This is going to be my 2016 reviewing blog. I read and view a wide variety of stuff, not all of it will be good. This is really just so I remember what I've consumed (I'm really forgetful). I usualy enjoy everything, so I don't imagine that there's going to be much serious criticism.
This was a wonderful portrait of a fantastically deluded individual. A quick and easy read. It made me think of the show, ‘Don’t trust the B in apartment 23′. Holly was such an interesting character. I’m surprises that I haven’t read any of Capote’s work before. 2017 will be the year to rectify that!
Maya Angelou, Random House, 1969 (Virago Press 2015)
Finished Saturday December 31
After reading this, I can see why she is such a celebrated memoirist. This felt so honest. A great story teller brings the reader right the way inside their home and at the end of it you feel like you’ve had a great secret imparted to you, and that’s how I felt at the end of this.
I’m not really sure what more to add. I guess, you never really think about the life experiences of people in the public eye. I mean, you get a glimpse, and you get a sense of it, but this really was something else. Her recollections of Momma, her brother, Bailey, her parents and all the other people in her life, reinforce that idea that it takes a village to raise a child. Just wow.
I guess this was a love story dressed up as a spy film. It was far from the worst thing I’ve ever seen, although, it was very predictable. The performances overall were pretty good, and it was certainly very watchable. My advice though, would be to not watch it late at night, as the pacing is quite slow, and many people fell asleep in the cinema - although that could also be because of the amazing reclining seats and air conditioning. I mean, come on, it was 30 degrees celcius at 9:30 at night, what the hell?
The twist and reveal-y bit was pretty predicable, I think I worked it out as soon as it was brought up. A couple of things bothered me. I thought some of Marion Cotillard’s nudity in the beginning was not necessary, and Brad Pitt’s pasty butt... why guys?
I’m not a huge fan of spy dramas in general, but when I do watch them, I compare them to Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. I just thought the stakes were not high enough in this film. I don’t know, maybe it’s just me.
I read this in one sitting. That’s right, I didn’t even stop to go to the bathroom, or to get a drink, or anything. It was just that readable. And wow, just wow! This was a delightful read, the characters that Palacio creates are all deeply relatable, and the extra Julian chapter at the end killed me. It was a great way to expand the world, and also offer some insight into how our actions and the actions of those around us can impact others.
The protagonist, Auggie, was delightful and funny and so personable. I loved that although, the character is supposed to be 11 or 12, Palacio does not infantalise him, as some authors tend to do with younger characters. Having parts of the story told from the perspectives of other characters is a stroke of genius!
There are so many great things about this book; the plot, the structure, the themes, the language! The heartache of the Bleeding Scream! Olivia! And Daisy! I’m going to make sure that everyone I know reads this!
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (illustrated)
J.K. Rowling, Bloomsbury 1998; Jim Kay (illus.), Bloomsbury, 2016
Finished re reading, Friday December 23 2016
Ahh, the heir of Slytherin is back, and Jim Kay brings this story to life with his brilliant illustrations. The only criticism I have is that I felt that it was not strictly necessary to have so many spiders, but hey, that’s just me.
What can I write? I loved this story when I read it the first time, and I love it now with the lovely illustrations. I can’t wait for more!
I don’t know how to feel about this film. It was really interesting as a subject and to a degree it maintained a distance from the individuals that were in the film. I came out of it not quite sure how to feel. The only thing I was sure of was that I didn’t want McDonalds, but that’s nothing new. The cast was fantastic though, so watchable.
This was an interesting commentary about capitalism and the human cost. At first, I was kind of rooting for Ray to succeed, I mean, you always want to root for the little guy! Then as it went on, his success felt uncomfortable, possibly because the success of Ray Kroc’s venture is evident all around us.
In the end I can’t get over that look of utter defeat in Dick’s eyes when he and Ray are talking in the restroom. Just beautiful. And even though the way that Ray treated his first wife, Ethel, was terrible, I’m glad he found love with Joan, even if it meant breaking up the Smith marriage.
This was a nice step back into the Wizarding world that JK Rowling introduced us to all those years ago. The set up of the plot was done quite well, and it ended by positing enough questions to sustain a few more sequels. It had sufficiently quirky characters that I had come to expect from the Wizarding world, and I guess the ending was sufficiently bitter sweet.
I’m not sure if the plot was supposed to have a twist in it or not. The Grindelwald reveal was obvious, I mean, all the signs were there and I picked it early in the piece. The Obscurus plot raised a few questions about Dumbledore’s sister that I’m interested to see answered before the end. I liked that they tried to put the red herring in, but it was a bit of a stretch given what they had told the audience prior to the reveal.
The suitcase and the fantastic beasts stole the show! The niffler and the bowtruckle were so adorable, causing chaos and being cut up about being used as a bargaining chip. The world within the suitcase were so beautiful! I guess, if I was thinking metaphorically, the suitcase is a look into Newt’s soul and it shows how travel and experience have enriched his inner landscape.
And Jacob. Sweet, sweet Jacob. I honestly hope that it is not the last time that we see him.
Parramatta Riverside Theatre, Saturday November 12
I love Sport for Jove, and I think they do a fantastic job! This is the first version of Antigone that I’ve ever seen and I was very impressed. Before going into it, I only knew the gist of the main plot. As the play progressed it hit me, in stages, how relevant the themes and ideas explored within are, particularly in the current political climate.
There were a diverse group of actors, who were well utilised and the drama and tension between them all was palpable. This was multilayered, asking tough questions and challenging the audience’s (certainly my own) beliefs and values. There were so many dualities that were explored, highlighting the immense spectrum of human emotion and understanding.
Sometimes, it is through the frame of tragedy that we can understand ourselves and our world. Looking back on it, it’s not like in King Lear where the folly was obvious. Each action felt justifiable in the context that it was made. It reminded me of a conversation that I was having with a friend a few weeks ago. At the time, I was shocked that she didn’t hold the same opinion that I did, even though we both shared the same values. Antigone revealed a deep human weakness that we all share; the assumption that just because people share the same value, that their opinions about how to do something will match up too. This was a reminder that when we don’t check our bias, we act in ways that are detrimental to ourselves and those around us.
I loved this movie. I’m not going to deny that there were a few issues with it overall, but even with them I really enjoyed this new installment to the Marvel cinematic universe. The way that the special effects elements were blended together was masterful, the characters were pretty wonderful, and I can honestly watch Benedict Cumberbatch for days, he’s just riveting.
I’ll start with the main problems that I had with the film. Whitewashing. Where were the Asian actors? There was Benedict Wong, and that was pretty much it. Why did Tilda Swinton have to be the Ancient One? There are plenty of actors who could have done as good a job as she did. And really? They justified it all by telling us that she was Celtic? So there’s another backstory there of a white person who goes to learn an Asian skill but then somehow surpasses all the masters who were there before them? Bah! Also Mads Mikkelson was underused as the villain. /rant
The colour palate of the film was stunning. It did a great job of helping to bring the mysticism into a modern setting and context. The special effects were really good. The first big sequence with the Ancient One and Kaecilius in London drew me straight into the world. When he called her a traitor it set the tone of the film for me. The focus on Dr Strange’s hands was nice. I liked that it was able to give away huge things like the setting, but also remind the audience about the power that Strange had in his hands.
The script was quite humorous, particularly between Strange and Kaecilius. The scene where they first met in the London Sanctum cracked me up. The actors moved through this world seamlessly. I think Marvel now has their craft down and working like a well oiled machine. Also, when Cumberbatch popped his collar I burst out laughing because it reminded me of his role on Sherlock.
I can’t wait to watch this again. Definitely make sure to stay for both post credit scenes!
