What to Watch April 2020

Why balloons? My birthday is in April! And we
could all use something cheerful right now, too.

What a difference a few weeks bring. A lot of us are staying home, social distancing, and trying not to catch or spread COVID-19. My monthly list of shows to watch may be small comfort at this time, but losing yourself in a good show can offer a brief respite from worry. I hope it helps someone out there find a way to think about something besides the pandemic and all that entails for a brief interlude here and there.

As always, I've made a list of shows we'll be looking for in the Choco household, and I'm sharing it with you, dear readers, along with links to everything coming to the ever-expanding universe of streaming services.

And away we go!

How to Stop Time by Matt Haig

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Reading How to Stop Time by Matt Haig feels like moving through a poem or song, wrapping yourself up in it, living inside it.

It's a melancholy tune that nonetheless shimmers with hope. It's an ode to love, and life, and learning to live in the present. It's about turning your back on worry and fear; it's about embracing love and truth.

Technically, it's about a man who ages at a dramatically slower rate than the rest of us. The condition is more of curse than a blessing. But his is a fascinating journey, and a beautifully written one.

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

From Goodreads:

Set in the days of civilization's collapse, Station Eleven tells the story of a Hollywood star, his would-be savior, and a nomadic group of actors roaming the scattered outposts of the Great Lakes region, risking everything for art and humanity.

For many, this is not the moment to pick up a book about the devastation left after a flu pandemic. But I've noticed some actually enjoy reading these types of tales amid our current COVID-19 pandemic. Is it soothing somehow? Or do they enjoy it like a horror story (one that seems more realistic by the day)? I don't know, but this a great novel. If you'll find comfort in reading a worst-case scenario, this delivers. But those overwhelmed by the current crisis should definitely wait awhile to give it a read.

The One with the Review of Generation Friends

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

As a Gen Xer, I was the prime audience for Friends when the show was spanking new. I loved the cozy, cool lifestyle of hanging around joking with friends day in, day out. I loved the style, from the clothes to the couch at Central Perk. And man oh man did I love Monica's purple apartment with the huge, multi-paneled window and balcony.

Cool Stuff to Watch

I've found lots of great things to watch in the past few months. If you're looking for something new to stream, or want an entertainment game plan in case you need to avoid crowds and stay home in the coming weeks and months, check this out!

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Someone recommended Things Fall Apart several years ago, adding that they often assigned it to lit students. This seemed like a good enough reason to add it to my own Goodreads list, as it struck a chord with reading habits of my younger days.

In my late teens and 20s, I based many personal reading choices on titles considered classics that were often studied in classrooms. My high school, for whatever reason, never assigned novels. Once in a while they'd pass out mimeographed sheets, and we'd read Romeo and Juliet (probably just a portion of it?) or some other piece short enough to copy for the whole class, but they never handed out a pile of books for us to read and discuss. Maybe they couldn't afford 20 or 30 copies of each book they might've assigned, I just don't know.