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An East End Story
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One evening in the long hot summer of 1959, Alfred Gardner was walking home along Commercial Road....
ClareR (5879 KP) rated The Vanishing Half in Books
Jul 8, 2020
I read The Mothers, Brit Bennett’s first book, and loved it. So when this popped up on NetGalley, I knew I had to request it, and I was so pleased when I was given the opportunity to read it.
It’s a story about secrets, lies and reinvention - the sacrifices someone has to make in order to get the life they want. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.
Stella and Desirée Vignes are identical twin sisters, brought up in a small southern town, where all the inhabitants are black people who could pass for white people if they wanted to (which a very dangerous thing to try and do at the time the story is set).
The twins escape together, and then Stella leaves Desirée. Stella discovers that she can pass as white, and marries a wealthy white man, who knows nothing of her origins. Desirée marries a black man who beats her, and so she escapes back to her mother with her dark skinned daughter, Jude. Jude is never accepted in Desirée’s home town of Mallard, and so she leaves to go to university as soon as she is able to.
This is where Jude’s life unwittingly intersects with that of Stella’s daughter, and secrets that have been kept for so long, are brought out into the open.
I loved everything about this book. The characters and their motivations, the storyline, the way the book was written - everything! I could see why Stella did what she did, and how she felt trapped by her choices, and it’s a great example of how prejudice and racism works in the USA - and potentially here in the UK as well.
I really do highly recommend this book. It’s such a great story that kept me engaged from start to finish. I have to admit to reading it slower to make it last longer - it’s a book that I’ll be recommending to my friends, that’s for sure!
It’s a story about secrets, lies and reinvention - the sacrifices someone has to make in order to get the life they want. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.
Stella and Desirée Vignes are identical twin sisters, brought up in a small southern town, where all the inhabitants are black people who could pass for white people if they wanted to (which a very dangerous thing to try and do at the time the story is set).
The twins escape together, and then Stella leaves Desirée. Stella discovers that she can pass as white, and marries a wealthy white man, who knows nothing of her origins. Desirée marries a black man who beats her, and so she escapes back to her mother with her dark skinned daughter, Jude. Jude is never accepted in Desirée’s home town of Mallard, and so she leaves to go to university as soon as she is able to.
This is where Jude’s life unwittingly intersects with that of Stella’s daughter, and secrets that have been kept for so long, are brought out into the open.
I loved everything about this book. The characters and their motivations, the storyline, the way the book was written - everything! I could see why Stella did what she did, and how she felt trapped by her choices, and it’s a great example of how prejudice and racism works in the USA - and potentially here in the UK as well.
I really do highly recommend this book. It’s such a great story that kept me engaged from start to finish. I have to admit to reading it slower to make it last longer - it’s a book that I’ll be recommending to my friends, that’s for sure!
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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Ready or Not (2019) in Movies
Sep 2, 2019
I’ve always loved playing games, board games, role playing games, computer games…whatever. I remember as a kid most of the games we played were played outside, whether it was a game of capture the flag, tag, or the always entertaining game of Hide and Seek. All the games I have ever played have been played in fun, with no real stakes involved outside of maybe some pride or some friendly competition. What if there was more at stake than simply having to sit out the game for the rest of the time? What if hiding and surviving until dawn was the only way you were going to live to see the next day? I don’t know about you, but I’d make sure it was the best game of Hide and Seek I’d ever played, or it would end up being my last. Ready or Not, a dark comedy from Fox Searchlight (now Walt Disney Studios) and directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, explores what happens when a ruthless business man sells his soul to the devil for the sake of a board game empire.
Early on we are introduced to Grace. She spent her childhood bouncing from foster home to foster home, wanting a family but just never quite getting one. When she finally finds the man of her dreams Alex (Mark O’Brien) who also is one of the heirs to a giant gaming empire, she believes that all her longing for a family, even one as messed up as his, is finally paying off. Not long after the wedding it is revealed that part of the tradition to joining the family is to play a game. Alex reassures her that the game could be something as simple as checkers or possibly as complex as chess. He doesn’t know as it’s up to a special box, imbued with mystical powers that selects the game that she will be forced to play.
Upon placing the card in the box, and withdrawing it, three little words are inscribed upon it…Hide and Seek. Thinking this is simply a game, and with no further instructions, the family puts on the Hide and Seek record and begin counting to 100. Once the count is up, weapons are handed out to the “seekers” and the game begins.
Not long after finding her hiding spot, Grace quickly becomes bored of playing and comes out admitting defeat. It is only after a series of unfortunate events resulting in the deaths of some of the key players does Grace finally understand that this family plays for keeps. With the help of an unlikely ally from Alex’s brother Daniel (Adam Brody), she not only is given an opportunity to survive the night, but also learns of the pact with the devil that was made which allowed the family to acquire its great fortune. Unless they can satisfy the curse, the entire family will not live to see the sunrise.
