I swear I wasn’t planning to talk about grief two weeks in a row, but maybe sometimes you need to write about a thing to really get through it. Not that grief is ever over. And that’s the good thing about it, isn’t it? If we still think about those we’ve lost that means they are still here with us, in some way.

I’ve been in a weird relationship with grief ever since I lost my grandfather. I thought about death before his passing, but it was always the others who died. And then I lost one of the humans I loved most on this Earth. If I learnt anything from losing him, it’s that there’s always a lot of guilt tangled up in grief (at least for me), and also, that time helps.

It sounds like a cliché (and maybe it is) but time really is the best healer. Grief is not something that you heal from, it’s something that requires you to learn to live with it. We all deal with it differently. But no matter what, time helps.

Whatever form it takes, one thing is for sure: grief is not linear.

When I lost Veta, I dreamt about my grandfather (and Julieta, Veta’s sister). I like to think that was his way of telling me that the girls are safe with him now. If there’s a feeling I associate the most with him is safeness. This is the human who thought me how to swim — he threw me in the middle of the canal with only bottles tied around me and I trusted him with my whole life (I was 9 years old). And I swam.

Today is his birthday. As you are reading this Letter, I am on holiday with my family, including his daughters (one of them is my mum) and I’m curious what shape this day will have. How is their grief compared to mine? Who will mention him first and when? Is it going to be at breakfast or will we wait until dinner? Or is it going to be my father who always says his name on our trips?

Whichever way it will be, time has done its job. Undoubtedly there will be some sadness in each of us, but it won’t be sadness that will drive the day. It will be joy!

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~ read

Somewhere Beyond the Sea (Cerulean Chronicles #2) by T.J. Klune. I finally read the sequel to the The House in the Cerulean Sea and it was really cute, but you could feel it was more fan service than a needed sequel. The plot is a bit too similar to the first book, but there’s extra background and development for the characters. So I did not mind it. The story is focused more on Arthur this time around, as he is summoned to make a public statement regarding his past. And the kids do a lot of shenanigans. [physical book & audiobook | Tor Books & Everand | narrated by Daniel Henning | published in 2024]

Let's Make Cocktails!: A Comic Book Cocktail Book by Sarah Becan. This is a really cool graphic novel/cocktail book that I received for review. It’s great for beginners, as it showcases the classic cocktails and the visuals really help when it comes to crafting them. It’s also a nice book for seasoned cocktail lovers — it has a lot of cocktail history and I’m a sucker for that. The art was clean and fun and I loved that it flowed on each panel. [digital graphic novel received for review from NetGalley | 2026]

I also read a short volume of poetry: Woman Much Missed by Thomas Hardy, collecting poems he wrote while grieving his wife. It was a really nice read. [physical book | Penguin Classics | first published in 1914]

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~ nibling’s bookshelf

I have received a bunch of picture books for review and their deadline was near so this week was spent in the company of kids picture books. Here’s a few that I must share with you:

Are You Bored, Minimoni? by Rocío Bonilla (also illustrator), translated by Eleanor Holmes. A cute picture book about getting bored and how that’s not that bad of a thing, especially if you use your imagination. It’s great for discussing boredom with the little ones. [picture book received for review from NetGalley | 2026]

What A Wild Story, Minimoni! by Rocío Bonilla, translated by Andrew McDougall. Another book with Minimoni, this time about performing a play and noticing the outdated roles for girls and boys, and even for dragons! Another gem, one that tries to explain to the little ones why we can’t go back and change all literature to fit today’s standards but how it’s important to notice them. [picture book received for review from NetGalley | 2026]

Grandpas, Piranhas, and Other Stories by Rocío Bonilla, translated by Mara Faye Lethem. Another Bonilla gem, this one quite fitting for today’s Coffee Letter. It’s a story about a kid and his grandpa and all the things they do together — but also all the things other kids do with their grandpas or grandmas. It shows why grandparents are so amazing and it even goes a bit into the big death question, but treats it in a way that leaves room for hope but also room for the parents to discuss it or not. Brilliant read! [picture book received for review from NetGalley | 2026]

Felix Finds His Polish by Eric Rosswood, illustrated by Nathalia Takeyama. A cute little book about freedom of expression and the anxiety we feel about being judged by others, even when the judgement is just in our head. What, did you expect to just be about nail polish? [picture book received for review from NetGalley | expected publication data: October 2026]

Currently I’m reading by the pool, but who knows what — I packed a bunch of books with me.

~ watch

Bonjour Tristesse (1958, d. Otto Preminger). The classic adaptation of Bonjour Tristesse splits its action into Cécile in present day, living with this strange melancholic feeling as she reminiscences about Cécile from a year ago and what took place on the French Riviera. It doesn’t really stray from the book (except for the name of a character) and their personalities are somewhat amplified for the screen, but it was a really good film — and the costumes and visuals were splendid. [available nowhere]

Bonjour Tristesse (2024, d. Durga Chew-Bose). The new adaptation is very aesthetically pleasing — almost too aesthetic (did I just say that?), it feels like each shot was made with an instagram feed in mind — and it tries to update itself a bit to the modern world, which makes one character to not fully work that well in this rendition of the story. But it really captures that atmospheric summer sadness feeling that I loved in the book and translated it really well to our times. [available on HBO Max]

I loooove Criminal Minds and it’s one of the shows I was REALLY happy to have revived — although revived in the form of recontinuation, but with only 10 episodes each season (damn the TV nowadays). And I just finished watching season 19 in like two days.

This is the fourth season of Criminal Minds: Evolution and it marks the end of an arc in a way. It was renewed for a 20th season so I’m really curious what will happen next. Oh, and this season Connor Storrie (before the haircut) played a part too!

Currently I’m only watching the Adriatic Sea.

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~ r.e.p.o.r.t

Reading: probably The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood

Eating: Lotto chips — not very oily and you can really taste the potato

Playing: a lot of Franz Ferdinand these days

Obsession: getting tarot readings at work (thank you, Atti, although I know you don’t even know about this newsletter)

Recommendation: join a book club

Treat: the tarot reading, which should become a monthly thing

I’ve spent many many weeks (months?) thinking about dark things and non-existence and I’m finally making peace with my thoughts. But this conclusion also brought with it a renewed joy for life and humanity. I guess I’m getting better. I guess my joie de vivre is back.

Next week there will only be a Postcard.

And to end this letter, I leave you another poem from Mary Oliver (one of my favourites):

Thank you for reading!

With renewed joie de vivre,
Andreea

PS: The proofreader’s vacation started early, soooooo sorry for all the mistakes. I tried to correct them all.

For the first few days after my vacation was over, I was miserable. I missed waking up to the sea, the salty air on my skin, the Greek wind in my hair. I even missed Athens with its 20K+ steps uphill and cluttered streets. I don’t remember the last time I had the vacation blues, and it took me more than 24 hours to realise why.

I used to miss home. More specifically, I missed my cat. And this was the first long vacation since we lost her.

The thought first hit me when we came back from Chişinău — we were returning, for the first time, to an empty nest. She wasn’t waiting for us anymore. She wouldn’t meow indignantly because we left her for days and had entrusted a stranger with the very important job of feeding her.

On shorter trips, there isn’t really enough time to miss home… or her. But Greece was a week long, and we had only been away that long once since it had been just the three of us (mostly because my partner was too stressed thinking about the cat being home alone). Without such an important reason to return (job and adult responsibilities be damned), the blues got me.

I felt ungrateful feeling bad that one holiday was over when I have another one planned really soon. I just failed to see why my emotions were so heightened. What scares me the most is that I didn’t notice the reason immediately.

I had so many other things on my mind and so many silly tasks to catch up with that it took me a while to understand what was actually hurting. I was simply sad to be back. Maybe this is the strangest part of losing someone… eventually you get used to their absence. It becomes ordinary.

It’s a scary thing… adjusting to this new world without the cat.

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~ read

I read almost all the books I packed with me for Greece (I have yet to start the second volume of On the Calculation of Volume). From my Françoise Sagan book I read only Bonjour Tristesse because I had to leave the book in Greece with my friend Ana. I already talked about this book when I first read it last year and it even made my Top Ten Reads. I loved rereading that story on the beach and I enjoyed it even more than last year (if that’s even possible). There’s something about that summer boredom, especially when you are a teen, and all those contradictory feelings and that end-of-the-world intensity that teens feel… [physical book | Penguin | translated by Heather Lloyd | first published in 1956]

My main reads in Greece were two volumes of Greek poetry:

Selected Poems by C.P. Cavafy, translated by Avi Sharon. This is a bit of reread. Last year in Greece I read another copy of Selected Poems by Cavafy, published by Aiora Press, and I really loved it (it was a 5-star read) but I bought that book as a gift for a friend (yes, sometimes I read the books I buy for friends, sorry — is that bad?) so I had to get myself a copy of Cavafy’s poems — and I got a Penguin collection featuring even more of his poetry. Turns out I prefer the Aiora Press.

This collection had too many of his historical poems, some of which are quite fun, especially when he reimagines events from antiquity or creates fictional characters and dialogues. Unfortunately I prefer his queer poetry, which is really personal and more up my alley — most of it is about memories of past loves. I’m a hopeless romantic, okay? [physical book | Penguin | first published in 1972]

Novel and Other Poems by George Seferis, translated by Rederick Beaton. A volume from Aiora Press, which I enjoyed tremendously. Also the “Novel” in the title is still poetry. Seferis’s poems are very much about Greece and reading them in Greece, surrounded by the things he was invoking in his lines (the pine trees, the cicadas, the sea) was a formidable experience. He too reimagines some parts of Homer’s works, which made me miss reading The Iliad and The Odyssey — I’m in the middle of rereading them, but I did not want to pack them with me for Greece. It’s a tender collection, I highly recommend it. [physical book | Aiora Press | published in 2015]

This month, it turns out I’m in my satire era:

Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke. I finally did it, folks! And contrary to popular belief, I think Yesteryear is a pretty good debut, an in-your-face satire that offers plenty of themes and subjects to dissect. It’s quite perfect for a book club and I’m quite sad I did not read it for one. It’s far from perfect, but isn’t it fun when a book is so divisive?

It’s a book about performance, perception and projection. Plus, it was published at the perfect moment in time! Yes, it is about trad-wives, but it’s also a social commentary on social media in general and influencer culture.

I had a lot of fun reading it. It wasn’t as addictive for me as some say online and I felt it was really slow at times, especially in the middle of the book and especially in the scene from 1800s — although that seems quite fitting for the time, does it not? [digital epub | Fourth Estate | 2026]

Helen of Nowhere by Makenna Goodman. Completely unplanned, but it seems I’m reading some of the books longlisted for the Booker this year. I started with a satire, albeit more subtle this time, chosen solely on the title and the vibes and it did not disappoint. Although I must warn you, Helen of Nowhere is not going to be everyone’s cup of tea.

It's pretty experimental, somewhat absurdist, clearly theatrical, and very philosophical. It's the eternal quest of man communing with nature and I feel like all those men attempting this are walking red flags just like our protagonist (maybe Walden will prove me wrong if I ever get to that book). The book only has four characters and it’s split into acts (told you it’s theatrical), which consists mostly of personal musings of the characters or a somewhat Socratic dialogue.

I had a hard time with it at times, but I adored the last act and I giggled so hard it made the entire book worth it. [physical book | Fitzcarraldo Editions | 2026]

And I read even more (this is what happens when we don’t see each other for two weeks):

Women Without Men by Shahrnush Parsipur, translated by Faridoun Farrokh. This little book was longlisted for the International Booker Prize. It was published in the 70s in Iran, but only translated into English recently. It’s a book about women trying to defy the patriarchal society they live in but without exactly knowing what that means or how — it’s a bittersweet read, but I really appreciated the magical realism and surrealism I found inside it. It also turns out that the desire to become a tree to escape the strict confines of society was a thing way before Han Kang’s Vegetarian. And I was excited to see this idea explored in a totally different way in Parsipur’s prose. Her writing is full of vivid imagery that will stay with me for a while. [physical book | Penguin | first published in 1973]

Who's Afraid of Gender? by Judith Butler. I am not the biggest non-fiction reader and it took me a couple of months to get through Butler’s book, but I really liked it — big fan of the way she wrote it, how she constructs arguments and how she brings certain topics into discussion. The book goes through various anti-gender ideas and arguments chapter by chapter, dismantling them. It’s accessible, but not exactly an easy read. [physical book | Penguin | 2024]

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~ articles

Françoise Sagan, The Art of Fiction No. 15 (The Paris Review). An interview with Françoise Sagan from 1956 done by Blair Fuller & Robert Silvers about how she writes and her first two published books.

Currently I’m reading East of Eden.

~ watch

I watched the other Spider-Man films, but I still have some animations to complete.

I forgot how fun Sam Raimi’s films are: Spider-Man (2002) and Spider-Man 2 (2004) — I especially like the second one ( and we don’t talk about Spider-Man 3). They are closest to the 90s animation that I love, they are camp and fun, but the story is grounded and human and it’s a coming-of-age and I have a soft spot for this kind of story. [all three available on HBO Max]

And Spider-Man 2 is even better because it’s so clearly focused on Peter Parker and his struggles. And the villains are fun in Raimi’s series.

I also watched Marc Webb’s series, even though The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) was not as bad as I remembered, it also wasn’t that great (and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 shall never be named). Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone do an amazing job and their chemistry is oozing, but it’s not enough for me — even though it has Stan Lee’s best cameo ever. [both available on HBO Max and Disney+]

This week I watched the second season of The Chestnut Man: Hide and Seek and… I am trying to only recommend stuff in the Coffee Letter but sometimes I need to complain and complain I must! When it comes to the story, they made a choice that makes absolutely no sense, it only works as cheap shock-value — and upon a bit of research, that doesn’t even happen in the books!! I knew who the killer was the moment they entered the screen. [available on Netflix]

TV-wise I finished the first two season of Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage (TV series, 2024-) and I’m glad the third season will premiere too. It has that very low stakes conflict quality of a fun comedy sitcom and it really works as a relaxing show — it’s a spin-off from Young Sheldon and it follows Sheldon’s older brother Georgie and his wife, Mandy, as they deal with marriage, living with his in-laws and parenting. [available on HBO Max]

Currently I’m planning on watching the film adaptation of Bonjour Tristesse.

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~ r.e.p.o.r.t

Reading: catching up on my Shakespeare plays and East of Eden

Eating: delicious mini pain au chocolat leftover from Bogdana’s wedding

Playing: Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action by Franz Ferdinand

Obsession: the merdenea drama — sorry, not sorry, but sometimes the internet is really beautiful especially when it all comes together to stand with a small local business against a snob

Recommendation: a Milano Torino cocktail, also known as Mi-To, especially if a Negroni is too strong for you

Treat: right now? saying no to a football match, even though I was excited for it, but my body is too tired after partying too much…

I am glad this week is over. I wrote this Coffee Letter (the diary part of it) early in the week and soon my mood got better. Journaling is so bloody effective, I just sometimes forget about how well it works to help me regulate my emotions. I’m still feeling all the grief and guilt and bizarre emotions, but I don’t let them affect my day to day life or mood.

Once the current week will be done, I’ll be on my way to another vacation. It’s a bit tiring, but I cannot complain. It also feels like maybe I’m not giving myself enough space to process everything, but life doesn’t just pause and I must learn to do things on the go (when taking a break is not possible). There will be a Coffee Letter, worry not, but the week after that I’ll just send you a Postcard.

Thank you for reading!

Lots of love,
Andreea (not yet zen, but getting there)

PS: The proofreader is back in business and I am so grateful for him!

This project is not lost, guys. I know summer was a bit tricky (my entire life’s been tricky since June) and that there’s two weeks left of August and I plan to read four plays, but! But I am nothing in my soul if not delusional.

Here’s the tracker so far:

• Plays read so far: 19/39

• Sonnets: 13/154 (but I’ll reread them)

• Narrative poems: 1/4

At the beginning of the year I wanted this curriculum to be interconnected with other mediums (films, novels, yadda-yadda) but alas, I’m just one person with a full time job and at least three book clubs every month. So officially, this curriculum will be extended to the next year too. I’ll read ALL of bard’s plays (and other works) this year and next year I will focus on the extras — but I will continue to mention them each monthly Slow Drip. Also, next year I will talk each month about the plays and the extras and how they intertwine and what not.'

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August Schedule

I’m taking a bit of break from historical plays because it’s summer. I must have some fun with the bard, okay?

Primary Plays

• The Two Noble Kinsmen (c. 1612–1613) → a tragicomedy set in Athens.

• A Midsummer Night’s Dream (c. 1595–1596) → I have too, it’s summer, plus this one takes place in Athens too!

• Pericles, Prince of Tyre (c. 1608–1609) → another tragicomedy.

• Richard III (c. 1592–1593) → and back to historical to finally put the Henriad to rest.

So… two weeks, four plays, it’s going to be a sprint!

Week 1 (first half)

The Two Noble Kinsmen (read for free from Project Gutenberg). A tragicomedy inspired by a story from Chaucer’s Cantebury Tales. This might be the bard’s final play, and it was written together with John Fletcher.

• Tuesday, 18 → Prologue–II.1 (as always, Roman number the act, Arabic number the scene; also, shortest day)

• Wednesday, 19 → II.2–III.4

• Thursday, 20 → III.5–IV.2 (longest day)

• Friday, 21 → IV.3–Epilogue

Extras: Just The Cantebury Tales I reckon.

Weeks 1 (weekend)

A Midsummer Night’s Dream (read for free from Project Gutenberg). About time for a proper comedy for summer: there’s love drama, there’s wedding drama, there’s a lot of fun drama all thanks to some playful fairies — and, yes, there’s fairy drama too.

This is one of Shakespeare’s most popular plays.

• Saturday, 22 → I.1–III.1 (shortest day, but it’s only two days so…)

• Sunday, 23 → III.2–V.1 (longest day)

Extras: At the base of the play we find Chaucer again, but also Ovid’s Metamorphoses. There are also a lot of adaptations based on this play, including literary ones: there’s an episode based on the play in the comic-book series The Sandman, there’s a book from Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series based on the play (Lords and Ladies), and even Karl Marx quotes it in Das Kapital.

There’s a lot of film adaptations, but I’m most excited for the 1999 film with Michelle Pfeiffer and Stanley Tucci and the modern adaptation (loosely based on the play) Get Over It (2001).

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Week 2 (first half)

Pericles, Prince of Tyre (read for free from Project Gutenberg). I do not know much about this play but it’s set in antiquity and it made sense to include it since I’m still thinking about Ancient Athens.

• Monday, 24 → Prologue–II.3 (longest day, it’s Monday)

• Tuesday, 25 → II.4–IV.2

• Wednesday, 26 → IV.3–Epilogue (shortest day)

Extras: None that I know of.