This is Matthew Reilly writing fantasy/action fables for, I guess, the younger reader. It didn’t take long to finish and it was a pretty entertaining read. Although the ‘hero’s journey’ trope is way over done, it is still obviously one that grabs readers. It was a cute story about a boy, Raf, who tries to steal an elixir to cure his sister, Kira, of a disease. On his journey, he gets a mentor, converts an enemy into a friend, frees prisoners, saves a princess and destroys an empire. All in a day’s work, really! And at the end, like all good heroes, he learns something invaluable about himself.
As I was reading this story, I couldn’t help but compare it to ‘Rowan of Rin’, the only difference here is that on his journey, Raf gains more companions whereas Rowan loses his as he goes further on. I think I like the message in ‘Troll Mountain’ better, as it highlights the idea that heroes need a strong support network, and success doesn’t happen in isolation.
I guess if I had to put forward criticism, I would point out that the female characters in the novel did little more than wait for the men to save them, or allow the males to speak on their behalf. Sometimes I read these types of stories, and authors often overlook the fact that this invisibility reinforces traditionally held stereotypes about the roles of men and women. Did I want a female heroine? Not necessarily. What I’d really like to see, is just a little bit more agency from the female characters.
I’d recommend this novel to anyone who’s looking for a quick weekend read.
I loved this! Neil Gaiman is such a master story teller! I bought this graphic novel ages ago and for some reason, even though I really enjoyed Vol 1: Preludes and Nocturnes, I never picked this one up. I’m glad I have now though. I was such a gripping read. The different stories winding together and the expansion of the world attest to why it has stood the test of time.
The tale of Nada was so lyrical and sad. It really reinforced in my mind how lonely Morpheus was, and I guess to an extent it justified why he was so hard on his servants. I really hope he gets a happy ending!
At the end of it all, I wondered what had happened to Hob. I feel like I missed something there.
I’m definitely heading out to get the next few installments of this series!
Is Matthew Reilly a literary genius? No. Was I massively entertained? Yes!
It has been six or seven years since Matthew Reilly released his last Jack West Jr novel, so when I got my hands on Four Legendary Kingdoms it made it quickly to the top of my ‘to read’ list. I had missed Jack and his team so much! And there’s a great crossover in this novel too. The tie in with mythology here, besides the whole underworld thing which was clever by the way, was the 12 labours of Hercules. I thought Reilly did a pretty good job of reinterpreting the labours for a modern audience.
The first act of the novel is very much Indiana Jones meets Battle Royale. The games were exciting, and relatively quick and to the point, although it felt a bit overdone, what with the prevalence of texts like The Hunger Games and the fact that Contest exists. Having had made that point though, who doesn’t like a bit of a heroes bloodbath. The second act ties it altogether. I think this is where Matthew Reilly is at his best. He links in all the little clues he set up in the first act, and all of a sudden, the audience is no longer just chasing after the characters, trying to make sense of what’s going on, but we’re starting to take stock of the extra stuff that’s going on around the central action.
The crossover! I loved the idea of this crossover, but I don’t think it worked particularly well in this context. I read it and I felt like some of the drama and tension that could have existed between the two characters was quelled by potentially pitting them against each other. I liked the idea of them becoming friends and overthrowing the Hydra games, but I knew there was no way that Scarecrow was going to be killed off in a Jack West Jr novel, so it was only a matter of time until he was saved.
The writing was good overall; however, in some places it was a little bit unyieldly, particularly through the slower parts of exposition. The plot and action sequences were fast and powerful. This is my favourite thing that Matthew Reilly does, and I don’t think there is anyone who write action as well as he does. In terms of character development, there’s not an awful lot of it, and it really is just told through the exposition.
Matthew Reilly is one of those authors whose works you go back to time and time again because they are ridiculously entertaining, and underneath it all it has a great message of courage, loyalty and resilience.
Steven Moffat (scr), Mark Gatiss (scr), Jay. (comic); Kadokawa, 2015
Finished Sunday October 16
I picked this up in Japan last year and have finally got around to reading it. The script is just lifted from Gatiss and Moffat’s work, which was pretty fantastic on it’s own. The art work on this is beautiful, I don’t often read mangas so it took me a couple of pages to adjust to the reading path, but once I worked it out, it was smooth sailing.
This is a must have for Sherlock fans, of which I avidly am! I can’t wait to get the next one!
This was actually amazing! The songs were brilliant, the music was fantastic and the sets were wonderful! I can just go on about every detail that I loved about this production. A few friends and I had planned this ages ago, and we didn’t even remember which tickets we had bought, but kudos to us, we picked fantastic seats and we had a great night out!
Only a few minor quibbles. We had hoped that they would have cast more ethnically appropriate actors for Jasmine and Aladdin. One of my friends was upset that Abu was missing, I wasn’t too upset, we got three sidekicks for the price of one!
The sets were stunning! The Cave of Wonders set and the set they used for the first carpet ride blew me away!
Although I loved the Lion King and it’s a classic, I think this production of Aladdin is better than that! This is definitely a production that I will be revisiting in the future.
I had reservations before I started reading this, which is probably why it’s taken me so long to actually get around to reading it. In the end, I thought it was a good follow up of the Harry Potter narrative. It covered some pretty universal themes of friendship, love, redemption, identity and belonging, which all readers can identify with. At the core of it, it is about a father and a son who are on a journey of discovery about one another.
This playscript did a fairly good job of showing what it would be like to be the middle child in the Weasley-Potter household. Just like Harry, Albus’s experiences all this tension and angst because he feels out of sync in the Potter household, trying to eke out an identity away from the shadow of his father and to an extent his older brother. Through their narrative, Thorne explores how love and the absence or perceived absence of love can shape us as individuals.
The other powerful theme in here was the power of friendship. The scenes between Albus and Scorpius were beautiful! It makes such an obvious comment about the importance of creating and maintaining powerful friendships in our lives. It did a fairly good job of showing the different facets of friendship, particularly in the scenes where Albus and Scorpius argue then make up, and in the lake scene where Scorpius comes up and realises that Albus is no longer with him. And I think that comment that Draco makes at the end about how lonely he was as Crabbe and Goyle’s friends makes that point stronger.
I thought the plot was great! I mean, the Augurey bit was cool but I guess you have to let your imagination stretch with it because of the timeline for the Battle at Hogwarts. But the timeturners! I love me a good time turner story! Some parts didn’t quite make sense in it, but these days I try not to deconstruct time travel narratives too much or my brain just breaks.
I guess my minor criticisms would be the under representation of the female characters, but I guess this is a story about Harry and Draco sorting out their issues. I mean, Ron got even fewer lines and he’s supposed to be Harry’s best friend. The other bit of oddness was Albus kissing Hermione, I get it as a humorous plot device, but still, he’s fourteen so it’s skirts the edge of being quite off putting.
I thoroughly enjoyed this. So much so that I finished it in one sitting. And that’s saying something nowadays!
First of all, the prose is immensely gripping. I'd read about a hundred pages before I'd even realised it. The plot is great, the characters are created expertly and the little twists were pretty cool. I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to get around to reading this novel, although I am glad that I finally have - and before the series airs too!
Shadow was a really interesting character to get into the head of, and every time he triumphed or worked something out I go such a sense of satisfaction. And the narrative between him and Laura was beautiful and painful. It was so universal, because first of all, who hasn’t struggled to let go of a loved one, and also, who hasn’t struggled with forgiveness and betrayal from time to time.
This novel was so rich with details, particularly with the side characters who flitted in and out. There were a couple of points where I was completely thrown off by what was happening, and it was delightful. There were so many good bits, I don’t even know where to begin! I’ve got a few more of Gaiman’s novels on my list, and I’m looking forward to reading them for sure!
I would recommend this to so many people! I imaging that parts may be a bit confronting or gory for some readers, but the novel is soooo good!
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