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Suswatibasu (1701 KP) rated Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood in Books

Jan 3, 2018

An insider's view of Apartheid

It seems unlikely that comedian Trevor Noah would have ever made it out of the prison of colonialism, apartheid, poverty and violence, yet now he's regarded as one of South Africa's biggest export. His memoir is brutal and harrowing, describing how because of the illegal interracial relationship between his Xhosa mother and his Swiss-German, his birth was actually a crime.

It's hard to imagine that this legal segregation only ended 26 years ago, yet Noah then faced the turbulent legacy of post-apartheid. Being mixed race posed its own problems, as Noah describes never fitting in anywhere, but being accepted to a certain degree because of his 'whiteness' and his chameleon-like ability to adapt to his surroundings.

There are moments which are truly disturbing, as Noah speaks about his violent stepfather and going hungry. In this way, his life can be seen as a story of personal survival, through intelligence and humour, which millions have come to love.

Kudos

Heathere' (25 KP) rated Drunk History in TV

Mar 21, 2018

Drunk History

2013 | Comedy

8.5

(11 Ratings)

TV Show Rating

You could learn something and it's funny (0 more)

Learn about history from drunk people

The premise is that the host, Derek Waters goes to the house of various comedians and they drink copious amounts of alcohol. The guest comedian then narrates a true account of an historical figure that they are familiar with but they are inebriated while telling the story. Meanwhile, actors, comedians and Derek Waters play the roles of the historical figures and 'lip sync' whatever the guest narrator says. This can be very comical as the narrator slurs, burps, stutters or messes up the story in some way. Each episode has 2 or 3 guest comedians and there is usually a theme to each episode, i.e. civil rights, the west, etc. Everything the narrator says is obviously not 100% accurate, however, the basis is. I have actually learned a lot about historical figures because of Drunk History because I look up things about interesting characters I didn't know about.

Kudos

CKD (37 KP) rated The Good House in Books

Dec 7, 2018

Hildy Good is a real estate broker in Wendover, MA - a (fictional) town located north of Boston. Her husband left her for a man and she has 2 daughters with him. She is a grandmother. This story starts after she's been released from rehab for drinking (her daughters put her in rehab). It tells Hildy's story once she's home and trying to work and get through the day without drinking. Rebecca and her husband move to Wendover and Rebecca and Hildy become good friends. Hildy is happy (although she's started drinking secretly) until she discovers a secret about Rebecca and someone else in town. When the secrets start to unravel and there is a mysterious disappearance in town, Hildy begins to question some of her actions. At times funny, sad and poignant, the book is well written and you feel for all of the characters in the story. Ann Leary is the wife of Denis Leary, the comedian.