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Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Big Summer in Books
May 7, 2020
Well this was an unexpected yet enjoyable read. It's far less serious than Weiner's previous book, the expansive and beautiful Mrs. Everything, but I think it's exactly the read we need for these times. I finished feeling happy and grateful for what I had in my life. Big Summer was a wonderful distraction from real life.
This is a fun story featuring our engaging plus-size heroine, Daphne, who is still struggling to find herself as an adult. Many of her scars and insecurities come from her so-called friendship with Drue, who was more of a user than a friend. After Drue hurt Daphne one time too many, she hasn't seen her in six years. But she's still powerless to say no to her, especially when she's begging for her to attend her high society wedding.
"You are susceptible to Drue Cavanaugh. She's your Kryptonite."
I found Daphne to be sweet albeit in need of a backbone at times. Her journey to self-actualization is certainly engaging. Big Summer takes a huge turn about halfway through, giving me a big surprise, but I loved it, honestly. I'm glad I hadn't read about the twist--a lot of reviews give it away, but I won't. Let's just say that Drue and her minions can be quite twisted at times, and there's a lot to unravel and unwrap here in terms of motivations and backstory. Big Summer starts with a little snippet set in the early 1990s, setting us up for the story ahead. We also learn about Daphne and Drue's past and all about their friendship.
This is such a sweet, sometimes silly (oh how I love Daphne's parents), and real read. Goodness, the pieces about Daphne's weight can be so heartbreaking. There's a section where she remembers her grandmother caring for her for a summer and basically giving her her weight insecurities, as she put Daphne on her first diet, making her aware of being heavier. Oh man. Weiner is an excellent writer, and she brings Daphne to life here, making her such a true person, whom we want to root for, hug, and love.
And she gives us a book about family, love, and reminds us to be grateful for what we have. The grass isn't always greener on the other side, per se. Always important, but even so more right now. I loved this one, with its escapist nature and twisty yet heartfelt storyline. 4+ stars.
This is a fun story featuring our engaging plus-size heroine, Daphne, who is still struggling to find herself as an adult. Many of her scars and insecurities come from her so-called friendship with Drue, who was more of a user than a friend. After Drue hurt Daphne one time too many, she hasn't seen her in six years. But she's still powerless to say no to her, especially when she's begging for her to attend her high society wedding.
"You are susceptible to Drue Cavanaugh. She's your Kryptonite."
I found Daphne to be sweet albeit in need of a backbone at times. Her journey to self-actualization is certainly engaging. Big Summer takes a huge turn about halfway through, giving me a big surprise, but I loved it, honestly. I'm glad I hadn't read about the twist--a lot of reviews give it away, but I won't. Let's just say that Drue and her minions can be quite twisted at times, and there's a lot to unravel and unwrap here in terms of motivations and backstory. Big Summer starts with a little snippet set in the early 1990s, setting us up for the story ahead. We also learn about Daphne and Drue's past and all about their friendship.
This is such a sweet, sometimes silly (oh how I love Daphne's parents), and real read. Goodness, the pieces about Daphne's weight can be so heartbreaking. There's a section where she remembers her grandmother caring for her for a summer and basically giving her her weight insecurities, as she put Daphne on her first diet, making her aware of being heavier. Oh man. Weiner is an excellent writer, and she brings Daphne to life here, making her such a true person, whom we want to root for, hug, and love.
And she gives us a book about family, love, and reminds us to be grateful for what we have. The grass isn't always greener on the other side, per se. Always important, but even so more right now. I loved this one, with its escapist nature and twisty yet heartfelt storyline. 4+ stars.
This is such a gentle, beautifully written book, about a harrowing, terrible subject. I had seen other reviews saying how much they'd enjoyed this, however based on the synopsis, I was hesitant at first: a mother kills her six year old daughter with a hatchet. What can be poetic or lyrical about that?
The story jumps back and forth in time as it follows the lives of the mother, father, the daughters and Ann, the 'new' wife. It isn't confusing though, surprisingly. The murder isn't one of those protracted descriptions, it's more of an aside. I don't even think that it comes across as something that was done on purpose.
