First weeknote of the new year! Rather than a weeknote, I suppose this is more of a yearnote... I really enjoyed the format of sweetfish's 2025 wrap-up, so I thought I'd do a version of it myself here :)

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Books

I read 26 books this year. That's less than I have in the last few years, but regardless, this was still a great year of books for me!

Book of the year

Cantoras by Carolina De Robertis

What a hard choice, but Cantoras was a real standout this year. At the risk of sounding cliche, this book really felt like a comforting hug. Despite the struggles that the characters endured, I closed this book and felt a level of queer joy that could only be matched by my feelings for my own queer friends. This book ignited such an intense yearning in me for a free, unlimited life with all the queer people I love, it's almost unbearable. Poignant and relevant to our current climate, I will never forget this book.

Monsters of the year

The House on the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

What can I even say about this book other than that it is pure happiness in a story. This book is the antidote to hopelessness and depression. It's like eating a whole bag of nerds gummy clusters!

Series of the year

The Locked Tomb series by Tamsyn Muir

It's been probably a decade at least since I last was invested in a book series. The Locked Tomb series had me enraptured this year, and I am very anticipatory of the fourth and final book of the series. It felt amazing to sink my teeth into such a huge, rich, and story-dense series like this. I look forward to expanding my horizon with some more series in the future!

Yearn of the year

Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid

I'm not usually one for romance books, but this book had my heart in a chokehold. The yearning, the science, the passion-- it all made for a wildly moving story.

Giant robot alien of the year

An Absolutely Remarkable Thing + A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor by Hank Green

Another series! I adored this series by Hank Green. These books also felt like eating candy to me. Great blend of character driven and plot driven. I felt connected to all characters and the villians deeply resonated. I love when a book makes me love the alien!

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TV

Show of the year

Pluribus

Man, this show had me seated and locked in extremely hard. This show is about so many things, intended or not-- religion, AI, cults, pacification and coercion, the essence of humanity. A beautifully made story that I've really enjoyed thinking about, whether that's thinking about the metaphors expressed through a story like this, or theorizing about the hivemind itself. Incredible piece of media!

Housewife of the year

The Housewives of Beverly Hills

The hours that we have spent with these women...I don't even want to know. We have watched seasons 1-10 of this show in 2025, and we are not slowing down. I love the housewives, and I have come to particularly love the Beverly Hills housewives (sorry to the ladies of Salt Lake City, you have been dethroned). There is something familiar about all these women from when I lived in Los Angeles as a kid that I just find compelling, for better or for worse lol. Kyle Richards and Erika Jayne, you will always be my favorite housewives.

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Movies

Most of the movies I watched this year were in the last couple of months since I signed up for AMC stubs. Since then, I've seen more movies in a few months than I would normally in a year. I'm looking forward to much more movies in 2026!

Movie of the year

Bugonia

This movie had me on the edge of my seat not knowing what to expect from minute to minute. Brilliant twist on the "crazy conspiracy theorist" stereotype, and portraying the alien as a high powered corporate exec was perfect.

Toxic man who the audience is supposed to sympathize with of the year

Marty Supreme

I just saw this movie a couple days ago, and damn I loved it. The amount of plot stuffed into this movie was unbelievable!! I am coming to realize that I absolutely love a movie that uses a sport as the backdrop to a larger story arc and character exposé.

Toxic lesbian of the year

Honey Don't!

I loved this movie! I loved how this movie was shot and colored. The plot was wild and a lot of fun, and I am a sucker for a crazed lesbian Aubrey Plaza in any story.

Alien of the year

Superman

I'm so happy they made this movie the way they did. Heartwarming and relevant, this movie made me fall in love with the Superman franchise (barring my latent 2020 obsession with the CW's Supergirl lol.....)

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Video Games

Video Game of the Year

Astro Bot

Haven't had this much fun playing a game since playing Super Mario Odyssey. This game is insanely addictive, feels amazing, super cute, all around an awesome time!

Sushi of the year

Dave the Diver

Oh man, SUCH a fun game!!!! SOOO addictive! This game has an insane amount of content, and it honestly takes a looong time for it to get old. This game is awesome.

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Other

Craft of the year

I learned how to crochet this year!

Little Guy of the year

In Amsterdam there is a store called Sam & Julia, and it is full of tiny dioramas of little mice. Highlight of the year for me

Dog of the year

My parents got a puppy this year, Tux! I love him with my whole heart T-T

Concert of the Year

Had the most fun I've ever had at a concert at the Chappell Roan show

Vacation of the year

This was such a short little trip, but C and I had THE MOST fun on a weekend trip to Laguna. We were so fun and free 🌊