My Media Diet - April Edition | 4.25.25
Brain Rain + The Matchbook Combined!
Media Diet folks, what my brain has been consuming as of late. This is Round 3 of a series you all seem to truly dig, and I dig that you dig what my mind’s been digging. Looks like the last time I did this was about a month ago, and that seems like a pretty decent schedule, all the things of note my silly mind has occupied itself with when it comes to books, music, or cinema/television. Why not?
I think sharing the things we’re reading/listening to/watching is a love language, and I love you all, and so this is my way of doing that. If you like content like this, which this Friday post has once again been generously provided to all of you thanks to the amazing kindness of our paid subscribers, all you have to do to keep it coming and keep paying it forward is upgrade your subscription. It’s the best money you’ll ever spend, I promise.
Anyway, here’s what my brain gobbled up over the last month or so, just a few samples from the plate it ate:
The Never Was by Tyler Knott Gregson (ME!) - I’d be lying if this one wasn’t gonna seem a bit self-serving, but truth is, over the last month, my mind has been CONSUMED with getting this book ready for the printers. We just did the cover reveal this week, and I’m so proud of it. It combines my favorite painting of all time, with an actual pile of actual paper that I actually typed on for the book, and it was co-designed by my best friend and fellow Autistic/poet/Substack author
. This little beauty will be my sixth book of poetry, which is just absolutely insane to me, and it officially hits the shelves September 23, 2025. I will get way more into the details of this in the months to come, but basically, I’m going to need ALL your help to make this book’s launch special. Pre-orders are crucial to the first week success, and if we’re gonna work together to get this thing on the best-sellers list, we’re gonna need ALL the pre-orders we can get. I want to show the world that poetry still matters, that the strange ramblings of this autistic mind still matters, even after all this time. If you do wanna help out, click the button below, or click the pic of the book itself. Every little bit helps, and this book is SPECIAL. Just sayin’.
My Name is Morgan + Le Fay by Sophie Keetch - I think Lady G already talked about the first book in this Arthurian legend re-telling, but then she got me hooked on them, and so I’d be remiss if I didn’t at least bring them up. I love books that are easy to read, quick page-turners that lock you in and make you feel like you’re actually in the world you’re reading about. This is that. The story, and its sequel, follow Morgan le Fay, a highly misunderstood figure in the legends of King Arthur, and tells it instead from her point of view. It’s an easy read, and I will say while it doesn’t have lots of sentences, passages, or phrases that I find myself highlighting for their standout beauty, the story hooks you and keeps you wanting to know exactly what’s going to happen next. Sometimes, dammit, you just need a series like that (I’m looking right at you Twilight) and you should never feel shame for needing, loving, and desiring those kind of reads. I’m in, and I’m really excited for book 3, which I have no idea when it’ll come out, but yay for women being the star characters in more books!
Adolescence on Netflix - If I had a Mount Rushmore of favorite actors of all time, without a shadow of a doubt Stephen Graham would be on it. He’d be right next to Joseph Gilgun, and the two would be grinning at each other with cheshire little grins that show that they are probably up to no good. I cannot remember if I already discussed this show, so if so I do apologize, but when I saw this series announced a month or so ago (and I know I’m late to talking about this if I haven’t already) I was beyond excited. Every episode is shot in a single take, yes literally, and while being an unbelievable technical feat, it’s also a massive driver for drama and tension on a level I don’t ever remember seeing anywhere else. This show is about a hard, big topic, and some critics don’t really like the way they approached its views on toxic masculinity and the strange incel culture that has grown in popularity over the years, but I loved every single minute, and I loved the messages it was sending. Something is clearly wrong with a lot of men and boys on this planet right now, and we’re seeing the trickle down of that latent bitter anger from the highest points of government down to the lowest and darkest corners of the internets. If you only watch one (often hard to watch) series this month, hell this year, it should be this.
SABLE/fABLE by Bon Iver - I love Bon Iver’s music, and while I do wish Justin Vernon, the amazingly talented singer and songwriter who writes and performs the songs, would sing in his natural deep baritone more often, I’m always in for whatever he happens to create. This new record, a lonnnnnng time in the making, has some fantastic tracks and I did find myself able to put the whole record on and just let it play through without ever feeling the need to skip a track. Ok that’s a lie, the intro track is AWFUL as it’s just 12 seconds of high pitched awful noise that makes my Autism hurt, but beyond that, I enjoyed the whole thing. Standout tracks to me are for sure SPEYSIDE, AWARDS SEASON, and I kinda dig If Only I Could Wait. Give it a spin, see how you feel.
OOFOS Ooahh Slides - This is a bonus entry that’s NOT media, but just worth sharing as it’s changed our lives hahaha. Sarah and I, whether we like it or not, feel old lately haha. Our workouts make us more sore than they used to, we wake up feeling the effects of every weight we lifted, every mile we ran, and our feet hurt after standing long periods more than they ever did. I’m not complaining, just setting the stage for why we both felt the need to upgrade our Costco ‘house slipons’ for something a bit better with a bit more support. After doing a weird amount of research for something so stupid, we landed on the Oofos Ooahh Slides, and as hideous as they look and as weird as they were to get used to for the first few days, dammit, they are heavenly. They cost way more than they should for something so simple, but considering we wear them 98% of our waking day (we work from home, duh) I suppose the investment was a worthy one. They have alleviated low back pain, foot pain, and I think they even force me to walk with healthier posture. Overall, a huge win. If you’re in the market for some kind of recovery shoe you can wear all day in your house that will make you just feel good, these are it and are worth every penny. Highly endorse.
There you have it friends! Another month, another media diet (with a little bonus at #5) so you can have some actual recommendations from a mind you hopefully trust by now.
Everything I share won’t be loved by all, and that’s rad and beautiful, but who knows, maybe you’ll find something you enjoy!
If there’s anything you want me to share, discuss, or know, go ahead and ask a question or leave a comment, and I’ll get right on it. Let’s make this interactive!
I love you a lottle, have a great weekend. Be good.
I cannot reiterate enough times how excited I am for The Never Was. Looks like my whole family is getting TKG books for Christmas this year. 😍😍
I've pre-ordered my copy!! It'll be an amazing belated birthday gift to myself (September 12th bday) and a nice way to squeeze something for myself into my days newborn life... I don't know if I told you but during a really hard first postpartum (covid times) I would read a poem or two from Illumination, usually before I'd go to sleep, just to have something to ground me. So I'm pretty excited that I'll have a new book from you to do that with again. 🥰
I'll also pre-order as many as I can, over the coming months, for gifts etc. I wish I had all the monies so I could buy like 100 copies and just hand them out like candy!! Maybe one day 😁
I'm very stoked on the Morgan le Fay series!! I know a few others who'd enjoy it too so I will pass along your recommendation (with a nudge to sign up for a paid subscription!)
Very much, I would like to watch Adolescence.... From what I've heard about it, it reminds me of when I read 19 Minutes by Jodi Picoult... Which I was very glad to read although it was so emotionally heavy and I cried a zillion times.... And that was before I was an adult and before I was a mom. So I'm a bit worried about how I will handle the emotions in my current pregnant state!! But it's such an important topic that I don't think enough people are talking about and as a mother of a son, I'd like to watch. So. We'll see if I can swing it or not!
Love you (and Sarah) a lottle back. Hope you guys are also getting the warmer weather that just showed up here, too. It finally feels like actual spring.