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Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated The More you Ignore me in Books
Feb 20, 2022
31 of 230
Book
The more you ignore me
By Jo Brand
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Celebrity obsession, coming of age and cow shit - an hilarious, poignant and darkly comic novel by the Queen of Comedy.
Alice is a young girl growing up in a dysfunctional family in Herefordshire in the 1980s. Her mother is suffering a mental illness - she is on medication, is put away in an institution, but constantly escapes - while her father, Keith, very sweetly, tries to keep everything together. His in-laws, the Wildgooses, are a bunch of reckless, lawless country bumpkins and can offer very little help or sensible advice, preferring instead to remain in the pub or to use a shotgun to solve life's little problems. The only thing that gives meaning and hope to Alice as she makes her way through childhood, school and teenage trauma is her obsession with the singer Morrissey of The Smiths. She is desperate to see The Smiths at a live gig, but somehow her family always manages to derail her plans. Gradually her mother begins to share her fascination with the rock god and his presence in their lives goes someway to healing her and repairing her relationship with her long-suffering daughter.
This was really good! It was funny and darkly so. It follows the life of a young girl dealing with the effects her mothers mental illness has on her and her father. It’s has a dark underlay that as someone who struggles mentally I can relate too. So much better than I was expecting.
Book
The more you ignore me
By Jo Brand
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Celebrity obsession, coming of age and cow shit - an hilarious, poignant and darkly comic novel by the Queen of Comedy.
Alice is a young girl growing up in a dysfunctional family in Herefordshire in the 1980s. Her mother is suffering a mental illness - she is on medication, is put away in an institution, but constantly escapes - while her father, Keith, very sweetly, tries to keep everything together. His in-laws, the Wildgooses, are a bunch of reckless, lawless country bumpkins and can offer very little help or sensible advice, preferring instead to remain in the pub or to use a shotgun to solve life's little problems. The only thing that gives meaning and hope to Alice as she makes her way through childhood, school and teenage trauma is her obsession with the singer Morrissey of The Smiths. She is desperate to see The Smiths at a live gig, but somehow her family always manages to derail her plans. Gradually her mother begins to share her fascination with the rock god and his presence in their lives goes someway to healing her and repairing her relationship with her long-suffering daughter.
This was really good! It was funny and darkly so. It follows the life of a young girl dealing with the effects her mothers mental illness has on her and her father. It’s has a dark underlay that as someone who struggles mentally I can relate too. So much better than I was expecting.
The Quid Pro Quo (The Bradfield Trilogy #2)
8.0
Rate It
Book
Village nurse Walter Kennett is content with his makeshift found-family in tiny Bradfield. However...
Found Family 1920's British Murder-Mystery Historical M/Transm
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Belfast (2021) in Movies
Jan 14, 2022
In short, Belfast is a very human and truly wonderful piece of cinema.
It's visual style is both stunning and simple, and is brimming with plenty of striking imagery.
It's themes are rich. The setting explores the civil unrest between Protestants and Catholics in 1960s Belfast. This turbulent moment in time is a constant presence for sure, but the main bulk of the narrative deals with a working class family who are struggling with debt, and are looking to potentially relocate to England in light of the city wide violence. The very heart of the story though is found in Buddy, the young son of the family who is dealing with growing up and not wanting to leave. Buddy's actor, Jude Hill, is excellent. He embodies innocent childhood and the adventure that comes with it. He's an 11 year old actor, holding his own against screen veterans such as Ciarán Hinds and Judi Dench (both fantastic as always).
Other than Buddy, most of the heavy lifting is undertaken by the mother, played by Caitriona Balfe, who really deserves an Academy Nomination for her role here. Jamie Dornan also stars, who proved to be a pleasant surprise for me, only knowing him from the obvious, and is a welcome addition to an all round stellar cast. Throughout this, the narrative touches upon loss and loneliness, and the moments of life that manage to be bittersweet.
