June 2025

Happy Summer Solstice, friends. Where I live, it has been summer for a while, so the “first day of summer” is just a day on the calendar. I was out today, and one thermometer on a bank read 101 degrees Fahrenheit. That is roughly 38 Celsius for my international friends. Either way, it was hot. It is that time of year when I have to go outside to exercise before the sun rises, otherwise I end up overheated for the rest of the day, fearing that my insides have liquefied. So, obviously, because I live where I live, I was not remotely surprised. The Overton Window on what it means to be hot to me has moved, and now I just expect it.

Honestly, it is really hard to be surprised about anything anymore. It seems that every day there is some new technology that is trying to take over our lives, or make our art, or tell us what to think, or all three, and we just sort of shrug it off, because that is how things are now. Seriously, think back to say, 2013, and imagine that someone told you what 2025 was like. The pandemic hadn’t happened yet. No insurrection. No ChatGPT. You would think they were on drugs, or writing a science fiction dystopia, or both. Now, though, in 2025, it’s just a Saturday in June.

While I am terrible at setting up surprises, I don’t like keeping secrets, and I am a notorious over-sharer, I actually like being surprised. Even if the surprise is bad. OK, I don’t like being surprised by bad news, but I want to be shocked when I hear about something terrible happening. I want to feel something about that bad event, because when I stop being surprised, then I worry I’ve accepted things. Sure, I can’t fix climate change, but I don’t set my AC to 68, and I do my best to buy sustainable products.

Of course, I want good surprises too. I want to know that there are people still trying hard to make something awesome, instead of going by the book, doing the same thing over and over. I want to see a movie that blows my mind. I want to hear a band that moves me so much, I immediately buy their whole album. I want to read a book that is so good, it feels like it rewires my brain.

Last month, I went to see Weezer. I’ve been a fan of them since 1994, but I’ve never seen them live. They are a band that constantly surprises me. In the past five years, they released an entire album with an orchestra, released a heavy metal album, AND released four 7-song EPs based on Vivaldi’s four seasons. Lots of people love the first two Weezer albums and think that everything they’ve done since then is trash, but I disagree. They just changed. They grew up. They tried something new. The Beatles released “I Wanna Hold Your Hand” and then, five years later, released “Strawberry Fields Forever.” Same band. Trying to surprise us. Maybe there are some people who say The Beatles were only good when they wore mop tops, but I feel that most people are happy they wanted to make new, surprising art. The show was really good. There were people there as young as 3 and as old as 80. All Weezer fans standing, dancing, singing, and having a blast.

Please, tell me about the last time you were surprised. I’ve got a few more to share below. I can’t wait to hear from you.

Notes from my headphones

So, the Weezer show was great, but the cherry on top of the sundae was the fact that Fountains of Wayne was the surprise opening act. I found out just before I was getting ready to walk out the door. I literally gasped. It was the best kind of surprise. While I really, really, really like Weezer, I love Fountains of Wayne. They disbanded in 2013, and the co-founder and co-songwriter, Adam Schlesinger, passed away in 2020 from Covid-19, so I thought I would never have a chance to see them. Adam’s family gave the rest of the band their blessing to reform and hit the road. Adam is on my Mt. Rushmore of songwriters. I am such a fan that in the alternate universe where the Austen Chronicles take place, he is alive and well, and the head of the music department at Mansfield College. FoW played “Red Dragon Tattoo,” which is so good, I always listen to it twice in a row. Here is a live version with the OG line-up. I always listen to them, but I’ve really been playing them on heavy rotation lately.

Notes from my bookshelf

One of my very good friends, Jac, picked up one of my all-time favorite books. The book is called House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski. When I read it for the first time, back in 2000, I became a bit obsessed. There is a letter in the middle of the book written in code, and I stayed up all night to break it. It is unlike anything I’ve ever read before, and it is certainly surprising, refreshing, and just amazing. I know it isn’t for everyone, but it was certainly for me. I am looking forward to this reread so that I can chat with Jac about it in more detail, having visited it again with a fresh set of eyes.

Notes from my keyboard

Cat Morland keeps surprising me. Every time I think I am ready to turn the corner and get her where I plan to take her, something else pops up. I am 19K words into Haunting Northanger, and things are clicking. My goal is to be at 22K by July 1, as I hit 10K on June 1. I feel very good about hitting that goal. As this newsletter arrives in your inbox, I will be at my desk, headphones on, writing away.

I started a new web series called Fireside Chats with A.R. Farina, where I spend a few minutes, twice a month, talking about books in general and Jane Austen in particular. You can watch and subscribe here.

If you didn’t get a chance to pick up the ARC of Universal Truth, you can follow this link to Booksprout. I just ask that you give a review in return.

Thank you again for being a subscriber.

ARF