Weeks 2 (second half)

Richard III (read for free from Project Gutenberg). And back to the Henriad we go! It’s historical, but also a tragedy, containing many musings on death and other fun subjects worth exploring. It’s also the second longest play and here I am choosing to read it in half a week!

• Thursday, 27 → I.1–I.4

• Friday, 28 → II.1–III.6

• Saturday, 29 → III.7–IV.4 (longest day — like 15 lines longer than the first day)

• Sunday, 30 → IV.5–V.3 (shortest day, because I have a plane to catch)

Extras: Of course, we have another Laurence Olivier film, Richard III (1955), and the usual suspects who adapted both Henriads in one go (TV series): An Age of Kings (1960) and The Hollow Crown (2012-2016). But there’s also a wacky reimagined one that moves the play in England 1930s: Richard III (1995).

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Am I delulu? I am delulu. But hey, I love these silly literary side-quests I plan for myself. It also feels very good to feel like I finally have a plan for how to bring it all together, even though that means another year of Shakespearean tears and joys.

Thank you for reading!

Yours, in hope and poor judgment,
Andreea

After my family convinced me to go on our summer holiday together in Croatia I got used to the idea that Greece was not in the cards for this year. By got used I mean I complained every few weeks that I’m not going to see my darling Greece. You don’t understand, I love Greece — and according to my late grandfather, our family has Greek blood so it makes sense that I have this need to visit Greece every year. Ah, how was I to survive a year without Greece?

Luckily for me, our dear friends are working from Greece for a few weeks and managed to convince us to join them for a week. At first I was planning to work too because I felt bad to leave my team in the middle of a big project, but alas, my lovely boss agreed that my stress levels need a vacation to reset. So I’m spending my days in Greece reading while my friends are working.

When I plan our yearly trip to Greece I can’t resist the call of the islands, even though I always wish to see Athens too. And now I am! This is my first time in Greece on the continent! Half of the week I’ll spend in the Peloponnese region and half of it in Athens!

Athens is my dream! Am I visiting it when the temperature is at its highest?1 Perhaps. Am I going to die of heat? Most likely. Do I care? Not at all! The real question is, how much am I going to read? And will I bring some new books home?2

I am in the middle of rereading The Iliad and The Odyssey and I was considering bringing them (especially since we have in plan to see Nolan’s Odyssey while in Athens3) but my books are quite chunky (I have Emily Wilson’s translations) and I also did not see myself reading them on the beach. Plus I don’t feel like rushing through my reread for a film I’m not remotely interested in.

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So here’s what I’m taking with me:

Helen of Nowhere by Makenna Goodman. It wasn’t in plans, but it seem that I’m reading the longlist for the Booker. I am letting myself be mislead and think the title has something to do with Helen of Troy. I started this book a few days before our trip. A fallen professor is trying to buy a house to connect with nature and the realtor cannot stop talking about the house’s previous owner, Helen. It’s supposed to be philosophical, but for now the professor is just annoying.

Bonjour Tristesse / A Certain Smile by Françoise Sagan, translated by Heather Lloyd. This is a reread, but one I’m excited about — the plan is to only read the first novella (Bonjour Tristesse) while at the beach and then lend my book to Ana4 because we both have to read it for our tiny book club. Bonjour Tristesse is all about summer in my head — the descriptions, the setting, plus what the heat and the boredom can do to a teen’s mind. I adore it.

I’m excited to try some more Greek poetry:

Selected Poems by C.P. Cavafy, translated by Avi Sharon. I already sampled a part of his work last year, in Greece, but now I got a new edition with even more of his poems. Cavafy’s work features a lot of poetry inspired by Greek myths and imagined monologues or dramatic retellings from antiquity, but also, queer poetry — which is where he shines most, at least for me.

Novel and Other Poems by George Seferis, translated by Rederick Beaton. Don’t get fooled by the title, this is just poetry. I am not familiar with Seferis, but I’m excited to get to know him. He also likes to tap into Greek mythology for his inspiration, but focuses on the modern world too.

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If there’s extra time, I’m also bringing On the Calculation of Volume II by Solvej Balle, translated by Barbara J. Haveland with me. I feel like I’ve infected everyone with this series and I have yet to continue it. So maybe this vacation will be the perfect time for it.

The kindle is coming with me, and although I have a lot of books on it I’m excited about5, I’m probably only going to focus on Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke since I’m in the middle of it.

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This should be more than enough for one week; I’ll probably only get to half of them anyway. Most importantly, I hope I return a much rested Andreea — and less stressed, more joyful, back to being whimsy etc.

Yassas,
Andreea

PS: Proof-reader still in vacation, sorry. It is what it is.

I was recently discussing with my boss bestie (she’s my boss and my bestie1) about my new summer resolution to be Zen and extremely positive at work (to the point of toxic positivity). I am, of course, exaggerating. We all know I’m not capable of expressing that much joy or restraining my turbulent emotions that much.

We talked about what kind of plant we would embody to weather the storm (inspired by Aesop’s fable The Oak and the Reed) and she came to the conclusion that I should be a sunflower, looking only on the bright side, being delusional and trying to find the good in every situation. At least that’s the plan in these uncertain times we live in.

Yet a fact remains: I do not like how easily my mood is swayed and affected these days. I want to have my faith in humanity restored, I want to find joy in the mundane, I want this exhaustion that I’ve been living with for the past two months to dissipate and go away. It stops me from functioning properly (or at least how I like to function): it mixes work with life in a convoluted way that makes me wish Severance was a thing. Wait! In actuality, I am acting as Severance is a thing and I let too much of who I am in the day to day life affect who I am supposed to be at work and all this caring is too much and the work worries and troubles bleed into my personal life.

Okay, I’m spiraling and I make no sense. What I am saying is that I usually am severed — basically I like to split my work from my life to keep the balance — but just like in Severance, a part of what makes us who we are still exists even when severed and my Innie is starting to mess up with my Outie’s lovely life. We are in overtime contingency, people!

I apologise for what turn this Coffee Letter took. I did not expect it. The point is, I need to consume less energy on the parts of work I cannot control and to look for the sun.

And this sunflower is going to Greece now2, looking for the sunniest of suns to turn her Innie brain off.

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~ read

I have only one book for this week — it was a hectic week and I spent it watching films.

The Sellout by Paul Beatty is a satire, even though the author does not advertise it as such (well, he doesn’t considered himself a satire writer). While I’m usually not into funny books (they try too hard for my liking), I had a tremendous time with Beatty’s dead pan comedy — probably because he doesn’t shy away from making you actually confront the themes of his novel.

The Sellout is about an unnamed narrator who is trying to put his hometown, Dickens, back on the map. It explores racial identity in the US and the history of racism through humour, stereotypes, satire and a very deep social commentary but without trying to influence your opinion in any way — which I found refreshing and genius. The Booker judges did too when The Sellout won in 20163.

I wasn’t sure how I felt about the reading experience while I was in the middle of it — the narrator jumps from one idea to the other and you are never quite sure what order the events are in. By the end of the book I realised I had quite a lot of fun and I especially enjoyed the narrator — he was such a sweet guy, no wonder his nickname was Bonbon. [physical book | Oneworld Publications | 2015]

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Currently I’m reading Helen of Nowhere by Makenna Goodman, which is longlisted for the Booker Prize4.

~ watch

I spent my week with Peter Parker, in preparation for the new film. So I rewatch the previous three films with Tom Holland as Spidey and because Tobey Maguire appears in the third one I started watching his Spidey films too!

But it’s all about Tom Holland today!

Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017, d. Jon Watts). The first Spider-Man is a lot of fun and up until the newest one it was probably my favourite from this series.

But firstly, a disclaimer! I am not the biggest fan of the MCU — instead of the focus being on the story of the film or the character, it’s more focused on what it brings to the big overarching story (and a lot of cameos). I am not saying this can’t be done in a way that wouldn’t ruin the individual stories, I’m just saying they are not that good at writing it this way. Sorry, not sorry! Plus the fact that it’s so mainstream now makes them not even bother that much.

Back to Homecoming now. The film follows our friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man trying to balance high school and fighting crime, with the help of his mentor, Tony Stark. The villain of the day is the Vulture, played splendidly by Michael Keaton.

I enjoyed it — you will see that no matter how much I complain about this or that (especially the bland writing), at the end of the day I still have fun with these films because the characters are doing a great job given the circumstances and I have a soft spot for Spider-Man. Plus at least in this film we have a little bit of New York (albeit not enough for my liking): a bodega (and a bodega cat), neighbours shouting from their windows, street noises. [available on Disney+, HBO Max, Netflix]

Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019, d. Jon Watts). In the second film, Spidey goes to Europe, while mourning the loss of his mentor, but inheriting some more cool tech from him.

I think this is the film where it feels the most like this is not your working-class hero Spider-Man and it sucks; at the end of the day, his socio-economical background is a core part of Spider-Man. We do get a tiny bit of NYC when Spidey swings with MJ around the city — her reaction is priceless.

The film is still pretty entertaining and I’m always happy to see Venice. [available on Disney+, HBO Max, Netflix]

Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021, d. Jon Watts). It’s no secret this one is so much fun because we get the other Spideys too! That’s one of the coolest thing the MCU ever did, imho. Unfortunately for our Tom-Spidey, the other two just highlight how less complex his character is, writing-wise.

Other than that… it felt a bit too long and not even the Green Goblin (the OG Green Goblin) could save it. [available on Disney+, HBO Max, Netflix]

But luckily for us, we got Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026, d. Destin Daniel Cretton). The writing team is the same, but they definitely listened to my complaints because this Spider-Man is a return to not only the core values of Spider-Man, but to New York fucking City! The entire film I was giggling like I do when I open presents on Christmas morning.

Depressed and forced to live on his own, Spider-Man is trying to just get from one day to the other solving crimes full-time, only stalking his friends from time to time.

It’s definitely my favourite from the the bunch! New York is so alive! The old costume is back (no more daddy Stark nanotech)! Frank is such a big part of the action and I love his accent! And have I mentioned that there is so so so much New York? Plus any appearance of Florence Pugh will make me happy. [available in cinemas]

Currently I have no plans to watch anything but the sea.

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~ r.e.p.o.r.t

Reading: still stuck on Yesteryear, maybe I’ll finish it on the plane?

Eating: the Meat Inc. smash burger that they released for Untold — it’s smaller than their usual burger, but that means I can finally eat it all, and it’s delicious!

Playing: …

Obsession: Spider-Man, surprise-surprise

Recommendation: go see the newest Spider-Man film, it’s worth it!

Treat: taking time off from work when I’m stressed and running away to Greece

Ah, I can’t wait to see the sea! I put all my hopes and faith into this little trip to Greece to fix all my problems and grief. I also plan to maybe stay away from my phone for a while, especially from social media — even though I don’t do that much doom scrolling (although I sometimes do controlled doom scrolling, but maybe that’s a topic for another Letter).

So don’t worry if I’m absent. I want to use this trip to read and reflect and calm the noise in my head. That’s all.

Expect a postcard for next week.

Thank you for reading!

Lots of love,
a tired and stressed, but also hopeful, Andreea

PS: I apologise for all the mistakes in this one — my proof-reader is on vacation too.

Chișinău surprised me in the best of ways. We didn’t have much time to spend there to begin with, but the little bits we saw impressed both of us.

The reason for my trip to Chișinău was that one of my husband’s gaming buddies was getting married so most of our days were booked with wedding activities. I liked seeing the differences between our two countries but also the similarities with the south (where I’m from). I always knew that culturally and gastronomically the south shared some things with the Moldova region in Romania, but I was surprised to see that I found some things in common with the Republic of Moldova too.

The wedding was beautiful — and one of my favourites from this wedding season so far. I loved the cocktail and finger foods start, the appetizers (served completely differently to ours), the sarmale dance, the traditional rituals that they kept, and especially the speech from each table with well-wishes for the newly weds (would definitely do that if I could repeat my wedding, although the cultural shock…).

I loved the next day’s zama even more — a tradition that we practice in the south too. It was about simplicity and just being there for the people. All sitting around a long table, passing foods from one to other, people walking around shouting “who wants this beer? who wants coffee? who wants more zama?”, tasting freshly pickled cucumbers (which they call pepene), people dancing — shoes off, apron on, fancy dress or not, it didn’t matter. They even had scovergi (or minciunele), but under a totally different name that I completely forgot! Taste was the same, it brought me back to my childhood and my grandma’s kitchen. It was beautiful.

As for the city… well, I mostly saw it from the car. Most of our time there was spent in parks — which they have many of and they are huge and there are plenty of different activities one can do in the park. The entire city is full of nature, the houses have kept their big trees, the difference in temperature thanks to the trees was noticeable. It doesn’t feel claustrophobic. The buildings are nicely spaced out and their roads are huge. And the city is full of young people, walking outside. What a sight!

I had only one objective on my list and that was the statue of the Little Prince. I have no idea why there is a Little Prince statue in Chișinău but I wanted to see it. We walked through the park closer to us to get to it. We stopped to see the wildlife (especially the moorhens, but also the wood pigeons we only saw in Belgium so far) and have some coffee and ice-cream — then we walked a bit through the city and it reminded me of how my birth-town used to look like 15-20 years ago (it went downhill from there). The second park was just as huge — we had lemonades, watched the ducks and moorhens, found a huge chess board, I read a bit, and then finally got to the Little Prince:

Oh, another thing we did in the park the next morning — we went to a butterfly exhibition. There were butterfly exhibitions in at least two parks. It’s hard to get bored in this city.

Food-wise, we only got to eat at a Georgian restaurant, Tiflis, (which was amazing) and we tried khinkali, kachapuri, shkmeruli, and fried brain, and at a fancier restaurant, Ōsho, where we had steak tartar and fish carpaccio and squash flowers. We loved both of them. The wine (I had Georgian and Purcari too) and beers (Chișinău) are very good too. Oh, and I tried their Divin (which is a cognac/jinars).

I always like to return to places I’ve been and I hope next time I visit Chișinău to take my parents along too.

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~ read

Finished a few books since last time I wrote a normal Coffee Letter, including yet another minimalism book I did not enjoy, but I also caught up with the last of my Shakespeare plays from June (don’t ask, I was really behind). Almost done with the last of the Henriad/War of Roses, but I will probably take a break from historical plays — the August schedule will be published tomorrow (hopefully).

But now onto the books I’m excited to talk about:

Când ești fericit, lovește primul by Tatiana Țîbuleac. It has mixed reviews, but personally I really enjoyed it. For me it came at the right time, plus I read it while in Chișinău. The story follows a woman in the middle of her life as she lives day by day between the jobs she has as an immigrant in France and her memories.

I admit that compared to her previous novels, I did not get attached to this story in the same way — and I am not sure if the author tried to do this on purpose. But I liked peeling the story layer by layer, trying to piece them together and understand why our main character is the way she is. I felt it was mostly about grief, but also about the traps we fall into as humans. [physical book | Cartier | 2025]

Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay (The Neapolitan Novels #3) by Elena Ferrante, translated by Ann Goldstein. So… I finished the third book and I quite expected to enjoy it just as much as the second book in the series (my favourite so far), but it kinda let me down a bit. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a very good read.

I really enjoyed the themes of motherhood and the way Lenù’s marriage and journey to becoming of mother is juxtaposed with Lila’s from the previous book. And that’s not the only thing mirrored. I really enjoyed the political aspect of the book and Lenù’s inner struggles with her life and her work. Why do we find it so hard to be honest about our struggles?

What bothered me the most is, once again, the writing. Just like with the first book, this one felt uneven as well. It started strong (with a scene from the present, mind you) and ends quite strongly too, but the middle was a mishmash of scenes focused too much on “telling, not showing” just to keep us up to date with everyone and show the time passing. I think Ferrante’s brilliant when she focuses on a singular scene, she can really teleport us there and show more than what’s written, but whenever she wants to tell us more things at once, it feels rushed and unpolished. [physical book | Europa Editions | first published 2013]

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Currently I’m in the middle of Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke and I just started The Sellout by Paul Beatty, for a book club on Wednesday.

~ watch

I recently finished all seasons from Young Sheldon (TV series, 2017-2024) and it was quite fun. I really enjoy the whole TBBT universe they created around Sheldon and his family. So the show follows Sheldon growing up from high school till he goes to grad school. Surprisingly, the show’s focus is not solely on Sheldon, but on his entire family — some side characters really steal the show, especially Meemaw! It’s a nice family show, it works great as a background show, it strays away from the TBBT humour, and it even deals with some serious themes. [available on HBO Max]

Blindness (2008), d. Fernando Meirelles. In an attempt to go to a book club on José Saramago’s novel Blindness I decided to watch the film — I read the book a few years ago, but it’s not the kind of book one rereads with pleasure no matter how good the story is. The film was not as great, but I did not expect it to be. I feel like it followed the novel closely (based on my memory), but it just didn’t have the same intense effect on me.

The story is about a bunch of people who suddenly go blind — there is a plague of white blindness going around and the government decides that the best way to deal with it is to close them all together in a former psych building. An ophthalmologist’s wife pretends she got the white blindness to help her husband, but soon realises she’s responsible for the entire ward now. [not available, sorry]

Currently I started Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage, which is a spin-off from Young Sheldon.

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~ r.e.p.o.r.t

Reading: Yesteryear, and I scare myself whenever I agree with our main character’s opinion (which only happened on the subject of minimalism, but still spooky)

Eating: air-fried mici

Playing: Good Coffee Great Coffee, a very cute coffee game for tablet

Obsession: avoiding all opinions on The Odyssey until I watch the film (which I did not plan to do until my friend Ana suggested we do it in a really fun way aka while we are in Greece)

Recommendation: book carts (I’m pretty sure I mentioned last time too)

Treat: Schweppes mandarine

I am a bit stressed and overwhelmed and I have a lot of work to do, rooms to organise, books to read (for book clubs and what not) and… I’m going away next Sunday for a week. Work is particularly stressful, and on multiple plans. So, yeah, I am a bit stressed. And a bit (well, a lot) all over the place.

I also started going to the gym which means two days per week I have to carry my entire house with me to the gym and then to the office, or I could stop home and then get very late to the office and I still don’t know which option is the best one.

That being said, I’m away next week and I’ll probably leave you with an Espresso Postcard like last time!

Thank you for reading!

XOXO,
(a stressed) Andreea

The answers will be in alphabetical order, except when people agree on the book, my notes will be in italics.

Thank you to everyone who took the time to answer my questions! I really appreciate it ♥

PS: This will definitely be too long for email…

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What’s the best book you’ve read so far in 2026?

Andrada: My favorite book so far is Cismigienii, because it was a surprise to me. I did not have any expectations, didn’t really know what the story is about, but it mesmerized me. The author’s style, the story, it was philosophical, beautiful, it talked about the mystery of life, and everything is set in a Romania that is a monarchy. It also made me think a lot about how our country would have looked like today with a different history. For sure I will not forget this book for many years!