Ready or Not takes an outstanding cast and provides them with an equally fantastic setting. Andie MacDowell portrays the creepy mother-in-law Becky, along with her equally creepy and even more unhinged husband Tony (Henry Czerny). Each character plays out their roles in the most over-the-top performances imaginable, an they pull them off more believably then I think they even had intended. Whether its Kristian Bunn as the bumbling Fitch, who is forced to YouTube how to use a crossbow and googles whether pacts with the devil are real or BS…or Elyse Levesque as the stoic Charity, who has absolutely no problem killing someone, if it means she gets to maintain her lavish lifestyle. The cast is truly what pulls the movie off, with their ability to take the absurdity and make it almost feel normal.
Ready or Not does have the occasional jump scare and is literally coated in blood throughout, but it’s the dark comedy that really sets this movie apart from many that have come before it. I don’t know if it’s wrong to laugh at things that should be completely taboo as much as I did. Ready or Not tries to make you think it’s serious, even when you know it is intentionally not. While some of the dialog might fall a bit flat, you’d be hard pressed to notice between your bursts of laughter. You know a movie does something right, when you find yourself quoting it not only immediately after it finishes, but into the next day (and at this rate probably beyond).
Ready or Not is a fun film, that’s the best way to describe it. It’s gruesome and of course violent, but it doesn’t take itself seriously and asks the same of the audience. There have been other movies who have taken this genre too seriously in the past, and lead to mixed results. Ready or Not wants you to laugh at its absurdity and take glee in the events that take place. Based on the individual characters, it’s amazing that the family has survived as long as it has…must be because that card doesn’t come up very often. If you are looking for a fun film, one that you want to laugh at (and with) you could certainly do worse than Ready or Not. It is one of the best dark comedies to come out in years, and it makes me long for the days when movies were still unique and weren’t simply attempting to reboot everything.
Early on we are introduced to Grace. She spent her childhood bouncing from foster home to foster home, wanting a family but just never quite getting one. When she finally finds the man of her dreams Alex (Mark O’Brien) who also is one of the heirs to a giant gaming empire, she believes that all her longing for a family, even one as messed up as his, is finally paying off. Not long after the wedding it is revealed that part of the tradition to joining the family is to play a game. Alex reassures her that the game could be something as simple as checkers or possibly as complex as chess. He doesn’t know as it’s up to a special box, imbued with mystical powers that selects the game that she will be forced to play.
Upon placing the card in the box, and withdrawing it, three little words are inscribed upon it…Hide and Seek. Thinking this is simply a game, and with no further instructions, the family puts on the Hide and Seek record and begin counting to 100. Once the count is up, weapons are handed out to the “seekers” and the game begins.
Not long after finding her hiding spot, Grace quickly becomes bored of playing and comes out admitting defeat. It is only after a series of unfortunate events resulting in the deaths of some of the key players does Grace finally understand that this family plays for keeps. With the help of an unlikely ally from Alex’s brother Daniel (Adam Brody), she not only is given an opportunity to survive the night, but also learns of the pact with the devil that was made which allowed the family to acquire its great fortune. Unless they can satisfy the curse, the entire family will not live to see the sunrise.
Ready or Not takes an outstanding cast and provides them with an equally fantastic setting. Andie MacDowell portrays the creepy mother-in-law Becky, along with her equally creepy and even more unhinged husband Tony (Henry Czerny). Each character plays out their roles in the most over-the-top performances imaginable, an they pull them off more believably then I think they even had intended. Whether its Kristian Bunn as the bumbling Fitch, who is forced to YouTube how to use a crossbow and googles whether pacts with the devil are real or BS…or Elyse Levesque as the stoic Charity, who has absolutely no problem killing someone, if it means she gets to maintain her lavish lifestyle. The cast is truly what pulls the movie off, with their ability to take the absurdity and make it almost feel normal.
Ready or Not does have the occasional jump scare and is literally coated in blood throughout, but it’s the dark comedy that really sets this movie apart from many that have come before it. I don’t know if it’s wrong to laugh at things that should be completely taboo as much as I did. Ready or Not tries to make you think it’s serious, even when you know it is intentionally not. While some of the dialog might fall a bit flat, you’d be hard pressed to notice between your bursts of laughter. You know a movie does something right, when you find yourself quoting it not only immediately after it finishes, but into the next day (and at this rate probably beyond).
Ready or Not is a fun film, that’s the best way to describe it. It’s gruesome and of course violent, but it doesn’t take itself seriously and asks the same of the audience. There have been other movies who have taken this genre too seriously in the past, and lead to mixed results. Ready or Not wants you to laugh at its absurdity and take glee in the events that take place. Based on the individual characters, it’s amazing that the family has survived as long as it has…must be because that card doesn’t come up very often. If you are looking for a fun film, one that you want to laugh at (and with) you could certainly do worse than Ready or Not. It is one of the best dark comedies to come out in years, and it makes me long for the days when movies were still unique and weren’t simply attempting to reboot everything.
