Video of the year 2024:
This was an absolute eye-opener. If you've ever wondered about sleep, you NEED to know about the glymphatic system. It's a 1-hour special guest lecture by the scientist who discovered this whole thing.
Fiction book of the year 2024:
I read a few sci-fi books this year which centre on some kind of non-human mind, and how their complex societies might work. For my favourite book, it was a close call between "Children of Time", which creates a society of sentient spiders on a new planet, and "Semiosis", which creates a society of sentient plants on a new planet. They're both great. Semiosis wins because the characters are better-written. The book manages to create this entire world of sentient plant life (plus humans too) - and then on top of that, to draw the reader into engaging twists of detective fiction and psychological intrigue. A remarkable read.
Non-fiction book of the year 2024:
Probably essential reading, given the prospects for 2025. This is a multi-country examination of what's going on in white nationalism, anti-green conspiracy theories, and the ideas that lead to xenophobic violence in the middle of a climate crisis. You might not like the idea of reading this book, but I found it essential knowledge. The first half especially, which gives really good summaries of what's going on in different countries and how they're all connected.
Album of the year 2024:
You need patience to appreciate Godspeed. I know that people on the WWW generally don't have patience, but I'm going to recommend this anyway. It's not obvious at first that the music is anything more than the many other post-rock guitar bands out there, but Godspeed have the ability to be very subtly soulful, life-affirming, emotionally dynamic, which for me usually doesn't even emerge on the first listen. But this 2024 album of theirs is one I'll listen to again and again for years.
Person of the year 2024:
The person of the year is, quite clearly, Gisèle Pélicot. This goes without saying. Her determination and grace are a model for us all.
Cookbook of the year 2024:
An utterly fabulous recipe book. In fact her recipes are impressively useful while also creative.
Drink of the year 2024:
It sounds crazy at first, but it's a lovely refreshing drink (quite cola-like), and surprisingly easy to make. 2 parts tonic water, 1 part "short" coffee (such as an espresso, or I make a short aeropress), plus ice. Remember this for the next heatwave!