TV: Atypical

Created by Robia Rashid (How I Met Your Mother) in 2017, Atypical tells the story of the Gardner family, specifically 18-year-old Sam Gardner (Keir Gilchrist), a teenage boy with autism. While Gilchrist’s portrayal of an autistic teenager is both heartfelt and endearing, Atypical is as much about Sam’s family dynamic, from his separating parents to his protective sister with relationship woes. Bolstered by a standout supporting cast (Brigette Lundy-Paine, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Michael Rapaport) Atypical provides a glimpse into the world of a young man on the spectrum, and the integral role family plays in all of our not-so-typical lives. Netflix. –Leslie Ventura

Book: The 99% Invisible City

Ostensibly, 99% Invisible is a podcast about design. But in practice, it’s really about the strange magic that animates our everyday world, with host Roman Mars offering detailed explanations of mannequins, city flags, the smell of concrete after a rainstorm and more. In The 99% Invisible City: A Field Guide to the Hidden World of Everyday Design, Mars and co-author Kurt Kohlstedt dive deeply into all things urban, from skyscrapers to sidewalk markings. It’s an addictive read that will change your perception of Las Vegas, or wherever you live, for the better. 99percentinvisible.org. –Geoff Carter

TV: The Undoing

One of the pleasures of watching TV is being transported vicariously into the fictional lives of others, especially when they involve homes overlooking the ocean or fabulous townhouses in Manhattan. Throw in a murder mystery that threatens to shatter that rarefied existence, and you’ve got something truly binge-worthy. In The Undoing, Nicole Kidman and Hugh Grant star as a wealthy, successful couple whose enviable marriage crumbles in an instant. And, as in Big Little Lies, another HBO mini-series starring Kidman, sifting through the detritus provides the escapist drama we expect from prestige television. HBO. –Genevie Durano

Podcast: The Dollop

Ready for a break from current events? Join comedians Dave Anthony and Gareth Reynolds for storytime as they riff on the insanity of past happenings. Each episode delves into a person or place from (mostly American) history. Topics have included LSD pioneer Timothy Leary; the hearings for Supreme Court judge Clarence Thomas; activist Abbie Hoffman; aviator Charles Lindbergh and even the history of syphilis in America. You’ll laugh, you’ll learn, and you’ll realize that, sadly, these times aren’t as unprecedented as they might seem. –C. Moon Reed

Album: Sun Ra Arkestra: Swirling

Experimental-jazz icon Sun Ra died in 1993, but his band—known as the Arkestra—never stopped performing. Directed for the past 25 years by woodwind wiz Marshall Allen (now aged 96), the group has continued bringing Sun Ra’s otherworldly music to stages around the world. But where Sun Ra was famous for his massive catalog of recorded music, his posthumous Arkestra has given fans just one (1999) studio album … until now. New LP Swirling finds Allen and 14 bandmates injecting fresh life into Sun Ra classics like “Angels and Demons at Play” and “Space Loneliness,” digging into deeper cuts and adding one of Allen’s own compositions—the swinging title cut—to the Arkestra’s vibrant and enduring repertoire. Sunrastrut.bandcamp.com/album/swirling. –Spencer Patterson