Schitt's Creek: Riches to Rags to Comedy Gold

My last post was about Succession, a drama about a wealthy and corrupt family who (as of this date, two episodes into Season 2) continue to be genuinely awful human beings with no redeeming qualities. If I couldn't persuade you to watch that show, I now bring you Schitt's Creek, a comedy about a wealthy family that loses all their money and has to start their lives over again, despite having no viable life skills. I am halfway through the fifth season (it has already been announced that the sixth season airing next year will be its last), and oh what a singular joy this show has been in my life.

Eugene Levy and his son Dan Levy co-created this show and star in it, as father and son (confusingly, Eugene's daughter Sarah Levy also shows up in the show but as the waitress in the local cafe rather than as his daughter). Eugene plays Johnny Rose, a man who amassed a fortune running a wildly successful chain of video stores (yeah, this show seems to be set in the present day, but video stores? Really?). Together with his wife, Moira (Catherine O'Hara - much to say about this later), son, David (Dan Levy), and daughter, Alexis (Annie Murphy), he is forced to move to the small town of Schitt's Creek after his business manager embezzles all his money. From living in a gargantuan mansion to now sharing two rooms in a motel, the Rose family has to come to grips with their new circumstances and figure out if they will spend their lives trying to reclaim their former glory or forage a new path in this ridiculous town.

The cast of this show is simply stellar, predominantly for their facial expressions. With those eyebrows, there's no doubt that Dan Levy is Eugene's son, but the character of David is mostly one massive eye roll. Watching him contort his face to convey shock, disgust, and happiness, with neither of those expressions ever being 100% clear, is sheer perfection. Similarly, Annie Murphy as Alexis is able to scrunch up her face and waggle her arms and say "Eww, Daviiiiiid" in a variety of ways that I will never stop imitating. I quite literally have been sitting at my desk at work and yelling across to one of my colleagues, "David, let's go, Daviiiiid, David!" when it's time to go to lunch (his name's not David, but that's another story). Eugene Levy's face acting is never more hilarious than when he has to convey the utter bewilderment that Johnny feels about the bizarre things going on around him. He is used to being the man in power, so as he gets overridden by people who he would have ordinarily regarded as minions, he looks so confused and appalled that you can't help but burst out laughing.

Which brings us to Moira Rose. A former soap star, she is the diva of the family, used to getting her own way and having everyone tread lightly around her. With this part, Catherine O'Hara has hit the height of her comedic powers. I don't (and no one else does) have any idea what her accent is but it is ridiculous and wonderful. It's a bit like old Hollywood movies where people like Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn were supposed to be playing Americans but certainly didn't sound like any ordinary citizen. She also indulges in a wonderfully rich old-timey vocabulary. In a recent episode I watched, she was annoyed at Alexis for "pettifogging," a word that I think I last read in a Victorian novel. Always clad in a wig and some bizarre outfit that is the height of haute couture, Moira Rose is an alien come down to earth to grace us with her presence, and I am grateful for this gift. Except when she starts singing.

The supporting cast are equally fantastic - I instantly relate to Stevie (Emily Hampshire), the woman who runs the motel and has to deal with this insane family when they move in despite being a loner who hates people (see why I relate?), but she gradually comes to see the charm of the Roses. There's Chris Elliot as Roland Schitt, the inept mayor of the town and his wife Jocelyn (Jenn Robertson). And there are more who start to become familiar friends and lovers as the seasons go on. I have never bingewatched a half-hour sitcom before - usually I've watched them on a weekly basis on TV and enjoyed the character and story development over several years. But mainlining this show on Netflix, I have a profound respect for the writers and the way that they have let these characters blossom. The Roses were not likable or relatable people when this show started, and the comedy stemmed from them trying to adapt to small-town life or their inability to understand how the hoi polloi live. But slowly, they've gotten used to this town and these people, and they have built up friendships, fallen in love, gotten jobs, and made something of themselves. Unlike the family in Succession, the family in Schitt's Creek are capable of growth and human emotion, and while watching the fourth season, I constantly felt myself going gooey inside as I watched David or Alexis do something selfless for someone else, after spending a lifetime only thinking about themselves. Also, this show may feature the most straightforward and lovely gay couple I've seen portrayed on TV in a while, and they make my heart melt every time they're on screen.

