I have been wandering the streets of Mexico City. I love getting lost, going to the Cineteca, eating elote, chatting up booksellers, petting dogs in coats, being the first to see a forthcoming photo book, and having coffee with someone I met because their work speaks to me.
I fell in love with these movies: one for its lightning energy and wildness (La Cocina), one for its tenderness (Malta), and one for the delight of surreality and costuming (El Jockey).
I’ve been reading Papeles falsos by Valeria Luiselli, La imaginación pública by Cristina Rivera Garza and Pilas de mujeres by Patrícia Melo. I have followed their writing for years and love feeling that closeness with a body of work.
What I’m looking forward to in 2025:
Photographer Maya Goded is publishing a hand-bound book based on her most recent exhibition, El Rastro de la Serpiente. Her prose is poetic, profound, and deeply moving, and her images, especially from La Plaza de la Soledad, have informed how I see the world.
Any photo book by César Rodríguez. I own Montaña Roja and Hoja Dorada, both beauties. I admire his commitment to personal projects.
Subscribing to and reading literary magazines. I love the covers of The New York Review of Books and cut them up to make envelopes.
Listening to more live music.
Buying photos from photographers I admire.
Reading Ann Friedman’s newsletter, where I found this quote:
“Your legacy, in some ways, is what you love and what you’ve asked other people to love alongside you.” -Hanif Abdurraquib
Alice
NEWS & EVENTS
Jan. 8 at 6 pm EST: Register for the Overseas Press Club Book Night: 'Life and Death of the American Worker,' moderated by editor Yaffa Fredrick
Jan 26: I will present my book at the Kentucky Conservation Committee Legislative Summit in Frankfort, KY
Jan 29: Porchlight Awards in NYC, my book was longlisted in the business book category
April 19-20: Unbound Book Festival in Columbia, MO
May 6: Lukas Awards Ceremony in NYC
My book LIFE AND DEATH OF THE AMERICAN WORKER: The Immigrants Taking on America’s Largest Meatpacking Company is OUT NOW
"A startling glimpse into the meatpacking industry's abuse of undocumented and incarcerated workers." --The New York Times Book Review
When you’re wandering , you’re not lost
Ah, I also love wandering. I can't think of many more enjoyable ways to spend my time. Thanks for the recommended movies/books, and Merry Christmas!