Happy Tuesday all,
And welcome to the 18th issue of the Cultural Reads Newsletter! A bi-weekly book, music, and movie recommendation from different countries all around the world.
This newsletter is a bit longer because I wanted to share some exciting resources I came across.
In this week’s newsletter: Mexico, Africa, Note-Taking, Ukraine & Worldwide Dreams.
Do you want to know more about Mexican music?
Rotterdam-based Mexican musician Leonardo Prieto can help you with that!
I interviewed him about his music career, Mexican folklore, and colonial musical influences.
Check out the full interview here!
Ten minutes in the life of a fisherwoman living on the White Nile, a bookmaker in the Ethiopian mountains, or a young wrestler from Cameroon.
These stories are part of Al Jazeera’s Documentary Series Africa Direct, a collection of short documentaries from African directors.
The project is looking to counter the common tropes that have characterized much of the African media coverage.
The short documentaries (between 10 and 15 minutes) provide snapshots of unique individual stories.
Some popular mini-movies are Desert Libraries, Kalanda: A Wrestler’s Dream, On The White Nile.
Do you take notes when you read? And where do you save them?
I love note-taking but struggle to store them efficiently. My notes are usually a combination of highlights, notebook scribbles, and messages on my phone. I store most information in Google Keep, but physical highlights are always a pain.
This is where Readwise comes in handy. The app allows you to take your highlights and convert them into text. You can then export these notes and import them to a central database (this can also be a word document).
For a visual explanation, check out this instruction video from 3:20 onwards.
In this Ted Interview, famous Sapiens author Yuval Noah Harari discusses the implications of the war in Ukraine.
He talks about the nuclear threat, effects on climate change, and the myth that war is a constant in the history of humanity.
This Map shows the most common dreams per country—everything, from teeth falling out to snakes and (strangely enough) squirrels.
