Search
Search results
Gilbert: The Last Years of W. G. Grace
Book
There are few more instantly recognisable figures, from any era, from any walk of life, than W.G....
SC
Stop Caretaking the Borderline or Narcissist: How to End the Drama and Get On with Life
Book
People with Borderline or Narcissistic Personality Disorders have a serious mental illness that...
Sugar Smash: Book of Life
Games and Entertainment
7.0
Rate It
App
Match sugar candies and rainbow drops to master this fun and challenging match-3 puzzle adventure...
Plotagraph+ Photo Animator
Photo & Video and Entertainment
App
**Launch Sale 50% off! Plotagraph+ is a one of a kind image animation app that brings photos to...
This isn’t the first time I’ve read this book, and it probably won’t be the last, either. I’m reading the first two books in preparation for reading the final book. Wolf Hall is as good as it was the first time round, and I think it’s a book that bears reading more than once - I’ve picked up things this time that I didn’t see the first read through. I have a sneaking suspicion that you could find something new, no matter how many times you read it.
It can be a little confusing at first, when Cromwell is referred to as ‘he’ throughout, but I slipped into the habit after a while. When learning about the Tudors at school, Cromwell is very much skimmed over. We learn that he had his moment of favour and then had his head chopped off 🤷🏼♀️. It seemed to be a bit of a professional hazard if you worked with royalty in those days.
This book gives Thomas Cromwell personality, feelings and you get to see his hopes and aspirations. He is portrayed as a thoroughly nice person, a good, caring father and employer. Someone who fought his way out of poverty, and tried to bring others out of that same situation. But he’s also shown to be calculating, cunning, a man that is no fool. There would have to be an element of the cut-throat about a man who wanted to work with Henry VIII; a king who was unpredictable, to say the least, and easily influenced by those around him.
I adore this period in history. Nothing is as shocking as real life, and I cannot for the life of me get over how cheap life was in a time where it should have been worth more (with no antibiotics, high infant and maternal mortality, death around the corner from simple illnesses). I’m really looking forward to rereading the second book in this trilogy now.
It can be a little confusing at first, when Cromwell is referred to as ‘he’ throughout, but I slipped into the habit after a while. When learning about the Tudors at school, Cromwell is very much skimmed over. We learn that he had his moment of favour and then had his head chopped off 🤷🏼♀️. It seemed to be a bit of a professional hazard if you worked with royalty in those days.
This book gives Thomas Cromwell personality, feelings and you get to see his hopes and aspirations. He is portrayed as a thoroughly nice person, a good, caring father and employer. Someone who fought his way out of poverty, and tried to bring others out of that same situation. But he’s also shown to be calculating, cunning, a man that is no fool. There would have to be an element of the cut-throat about a man who wanted to work with Henry VIII; a king who was unpredictable, to say the least, and easily influenced by those around him.
I adore this period in history. Nothing is as shocking as real life, and I cannot for the life of me get over how cheap life was in a time where it should have been worth more (with no antibiotics, high infant and maternal mortality, death around the corner from simple illnesses). I’m really looking forward to rereading the second book in this trilogy now.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019) in Movies
Aug 28, 2020 (Updated Aug 28, 2020)
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is genuinely wonderful.
Like any good drama, it if course has its somber moments, but the overall atmosphere is so heart warming, it honestly feels like a lovely hug, but one of those lovely hugs that makes you cry because life is hard sometimes.
Growing up in the UK, I never watched Mr Rogers, but was always aware of him, and just how much he meant to a massive number of people. This film is less a biopic, and concentrates firmly one one point of Fred Rogers life, namely when he met Tom Junod (presented here as fictional character Lloyd Vogel), a journalist writing for Esquire and profiling Mr Rogers for a piece on American Heroes.
Lloyd is a cynical person, who doesn't hold much love for his fellow man. This begins to change as he spends more time with Fred, a man who truly sees the good in everyone.
At the same time, Lloyd's estranged father is trying to reconnect with him, forcing him to relive past trauma as he struggles to forgive.
It's all very emotionally charged, but wrapped up neatly in Oscar-baiting packaging.
Tom Hanks as Mr Rogers, and Matthew Rhys as Lloyd are nothing short of excellent. Their chemistry is thoroughly believable. Tom Hanks is at the top of his game here, just as much as he has ever been.
The supporting cast are great as well, especially Susan Kelechi Watson and Chris Cooper.