Oh, that really sounds fascinating! It reminds me of when Philip K. Dick reimagined what the US would’ve been like if Germany and Japan had won WWII in The Man in the High Castle.

Betty: Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar it's the one that comes to my mind. It's experimental. It's brave. It has an interesting topic to discuss about. This would be my serious answer.

And the more fun one: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Loved the universe Austen created. Loved the gossip. And I loved Mary 🥹 I am so so sorry I haven't listened to you. I should have read this much more sooner. I am not sure was I was scared of this book.

I TOLD YOU! Sorry, had to say it.

Bianca G: EAST OF EDEN — NEEDS NO EXPLAINATION

OMG! I plan to read it this September, just in time for the new adaptation. Glad to hear that you loved it.

Madss: Half His Age by Jeannette McCurdy. It has a bit of her, a bit of Lolita, a bit of My Dark Vanessa. It’s just really good.

All three books are on my summer reading list — even though we are in the second half of summer I still hope to get to them.

Mălina: Monsters: What Do We Do with Great Art by Bad People? — I liked it so much because it talked about some of the themes that I have been thinking about for a long time, like how much distance should we put between the art and the artists, how wrong/toxic it is to view someone as a "genius," how much do we judge women artists compared to men artists and so so so much more.

It’s so high on my TBR!

Olga: I'm still in love with OTCOV by Solvej Balle, having read volume 2 too, but this time I will mention Project Hail Mary because it's the right mix of science, humor, emotions that works great for me. It was a really fun read.

I really need to read the other volumes from On the Calculation of Volume too!

Tiffany: I can’t decide between My Brilliant Friend (fourth time reading it, but it still delivers) and She Who Remains ❤️‍🔥.

Andreea: I was going to reply to Tiffany directly but then I realised that She Who Remains by Rene Karabash is one of my favourite reads from this year so far too, but also the second volume in The Neapolitan Tetralogy: The Story of a New Name by Elena Ferrante.

Which book surprised you (in a good or bad way)?

Andrada: My Brilliant Friend. I had low expectations because it was so popular, and I am skeptical about these books. But My Brilliant Friend was really worth the hype. There were so many things I could relate to, so similar with some of my experiences, I found the characters so human, the story so real, everything was more than I though it will be!

I agree — and surprisingly it gets even better in the second book!

Betty: Pachinko, in a bad way I think. It's such a loved and acclaimed book, but for me it just wasn't it. I get what the author tried to do, in a way it's a great idea. But for me it was like she was trying to do too many things in the same time, and the writing just wasn't it. It was rushed in some parts. Incomplete in other. Maybe it would have been better to have 3 different books, one for each part 🙈

I agree too! I wasn’t even planning on rereading it, but I did and it didn’t impress me this time either.

Bianca G: Deborah Levy’s August Blue (in a bad way). Heard so much about her and a lot of people I am inspired by praised her books... it just felt like a regular story, not very well written, just nothing special :))

Oh, no! I have one of her books on my TBR (The Position of Spoons: And Other Intimacies), but it’s non-fiction so maybe it will be better?

Madss: I’d go with The Merge by Grace Walker. It surprised me in a really good way, because it sounds like a dystopia, where mainly because of environmental issues people merge, meaning that the consciousness of one (parent, spouse, friend) gets transferred into another. It’s not perfect but it’s brilliant!

Mălina: In April I read Of Mice and Men by Steinbeck for the first time and it took me completely by surprise, because I truly did not expect to get this attached to the characters in a book that is less then 100 pages.

I read it for the first time in high school and I remember crying like a child.

Olga: I had all sorts of expectations with Pride and Prejudice and thought I was going to enjoy it a lot. But the writing didn’t work for me. I was not sufficiently informed about the ways of classic literature and expected something much different. We just didn’t click.

Sorry to hear that. I always find it helpful to keep my expectations in check, but I can understand how that’s not the easiest thing to do.

Tiffany: Bolla by Pajtim Statovci. I had it for some month before I got to it and I admit I chose it just to get it done with it, but it was so utterly beautiful and raw and painful… I did not expect to like it this much.

Andreea: In a bad way: Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, which was really unexpected because I absolutely loved The Martian. But since Project Hail Mary is just a recycled Martian it makes sense I didn’t vibe with it. In a very good way: The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran by Shida Bazyar — I expected it to be the usual historical melodramatic novel, but it wasn’t and it hit me in a very personal kind of way.

Which book sparked the biggest debate (be it internal or with a friend/book club)?

Andrada: Prophet Song by Paul Lynch for me. I really liked the different opinions people had at the book club. For some it was a book that felt so real, so terrifying, for others it was too much, too unrealistic. Even though I enjoyed the book, I loved to see so many different opinions about the characters, about the story, if what was presented in the book could happen in our world or not. It’s a book that makes you think a lot, no matter on what side you are.

I agree! I love it when we don’t quite agree at book clubs, it helps me see different points of view and think about the book in a whole new light.

Betty: Uhm Pachinko 🤣🤣 from what I remember. Look, like you know I am a big fan of Korean culture, music and history... so I know a bit about things. And this book frustrated be a bit 🙈 so yeah... I maybe got a bit too talkative at the book club.

Hey, I support you, girl! I loved all your takes at the book club.

Bianca G: The Secret History, which I love, vs. If We Were Villains, which I hate, with a coworker who feels the opposite :)) no hard feelings tho!!!

If it helps, I agree with you! I enjoyed the Shakespeare in If We Were Villains but overall it just wasn’t enough for me to like it the way I do The Secret History.

Madss: I’d say Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy. Was her mother to blame of everything? Is Arundathi right, healed? What would you do in rural India when women didn’t even have the right of inheritance and after a divorce, you’re left with two kids, but your ambition is to open a school?

Oh, Madss, you are making me want to drop everything and get straight to this book!

Mălina: I think Pornography by Andrea Dworkin.

Yeah, the book club discussion was really spicy!

Olga: I very much enjoyed the discussions that Historias de mujeres casadas sparked at book club. It could have used better writing, but there is a lot to explore there about life after 40 and relationships.

I agree with the book club discussion and the themes, but the writing was execrable (sorry, not sorry?) and there has to be better books out there exploring life after 40!

Tiffany: Delta of Venus, at the book club😭

A very controversial one, right? But it opened plenty of subjects at the book club and I love it when literature does that.

Andreea: I always forget I have to answer too (just like Măli at the book club) and I feel so unprepared! But I think I agree with Tiffany — Delta of Venus — I was also surprised that I enjoyed it more now than when I was in high school.

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Favourite new author (debut or new to you)?

Andrada: Eugen Ionesco. It’s my first time reading plays because I’m not really a fan of them, but Ionesco is just brilliant. I love his humour, I laughed a lot reading him. But he also presents the real human soul with all the good and the bads. So I could say, with one eye you laugh, with one eye you cry, because some things feel too real.

I want to read some of his plays too!

Betty: I finally got to read a book by R. F. Kuang. She did not disappoint and I am glad I finally got to read her books. It was a nice discovery and now I am intrigued.

I agree! I’m really curious how she writes fantasy, which is her jam.

Bianca G: John Steinbeck — he uses words in such a beautiful way it feel impossible.

I cannot wait to read East of Eden too!

Madss: I don't do that anymore, but was really surprised by Caro Claire Burke and Yesteryear. She's very articulate and has a point and am curious about what she might come up with next!

I’m in the middle of reading Yesteryear!

Mălina: I read Yael von der Wouden's debut The Safekeep this year and it was absolutely amazing.

It’s on my TBR too.

Olga: Not exactly favourite but I read one book by Annie Ernaux in January and it made me curious about what else she has written.

Same, but for me she’s a favourite too — I really enjoyed her writing.

Tiffany: Deborah Levy, this year I read her Living Autobiography — they're absolute gems.

I can’t wait to see how she writes too!

Andreea: This year I discovered Max Porter and fell in love with his style.

What book made you cry this year?

Andrada: Things I've Been Silent About: Memories of a Prodigal Daughter by Azar Nafisi. It’s a memoir, the story of an Iranian woman growing up in Iran and seeing her country transforming from a free country into one of the most oppressive places in the world. I loved reading about her life, she really has such a beautiful way of writing, it makes you feel like you were there with her. And I also liked the fact that she wrote about her country’s history too, and I learnt a lot! But it made me cry reading about all the horrible things that started happening there and what some people went through just for their opinions and thoughts!

Betty: Omg I don't know 🤣 I cry a lot reading books, not always because of an obvious reason. Sometimes it's just because I liked the vibes. Ok... so one that I remember crying while listening to the audiobook was Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid. I really liked the story, the science, the characters... it was so nice that sometime I want to buy and read it again.

To be fair, I always cry at Tayloy Jenkins Reid’s book too.

Bianca G: Death and the Gardener by Georgi Gospodinov. Made me sob like a child many times. It made me think so much about my own death, my parents and how it feels to live a mark after you die.

I’m not ready for this book.

Madss: Grass by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim? I also think that it’s crazy how little we learned about Asia’s history in school?

That’s such a powerful graphic novel and I agree — we should learn more about different histories and cultures.

Mălina: The last book that made me cry was Heart the Lover by Lily King. I was on the bus in Paris, from the airport into the city centre and I remember that the writing in itself was stunning and it just hit me in a very particular way. Also, the story itself was very human and very realistic, which allowed me to immerse myself in the characters and the plot.

Tiffany: The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters and The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller. The first has a pretty predictable plot, maybe even cliché at times, with underdeveloped characters — but I read it during a period when I was thinking a lot about death and loss and its ending hit me hard, it was deeply human and sad. The Song of Achilles, well, it wrecked me emotionally and showed me that I really am capable of crying over fictional characters

Oh, I sobbed into my pillow so hard when I read The Song of Achilles too.

Andreea: Same as Andrada, it is a story from Iran that made me cry the most, only mine is fictional: The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran.

What book made you smile or giggle this year?

Andrada: Dezgropând soarele — I love Durian Sukegawa. His books are balm for the soul! You can just smile reading his books because the lessons there are just so precious! He makes you appreciate life more and be more present and thankful for what you have, even if it’s hard sometimes!

Yeees, have you tried Sweet Bean Paste? It’s really sweet too and the film adaptation is really good too.

Betty: The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune. Omg how fun this is to read. I haven't finished this yet tho.. hope it still counts 🙈

It definitely counts! Plus by the time I published this Letter you already read the second novel too.

Madss: I wanted to say that I didn’t really read funny books? But The Wedding People by Alison Espach was really nice and fun, without being superficial.

Mălina: I read My Friends by Fredrick Backman in the beginning of the year and I think he is one of the funniest authors that I have read.

Backamn can always make you smile, even when his themes are really serious.

Olga: As already mentioned, I had a lot of fun with Project Hail Mary.

Tiffany: Deborah Levy’s books, again.

Andreea: I can’t help but mention a picture books for kids, especially because it made me giggle so much my tummy hurt: The Gato Taco by Didi Dragon.

What's one book you hope someone else reads?

Andrada: Investigațiile unei anumite pisici by Katja Kettu. Another book that surprised me this year! I learned a lot about Finland’s dark history from this book but what I really liked about it was the fact that there are two POVs and one is a cat’s POV! The cat that investigates the history of a woman in the present that lost her child and is in depression and goes back in time to learn about her family’s past, Finland’s history, and understand the woman in the present better. And also, sometimes the cat’s comments are so delicious, you can’t get bored. It really is a book that will also stay with me for a long time!

That sounds so much fun!

Betty: So I haven’t finished it yet. I put it on pause because I lost the progress I had on my kindle. Buuut the *The Second Chance Convenience Store* by Ho-yeon Kim. It’s like a warm hug, beautiful stories and a bit of mistery regarding one of the characters life. It’s about second chances (if you didn’t get that from the title). 😏

Bianca G: East of Eden, I’m sorry I will never shut up about this book.

I will read it! Soooooon!

Madss: I’ll go with a heavy one. La Nuit au cœur by Nathacha Appanah. Because femicide is real, is here, it happens to countries we believe are better than ours (France), it’s not something you can wave away or pretend it doesn’t exist. I think it will get an English translation next year.

Yes, the English translation will get published next year, in April!

Mălina: I think my answer has to be Monsters: What Do We Do With Great Art By Bad People?. I already gifted it for several of my friends and I will continue to do so :))

It’s on my TBR! I promise!

Tiffany: She Who Remains by Rene Karabash, definitely! And everything written by Elena Ferrante.

Andreea: I agree with Tiffany. But I must also add Pride and Prejudice to the list because, if you haven’t heard by now, it’s one of my favourite books!

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Have you been reading more or less than you expected?

Andrada: I think more that I expected. The first half of the year was really good, I read a lot and I found so many amazing books!

Madss: I’ve been reading more than I expected and now I feel this pressure of trying to keep up with the good months?

Tell me about it — in the past two months I definitely read less than in the other months and I feel this weird pressure to “get back to it”. But I’m going through something and its summer and it’s normal for our reading to fluctuate.

Olga: Definitely more than expected.

Betty: Uhm I don’t actually know. It’s not that bad, but still not good. I spend to much time on my phone and books remain unread 🥲.

Tiffany: It’s the first year I didn’t set up a reading goal number-wise just to see what happens. I read pretty much in the same rhythm as last year, but I’m allowing myself whatever comes.

Bianca G: A little less bcuz I got a job :)))))

Congrats on the job tho!

Mălina: I read a lot less than I expected to this year. Last year was an amazing reading year for me, I read 87 books, but this year has been particularly slow. This is due to the fact that I have been much more mindful and intentional with my reading.

But that’s really good! Numbers don’t matter.

Andreea: I think I read about the same too — with ups and down and differences at the month level, but overall it’s pretty much the same.

What's your weapon of choice: physical, ebook, or audiobook?

Andrada: Mostly physical. I try to challenge myself every year with audiobooks and ebooks, but until now, we are not in a very good relationship. 😅 I listened to one audiobook this year and it took me almost 5 months. 🙈 My brain is used to physical books so it’s a real challenge when I try something different, but this doesn’t mean I won’t try again in the future! Because I would like to be able to enjoy reading in many different ways!

Bianca G: Always psysical if possible. I love the connection you create with a book when you touch it.

Mălina: Physical. I think it’s also because of my dyslexia, but there is something about the physicality of the book, that makes the entire experience so much better. The second choice is audiobooks, also because of my dyslexia :)))

Olga: I would always choose physical if I could because it makes me feel more rooted/engaged in the activity, but I read more ebooks for comfort and financial reasons.

Tiffany: Physical books… for some time now I find it very hard to read on Kindle. I need the tactile experience. Recently I’ve become fascinated by books as objects too — their covers, the font… it’s more immersive.

Betty: This year I had all... I think it depends on what I am doing. But my favorite one will always be a physical book. It’s something about the feeling of the paper and it’s smell, makes the whole process much more pleasant.

Madss: Audiobook when I’m going to sleep, otherwise physical book. Ebook when I don’t find the physical book in the library.

Andreea: I guess we all are into physical books. This year more than any other for me — I am trying to read all the books I own!

What's been your biggest reading distraction?

Andrada: I guess my thoughts! I can read with music in my ears, and mostly this is how I read, I can read with people talking around me. But when I have things on my mind, difficult periods in my life that make me think a lot, then I can’t bring myself to concentrate on reading and sometimes I have to read a sentence 10 times to remember what I just read. 😆

Madss: Life haha.

Betty: Distraction? Uhm obviously my phone and I don’t know how to stop or fix this. I’m chronically online and I am not proud of this.

Bianca G: My fucking phone…

Mălina: Hate to say this, but my phone…

Olga: Having the phone near me.

Tiffany: Social media & stuff to fix around the house…

Andreea: So the phone seems to be enemy number one for most of us. But I’m also in the life camp too. I usually use books to escape whatever bothers me in real life, but for some reason lately it’s not working and I find myself spacing out while reading…

Have your reading tastes changed since last year?

Andrada: Yes, for sure! I discovered new genres that I really like — for example philosophy. I was never into it, it felt like something so far away from me, so difficult to understand, but I had a difficult moment in my life and I’m sure that was what opened my mind to philosophy, because it made me see things in a different way, it helped me think by myself, to ask more questions, to be more curious about life. It was a real surprise for me! 😄

I really want to read more philosophy too. I don’t know why I feel that I should have more time for it, not just read it on the go as I do with fiction…

Betty: Yep... I found that I like Japanese writers much more than I thought, and Koreans as well. It’s something about their style that I can’t explain but it feels different and I really enjoy it. And besides this... I read much more diversely now. So maybe that’s why is so hard to say that I enjoy a particular thing... I am still discovering.

Asian literature works especially well for book clubs too — I hope we will read more of them at all the book clubs we are in!

Bianca G: Not really, I just got more into contemporary literature.

Madss: I’m trying to diversify more from US-centric authors, doing this year’s storygraph challenge with 10 countries I haven’t really read from, following more closely the International Booker Prize (and actually reading from the short and long list!).

Mălina: Surprisingly yes... Or I think so. I am a huge mood reader and for some reason I have not been gravitating towards some of the genres that I usually love a lot this year. I have not read, for example, any romances or any fantasy this year, which is very unusual for me.

Tiffany: Not really, I’m just trying to read more diversly.

Andreea: I was always reading a little bit of everything, but I too read a lot less romance this year (mostly because I have my migraines under control) and I think I realised I prefer experimental books, but that I also love classics a lot. I used to read these a lot in the past too, so it’s more the realisation that I enjoy them more that’s changed.

What books do you want to read by the end of the year?

Andrada: I usually don’t have a TBR because I’m a mood reader but I would love to read more classics because I didn’t this year. I want to read Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Wilkie Collins, Mansfield Park by Jane Austen because it’s the only novel I haven’t read from her. And probably others but for now these are what I’m more curious about!

Betty: So I want to finish The Count of Monte Cristo and Ferrante’s tetralogy this year.

Mălina: The Count of Monte Cristo.

Same, same.

Bianca G: Idk really, what I know is I am making a reading least to dive deeper into the vampire as a symbol in classic literature.

I have the perfect curriculum for that! Maybe I will publish it this autumn!

Madss: I want to continue with my rhythm of at least 2 books from my own shelves per month, and the rest I let them come to me. That being said, on my shelves I have the following that I'm really looking forward to: The Copenhagen Trilogy by Tove Ditlevsen, Hard by a Great Forest by Leo Vardiashvili (consider me influenced).

I want to read Tove Ditlevsen too and I heard so many great things about The Copenhagen Trilogy. Also, I hope you will really enjoy Hard by a Great Forest!

Olga: I hope, fingers crossed, to manage to go through Emily Wilson’s translations of The Iliad and The Odyssey.

