S'mores & Hot Dogs, Library Novels, Judy Blume, Olympic Torch & More: Endnotes 28 July

Every Friday, we celebrate the weekend — and all the reading and relaxing and daydreaming time ahead — with Melissa's favorite book- and travel-related links of the week. Why work when you can read fun stuff?!

This post is part of our Endnotes series.

Is there any better celebration of humans’ discovery of fire than the classic s’more? Honey-flavored graham crackers, rich chocolate, sweet marshmallows, and the smoky char of an open-air fire — it’s a classic for a reason. Here’s a 1-minute video with lovely production values and a hint for making next-level s’mores. Should you want to really commit, here’s a recipe with all of the ingredients made from scratch. The Greatist shares ideas to upgrade the classic — and here are 12 s’mores combos that will blow your mind.

• Sinéad O’Connor was a creative force of nature — the voice, the integrity. A punk rock role model for the ages. Did you know she was in the 1992 adaptation of Wuthering Heights? From SlashFilm: ‘Wuthering Heights opens on the wild and windy moors. A lone, penitent figure in a hooded robe walks toward a stone cottage overtaken by moss and vines. O’Connor begins the opening narration in voiceover, and once inside the hallowed habitation, unveils her angular, angelic face. She appears for no more than five minutes as Brontë, but her singular, assured, disarmingly humble presence sets the viewer up for a movie that never again reaches the heights she attained. It’s the blessing and curse that Sinéad O’Connor bestowed on everyone she worked with, and everything she worked on.’

• Oooh! You’ll like this immersive piece about how the National Archives preserves priceless historical documents. ‘The National Archives has been responsible for preserving federal records since 1934. Its primary building in downtown Washington is part research library, part administrative office and part museum. Key founding documents — the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights — are displayed in its rotunda. The agency takes extreme precaution to slow the degradation of these fragile records, made of parchment and featuring iron gall ink.’

• You will probably also enjoy this essay by Simon Sarris on Reading Well. I could have pulled many quotes; here’s a good one: ‘Reading is letting someone else model the world for you. This is an act of intimacy. When the author is morose, you become morose. When he is mirthful, eventually you may share in it. And after finishing a very good book, one is driven a little mad, forced to return from a world that no one nearby has witnessed.’

• This tiny Italian car is ridiculously cute.

• So much painful truth in this: Stop Trying to Have the Perfect Vacation. ‘Entitlement and endless optimization have turned travel into an unfun bloodsport.’

• Summer quiz! Test your knowledge about sharks. (I got 6/10.) And if you worry about sharks when swimming in the ocean, this should make you feel a lot better.

• This is such a pretty library:

• Sort of related: 7 Novels That Reveal Librarians Behind the Shelves. For more, here’s our collection of 13 books we love set in libraries — and all of our library-related posts are on our super-sexy Library Page.

• InStyle recommends 12 diverting summer reads.

• Must-read of the week: Braille Is Alive, Well, and Ever-Evolving. There are so many good options for people with visual impairment, and the story of this publisher will make your heart grow three sizes.

• Wherever You Go, Eat at the Hot Dog Stand.

• The work by artist Saype is stunning. He uses environmentally-safe paint to create massive 3D works in unexpected places — like, the Alps.

• Good question: Why Do British Shows Have So Few Episodes?

• I can, like, totally relate to this essay about how we use the word like. ‘In grammar, popular usage almost always wins. Gone is the third person singular speaketh. Four centuries ago, speaks, says, and so forth were northern vulgarisms, and Shakespeare allowed only Falstaff’s boon companions to use it. Now this is Standard English.’

• What a treat! Samantha Bee talks to author Judy Blume on the podcast Choice Words.

• Behold the elegant design for Olympic Torch and Paralympic Torch for Paris 2024.

Strong Sense of Place Bonus Episode

If you’ve ever wanted to go behind the scenes of the best theme parks in the world — Hello, Disney! — you’re going to love today’s bonus podcast episode. We were thrilled to talk to friend-of-the-podcast Tasha Sounart about her job as Creative Director in the Theme Parks group of Pixar.

In this delightful conversation, we talked to Tasha about what a day at Pixar is like, what inspires her creativity, and which Pixar world she’d like to visit. [transcript]

Links

• Find Tasha on Mastodon: @tashasounart@worldkey.io

• Tasha recommended the book Dying Fall by Elly Griffiths.

• Lauren Passell’s excellent podcast recommendation newsletter Podcast the Newsletter.

• Our recipe for Easy Homemade Caramel Popcorn.

• Strong Sense of Place podcast episode: Amusement Parks: Wheeeeeeeeeeeee!

When you’re curious, you find lots of interesting things to do. — Walt Disney

Top image courtesy of Matva/Shutterstock.