December physical media picks and gift ideas, from Martha Stewart's 100th book to Rose's solo album

Also, a pictorial celebration of Noor Riyadh, Saudi Arabia's light festival, by luxury publisher Assouline

Rosie by Rose is the Blackpink member's debut studio album. Photo: Warner Music Mena

As physical media continues its cultural comeback, The National rounds up the best releases this month across film, music, art and more.

Noor Riyadh: A New Visual Culture (Classic) by D N Rodowick

Noor Riyadh: A New Visual Culture is a visual journey through the light festival’s displays. Photo: Assouline

Experience some of the most creative moments from Saudi Arabia’s annual light and art festival from luxury publisher Assouline in their coffee table book Noor Riyadh: A New Visual Culture.

Noor Riyadh is an annual light and art festival that launched in 2021 in Riyadh, which turns the city into an open-air gallery showcasing innovative light-based artwork from local, regional and international artists.

The spirit of the festival is captured in this curated coffee table book, Noor Riyadh: A New Visual Culture, which showcases an incredible plethora of works. It’s a visual journey through the light festival’s displays and installations that come from around the world and include site-specific commissions by Saudi artists, such as Muhannad Shono and Ahaad Alamoodi. Other works included are by the fiber artist Janet Echelman, installation artist Diana Thater, the musical art group Superflex and their video art projections, and German artist Carsten Holler’s work, which explores concepts of time and space through light.

Whether you have or are yet to experience the festival, Noor Riyadh: A New Visual Culture is a must-have for art enthusiasts and photographers, and for those wanting to engage and celebrate the power of light and the growing culture of art and art festivals in the region.

Maan Jalal, arts and culture writer

Martha: The Cookbook

Martha Stewart: The Cookbook is the American lifestyle personality's 100th book. Photo: Random House

For those who’ve seen and loved Martha, the brutally honest documentary about one of America’s most-enduring lifestyle personalities, here’s another treat. Just in time for the holiday season, and to take advantage of the buzz surrounding the Netflix film, Stewart has launched her 100th book titled Martha: The Cookbook.

More a scrapbook than a cookbook, this landmark publication features 100 of Stewart’s favourite recipes, complete with archival photos, as well as intimate stories behind each of them. Recipes include everything from her mother’s potato pierogi to a special paella that she makes for friends who visit her in the summer. Each recipe connects with important moments from Stewart’s trailblazing career as a businesswoman, writer and television personality, making this the perfect festive gift.

David Tusing, assistant features editor

Rosie by Rose

Rosie's lead single, Apt, a collaboration with Bruno Mars, has become a global hit. Photo: Warner Music Mena

One of the most anticipated releases of the year, Blackpink’s Rose is set to drop her 12-track debut studio album Rosie this month. This marks her first solo project since leaving YG Entertainment and Interscope Records in 2023.

The album’s lead single, Apt, a collaboration with Bruno Mars, was released on October 18. It became her first solo track in three years and topped the Billboard Global 200 for five weeks, as well as several charts around the world, including iAustralia, New Zealand, Japan and the Mena region.

Rose has also explained that the album's title Rosie stems from her nickname, derived from her given name Roseanne – a name she reserves for close friends and family. She shared that the project feels like a personal “little journal,” conceived during a recording session in Los Angeles after Blackpink's Born Pink World Tour wrapped up. It's an ideal uplifting gift for anyone who loves K-pop or for those who just can't get enough of Rose.

Evelyn Lau, assistant features editor

Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret by Benjamin Stevenson

Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret by Benjamin Stevenson. Photo: Penguin

Technically this book came out in October, but I have been saving it as a December buy – for myself and various stocking fillers. As a prolific lover of both murder mysteries and Christmas, I don’t usually merge the two but the “if Knives Out and The Thursday Murder Club kissed under the mistletoe” billing truly won me over.

Another of Stevenson’s Ernest Cunningham mysteries (previous novels include Everyone On This Train Is A Suspect and Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone), the novella promises twists and turns aplenty, and a “a deadly advent calendar of clues”. Expect to find me tucked under a blanket and reading this all day long come Boxing Day, and at just 175-pages I expect to devour it in one day.

Farah Andrews, head of features

Paper Moon in 4K BluRay

The Criterion Collection has released a 4K version of the 1973 film 'Paper Moon'. Photo: The Criterion Collection

The cinephile in your life probably knows exactly what he wants for Christmas this year and, more likely than not, they would have bought it for themselves already, or have told you what to get them.

If a surprise is what you’re after, look no further than The Criterion Collection’s recent 4K release of Peter Bogdanovich’s Paper Moon. The film follows an unlikely duo of a man and a girl who might or might not be his daughter as they traverse 1930s America. Played by actual father and daughter Ryan and Tatum O’Neal, the latter of which earned a nomination and a win at the Oscars in 1974, the new release restores a beautiful and touching film that can also be very funny and heartwarming. And if that’s not enough, the package contains a poster as well as artwork that would look great on the wall. This is one release that is a must-have, even if you already own the film in any other format.

Faisal Salah, gaming and social media writer

Virtual Dreams II: Ambient Explorations in the House & Techno Age, Japan 1993–1999 by various artists

The album is the second instalment in a series shedding light on the ambient music released during Japan's bubbling electronic music scene in the nineties. Photo: Music From Memory

With this year's music discussions defined by the highly caffeinated hooks of Sabrina Carpenter's massive hit Espresso and the hysteria of Taylor Swift's Eras tour, it's easy to overlook some of the smaller gems released this year.

On that note, the Virtual Dreams compilation series is the gift that keeps on giving. Released in October, it is the second instalment of the series, shedding light on the ambient music released during Japan's bubbling electronic music scene in the nineties.

This collection is spellbinding, and at times deeply soothing—a selection of instrumental works perfect for study sessions or simply unwinding. Dig deeper, however, and you will appreciate the ethereal landscapes and inventive production that wouldn't be out of place in video games. The compilation is also a postcard from a time when ambient music, also known in Japan as "listening techno," played an important role in its club culture.

Saeed Saeed, features writer