Fingers crossed! I’m rereading them too.

Tiffany: East of Eden (reading it since January), Lolita (rereading), The Master and Margarita (rereading).

Same, same, same. So glad we are reading The Master and Margarita at the book club together!

Andreea: I have my summer reading list, of course, plus the longlists from the Booker Prize and the International Booker (only read the shortlist) and all my other reading projects and all the classics and… yeah, pretty much everything under the sun.

What's a book you bought this year or heard of that you cannot wait to read?

Andrada: The Strength of the Few by James Islington. It’s the second volume from a series I started this year, and I loved the first volume. It’s an epic fantasy novel inspired by the Roman Empire, I loved everything about it and the first volume ended in a way that shocked me in a way I can’t describe so of course I cannot wait to see what happens in this second volume!

Betty: Uhm tough question... I bought a lot of books this year, and I don't remember them all haha😅 But I will say a recent one — Sisters in Yellow by Mieko Kawakami. I haven't read books written by her, even though I have already several of them on my bookshelves. I want to see why everyone speaks so highly of her. And I actually read the first 2 pages from this one I mentioned, in the bookstore, and it made me curious about the story too.

I want to read Sisters in Yellow too!

Bianca G: Armadale by Wilkie Collins. I really enjoyed The Woman in White.

I really enjoyed The Woman in White too and now I feel like rereading it…

Madss: Whistler by Ann Patchett because so far I loved everything she wrote, the same for Land by Maggie O'Farrell.

Well congrats on already reading the Whistler! It took me a while to publish this one, sorry.

Mălina: Ways of Seeing by John Berger. I’ve heard that this is the book that revolutionised the way in which modern art criticism looks at works of art and I am very excited to read it.

Oh, that’s a good one!

Olga: Volumes 3 and 4 of OTCOV by Solvej Balle because the vibes totally got me and I am curious where the story leads.

I feel you!

Tiffany: The Year of Magical Thinking — I just bought it, but I’m also scared of its exploration of grief.

Andreea: I bought a lot of books (surprise, surprise), but I really hope to get to East of Eden and The Master and Margarita (which I will, because book clubs, yaaay), but also Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart, which I just got.

Highest anticipated release for the rest of the year?

Andrada: Daughters of the Sun and Moon, written by my favorite author, Lisa See! Her books are a comfort for my soul, I found her ten years ago and since then I’m such a big fan, and this is her newest book, coming out this summer. Cannot wait to have it in my hands!

Betty: Gravespell by Elizabeth Sagan and James Trevino. They created a bookstagram a few years back, maybe they are even one of the parents of bookstagram... at least for me 🤣 I followed them since forever, and they are finally releasing their own book. I can't wait! It has magic, it has crime, great art already is created, love story, and from what I read it has interesting characters as well. It's actually for the next year but I got excited... I am sorry but I don't have other answer 🙈

Can’t say no to such an enthusiastic answer.

Bianca G: There is a new big book coming September in the Mermaid Collection: Forever Amber. All I know is it’s long and it was controversial at the time. Can’t wait!

Oh, it sounds really interesting!

Madss: I’d say Big Little Truths by Liane Moriarty? Other than that, I think I did quite well so far with the 2026 releases and readings (some on my TBR, some currently reading).

I had no idea there was a sequel in the works!

Tiffany: Nothing that comes in mind right now. I waited a lot for Sisters in Yellow, and I read it and liked it a lot. Oh, yes, I do! The next volumes by Solvej Balle!

Andreea: Can’t say I kept up to date with new releases this year, but next month there will be a new romance book by B.K. Borison: Grim Tidings, and I received for a review a book that will be published later this month that I’m excited to read: Fruit Fly by Josh Silver.

A reading goal you still want to accomplish?

Andrada: I want to read one more audiobook! 😆

Good luck with that! I recommend The House in the Cerulean Sea, the narrator does an amazing job!

Betty: I want to start reading more classics and poetry. I still have to work on these two 🙈

We are reading East of Eden and The Master and Margarita together!

Mălina: I feel like I want to read at least one poetry collection this year. I am not the biggest fan of poetry, but I want to give it a real try.

Mary Oliver, please!

Tiffany: Just being present while reading and then discussing the books I read🤍

Such a good one!

Andreea: I… had goals until my reading went off the rail in the past couple of months. Now I just hope to get back into my usual rhythm and hopefully come back with fun curriculums to follow in the autumn.

One author you definitely want to try before December?

Andrada: Emil Cioran because he intrigues me. Even though he is known for his dark writings about life, people that knew him said that in real life he was a happy and optimistic person. And I’m really curious about his writings!

I have on of his books too… funny enough it’s in English.

Betty: Mieko Kwakami. I want to also discover her books and stories. Everyone speaks so beautifully about her books.

Yes! Yes! Yes! Maybe we’ll read it together (wink, wink).

Bianca G: M.R. James — I know nothing about him, just bought a ghost story compilation.

Madss: I'm thinking more and more whether I should try again the classical Russian authors? I've heard so many things about Dostoyevsky's Brothers Karamazov or White Nights...

Oh, big goals!

Mălina: Zadie Smith. She has been on my list and radar for the longest time and I know that I am just going to love her so much. And for some reason I think that this year is the year in which I will get to her.

Same!

Olga: Not exactly an author case, but the subject about Homer’s work in translation kind of fascinates me, and I am very curios to check out Emily Wilson’s work on it. And then maybe, in some cases, compare it to other English translations.

Tiffany: Lydia Davis, I’ve read a few of her short stories before, and I’ve had this huge collection of hers sitting on my shelves for years.

Andreea: Hmmm… Virginia Woolf? Technically I read one of her essays, but I really want to read her novels too.

One "intimidating" book you're finally ready to tackle?

Andrada: Crime and Punishment. I started reading this book some 5 years ago but I guess I was not ready for it then, even though the story was interesting. So now I want to try and read it again because I love Dostoevsky!

I hope to read it too.

Betty: The Count of Monte Cristo, because the girls from one of the book clubs wanted to read it as a challenge... and I was like why not? I try to not run anymore from books… and just read what comes in my way. And if it comes with good company then count me in.

Mălina: The Count of Monte Cristo and it is purely because of the reading group. Even though I am definitely behind…

I’m behind too!

Bianca G: Armadale, I’m not ready but the length scares me.

Madss: Looking at the books I bought without really thinking... hmm... Salinger? It's a 700 pages book about J.D. Salinger, I bought it because I feel like 8th and 9th grade were all about The Catcher in the Rye... but I am not sure? I'd be more inclined to go with the answer from before, give me Dostoyevsky!

Olga: Same as above. Homer.

Tiffany: The Master and Margarita, but with a stronger philosophical and religious lens.

Andreea: I’m in the Count of Monte Cristo camp too.

If you want to add anything else, here's the space to do it.

Andrada: I really enjoyed answering these questions and they made me reflect more on what I read up until know this year, and why I loved the books I loved. You are doing such an amazing job with this Coffee Letter and I’m sure you are such an inspiration for many people! Keep up the good work, dear Andreea! 🤍

Aaaw, thank you!

Betty: It was a pleasure. I think last year I missed it, so I am glad I can be a part of this again 🤍 Love the questions and I can’t wait to read you article about this.

Mălina: This was amazing! Thank you! Such, such a good idea!

Tiffany: I’m so sorry for the incredibly late reply. :( These questions really helped me reflect on everything I’ve read so far this year, and I’m grateful I got the chance to share my thoughts with you.

Thank you too! I am glad you guys had fun answering my questions!

Madss: I remember last year you also had movies & tv series recs, and back then I didn’t have anything that came to mind, but this year I wanted to recommend Big Mistakes! I love Dan Levy. So even if it’s just for you, please please watch it. And also Schitt’s Creek if you’re at it!

Both on my list, I promise!

So… This year I really want to thank everyone who took the time to answer my questions. I was a bit nervous because it took a while and I had to remind people, so thank you for giving me your time and answers.

That being said, this might be the last update because I didn’t feel like the enthusiasm was the same compared with the previous year and I felt really bad pestering people to complete the form, while at the same time I felt a bit disappointed by the friends who didn’t do it. And I just don’t like these feelings.

But this made me really grateful for the friends who did. So thank you, really.

Thank you for reading!

So… the chaos continues and I thought I could take care of all my affairs before my flight, but alas, I’m just a grieving depressed delusional girl. On the bright side my summer calendar is full of trips, way more than initially planned.

Therefore I’m introducing the Espresso Postcard. A bite-size coffee letter, just about the books in my travel bag!

Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay (The Neapolitan Quartet #3) by Elena Ferrante. I just started it a day before my flight. This is my summer project (it’s on the summer list too) and together with the other two Petunias we are hosting a picnic for each book all summer long. I’m literally on chapter 2 (as I’m typing this) and I was surprised that we got a scene from the present. It starts in a quite macabre way, I’m really curious where this volume will lead me.

Când ești fericit, lovește primul by Tatiana Țîbuleac. Since I’m going to Chișinău I figured I should read Tatiana Țîbuleac’s latest novel (she was born in Chișinău). So far I adored everything she’s written. I know nothing about this book, but I don’t expect it to be a happy one.

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I’m only in Chișinău for two full days and both of them will be focused on the wedding, the reason I’m there at all (actually, my husband is the reason, I’m just tagging along). There won’t be that much time for reading (although I’ll probably read at the wedding), but I got my kindle too and my main reads there are:

Just Above My Head by James Baldwin. Because one can never have enough James Baldwin in their life. This is Baldwin’s last novel and it follows the story of two brothers and their struggles.

Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke, which I wanted to read when it was super popular online but only got to about 2%. Life doesn’t care about my reading plans. It’s the trad-wife book everyone’s talking about (or they did two months ago or so) and I admit I want to know if all the fuss is worth it.

That’s all, folks! The delulu part of me really hopes I will finish at least one novel by the time I return.

Kisses,
Andreea

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I like football. It might be because I grew up with a dad who adores it (like so many Eastern European fathers) and every big match was always an event in our house. Everyone gathered around the TV and the entire evening was arranged around those ninety minutes, which felt even more important if our country was playing.

Or we could go the Donna Tartt “beauty is terror” way and say that football is beautiful precisely because it contains a certain dose of violence to it. It’s not brutality for brutality’s sake, but tension, bodies colliding, risks and last-second decisions that could alter the entire game! Plus footballers falling and pretending they’re hurt — there’s a level of sneakiness too. It’s elegant and chaotic at the same time, and if the teams are playing really well, then it’s a damn beautiful sport to watch.

Just like figure skating (my other favourite sport), I love the sport itself more than I love any particular team1. I do have my sweethearts, but I’m just as happy to see another team win if they’ve played brilliantly (unless they have the referee or the entire federation in their pocket).

Am I as emotionally involved as men seem to be? Pas du tout. Perhaps one of football’s greatest gifts is that it reminds us how emotional men actually are. I’m being a little bitchy, I know2.

Let’s go back to football. From the outside it looks deceptively simple — twenty people chasing a ball — but there’s strategy and timing, instinct and anticipation, and maybe some clairvoyance. The players seem to knew where everyone will be seconds before they get there.

Yet despite all this sophistication, it remains wonderfully accessible. You can play it anywhere: stadiums or schoolyards, country roads or parking lots. All you need is a ball. And this is what I love the most about it: football is the people’s sport.

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~ read

Surprisingly enough I have no books to share with you this week… I recently finished listening to a thriller, The God of the Woods by Liz Moore, and read a short story collection, Punk Requiem by Goran Mrakić, but neither offered me something to write home about.

But I read some articles!

~ articles

How “Piss Christ” Became a Culture-War Bomb (The New Yorker). About Serrano’s piece of art that sparked a lot of ideas in my mind when I was at Uni (especially about how much power a title holds), but also about shock and Robert Mapplethorpe and Patti Smith and more — another sign I should maybe read Just Kids.

Speaking of Patti Smith (I think I shared this one before) I reread Art Rats in New York City (The New Yorker), an excerpt from her latest book, Bread of Angels.

Our Plastic-Surgery Nightmare (The New Yorker). Reality is getting scary and I wish embracing aging gracefully was cool again.

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Currently I’m in the middle of Emily Wilson’s translation of The Iliad and it’s even more fun than the first time I read (I read another translation the first time).

~ watch

Materialists (2025), d. Celine Song. It took me a while to get to this film because the public opinion on it was so bad (I get it, we all love Pedro Pascal) but I think maybe the public missed the point? I also feel like the marketing was a bit too rom-com and those of us who dream of the rom-com comeback3 left the cinema disappointed. But all in all, I think the film does a good job in communicating its ideas and the general opinion on it only proves its point.

Materialists follows a matchmaker who starts dating a rich guy also known as an “unicorn” in her industry yet still thinks about her broke ex. Oh, what’s a girl to do. I mean it’s pretty obvious from the first moment we meet the ex, but alas, it was an enjoyable watch and a good commentary on love, modern dating and capitalism. That being said, my girl Dakota, whom I adore in all her interviews, can’t act (and her character even has a line about that, which was peak comedy). [available on HBO Max]

One Hundred Years of Solitude / Cien años de soledad (TV series, 2024-2026, season 1). Season 2 of this lovely adaption of Gabriel García Márquez’ novel is coming out next month, so it was about time I finally watched the first season (which I started a while ago but had to pause). The show tells the story of the town of Macondo, founded by José Arcadio Buendía and his wife, Ursula, and their descendants, many of which share the same names. Because why not make it complicated?

I read the book a while ago, but I really liked it and I feel like the show captures the essence of it, while also making it easier to remember all the characters. Plus the visuals in this show are top-notch and its the imagery that captivated me in the book too. [available on Netflix]

Currently I’m watching Young Sheldon.

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~ r.e.p.o.r.t

Reading: The Iliad mostly

Eating: still in our cold platters era — it’s summer, but my friend Doris just dropped by and brought us some cinnamon rolls!

Playing: My Sticker Room, a tablet game where you decorate rooms with stickers…

Obsession: my book cart — I joined the trend, I’m obsessed with it

Recommendation: have a weekend with no plans once in a while, it’s a treat

Treat: the mint tea my husbands makes every evening for me, makes me feel like a princess

Next weekend I’m travelling outside the country for a wedding and I don’t feel particularly social. That being said, I will be late with the Coffee Letter because I might not take my laptop with me. Or maybe I will replace a Coffee Letter with a special letter?

I also made a plan to accompany my soft reset and it’s a reset for the apartment. Fix your environment, fix your head, right? Or maybe it’s the book cart that made me want to change the entire flat.

Thank you for reading!

With (unsociable) love,
Andreea

The plan I made last quarter worked for about a month or so. What a surprise, right? The second quarter had a little bit of everything, highs and lows and very very lows. But I’ll reflect more on this later in the article, for now, let’s talk stats.

As always, this is just my reading journey, so please don’t compare your reading with anyone else’s. Numbers don’t matter. I read a lot, but I don’t do much else1.

~ the stats

In the second quarter (ooh, so corporate) I read 45 books, which brings me to a total of 96 books in the first half of the year. Beware, I really like data!

stats about my reading journey

• I read only 4 ARCs (I’m a really bad ARC reader): 2 graphic novels, 2 picture books for kids. My favourite from this quarter was Olive: Lost in Inner Space by Véro Cazot, illustrated by Lucy Mazel, a coming-of-age graphic novel that blends multiple genres, and the illustrations were ah-mazing!

• 13 of my reads were for book clubs (technically 14, cause I also listened to the Pride and Prejudice audio-play), 6 of which were rereads (well, 7).

• speaking of which, I have only 9 rereads (well, 10):

  • 6 rereads for book clubs: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (also part of my Jane Austen curriculum), Hamlet by William Shakespeare (also reread for Reading Shakespeare in a Year), 1984 by George Orwell (I listened to the audio-play, which was nice but I would highly recommend the actual book first), Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu, and Delta of Venus by Anaïs Nin, which is a reread but I first read it in high school so I was kinda remembering zilch;

  • 2 manga volumes from the series In the Clear Moonlit Dusk by Mika Yamamori;

  • 1 more novel for my Jane Austen curriculum: Sense and Sensibility.

• I buddy-read 9 books: pretty much all but one from the International Booker Prize shortlist (because we read it in the first quarter), All of This Unreal Time by Max Porter, and 3 picture books from Didi Dragon that the author shared on TikTok and I then shared with all of my friends, starting with The Gato Taco.

• I read 7 plays as part of my Reading Shakespeare in a Year challenge, and one graphic novel (Shakespeare’s Hamlet: A Graphic Novel adapted by Steve Barlow and Steve Skidmore, illustrated by Alessandro Valdrighi and Edu Rubio).

• I read 2 (3 if we count the audio-play which is a reread anyway) books for my Jane Austen curriculum, which I already mentioned.

• I read the rest of the books from the International Booker Prize shortlist.

• and I read 3 books hand-picked by my husband: Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides, Delicacy by David Foenkinos, and Light and Thread by Han Kang.

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stats about the books

• 64% were physical books from my shelves, 23% were ebooks, and 13% audiobooks.

• 4 books in Romanian, the rest in English:

  • only 1 of the 4 is by a Romanian author and it’s poetry: Însemnări pe tivul fustei by Anca-Ioana Câdă.

• 91% of my reads were fiction, 7% non-fiction and 2% poetry (which I just mentioned it above):

  • 1 non-fic was Lena Dunham’s second memoir Famesick, which I consumed as audiobook because she was narrating it, 1 non-fic was part memoir, part poetry, part essay and part garden-journal — Light and Thread by Han Kang, and the last non-fic was Pornography by Andrea Dworkin, which consists of feminist essays on why pornography is actually damaging to society, especially women.

• my most read genres in the first three months of the year were: classics, literary and historical.

stats about the authors & representation

• 25 books were written by women, 20 by men.

• 13 BIPOC authors and 19 books with BIPOC representation.

• I read books written by authors from the following countries: 13 each from UK and US, 5 from France, 2 each from Japan, Germany, Ireland, Spain, and 1 from Romania, Iran, Taiwan, Bulgaria, Italy and South Korea.

• I read multiple works from: William Shakespeare (8), Didi Dragon (4 kids picture books she reads on TikTok), Jane Austen (3, but technically 2 because Pride and Prejudice I read twice), Mika Yamamori (2 volumes from the manga series In the Moonlit Dusk).

• 11 books had queer representation and 1 only had queer vibes.

• 4 books had mental disorder representation (but Hamlet makes up for 2 of them), 4 books had physical disabilities or chronic pain disorders, and 5 books featured both.

This doesn’t fit anywhere, but since I mentioned it the last time: 3 books made me cry (Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar, The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran by Shida Bazyar, translated by Ruth Martin, and Prophet Song by Paul Lynch), and 3 books almost made me cry.

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~ highlights and lowlights

Unlike my yearly top, these are my favourite reads from each month, which adds a level of difficulty when choosing because some months are better than others, especially true for this quarter.

For instance, April was not particularly great but on the last day of the month I read All of This Unreal Time by Max Porter (foreword by Cillian Murphy) and I simply loved it. It’s a long poem in a tiny book crafted in the Porter’s peculiar and beautiful style. It’s tender and rich and I read it in Cillian Murphy’s voice because I watched the short film first — the book actually came second this time around, even though there aren’t any changes from the film script to the book.

Other books I really enjoyed in April and were not rereads: Însemnări pe tivul fustei by Anca-Ioana Câdă, poetry about womanhood, and Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides, part coming-of-age, part family saga, exploring a multitude of themes.

Special mentions to Famesick by Lena Dunham, which made me feel part of a cultural millennial moment — all of us were listening to her memoir, right? — and Richard II by William Shakespeare, which starts the Henriad and showed me that I can actually enjoy the bard’s historical plays.

May was really busy (but in a fun way) with the International Booker Prize shortlist and my favourite read from the month was She Who Remains by Rene Karabash, translated by Izidora Angel. But I had a lot of 5-star reads from the shortlist, including The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran by Shida Bazyar, translated by Ruth Martin and Taiwan Travelogue by Yáng Shuāng-zǐ, translated by Lin King. I wrote an entire article dedicated to the shortlist here and I actually guessed the winner this time!

May was an amazing reading month and I have a lot of special books to mention: The Gato Taco by Didi Dragon (picture book for kids), Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar, Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin (oh, how I love James Baldwin), Prophet Song by Paul Lynch, and the first book from The Neapolitan Novels — My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante, translated by Ann Goldstein.

May was the month I actually followed my reading plan the most and it was an amazing reading month2.

Then June happened and my life unraveled and I read only 10 books, none particularly impressive. Then again, I was going through something (and still am) and my reading has suffered. My favourite read from the month was Light and Thread by Han Kang. It’s a book for someone who is already familiar with Kang’s works because she shares insights from her writing and research, plus a garden diary which might not be everyone’s cup of tea.

Special mention to Delta of Venus by Anaïs Nin, which is a reread, though I first read it in high school. I liked that it challenged me with its taboos and I really enjoyed it as an exploration in female desire and sexuality. Another reread that I have to mention (that also made my Top Reads last year) is Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu, another dive into female desire, featuring a sapphic vampire.

As for lowlights, I have to mention Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, which sparked debates with my friends when I rated it 2 stars (sorry, not sorry, it bored me) and The Witch by Marie NDiaye, the only disappointment from the International Booker Prize shortlist. I have two books this quarter that I rated under 2 stars, but I didn’t really have any expectations from them: Vladimir by Julia May Jonas, and Povești cu femei măritate by Cristina Campos, translated in Romanian by Ana Maria Tamaş, which I read for a book club (one of the worst books I have ever read for a book club, but the discussion was really nice).

I only have one book that was a decent read, despite not meeting my expectations: Pornography by Andrea Dworkin. I think I wanted it to be a bit more nuanced, instead it was so radical it almost turned conservative. But it’s a book written in the 70s and it’s normal for me to have different views nowadays. So it’s not a bad book, I just wanted a bit more from it.

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~ plans and reflections

To be fair, for the month I stuck to a reading schedule I felt not only more accomplished in my reading but also freer (counterintuitive, I know). By reading schedule I simply mean choosing what books I want to focus on each week and splitting them by days, making sure I have 2-3 books to choose from daily, while prioritising book club reads without abandoning all the other books I wanted to read. And by more accomplished I don’t mean I read more books, but rather that I read what I wanted.

As with all plans and lists I performed better in the beginning of the week and slacked off in the middle, while the weekend was mostly used for last minute catch-ups (aka book club next week) and my mood reads. I am still a mood reader.

Then life happened and I couldn’t focus on anything. Last month I read the least amount of books in a while — and yes, numbers don’t matter in the sense that I never try to read or finish a book to have it count as a number in my wrap-up. I just read and my average is usually around 15-17 books (keep in mind I read at least one picture book and one graphic novel or manga each month3). When I saw how little I read in June I knew the grief had affected me in this area too.

Going forward the plan is to give myself some grace and not add too much pressure. I have my summer list, which I’m excited about, but I still feel the aftereffects of June and I’m sure I won’t even read half of it. I’m slower, I’m still processing my feelings, I still miss my cat and find myself staring into space with a book open in my lap. And that’s okay. This too shall pass.

So quarter three, no big plans. I will rest, I will read chaotically. I hope to devour some books on the beach in September and then come back stronger in autumn.

Thank you for reading!

With love (even though I’m still in a funk),
Andreea

The funk continues and the chaos is still “chaosing” and amidst all these things I am trying to find my place and reconnect with myself. Gee, I sound like a self-help book, but I guess this Coffee Letter is about self-help.

I am taking this summer — and actually the entire second half of the year — as a self-care/self-help journey, albeit not with the purpose of changing myself, but simply to remember what feels good and to be more me. The irony that my favourite quote ever is about the ephemerality of being one’s self is not lost on me as I’m writing this.

In the first half of the year, a huge focus was our beloved cat’s health. There was always in the back of my head this idea that after Veta gets better I will focus on this and that and other things I abandoned in our frenzied attempt to save our cat. All of our efforts (and our vet’s) have failed and the enormity of the pain froze me in time and place for a bit, while things continued to happen around me. Hence how the chaos took over.

Do I have a plan? Not really. Life is not an assignment. No KPIs or performance reviews, I’m just actively choosing to prioritise myself. It’s a soft reset, even though I’m not on board with the word “reset” but alas, I just returned from team building and I’m still a bit hangover (and tired from all the golfing), so my brain cannot think of other words. And it’s “soft” because there are no dramatic 180 degree lifestyle changes nor am I looking for productivity hacks.

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I just want to slowly bring back some things I used to do before the chaos or rather some things I used to do before all the diagnostics. I want to bring those habits back while I take care of who I am today. I’m planning a health journey without any hard deadlines.

The first steps is to get back in touch with all my doctors as so far this year I ignored all my medical appointments (and all the recommendations). Meanwhile, little by little, I will return to the things I used to do that seem so basic, yet are so hard for me to do: going to bed at a reasonable hour, eating breakfast and eating less meat, this one being the easiest from the list. I am still not sure why eating breakfast daily and having 3-4 meat-free dinners weekly helped with my migraines, but it did1.

And then there’s the little things that might seem little, but that make me me and bring me unmeasurable joy: romanticising life again, buying flowers from time to time, slow mornings, bubble baths. When the universe seems in balance I don’t need to make an effort to do these things, but when chaos governs my world it seems impossible. If keeping things in balance seems impossible at the moment, I want to at least enjoy my bubble bath while everything around me is collapsing.

~ read

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang. My first R.F. Kuang read and it’s the one book that’s not fantasy, but rather a literary thriller of sorts about an unbearable writer who envies her friend, an acclaimed writer, to the point that she steals her unpublished manuscript when her friend dies choking in front of her (not a spoiler, literally the first chapter in the book). It’s a book about writing and the publishing industry, especially the racism faced in the industry, cancel culture, envy and, why not, friendship.

It was a fun read, even though it loses momentum in the last 100 pages. The conflict starts pretty simple but is but it builds upon layer by layer. The plot is slowly built up to the point it’s no longer as black and white as it initially seemed.

But the novel is a bit too long for its own good and a bit too chronically online — which made sense after I listened to an interview with the author and learnt it was written during the pandemic and she herself admits she was chronically online. In the end, I love an unlikable delusional character, especially when forced to be in her head 24/7 and see how she struggles to justify every shitty thing she does. [physical book | Borough Press | 2023]

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Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo, translated by Douglas J. Weatherford. This is the book club pick for our small book club and I finished it with more than a week to go until the meeting! Who am I? I usually finish my book club read the night before the meeting. But Pedro Páramo is that kind of book that I enjoy so much that I don’t want to read very fast because I don’t want it to end yet I cannot stop reading.

It’s not an easy read by any means. Part of Latin American magical realism, this book really inspired Gabriel García Márquez to write his epic magical realism novel One Hundred Years of Solitude. Márquez wrote the introduction for my copy of Pedro Páramo and he admits he read the book twice in one night and claims that he can recite the book word by word.

The story follows Juan Preciado who goes to the town of Comala to respect his mother’s dying wish of finding his father he has never met, Pedro Páramo. But Comala is not what it used to be in his mother’s time.

The novel is very fragmentary, switching between first-person narration to third-person dialogue, scattered throughout the novel, showcased with different quotation marks. We go through multiple narrative voices between two interspersed timelines — the past Comala, Pedro Páramo’s life story and the town’s living days, and the present Comala, experienced in Juan Preciado’s POV.

I had a blast reading it and I especially loved the atmosphere created, the fine line between what’s real and what’s not. And it’s no secret that I like puzzle-novels and my interest was piqued the moment I realised that linear time has left the building. I don’t want to say more because some of the girls from the book club are Coffee readers. I will keep the rest of my thoughts for our book club meeting. I also think it’s the kind of book where the less you know, the more you will enjoy untangling the story yourself. [physical book | Grove Press | first published in 1955]

~ articles

The End of Reading Is Here (The Atlantic). Someone shared this article on the Petunia book club group and it was an interesting read about the decline of not only reading, but also the complexity of the books read. I wish it was a bit more hopeful.

Yellowface with Rebecca F. Kuang | All About Women 2024 (Sydney Opera House - youtube). Technically not a written interview, but it’s the interview I mentioned in my review of Yellowface. I think R.F. Kuang is really smart and I love the way she speaks, but I wish she would trust her readers are smart and capable too and would stop over-explaining her books (which I heard she does in her fantasy novels as well).

Currently I have no particular book actively reading, although I have a bunch of books started.

~ watch

I’m still quite focused on the World Cup, but I did finish another Asian reality TV show: Badly in Love / Ravu Jôtô (TV series, 2025-, season 1). It’s a dating reality show where the contestant have a yankii past (aka they were juvenile delinquents, part of gangs or at least rebellious in some way) and must now live together in a repurposed abandoned school for two weeks, trying to find love.

Yankii is a form of Japanese subculture I knew nothing about, and for a dating show it was really refreshing. Their personalities are very bold, intense and raw — this is exactly why the show creator came up with this idea and I think it was brilliant. They were brutally honest but in a way that taught me a lot about conflict, especially how early on they tackle whatever bothered them and how easily they discussed each situation and moved on. I loved it! [available on Netflix]

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~ video essays

Third places won’t save us. (Alice Cappelle - youtube). A very smart video about the new buzz words making the rounds if you are chronically online: “third places”. The concept is not bad, per se, but alas, another thing ruined by capitalism.

Currently I’m watching the second season of Better Late Than Single, a Korean dating show I talked about quite recently actually. The second season just came out.

~ r.e.p.o.r.t

Reading: still haven’t decided, but I should probably start my reread of Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey — I’m reading Emily Wilson’s translations

Eating: lots of salată de vinete

Playing: golf — my muscles are sore because of fucking golf, I had no idea that sport is so demanding!

Obsession: still the World Cup?

Recommendation: even though Norway is out, my rec for this week is still World Cup — I guess I’m rooting for France now

Treat: the granita shots I had on the dance rink at team building

We have the form for the Bookish Mid-Year Check-In with Friends so if you have a few minutes and want to join the fun, please do! Here’s last year Mid-Year Check-In and the End-of-Year one! It’s always so much fun to see what my friends’ reading journey.

I am still quite tired from team building, I’m hoping for a chill week, which is exactly what I need to start his soft reset I keep talking about.

Thank you for reading!

Love,
(a chaotic) Andreea

I’m still in a funk and I feel like a mess — I am a mess and everything around me is a mess. I don’t even know what to write about hence why I’m typing this on Sunday night, at 22:56 (but also because I couldn’t stop reading Elena Ferrante’s The Story of a New Name).

I’m going through a phase. I move from one day to another on autopilot and I quite frankly don’t know how to shake this feeling off. It probably doesn’t help that July so far is super packed, all my weekends full with various events that force me to be more sociable than I usually wish to be, especially when I’m not really feeling quite myself.

And no, I cannot reschedule and rearrange the calendar. Life doesn’t always work that way.

But the words I chose this year are “chaos” and “connection” so I guess the Universe is only doing its part and living up to my words. Be careful what you wish for, friends, or what words you throw out there into the void. They might come back to bite you in the arse.

So all that’s left for me is to learn to coexist not only with my weird emotions but with the chaos. And you know, maybe live for more than the weekend, especially now when my weekends are fully booked.

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~ read

Light and Thread by Han Kang, translated by Paige Aniyah Morris, Maya West, and E. Yaewon. This is a short non-fiction book — part memoir, part essays, part poetry, part garden journal — by the amazing Han Kang (which I adore if it wasn’t obvious by now) about her writing process and other tidbits she wrote, including her garden diary. It’s best read if you are already familiar with her works as she shares insights from her writing and research, and although not spoilery, it’s much more fun when you can associate it with her novel and understand where her ideas and decisions came from.

The garden journal was very fun for me to read, but I did feel like it was too long compared to the rest of the book so it shifted the book’s balance a bit. [physical book | Penguin | 2026]

The Story of a New Name (The Neapolitan Novels #2) by Elena Ferrante, translated by Ann Goldstein. So… I couldn’t stop reading it. When I read the first book I had a few complaints that had to do with the pacing and what not, but the second book was so much better. Or I got so much into it that I didn’t have time to notice — although I doubt it because I still have my little things that I cannot wait to discuss at the Petunia picnic on Ferrante’s Quartet. But this time I mainly have some observations.

Anyway, in the second novel from the Quartet we follow the girls as teenagers and young adults, one married, one continuing her studies, but a big chunk of the book is spent during the girls’ vacation to Ischia. I am trying very hard not to give you any spoilers so I won’t talk too much.

Ferrante’s writing is impressive, especially when creating such complex characters and dealing with so many contradictory feelings. She can make you hate the characters but also understand them and relate to them at the same time. And while this novel is a lot about their friendship, it’s also a social commentary done so fucking brilliantly. It forced me to stay with ideas I usually avoid, how life is so absurd at times and how whatever seems important for someone might be meaningless for someone else. A brilliant read. [physical book | Europa Editions | first published 2012]

Currently I’m in a book hangover. I just finished The Story of a New Name and I cannot even think about picking up another book, sorry.

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~ watch

These days I’m only watching the World Cup, guys. Even right now I’m watching Brazil vs Norway.

But this week I finally watched Project Hail Mary (2026), d. Phil Lord, Christopher Miller cause it was finally available on streaming. And… well, it was a bit better than the book but it had no reason to be as long as it was, and I got quite bored at times. I really really thought I would enjoy the film a lot more, but alas, I don’t know why I expected a change of medium to improve what I found lacking as a story in the first place. I guess writing really is at the heart of things, no matter how much chemistry Ryan Gosling has with a rock spider alien. [available on Prime]

Currently I’m watching the World Cup.

~ out and about

Velvet Hour is a music club of sorts where we meet and listen to music and share thoughts and memories. This week I went to the first edition and the theme was “Brazil”. I discovered new songs and met some new people. It was a really fun experience and I cannot wait to see what the next Velvet Hour will focus on.

~ r.e.p.o.r.t

Reading: I will start Yellowface by R.F. Kuang soon

Eating: sour soda gummies, the pink and blue ones that seem to be available all over Europe but not in Romania

Playing: I am not playing much of anything because I’m busy watching the World Cup

Obsession: the World Cup?

Recommendation: the World Cup

Treat: a cold beer (usually Kronenburg 1664 Blanc), a good book, and the World Cup

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This week I’m trying to get it together, with a big accent on trying. But I have two book clubs and then I’m going on team building so clearly that doesn’t leave me enough time to get ALL my shit together. But that’s why I’m only trying. If at the end of the July I’m better and things feel less messy around me, I will consider that a big achievement.

Speaking of team building, we are returning on Sunday afternoon so that should leave enough time to write the Coffee Letter but I can’t promise anything. We might drink our coffee on Tuesday.

Thank you for reading!

Lots of love,
(a messy) Andreea

Welcome to part II of the films I watched at TIFF this year. Don’t forget to also read part I, where I watched almost the same number of films in two days as I did in a full week of festival. But I also had other events and work this week.

Sunday 14

8:55 My friend Diana messaged me that she’s also coming to today’s matinée. If you remember from last year, both I and The Atlantic agree that movies are best before noon (sorry, paywall, but you can get around it). It’s just nice to start the day doing something fun. Hey, cinemas, can we have matinées even when there’s not a film festival going on?

But I digress. We talk to meet earlier for coffee and chats about life. She’s always inspiring. Betti joins us soon and then we go to my first film of the day: Idyllic / De Idylle (2025), d. Aaron Rookus.

Victor wonders if he’s too late to join dating games in his 40s. His sister Annika, an opera singer, wonders how different life could have been after receiving a surprising medical diagnosis. Their grandmother wonders if she should end her life right away.

I’m a sucker for a story within a story and I’m a sucker for getting to know characters separately only to have them converge together one way or another and this film does both, plus a lot of symbolism and ostriches… or were they emus?

It’s the kind of film that makes you ask question and think about abstract ideas long after it has ended. It made me reflect on life and death. It tackles serious themes with a sprinkle of whimsicality and a pinch of dark humour. And even though I got into it because of the story, it’s the actors that made it work so well — all of them were formidable and believable, even in the most cringe moments.

11:45 I think all three of us liked it. Afterwards I went for matcha with Betti while we waited for our next film: Weightless / Vægtløs (2025), d. Emilie Thalund.

Fifteen-year-old Lea is spending her summer at a health camp tucked between the forest and the sea. Her new roommate, Sasha, is everything Lea wishes she could be: bold, magnetic, and unafraid to take up space in the world. While Sasha flirts with the local boys, Lea’s gaze is fixed on Rune, the camp’s charming instructor. When Rune reciprocates her attention, something awakens within Lea; an unfamiliar yet thrilling desire.

Weightless was unsurprisingly predictable and I knew that from the moment I read the synopsis, but alas, I love teen films, especially coming-of-age ones. So I did not mind the predictability and even so, you still feel all the tense moments and all the angst and inner turmoil of the characters.

My favourite part was the female friendship, especially because both girls were complex human beings, each with their flaws. Obviously we see everything through Lea’s eyes, but Sasha can exist in a film of her own without any extra layers needed.

14:20 We eat at McDonald’s. At this point, this is shortly turning into a TIFF tradition. After some nuggets and some fries, we make our way to the next film: Yellow Letters / Gelbe Briefe (2026), d. İlker Çatak.

