LIZZY ATTREE
THINGS THEY LOST - Okwiri Oduor (Oneworld, 2022)
Photograph by Lizzy Attree
This is my first pick and I wrote a full review in the Guardian earlier this year: It’s worth repeating here that Oduor is an extraordinary writer, and her debut novel is packed with magic.
GLORY – No Violet Bulawayo (Chatto, 2022)
Shortlisted for the Booker Prize this year, Bulawayo’s second novel GLORY focuses on the “Crocodile” that has stalked Zimbabwe since the end of the 15-year war of independence in 1979 and the rise of the dominant political party, ZANU–PF (Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front). Robert Mugabe is, for Bulawayo, the crocodile who ate the sun — as Peter Godwin described him in his 2006 book — yet the presence of other villains nurtured during ZANU–PF’s long stranglehold on power means that the current president, Emmerson Mnangagwa, presents an even greater danger to Zimbabwe today. Shocking, funny and lyrical it’s worth the read.
THE FURROWS – Namwali Serpell (Hogarth, 2022)
My first thought on reading THE FURROWS is that the book is just devastating. The descriptions of simple tragedies are emotionally overwhelming. Completely different from her debut novel THE OLD DRIFT, Serpell declares on the cover that she doesn’t want to tell a story of what happened, but how it felt, which is an unusual mode to select, but makes sense when it comes to the subject of grief, which is a difficult emotion to navigate. The story that unfolds describes the recovery of a sibling whose lost brother haunts her dreams and puts her on a collision course with a doppleganger who isn’t quite who he seems to be.
Next year I’m looking forward to: DAZZLING – Chikodili Emelumadu (Headline, 2023)
KATE BURKE
TV series: THE WILDS
Having binge-watched most of the big and buzzy TV series of the year, I came across this Amazon Prime series, recommended by an author on Twitter, and I absolutely inhaled the two series (sadly, it was cancelled after that). It's about a group of teenagers who survive a plane crash so it's a bit like LOST meets YELLOW JACKETS but there's more to it than that (no spoilers!) and I found it to be really gripping fun. Definitely one of the best things I've seen this year. So, here's my plug for this lesser-known gem!
Film: TOP GUN: MAVERICK
My film of the year! Such great entertainment - amazing stunts, great action and just enough nods back to the (far inferior, in my opinion) original. It surpassed my expectations and while I know it would sound much cooler to say that EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE was probably the best film of the year (!), for me, it was MAVERICK.
Live music: PET SHOP BOYS
It had been a couple of years since I had been to a gig and this one-off charity show at Camden's Electric Ballroom was an absolute treat! A surprise gift from my other half, I only found out I was going just days before the concert. It was so nice to be back in a room with a slightly sticky floor, plastic cups of beer and a crowd that knew every single word to their songs.
FINLAY CHARLESWORTH
Book: TRESPASSES by Louise Kennedy (Bloomsbury)
A lucky friend from the North of Ireland managed to get hold of a proof of this way back in 2021, and until it had come out in the UK and she had sold every last person in our social circle a copy, she did not pipe down about it once. Thankfully, it was worth the noise.
A staggering, heart-breaking read about love and fear in 1970s Belfast that never raises its voice, undermines or mistreats the reader – just laying bare the tender-menacing reality as it plays out.
Photograph by Finlay Charlesworth
Play: CYRANO DE BERGERAC at the Harold Pinter Theatre, dir. Jamie Lloyd, freely adapted by Martin Crimp
I’ve been fortunate enough to see some amazing actors on stage this year – Ralph Fiennes, Tamsin Greig, Simon Russell Beale and Emma Corrin to name a few – but James McAvoy’s CYRANO stands out, a supreme performance combining muscular wit and cunning with a genuine soft, caring affection.
The new version of Edmund de Rostand’s play by Martin Crimp and Jamie Lloyd set him free with their mercurial script and staging – fast, irreverent, intricate, and never less than totally captivating.