ABDITN also looks fantastic. The contrast of real life drama to dream like sequences within Mr Rogers' show is an inspired choice by director Marielle Heller, and the use of model cars and cities as segues is effective.
The original score by her brother Nate Heller is just downright pleasant.
Overall, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is a decent drama about the importance of family, and what it means to love others, whilst remaining a well written love letter to Feed Rogers himself. It's just a really swell movie, definitely check it out.
Like any good drama, it if course has its somber moments, but the overall atmosphere is so heart warming, it honestly feels like a lovely hug, but one of those lovely hugs that makes you cry because life is hard sometimes.
Growing up in the UK, I never watched Mr Rogers, but was always aware of him, and just how much he meant to a massive number of people. This film is less a biopic, and concentrates firmly one one point of Fred Rogers life, namely when he met Tom Junod (presented here as fictional character Lloyd Vogel), a journalist writing for Esquire and profiling Mr Rogers for a piece on American Heroes.
Lloyd is a cynical person, who doesn't hold much love for his fellow man. This begins to change as he spends more time with Fred, a man who truly sees the good in everyone.
At the same time, Lloyd's estranged father is trying to reconnect with him, forcing him to relive past trauma as he struggles to forgive.
It's all very emotionally charged, but wrapped up neatly in Oscar-baiting packaging.
Tom Hanks as Mr Rogers, and Matthew Rhys as Lloyd are nothing short of excellent. Their chemistry is thoroughly believable. Tom Hanks is at the top of his game here, just as much as he has ever been.
The supporting cast are great as well, especially Susan Kelechi Watson and Chris Cooper.
ABDITN also looks fantastic. The contrast of real life drama to dream like sequences within Mr Rogers' show is an inspired choice by director Marielle Heller, and the use of model cars and cities as segues is effective.
The original score by her brother Nate Heller is just downright pleasant.
Overall, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is a decent drama about the importance of family, and what it means to love others, whilst remaining a well written love letter to Feed Rogers himself. It's just a really swell movie, definitely check it out.
Bored and Brilliant: How Spacing Out Can Unlock Your Most Productive and Creative Self
9.0
Rate It
Book
"Bored and Brilliant shows the fascinating side of boredom. Manoush Zomorodi investigates...
Mind
ClareR (5955 KP) rated The Country of Others in Books
Sep 19, 2021
This is a fascinating look at Leïla Slimani’s own family history.
Mathilde falls in love with, and marries, Amine Belhaj, a Moroccan stationed in Alsace. After the war, she sails to Morocco to live with Amine on his family farm. Life is so different to that in France, and Mathilde struggles to adapt. The French there shun her because of her husband, and Moroccans are suspicious of her because she’s French.
It’s a time of great upheaval in the 1950’s, as the Moroccans fight for independence from France, and life becomes increasingly dangerous for the Belhaj’s.
It’s a challenging life for Mathilde: she has to work hard, and Amine has a very fixed idea of a wife’s role. When she doesn’t stick to his rules, voices her opinions or disagrees, Amine beats her - he’s a violent man, scarred by the things that he saw and experienced in the war.
Mathilde does manage to insist that their daughter, Aicha, goes to a good French speaking school, and Aicha proves to be a good, diligent student - but the other girls at school are poisoned by their parents views: they’re very unkind and bully her.
There is a real feel for the heat and dust of Morocco. The contrasting cultures and religions of Christianity and Islam are shown, as well as the roles of women and how they are restricted in the light of their religions and it’s traditions. It looks at what it is to be a foreigner in a strange land; belonging, both in a country and a family; and the Moroccan struggle for independence from France.
This is going to be a trilogy, and I’m already fully invested in it - I can’t wait for the next book. Sam Taylor’s translation is perfect, and I hope that they’ll be translating the subsequent books as well.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for helping me (yet again!) with my NetGalley reading, and to Faber for my ebook copy through NetGalley.
Mathilde falls in love with, and marries, Amine Belhaj, a Moroccan stationed in Alsace. After the war, she sails to Morocco to live with Amine on his family farm. Life is so different to that in France, and Mathilde struggles to adapt. The French there shun her because of her husband, and Moroccans are suspicious of her because she’s French.
It’s a time of great upheaval in the 1950’s, as the Moroccans fight for independence from France, and life becomes increasingly dangerous for the Belhaj’s.
