The revolution that the world has seen in terms of communication and media is unparalleled in any other era in history, suddenly everyone has access to limitless entertainment and stories at the tips of their fingers, and more importantly, most of it is free.
Parasols, petticoats, sweets and trifles – Autumn de Wilde’s 2020 adaptation of Jane Austen’s Emma is the epitome of decadence. Critics have called it “lavish”, “totally delicious”, and “picture-perfect”. But does a focus on all things pretty make us appreciate Austen’s work or take it less seriously?
As the world grinds to an economic standstill we may feel a strange desire to speed up, as if to counteract the mess unfolding before us, but once in a while and especially now, it’s okay to slow down. By understanding we don’t always need to be producing content and working we help others and ourselves renegotiate the place of the arts industry within our own internal value systems.
It’s nice to hear about Kondo and her plan to tidy the nation of America, as I myself find the need to tidy the world around me. However her long list of ways to bring order to your home seems a bit extravagant and her book has not sparked joy for many novel lovers.
At the Courtauld Institute, there is a movement towards a digital, free-thinking art writing matrimony: Fire Assembly Point. I spoke to India Picton, who pioneered the magazine from its early stages into the dazzling and exciting space it exists as today. This interview highlights some of the main issues that students face with academic writing and the steps we can take to write creatively and without restriction.
Don’t we all love food? It’s not just a luxury but a necessity of life, however we seem to take it to extremes with the sheer number of cookbooks published each year. According to Amazon’s bestseller list, they are already dominating this year’s sales, with 5 currently residing in the top 10.
My mum makes a mean Shepherd’s Pie. The revered pie sits in my mother’s house, in my mother’s dish, on my mother’s chopping board. For all intents and purposes, it is entirely my mother’s work. Except it isn’t.
Beth, or BooksNest as she is known online, is a successful book blogger who recently grew her Twitter account to 10,000 followers. BooksNest often reviews young adult fiction, though branches out into other genres too. I spoke to Beth about why she loves blogging and what she has gotten out of it.
Publishing is competitive, ruthless and inherently flawed. At the same time, rather frustratingly, there is no clear solution. But one thing is clear: although celebrities are convenient scapegoats, it’s not their fault.
I used to have enough books to fill two tall bookshelves. In the summer of 2017, I donated almost all of them. It might seem like a bizarre twist of logic but getting rid of my books made me more of a reader.