15:01 Just before the movie starts, Anda Docea sits down right next to me and the funny thing is that we messaged a day earlier about how we are both so packed with the festival that we might not have time to see each other.

The marriage of Derya and Aziz is under pressure after losing their jobs because of state arbitrariness and moving to Istanbul to live with Aziz’s parents. They and their 13-year-old daughter Ezgi have to redefine their way of life.

This film made me crave an old-school stovetop coffee like no other, and I was thrilled by “Berlin as Ankara” and “Hamburg as Istanbul” introductions. Jokes aside, the writing in Yellow Letters is really good and realistic in a way that might not please the casual viewer, but that delighted me (even though I’m delusional and a hopeless romantic).

It’s a film about ethics and delusions (he-yo), especially the pressure artists feel to balance making money with their personal values. And on top of that it adds a political layer — my favourite part of the film, particularly because we experience it through the family’s lenses rather than as a collective drama.

17:45 I am rushing home because even though my dad said he’d arrive in the evening — he’s travelling for work and spending the night with us — he actually arrived way earlier and I completely forget that I promised Anda we’ll take a selfie together.

20:15 I and my dad watch the Germany - Curaçao football match together and I’m so grateful for his presence.

Monday 15

9:08 I go out for coffee with my dad. Then he continues his work trip and I go to my first film of the day: Birds of War (2026), d. Janay Boulos, Abd Alkader Habak.

The love story of a London-based Lebanese journalist and a Syrian activist and cameraman as told through 13 years of personal archives across revolutions, war, and exile.

A documentary about love and war and love in times of war between a Lebanese journalist working for BBC UK and a Syrian activist and cameraman who becomes her source. The documentary captures their communication and relationship over a decade.

Predictably we know how this film ends yet it was still heart-wrenching at times. Even more so after they are safe. Because how do you grapple with the idea that you are safe while your family isn’t or that you would rather be back there fighting but you cannot?

Oh, Janay has two cats exactly like my Julieta and Veta.

11:35 I went to the film with Olga, who also wrote about her experience at TIFF on her substack, then she kept me company for a quick coffee until my next film: Leonora in the Morning Light / Leonora im Morgenlicht (2025), d. Thor Klein, Lena Vurma. I already had a clue that I might really enjoy this film because Betti and Ana watched it on Sunday evening and both praised it a lot (without any spoilers).

Leonora Carrington, an outstanding figure of surrealism, along with Frida Kahlo, was one of Mexico’s most famous painters. As the long-time partner of Max Ernst and close friend of André Breton and Jean Miró, she continually struggles with her visionary imagination, which often triggers serious psychological crises.

At the end of the film we had a Q&A with the directors and one of the actors. It gave me more insights into how they wished to portray Leonara Carrington’s life and why the focus wasn’t so much on her paintings — they are barely shown in the film, but rather on her and her inner world. However they used the colour palette she gravitated towards in her paintings as the colour palette for the film.

I love me an aesthetically beautiful film, but Leonora in the Morning Light is not only that, it actually pulls you in through it’s lush imagery and captivating sounds. I loved how each place she’s in becomes a character in itself in the film. And Olivia Vinall’s performance as Leonara was breathtaking.

This is a book adaptation and I want to read the book. Personally I wanted the focus to be more on Remedios and Leonora’s friendship and a bit less on the mental hospital scene. I love sisterhood.

14:00 This is it for today. I retreat home for a few hours to rest and read the last three stories from Delta of Venus by Anaïs Nin because in a few hours I’m going to the Petunia book club to discuss it.

Andreea from the present here: I wrote my thoughts on this book in my last Coffee Letter. Spoiler alert, I enjoyed it.

Tuesday 16

8:30 I have today off from work too, but I feel extremely tired so I will prioritise my rest. Who would have thought being so active at the film festival will add up? Plus last night I went out for drinks with the Petunias.

17:50 I know I said I’m taking a break today, but I do have a special TIFF event that’s not a film: Notte Morricone, a dance theatre show on Ennio Morricone’s music about his life and his creative process.

21:00 For a theatre show it wasn’t bad, but for the price (more than triple the usual theatre ticket) it was not worth it. Last year I went to Film Food and that one was a fail too. And this year my husband went to Film Food in Livada — basically a not-as-fancy Film Food — and he wasn’t impressed either. So it’s safe to say that I’m done with TIFF special events. From now on I’ll just stick to the films.

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Wednesday 17

07:48 It’s back to work for me now and I’m starting strong with a two day leadership training. But I’m ending the day with a film: The President’s Cake (2025), d. Hasan Hadi.

While people across 1990s Iraq struggle to survive the war and food shortages, Saddam Hussein requires each school in the country to prepare a cake to celebrate his birthday. Despite her efforts to avoid getting picked, 9-year-old Lamia is chosen among her classmates. The young girl must now use her wits and imagination to gather ingredients for the mandatory cake or face the consequences.

Yaaas, another film with Q&A! This time the production designer and the film editor (and colourist) were present because — surprise, surprise — they are Romanian. This is an Iraqi film where the majority of the crew behind the film was Romanian because the director, Hasan Hadi, is a big fan of Romanian cinema. The biggest surprise for me was that none of the actors (apart from a lady with a tiny part) had any roles prior to this film. The story is inspired from Hasan’s childhood and the main character was supposed to be a boy, however during the screen test the girl who played the best friend was so much better than him that Hasan reworked the screenplay.

Naturally, a Q&A that offers you a glimpse into how the film came to be can influence your opinion on the film, however, I knew this film was about to become one of my favourites from the festival from the moment the credits rolled1. It has that kids’ story vibe, but you witness a broken society in the background of a girl’s quest for cake ingredients. It’s heartwarming, yet it doesn’t shy away from tension and sadness.

22:02 On my ride home I tell all my friends about this film and the amazing crew behind it.

Thursday 18

17:30 Another day, another training, and another film for me this evening: Mortician (2025), d. Abdolreza Kahani.

A reclusive mortician who has been tasked with washing the bodies of recently deceased ex-pat Iranians in Canada. His world is turned upside down when he receives an unusual request from a dissident singer in hiding.

Based on the trailer I was expecting a lighter film. The film does have some funny notes, but it will still force you to face the music of the harsh reality around us.

The director Abdolreza Kahani has an unique approach to filmmaking called “solo cinema” in which he pretty much does everything a crew is supposed to do, except for the sound for this film, although in the credits (who are a long speech because there’s not much of a crew to credit) he stated he might take over that for his next film too. And everything is filmed with an iPhone.

Personally I am not the biggest fan of when a film feels low-budget (even when it is low-budget) regardless of the themes it tackles. It’s personal preference. Don’t get me wrong, I like a lot of low-budget films, it’s only when it feels that way that I have a hard time getting immersed into the story.

The Q&A with the main actress was really good though and I loved the focus on the real issues also presented in the film.

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Friday 19

8:26 No films scheduled for today. I’m spending my day working and reading Who’s Afraid of Gender? by Judith Butler in preparation for the Petunia Talks event we have this evening.

23:31 The event tuned out so well! It was amazing and I am a ball of excitement and energy!

Andreea from the present: I wrote a bit about the event in this week’s Coffee Letter.

Saturday 20

10:51 Finally weekend and yet again I’m having my coffee at the cinema while waiting for my first film of the day: Atlas of the Universe / Atlasul universului (2026), d. Paul Negoescu.

After mistakenly buying two right-footed shoes, a ten-year-old boy sets off across the countryside to find the missing left one. An unexpected journey of courage, friendship and self-discovery.

This children’s film was so absolutely adorable and magical. It reminded me a lot about the kids’ films I used to watch when I was a kid. I was very happy to see so many kids in the cinema theatre, some of them experiencing the first TIFF in their lives!

Atlas of the Universe is a really sweet and tender film and it literally spreads empathy and kindness all around. It warmed my heart. The child actors were impressive, but best awards for stealing the show go to the dog and the zebra.

There was a cute Q&A with a big part of the crew and even some of the young stars. Fun fact: Dana Rogoz and her children had seats right in front of us — my mum would’ve had a blast in my place.

12:14 Until the next film I run for some pastries for breakfast (late breakfast I guess) while my partners in crime for most of the films this week, Betti and Ana, are having coffee.

13:10 It’s not even 15 minutes to the film and there’s already a pretty big line for the film, as it usually is when it comes to Radu Jude. Yes, we are watching his newest film: The Diary of a Chambermaid / Le Journal d'une femme de chambre (2026), d. Radu Jude.

Gianina, a young Romanian, works as a housekeeper for a bourgeois family in Bordeaux. In the evenings, she rehearses the role of a maid with an amateur theater troupe in an adaptation of The Diary of a Chambermaid by Octave Mirbeau. She takes care of Louen, her employers’ son, while her own daughter is growing up far from her, in Romania. The maternal absence deepens into a wound but, as Christmas approaches, the promise of a reunion begins to take shape.

A story as old as time especially for Romanian kids from my generation but still just as relevant no matter how many times it is told. It has many layers, a meta one included. It was a joy to watch Ana Dumitrașcu play so many roles while still being the same woman. It was really tender and real and it took me through many emotions.

Visually I think it’s my favourite film from Jude (from the four or five films I’ve seen from him) — it’s my style. And I loved the cynicism too. I am still not sure about the ending, and it felt a bit too long at times, even though it’s under 100 minutes. We had a Q&A with Ana Dumitrașcu after the film.

15:50 I and Betti have a quick lunch and another coffee while discussing all the films we’ve seen so far during the festival. There’s a bittersweet feeling in the air as this is the last weekend of the festival.

16:15 We also meet with Andreea Ghica, a girl I know from Instagram who wrote film reviews for the TIFF newspaper but she wasn’t able to be at the festival from the start, so I saved the newspapers for her.

17:40 We chatted a bit too much and now Betti and I hurry to our next film — the Surprise Film of the festival. And the film is *drumrolls please* Fatherland (2026), d. Paweł Pawlikowski.

In 1949, German writer Thomas Mann and his daughter Erika embark on a road trip across a Germany in ruins, from US-dominated Frankfurt to Soviet-controlled Weimar.

Did it make me want to read Thomas Mann? Yes, it did, even though the film barely touches on his literature. It’s not a biopic. The focus is, as the film title says, about his home country and how a fractured nation shapes him and those around him.

As a film it was very quiet and restrained, so it might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it worked for me. Plus Sandra Hüller was impressive and I will watch any film with this woman.

7:35 After Fatherland I meet with Anda again and we take the promised selfie. And then we (Betti and I) rush towards our last film2 of the day: April X (2025), d. K-Michel Parandi.

April X is a high octane, near future thriller about twins Bax and April. When April goes missing, Bax searches every dark corner of the post Soviet cityscape trying to find her, ultimately descending into madness.

Am I at this film because Connor Storrie is in it? Yes. Have I forced my best friend Ana to be here too against her will? Also yes. Actually, there is a Letterboxd review of this film that perfectly describes Ana’s opinion of April X:

I chose this film very last minute — I had to wait until the Surprise Film was announced to know if there was enough time to make it from a cinema to the others. The gods were kind and I had plenty of time. So here we are, watching Connor Storrie on the streets of Bucharest going head to head with Tudor Chirilă and Șerban Pavlu.

Was it a mess? Perhaps. But sometimes it’s not TIFF if you don’t go to at least one bad movie, right?

Jokes aside, I still think there was a lot of potential for April X if only it wasn’t trying to be so many things at once and if the screenplay was maybe reworked a bunch of times. There was also a Q&A, but Tourialay Akbari, who plays Connor’s best friend in the film, didn’t want to give us Connor’s phone number.

Sunday 21

13:19 I am really tired and there’s only one potential film on my schedule today, but first it’s Pride time.

17:15 After Pride and beers with my friends — next to us Aidan Gillen was also enjoying a beer — I am too tired to go to my film. I guess my experience at TIFF.25 is over.

20 films is not bad at all — and it’s 20 films in 7 days overall (I missed 3 days from the festival). Would I do it again? Maybe. But a bit differently. Every year I try to not have other events scheduled during TIFF but I didn’t manage it last year and I didn’t manage it this year either.

This year I learnt that three films in a day is the sweet spot. Four is doable depending on their length, but five films are overkill. In an ideal world, a matinée and two more films in the evening would be perfection and it would leave time enough to see the art exhibitions that happen because of TIFF and maybe even go to a TIFF masterclass or other free events from the festival. Unfortunately I have to go to work and sometimes the films I want to watch do not match my schedule or there’s not enough time between them to make it.

Still, with all the rush and chaos, I love this time of year.

Thank you for reading!

Bisous,
Andreea

PS: No, next year I will definitely not go to 20 films, this year I was avoiding my own thoughts and grief.

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I still struggle with writing (and life in general) which made it pretty difficult to decide what to write about today without writing about grief (I am not ready to go there). Since it’s still Pride month, I thought I’d write about something adjacent — not Pride itself (but you can still read about why I go to Pride each year), but rather about feeling like an impostor.

This month I helped organise a queer event for Petunia, and I was genuinely proud of it. Still, that little voice in the back of my head kept insisting I didn’t really belong there.

This event meant a lot to me because it was a dialogue about gender and the speakers were amazing; don’t ask me how we thought about this lineup, it just worked out that way. It took place at Billie and the Frogs, a queer bar I completely fell in love with. Sadly, it has since closed (immediately after Pride Sunday). Still, I’m incredibly grateful for how welcoming and supportive they were, during the event and at the planning stage — even when I was my awkward self.

There I was, surrounded by amazing people, struggling between two contradicting emotions: pride and self-doubt. I guess it is fairly common for bisexual and pansexual people in hetero-presenting relationships to feel like a fraud in the middle of a queer event.

Nobody has ever asked me to prove my queerness. The doubt comes almost entirely from myself.

That’s why bi-visibility matters so much to me. Every time I come across a bisexual/pansexual character in media, it feels like a small reminder that people like me not only exist, but they are allowed to be. There are obvious privileges that come with being bisexual, especially in a hetero-presenting relationship. I know that. But there’s also this strange sense of guilt, as though I’m somehow not queer enough. Whatever that means.

That’s also why I still use my bisexual label. Because my sexuality doesn’t get erased just because my partner is male-presenting and our relationship is accepted by society.

And that’s why Pride remains important to me. Naturally I want to support the community and be there for my friends, but it’s also one of the few queer spaces where I allow myself to exist without interrogating my identity.

This year my partner came to Pride too. I held his hand and we marched and I was so overwhelmed by the sheer joy of it (plus the colours, the noise, the people) that I stop overthinking. My brain literally didn’t have enough room to call me an impostor.

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~ read

Unsurprisingly, I did not really read a lot in the time I was MIA. And on top of that I also read two books I did not really enjoy and I won’t talk about them although I can rant about them over coffee should anyone wish to. Let’s focus on the books I enjoyed:

Pornography by Andrea Dworkin. I have mixed feeling about this non-fiction book however I still feel like it’s an important read and I respect Dworkin’s political manifesto and opinions, even though personally I have different views. Andrea Dworkin is trying very hard to prove that pornography and sex work is bad for women and she is right, except the way she is doing it is so radical that it almost turns conservative.

She also seems to ignore female sexuality and desires and her view on BDSM are at best incomplete. Which obviously bothered me. I also don’t believe that completely abolishing pornography/sex work is feasible and if that ever happens through legal ways it would only make it more dangerous for women. This is simply why I think the focus should be on ensuring this kind of work is done safely for everyone involved. [physical book | Penguin Classics | first published 1981]

Delta of Venus by Anaïs Nin. At the opposite pole of Dworkin’s Pornography we have Nin’s volume of erotic short stories written for an anonymous collector. And I enjoyed this one a whole lot more.

Some stories are hard to swallow but I always tried to remind myself of when these stories were written and to what purpose (aka they were not made to be published). Social constraints and morality are completely ignored in this book, so read at your own risk.

That being said I really enjoyed the stories where she let herself be seen and did not respect the collector’s request for less poetry. And some of those stories really embody female desire and sexuality without judgement or punishment.

I wasn’t exactly happy with the volume overall, but it definitely made me want to read more of Nin’s prose. [physical book | Penguin Classics | first published 1977]

Olive: Lost in Inner Space by Véro Cazot, illustrated by Lucy Mazel. A graphic novel that follows an autistic girl in college who tries to get better grades so she isn’t forced to have a roommate. Unfortunately she spends too much time in her dream inner world and those around her don’t seem to understand this form of maladaptive daydreaming, not until she discovers someone else in her inner world.

It was a sweet story that kept me really entertained over the weekend. I think the main mystery of the book can be interpreted in a myriad of ways other than literal. All the characters were really well-developed and I am a sucker for a slice-of-life graphic novel, even though this one plays with different genres, including mystery and adventure midway through.

The art worked so well with the story too — differentiating between Olive’s inner world and real life. [digital graphic novel received for review from NetGalley | 2026]

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~ the nibling’s bookshelf

Kimi the BALLerina by Korey Watari, illustrated by Mike Wu. A very sweet picture book for kids about trying new things even if at first we are not that great at them and also about connecting the dots between two very different activities, with a touch of history on Japanese Americans. Very cute, very wholesome, sometimes I wished the text was easier to read.

Currently I’m reading a lot of books, maybe this is the reason I actually finished so few lately. I am almost done with Judith Butler’s Who’s Afraid of Gender? (loving it), the second book in Ferrante’s tetralogy — The Story of a New Name (really liking it), a literary thriller of sorts which I try to listen to on audiobook — The God of the Woods by Liz Moore (I’m intrigued), catching up on The Count of Monte Cristo (and really enjoying it), and I recently started Stone in a Landslide by Maria Barbal for a book club (I’m not sure about it) and Light and Thread by Han Kang, which is part memoir part essays part poetry and I’m almost done with it (and really loving it).

~ watch

I went to TIFF and talked about the first half of the films seen here. I wanted to write the second one sooner and have it published already, but it is what it is. Hopefully the second part will be done sometime this week.

In the meanwhile, here’s what else I watched:

I finished The Other Bennet Sister (mini-series, 2026) (watched as it aired). I had an absolute blast with it, ergo I won’t know how to write about it! This mini-series is a spin-off of Jane Austen’s world from Pride and Prejudice, shining its light on Mary Bennet, the wallflower usually ignored in the novel. And it’s full of so much joy and depth too. Loved it! Absolutely loved it! From the acting to the writing to the amazing costumes and set design. [available on HBO Max]

It definitely opened my appetite for more period pieces.

With the husband I also finished another Asian1 dating show Better Late Than Single (TV series, season 1, 2025), in which perpetually single boys and girls live together for a week or so and try to find their first partner. Definitely a fresh take on a dating show, although I felt like there wasn’t enough time for true relationships to form although I’m sure some are still friends. [available on Netflix]

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I also watched the show the whole internet watched and loved — Off Campus (TV series, season 1, 2026). I wasn’t that impressed, I found the entire production cheap (similar to the teen Netflix shows which are just as boring). The writing was a bit off, and I was left confused at times, even after watching an episode twice. But what turned me off the most was the cringeworthy acting. Plus the lack of chemistry between our main leads — other characters stole that spotlight and the second season might focus on them, I might be biased because their book is my favourite book in the series.

