My Paris Essentials and the Jacket Everyone Was Wearing

Issue #31: And 5 edible highlights from my trip 🥐

Morning Person is a weekly newsletter packed with obsessively-curated recommendations and ideas—let’s get to it!

📚 Fight Night by Miriam Toews: The women in this family are all slightly dysfunctional (who isn't?) but they’re also survivors, who have endured trauma and enormous loss.Told as a letter from a nine-year-old to her absent father, we encounter her resilient, larger-than-life grandmother, and her moody, pregnant mother. The unique structure of this novel may not be for everyone (it took me a while to get into), but Toews nails the nuanced, hilarious observations of a young child eager to be seen as an adult.

📺 “Life & Beth” on Hulu: This new series follows the tradition of Pamela Adlon’s “Better Things” and Bridget Everett’s “Somebody Somewhere,” with bite-sized episodes that seem to borrow heavily from Amy Schumer’s life. When Beth’s mom dies, she leaves Manhattan for the funeral in Long Island, and stays to unravel her complicated feelings around her childhood, while striking up a new romance. It’s sweet and easily bingeable.

🎧 “CRASH” by Charli XCX: This issue of Morning Person is brought to you by Charli XCX’s new album CRASH, which is as responsible for keeping my jet lag at bay as the coffee I’m currently nursing. Loving the electric violin in “Baby,” and “Used to Know Me” which has song of the summer written all over it. And for a much chiller vibe… Jensen McRae just released her first album, “Are You Happy Now?” I’ve loved her music for years, and am thrilled her debut is here!

On our first night in Paris, my mom and I grabbed sidewalk seats at a bistro, her with a kir and me with a cappuccino, people-watching in the hours before dinner. It was Friday evening, so we were treated to a parade of well-dressed Parisians heading from work to drinks. For our part, we played the role of a far less sassy Joan and Melissa Rivers, providing private commentary on our favorite looks. A few trends quickly emerged: Black shorts over tights, moto jackets, Polène purses, chunky socks and sneakers. But the chic-est, “Oh this? I just threw this on,” women were all wearing the exact same jacket.