Friday Favorites: "Little Fires Everywhere," "They Call Us Bruce," and More to Enjoy from Home
Friday, April 3, 2020
Asia Society at Home
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Discover your newest binge and get to know our staff a little better with the Asia Society Texas Center team's favorite ways to stay entertained indoors! Each week, we'll share our picks for what to read, watch, listen to, and more.
A Man Alive by Thao and the Get Down Stay Down
Recommended by Alauna Rubin, Production Manager
"I would recommend the album A Man Alive by Thao and The Get Down Stay Down — super groovy rocking indie folk. Their new album, Temple, is coming out in May and the single they just released is a great place to start."
Find it on: Spotify (A Man Alive) | YouTube (Temple music video)
They Call Us Bruce
Recommended by Mei Qi, Business and Policy Manager
"The podcast discusses pop culture and the world through an Asian American lens, highlighting a variety of interesting guests through funny and enlightening conversation. I appreciate being introduced to authors, artists, comedians, activists, etc., that I might not otherwise have heard of, and to learn more behind-the-scenes from those I have. I particularly enjoyed Episode 72 with Lulu Wang because The Farewell was a deeply personal movie experience for me."
Find it on: Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Spotify
Joe Hisaishi
Recommended by Rebecca Becerra, Education, Outreach, and Data Coordinator
"I listen to Joe Hisaishi's music in the mornings. He's the composter for most of the music in the Studio Ghibli films and other movies, I find his style nostalgic and the Princess Mononoke and Howl's Moving Castle soundtracks."
Jun's Kitchen
Recommended by Janine Mae Arostique, Development Manager
"I love Jun's Kitchen. It's a YouTube channel that focuses primarily on traditional Japanese food. Although he does not post as frequently as other cooking channels, he has well-edited videos on how to prepare udon noodles, sushi, temari balls, and more. Plus he often features his adorable cats in the background while he is preparing meals."
Find it on: YouTube
The Asian Grandmothers Cookbook
Recommended by Chris Dunn, Marketing and Communications Manager
"This is not your average 'pan-Asian' cookbook. Featuring recipes from China, Indonesia, Singapore, Japan, Vietnam, India, Pakistan, Korea, Nepal, Malaysia, Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand, The Asian Grandmothers Cookbook is unique because its emphasis is on home-style, old-school recipes. I've found that many cookbooks, in their attempts to represent multiple countries, err on the side of oversimplifying recipes. This book does no such thing — and, throughout, it features two-page spreads profiling grandmothers who contributed their recipes, techniques, and wisdom to the book. This is a wonderful resource and introduction to home cooking, and a delight to read on its own merits."
Find it on: Amazon | Pickles and Tea (Blog by the book's author, Pat Tanumihardja)
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
Recommended by Stephanie Todd Wong, Performing Arts and Culture Director
"Celeste Ng is masterful at creating characters full of depth. I quickly fell into their carefully constructed world and was amazed by how masterfully its fragility was laid bare."
Little Fires Everywhere
Recommended by Kaitlyn Ellison, Performing Arts and Culture Manager
"The TV adaptation of Celeste Ng's novel debuted in mid-March. Episodes are being released weekly so the audience is still waiting to see how the show unfolds, but in comparison to the novel it has so far provided a thematically similar, but not identical, story. It's worth a watch even if you haven't read the novel. It is an incredibly tense look into family and racial dynamics in a quiet Ohio suburb."
Find it on: Hulu
Outsourced
Recommended by Saleena Jafry, Director of Business and Policy
"A workplace comedy centered around a catalog-based company, Mid America Novelties, that sells American novelty goods and whose call center has been suddenly outsourced to India. It captures the nuances of how Indians working at call centers adapt and learn about all things American, and how the Americans transferred to India to run the call center adapt to the Indian culture. My all-time favorite show!"
Find it on: NBC | Amazon Prime Video
Hotel by the River, Hang Sang-Soo
Recommended by Oleg Jolic, Senior Vice President of Operations and Strategic Initiatives
"Hong Sang-Soo is one of the most consistently brilliant filmmakers in the world for the last 10 years or so. You can't go wrong, but you can start with Hotel by the River. As with all of Hong's movies, it is very talkative and visually static. But behind all the words and slowly moving pictures, there is a big, bleeding heart. The final scene, a coda is devastating, but the only possible ending to this great movie."
Find it on: Kanopy | Google Play | YouTube
Business and Policy programs are endowed by Huffington Foundation. We give special thanks to Bank of America, Muffet Blake, Anne and Albert Chao, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, Nancy Pollok Guinee, United Airlines, and Wells Fargo, Presenting Sponsors of Business and Policy programs; Nancy C. Allen, Chinhui Juhn and Eddie Allen, and Leslie and Brad Bucher, Presenting Sponsors of Exhibitions; Dr. Ellen R. Gritz and Milton D. Rosenau and Wells Fargo, Presenting Sponsors of Performing Arts and Culture; and Mitsubishi Corporation (Americas), Presenting Sponsor of the Japan Series. General support of programs and exhibitions is provided by The Brown Foundation, Inc., The Hearts Foundation, Inc., Houston Endowment, Inc., the City of Houston through Houston Arts Alliance, McKinsey & Company, Inc., National Endowment for the Arts, Texas Commission on the Arts, Vinson & Elkins LLP, and Mary Lawrence Porter, as well as Friends of Asia Society.
About Asia Society at Home
Though Asia Society is temporarily closed, we are dedicated to continuing our mission of building cross-cultural understanding and uplifting human connectivity. Using digital tools, we bring you content for all ages and conversations that matter, in order to spark curiosity about Asia and to foster empathy.
About Asia Society Texas Center
With 13 locations throughout the world, Asia Society is the leading educational organization promoting mutual understanding and strengthening partnerships among the peoples, leaders, and institutions of Asia and West. Asia Society Texas Center executes the global mission with a local focus, enriching and engaging the vast diversity of Houston through innovative, relevant programs in arts and culture, business and policy, education, and community outreach.
