The Best of 2025

 It's that day. The day we take stock of everything. At midnight, allegedly everything resets and we get to start again.

As we're going out for dinner tonight, it's prudent that I get this, the last blog of the year out of the way, and I'm looking to think about the good bits of the year. 

There are things I am grateful for:

• I'm in good health. Fit and healthy.  Other than a cold that I caught in Paris, and a few other small niggles I've been in rude health. 
• The AUDHD diagnosis was revolutionary as much as it was validating. 
• I got to travel overseas - three weeks in England and France was not enough, but well earned. I am never going to England through America ever again. Never.
• My friends, with one exception, are doing pretty well. A dear friend passed away in a car accident a few weeks ago
• My darling boy cat is well. 
• I've remained happily employed, with a change of company near the end of the year. 

All good things. 

The Best Books

According to Goodreads, I've read 77 books this year. Mostly fiction with a few non-fiction to throw in for good measure. 

My favourites have been:

• Intermezzo by Sally Rooney. She appears to have hit her stride. 
• James by Percival Everett - a retelling of Huckleberry Finn, told from Jim's perspective. An amazing work. 
• Tin Man by Sarah Winman, because she is amazing. 
• Two books by Minette Walters about the Black Death - The Last Hours and The Turn of Midnight. I had to read the second one as the first was so good. The first left off in a very inconvenient place. 
• I finally got though Nabokov's Lolita and the last of the first Philip Pullman trilogy. Both great but for very different reasons.
• Dylin Hardcastle's A Language of Limbs was incredible. They are an incredible writer. 
• Ann Napolitano's Hello Beautiful was just as good on the second read. 
• I'm so glad I get to read Roisin O'Donnell's Nesting again. It's amazing. 
• Also, The Names by Florence Knapp - we're doing this and Nesting for book group in 2026. 
• Taylor Jenkins Read's Atmosphere shows her returning to her best. 
• All the Way to the River is Elizabeth Gilbert's memoir about the loss of her partner and her struggles with addiction. I found it fascinating. Many will not. 
• Clare Leslie Hall's Broken Country was phenomenal, as was Louise Kennedy's Trespasses. Required reading, just because they're so great. 
• And today I finished Nobody's Girl by Virginia Roberts Guiffre. It's harrowing stuff, but a necessary read. 

Best Films

I saw 50 films at the theatre this year. Yes, a lot. Some much better than others. One good thing about blogging is I can go back and see what I liked. 

The best of this year include: 

• Anora
• A Real Pain
• The Brutalist
• I'm Still Here
• Small Things Like These
• The Last Journey
• Tina (The Mother)
• Jane Austen a gache ma Vie (Jane Austen Wrecked my Life)
• Mr Burton
• The History of Sound
• Rental Family

There were quite a few that I really enjoyed, but these stuck out. 

Best Theatre and Gigs

It's also been a good year for theatre and gigs. I know I'm luck to get to see a lot of these shows. Some that spring to mind are: 

• La Ronde, which was in the Speigeltent at the Darwin Festival. It's in Melbourne at the moment - definitely worth a look. 
• I enjoyed the MTC's Much Ado About Nothing. But I love Shakespeare...
• I saw both gigs from The Pixies in November - they're always amazing. 
• The MTC's Dying - A Memoir was hard hitting and wonderful. 
• The Sydney Theatre Company's The Talented Mr Ripley was worth the ticket price. 
• Job at the Red Stitch Actor's Theatre was fantastic
• Mother Play at the MTC had Sigrid Thornton at her best. 
• I also loved the MTC's Kimberley Akimbo - A Musical. So good. 
• I felt honoured to see Echo: Every Cold-Hearted Oxygen at the Malthouse. An incredible concept delivered well. 
• The MTC had a really good year. 37 and Never Have I Ever were great too.

In all, a successful year. I hope 2026 brings similar fun and joy. 

Happy New Year. 

Today's song: