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ClareR (5879 KP) rated China Room in Books

Aug 13, 2021  
China Room
China Room
Sunjeev Sahota | 2021 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
China Room was a beautifully written, emotional novel set in rural Punjab in 1929 and the 1990’s. The unnamed male protagonist in the 90’s has travelled to stay with family mainly to kick a drug habit before he starts at university back in the UK. His addiction could well have been caused by the racist taunts and violence he has experienced at home in Britain - these things are addressed in the book.

He ends up staying on the abandoned family farm: a ramshackle building that needs a lot of work. One room is locked: the China Room. This is where his grandmother, Mehar, would have lived away from the prying eyes of men, working with the wives of the other two brothers to her husband. None of the women know who their husband is - they never see them in daylight. They cook and clean for them, and then have sex with them when their mother-in-law, Mai, allows. Their main function is to bear sons.

It’s a hard way of life, but the women accept their roles. As a 21st century women, living in the West, I found this very difficult to read. It’s an oppressive, claustrophobic life - even down to the veils that they had to wear when out in public which gave the impression of suffocation. I don’t know whether any of the girls actually looked another human in the face, other than each other and their mother-in-law.

But I found this timeline fascinating, and it was a huge contrast to that of Mehar’s grandson. It’s a compelling read - I read it in one sitting, and was a bit sad when I turned the last page, to leave the world of Mehar in particular.

Many thanks to Harvill Secker and Viking for my copy of this book to read and review.
  
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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

Sep 2, 2021  
Check out my book review for CREATRIX RISING: UNLOCKING THE POWER OF MIDLIFE WOMEN, a self-help memoir, by Stephanie Raffelock. (I loved this book so much!) Enter the giveaway to win your own signed copy of the book and a $25 Starbucks gift card - four winners!

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2021/09/book-blog-tour-and-giveaway-creatrix.html

**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
From the author of the award-winning book A Delightful Little Book on Aging comes a new self-help memoir Creatrix Rising: Unlocking the Power of Midlife Women (She Writes Press). In her new book, Stephanie Raffelock liberates mold-defying midlife women, tired of the oft-inaccurate characterization of the “old crone,” to amplify the resounding strength within.

Ever since Eve was banned from the garden, women have endured the oftentimes painful and inaccurate definitions foisted upon them by the patriarchy. Maiden, mother, and crone, representing the three stages assigned to a woman’s life cycle, have been the limiting categories of both ancient and modern (neo-pagan) mythology. And one label in particular rankles: crone. The word conjures a wizened hag—useless for the most part, marginalized by appearance and ability.

None of us has ever truly fit the old-crone image, and for today’s midlife women, a new archetype is being birthed: the Creatrix.

In Creatrix Rising, Raffelock lays out—through personal stories and essays—the highlights of the past fifty years, in which women have gone from a quiet strength to a resounding voice. She invites us along on her own transformational journey by providing probing questions for reflection so that we can flesh out and bring to life this new archetype within ourselves. If what the Dalai Lama has predicted—that women will save the world—proves true, then the Creatrix will for certain be out front, leading the pack.
      
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Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Thirteen Minutes (2021) in Movies

Feb 25, 2022  
Thirteen Minutes (2021)
Thirteen Minutes (2021)
2021 | Action, Drama, Thriller
2
2.0 (1 Ratings)
Movie Rating
A new disaster film, cue excitement. Even a low budget disaster film can be good…

Life is disrupted when a storm turns its eye on a small town. Residents are tested, and they must put their differences aside to help each other make it through safely.

... that thing I said above about even low budget disaster films being good? Yeah, I don’t know how much this cost (I’m assuming not a lot), but it was not good.

This could have been a great short that ran 13 minutes, instead, it’s 1 hour and 48 minutes long. Those extra 95 minutes are made of bloated storylines, and while they overlap, none of them really have any weight. Removing a couple could easily have allowed the others more time to develop and actually let the viewer become more invested.

Out of the cast I can’t really call out anyone. There are faces you’ll recognise from other things, and they’re generally solid actors, but in this... there wasn't really a lot for them to work with.

There are many moments that defy sensible behaviour, as you'd expect from a disaster film. Only one amused me, while the others were mainly annoying.

You either need to take yourself seriously, or embrace the inevitable ridiculousness behind the idea. If this had leaned hard into the ridiculousness it could have been great. 13 Minutes disappointed on so many levels that adding truly terrible effects may actually have helped! I won’t need to watch this again, a disaster film that barely has a disaster in it was not what I signed up for.

[Side note: Initially I gave this 2 out of 5 stars. I have since retracted a star for this film's sheer audacity.]

Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2022/02/13-minutes-movie-review.html