Best of 2014: What I read, listened to, and watched

Most journalists will tell you that one of the best parts of the job is speaking with people whom you wouldn’t otherwise get to meet–and of course, ask them all sorts of questions. One that almost always elicits genuine, passionate responses from creatives is, “What artists from other genres inspire you?” Today’s post is my own answer, year-end style.

All of these have already found some critical acclaim, and several didn’t debut in 2014, but no matter: These are as good as these genres get.

Fiction: My Struggle by Karl Ove Knausgaard. For literary fiction fans, this 2000+ page novel is unlike anything you’ve read before. Only the first three volumes have been translated from Norwegian to English so far, so there’s time to catch up.

Radio/podcast: Serial. An investigative reporter looks into an old ‘solved’ murder case. If you listen to podcasts during your exercise, this will keep you running further than you intended.

TV sitcom: Plebs. Two young guys move to the big city, get a flat next to a cute girl who won’t date them, and work at dead-end jobs. But it’s ancient Rome, really well written, very funny. Season 2 just finished airing in the UK: