It's been a while since I've posted and I have a lot to catch up on, but I will just do the highlights of my reading and watching.
A few months ago I won the contest we had on this blog and so received a copy of the book Big in Japan by Jennifer Griffith. I read it and loved it! It was well-written and it had me hooked from page one. I didn't know much about sumo wrestling before I read this book and I didn't realize how intense their rules and training are and the push to be the best. It was fascinating. This story is about an obese American boy who goes to Japan with his parents and the Japanese think he's a sumo wrestler (or that he should be if he isn't already). It's the story of this boy as he strives to fit in to the sumo world and keep his honor. I highly recommend this book!
I also have read Or Give Me Death and Wolf by the Ears and A Break with Charity by Ann Rinaldi. Ann Rinaldi is a historical fiction writer for young adults. My roommate recommended these books to me and I really like them! Ann Rinaldi does her research for her books and puts as much fact into them as she can and then makes up the rest. These books are entertaining and a good way to learn about historical events. At the end of each of the books, she tells us which parts of the stories are true. I definitely recommend these books!
I recently finished Jane Austen Ruined My Life by Beth Pattillo and really liked it! It was funny, cute, and clean. I liked it and may or may not have spent my Sunday morning before church reading this book ;)
Some other books I read and enjoyed:
Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale
Burying Our Swords by Kevin Hinckley
How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
That is all for my books.
Showing posts with label Shannon Hale. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shannon Hale. Show all posts
Monday, December 3, 2012
Monday, August 13, 2012
2 books 2 movies
Two books: Rapunzel's Revenge by Shannon Hale, and The Help by Kathryn Stockett.
Two movies: Diary of A Wimpy Kid: Dog Days and The Bourne Legacy.
Books first. Hale, of Goose Girl and Princess Academy fame, weaves fairy tales like a master, and she and her husband have penned a fun version of Rapunzel set in the old west with Rapunzel's Revenge. It's a graphic novel geared at the middle grade reader. My daughter is 9 and loved it dearly, as did my reluctant reader son, age 12. I found it diverting.
I am coming very late to the party in barely reading The Help. I hadn't seen the movie, wanting to read the book first. My mom shoved it into my hands when I was visiting her, and I was captivated for two weeks, reading it slowly and savoring every bit of dialogue and the various voices. I found myself shoving it other people's hands (glad to know I wasn't the last to read it), and one friend's response was, "It makes you think a lot about mothers and daughters." That, to me, was the theme much more than race. It's a MUST READ. Completely beautiful.
I've long been a fan of the Wimpy Kid series. Maybe I've got the sense of humor of a junior high boy, but I find Jeff Kinney hilarious. The first movie was a bit mean-spirited (though I love the Cheese Touch), and the second was much funnier. Dog Days is in the same vein as the second. Greg (the Wimpy Kid)'s older brother Rodrick is such a lunatic that I loved him with his whole Loded Diper band. Man, I love a good PG film. It's probably not for everyone, but I was entertained.
For date night we hit the opening of The Bourne Legacy. It was a good action flick with a twisty story and great chase scenes. (Well, a LOT of chase scenes.) I like the actor and actresses who starred, and it was a fun plot that related back to the Bourne movies, but wasn't tied to them much at all. My only gripe is that at the end where the protagonists should have kissed, instead a horrible fire alarm type music set in and then the shot panned out and it ended. No kiss? Then no second viewing. Rip off. That's why we wives sit through these things, directors. Get it through your action-flick brains. Kiss at the end. Or else.
Two movies: Diary of A Wimpy Kid: Dog Days and The Bourne Legacy.
Books first. Hale, of Goose Girl and Princess Academy fame, weaves fairy tales like a master, and she and her husband have penned a fun version of Rapunzel set in the old west with Rapunzel's Revenge. It's a graphic novel geared at the middle grade reader. My daughter is 9 and loved it dearly, as did my reluctant reader son, age 12. I found it diverting.
I am coming very late to the party in barely reading The Help. I hadn't seen the movie, wanting to read the book first. My mom shoved it into my hands when I was visiting her, and I was captivated for two weeks, reading it slowly and savoring every bit of dialogue and the various voices. I found myself shoving it other people's hands (glad to know I wasn't the last to read it), and one friend's response was, "It makes you think a lot about mothers and daughters." That, to me, was the theme much more than race. It's a MUST READ. Completely beautiful.
I've long been a fan of the Wimpy Kid series. Maybe I've got the sense of humor of a junior high boy, but I find Jeff Kinney hilarious. The first movie was a bit mean-spirited (though I love the Cheese Touch), and the second was much funnier. Dog Days is in the same vein as the second. Greg (the Wimpy Kid)'s older brother Rodrick is such a lunatic that I loved him with his whole Loded Diper band. Man, I love a good PG film. It's probably not for everyone, but I was entertained.
