Watch: “Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice.” It’s feeling a lot like fall in DC these days, and this 80’s throwback is the perfect way to settle into spooky season. Winona Ryder and Michael Keaton shine in their reprised roles, and Jena Ortega is a terrific new addition. – Matt
Read: “Wicked,” by Gregory Maguire, if you want to get in the mood for spooky season, get excited for Ariana Grande to play Glinda in the live action musical, or are looking for a follow-up fantasy novel after you finish the “Court of Thorns and Roses.” I have been staying up way too late reading this book since I stumbled upon it at my neighborhood used bookstore last week. – Riley
Read: “In Ascension,” by Martin MacInnes, an atmospheric novel long-listed for the Booker Prize that takes you from the deepest oceans to the most distant cosmos. Worth a look. — Alex Gibson, senior producer, “GZERO World with Ian Bremmer”
Read: “America Must Free Itself from the Tyranny of the Penny,” by Caity Weaver. If you live in the US, you are probably doing free government labor by storing pennies in a change jar. Almost no one uses pennies, yet the US Mint keeps making them by the billions. This article on the illogical conundrum of the penny and “logistically unmanageable” dilemma for the world’s wealthiest nation is a must-read for penny lovers and haters alike. — Molly Rubin, producer, “GZERO World with Ian Bremmer”
Read: the Dervish’s perspective. In the 1960s, Bosnian writer Meša Selimović wrote “Death and the Dervish,” the first-person fictional testament of a dervish in 17th century Bosnia forced to reconcile his faith, his political ambitions, and his love of family when the Ottoman regime arrests and kills his brother. Many see the book, a classic in the former Yugoslavia, as an allegory for communism, partly because Selimović’s own brother was executed by fellow partisans during World War II. But it’s also a poetic and philosophical meditation on power, action, faith, nationalism, and corruption – in other words, timeless stuff. – Alex
