2025 was a busy year for me. Beyond the busyness of the academic year, I consumed a lot of media. Below are my favourites.
- Books: Margaret Atwood, A Garden of Earthly Delights and Denison Avenue
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Edible Woman and Bodily Harm by Margaret Atwood
2025 has been the year of Atwood. Both books by her that I’ve read this year have been life changing. Starting with Edible Woman, her first novel, Atwood offers a cautionary tale about losing your identity to the marriage-and-children-industrial complex, a callback to the 1960s that shocks with its visceral imagery and straightforward dialogue. My favourite scene features the main character, sensible Marian, destroying a cake shaped like a woman and her horrified roommate screaming, “You’re rejecting your femininity!” Bodily Harm takes place 20 years later, in the 1980s, this time on an island resort in the Caribbean. Its Canadian narrator, Rennie, is a lifestyle journalist à la Carrie Bradshaw, soon launched full force into a revolution. Atwood’s central thesis, that no matter how apolitical or privileged you are, politics is unavoidable, is even more relevant today.
A Garden of Earthly Delights by Joyce Carol Oates
This was the first book I read by Joyce Carol Oates (who, fun fact, used to teach in the English department at UWindsor), and it cemented her for me as one of the best writers of the 20th and 21st centuries. The first book in her Wonderland Quartet to examine class in the United States, A Garden of Earthly Delights, focuses on the life of Clara, the daughter of a migrant farm labourer, through the lens of the men in her life. In exploring the costs of moving beyond your class and the intersections between gender and class, Joyce Carol Oates expertly fits social commentary into a family drama.
Denison Avenue by Daniel Innes and Christina Wong
Half novel, half art piece, Denison Avenue is an ode to the working-class immigrant women who have shaped urban Canada. The first half of Denison Avenue tells the story of an elderly Chinese woman living on Denison Avenue in Toronto. Having recently lost her husband in an accident, she must navigate a harsh and ever-changing landscape all on her own. To support herself, she begins selling recycled bottles. Touching on themes of gentrification, loneliness, and acculturation (the process immigrants go through when adapting to a new culture), Christina Wong’s visual and literary masterpiece will give you a new appreciation for Toronto and make you want to call your grandma.
- Music: Black Country New Road, Cameron Winter, Adrianne Lenker and Samia
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Albums: Ants From Up There by Black Country New Road and Getting Killed by Geese
Released in 2022, every track from BC,NR’s sophomore album, Ants From Up There, features a performance worthy of a standing ovation. Focused on the vulnerability of the mundane, the album’s instrumental backing beneath the lyrics flows between soft melodies and pure chaos. The band’s former frontman, Isaac Wood, sings every one of his lines with an emotional vulnerability and passion that is a rarity in today’s nonchalant landscape. My favourite track from this gripping LP is its nearly 13 minute-long finale and basis for every track that precedes it, “Basketball Shoes.” Don’t be fooled by the title: this song is about a wet dream involving Charli XCX. Despite its middle-school theme, lyrics such as “And we’re all working on ourselves and we’re praying that the rest don’t mind how much we’ve changed” and “Your generous loan to me, your crippling interest” pack a punch to the gut. The live version is even better, with Isaac kneeling on the ground screaming the final stanza. For anyone sick and tired of the forced nonchalance of the 2020s, Ants From Up There is for you.
If you’re a music fan, I’m sure you’ve heard of Bushwick sensation, Geese, and their album, Getting Killed. Chaotic and absurd, tracks like “Taxes” and “Trinidad” have been able to capture the current zeitgeist with lyrics like “Doctor! Heal Yourself!” and “There’s a bomb in my car!” However, frontman Cameron Winter (who recently performed at Carnegie Hall) is not just another abrasive rock star; his vocal talents and lyricism extend to more melodic, soft, and sentimental tracks such as “100 Horses,” “Cobra,” and “Au Pays du Cocaine.” For me, what makes Getting Killed the standout album of 2025 is its message of hope emerging from the chaos, in lyrics such as “You can change and still choose me.”
Artist: Adrianne Lenker
Well-known for her work as part of folk band Big Thief, Adrianne Lenker’s solo work has been getting its flowers on social media. Her solo albums, songs (2020) and Bright Future (2024), featured heavily in my Spotify Wrapped and playlists this year. Her sentimental lyrics, which explore themes of time and natural imagery, make her music perfect for a drive in the country or for adding ambiance when stuck at Leddy Library. My favourite Adrianne Lenker songs of 2025 are “No Machine,” “Vampire Empire,” “Los Angeles,” and “simulation swarm.”
Songs: “Pool” by Samia, “Sunglasses” by BC,NR, and “Love Takes Miles” by Cameron Winter
Samia’s “Pool” is the first song of the year to make me cry. I first listened to it in full while walking aimlessly around my subdivision in August (the month also known as the never-ending Sunday). The intro is a voicemail from Samia’s grandmother, singing a lullaby in Arabic, her last call before passing away. With the weight of that introduction, the rest of the song maintains the same existential tone, the main theme being “How long do I have?” Its mundane imagery (floating mindlessly in a pool) contrasts beautifully with the weight of its theme (awaiting loss).
“Sunglasses” by BC,NR is a wild ride spanning 9 minutes and at least 4 musical genres. Starting with a moody post-punk guitar instrumental with blasé imagery, it turns into a chaotic explosion of saxophones and violins and screaming the events of an argument (“I’m more than adequate/leave Kanye out of this/leave your sertraline in the cabinet/and burn what’s left of all the cards you kept”). Emotionally charged and unique, the musical upheavals make “Sunglasses” the perfect song to run to on the treadmill while recounting all of your past arguments or social faux-pas.
The most celebrated single off Cameron Winter’s solo album, Heavy Metal, “Love Takes Miles,” perfectly captures that feeling you have when you finish your last final before Christmas break. Optimistic and yet cautious in its outlook, “Love Takes Miles” views finding love or passion as a journey [listen to “Nausicaa (Love Will Be Revealed)”–Cameron Winter loves Greek mythology] that will “take you by your pants” when you least expect it and make you selfless. I have to agree with Mr. Winter, love will make you fit it all in the car.
- Movies: The Lost Daughter, Monsieur Lazhar, and No Other Choice
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The Lost Daughter
Finals season tends to be a time when I watch a lot of movies. After a long day of studying or a particularly traumatic final, unwinding with a movie helps me recenter. I usually stick with a familiar favourite (usually Bridget Jones or My Big Fat Greek Wedding). On one fateful Saturday, however, when I was writing up a portfolio for my mentorship and learning class, I chose to watch The Lost Daughter. Based on Elena Ferrante’s (author of the My Brilliant Friend quartet and the best novelist of the 20th century) work, Maggie Gyllenhaal expertly adapts this story about one of society’s biggest taboos: mothers who regret having children. This psychological drama follows Leda (played by the wonderful Olivia Coleman), a professor of Italian literature, who, when on vacation in a beach town in Greece, becomes obsessed with Nina (played by Dakota Johnson), a young mother, and her daughter. The film takes many twists and turns and will grip your attention span from beginning to end. I highly recommend anyone who feels uneasy about the current societal push toward “tradwifery” to watch this film, as it explores the ultimate dilemma that most women will face at some point in their lives: the apron or the toge.
Monsieur Lazhar
This movie is my all-time favourite, and I rewatch it every year. Based on a play by the same name, Monsieur Lazhar is fundamentally a story about trauma and how suicide impacts those it leaves behind. The film opens on an all-too-familiar scene for anyone who has gone through the Canadian education system: a snowy schoolyard and a sixth grade student forgetting their duty to bring the milk cartons to class. This nostalgic and familiar scene is overwritten by the young boy’s horror when he looks into his classroom window to find that his beloved teacher has died by suicide in the classroom. After reading about the incident in the local paper, Bashar Lazhar, an Algerian refugee, becomes the student’s replacement teacher. Between the incredible acting of both child and adult actors and the expert use of the school space and the city of Montreal in its cinematography, this is a story that will occupy your mind for a long time.
No Other Choice
I took a break from studying for my Advanced Statistics exam to drive over to the WIFF to watch this movie. Needless to say, I have no regrets. No Other Choice is a Korean film, which in its native language literally translates to It Cannot Be Helped. Koreans have been killing it over the past 5 years with their films critiquing capitalism, and this is no exception. After a dedicated and ambitious paper company employee is laid off following the firm’s acquisition by an American conglomerate, his comfortable middle-class existence is over. No more tennis lessons for his wife, no more pets for his children, and worst of all, no more Netflix. With his wife now the family’s sole breadwinner, Man-Su conquers the nightmare of the modern job market. He soon finds himself with no other choice but to turn to a life of crime to save his home. No Other Choice is a contemporary critique of upper-middle-class consumerism, capitalism, and AI, which we should all take the time to watch.
- TV: The Sopranos
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If anyone knows me, they know that I love The Sopranos. In fact, I wrote an article about it in 2024. This year, I’ve been re-watching it with my boyfriend (a first-time viewer, so of course I had to introduce him to the best series in existence) and have become an even bigger fan. Its overarching themes of loss, whether it be the loss of the American dream, nuclear family, community, and purpose, are evergreen in the 21st century. Even more relevant than when David Chase released it in 1999, its critique of toxic masculinity remains one of my favourite aspects of the series (to read more about my thoughts on this particular theme, please read my article 25 Years of The Sopranos: The Show That Unites Gen Z Girls And Their Dads). Also, if you’re a psychology major or interested in pursuing a career in clinical social work, clinical psychology, or psychiatry, I think you’ll enjoy the series portrayal of psychodynamic therapy (transference and countertransference, anyone?).
- Podcasts: Rehash
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Do you spend too much time online doomscrolling from one inconsequential discourse to another? Then I have the perfect podcast for you! Rehash (hosted by video essayist Broey Deschanel) explores past online discourses or moments in internet culture that have all but been forgotten, but whose effects still permeate the for-you page to this day. I found the episodes highly digestible (usually 45 minutes to an hour long), and they are perfect to listen to while going for your daily mental health walk. My favourite episodes are on Furries, Rupi Kaur, Buzzfeed, and Cuties.
Here’s to another year of good books, music, and film!