Randy wanted non-cynical works of art about politics (I know, right?) Joseph picked David McCullough's non-fiction book 1776, about that year in the American Revolution. Amy picked the HBO film All The Way, the LBJ biopic starring Bryan Cranston.
Episode 62- Hippie on a Rocket
Joe was a little sick of dystopian science fiction (and this was even before the last Divergent movie) and asked the crew for optimistic science fiction. Randy choose Star Trek: First Contact for the movie and Amy chose Spider & Jeanne Robinson's Stardance for the novel.