
The Book Smugglers of Timbuktu: The Quest for This Storied City and the Race to Save its Treasures
Book
Two tales of a city: The historical race to reach one of the world's most mythologized places, and...

Girls - Season 3
TV Season
In Season 3, Hannah is now in a committed relationship with Adam (Adam Driver), and the two are...

Brecht, Music and Culture: Hanns Eisler in Conversation with Hans Bunge
Hans Bunge, Hans Eisler, Sabine Berendse and Paul Clements
Book
The Austrian composer Hanns Eisler was Bertolt Brecht's closest friend and most politically...

LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Spontaneous (2020) in Movies
Mar 7, 2021
Turns out that Spontaneous is a wonderfully heartfelt (and gory) tale of two college kids who fall in love.
The two leads played by Katherine Langford and Charlie Plummer are some of the most likable characters I've seen in ages. Their chemistry is top tier, and their relationship feels real and relatable and is the glue that holds the whole narrative together.
The gory side of things is quite something. It's nicely spaced out so it doesn't steal the spotlight, but Jesus Christ it's anxiety inducing. I was just on edge for the whole runtime wondering when someone else would violently explode. Would it be mid sentence? Would it be one of the characters I liked? "No one has blown up in a while, and I'm so nervous" is a thought that kept popping (pun fully intended) into my head. Somehow, it's a cute enough love story that is just tense as fuck. Hats off to everyone involved!
Watching Spontaneous is a ride. It's uplifting, suitably visceral, wonderfully acted, and feels meaningful.... definitely nearly(...) cried on more than one occasion. It's all backed by a great soundtrack, and has some lovely cinematography and inspired style choices. Absolutely recommend this one, for romance and horror fans alike.

Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Into the Deep (Into the Deep #1) in Books
Jan 8, 2021
Well, I downloaded this as a freebie back in 2012 and it had been sitting on my kindle for ages so as part of Goodreads' "We (heart) YA"'s ABC challenge I decided to read this.
For the first 20-25% I was a little bored with it, finding it hard to get into and Ivy's friends were hard to like. However when Brant really came a part of her life, after the school classes and he more or less saved her, I started to really get into it. Romance reader and all... :)
I really liked the progression of their relationship going from wary classmates to boyfriend/girlfriend. It was a complicated journey thanks to Ivy wanting someone else who wanted her friend but they got there in the end.
As for the plot to blow up the school...I was stumped as to who was behind it. I think I ran through every member of the plot apart from the ones we were centring on. Still had no idea.
I feel I ought to mention Charlie too. She was pretty cool and seems like she'd be a great friend to have.
I know there's a second book in the series but after reading the synopsis of it I'm not sure I want to read it, mainly because it sounds like Brant and Ivy aren't together anymore :(

Rob Zombie recommended Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971) in Movies (curated)

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2346 KP) rated Pony Up in Books
Jul 10, 2021
This book follows the previous book in the series very closely. In fact, some of the storylines I thought were wrapped up come back into play. The result feels more like a TV show than a novel, however, with the dueling plots. The characters are wonderful, and fans of the series will be excited to see what happens next to them. Well, mostly. There are a couple of scenes that were excessive, and I have to wonder what one character did to the author to get the treatment they got here. The ending, while wrapping up the plot, did seem a bit abrupt. I did enjoy the book because I like the characters and got caught up in the events, but I’ve enjoyed other books from this author more.

Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated Scent of a Woman (1992) in Movies
Nov 29, 2020
The plot: Frank is a retired Lt. Col. in the US army. He's blind and impossible to get along with. Charlie is at school and is looking forward to going to college. To help pay for a trip home for Christmas, he agrees to look after Frank over Thanksgiving. Frank's niece says this will be easy money, but she didn't reckon on Frank spending his Thanksgiving in New York.
Pacino painstakingly researched his part in Scent of a Woman. To understand what it feels like to be blind, he met with clients of New York's Associated Blind, being particularly interested in seeing from those who had lost their sight due to trauma. Clients traced the entire progression for him—from the moment they knew they would never see again to the depression and through to acceptance and adjustment. The Lighthouse, also in New York, schooled him in techniques a blind person might use to find a chair and seat themselves, pour liquid from a bottle and light a cigar.
Its a excellent movie, but its very depressing and sad at moments. So get ready to cry at those moments.

A Tale of Two Horses: A Passion for Free-Will Teaching
Book
A Tale of Two Horses tells the story of two ex-racehorses with behavioural problems, who embark on a...

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated A Bad Day for Sunshine in Books
Jun 6, 2020
Kindle
A Bad Day for Sunshine ( Sunshine Vicram book 1)
By Darynda Jones
Del Sol, New Mexico is known for three things: its fry-an-egg-on-the-cement summers, strong cups of coffee - and, now, a nationwide manhunt?
Del Sol native Sunshine Vicram has returned to town as the elected sheriff, expecting nothing more than a quiet ride. But now a teenage girl is missing, a kidnapper is on the loose, and all of this is reminding Sunshine why she left Del Sol in the first place. Add to that the trouble at her daughter's new school, plus a kidnapped rooster named Puff Daddy, and, well, the forecast looks anything but sunny.
But even clouds have their silver linings. This one's got Levi, Sunshine's sexy, almost-old flame, and Quincy Cooper, a fiery-hot US Marshall. With temperatures rising everywhere she turns, Del Sol's normally cool-minded sheriff is finding herself knee-deep in drama and danger.
Can Sunshine face the call of duty - and find the kidnapper who's terrorising her beloved hometown - without falling head over high heels in love . . . or worse?
I’m a huge Darynda fan! I’ve read her Charlie books so many times! This was just brilliant I loved everything about! The characters the story the mystery just everything! The quotes from Del Sol police blotter were so so funny! Darynda has a way of completely sucking you in to everything she writes! Brilliant!!!