I recently had an unexpected health issue (aren’t they all?) and needed to stay home for about a week to recover. During that week, I did what most people do when they’re stuck at home: I consumed various types of media and took a lot of naps.
I read our new Neil Gaiman graphic novel, “The Neil Gaiman Library” which collects four full graphic novels into a single volume. Gaiman has long been one of my favorite authors and this addition to his works does not disappoint. The stories within are a mix of mystery and suspense with a dash of horror. They’re clever and creepy and well worth hefting around this large book.
I also started watching season 1 of “Lovecraft Country” on HBOMax, which is based on the book by Matt Ruff. We only have the book via Overdrive, which I just checked out today, so I can’t opine on more than the first page. However, if the book is half as good as the show, I’m in for a terrifyingly amazing ride. The show, set in the 1950s, is told through the point of view of Atticus Turner, a Black army veteran. It contains both the horrors of being Black during the Jim Crow era as well as supernatural monsters that are almost as terrifying as their human counterparts. If you like horror books and movies, I highly recommend this show.
Lastly, I watched the Academy Award winning documentary “My Octopus Teacher” on Netflix. It’s a beautifully shot film recording the relationship between a human diver and a wild octopus in a South African kelp forest. The bond between human and octopus in this film reminded me very much of Sy Montgomery’s book “The Soul of an Octopus.” The main difference being the setting – open ocean versus aquarium – but the humans describe some of the same feelings and connections in the two works. Both book and film are worth checking out.