What’s on our shelves: Medieval England, Old Town Rhodes, and the American breakfast table…

Film: The Palm Beach Story by Preston Sturges

Regular readers may get the impression that my entire life is driven and structured by Reddit. This month, at the suggestion of the subreddit r/classicfilms, I watched a new-to-me screwball comedy called The Palm Beach Story (1942). 

A luminous Claudette Colbert, married to a failed-to-launch Joel McCrea, is being evicted from her high end New York apartment. Lucky girl – she’s gorgeous and sweet and looks fabulous in any outfit, including one fashioned from a bar towel (it’s complicated). An older gentleman who is viewing the apartment (an industrial weenie king) just gives her a bundle of cash to pay off the rent arrears. Happens to me all the time.

Our heroine takes the cash and – for reasons – ends up in a private Pullman train carriage travelling to Florida which is occupied by a rowdy, drunken hunting party of millionaires who shoot up the train and nearly kill the barman. It’s all fun and games when you’re super rich. After losing her clothes, our heroine manages to snag yet another millionaire before they’ve arrived in Florida. 

Directed by the king of snappy screwball comedies, Preston Sturges, and also starring silent movie queen Mary Astor and crooner Rudy “Don’t sing again” Vallée, the film is a fun, ridiculous ride with a nonsense ending. And fabulous outfits. I loved it.

I watched The Palm Beach Story on YouTube. 

Val Claudette Colbert, Administrator – Open Fifth

TV Series: Invincible by Robert Kirkman

On series 4 now of an animated series based on the Kirkman comics. We follow our superhero Invincible, aka Mark, from first discovering his powers, inherited from his father, to growing into the strongest superhero Earth can call upon. It’s difficult to review without spoilers! But the development of characters really hooks you in. Of course it’s all very fantastical, being a world where superpowers abound – but the stories are very human and relatable. Some deviation from the comics too, but it always seems a useful/good choice in the end to benefit the storyline. Great series that you can pick up and follow without watching religiously (like I admit to doing!)

Sam Goldsmith, Business Development Manager – Open Fifth

Book: Katherine by Anya Seton

I visited a family member at the end of last year (who was a history teacher for many years before retiring). She said that the book she keeps coming back to is Katherine by Anya Seton. I decided to get the audio book and have been listening to it on my long runs as I prepare for my marathon! 

I guess you would classify it as romantic, historical fiction. It chronicles the life of Katherine Swynford and her romance with John of Gaunt, the Duke of Lancaster (son of King Edward III). There is clearly little historical information from 14th-century England but it weaves what there is (in detail) with a fictional account of their love affair. Katherine de Roet (as she was) rose from a humble position to be one of the most powerful women in England. 

Written in the 1960s, we weave through the turmoil and tragedies of the period (revolts, black death etc.!) which result in personal tragedy, religious tension and, surrounding this, a passionate love affair. Katherine and John had many children together and form an important part of the heritage of the Tudor era. 

Although not my go-to genre, I really enjoyed it. She is revealed as one of the great ladies of history as she navigated the limited agency she had but found her way to the top of the Royal court. There are many conflicts, love vs reality, the physical dangers of the day, the misogyny of the era and her personal religious conflicts. 

It’s beautifully written and Katherine is portrayed as warm, beautiful and strong. I was fully engaged during my long runs and actually felt I had also had a very good history lesson along the way!

Jonathan Field, Co-Founder and Managing Director – Open Fifth

American Orange Story

‘Lunch Break Reads’ is a daily newsletter for longform journalism which recently sent me deep down a rabbit hole. Fortunately, it’s American and arrived in my inbox at 17:01, becoming ‘Long, Late Evening Reads’.

The original recommendation was for ‘Who Killed the Florida Orange?’ by Alexander Sammon, published by Slate. The murder trial for the Florida Orange would have multiple defendants and just as many opportunities, motives and means, chief amongst them disease, the weather, climate change, overseas competition, corporate greed, real estate expansion, and changing tastes. All of these are explored in this article which includes conversations with legendary citrus families and visits to former groves. 

That article will set you back 6000+ words. But to learn about the demise of the Florida Orange, you must first learn about the life of the Florida Orange, its estranged cousin the California Orange, and how a bitter fruit from the Pacific ocean became such an icon of the Sunshine State and American breakfast tables in the first place.

For that, Sammon directs you to John McPhee’s 1966 essay in two parts, ‘Oranges-I’ and ‘Oranges-II’, published by The New Yorker and reaching a juicy 40,000+ words. The essay draws you through the history, myth, mistranslations, art, architecture, anthropology, geography, horticulture, and human culture of oranges, with delicious descriptions and bountiful lists. I recommend reading with an open search tab to hand as you look up the orange varieties and orangeries mentioned.

Lauren Purton, Marketing Executive – Open Fifth

Book: The Mini Rough Guide to Rhodes by Rough Guides

A trip to this island is in my very near future, just a short 5 days to spend so I want to get the most out of it. Researching visits and trips that give the most bang for our time buck! So far I am liking taking the bus to Lindos, which is a glorious bit of archaeology for me. A trip to Old Town to hop the boat to Symi, and perhaps another afternoon in Old Town for shopping and sampling the local food. Lots of glorious coastal walks to occupy us the rest of the days and plenty of eating and lounging by the pool!

Sam Goldsmith, Business Development Manager – Open Fifth

TV series: Margo’s got money troubles by Rufi Thorpe

Apple TV

I read the book last year and asked for others to read it so I could chat with them about it in the February 2025 WOOSH, no one did.

This is my second attempt to get people talking to me about this story because Apple TV has created a TV programme about it starring Elle Fanning (superb) as Margot, Nick Offerman (legend) as her dad and Michelle Pfeiffer (epic) as her mum.

There are only 4 episodes so far and I am loving it. I will watch Nick Offerman in anything. I think Elle Fanning is brilliant, I absolutely loved her as Catherine the Great in The Great, and Michelle Pfeiffer is Michelle Pfeiffer, need I say more?

As we’re only 4 episodes in, it’s still laying the foundation of the story but I’m already invested and it’s kept pretty close to the book which I like. Elle Fanning is doing a great job of walking the line of being young, confident, and determined without being annoying or obnoxious. When you see how the realisation of her decisions are impacting her on her face and then see her choosing to shake it off and just get on with it, so good.

Michelle Pfeiffer is perfectly portraying a mum who loves her daughter and wants the best for her but doesn’t want her to make the same mistakes she did by both supporting her and criticising her at the same time. All whilst making all sorts of new mistakes herself.

We haven’t had much Nick Offerman yet but what there has been has been great.

I can’t wait to watch the rest of it. 

So again, please either read it and/or watch it and talk to me about it.

Helen Symington, Sales Executive – Open Fifth