For the past few weeks I have been treating myself to Schitt's Creek whenever I needed a pick-me-up (which is practically every day), and am distraught that I only have a few more episodes left. But if you haven't watched this show yet, what luck! Head on over to Netflix and be prepared to roll around like a pig in mud at all this comedic gold. The show finally scored an Emmy nomination this year, and as far as I'm concerned, it should win. These days, most comedies are actually hour-long dramedies, and while they feature great casts and writers, they are not laugh riots. Schitt's Creek is both hilarious and heartwarming, like all the great sitcoms of TV history. Every episode will make you laugh, but overall, this show will make you sigh contentedly. It is the perfect, comforting escape from the daily grind, a little oasis of optimism where we can all pretend that people are capable of change and that there's some innate goodness in everyone. Isn't that all we're looking for? 

Succession: Wealthy Woes

I bingewatched all of Succession’s first season on HBO last weekend and am caught up on the premiere of the second season. It was eleven straight hours of watching the world’s most insanely corrupt family try to make more money, destroy their rivals, and treat each other like garbage. Are you sold? No? Let me try again.

I had no desire to see this show until I heard NPR’s Linda Holmes raving about it on Pop Culture Happy Hour and at an author event I attended. So, when I was bored this weekend, I decided to give it a try. The first thing I noticed was that the show was created by Jesse Armstrong, the British TV writer who co-created Peep Show, and also wrote for the brilliant The Thick of It (and later it's American cousin, Veep). And boy can you tell, because this show delivers a withering one-liner with British aplomb. It is caustic, brash, and inventive with the invective.

Second thing I noticed? The cast. Brian Cox plays Logan Roy, the patriarch and emperor of Waystar Royco, a multimedia conglomerate that owns everything from television and newspapers to cruise lines and amusement parks. Under him is his second son and heir apparent, Kendall, played by Jeremy Strong, a man whose face you recognize from many things but who is now getting to flex all his creative muscle in a role that is brutal and brilliant. There’s also Kieran Culkin, playing Roman, the youngest son who is a bit of a screw-up, as all youngest sons are wont to be, but also gets to be COO of the company and harbors ambitions to be the man in charge, because yay nepotism. Logan’s only daughter is Siobhan, aka ‘Shiv,’ and she is as dangerous as her nickname would suggest. Played with icy, calculated mastery by Sarah Snook, she is a scheming political consultant who knows how to play every angle and seems to be the only one of her father’s children who has his true ruthless panache. She is engaged to Tom (Matthew Macfadyen), who might be the biggest revelation to me in this cast. I only knew him as Mr. Darcy but in this show, he plays a seemingly affable and eager-to-please outsider who cannot believe his luck about making it into the inner circle of this vicious family. But don’t be fooled - that dopey veneer hides ice-cold ambition and a love of riches that cannot be held in check. There’s a reason he and Shiv are a power couple. And then, Alan Ruck plays Connor, Logan’s firstborn who has rejected the family business and lives out on a ranch in New Mexico. He is free to indulge his whims but has his odd opinions and will take sides in family warfare and poke at the bear, generally proving that he’s a Roy just as much as anyone else. If you’re wondering where you’ve seen him before, he was Cameron in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. He is all grown up after crashing that Ferrari but still has daddy issues. And last but not least, there's Cousin Greg, played by the marvelously hapless and gawky Nicholas Braun. Initially estranged from the family, he is down on his luck and trying to worm his way back into their good graces, and hoo boy, he gets a rapid education in what it means to be a Roy.

That last paragraph tells you everything you need to know about what makes this show so compelling - it’s all about the character development and the specificity with which each of these horrible people are horrible in their own special way. There is genuinely no one to root for on this show. Kendall is the closest thing we have to the antihero, but frankly, ‘poor little rich boy’ can’t cut it in this day and age. While much of the plot revolves around corporate takeovers and private equity and legalese that makes me snooze, these characters say and do things that make me hit Play Next Episode with startling eagerness. The final episode of Season 1 had a very melodramatic twist, one that has happened in many shows before and you could see it coming from a mile away. But while most shows would have ended on that twist as the cliffhanger, this show gave us the aftermath: how did the character behave after this dramatic event, and how did this ultimately impact the corporate shenanigans. THAT was the cliffhanger - the company’s future, not the human toll of the event that preceded it. And that’s what makes this show so frustratingly fun to watch. It is the epitome of our current culture of capitalist greed. These people are all staggeringly wealthy but despite living in penthouses and eating lobster nonstop, it never matters. Every day is a struggle to make the next deal, defeat the next rival, and engage in ballistic fights with family members over who should lead the company.

Succession is the show for our current times. Evisceratingly funny and well-written, well-acted with a singularly perfect cast, bleak and unrelenting. It shouldn’t be this fun to watch, but I swear it is. My favorite bit is the fact that Logan Roy, who is a Rupert Murdoch-esque figure and arguably one of the worst men ever portrayed on TV, has a go-to response to everything and everyone, which is "Fuck off." Sometime this is said in genuine anger, but oftentimes, it’s merely uttered as a farewell; it's his version of telling someone that the conversation is over, you're dismissed. And that’s what Jesse Armstrong has captured in a nutshell. A world where people treat each other contemptibly and can’t even say goodbye without being unforgivably rude. I often wish I could tell the people in my life to fuck off on a daily basis. I don’t because I’m a polite brown woman. But when I watch Succession, I can dream.

The Lion King: An Animation Sensation

It often pays to have low expectations because then you can't be disappointed. This is true of most things in life, and particularly movies. I went into The Lion King expecting it to be mediocre and left pleasantly surprised. Does this movie need to exist? No. But is it a perfectly entertaining way to spend an afternoon? Yes.

Obviously the first point to comment on is the animation. This is a "live-action" film, but they didn't actually wrangle a bunch of animals to run around the Serengeti. Instead, they have done a brilliant job of rendering these creatures with CGI, to the point where the majority of the film feels like you're watching Planet Earth. All that's missing is David Attenborough. And all that animation is front and center right when we head into the movie's famous opening scene. As those memorable Zulu vocals burst through the speakers and all the animals start racing from the watering hole to Pride Rock, you can settle in and enjoy the show. Every animal is rendered in startlingly fine detail, and as the movie progresses, the animation just gets more impeccable. Towards the end, there's a scene in the rain, and watching how the raindrops cling on to Simba's mane is a feat that probably took some animator a few months to perfect. That being said, however, by making the animals this realistic, you lose the anthropomorphic magic of animation. Apart from moving their mouths when they speak, you can't really see any emotion on these animals' faces, so it's hard to feel emotionally involved as the more dramatic events of the film transpire.

Then we get to the voice cast. There's still James Earl Jones' iconic voice as Mufasa, gently handing us over from the 1994 film to this remake. While it's remarkable how little his voice has changed, it also means that the first half of this movie feels identical to the cartoon and there's nothing particularly new to enjoy, apart from John Oliver's splendidly British ditherings as Zazu. However, where this movie excels is the second half, with the introduction of Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen as Timon and Pumba. The two make a fantastic double-act and insert much-needed comic relief into a movie that would have otherwise gone off the rails pretty quick. Also, I don't know what's going on with animators in Hollywood, but there's a sequence in this film when Timon and Pumba are explaining to Simba how life is meaningless. Coupled with the existentialism of Toy Story 4, it's starting to feel like all of Hollywood is experiencing a mid-life crisis.

Of course in the second half, we also finally get Donald Glover voicing adult Simba, and Beyonce voicing adult Nala. And hoo boy, those voices are smooth as butter. Those two can make a children's movie feel fraught with sexual tension. They don't spend too much time talking, but whenever they do it's glorious, and when they're singing, it's sublime. This is not remotely a surprise (it's Donald Glover and Beyonce!) but still, it's the most novel aspect of a movie that is otherwise not offering up much in the way of new revelations.

The Lion King is a gorgeous movie featuring great voice acting, but it doesn't throw in any twists and turns that differentiate it from the 1994 original. Like most of Disney's remakes, it's very obviously an attempt to cater to nostalgia and make money. It adequately delivers, but if you are not a fan of this story or do not want to give in to the corporate greed of our Hollywood overlords, you can easily give this film a pass. We'll probably get another version of it in twenty-five years anyway - that's the circle of life. 

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood: Something Interesting Happened After a Whole Lot of Nothing

As a huge Tarantino fan, I was eagerly looking forward to watching Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Reunited with Brad Pitt, I was hoping for something reminiscent of the heyday of Inglourious Basterds. Sadly, I spent two and a half hours in the theater constantly checking the time to see when this agony would end.

