Show & Tell: Getting Stuff Done, Pulitzer Prizes, and More Zendaya
Unstacked Digest for the week of May 6-12
Welcome to another edition of Show & Tell where I tell you the nine things I loved from the week and the one thing I hated, plus round up everything else going on around these parts. The first half of Show & Tell is free to all. The adoration and hateration are for paid subscribers only.
Mr. Stacks is celebrating a very big birthday this week, so we had a little dinner party and friends and family came to town to show him some love. I always love being surrounded by our people. There are far too few occasions to gather in a meaningful way, so when those opportunities arise, I feel extra grateful.
Enough of the sweet stuff, it is time to talk some shit.
This Week on Unstacked
I finally weighed in on Drake vs. Kendrick. They forced my hand.
I shared my most anticipated books of May, from Brittney Griner’s memoir to a book on abortion rights post Roe, and five others.
Debut novelist Sasah Vasilyuk shared the most memorable moment from her book tour for Your Presence is Mandatory.
Books I Read This Week
Annie Bot by Sierra Greer
This speculative novel is the story of a high-achieving sex doll named Stella. I was surprised by how much I liked this book, even though the ending wasn’t my favorite. The first 3/4 were so engaging and enjoyable. It has sex (duh), thriller vibes, and a whole lot to think about around autonomy.
Fave of the week!
Big Night: Dinners, Parties & Dinner Parties by Katherine Lewin
I love to host, I love having people over, and I love this cookbook about how to host a fun and (mostly) stress free gathering. The recipes look good and straightforward. Lewin is thoughtful with her recipe pairings to make sure you and yours have the perfect Big Night!
Undue Burden: Life and Death Decisions in Post-Roe America by Shefali Luthra
An investigation into abortion care since the overturning of Roe. I was interested in this one because I’ve been curious to see the ways healthcare has changed since SCOTUS’ ruling in 2022, but in the end the book is just too long and repetitive. It feels very one note. If it had been half as long (the audiobook was 12+ hours) I think it could’ve been stronger and more impactful.
Housekeeping
Paula Yoo, author of Rising from the Ashes: Los Angeles, 1992. Edward Jae Song Lee, Latasha Harlins, Rodney King, and a City on Fire joined The Stacks to talk about the 1992 LA riots, writing history for young people, and more.
I talked about the Pulitzer’s Prize awards and book award judging in general this month on NPR’s Here and Now.
My live show, One for the Books is back! May 15th, this Tuesday, with author
(Cultish,The Age of Magical Overthinking) and actor Vella Lovell (Animal Control,My Crazy Ex-Girlfriend) it all goes down.Nine Things I Love…
Books
The 2024 winners of the Pulitzer Prize were announced this week. I love the Pulitzer Prize so much. It is far and away my favorite literary award because of their attention to nonfiction categories, and their appreciation for deeply researched clearly told narratives (I know there are those of you who do not care for the Pulitzer because of its awarding of the fiction prize, but I do not care about fiction like that, so I never read those books. I trust you though, Night Watch sounds bad). The Pulitzer judges love my kinds of books (like Blood in the Water and His Name is George Floyd) and therefore, I love them right back.
The other thing I love about the Pulitzer’s is there is no longlist. They let you know the finalists and the winners about 30 seconds apart. The Puliitzer knows she is the baddest bitch of all, she does not need to give you a warning, she says what needs to be said and keeps it moving.
And I must shout out two 2023 guests of The Stacks who were honored on Monday. Nathan Thrall won in nonfiction for his incredibly well told book, A Day in the Life of Abed Salama: Anatomy of a Jerusalem Tragedy.
Andrew Leland was a finalist in the memoir category for his book The Country of the Blind: A Memoir at the End of Sight.
If you want to know more about this year’s awards or award judging in general, I was on NPR’s Here and Now this week talking about all the juice.
Pop Culture
Zendaya won the Met Gala, again. Here is what everyone else wore.