Mar 16, 2022 3 min read Monthly Mention

The Monthly Mention - March 2022

My monthly recommendations newsletter “The Monthly Mention” covers what I’ve been enjoying from the world of Books, Movies, Podcasts, YouTube etc.

Quick Overview

📙 Book - "Breath" - James Nestor

🎞 Documentary - "The Dawn Wall"

📘 Book - “4000 Weeks” - Oliver Burkeman

🖊 Pen - Pilot V5 0.5mm Liquid Ink Rollerball Pen

📺 Advert - "Stuff" - Expedia x Ewan McGregor

📙 BOOK

"Breath" - James Nestor

This is contender for my non-fiction book of the year, and its only March. This was an absorbing read. Not only does it explore a fascinating topic - breathing - but it’s very well composed. James Nestor is a journalist by trade, and it shows. This could very well have been dry exposition. Rather, it intertwines facts, history, personal experimentation, and suggested techniques into a very cohesive and almost ‘page turner’ like narrative. You will never look at breathing in the same way again.

🎞 DOCUMENTARY

"The Dawn Wall"

Another movie that’s sat on my watchlist for a while now. (FYI I love having a watchlist. Really does help filter out the noise on streaming services. I do the same for books, podcasts, even day trips etc.). A friend recommended this documentary again recently. It’s the story of Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson who are rock climbers attempting to make a free climb up “The Dawn Wall” of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. It’s got a lot going for it. Heartache. Obsession. Friendship. Sheer madness. And a huge piece of rock! Highly recommend.

You can check out Tommy's story in his book "The Push". Which incidentally has been added to my read list.

📘 BOOK

“4000 Weeks” - Oliver Burkeman

Another cracking non-fiction book. This is the productivity book that’s not really about productivity. More a philosophical look at the shortness and brevity of life. Having spent over a decade writing a column for the Guardian on productivity (The sardonically titled ‘This Column Will Save Your Life’) Burkeman reflects on the value of it all. Distilled version: we have such limited time that we cannot, will not, achieve all that we want in our lifetime, this month, this week, today. You likely won’t read that book, climb that mountain, or text that friend. But don’t worry. Select a few things that really matter and focus on them. Narrow your band of focus and relax, happy that you’ve limited the paradox of choice. For productivity nuts and the more philosophically minded.

🖊 PEN

Pilot V5 0.5mm Liquid Ink Rollerball Pen

I know. Left field... It’s not so much the brand - although I do use the Pilot V5 and Pilot G2 0.7mm myself. It's more the 0.5mm nib that’s why I'm mentioning it. I used to use a 0.5mm nib a lot. But for the last few years I’ve been using 0.7mm. 0.2mm, you’re thinking what a weirdo?! Well. Those 0.2mm really do make a big difference when you’re using it for journaling, letter writing or annotating in books. (I also use a 0.1mm nib pen for small font notes in some books where you don’t have a lot of margins to work with).

"Stuff" - Expedia x Ewan McGregor

Not going to say a lot on this one. You must have seen this advert already?! But it’s here more as a plug for my blog post "Stuff" which I recommend you check out if you liked the ad.