Playlist

The 3-D animation comedy The Lego Batman Movie, now being screened on the Chinese mainland, is set to wow superhero fans and those of Lego toys. With all the characters "played" by Lego toys, the film is the unlikely story of Bruce Wayne, who not only fights the villains of Gotham City but also takes on the responsibility of an adopted boy.

Getting accepted by an Ivy League university in the United States is a dream for many Chinese students. So there was little surprise when the book Take Action Now! written by Li Zhiyuan, a Harvard MBA student and former Yale college graduate, found tons of young readers when it hit the shelves earlier this year. Li, who comes from a single-parent family in Xiamen, Fujian province, shares stories of how he made his way to Yale, and then to Goldman Sachs. He also reveals techniques to win over recruiters during interviews.

The HBO series Big Little Lies, based on Liane Moriarty's best-selling novel, is highly recommended, with its star-studded cast of Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman and Shailene Woodley. The series has been directed by Jean-Marc Vallee (Dallas Buyers Club and Wild). It is based on three women with young children, whose apparently perfect lives unravel to the point of murder. Good reviews have been pouring in since its premiere in February.

In one of the most anticipated returns in pop music, Lorde unveiled a new song recently in which the young star showcases a new dance sound and adult look. The 20-year-old New Zealander announced a second album called Melodrama, and released the album's first single, Green Light, which is driven by a more lively beat than her Grammy-winning breakthrough hit, the minimalist Royals. Green Light starts off with a sullen piano as Lorde sings: "I do my makeup in somebody else's car/We order different drinks at the same bars."