For date night we hit the opening of The Bourne Legacy. It was a good action flick with a twisty story and great chase scenes. (Well, a LOT of chase scenes.) I like the actor and actresses who starred, and it was a fun plot that related back to the Bourne movies, but wasn't tied to them much at all. My only gripe is that at the end where the protagonists should have kissed, instead a horrible fire alarm type music set in and then the shot panned out and it ended. No kiss? Then no second viewing. Rip off. That's why we wives sit through these things, directors. Get it through your action-flick brains. Kiss at the end. Or else.
Monday, April 2, 2012
Midnight in Austenland, My Double Life, and Wrath of the Titans
Two books and a movie! My life is replete with entertainment!
First, the Shannon Hale follow up I've been looking forward to all winter, Midnight in Austenland. Her first adult novel, Austenland, was a romp, a modern-day romance carried out in a Regency setting. In Midnight, a new heroine goes to Austen's world, pays the big bucks to be immersed in Regency culture and to be wooed by suitors with cravats and riding crops. This heroine, Charlotte Kinder, is better realized and her story more poignant than in the original book. She is a divorced, damaged mother of two seeking to fill an unknown need. She accidentally uncovers a murder mystery--and a romance from an unexpected quarter. I was right in looking forward to this sequel--it was a rollicking good time.
Second, Janette Rallison's YA novel, My Double Life, is how I spent my spring break. As many people know, a family vacation is rarely a vacation for the mom. She has to do all her same work but without the convenience of home, plus living from a suitcase. Janette's book took my mind off my 37-hour car trip and put me in a fun world where a girl from West Virginia happens to be the doppelganger for a Hollywood rock star. The rock star's agent discovers the WV girl and plucks her from obscurity to serve as the star's secret double. However, the small town girl has her own agenda: she's out to meet her father, who she has never known, and who lives in Hollywood. This might be her big chance. My Double Life is a light, fluffy escape with good family relationships and was just what I needed to get me through the trip. I'd call it a beach read.
For date night, we saw the new release Wrath of the Titans. Since we see pretty much everything PG-13 or lower rated, we saw the movie for which this was the sequel, Clash of the Titans, a remake of the 1981 classic. I remember the '80s original. That Medusa head scared the bejeepers out of me--worried about it for years! The re-make? Not so much. Forgot it in minutes. The sequel, though? That was a fun movie! Pass the popcorn. Great special effects, a good plot, acutally good acting, a fun script and the actors (especially Bill Nighy, a favorite) were having a great time with it. The Minotaur made an appearance (and disappearance and reappearance, haha) in the coolest, coolest Labyrinth I've ever seen. That Labyrinth was worth the price of the ticket. Fun film. (Says the girl who just likes to go to the movies on Friday night and not be annoyed.) 3 1/2 stars.
Meanwhile, if you have been watching Downton Abbey and haven't seen the parody Downton Arby's, it's worth looking up. Good spoofy times.
First, the Shannon Hale follow up I've been looking forward to all winter, Midnight in Austenland. Her first adult novel, Austenland, was a romp, a modern-day romance carried out in a Regency setting. In Midnight, a new heroine goes to Austen's world, pays the big bucks to be immersed in Regency culture and to be wooed by suitors with cravats and riding crops. This heroine, Charlotte Kinder, is better realized and her story more poignant than in the original book. She is a divorced, damaged mother of two seeking to fill an unknown need. She accidentally uncovers a murder mystery--and a romance from an unexpected quarter. I was right in looking forward to this sequel--it was a rollicking good time.
Second, Janette Rallison's YA novel, My Double Life, is how I spent my spring break. As many people know, a family vacation is rarely a vacation for the mom. She has to do all her same work but without the convenience of home, plus living from a suitcase. Janette's book took my mind off my 37-hour car trip and put me in a fun world where a girl from West Virginia happens to be the doppelganger for a Hollywood rock star. The rock star's agent discovers the WV girl and plucks her from obscurity to serve as the star's secret double. However, the small town girl has her own agenda: she's out to meet her father, who she has never known, and who lives in Hollywood. This might be her big chance. My Double Life is a light, fluffy escape with good family relationships and was just what I needed to get me through the trip. I'd call it a beach read.
For date night, we saw the new release Wrath of the Titans. Since we see pretty much everything PG-13 or lower rated, we saw the movie for which this was the sequel, Clash of the Titans, a remake of the 1981 classic. I remember the '80s original. That Medusa head scared the bejeepers out of me--worried about it for years! The re-make? Not so much. Forgot it in minutes. The sequel, though? That was a fun movie! Pass the popcorn. Great special effects, a good plot, acutally good acting, a fun script and the actors (especially Bill Nighy, a favorite) were having a great time with it. The Minotaur made an appearance (and disappearance and reappearance, haha) in the coolest, coolest Labyrinth I've ever seen. That Labyrinth was worth the price of the ticket. Fun film. (Says the girl who just likes to go to the movies on Friday night and not be annoyed.) 3 1/2 stars.
Meanwhile, if you have been watching Downton Abbey and haven't seen the parody Downton Arby's, it's worth looking up. Good spoofy times.
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