DRUG PUSHERS
It's easy to look at the state of American cities and wonder how anyone could ever get hooked on something as deadly as fentanyl. But a look at very recent history would tell you that the legal opioid epidemic, pushed by pharmaceutical giants, got many Americans hooked on incredibly addictive painkillers. Fentanyl is often pressed into pill form to mimic those legal prescription opioids. The history of oxy's rise is the subject of Netflix's new limited series PAINKILLER, which offers a damning (and partly fictionalized) retelling of how money and corruption helped fuel the drug crisis. All episodes are streaming now. (SAMANTHA WOHLFEIL)
LOCAL WORDSMITHS
Finalists for the 2023 Washington State Book Awards were recently announced by the state affiliate of the Library of Congress' Center for the Book, with two familiar names making the list. Spokane author JESS WALTER is a fiction category finalist for his 2022 short story collection Angel of Rome and Other Stories. He's joined by fellow Spokanite TRAVIS BALDREE, whose "cozy" fantasy novel Legends & Lattes is also a fiction category finalist. And while she's not based in Eastern Washington, fellow finalist and Seattleite Kim Fu will be visiting the area next month as her short story collection Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century is also this year's selection for Spokane is Reading. Winners are to be announced on Sept. 26; find the full list of finalists at washingtoncenterforthebook.org. (CHEY SCOTT)
THIS WEEK'S PLAYLIST
Noteworthy new music arriving in stores and online on Sept. 22.
CHAI, CHAI. Appropriately, this Japanese indie pop rock band hits with a caffeinated jolt. The group's latest album explores how Japanese femininity gets filtered through a Western lens.
WILL BUTLER + SISTER SQUARES, WILL BUTLER + SISTER SQUARES. Without even getting into his brother's issues, it's probably a good thing that Will Butler quit Arcade Fire, as his solo albums have been better than any AF output for nearly a decade running. (SETH SOMMERFELD)