Belfast is a sometimes heartwarming, powerful, occasionally funny, and often melancholy tale told with a lot of love and care. Kenneth Branagh has delivered a slice of cinematic gold.
It's visual style is both stunning and simple, and is brimming with plenty of striking imagery.
It's themes are rich. The setting explores the civil unrest between Protestants and Catholics in 1960s Belfast. This turbulent moment in time is a constant presence for sure, but the main bulk of the narrative deals with a working class family who are struggling with debt, and are looking to potentially relocate to England in light of the city wide violence. The very heart of the story though is found in Buddy, the young son of the family who is dealing with growing up and not wanting to leave. Buddy's actor, Jude Hill, is excellent. He embodies innocent childhood and the adventure that comes with it. He's an 11 year old actor, holding his own against screen veterans such as Ciarán Hinds and Judi Dench (both fantastic as always).
Other than Buddy, most of the heavy lifting is undertaken by the mother, played by Caitriona Balfe, who really deserves an Academy Nomination for her role here. Jamie Dornan also stars, who proved to be a pleasant surprise for me, only knowing him from the obvious, and is a welcome addition to an all round stellar cast. Throughout this, the narrative touches upon loss and loneliness, and the moments of life that manage to be bittersweet.
Belfast is a sometimes heartwarming, powerful, occasionally funny, and often melancholy tale told with a lot of love and care. Kenneth Branagh has delivered a slice of cinematic gold.
A Winter Memory
Book
A house full of secrets lies at the heart A Winter Memory from Sunday Times top ten bestselling...
Midnight Captive (Bonded By Blood Vampire Chronicles #2)
8.0
Rate It
Book
CAILIN MAC DOUGAL has lived a dangerous life being the adopted daughter of vampire Broderick...
Historical Paranormal Romance
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated The Bourbon Kings (The Bourbon Kings, #1) in Books
Jan 29, 2024
18 of 220
Book
Reread
The Bourbon Kings (Book1)
By J.R. ward
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
For generations, the Bradford family has worn the mantle of kings of the bourbon capital of the world. Their sustained wealth has afforded them prestige and privilege - as well as a hard-won division of class on their sprawling estate, Easterly. Upstairs, a dynasty that by all appearances plays by the rules of good fortune and good taste. Downstairs, the staff who work tirelessly to maintain the impeccable Bradford facade. And never the twain shall meet.
For Lizzie King, Easterly's head gardener, crossing that divide nearly ruined her life. Falling in love with Tulane, the prodigal son of the bourbon dynasty, was nothing that she intended or wanted - and their bitter breakup only served to prove her instincts were right. Now, after two years of staying away, Tulane is finally coming home again, and he is bringing the past with him. No one will be left unmarked: not Tulane's beautiful and ruthless wife; not his older brother, whose bitterness and bad blood know no bounds; and especially not the iron-fisted Bradford patriarch, a man with few morals, fewer scruples, and many, many terrible secrets. As family tensions - professional and intimately private - ignite, Easterly and all its inhabitants are thrown into the grips of an irrevocable transformation, and only the cunning will survive.
This is a reread for me and one of my favourites! This gives me Dallas crossed with Jilly Coopers Riders vibes. So much drama and the characters are so much fun!
Book
Reread
The Bourbon Kings (Book1)
By J.R. ward
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
For generations, the Bradford family has worn the mantle of kings of the bourbon capital of the world. Their sustained wealth has afforded them prestige and privilege - as well as a hard-won division of class on their sprawling estate, Easterly. Upstairs, a dynasty that by all appearances plays by the rules of good fortune and good taste. Downstairs, the staff who work tirelessly to maintain the impeccable Bradford facade. And never the twain shall meet.