I did not like this movie. And it saddens me to say it, because I do love Tarantino, and his previous movies have always brought a tremendous amount of entertainment value, even if they can't all be masterpieces like Basterds. But I was legitimately bored throughout this film and even while writing this review am struggling to understand how it went so off the rails. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, and Margot Robbie, it boasts an all-star cast and is set in 1969 Hollywood. These are all the ingredients for a blockbuster but they are failed by a lackluster script, which is generally Tarantino's forte. His style is to set all the chess pieces on the board and build up to an epic finale, but this time, the showdown happens in the last fifteen minutes of the film, and nothing that leads up to it feels remotely coherent or interesting. Instead it feels like a series of disjointed vignettes about characters who aren't particularly compelling. And the finale features characters who get a gory comeuppance that you don't even feel like cheering for because they barely got any screen time previously. It's hard to root for a villain's demise when you've only know the villain for about ten minutes.

The dialogue wasn't crisp, and the banter was far from engaging. There were odd bits of voiceover narration that I found particularly jarring, because the hallmark of a Tarantino flick has always been to show, not tell. And yet it seemed clear that he kept writing himself into corners that only a narrator could fix. DiCaprio as a has-been Western actor has his funny moments but is ultimately striking one note throughout. Brad Pitt is a far more compelling screen presence (when he takes his shirt off, it was like an ode to Thelma and Louise that at least got me engaged in the proceedings for a few minutes before I was bored again). But his character is played for laughs, despite him allegedly killing his wife? What? Margot Robbie is also flawless as Sharon Tate, but her character mostly exists to play a tanned, leggy, blonde bombshell without much of an interior life. Sure, she goes into a theater and puts on large glasses to watch herself on screen, which seems to be the only way male filmmakers seem to know how to tell us a beautiful woman contains multitudes within. She wears big, unflattering glasses - she's complex!

Margaret Qualley is probably the most interesting character in the piece, a hippie called Pussycat who lives with the rest of the Manson family on the ranch. I do appreciate the attention to detail by allowing her to have robust armpit hair and have her look somewhat distressingly emaciated (though still gorgeous). Note to teenage girls and all-age men who think that's what a normal woman should look like - no. She is clearly starving and that thigh gap needs to go. But again, her character is a weird one-off who brings Brad Pitt back to the ranch but serves no real other purpose. She and Pitt do share great chemistry, and the scenes where they just communicate via facial expressions might be the highlight of the movie, but otherwise, she's yet another wasted actor in this film.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood features a great soundtrack, most of which you've already heard in the trailer, and is an ode to Westerns like many of Tarantino's latest endeavors, which means great cinematography of sweeping vistas and a general desert vibe. But there is a dearth of engaging content that makes it a complete slog to watch. The same gag is repeated too often, none of the characters feel fleshed out, and it all feels a bit too self-satisfied and assured of its own success to ever win you over. I will be quickly forgetting this movie (much like I forgot The Hateful Eight) and hope that Tarantino moves away from Westerns and goes back to killing Nazis. DiCaprio did get to wield a flamethrower in this movie, but it was too little, too late. 

The Farewell: The Immigrant Identity (Or Lack Thereof)

Many of us have been debating about immigrants this week and reading several racist tweets about what it means to be an American. If you're drowning in social media agita and would rather take a break by immersing yourself in a poignant and funny story about the true immigrant experience, you could do no better than to run to the theater to watch The Farewell.

The movie centers around Billi (Awkwafina, who seems guaranteed to get some awards love this year) a Chinese-American woman from New York who goes back to her hometown of Changchun, China, to see her grandmother (known as "Nai Nai") under the pretense of attending a family wedding. Nai Nai has been diagnosed with terminal lung cancer, but in traditional Chinese fashion, she had been told that everything's fine. Instead the family will carry the emotional burden of her diagnosis, allowing her to enjoy her last few months of life. For Billi, this seems like a bizarre and unfair thing to do, but her family insists she keep up the charade, saying that this is how things are done in the East and she cannot mess up the plan with her Western notions. Instead, they are planning a shotgun wedding for her cousin Hao Hao and his Japanese girlfriend, so that the family can all gather and see Nai Nai without her realizing that this is all part of an emotional farewell tour. 

