The Five: Angel Olsen, 'Unbelievable' and articles on education
Each week, senior producer Stephanie Curtis offers five suggestions to read, watch, listen to or experience.
1. "Writing to Persuade," a book by former New York Times op-ed editor Trish Hall that came out this summer, is about more than syntax. While she has advice about style -- don't choose "utilize" when a simple "use" will do -- it’s really about how to get your point across and communicate with people who don't agree with you. It would be invaluable for anyone hoping to survive this election.
2. After reading George Packer's long, convoluted, personal essay "When the Culture War Comes for the Kids" about how he and his wife decided to leave the public school system, I returned to Nikole Hannah-Jones' thoughtful article about her own journey. Also, check out the Two Tour Pledge if you are facing a similar debate in your home.
3. "Unbelievable," a new police procedural on Netflix, is based on a true story that I first read about in Pro Publica and the Marshall Project. Here’s how it starts: "An 18-year-old said she was attacked at knifepoint. Then she said she made it up. That’s where our story begins." The series, starring Toni Collette and Merritt Wever, begins in the same spot. It's a disturbing and powerful story about how rape is investigated. You see inept police work and the skilled, nuanced work needed for a rape investigation.
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BONUS: Kerri says you must check out the two-part series from The Daily, in which the New York Times reporters who broke the Harvey Weinstein story discuss new findings that raise questions about the legacy of two feminist icons – Gloria Allred and her daughter, Lisa Bloom.
4. Dear Joan and Jericha is an adults-only podcast in which comedians Julia Davis and Vicki Pepperdine play advice columnists with terrible, terrible advice. Don’t listen to it with kids around, but do listen -- and prepare to laugh.
5. I love some moody music, and Angel Olsen, a singer-songwriter from Asheville, fits the bill. She feeds my love of bands like Tindersticks. Check out Olsen’s song, “Lark.”
To listen to the full conversation you can use the audio player above.
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