Dog-Eared and Premiered: April 2025
Two books, two films, and two TV shows I loved this month.
This was a rough reading month. None of my April and May advance copies hit the mark (the better-than-average picks are in the lengthy sidebar shoutout section below), so I moved on to buzzier backlist titles that I’d long been curious about. I ended up falling in love with two older releases, and they’re joined by two films and two TV shows I was also delighted by. Perfect pairs all around!
BOOKS
Rainbow Black by Maggie Thrash
This thrilling novel reads like a commercial-leaning mashup of White Oleander and Animal with more nineties references. It follows thirteen-year-old Lacey Bond after her hippie parents, who run a daycare out of their house, are swept up in the Satanic Panic and thrown in jail. Lacey navigates the ensuing fallout in court, the classroom, and foster care—we follow the tragedies of her upended life as she comes of age and into the early aughts, when she seemingly escapes her past. Emphasis on seemingly. It’s a sometimes laugh-out-loud, sometimes gasp-inducing ride with a resilient queer protagonist and threads of disturbing true history. Paperback released March 19, 2024.
Ring Shout by P. Djèlí Clark
This short novel has been back in the conversation thanks to its shared similarities with Sinners (see below), and it doesn’t disappoint. It’s a southern gothic horror set in 1922 Georgia, following a Black woman named Maryse Boudreaux and her two badass female sidekicks as they hunt demonic Ku Klux Klan members summoned by the film The Birth of a Nation. Oh, and only Maryse’s anointed sword can fell the monsters, which...happen to be mutating. Need I say more? This is one of those horrors that really delivers on its premise—it’s filled with grotesque kills and truly terrifying villains (beware Butcher Clyde!) Not only does this story deftly weave real history into its action, but it’s also a thoughtful commentary on how hate manifests and feeds the worst in us. Bonus: Channie Waites narrates the hell out of its audiobook—I don’t normally enjoy the format, but her incredible performance is a rare exception. Released October 13, 2020 (paperback releasing October 14, 2025).
Sidebar shout-outs: I blazed through a plethora of promising novels that didn’t quite land for me this month; maybe they’ll fare better with you. They are: Paradise Rot by Jenny Hval (released March 12, 2024), Walking Practice by Dolki Min (released March 12, 2024), Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino (released in paperback March 25), Sky Daddy by Kate Folk (released April 8), Precious Rubbish by Kayla E (released April 8), Skin by Mieke Versyp and Sabien Clement (released April 8), and Better: A Memoir About Wanting to Die by Arianna Rebolini (released April 29).
FILM
Director Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter David Koepp are working overtime this year, and bless them for it. I wrote about Presence, their unique spin on a ghost story, in February, and their latest collaboration is a tense, stylish take on the traditional spy thriller. It stars Michael Fassbender and Cate Blanchett as married intelligence agents who become embroiled in a data breach that threatens their union. The core cast playing potential traitors under scrutiny (among them Tom Burke, Regé-Jean Page, Naomie Harris, and the standout, IMO, Marisa Abela) really clocked in for the film, which gathers them for two especially memorable dinner table scenes. It’s a satisfying watch, and brilliantly efficient at just over an hour and a half. Released March 14.
I’m so happy for director Ryan Coogler, who’s been putting out solid work with his muse Michael B. Jordan since 2013’s Fruitvale Station (namely, the first Creed and Black Panther). Not only is this movie now a bonafide box office hit, but it’s his most personal (and, dare I say, Jordan Peele-esque). He also struck a historical deal for the film rights, opening the door for other creatives to own their work. Set in 1932 Mississippi and steeped in Black history and folklore, it’s a vivid portrayal of the Jim Crow south mixed with good old-fashioned genre horror. In it, sharecroppers, gangsters, Ku Klux Klan members, and vampires clash to near Demon Knight-level effect. I saw it on a Friday afternoon in a rural Pennsylvania theater and I knew it hit its mark with the masses when the audience erupted into cheers during several key scenes and applauded the credits. It’s a great time at the movies; plus, every ticket purchased is a vote of support for non-white creators and the integral stories they have to tell. Released April 18.
TV
This show destroyyyyyyed me. I generally shy from cancer narratives, but it confronts the subject without the usual preciousness or doom and gloom. Based on the real friends behind the acclaimed 2020 podcast of the same name, it follows Molly Kochan (played resplendently by Michelle Williams) as she explores her sexuality in the wake of her terminal cancer diagnosis. With the support of her best friend and caretaker Nikki Boyer (portrayed with ecstatic empathy by Jenny Slate), she navigates treatments and provocative exploits with humor and gut-wrenching clarity. Williams and Slate give career-defining performances, and the world of the show feels deeply relatable…to the point that watching Molly learn to top becomes a universal lesson in relinquishing control (just trust me on this). The tone manages a brilliant balancing act between devastatingly sad and riotously funny; I laughed out loud as much as I cried. What a beautiful legacy Molly so vulnerably left for all of us, made even more indelible in Williams’ capable hands. Released April 4.
As a Gilmore Girls devotee, a new Amy Sherman-Palladino show is akin to a national holiday. That said, I didn’t quite connect with The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel beyond its first season, so I pressed play on Étoile with tempered expectations. I’m delighted to say it sticks the plié—where Bunheads (RIP) was a Gilmore-esque take on a small-town ballet school, this is a more straight-laced focus on the bureaucracy behind the scenes of two prestigious ballet companies in New York City and Paris. The premise is simple (even a bit silly): the directors of the struggling establishments (played by Luke Kirby and Charlotte Gainsbourg) agree to swap lead dancers to generate press and, ultimately, ticket sales. Stick with it beyond the first episode and the storylines and character arcs gel beautifully, thanks in no small part to standout performances by Gainsbourg, Kirby, Lou de Laâge as a hot-blooded ballerina, and Gideon Glick as a capricious choreographer. There’s a whole lotta money on screen—it’s shot on location in both Lincoln Center and the Palais Garnier, and the camera work and set pieces are equally consequential (even the end credits, which feature dance class footage, are a delight). We’re still privy to Sherman-Palladino’s trademark wit, fast-talking dialogue, and melodrama, but we’re also given an insider’s view of the wardrobe departments, practice rooms, and board meetings, which effectively sweeps us up in all the frenzied action. Released April 24.
That’s all for April—is there something you’re looking forward to that releases in May? Let me know, I’m always adding to my read and watch lists!