Cultural Reads 31: Personal Development Tools, Mitochondrial Eve & Colonial Surinam

Happy Tuesday All,

And welcome to the Cultural Reads Newsletter! A bi-weekly book, music, and movie recommendation from different countries all around the world.

For previous newsletter editions, check out the archive.

In this week’s newsletter: Surinam, Cape Verde, Peru, Mali, tools for self-development, how to read more, and Mitochondrial Eve.

📖 Are You Tired Of Not Reading Enough | How To Devour 25 Books A Year

Do you want to read more, but are you not finding the time for it?

I loved reading as a kid but lost the habit later on.

Then during my exchange in Barcelona, I made a change.

Ever since I’ve been reading an average of 25 books a year.

In this post, I explain how you can use the same process to read more.

📕 The Cost Of Sugar (Suriname)

Cynthia McLeod is a Surinamese novelist and historian specializing in Surinam’s history. She’s also the daughter of Surinam’s first president, Johan Ferrier.

The Cost of Sugar takes the reader back to the late 18th century when Surinam was a Dutch colony. McLeod shows what life was like back then through the eyes of two Jewish sisters, Elza and Sarith.

The title refers to the high toll enslaved people (and colonists) paid for sugar, a product that promised future riches for the colonizers.

The story moved me deeply and filled me with a sense of admiration for the maroons (enslaved Africans who escaped to the jungle and fought for their freedom). It also taught me a great deal about Dutch colonial history.

🎵 Elida Almeida (Cape Verde)

Cape Verde’s most famous singer of all time is likely grammy-winner Cesária Évora.

She worked with producer José da Silva who now found a new rising star, Elida Almeida.

Almeida started singing in church at the age of 17 and later performed in bars in Cape Verde. She published her first album in 2014 at the age of 27 and quickly gained success in her home country, Europe, and Africa.

My favorite songs are Bersu d’Oru and Homi Nha Amiga.

⛏️ Personal Development Tools

8 years ago, I became interested in goal setting and personal development.

Throughout the years, I collected all the valuable tools I came across.

I divided them into:

1. Life Questions
2. Mental Training
3. Physical Training
4. Finance
5. Goals & Reflection
6. Personality Tests
7. Courses

Here’s the link to the full toolbox.

🎬 HUMAN

What is it that makes us human?

Filmmaker Yann Arthus-Bertrand tries to answer this question in his documentary Human.

He interviewed 2,000 people in 60 different countries. The result is an intimate film about love, happiness, poverty, war, and the future of our planet.

You can watch the 3-part documentary for free on Youtube. Here are the links to volume [one] [two] [three].

“Kevin consistently delivers playlists and song recs that will enhance your day. If you like music, you’ll want to subscribe!”You can find his newsletter here.

🍴 What Is Your Favorite Peruvian Restaurant?

Last week, I did an interview with Rosario Olivas Weston. She’s written 11 books about the Peruvian Kitchen, won five Gourmand World Cookbook Awards and the Spanish national prize for gastronomy.

I am currently writing the article and would like to include all of your favorite Peruvian restaurants worldwide.

So, what is your favorite Peruvian restaurant?

🌏 Music Playlist Mali

Mali has some of the best musicians in the world, including Rolling Stone Top 100 Guitarist of All Time Ali Farka Touré, The Blind Couple of Mali, The Malian Prince Salif Keita, and the popular Fatoumata Diawara.

You can find all these artists in this playlist. If you want to learn more, have a look at this blog post.

Short Book Takeaway

The mitochondria are a part of the cell that produces energy for the human body.

The mitochondria contain a small piece of our DNA exclusively transferred from a mother to her kids. That is why a woman’s mitochondria lineage becomes extinct if she does not have a daughter.

Over time, many of these mitochondrial lines die out, meaning tribes can trace their lineage to just a few women.

For modern humans, that number has reached one.

Yes, that means we all stem from one woman who lived in Africa around 200,000 years ago. We call her Mitochondrial Eve.

The Gene – Siddhartha Mukherjee