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2010 in Music
[This post is part of a large project in which I am going through the popular music released in each year. Please see the note at the bottom of the post re: omissions and limitations.] Introduction The dawning of the new decade of the 2010s was marked with a lot of optimism. It was just…
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Top Reads of 2025
I’ve been doing these best reads of the year lists since 2017 and it’s become one of my favourite traditions. This year, I thought I’d recognize the top 25 of ‘25, fifteen fiction and ten fiction. Fiction 15. Life, and Death, and Giants, by Ron Rindo (2025) If I wanted to be nitpicky, there were…
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2025 Bookish Superlatives, Part 2
Yesterday I undertook the first half of my 2025 Bookish Superlatives. That post focused on questions of format, style, and readerly expectation. Today in Part 2, I’ll turn to genre and authors representing specific communities. Genres Best Romance You & Me, by Tal Bauer (2022) Coming in hot with an unexpected pick at the start,…
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2025 Bookish Superlatives, Part 1
I’m happy this morning to introduce my fourth annual Bookish Superlatives, highlighting books that excelled in different specific categories, but which may not have been among my very favourite reads of the year. Today’s post will focus on readerly expectation, media, and style. Tomorrow’s will turn to genres, audiences, and communities. Note: Because part of…
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2025 Bookish Stats
My 2025 reading year has come to a close. If you’re interested, please check back later this week for my Bookish Superlatives and Top Reads of the year. Today I’d like to look at the year as a whole and look at some statistics about some of the things I was looking out for this…
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2025 in Music
[This post is part of a large project in which I am going through the popular music released in each year. Please see the note at the bottom of the post re: omissions and limitations.] Introduction 2024 was an extraordinary year for pop music, so when 2025 started there was a big question of whether…
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2024 in Music
[This post is part of a large project in which I am going through the popular music released in each year. Please see the note at the bottom of the post re: omissions and limitations.] Introduction There are some years in popular music that, for whatever reason, stand out for their incredible, outsized impact: years…
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2023 in Music
[This post is part of a large project in which I am going through the popular music released in each year. Please see the note at the bottom of the post re: omissions and limitations.] Introduction When I was reviewing the music of 2023, what stood out to me was, on the whole, how balanced…
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2022 in Music
[This post is part of a large project in which I am going through the popular music released in each year. Please see the note at the bottom of the post re: omissions and limitations.] Introduction I mentioned in the first post in this series that one of the most surprising and fascinating things about…
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2021 in Music
[This post is part of a large project in which I am going through the popular music released in each year. Please see the note at the bottom of the post re: omissions and limitations.] Introduction It’s a testament to Taylor Swift’s huge presence that she can dominate the conversation in a year in which…
Matt's Books and Music
So many books, so many songs
Matt's Books and Music 