I saw this in a pretty small but full cinema and there were three separate scenes that got big gasps out of everyone. Like theatre. It was phenomenal. I would love to see it on stage, until then this live script reading featuring a bunch of other awesome actors will have to do so I can hear those cutting lines again.
- Caitlin
The Beatles: Get Back
Okay, so I’ve put off watching this documentary since it came out a few years ago. Director Peter Jackson took 150+ hours of footage recorded in January 1969 and re-cut a new mini-series documenting the band during the sessions recording the album that would become Let It Be. The footage was originally cut into a film of the same name which I’ve also avoided – the clips I have seen are a bit depressing because who wants to watch their favourite band fighting and breaking up? However, the new Get Back is, by episode three, truly a joy to watch. Despite some hurdles at the start of the session (like George Harrison casually announcing he’s leaving the band) by the end you see the glimmers of fun and deep friendship that had bonded the band for so long.
– Michelle
We Live In Time
Finally this movie was released in Australia! Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh star in this lovely story about two people falling in love and their life. It jumps around in time a bit, the story isn’t told chronologically or necessarily in any kind of order. Within the story could be a romantic comedy or a sad romantic drama. It could be about them getting together and falling in love, it could be about them trying to have a family, it could be about them juggling being parents and people. Because We Live In Time is all and about all of those things, I adored it. If it was one or two, I’ve probably seen that movie? But are such wonderful emotional actors and so captivating to watch that I loved sitting there seeing snippets of these characters lives all out of order. It’s the kind of movie I can see myself returning to again and again.
- Caitlin
Listening
‘Why does asexuality make the media so angry’ by Media Storm Podcast
This was a really interesting discussion – why is there still so much dismissal or attempts to convert or change people on the asexual spectrum? Each person’s experience is unique, but I personally found it comforting to hear this discussion and feel less alone.
– Michelle
‘The Staying Power of the SNL Machine’ by Critics At Large podcast
A fascinating and timely listen for SNL’s 50th anniversary special. This review podcast from the New Yorker explored a bit about SNL’s history and legacy while technically reviewing the actual special. I’m no SNL expert, but personally I’ve found some of the discussion around the 50th anniversary special odd. They bring back old cast members, invite special guests, and people say it’s not current enough. The current cast are featured in new sketches that reference current events and the current season, and people are like ‘what about the hits? The classics?’ I did watch the whole special and thought it did a good job of being a whole new episode of SNL, celebrating New York and the long legacy of the show, referencing iconic sketches and characters, and even acknowledging the not great things. They had a ‘this aged badly’ montage! If you’re interested, this is probably the quickest explainer and review out there. And I have been meaning to listen to more of Critics At Large anyway.
- Caitlin
The Beatles on repeat
Since we were visiting Liverpool we, of course, had The Beatles on repeat. Despite my immense love for them I actually don’t listen to that much of their music day-to-day anymore (it’s mostly Maisie Peters tbh). It was so lovely and nostalgic to listen back to old favourites and things like Penny Lane as we visited the city.
– Michelle
Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy (official podcast)
A wonderful and joyful celebration of all things Bridget Jones to tie in with the new movie, hosted by Pandora Sykes. Covers the movies, books, Bridget’s friends, her love interests, and of course the wonderful character of Bridget. Pandora interviews the author Helen Fielding and a whole range of cast and crew across the 5 episode series. So much fun to get a bit of extra Bridget!
– Caitlin
Something else
Film cameras
So, I’ve had a point-and-shoot film camera for a while and while it’s super fun, I also often feel a bit disappointed about how things turn out because, well, you can’t really control anything. So I did about an hour of research and some eBay searches and bought myself an SLR camera. It’s a model that was produced in East Germany and so far it’s been quite meditative to slow down, frame shots and really think about the image I want to produce. Now, to wait for the developed results!
- Michelle
Kylie
In the lead up to seeing icon Kylie Minogue in concert on Feb 27, I’d been listening to her hits and going back to listen properly to her more recent albums. Reminding me how much I like ‘Say Something’ and ‘Magic’ from Disco, and discovering ‘Things We Do For Love’ and ‘Taboo’ from Tension and Tension II respectively. My sister and I were disappointed ‘Wow’ from 2007’s X did not make the set list though. (Side note from Michelle: I forgot how much I loved Wow and the X album!)
- Caitlin