Series: BAD SISTERS (Apple TV+)
Do I think watching and reading things about immensely silly murders make it less likely I’ll be bumped off? Possibly. For the likes of FARGO, ONLY MURDERS IN THE BUILDING and BAD SISTERS, I’m happy to keep testing the theory.
BAD SISTERS keeps things fresh by telling you right at the start exactly who did it – but bouncing between the before and after to leave us asking how did they do it and will they get away with it?
Regularly took me from side-splitting laughter to jaw-dropping horror in seconds – fantastic.
Next year I’m looking forward to: THE MOON IS TRENDING by Clare Fisher (Salt, out 15th June). Clare was my very first guest lecturer as a fresh-faced create writing undergrad back in Leeds, and the first person I ever really associated with the short story – and since their last short story collection, HOW THE LIGHT GETS IN (Influx) came out in 2018, I’ve re-read it about four times and gifted fresh copies twice. To say I’m excited about THE MOON IS TRENDING, their new collection, would be an understatement.
Photograph by Isobel Dixon
ISOBEL DIXON
Travel: NEW MEXICO
Six years ago, my Picks of the Year included the Georgia O’Keeffe exhibition at Tate Modern, an agency summer outing which spoke to my long fascination with O’Keeffe’s paintings and her love of the New Mexico landscape – so reminiscent of the expanses of the Karoo where I grew up. A work not in that exhibition was The Lawrence Tree her striking image of the large ponderosa pine D.H. Lawrence sat and wrote under during his time in in New Mexico. One day, I thought, I’d see it – the painting and the tree itself. Late in that 2016 summer I’d also read and loved Out of Sheer Rage, Geoff Dyer’s wonderful, artful wrestle with Lawrence, himself, writing and not writing. This year saw a confluence of these two streams as (after pandemic postponements) I finally made it to the 15TH INTERNATIONAL D.H. LAWRENCE CONFERENCE in Taos, fell in love with the landscapes of New Mexico and sat happily a while under that ‘overshadowing’, ‘guardian angel’ tree. A week in Taos, walking among the pines on the D. H. Lawrence Ranch and learning more about New Mexico’s Native American communities was book-ended by two visits to the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe and a trip out to her homes at Ghost Ranch and Abiquiú. All this, with the friends I made along the way, made for a major memorable journey of the last few years. A Santa Fe poem about apricots and Georgia O’Keeffe fell into my lap as a result.
Events: BOOK FAIRS
It was a year of slow revival, and the return of other Covid-suspended festivals and book fairs suspended made for many significant reunions – I appreciated a return to a fuller FRANKFURT BOOK FAIR, a first trip to Gothenburg Book Fair with several authors, and being in Glasgow and Edinburgh again around the Edinburgh International Book Festival.
Book: WEST by Carys Davies
For more interior journeys, the novel that struck me most in its humanity, beauty and quiet power was Carys Davies’ WEST.
SIAN ELLIS- MARTIN
Event: WOMEN’S EURO 2022
I loved watching the Women’s Euro tournament this year. It was really inspiring to watch women from around the world play on an international stage and to finally get the screen time they deserve. And… it finally came home!
Book: PLAIN BAD HEROINES by Emily M. Danforth
A gothic, queer, cleverly written story with a haunting mystery at its heart. It was addictive reading and I couldn’t put it down.
TV: DEAD TO ME
I was a bit slow off the mark with this one and didn’t start season one until season three had come out. What a ride! Dead to Me is the perfect combination of funny, poignant and dramatic. Despite the absolute insanity of it, I binged the whole thing (and cried for the entirety of the last episode). The intricacies of Jen and Judy’s relationship are beautiful to watch, and Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini are amazing throughout all three seasons.
JULIAN FRIEDMANN
TV: BIG OIL VS THE WORLD, BBC TV (3 parts)
I started researching the anti-climate change lobby as part of the research for Dr Stephen Oppenheimer’s next book THE FOURTH FLOOD and was shocked at how blatant the lobby has been. This is nowhere better shown than in the three-part BBC documentary series BIG OIL vs THE WORLD. “The age of fossil fuels is far from over.” “What climate change means to me is looking in the eyes of my grandchildren, and wondering what kind of hell they’re going to pay?” Jane McMullen’s trilogy on the fossil fuel lobby deserves the Nobel Prize, such is the urgency of the issue, yet we are sleepwalking towards a global disaster.