This movie might sound sad, but all these machinations to hide the truth from Nai Nai and go along with the audacious plan are hilarious and this movie is a riotous comedy for much of its running time. I saw it with my friend Laura, who spent the latter half of the movie sobbing, so be forewarned, but you'll be laughing through your tears too. It is a rich portrait of what it means to be an immigrant and not quite belonging to the place where you were born or your adopted homeland. Billi is too American to her Chinese family, but will always be considered Chinese by her American friends, and carving out an identity for herself is a slow and confusing process that all immigrants can relate to. Every single character in this film is beautifully realized, with a rich inner life and specific conflicts of their own that they must deal with during this trip. Billi's father (played by the always lovely Tzi Ma) is grieving over the impending loss of his mother and his guilt that he hasn't been able to take care of her himself. Her mother (Diana Lin, in a wonderful performance) is being a dutiful daughter-in-law but has also had a contentious relationship with Nai Nai in the past and struggles to know how to best express her emotions unlike her American daughter who seems to demand everyone wear their heart on their sleeve.

The movie is brimming with very specific observations about the immigrant experience and particularly the Asian-American experience. Asians in film are often portrayed as stoic and affectless, so it is wonderful to watch the entire cast express every emotion under the sun and deal with grief in a manner that is both traditionally Chinese and utterly universal at the same time. And Zhao Shuzhen, who plays Nai Nai, might be the best thing about this movie. I don't care what race or ethnicity you are - she will immediately make you think of your own grandma and you will feel warm and fuzzy every time you see her on screen. Her first words when she sees Billi are about how she's not as thin as she was led to believe and then she spends the entire movie trying to feed Billi various items at every meal. I can certainly relate.

The Farewell is based on the director Lulu Wang's actual experience with her own grandmother, and was shot in her hometown - her great-aunt (Lu Hong) even plays Billi's great aunt in the movie and has a wonderful moment where we get to learn more about some of her thwarted ambitions. As such, there's no surprise that it is so precisely observed and rich in detail. It is a glorious movie that has already met with much critical acclaim and is sure to garner massive awards buzz. But more importantly, in this day and age, when people are so quick to vilify immigrants as the "other," this movie achieves the impossible. It introduces you to an entire family that is nothing like yours, and yet incredibly, completely like yours. Yes, immigrants may not always look like you and speak the same language. But guess what. They still grieve when their grandmothers are ill, bicker around the table at a large family dinner, worry about money, and repress their feelings until it all comes bursting out at inopportune moments. Turns out they're just human beings too.

Spider-Man: Far From Home: Marvelous Manipulation

Spoiler alert: if you're one of the two humans who haven't seen Avengers: Endgame yet, the below does contain spoilers to that movie.

Looking back on it, I'm shocked that Spider-Man: Far From Home is only two hours long. There were multiple times I thought the movie had ended, and was then shocked by a new twist that led to even more trippy insanity, and by the time I left the theater, I was certain I must have been there for hours, because so much had happened. But nope, Marvel somehow manages to beat the space-time continuum and create movies jam-packed with plot and wit that feel so rich and meaty and yet seem to get over in no time at all. It's like eating a steak that feels like a souffle. Or maybe the other way round? I don't know, this movie has thrown my metaphors for a loop.

The action picks up after Avengers: Endgame, where half of humanity has re-appeared after five years, after the event known as the "blip." Those who were blipped out when Thanos snapped his fingers haven't aged, so in Peter Parker's (Tom Holland) case, he's in high school with some classmates the same age as him, and others who grew up in the intervening five years. Best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon) and unrequited crush MJ (Zendaya) thankfully stayed the same age, and they are all about to head to Europe for a school science trip. Peter has plans to tell MJ how he feels and basically just enjoy himself like an ordinary high school teenager, putting aside all the superhero stress for a while. However, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) has just returned from being blipped himself and is keen to re-start the Avengers initiative following the loss of both Iron Man and Captain America. Tony Stark handpicked Peter to be his successor, so Nick demands that he step up. Unfortunately, Peter is terrified at the prospect, and avoid Fury's calls in the hopes that he can just ignore his responsibilities and enjoy a Euro trip.

Naturally, that cannot happen. Fury has his ways, and before he knows it, Peter is forced to don the Spidey suit and work alongside a superhero from another dimension named Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal) to save Europe from a bunch of destructive creatures called Elementals. Mysterio is a perfect partner and together, the two make quick work of these villains. At which point I thought the movie was winding to a somewhat safe and insipid conclusion. But this is Marvel we're talking about. They had more than one trick up their sleeve.