For Lizzie King, Easterly's head gardener, crossing that divide nearly ruined her life. Falling in love with Tulane, the prodigal son of the bourbon dynasty, was nothing that she intended or wanted - and their bitter breakup only served to prove her instincts were right. Now, after two years of staying away, Tulane is finally coming home again, and he is bringing the past with him. No one will be left unmarked: not Tulane's beautiful and ruthless wife; not his older brother, whose bitterness and bad blood know no bounds; and especially not the iron-fisted Bradford patriarch, a man with few morals, fewer scruples, and many, many terrible secrets. As family tensions - professional and intimately private - ignite, Easterly and all its inhabitants are thrown into the grips of an irrevocable transformation, and only the cunning will survive.
This is a reread for me and one of my favourites! This gives me Dallas crossed with Jilly Coopers Riders vibes. So much drama and the characters are so much fun!
A Rose In The Blitz (Sisters of War, #1)
Book
Escape into the dramatic world of London during the Blitz in this sweeping family saga of love, war...
Historical Fiction Historical Romance World War II
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2340 KP) rated Murder at Marble House in Books
Nov 6, 2024
Unfortunate Fortune Teller Murdered
We are once again in August 1895 in Newport, Rhode Island. Emma Cross, society reporter for the local paper, has her morning interrupted when her distance cousin, Consuelo Vanderbilt calls begging for Emma to come over to Marble House. While Emma finds herself caught up in some family drama, the last thing she expects is that her visit will end in murder. But that’s just what happens when the fortune teller that Alva Vanderbilt has hired is found dead behind the estate. When a family member vanishes, Emma starts to investigate. Can she find out what happened?
This book picks up right after the last one ends. While it doesn’t spoil the murder itself, it does give away some ongoing storylines. The story presents an interesting mystery, but the pacing does get off at times. We get some developments in Emma’s personal life, and I’m not sure I’m on her side as much after some of what happened here. If I’m this opinionated, clearly, I’m finding the characters real, and that includes real people and fictional characters. Speaking of which, the author includes a bit about what is true and what she twisted to make her plot work, which I always appreciate. I read this book right after getting to visit Newport, which made it easier to picture some of the locations. I’m already wishing I’d had time to really explore the locations more when I was there. Overall, this is a good second entry, and I’m looking forward to the next in the series.
This book picks up right after the last one ends. While it doesn’t spoil the murder itself, it does give away some ongoing storylines. The story presents an interesting mystery, but the pacing does get off at times. We get some developments in Emma’s personal life, and I’m not sure I’m on her side as much after some of what happened here. If I’m this opinionated, clearly, I’m finding the characters real, and that includes real people and fictional characters. Speaking of which, the author includes a bit about what is true and what she twisted to make her plot work, which I always appreciate. I read this book right after getting to visit Newport, which made it easier to picture some of the locations. I’m already wishing I’d had time to really explore the locations more when I was there. Overall, this is a good second entry, and I’m looking forward to the next in the series.
Lenard (726 KP) rated Gloria Bell (2019) in Movies
Mar 27, 2019
Julianne Moore (1 more)
Supporting cast
Dance Your Cares Away
Contains spoilers, click to show
Dancing is an art form. It is freedom. It can be both joyful or sadness. Dance is a metaphor for the ups and downs, ins and outs of life. Gloria loves to dance and goes out dancing whenever she gets the chance. Her job in insurance is mundane and joyless. Her children are both grown. Her daughter is a yoga instructor in a relationship with a Swedish big wave surfer, the symbol of YOLOism. Her son is raising a son alone while his millenial wife discovers herself or finds inner peace or some granola truism. Her ex-husband is out of her life amd played by hangdog Brad Garrett. The nights out dancing are a way to live for her. One night she meets a hot-blooded recent divorcee who ignites a untapped passion in her. He reads Latin American poetry and owns an amusement park with automatic paintball guns. Something doesn't feel completely right with this man though. His thirtyish daughters constantly call him, abandoning her in key spots. The relationship drains her and she refuses to dance. Until she realizes the truth and then avenges herself with his gifted gun. Kind of ironic that he is cheating with her and he gets angry when she ignores him while with her immediate family. In the end, she dances at her friend's daughter's wedding and finds her own inner joy.