Object: A HEATED COFFEE MUG WARMER
This really come into its own this December. It was given to me as a Christmas present last year: research shows that the USB warmers do not get hot enough. This one runs from mains and has three temperature settings. Highly recommended.
Photograph by Julian Friedmann
Travel: ICELAND
A bucket-list holiday to see volcanoes, geysers, the aurora, glaciers and ice caves (deep underneath glaciers) curated by New Scientist magazine (who knew they did holidays?) was a spectacular success.
SAMUEL HODDER
Book: WHY YOU LIKE THIS PHOTO: THE SCIENCE OF PERCEPTION by Brian Dilg (Ilex Press)
I devour photography books, but this little book was still full of revelations. Brian Dilg is a celebrated cinematographer and photographer, and here he uses discoveries in psychology and neuroscience to explain how perception works and the ways in which the human eye differs from a camera and its processes. It’s a fascinating subject and this short book is packed full of information that photographers can use to make their own work stronger.
Place: THE RUINS OF XANTHOS (Turkey)
Photograph by Samuel Hodder
I’m drawn to ruins – the older the better – like a cat is to catnip, and it was a delight to explore this ancient site in the countryside in the south of Turkey. I’d been intrigued by Xanthos, once a major Lycian city, since I first saw some of its treasures in the British Museum, including the glorious Nereid Monument. Despite being a UNESCO World Heritage Site, dating to the 8th century BC, Xanthos was almost deserted when I visited, and I could explore its remarkably well-preserved ruins in silence without any distraction. Below is a photo of the entrance to the amphitheatre. Xanthos is the site of the first recorded mass suicide in history: in 540 BC almost all the city’s population took their own lives when the city was about to fall to an invading Persian army.
Book: THE FIVE: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE WOMEN KILLED BY JACK THE RIPPER by Hallie Rubenhold (Black Swan)
I came to this a little late, picking up the book after hearing Hallie Rubenhold talk at an event at the British Library this summer, and it became one of my favourite books of the year. It centres the victims of Jack the Ripper, correcting the marginalising and dismissive narratives that were placed upon them at the time. Despite being rigorously researched it has the pace of a thriller and it is deeply moving, too.
In 2023 I’m looking forward to: DUNE 2 directed by Denis Villeneuve! Earlier this year, I had been looking forward to DUNE so much that I was a little worried I would be disappointed. But I loved it: epic, sumptuous cinematography; exciting storytelling, and a brilliant cast including Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, Oscar Isaac and Charlotte Rampling.
Photograph by Hana Murrell
HANA MURRELL
VILLA CARMIGNAC on Porquerolles Island
The island itself is a jewel off the Provençal coast – protected by National Park status, where cars and new builds aren’t allowed, and everyone walks or cycles between the charming village centre and beautiful beaches, passing by vineyards. I particularly enjoyed visiting the Villa Carmignac, a contemporary art gallery set in sprawling gardens, where you’ll find striking sculptures hidden behind gnarly old olive trees.
KAWANABE KYŌSA exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts
My mum and I really enjoyed this exhibition of Japanese painter Kawanabe Kyōsai’s work from the 19th century. Exquisitely wrought landscapes and animals were more familiar to me and reminiscent of other famous Japanese painters’ work, but the traditional scroll paintings depicting western visitors to Japan going around in top hats were a revelation. His fantastical, otherworldly creatures were also an arresting sight.
VORTEX JAZZ CLUB in Dalston
Local to me and to the office, I discovered their late-night Saturday jam session recently, and highly recommend it to anyone who fancies listening to a bunch of very talented jazz musicians for a great-value £5, in a causal and friendly space.
ANNA MYRMUS
Film: BONES AND ALL
I think surprise is something that always makes a film, or a book stick out for me and BONES AND ALL did nothing but surprise me. I went in not knowing anything about the film, specifically not knowing the two main characters were cannibals, so you can imagine my shock when Taylor Russell gnawed down on her classmate’s finger about five minutes in. But more than that I spent the whole film in awe of Luca Guadagnino, who left me similarly amazed by CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, because he managed to make a film that was thrilling, beautiful, disgusting, and romantic all at the same time.
Travel: CUBA
Photograph by Anna Myrmus
One of the highlights of my year was going to Cuba in July. Cuba is a beautiful country, and the landscape was breathtaking. We particularly enjoyed our time spent in the rural town of Viñales, where we went horse-riding twice, once at sunrise. The silence was astounding, especially having come from London. Cuba wasn’t the easiest place to travel but everyone was very warm and welcoming, and I really treasured our conversations with our hosts, taxi drivers and tour guides, who were always so open to chatting about everything from their life during covid to football.
JULIET PICKERING
Book: BOOK LOVERS by Emily Henry
I’m sure nearly everyone has heard of TikTok sensation Emily Henry; I picked up BOOK LOVERS to see what the fuss was about, and to my great delight/horror discovered that the main character was a literary agent. Literary agent characters are NEVER glam and usually pretty boring, but this one was quick and funny, and even I could suspend the disbelief at her falling for a moody, handsome publishing editor… Definitely fiction, but sexy, romantic and a joyful escape. Loved it!
TV: COUPLES THERAPY (BBC iPlayer)
I’m nosy, and always fascinated by the emotional dynamics between two people, so this documentary/reality show about real couples in counselling in New York, had me completely hooked. The second series was particularly absorbing as the covid pandemic hit, and forced everyone into lockdown, both bringing people together and forcing them apart. Soooo much better than Love Island - this is love in its grittiest form!
TV: THE MOLE AGENT (Storyville, BBC iPlayer)
I’m still an emotional wreck after watching this a few weeks ago. I don’t want to give away too much except to say that this starts out by being about an 83 year-old man sent into a Chilean nursing home as a mole, reporting on what he witnesses there via a succession of clumsy voice notes and videos, and then becomes a film about remarkable kindness. Devastating in the best (happy/sad) ways.
In 2023 I’m looking forward to ROMANTIC COMEDY from Curtis Sittenfeld. ELIGIBLE was a lot of fun, so I’m very hopeful about this novel and all the title promises.
JAMES PUSEY
Art: EDVARD MUNCH: MASTERPIECES FROM BERGEN at the Courtauld. Small, powerful exhibition of 18 paintings rarely seen together outside Norway.
Sport: ICC Men’s T20 WORLD CUP CRICKET. Great England win Down Under.
TV: CANAL BOAT DIARIES. Adventures along Britain's waterways with film-maker and musician Robbie Cumming aboard his narrowboat, The Naughty Lass.
ANE REASON
Dance and music: FLIGHT PATTERN
Earlier this year, I signed up to the Royal Opera House’s new streaming service, which offers a large number of ballet and opera performances and behind-the-scenes features. It’s a brilliant way to access footage during my few fleeting moments of free time. Although the service doesn’t replace the experience of attending live performances, it does offer some unique advantages, such as being able to rewatch favourite moments and catch nuances that would have been lost without the aid of close-ups. It’s difficult to choose a favourite from such an extensive archive, but I particularly enjoyed Flight Pattern, a contemporary ballet by Crystal Pite, about the refugee crisis.
Photograph by Ane Reason
Art: ASHMOLEUM MUSEUM
It has been a while since I went to a museum in person, so I loved visiting the Ashmolean Museum and seeing their Pre-Raphaelite exhibition. There were some spectacular large paintings on display and I enjoyed seeing some of the well-known masterpieces in real life, but the highlights for me were the small drawings, such as the intimate portraits the Pre-Raphaelites made of each other and their studies for paintings.
CHILDREN’S BOOKS
Growing up in Norway, most of my books were written by Scandinavian authors. It has therefore been exciting to discover a wider range of children’s literature while reading to my daughter in the evenings. Our current household favourites include Frog and Toad, Daddy Lost His Head, The Enormous Crocodile, The Gruffalo’s Child and The Incredible Story of the Giant Pear.
ROYA SARRAFI-GOHAR
Book: FREE by Lea Ypi (Allen Lane)
A memoir about the author’s childhood in Albania: first we see the anxious, paranoid atmosphere under the Hoxha regime through the eyes of a child who is quick to believe her teachers, and a little more curious than her parents would like. Then, when the regime falls, and political freedom arrives, we see the real human cost of the economic ‘shock therapy’ that followed: unemployment, bankruptcies, a civil war and refugee crisis.
Event: OPEN HOUSE FESTIVAL
I loved how the Open House festival allowed me to see the city I’ve lived in for so long with fresh eyes. A highlight for me was the derelict waterworks at New River Head, soon to be the new Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration. It featured an exhibition of imagined histories of people who lived around the New River, based on found objects, by Laura Copsey and Philip Crewe, with photos ‘taken’ by the New River itself (photographic film left in the river). I learned that the history of water infrastructure in the city is much more interesting than I’d realised.
Film: THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD (Joachim Trier)
A film about the mundane crises around turning thirty, which I also did this year -- it’s playful, fun, and almost corny. But it captures the doubt, anxiety and longing so well that it feels very compellingly human.
TABITHA TOPPING
Novel: MAPS OF OUR SPECTACULAR BODIES by Maddie Mortimer (Picador)
I really loved the way this novel played with form and language and am excited to see what Maddie writes next.
Poetry: AMNION by Stephanie Sy-Quia (Granta)
The kind of work that as soon as I finished it I wanted to go back to the beginning and read all over again.
Extra-curricular: EVENING ART CLASS
Signing up for a beginner’s art class was a spur-of-the-moment decision but one I’m so glad I did. Initially apprehensive (I hadn’t done any art since school), it quickly became the highlight of my week – and though not every one of my creations was successful (my cloud sculpture made of chicken wire and plaster apparently resembled a ‘sea-slug or a dead animal… but in a good way’), I had so much fun that I am seriously considering signing up for another class next year!
2023 Pick: ARRANGEMENTS IN BLUE by Amy Key (Jonathan Cape)
I really enjoyed Amy’s collection ISN’T FOREVER and am looking forward to picking up her memoir which is shaped around Joni Mitchell’s album ‘Blue’. While I have a soft spot for blue-themed books (e.g. BLUETS by Maggie Nelson), the fact that pretty much everyone I follow on social media is raving about how moving and beautiful ARRANGEMENTS IN BLUE is, has made me even more excited to read it.
DAISY WAY
Book: NIGHTCRAWLING by Leila Mottley
An incredible debut written when Mottley was still a teenager, making her the youngest author to ever be longlisted for the Booker Prize – and with good reason. It’s a heartbreaking story of neglect, poverty and exploitation which follows 17 year old Kiara who is left to fend for herself and finds herself pulled into the darkest side of the adult world. Gripping, gut-wrenching, powerful. This novel stayed with me long after I’d finished reading.
TV Series: BAD SISTERS
Sharon Horgan never disappoints and this is no exception. The dark comedy, which follows five Irish sisters as they deal with the fall out of their abusive brother-in-law's unexpected death, is just superb – wickedly funny, perfectly cast, and so well-written with twists and turns where you least expect them. Wonderful to have the backdrop of the beautiful Irish scenery too!
Film: EVERYTHING, EVERYWHERE, ALL AT ONCE
Michelle Yeoh is brilliant as the film’s unlikely hero, an ageing laundromat-owner trying to stop her life, business and family from falling apart, who is unexpectedly sucked into a trippy multiverse rift. A true rollercoaster of a film which seems to have a bit of everything – action, comedy, drama, love, martial arts, family, sci-fi… the list goes on. The frenetic energy of the film makes it fly past despite the long running time, and proves that the multiverse isn’t only for superheroes! It is completely bonkers and I loved it.