Debbiereadsbook (1444 KP) rated The Color of Summer in Books
May 30, 2019
bloody loved it!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
Max returns home to open his tattoo studio and to be closer to his mum. On the way he gets stopped speeding, by his best friend's older brother, Tyler. While Max has immediate attraction to Tyler, Tyler is straight and tells him so. But there is . .something . . between them, and as the summer begins, the relationship grows. Can Tyler be a cop in a small town, who is gay?
I might gush about this book, just a heads up! Cos I bloody LOVED it!
Max returns to his home town after his mum has a stroke. He wants to be closer while she recovers. And he wants his own tattoo studio so combines the two plans into one. Meeting Tyler throws Max for a loop, cos he never really noticed Tyler before, you know? He was just Shane's big brother, is all. But now, the man did grow up good and proper and he pushes all of Max' buttons.
Tyler is just plodding along, bringing up his daughter with the help of his family. Catching up with Max was fun, and Tyler really needs a friend. But his long suppressed attraction to men, and to Max in particular begins to resurface, Tyler doesn't want Max as a friend, he WANTS Max. He has his daughter the think about, though, and his job as deputy, and his brother's reaction to finding out.
I really LOVED this, it fell on my kindle just when I needed it to and I devoured it. That's the only word I can find: devoured.
I went to bed to read a few chapters and the next thing I know, it was 1am and I had finished. It's not a short book, 230 odd pages, but it felt a lot less. A sign of a good, nay, GREAT book, that; that it doesn't seem as long as it really is!
Both Max and Tyler have a say, in the third. Both voices are clear and different and they tell their story incredibly well.
It has a good deal of angst/drama but they aren't really the right words for it. It's more soul searching, maybe? I dunno, hate not finding the right words. It has a LOT of emotion, both for Max and Tyler, from very different points of view. There is a huge family network too, who see, you know, they SEE what Max feels for Tyler, even if they haven't figured that out themselves yet!
It's not overly explicit, but I don't think it needs to be. It's hot and sexy though! The relationship between Max and Tyler moves along at a steady pace, both the emotional connection adn the physical one. I liked being made to wait a while!
I've only read one other book by Ms Martin, and that book didn't quite work for me but THIS one? I freaking loved it and it just goes to show, you can't love every book and just because one book by an author doesn't work for you, it doesn't mean they ALL won't.
So, because I loved it, because I read it in one sitting, just because its my review and I CAN . . .
5 stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
Max returns home to open his tattoo studio and to be closer to his mum. On the way he gets stopped speeding, by his best friend's older brother, Tyler. While Max has immediate attraction to Tyler, Tyler is straight and tells him so. But there is . .something . . between them, and as the summer begins, the relationship grows. Can Tyler be a cop in a small town, who is gay?
I might gush about this book, just a heads up! Cos I bloody LOVED it!
Max returns to his home town after his mum has a stroke. He wants to be closer while she recovers. And he wants his own tattoo studio so combines the two plans into one. Meeting Tyler throws Max for a loop, cos he never really noticed Tyler before, you know? He was just Shane's big brother, is all. But now, the man did grow up good and proper and he pushes all of Max' buttons.
Tyler is just plodding along, bringing up his daughter with the help of his family. Catching up with Max was fun, and Tyler really needs a friend. But his long suppressed attraction to men, and to Max in particular begins to resurface, Tyler doesn't want Max as a friend, he WANTS Max. He has his daughter the think about, though, and his job as deputy, and his brother's reaction to finding out.
I really LOVED this, it fell on my kindle just when I needed it to and I devoured it. That's the only word I can find: devoured.
I went to bed to read a few chapters and the next thing I know, it was 1am and I had finished. It's not a short book, 230 odd pages, but it felt a lot less. A sign of a good, nay, GREAT book, that; that it doesn't seem as long as it really is!
Both Max and Tyler have a say, in the third. Both voices are clear and different and they tell their story incredibly well.
It has a good deal of angst/drama but they aren't really the right words for it. It's more soul searching, maybe? I dunno, hate not finding the right words. It has a LOT of emotion, both for Max and Tyler, from very different points of view. There is a huge family network too, who see, you know, they SEE what Max feels for Tyler, even if they haven't figured that out themselves yet!
It's not overly explicit, but I don't think it needs to be. It's hot and sexy though! The relationship between Max and Tyler moves along at a steady pace, both the emotional connection adn the physical one. I liked being made to wait a while!
I've only read one other book by Ms Martin, and that book didn't quite work for me but THIS one? I freaking loved it and it just goes to show, you can't love every book and just because one book by an author doesn't work for you, it doesn't mean they ALL won't.
So, because I loved it, because I read it in one sitting, just because its my review and I CAN . . .
5 stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**