Monthly Favourites – February 2018

February is the shortest month of the year and there is still an entire day left, nevertheless I already have some favourites to share with you. I was hoping to read many more books this month than I did in January, but a rather exasperating cold prevented me from doing so. Therefore, I ended up dedicating the majority of my free time to other interests.

I started watching Peaky Blinders on Netflix and, so far, managed to finish the first two seasons. To be honest, I was not expecting to like it as much as I did. It’s an action crime drama focusing on the Shelby family, who ran a gang called the Peaky Blinders in Birmingham after the First World War. Cillian Murphy and Helen McCrory are superb as Thomas Shelby and Polly, respectively. The soundtrack is also fantastic. It comprises contemporary songs, mainly from rock bands and artists like Nick Cave, Arctic Monkeys and Royal Blood, which surprisingly fit rather well with the pace of the story. I also got some Sherlock Holmes vibes from it, not in the sense of trying to figure out who was responsible for a crime, but of looking forward to discovering how Thomas managed to solve the complicated problems he was involved in.

After a really long time without truly loving a film, I spent two great hours watching The Shape of Water. Directed by Guillermo del Toro, it tells the story of how Elisa, a mute woman who worked as a cleaning lady at a government’s laboratory in the 60s, fell in love with an amphibian creature that was being kept in a tank. If you haven’t watched it yet, you really have to. The premise may seem strange, but the feelings depicted are totally convincing, mainly thanks to Sally Hawkins and her fantastic performance.

Despite my cold, I still managed to read three books this month, though two of them (The Life of Hunger and Instante) were quite short. My favourite was The King’s General by Daphne du Maurier, a historical novel narrated by Honor Harris. She explains why she fell in love with Richard Grenville and how their lives were affected first by an unfortunate accident and then by the civil war that ravaged England during the 17th century. The complexity of the characters is the main reason why I liked this novel.

My monthly favourites wouldn’t be complete without some musical references. The band that I listened to the most in February was without a doubt the Arctic Monkeys. They have been one of my favourite bands throughout the last decade, and I was never disappointed by any of their albums. It was lovely to listen to all of them over and over again during the month. I also listened to The Wombats’ latest album and particularly liked the song Out of My Head.

These were my favourites from the month of February! Which are yours? Tell me in the comments!