Curated & Saved #14

Finale feels, wisdom from Elizabeth Zott, and the quiet power of being a little cringe

May 23, 2025

Welcome to Curated & Saved, a personal collection of things I’m loving right now.

Currently Consuming

📖Reading: Lessons in Chemistry, Bonnie Garmus
I am extraordinarily late to the party with this read (especially when I’ve been lucky enough to have some lovely interactions with Bonnie when I worked at her literary agency). So, yes, I have finally read the international bestselling novel and yes, I finally fully understand the hype1. Lessons in Chemistry follows, Elizabeth Zott, a brilliant chemist who refuses to conform to 1960s gender norms. What starts as a story about Zott’s own ambitions, the resistance she faces in the science community, and pivot into become a TV chef quickly becomes a heartwarming and hilarious exploration of resilience, grief, and love in all forms. Much like her protagonist, Garmus’ writing crackles with energy. Electric and fast-paced, it propels the reader forward with unrelenting momentum with only a few moments of necessary emotional release. I really enjoyed the brisk pace, which is matched only by the vibrant cast of characters that surround Zott, each of whom feel solidly fleshed out with rich interior and exterior lives no matter how big their role in the plot.

📚 In Progress: Bury Our Bones In The Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab, Moderation Elaine Costello2

🎶Listening to: Leave me alone, Renee Rapp

Am thoroughly enjoying Renee Rapp’s latest single. With it’s stompy, rompy, and cheeky lyrics it’s exactly the tonic you need to get you through the day. I’m now extra excited for her new album (Bite Me!) to come out in August!

📺Watching: Andor & You Season Finales
As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I’ve been slowly making my way through both You and Andor over the past few weeks, and I’ve finally reached the finales of both! I’m really glad I stuck through with Andor. There was a moment midway through the series that had me worried we were delving into far too complex and entangled stories. Oh ye of little faith should’ve known the pay off of all those storylines coming together in such an emotionally explosive final few episodes.
Both Diego Luna and Genevieve O’Reilly have naturally led the charge this season with powerful performances as Cassian Andor and Mon Mothma, respectively. However, it was Elizabeth Dulau’s portrayal of gallery assistant and undercover spy Kleya Marki that unexpectedly stole the spotlight in the latter half of the season. Her quietly composed and subtly commanding presence left a lasting impression on me.
The You season finale was a whole kettle of fish. I was initially was getting worried we were perhaps going to get an somewhat open-ended ending but I think it’s fair to say there is a strong sense of finality to that final episode. As for the run up? They really threw some curveballs and whilst it was fun to get some cameos from key characters in previous seasons, I’m not sure how necessary some of them were in relation to the plot. At least Penn Badgley can breathe easy in knowing he won’t have to come into close contact with bottles of fake blood any time soon!

📰News alert: Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor’s Version)
Swifties it’s time to put out clown noses back on because we got a new ‘Taylor’s Version’ in a Handmaid’s Tale trailer! Look I’m not the bigggest Reputation stan, but I will take the crumbs of a Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor’s Version) over nothing alright?

🍽️Eating: Piecaramba! Winchester

I took a little day trip to Winchester with my other half and as well as wandering the old streets in the sunshine and staring at the Big Round Table™, we popped into Piecaramba! for a quick Sunday lunch. It was a delightful find and reminded me of a burger place in Oxford that had similar geeky-comic book decor. Gotta say the pie portion sizes are pretty hefty and we ended sharing a Pieful Tower (and chose the veggie Morrocan Roll and Porky Pie).

The Long Form

Your aversion to cringe is making you uninteresting, Maddie Dragsbaek

I seriously appreciate Maddie’s outlook on life. Whether it’s her reassuring relationship advice, her takes on fashion, body image, and self-esteem, or just her chaotic thoughts on Love Island, she’s easily one of my favorite creators online. This video especially hit me at just the right time. I feel like every writer, artist, or creator has that little voice in the back of their head saying, “You’re doing too much,” or “No one’s going to get this,” or worse “This is cringe.” It’s so easy to get caught up in worrying about what other people will think. I used to be better at ignoring that voice and just posting what I wanted, unapologetically. It’s always nice to get a reminder that that mindset is still valid. Maddie also made such a good point about how short-form content kind of kills nuance and how that constant stream of rage-bait and surface-level takes can mess with how we see ourselves. It makes us more afraid to be sincere or to risk being a little cringe, even though that’s where the real, relatable stuff lives. As one of the great comments in the video says “To be cringe is to be free”. Highly recommend Maddie’s podcast episode from last year of the same title too.

The Backlist

Thoughts on Commonplace Books
Ah yes, she’s thinking about notebooks again! I’ve talked before about the idea of starting a digital garden, and lately I’ve been drawn to the concept of a commonplace book—a space to archive ideas, inspiration, and generally create a more thoughtful way of organising my thoughts. I recently came across Angel Zheng’s process on Substack (read here) and really liked her approach: a mix of recording and reflection. She also references a great post by Petya on the same topic, which is equally worth a read (link here).

Thanks for checking out this week’s Curated & Saved! I’d love to hear what resonated with you, or if you’ve got any hidden gems to share.

Thoroughly Modern Millennial

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