I don’t get the hype and I wish someone would tell me. And if the reason is that these boys actually treat women as humans and communicate then maybe I wasn’t impressed because I already get this from the romance novels I read. [available on Prime]

Currently I’m rewatching a bunch of shows.

~ r.e.p.o.r.t

Reading: I already spoke in detail about this, but for the sake of the Report I will go with Light and Thread which I will finish pretty soon

Eating: balkan platters — it’s summer, it’s too hot to cook

Playing: the album First Love by Emmy the Great

Obsession: imagining where I can build extra shelves in the tiny flat because that’s cheaper than buying a new apartment for the books

Recommendation: the cherries my coworker brings to work

Treat: iced coffee

Distracting worked well while I was busy with TIFF and then with the leadership training at work, but now I am back in my head and things are not so easy. My hopes for this coming week are that I will spend more time at home, organising the house (finding new distractions) and hopefully catching up on my Shakespeare plays.

Wish me luck and thank you for reading, and for everything else.

With love,
(a scared but hopeful) Andreea

PS: I’m thinking of doing the mid-year review again, would you be interested?

Usually I do TIFF solo, but this year was different. I knew what I was doing, using the film festival as a way to distract myself. I have the most amazing friends who know when I need them to just be there next to me, in the darkness of the cinema theatre. I want to thank everyone who joined me this year.

Friday 12

8:00 Good morning! I’m drinking coffee in my TIFF mug from last year and going through the schedule I made for this year’s festival. I have three days off from work just for this. Last year I went to 14 screenings (13 films, 1 short films session). How many will I manage this year? Spoiler alert: the diary is split into two parts.

11:23 I missed my bus. Doesn’t this sound awfully familiar?

11:50 Took the second bus and spent my time calculating if I will make it in time. And I did. With extra time to get another coffee and to listen to Loredana Groza’s impromptu concert in front of the cinema — she was singing from the balcony. Had a blast.

Time for the first film: I Shall See / Ik zal zien (2025), d. Mercedes Stalenhoef.

17-year-old Lot is left nearly blind after a fireworks accident. Lot fiercely resists her new helplessness and tries to escape her painful reality by dreaming as much as possible.

What was I thinking starting with the film about a girl going blind so soon after losing my little ball of fluff, who also went blind during her last days with us? Not gonna lie, it was hard. I am using this festival as a way of escaping grief and here we are…

The film was really nice and it made me see things differently and realise how much one has to do differently when living with a disability. I know how silly it sounds that I never thought about that (other than the obvious things). I also liked how it was framed differently, keeping us so close to Lot that we were almost experiencing the world like she was.

13:50 Waiting for my Benedict eggs at the new Eggcetera, reading some short from Delta of Venus by Anaïs Nin until the next film — Kika (2025), d. Alexe Poukine.

While pregnant with her second child, Kika faces the sudden death of her partner. Heartbroken and broke, she decides to make money fast, receiving help from the most unexpected people and situations imaginable.

Are all the films going to remind me of Veta?

I loved Kika and I’m sure it will be in my top films from the festival. I loved the acting and the storytelling, the empathy and kindness. I expected it to be a bit cliché, but it chose instead to be unpredictable and human. And of course it made me cry especially because she too tries to avoid grief.

Everyone in this film is treated with compassion and kindness and the subjects, no matter how weird and unfamiliar are to Kika, never turn into laughing stock. And I really liked that.

17:33 Since my festival schedule is so packed this year, I packed sandwiches and I’m now eating one under a linden tree, while waiting for my next film: Always Winter / Siempre es invierno (2025), d. David Trueba.

Miguel, a landscape architect, travels to Belgium for a conference, where his girlfriend unexpectedly leaves him. There he meets Olga, an older woman who makes him reconsider both his personal life and his future.

I try to add a rom-com on my schedule each year, if possible. Always Winter suffers a bit when it comes to pacing, but I still enjoyed it. There is a difference between the first half and the second half, or maybe it just felt that way to me, but somehow it works and it did not bother me. It’s also a bit predictable.

In spite of all its flaws, I like a nice rom-com that says life doesn’t always have to be only about the future, it could just be about et maintenant, qu’est-ce qu’on fait?

20:02 Quick coffee stop after the 3rd film of the day. I need a pick me up. If you are wondering what from Always Winter reminded me of Veta it was one of the characters’ very fluffy cat.

20:10 No matter how early you get in Union Square for the open air screening, finding a spot is always a challenge. I am here for the Opening Gala because my work colleague was very excited for it. And it’s fun — my family group is having a blast because of all the pictures of famous people I’m sending them.

It’s a 2 in 1 kind of screening: we get a glimpse of a documentary in the works about Nadia Comăneci that will be released next year, and then the opening film, 3 Days in September / 3 zile în septembrie (2026), d. Tudor Giurgiu.

When her fiancé’s mistress crashes her wedding, Bianca flees the scene, launching a real-time odyssey of chaos and eventual liberation through an off-season seaside resort.

Andreea Vasile was really good in this film, but I still don’t think this was the film to open the festival1. I liked the idea of it and the one-shot, the gimmick of this film, had really fun and impressive transitions. But the dialogue is poorly written and overall it doesn’t really say much, even though it tries. I wanted something more.

00:09 Got home! Maybe four films was a bit too much for one day. Tough luck, because tomorrow I have five films on my plan.

Saturday 13

9:24 I’m waiting for my cab. I’m not even going to attempt the bus this morning because I spent a bit too much time reading Delta of Venus. My bad. *an eternity later* I should’ve run to the bus because four Bolt drivers cancelled my ride even when I changed the drop-off location (some streets are closed). At last, an Uber accepts me and it’s only 1 minute away.

9:40 Once again I make it in time to get a coffee before my film starts. I’m watching Honey (2025), d. Natasha Arthy and I’m excited to see a film for kids.

Honey (13) is shy and lies about herself and her chaotic family, and generally finds it difficult to show who she is in her new class. She loves to play music – and is really good – just no one knows. When she finds out that her dead, music-loving grandfather Marcel might not be dead at all, she decides to find him. Maybe he’s just what she needs so she can finally learn to stand up for herself.

Maybe I did not fully read the synopsis because I was not aware of the not-so-dead grandpa. This TIFF seems to be about all the people and fluffy creatures I lost. The film was really cute and the cinema was full of preteens. We cried together.

I don’t think there is much to add — it sure reminded me of when I was at that age watching children’s films, that’s the vibe the film goes for while also trying to empower our main character and maybe make the adults in the theatre question their way of parenting or at least remind them that kids are fully-fledged beings.

11:50 Matcha latte time at my new favourite café, Brewkai. Writing, reading, and waiting for the next film: My Daughter Is a Zombie / Jombittal (2025), d. Pil Gam-seong.

When his daughter Soon-ah is infected by a zombie virus sweeping across the world, animal trainer Jung-hwan refuses to give up on her. Hiding in a seaside village, he embarks on a secret mission to train his daughter and help her return to normal life.

This Korean film has a little bit of everything — there’s humour, there’s drama, there’s heartbreak and dramatic backstories, there’s a quirky grandma who will feed the zombie and, obviously, there is a cat — a very adorable one that I thought was CGI but upon reading some articles turns out it’s an actual cat actor because the director is very passionate about animals and has a cat.

I laughed, I cried, and then I laughed and I cried some more. If you are familiar with Korean productions (especially romantic K-dramas) then you will probably enjoy it, otherwise it might take a bit to get used to it. It’s very unserious and wholesome.

14:45 Eating my sandwich and chatting with my friend Betti about Korean dramas and the film we just watched until Ana joins us and we go to the next film: Skiff (2025), d. Cecilia Verheyden.

Fifteen-year-old Malou is struggling with herself; while her mother is mostly absent and her rowing teammates bully her, the one person she can rely on is her brother Max. When Malou develops feelings for Max’s girlfriend Nouria, her life is dragged in an unstoppable current.

If you know me then you know I love coming-of-age films and I especially love queer coming-of-age films. Are most of them somewhat similar? Sure, yes, true.2 Do I care? Not one bit. Plus, Skiff is visually stunning and the characters are really well-crafted, even the secondary and episodic ones. This helps us understand everyone in this story and not judge them, and I don’t mean only the teens with their heightened emotions and clumsy decisions.

I wish I had the chance to see films like Skiff when I was a teen. It sure would’ve made life easier. It’s a messy complicated story, but doesn’t that just sum up adolescence?

17:00 We all go to dinner at Zama and, inspired by their traditional menu, we chat about our childhood dishes and our mothers and their signature dishes. Afterwards, it’s time for our next film: Queen at Sea (2026), d. Lance Hammer.

As advanced dementia erodes an older woman’s ability to communicate her inner life, her husband and daughter struggle to act in her best interests, navigating love and the fragile boundaries between care, protection and autonomy.

Queen at Sea is a brutally honest film and it’s very uncomfortable. It forces you to face reality and the simple idea that we are in fact animals. It’s heavy and slow. It literally slaps you with its portrayal of the disease and all the dilemmas that follow, be they ethical, moral or simple human dilemmas.

It’s a film that left me with a huge void in my stomach. I am a hopeless romantic, a delusional person of sorts, and I look for hope anywhere I can so naturally that’s what I did this entire film who was too realistic for my heart. No sugarcoating here. But I was glad for the teenager daughter’s side-story which gave me some respite.

20:22 After this film we each went our own way, but I had plans to reconnect with Ana for the last film of the day and I almost didn’t make it! The day before I froze a bit at the open-air film so for this one I decided to go home and get a coat.

20:55 I cannot leave the house because my husband is out to play board games and I misplaced my key AFTER I got inside and I can’t leave the door unlocked. After spending almost 20 minutes searching for the keys I find them and rush out to the open-air film: The Last Viking / Den sidste viking (2025), Anders Thomas Jensen. Lucky for me, my friend Zsolt saved some chairs for us.

After serving fourteen years for robbery, Anker is released from prison and reunites with his mentally ill brother Manfred, who alone knows where the stolen money is hidden but has forgotten its location, sending them on a journey to recover the loot and confront who they are.

Almost every year there is a Mads Mikkelsen film at TIFF and each time I watch it with Ana. It’s our tradition now.

The Last Viking is a black comedy that I enjoyed tremendously. It’s also the Beatles biopic I did not know I needed. I hope this helps you grasp the level of chaotic absurdism this comedy brings to the table.

I like it when a film is so ridiculous and cartoonish, especially in its portrayal of violence, yet it ends up touching me with its tenderness.

00:05 I am exhausted right now but this TIFF is different than the others, it’s meant to distract me from thinking of my Veta.

Five films in one day is definitely too much. I feel like my brain turned into mush. Maybe three is the sweet spot?

I guess we’ll find out in Part II!

I didn’t want to split this Coffee into two, but it’s already too late and I have eleven films left to talk about. I will try to have it ready by tomorrow, especially since this weekend I have no other plans other than reading, writing and cleaning the house.

Thank you for reading and once again, thank you for your kind messages!

See you soon!
Andreea

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There was a quote I thought about when I was writing yesterday’s letter that I did not want to mention:

“Your pet is just a chapter in your life, but in theirs, you are the whole book.”

Veta was a stray cat, so to her we were more like a sequel. But I sure hope she liked the second book better than the first.

I’m not sure when I’ll be back. Right now I’m not sure of anything.

You will be missed, little fluff.

My entire life runs around my cat. I refuse wedding invites, I reschedule plans, I rush to end a coffee date with a friend because it’s treatment time, I organise my entire day around her medicine schedule. And that’s fine. That’s the part I can control and the part I don’t mind doing. It’s what I signed up for when I got1 a cat.

It’s the rollercoaster of emotions I have a hard time with. She has good days and bad days, and now we are going through a bad phase, where she is in pain and it breaks my heart. You wish healing was a linear process “things were bad and she is getting better and better” — but it doesn’t work like that. And now we are trying to help ease her pain with a pill that makes her a bit lethargic, which is so weird to wrap my head around.

So I had to learn to see progress differently. Not as an upward line from worst to great. As long as she’s eating and drinking on her own (there were days when she couldn’t), it’s great. If she purrs, then it’s more than great. If she tries to fight us when we give her the ear drops, then it’s perfect.

But even so, it’s not an easy ride. Every other type of pain seems easier to bear but this pain of knowing your little pet is not being herself. And this whole time I also learn things about myself — like how it’s easier for me to be the one that’s sick than to see my cat or my partner suffering. And if there was a magic switch to change places with her, I would do it no questions asked.

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~ read

The Universe likes balance and sometimes that means I have bad reading weeks — especially after a great reading week, like I had last time. But I reread Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu and I don’t know if you remember, but last year I read Carmilla twice in a span of 48 hours and obviously it made my Top Ten Reads of 2025. So I won’t bore you with my opinion on this story again; obviously I adore it and I devour it each time I read it! [physical book | Pushkin Press | first published 1872]

I also finished the book my partner picked from my shelves last month: Delicacy by David Foenkinos, translated in Romanian by Simona Brânzaru. It’s a book that’s still growing on me. On one hand the writing was philosophical and witty at times, some phrases were really beautiful, but on the other hand I felt kept at bay when it came to the characters. Overall it was an enjoyable read, with short chapters that made for a quick read. I’m curious what my husband will choose2 for me this month. [physical book | Nemira | first published 2009]

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Currently I am reading a lot of stuff, guys, and I plan to start more.

~ watch

I rewatched one of my favourite films at Pelicula: Portrait of a Lady on Fire / Portrait de la jeune fille en feu (2019), d. Céline Sciamma. And I loved it just as much. It’s a slow film and so beautiful aesthetically that each frame could become an artwork. It’s very feminine and intimate, and authentic in its femininity. It’s a slow burn romance between a painter and her model whom she is supposed to paint without her knowledge. I find it hard to talk about my favourite films (or books) but maybe I will take the time one day to fully put on a page why I love this film so much. [not available, I watched it at Pelicula]

It was a week of French films apparently. I also watched Delicacy / La Délicatesse (2011), d. David Foenkinos and Stéphane Foenkinos, the adaptation of the book Delicacy and I think I liked it a bit more than the book. But it’s hard not to since Audrey Tautou plays the main character, right? I think it helped a lot that the author was also co-directing the film with his brother, but I feel like I got the characters more this time around — Tautou and François Damiens were both amazing. [not available, sorry 🦜]

The other adaptation of the week is Vladimir (mini-series, 2026), which I definitely enjoyed more seeing how I did not enjoy the book at all. I feel like both were lacking tension and drama, especially since their main subjects are desire and obsession, but at least the mini-series has Rachel Weisz. At times it was trying too hard to break the fourth wall in the Fleabag way and even the music was too similar. I’m not saying only Fleabag can do things that way, I’m just saying this was “fleabad”. But not bad enough to not recommend it for a weekend when you are bored and in need of a binge. [available on Netflix]

Hacks (TV series, 2021-2026) has ended and even though I had a rocky relationship with this series I think some people might enjoy it quite a lot — comedy is not my thing. The first season really captivated me, then I kinda lost interest and it became a background show, then the last season had some really good episodes, even one on AI that was PERFECTION; I guess the writers hate AI3 just as much as I do!

And lastly — gee, I really watched a lot of TV this week, maybe that’s why my reading was so weak and I blamed it on the Universe — I watched the two Euphoria Specials that I was not aware of. They aired between the first two seasons but since I only recently watched the show, I missed them. I am glad I watched them (even after the shitshow that was the final season) because the writing in them was really good. One special focuses on Rue, the other on Jules. It really made me miss the original Euphoria vibes and from now on I’ll just pretend the series ended with the season 2 finale. [available on HBO Max]

Currently I’m rewatching Interview with the Vampire because the first episode from the third season was just released yesterday — but to my partner’s annoyance, I like to rewatch things before I start the new season.

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~ r.e.p.o.r.t

Reading: I’m trying to make a lot of progress on Pornography by Andrea Dworkin because we have our book club meeting on Wednesday

Eating: the medovik cake made by Bogdana for her birthday (she was sweet enough to bring me some)

Playing: I’m once again in my Charles Aznavour era — this year was heavy on French music, maybe my playlist is trying to tell me something (wink, wink, proof-reader, I hope you are paying attention to this)

Obsession: writing curriculums — last month I made one for Prophet Song for Petunia and in a few hours the one for Delta of Venus will be released; I don’t know, it takes a lot of time and it is a lot of research, but I like breaking a book into themes and then exploring those themes through other creations…

Recommendation: The Count of Monte Cristo! It’s so much fun reading it!

Treat: resting; because I’m tired and emotionally drained and on my period — trifecta unlocked.

TIFF starts soon. And I have no idea how I’ll manage — luckily my partner is amazing and he’s willing to hold the fort while I try to at least as many films as last year.

Thank you for reading!

Hugs and kisses,
a tired Andreea

While I am not the biggest fan of summer (sorry but heat and PCOS/PMOS is not an attractive combo) I adore summer reading because growing up summer was when I did most of my reading and exploring and discovering myself. And I especially love sad books during summer and books that have an emotional charge, that are a bit disturbing, or full of nostalgia.

I don’t know what works so well about this combo, but the books I read during summer stick with me the most.

Last year I read almost everything from my summer list, and some of the books I hadn’t gotten to will make an appearance this year! I tried to limit myself to 15 books again, only from my shelves. I must warn you… I’m cheating. But also, I make the rules so does it actually count as cheating?

Starting with some big reads (and rereads):

The Neapolitan Novels by Elena Ferrante. Because I just finished My Brilliant Friend, which was on the summer list last year, and because I’m going to read the entire series this summer anyway for the Ferrante Picnics organised by Petunia. So technically three books left. We just started and I’m cheating.

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas (père). I am buddy-reading this one with four other friends and we already started it. It really feels like the perfect book for summer and so far I’m really enjoying it.

I am a rereader and this summer I hope to reread The Iliad and The Odyssey by Homer, translated by Emily Wilson. Am I influenced by Mr. Nolan’s upcoming film? Perhaps, but I wanted to reread these epics since I got my hands on Emily Wilson’s tranlsation of The Iliad.

Some of the books I didn’t get to last year were Lolita-coded and I plan to make that a bigger part of this summer’s list:

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov. Rereading it in English this time around. I also have the annotated version and I’m quite curious about it. This one was on the list last summer too.

My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell. A book dedicated to “the real-life Dolores Hazes”. An uncomfortable read from what I heard. I started it a few summers ago but had to take a break from it.

Anti Lolita by Emily Tanimura. I know absolutely nothing about this book and the internet doesn’t seem to know about it either, but it’s on my shelves.

Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy. Fits the theme and I’m curious how McCurdy writes fiction.

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Before I cheat some more by making the list even longer than it is, here are some books selected more or less at random, but also always with a vibe in mind:

Selected Poems by Constantinos P. Cavafy. I miss Greece and we have no trip to Greece planned this year, so I’m going to read some poems from one of the most acclaimed Greek poets. I read a few last year, in Greece. His poems don’t have vacation in Greece vibes, but they are evocative and intimate and philosophical.

Manazuru by Hiromi Kawakami. This is another novel I started at one point. I remember it read like a perfect summer novel, hence probably why I put it down waiting for summer. Manazuru is a seaside town in Japan.

Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys. This is an obvious choice because I reread Jane Eyre earlier this year and it’s only natural to read a novel inspired by Jane Eyre with the story so fresh in my mind, right? Wide Sargasso Sea is set in Jamaica and it tells the story of a character from Jane Eyre. I don’t want to say more because it’s hard to not spoil Jane Eyre if I do.

Summer by Edith Wharton. I really am on a classics high this year and I’m really excited to read this book I know absolutely nothing about!

And now, some authors I want to spend my summer with — and this is how my list gets longer than 15 books (if it hasn’t already):

Clarice Lispector. She feels like summer and her stories are so poetical and intimate and feminine and peculiar at times. On my shelves I have The Imitation of the Rose, a short story collection, and Too Much of Life, the complete collection of her newspaper columns — obviously I’m curious about this one since you are reading my weekly column right now. But I also have Hour of the Star, her last novel, on my wishlist — I am trying not to buy books lately, but I might make an exception for this one.

Virginia Woolf. Part of my yearly curriculum Tea with the Ladies, focusing on a different female author each season, I chose Woolf for summer because her books sound perfect for what I look for in a summer read. On my shelves I have: A Room of One’s Own / Three Guineas, two essays (I read A Room of One’s Own before but I’m excited to reread it), The New Dress, short stories, Mrs Dalloway, which for some reason I have twice (the “some reason” is that I couldn’t resist Penguin’s orange edition), To the Lighthouse, which I tried to read a bunch of times before.

The main goal of Tea with the Ladies is to read all of their works (which I failed with the Brontës and Austen too because I’m in way too many book clubs and have way too many projects going on at the same time), but Woolf wrote a lot and I never thought I’d read absolutely everything she wrote — honestly if I read only one novel I’m happy. But I still have two books that I plan to buy for this summer: Orlando, also because I want to read Orlanda by Jacqueline Harpman sometime this year (maybe this summer?) and The Waves, what says summer more than the sea?

And lastly, Sally Rooney. I love her and I consider her one of my favourite authors for very weird personal reasons, yet I still have two books from her to read: Conversations with Friends and Beautiful World, Where Are You. I might also reread Normal People, who knows.

The list could get longer, but I think I really did a good job, right? Please do not count all the books I mentioned and do not remind me of my other reading projects and book clubs!

Also, The New York Times has come up with a Summer Reading Challenge and, I’m not gonna lie, I’m tempted.

~ read

Prophet Song by Paul Lynch was the May pick for Petunia Book Club and for a dystopia it was incredibly close to reality. Its realism hit me really really hard. Based on this book I created a curriculum for Petunia Newsletter (paywall).

The book follows a mother trying to keep her family together as the country she’s known changes day by day. It’s a novel that broke me and terrified me and made me question and understand and care. A rollercoaster of feelings and emotions. How quickly the world can change around us and how long it will take us to notice, to not rationalize it... and how easily we adapt.

I loved the writing — the stream of consciousness, the dissociation at times. And the genius touch to place the action in a western country to showcase how this kind of thing doesn't only happen someplace else. It could happen right in your home country. [physical book | Oneworld | first published 2023 | Booker Prize winner]

My Brilliant Friend (The Neapolitan Novels #1) by Elena Ferrante, translated by Ann Goldstein. I had a week full of Petunia events as I read this book for our first Ferrante Picnic. I am pretty sure it’s a book everyone and their mother read already and I’m probably the last one on the planet to read it. I must admit I was a bit intimated to start it because everyone loves this series and there still is so much hype around it. I read Ferrante before and I loved her books, so I was kinda expecting this book not to live up to the hype created in my head.

Overall I really loved it and I am curious to follow Lila and Lenù in the next books, but there were some things that bothered me a bit in terms of pacing and structure. It's also likely that my current opinion is influenced by the fact that I've read a lot of literary experimental books lately (and loved them) so going back to a somewhat linear narration felt lacking in a way. It starts with a shocking event in the present time and I was expecting more insertions from the present, but that never happens and now I assume it won't happen until the narration gets to the present. And I get why, don't get me wrong. I enjoyed the atemporality of the first half, of childhood, of time not being present, of jumping from moment to moment and then I was shocked when adolescence is in chronological order, no jumps around, no insertions, no nothing. I think these are my only complaints.

But... but I loved the characters and I surprisingly found myself in both Lenù and Lila. Such relatable instances of girlhood. You know me, I love a coming-of-age story. I loved their friendship which could be seen as toxic, but it also normalises caring about someone and being overjoyed for them, while also being insecure and comparing yourself to them. Loved the obsession, the envy, the admiration.

I also read it with the idea that Lenù is not a reliable narrator, and I don't mean that she lies, but that we get told the story through her eyes (and through her writing it in her old age), so an unintentional unreliable narrator. Our image of Lila is being shaped by Lenù.

I loved the neighbourhood and it transported me back to childhood when the small neighbourhood was the entire world and little by little it got expanded as one is changing schools, growing up. I think this is an aspect very dear to my heart.

I loved the girlhood, the insecurities, the growing up and your body changing and you not knowing what to do about it. I loved how scary it is to be a girl, especially a teenager girl, I love the thirst for knowledge and reading. And how shaped we are by our environment, by poverty, by opportunities and in the end, by luck. [physical book | Europa Editions | first published 2011]

So... yeah. Pretty good book and I get the hype. I also have a feeling I will enjoy the next books even more. And last year Bogdana wrote a special Coffee Letter about this series!

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Henry V by William Shakespeare. Am I so basic that Henry V is my favourite from the Henriad? Have I drank the nationalism potion? But I just couldn’t resist the line "We few, we happy few, we band of brothers". Words are powerful. In Henry V we follow Henry V, obviously, as he is king and goes to war with France, because when have these two countries not gone to war?

It’s a play that values words and it made me wonder if Henry V (I keep calling him Hal in my head) believes what he says (he has a lot of speeches in this one) or he is really that good at performing and inspiring people and knows it and uses it wisely — which are both valid and signs of strength and power in a king. Is he a true hero or a manipulator? Nobody knows. [physical book | Penguin Classics | first published 1599]

I am continuing the Henriad this month and I already published my Shakespeare schedule, if you are curious.

Currently I’m reading Delicacy by David Foenkinos, the book my partner chose for me to read this month. I won’t make it unfortunately, but it was a month full of book clubs, Shakespeare’s historical plays and the International Booker Prize shortlist, so I had to sacrifice something. Sorry, love (and amazing proof-reader).

~ watch

You never understand how comforting reality TV is until you are so tired and so drained emotionally that you watch one randomly. Your brain suddenly turns off and your body relaxes while random people’s drama plays on TV. And my choice was The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives (reality TV, 2024-).

It’s dramatic and over the top and triggering at times, but also they are surprisingly progressive and I feel like the message is better received when it comes from someone from your own denomination than from a feminist activist, for example. Clearly they are doing something right because their church is not really happy with the show.

~ r.e.p.o.r.t

Reading: also reading Pornography by Andrea Dworkin, for another book club

Eating: I finally went to the new Meron bakery and their Flan Parisien is absolutely delicious

Playing: being vulnerable and actually talking with my friends about how hard Veta’s medical issues are on my mental health too — and I am so lucky to have my friends in my life and I cannot thank you enough and I appreciate all the coffees you shared with me recently

Obsession: dreaming about my dream house

Recommendation: smelling all the linden trees and honeysuckles I find on my walks

Treat: a simple lunch of garden tomatoes, cheese and fresh sourdough baguette

I’m surprisingly early for summer — last year I published my reading list at the end of June, and I’m surprisingly inspired to return back to life. It does help that the new medication is working on the cat and she is slowly going back to her usual habits; the last couple of nights she slept in bed with us, a thing she stopped doing two weeks ago.

So I have quite a positive attitude for summer this time around. Usually summer means depression is just around the corner, but I guess when the worries you have are about your cute pet, the monsters from your head don’t seem so scary anymore.

Thank you for reading!

With love and optimism,
Andreea

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Against all odds this month I managed to finish the first tetralogy of the Henriad plays (the first in English history, though not the first Shakespeare wrote) and read all the books I had left from the International Booker Prize shortlist.

However, I did not read the narrative poem from my schedule, but alas, I will just push it to another month later in the year because June is packed! I have TIFF (cannot wait!) and the Henriad continues too with the War of Roses.

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Here’s the tracker so far because I remembered this time!

• Plays read so far: 15/39 (I AM ON TRACK!)

• Sonnets: 13/154 (but I’ll reread them)

• Narrative poems: 1/4 (cricket sounds)

June Schedule

Primary Plays

• The Merry Wives of Windsor (c. 1600-1601) → not part of the Henriad — I deserve a break! — but still in the same universe of sorts, with Falstaff, fictional character from the Henriad.

• Henry VI, Part 1 (c. 1591–1592)

• Henry VI, Part 2 (c. 1591–1592)

• Henry VI, Part 3 (c. 1591–1592)

Henry VI, parts 1-3 start The War of Roses or the other tetralogy from the Henriad. There’s one more play (Richard III) that concludes the tetralogy but I will read it in July. And after that there’s only going to be one last historical play (Henry VIII), which I’ll read a bit later in the year, and I’ll be done with this genre, which is not my favourite, regardless of how much fun I had reading Henry IV, Part 1 and Henry V.

Week 1

The Merry Wives of Windsor (read for free from Project Gutenberg). As I was saying, this is a comedy and a spin-off of sorts featuring the fictional character Falstaff that Shakespeare introduced in the Henriad. This play was written because Queen Elizabeth I requested a play depicting Falstaff in love after watching Henry IV, Part 1.

After so much history last month, I am in a dire need of a comedy!

• Monday, 1 → I.1–I.3 (as always, Roman number the act, Arabic number the scene)

• Tuesday, 2 → I.4–II.1

• Wednesday, 3 → II.2–II.3

• Thursday, 4 → III.1–III.3

• Friday, 5 → III.4–IV.1 (shortest day)

• Saturday, 6 → IV.2–IV.5 (longest day, basically compensating)

• Sunday, 7 → IV.6–V.5

Extras: I was not aware that the film John Tucker Must Die (2006) was loosely based on this play. I cannot explain how much I adore modern adaptations of the bard’s plays — it truly shows how his writing is timeless. When I was a teen I absolutely loved watching John Tucker Must Die with my friends — it’s a silly comedy and I’m curious if my opinion on it will be the same so many years later!

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Week 2-4

Henry VI, Part 1 and Henry VI, Part 2 and Henry VI, Part 3 (which you can read for free from Project Gutenberg). I read these plays a few years ago and I didn’t enjoy them that much; this is the main reason I was so skeptical regarding Shakespeare’s historical plays. But the plays I read so far really surprised me and either I am more mature and I can appreciate them differently or…

Or they were better written because what I read last month was written after the plays I’m reading this month. This is why I worried a lot when deciding if I’m reading the Henriads chronologically by history or by written order.

Guess we’ll find out at the end of the month!

Week 2 → Henry VI, Part 1

• Monday, 8 → I.1–I.3

• Tuesday, 9 → I.4–II.3

• Wednesday, 10 → II.4–II.5 (really short day compared to the rest)

• Thursday, 11 → III.1–III.3

• Friday, 12 → III.4–IV.5 (longest day)

• Saturday, 13 → IV.6–V.3 (almost longest day, 10 lines is the difference between these two days)

• Sunday, 14 → V.4–V.5

Week 3 → Henry VI, Part 2

• Monday, 15 → I.1–I.2

• Tuesday, 16 → I.3–II.1

• Wednesday, 17 → II.2–II.4 (shortest day)

• Thursday, 18 → III.1 (just one long scene)

• Friday, 19 → III.2 (another long scene)

• Saturday, 20 → III.3–IV.7 (longest day)

• Sunday, 21 → IV.8–V.3

Week 4 → Henry VI, Part 3

• Monday, 22 → I.1–I.3

• Tuesday, 23 → I.4–II.1

• Wednesday, 24 → II.2–II.5 (shortest day)

• Thursday, 25 → II.6–III.2

• Friday, 26 → III.3–IV.1

• Saturday, 27 → IV.2–IV.8

• Sunday, 28 → V.1–V.7 (longest day)

Extras: As mentioned last month too, the mini-series from 1960 An Age of Kings adapts both Henriads and I plan to watch it when I’m done with all of them too. Other than this, I’m not aware of other adaptations for film or TV but I found a manga (and anime) based on Henry VI, Part 3 and Richard III and I plan to read it, after I read Richard III too.

Another delulu month but if I did it once, surely I can do it again, right?

If I’m being honest I’m really looking forward to being done with the historical plays and then spend my time with what I like most from Shakespeare. Do I regret my decision of reading the entire Henriad with no other break except a comedy with Falstaff? Maaaaybe, but I was pleasantly surprised by the other Henriad part so I’m betting on that momentum to keep me going.

Thank you for reading!

Still thy delulu friend,
Andreea

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Naturally, in all the book groups I’m part of, we’ve been discussing the recent statements made by writer Olga Tokarczuk about AI. So why not add my two cents in the myriad of opinions on the internet? Most of the thoughts I share with you this morning come from critical thinking, engaging with other readers in discussions on the subject, and inspired by clasicallyclare’s video on the subject.

I am critical of AI for environmental reasons, though hypocritically, I do use it at work from time to time — I try not to, but there are circumstances when I need to. So, yeah, AI is a tool that occasionally saves me time. One that I prefer to avoid just like I try to avoid single-use plastics or airbnbs. But life is not perfect and yadda-yadda ethical consumption under capitalism mambo jumbo.

But to use AI as a shortcut to creativity feels like a betrayal. Time-efficient? Perhaps. Yet why do I feel that it takes away from the humanity of a creative work? And, no, Tokarczuk is not using it to write, but rather to develop ideas. Even so, it still feels unnatural and unethical. To put it simply, it gives me the ick1.

I see art, or creativity, as a process where the artist takes the time to develop ideas through their engagement with the world around them. What you read, see, hear, feel or dream can spark ideas. Ideas that your further deepen through research, experience, questions, snippets of conversations overheard on the bus, a banal phrase in a book or an article, the way the wind blows through the leaves, or by whatever thought passes through your mind while hoovering or showering.

Art is your search on top of which you add layers upon layers of personal experiences, curiosities and contradictions, that you then deliver to your audience who will interpret it through their own lenses, their own personal experiences and views. To use AI to develop your ideas feels quite frankly like cheating… Especially when the writer, feeding prompts to the machine, laments that this will be her last novel because people are no longer interested in complex novels.

If the writer doesn’t take the time to tackle the complex work of creativity, of developing ideas, of staring at that bloody blank page, questioning the world around them, allowing to be transformed by whatever they encounter day by day, or simply put — to think, how can the writer expect the readers to still be willing to do the difficult work it takes to engage with a complex novel? Why wouldn’t they just ask AI to decipher the novel? Why wouldn’t they just ask the machine “darling, what did Olga mean to say?”

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~ read

Last week I had many books to talk about, this week I only have one. Balance is not my forte. But you can check out my thoughts on the International Booker Prize shortlist — I GUESSED THE WINNER THIS TIME AROUND!

Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin. I bloody love James Baldwin. This is my second novel from Baldwin and I had a tremendous time reading it. It reminded me of The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner and of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce. Only better, because it’s Baldwin and his writing style is addictive to me.

The story is semi-autobiographical and it follows Johnny Grimes in 1930s, Harlem, New York. Coming from a very religious family and expected to become a preacher like his father, we meet Johnny just as he turns 14 and wakes up worrying about his sins. The novel also explores the background of Johnny’s family, in an attempt to better understand them, but also Johnny’s struggles with an identity shaped by religion.

On paper it so does not sound like my kind of read — just like The Sound and the Fury doesn’t, but just like with that book, the way it is written and Baldwin’s storytelling talent make it a very memorable novel. I can’t wait to read more from this man. [physical book | Penguin Classics | first published 1953]

Currently I’m reading a lot of books because I have two Petunia events this week. Surprise, surprise, I still have to finish the book for tonight’s book club (Prophet Song by Paul Lynch) but my family from Germany came over this weekend and I spent time with them.

~ watch

The Handmaid’s Tale (TV series, 2017-2025). I finally finished rewatching all the six seasons of The Handmaid’s Tale. The writing was somewhat stronger in the first half of the show, when most of the action was contained in Gilead, however I still think they did a pretty good job and I am curious how this show will tie in with the sequel — The Testaments, which started airing this April and where the action takes place 16 years after the first book.

If you don’t know what The Handmaid’s Tale is about, 1) why don’t you?, 2) read the book, and 3) it’s about a world in the near future, where the birthrate dropped so drastically that overnight the US turns into Gilead, a super religious country that uses a story from the Old Testament to subjugate women and use them as vessels to carry children for the elite of this new country. It’s really really really good. [available on HBO Max]

Currently I’m obviously watching The Testaments!

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~ r.e.p.o.r.t

Reading: trying to finish Prophet Song before the book club!

Eating: ice-cream from Acadeea

Playing: trying to not cry every second of the day, either because the cat is not eating/drinking or because the cat finally ate (helped by us with a syringe) and she’s finally sleeping in a relaxed position

Obsession: finding new spots in the house where I can build shelves for my books

Recommendation: the parade for Zilele Clujului, it was actually pretty fun

Treat: cuddling with a relaxed Veta

My cat is feeling poorly — she has been since the end of January, but I feel like these past few weeks were the worst. It’s a challenge, it’s a lot of meds and vet visits. It’s quite taxing on my mental health and emotional state too, plus it’s stressful and more stress means harsher migraines. It also means cancelled plans and keeping track of time so we are always home when it’s time to medicate her. It’s not easy. But that moment she is finally fed and hydrated and sleeping peacefully makes everything worth it. Or when she purrs. The best sound in the entire world!

So if I am quiet on socials (or real life too), this is why. I don’t think it will affect my Coffee Letter. Or at least I hope it won’t.

Thank you for reading!

Love,
(a stressed and tired) Andreea

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PS: I only made it twice to my bedtime this week. It is what it is.