Interesting reading for the midwinter blahs

Because it's still winter for those of us living on the Great Lakes

Time to see what the modern superwriters are up to.

It’s another gray and cold week here, and I can’t wait for winter to be over. This is one of the worst things about living in Chicago. On the other hand, this is one of the cheapest big cities in the US, so at least we’re not paying for the gloom.

Here are some good things to read if you’re still hunkering down:

Two good, albeit kind of depressing, books

The first is A Place of Greater Safety by Hilary Mantel (Bookshop.org affiliate link), a novel about the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror. The other is Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams (Bookshop.org affiliate link), about Facebook’s evolution as a global political player. Both stories are about people starting out with high ideals and discovering that they can be corrupted by power.

Some interesting articles

• In which economists at the University of Chicago prove that depressed people buy more cigarettes and junk food (Chicago Booth Review). It’s an obvious finding, and yet, after reading Careless People, I’m suspicious that this research will be used by marketers.

• Also disconcerting: protecting your accounts from generative AI fraud (FINRA).

• The Atlantic looks at why we enjoy doing hard things (gift link). By “hard things”, the author means running marathons, not escaping a burning house.

• The Harvard Business Review looks at the strategic genius of Taylor Swift. She’s brilliant, she really is!

• Taffy Brodesser-Akner, one of my favorite writers, has a difficult but also excellent piece in the New York Times about a family friend who survived the Holocaust (gift link).

• Also in the New York Times, major leaguers share their money-saving tips (The Athletic), a strange but also funny piece. Many of the players interviewed swear by Costco.

Speaking of Costco, here’s my tip: Use their delivery services. That way, you never have to deal with the parking lot or navigate through crowds. In many cities, everything in your local Costco warehouse can be delivered on the same day through Instacart. Non-perishables can be delivered from the store in two days for free with a $75 minimum order. And clothing, furnishings, and other items can be ordered online and shipped anywhere in the US, even where there’s no Costco around. You do need a membership, however.

And with that, here’s a video featuring my favorite Taylor Swift article:

Do you know of any great reads right now? Please share in the comments!