It’s a challenging life for Mathilde: she has to work hard, and Amine has a very fixed idea of a wife’s role. When she doesn’t stick to his rules, voices her opinions or disagrees, Amine beats her - he’s a violent man, scarred by the things that he saw and experienced in the war.
Mathilde does manage to insist that their daughter, Aicha, goes to a good French speaking school, and Aicha proves to be a good, diligent student - but the other girls at school are poisoned by their parents views: they’re very unkind and bully her.
There is a real feel for the heat and dust of Morocco. The contrasting cultures and religions of Christianity and Islam are shown, as well as the roles of women and how they are restricted in the light of their religions and it’s traditions. It looks at what it is to be a foreigner in a strange land; belonging, both in a country and a family; and the Moroccan struggle for independence from France.
This is going to be a trilogy, and I’m already fully invested in it - I can’t wait for the next book. Sam Taylor’s translation is perfect, and I hope that they’ll be translating the subsequent books as well.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for helping me (yet again!) with my NetGalley reading, and to Faber for my ebook copy through NetGalley.
Merissa (13197 KP) rated Refuge (Relentless, #2) in Books
Jun 8, 2023
O.M.G.!!! It's been a while since I read Relentless and now I've got a major urge to read it again, just so I can immerse myself in Sara's story right from the word go.
This is one of those books that I bought immediately after I finished Relentless, but just never got the chance to read before life got in the way. Let me just say, that since I've finished this, life isn't going to get a chance to get in the way as I am starting Rogue straight away!!
In Refuge, Sara is living in a 'military-style compound' where she was dumped by Nikolas. Let's just leave it at he is not her favourite person right now. She is struggling in training as she fears losing control of her Mori demon. She hasn't really made new friends, instead stays in phone contact with Roland, Peter, and of course, Uncle Nate.
There is too much to give you a rundown of this book, and seriously, why on earth would I do that? That's what the synopsis is for!! Suffice it to say, Sara has a big learning curve in front of her. With her magic, she is learning new 'tricks', as well as receiving her very own early warning vampire radar.
So many bits made me smile, so many bits made me frustrated for Sara, but most of all, I can't wait to see where it will go next. With one heckuva cliffhanger that really Nikolas should have seen coming a mile off knowing Sara (remember, I'm writing this before reading Rogue so I have no idea if he realises or not!)
If you want a paranormal romance that is full of Mori demons, the fae, griffins, Alex the wyvern (love him!), hellhounds, vampires, shifters, absolutely gripping, full of action and adventure, romance, and 'real-life' reactions, then look no further. I really can't recommend this highly enough!!!
* Verified Purchase on Amazon *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Jun 7, 2016
This is one of those books that I bought immediately after I finished Relentless, but just never got the chance to read before life got in the way. Let me just say, that since I've finished this, life isn't going to get a chance to get in the way as I am starting Rogue straight away!!
In Refuge, Sara is living in a 'military-style compound' where she was dumped by Nikolas. Let's just leave it at he is not her favourite person right now. She is struggling in training as she fears losing control of her Mori demon. She hasn't really made new friends, instead stays in phone contact with Roland, Peter, and of course, Uncle Nate.
There is too much to give you a rundown of this book, and seriously, why on earth would I do that? That's what the synopsis is for!! Suffice it to say, Sara has a big learning curve in front of her. With her magic, she is learning new 'tricks', as well as receiving her very own early warning vampire radar.
So many bits made me smile, so many bits made me frustrated for Sara, but most of all, I can't wait to see where it will go next. With one heckuva cliffhanger that really Nikolas should have seen coming a mile off knowing Sara (remember, I'm writing this before reading Rogue so I have no idea if he realises or not!)
If you want a paranormal romance that is full of Mori demons, the fae, griffins, Alex the wyvern (love him!), hellhounds, vampires, shifters, absolutely gripping, full of action and adventure, romance, and 'real-life' reactions, then look no further. I really can't recommend this highly enough!!!