I can't go into more detail about this movie without giving away masses of intrigue and amazing plot that delighted me from start to finish. Even though Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse was a standalone film, there are elements of Far From Home that feel inspired by that movie, with its intricate plot and sophisticated silliness. Suffice to say, I left the theater texting my friend Ben, "is nothing real?!" It truly is a trippy film, filmed with impeccable visuals that continually pull the rug out from under you. And of course, it's brimming with jokes, sight gags, and all manner of levity, never allowing the tone to get too somber or self-important. That is evident from the opening scenes of this film, where we have to acknowledge the extremely sad events of Avengers: Endgame, but in a hilarious fashion that makes it clear that this movie isn't going to waste too much being maudlin. It's time to launch a new phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and Spider-Man is going to lead the charge.

Spider-Man: Far From Home is super fun and super satisfying, a perfect way to recover from the high-stakes angst of Avengers. Tom Holland is on top form, and I'm totally on board for him to take over top Avenger status. It seems fitting that Jon Favreau is back as Happy Hogan, Iron Man's right-hand man who now has to help out Peter, because Favreau was the director of the very first Iron Man and kick-started this whole juggernaut in the first place. So if you thought Marvel wouldn't be able to recover after all the losses of the Avengers, boy do you you have a lot to learn. Strap in and get ready for twenty-two more films. 

Evvie Drake Starts Over: Comfort Reading

Last week, my friend Laura and I went to see an author panel with Linda Holmes, the host of Pop Culture Happy Hour, and first-time author of the delicious novel, Evvie Drake Starts Over. Readers of the blog know I adore Pop Culture Happy Hour, and I have been hearing about Holmes' writing project for years as she first started writing it and then eventually sold the book and officially had to worry about editing and marketing. To see her live in person and get a copy of this book that I had been hearing about for so many years was brilliant. It also helps that she might be one of the most charming ladies on the planet.

Evvie Drake Starts Over is exactly the kind of book you would expect Linda Holmes to write. Over the years, I have learnt what she likes in her pop culture, and this book is brimming with pop culture references, witty banter, silly jokes, and a well-defined three-dimensional heroine who is wrestling with her demons but does it with aplomb. Evvie (it rhymes with Chevy), is a widow who is suffering from immense guilt because she never told anyone that she hated her husband and was planning on leaving him on the night he died. So now that he's dead, she has to act like the grieving widow, stuck in a giant house that is filled with bad memories and figuring out how on earth she gets her life moving again. Enter Dean Tenney, a pitcher for the Yankees who had to unceremoniously retire from baseball when he woke up one day with the "yips," a bizarre psychological condition where an athlete simply cannot do the thing they were good at anymore. He can no longer pitch, so after some excruciating games, his career sputters to a halt. Eager to get away from New York, he takes up an offer from his childhood friend Andy, who lives in Maine and says Dean can rent the apartment in his best friend's house for a few months as he tries to figure out his next steps. Who's Andy's best friend? Evvie.

You can see where this is going, of course. Dean and Evvie start off as mere acquaintances, quickly evolve into friends, and then fireworks start to spark. It's a slow-burn romance that still feels explosive, probably because of the enormous amounts of screwball banter that make it clear they were meant for each other. But there's also so much emotional work that these two need to do. Each is grieving a very specific loss and needs to come to terms with how their life moves on. My favorite facet of this book is that while it has a romantic angle, it is still very much a book about how these two characters deal with their problems independently, and not co-dependently. Also, a lot of romances tend to go back and forth with the male and female perspective, but here, Evvie's story is of paramount importance. Watching her come to terms with what has happened to her and what new adventures she might have in her future is the most joyous aspect of this novel. Some of these characters have to deal with harsh truths, but the end result is a warm, gentle, and kind story about second chances. As Linda Holmes is the reason I even discovered the romance genre to begin with, it makes sense that the woman knows how to craft the perfect romance.

At the author panel, a question was asked during the Q&A about whether the authors, all of whom were arts critics, ever felt bad that they weren't reporting on more "important" things like politics or climate change. Linda Holmes brought down the house with the following metaphor: "You know in the movie The Martian, where Matt Damon is stuck on Mars but needs to get home to Earth? He spend the first half of that movie growing potatoes. Now the potatoes won't get him back to Earth. But they're what he needs to stay alive so that he can then figure out all the other stuff to get back. So I like to think of my writing as space potatoes. It's what helps people get through the day before they tackle all the other stuff that needs to be solved." I have told that story to every person I know. To me, this blog is my version of space potatoes. And last week, when I finished reading Evvie Drake Starts Over, I smiled and thanked Linda Holmes for this delicious space potato of a novel. I can't wait to devour the next one.