As we settle into the second week of summer, we have compiled a list of our team’s favorites, from books, movies, and day trips, to a few recommendations for television shows to binge watch, places to eat around town, and exhibitions to check out, in addition to the incredible shows up at the Sarasota Art Museum of Ringling College of Art and Design this summer: The New Black Vanguard, Stephanie J. Woods: my papa used to play checkers, and Sara Berman’s Closet.
Read
- Mostly Dead Things, a dark and funny novel by Kristen Arnett offering a multi-dimensional representation of grief and How Should a Person Be by Sheila Heti — a real Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret for adults, artists, and feminists
- The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, a novel by Stuart Turton, a murder mystery with a time-turning twist, that was number one on The Saturday Times Bestseller list. Good also recommends The Plot, a mystery/ psychological thriller by Jean Hanff; The Measure, The New York Times instant best seller and debut novel by Nikki Erlick; and the novel Tomorrow, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, by Gabrielle Zevin, about two friends who design a Japanese-themed video game that changes their relationship to each other
- Japanese science-fiction horror novel Parasite Eve by Hideaki Sena
- Happy-Go-Lucky, a collection of short and autobiographical essays, and the newest publication from satirist David Sedaris
- The Cloisters by Katy Hays, “It has a bit of everything — summer romance, NYC, art history, murder, mystery, and tarot cards!” Also, Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo, and Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
- Where the Crawdads Sing, a novel by Delia Owens that was adapted as a film last year
Television
- The sixth season of Selling Sunset, a reality show about high-end realtors in Los Angeles on Netflix
- Ted Lasso, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and The Last of Us, which have all finished for the season or forever
- The upcoming season of Father Brown and its spin-off show Sister Boniface
- British horror-drama Red Rose and Heartland, a dramatic series about a family of Canadian ranchers in its 15th season
- You on Netflix, a psychological thriller whose main character is an obsessive stalker
Movies
- Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy
- The psychological science-fiction murder mystery movie Last Night in Soho
- Meg 2: The Trench
- Suddenly, Last Summer, a 1959 big screen adaptation of a Tennessee Williams play about the murder of a gay socialite on a lengthy European vacation when he is mysteriously murdered, starring Katharine Hepburn, as a Louisiana dowager and the mother of the victim, and Elizabeth Taylor, as the psychologically tortured cousin to the deceased, who witnessed his death
- The classics: Back to the Future, Jaws, and Aliens
- The new Little Mermaid movie
- Fairy Tale, a new dark fantasy by Stephen King and Rebecca, a 1938 gothic novel by English author Daphne du Maurier about a woman who marries a young widower after a speedy courtship, who soon finds herself haunted by the collective memory of the late wife and isolated from everyone in her new community
Exhibitions
- Poor People’s Art: A (Short) Visual History of Poverty in the United States at USF Contemporary Art Museum, and Leandro Erlich: Liminal at Perez Art Museum Miami (a bit of a hike, but totally worth it)
- The New Black Vanguard at Sarasota Art Museum
- Reclaiming Home: Contemporary Seminole Art at The Ringling Museum of Art, an exhibition highlighting artwork by Seminole, Miccosukee, and mixed-heritage artists from Florida, including Noah Billie (Seminole), Wilson Bowers (Seminole), Houston R. Cypress (Miccosukee), Alyssa Osceola ’23, Illustration (Seminole), Jessica Osceola (Seminole/Irish), Brian Zepeda (Seminole), Corinne Zepeda (Seminole/Mexican), and Pedro Zepeda (Seminole); and work by internationally recognized artists of Muscogee (Creek) and Seminole descent from Oklahoma and beyond — Elisa Harkins (Cherokee/Muscogee [Creek]), C. Maxx Stevens (Seminole/Muscogee [Creek]), Tony Tiger (Sac and Fox/Seminole/Muscogee [Creek]), and Hulleah J. Tsinhnahjinnie (Taskigi/Diné [Navajo]/Seminole)
- Tampa Museum of Art to check out the painting exhibition of Pakistani-born and New York-based artist Salman Toor: No Ordinary Love
- James Museum in St. Petersburg for their large collection of American Indian paintings, sculpture, jewelry, and artifacts, and the upcoming Chakaia Booker exhibition at Sarasota Art Museum
Day-trips
- Egmont Key State Park, a small wildlife refuge that is only accessible by boat — a ferry service is available from Fort De Soto, and Fairgrounds Museum at St. Pete, an immersive art and technology experience
- Myakka State Park and Caspersen Beach
- TreeUmph!, a treetop adventure course on East State Road 70
- Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, a boardwalk trail over protected wetlands known for being a hub for bird sightings, and downtown Arcadia and then canoeing down nearby Peace River
- A day of kayaking at Weeki Wachee
- Fort De Soto — it’s not a bad drive, has beautiful beaches, and loads of space to roam — sometimes you can even get the beach all to yourself
- A day in Tarpon Springs eating getting Greek food — the small city on Florida’s Gulf coast is known for its population of Greek residents, who first came in the early 1900s to dive for sponges
Eat
- Vino Vino, a small Italian restaurant on Siesta Dr., specializing in Apulia region food and known for their handmade pasta
- Bitia’s Taqueria for papusas, and Rico’s Pizza
- Owen’s Fish Camp
- Siam Gulf for Thai food, Mariscos for Mexican food, and The Fountain, a small restaurant in Burns Court with sidewalk seating and a view. For fancy outings, her favorites include Shore and Indigenous
- Old Salty Dog on City Island for its great view; her favorite Lakewood Ranch staples are Nancy’s BBQ and Paris Bistro