This book is about the repercussions of this single act and how it affects all those involved, even those who weren't there.
I was captivated. I know that seems like a big thing to say about a book, but once I got going (real life and it's distractions, eh!) the end seemed to come around all too quickly.
I would highly recommend this - but make sure you have a box of Kleenex to hand. It's achingly sad in places.
The story jumps back and forth in time as it follows the lives of the mother, father, the daughters and Ann, the 'new' wife. It isn't confusing though, surprisingly. The murder isn't one of those protracted descriptions, it's more of an aside. I don't even think that it comes across as something that was done on purpose.
This book is about the repercussions of this single act and how it affects all those involved, even those who weren't there.
I was captivated. I know that seems like a big thing to say about a book, but once I got going (real life and it's distractions, eh!) the end seemed to come around all too quickly.
I would highly recommend this - but make sure you have a box of Kleenex to hand. It's achingly sad in places.
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Awix (3310 KP) rated Halloween (1978) in Movies
Oct 30, 2020
John Carpenter's landmark horror movie; not the first slasher movie, but pretty much the textbook example of the genre. A homicidal maniac (and, just possibly, vessel of pure evil) breaks out of an institution and returns to his home town, where he murdered his sister at the age of six. Obsessive doctor Donald Pleasence is in hot pursuit, but Jamie Lee Curtis (in her debut) is about to find that babysitting really deserves danger money...
Always interesting to watch these classic horror films back on the big screen: as usual, there was a lot of nervous sniggering at some of the technical shortcomings of a low-budget production (plus Halloween has been so extensively ripped off and parodied it's the kind of film you feel you've seen before, even if you haven't). However, there were yelps and screams in the appropriate places as the film got going: Carpenter handles the jump scares with consummate technical skill, but it works as well as it does because of the atmosphere he creates, helped mainly by Pleasance. A film that really sets out to do only one thing, and for the most part achieves that brilliantly.
Always interesting to watch these classic horror films back on the big screen: as usual, there was a lot of nervous sniggering at some of the technical shortcomings of a low-budget production (plus Halloween has been so extensively ripped off and parodied it's the kind of film you feel you've seen before, even if you haven't). However, there were yelps and screams in the appropriate places as the film got going: Carpenter handles the jump scares with consummate technical skill, but it works as well as it does because of the atmosphere he creates, helped mainly by Pleasance. A film that really sets out to do only one thing, and for the most part achieves that brilliantly.
John Krasinski recommended Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) in Movies (curated)
Awix (3310 KP) rated Edge of Darkness in TV
May 5, 2020
Age shall not dim its brilliance, nor dodgy big-screen remakes with Mel Gibson: Edge of Darkness remains a landmark piece of TV drama, of enormous scope and ambition. The pitch - grieving detective hunts his daughter's murderer - sounds straightforward enough, even if the plot rapidly becomes ferociously convoluted. The key thing is that the conspiracy-detective storyline is in many ways the least important thing about the series.
Lengthy theses could and probably have been written about all the things that Edge of Darkness touches upon in the course of its six episodes: Anglo-American relations, the military-industrial complex, nuclear power, secret societies, ecology, the future of the human race, and much more (the original script ended with the main character mystically transforming into a tree). Strong performances and great direction keep it engrossing even when it's not entirely clear what's going on (you can generally get a sense of the direction of travel, though, and episode five works as a terrific mini-action movie even in isolation). Martin Campbell went on to successfully relaunch the Bond franchise twice, but this remains his magnum opus.
Lengthy theses could and probably have been written about all the things that Edge of Darkness touches upon in the course of its six episodes: Anglo-American relations, the military-industrial complex, nuclear power, secret societies, ecology, the future of the human race, and much more (the original script ended with the main character mystically transforming into a tree). Strong performances and great direction keep it engrossing even when it's not entirely clear what's going on (you can generally get a sense of the direction of travel, though, and episode five works as a terrific mini-action movie even in isolation). Martin Campbell went on to successfully relaunch the Bond franchise twice, but this remains his magnum opus.
The Bass Rock
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A modern gothic triumph. Spectacularly well-observed, profoundly disquieting and utterly riveting....
Historical fiction Scotland