* Verified Purchase on Amazon *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Jun 7, 2016
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated The Lion King (2019) in Movies
Jul 11, 2019
It seems recently that the Disney vault has exploded with the release of several of their classic animated films being remade. Unfortunately, the classics that have inspired these remakes have been redone with mixed results. The original The Lion King was released back in 1994 and it’s hard to believe that I was a junior in college when I saw it. Since that time, we’ve seen various iterations of the classic story, a few direct to VCR sequels and the awe-inspiring Broadway stage production (which if you are a serious fan of the movie I encourage you to see). It seems odd to discuss the plot of a movie that I’m certain everyone reading this has seen at least once (or a dozen times over). To the uninformed however, The Lion King is about a young cub named Simba (JD McCrary as the young voice and Donald Glover as the adult) who suffers the tragic loss of his father Mufasa (James Earl Jones) at the paws of his evil uncle Scar (Chiwetel Ejiofor). Scar convinces Simba that he is responsible for his father’s death and that he must leave the pride and never return. With the help of his faithful friends Timon (Billy Eichner), the lovable warthog Pumbaa (Seth Rogen), the ever wise Zazu (John Oliver) and his budding queen Nala (Beyoncé’) he learns that true courage comes from within and realizes he must face Scar if he is ever to bring peace back to the Pride Lands.
Given the recent track record, I wasn’t sure if this was going to be a retelling of the story as I remembered it, or a re-imagining of the story as a whole (and yes there is a difference). Thankfully, I can say that The Lion King draws practically all of its inspiration directly from the animated classic. Director Jon Favreau (who had already wowed audiences when he directed The Jungle Book) brings the same heart-warming, tear jerk moments that we all know and love. While he certainly didn’t take any risks with The Lion King, that’s exactly what made it such a pleasure to behold. He understood that there was no need to change the story into something new or try to make it something it shouldn’t be. True, for those who have seen the animated film it will feel incredibly familiar, but I think that’s exactly what fans are looking for. Changes and risks don’t always make a movie better, and The Lion King is a prime example of not breaking something that works.
The real star of the show however isn’t the actors, nor it’s incredible director, but the technology that went behind bringing our favorite felines to life. Disney refers to this as a “photo real movie”. The technology behind it merges both new and old together to bring the animals to life, indistinguishable from their real-life counterparts. Utilizing VR, animation and mixed with live action film-making it is practically impossible to distinguish what is live and what is animated. The character models have come a far way from the original Jumanji, which was heralded back in 1995 for it’s use of computer animated animals that supposedly looked and felt like the real thing. While Disney has always made great strides to make their computer-generated animals look and feel real (much like the absolutely stunning Jungle Book) The Lion King takes this to an entirely different level altogether.
Disney has done what has seemed practically impossible lately, bringing a classic back to the screen without changing what made the original such a classic. Unlike some of their more recent attempts, The Lion King holds true to the source material which has delighted fans for over 25 years. While the story doesn’t bring anything particularly new to the table, the photo realistic lions and their supporting cast feel as fresh as they ever have. If you aren’t a fan of the classic animated movie, The Lion King won’t necessarily change that, however the imagery alone may be reason enough to see it. I hope Disney takes note of this movie in particular, that fans don’t need a re-imagining of the stories that captivated our youths to bring the magic back. The Lion King is a testament to how the Disney classic still holds up today, and how to make something old feel new again.
http://sknr.net/2019/07/11/the-lion-king/
Given the recent track record, I wasn’t sure if this was going to be a retelling of the story as I remembered it, or a re-imagining of the story as a whole (and yes there is a difference). Thankfully, I can say that The Lion King draws practically all of its inspiration directly from the animated classic. Director Jon Favreau (who had already wowed audiences when he directed The Jungle Book) brings the same heart-warming, tear jerk moments that we all know and love. While he certainly didn’t take any risks with The Lion King, that’s exactly what made it such a pleasure to behold. He understood that there was no need to change the story into something new or try to make it something it shouldn’t be. True, for those who have seen the animated film it will feel incredibly familiar, but I think that’s exactly what fans are looking for. Changes and risks don’t always make a movie better, and The Lion King is a prime example of not breaking something that works.
The real star of the show however isn’t the actors, nor it’s incredible director, but the technology that went behind bringing our favorite felines to life. Disney refers to this as a “photo real movie”. The technology behind it merges both new and old together to bring the animals to life, indistinguishable from their real-life counterparts. Utilizing VR, animation and mixed with live action film-making it is practically impossible to distinguish what is live and what is animated. The character models have come a far way from the original Jumanji, which was heralded back in 1995 for it’s use of computer animated animals that supposedly looked and felt like the real thing. While Disney has always made great strides to make their computer-generated animals look and feel real (much like the absolutely stunning Jungle Book) The Lion King takes this to an entirely different level altogether.
Disney has done what has seemed practically impossible lately, bringing a classic back to the screen without changing what made the original such a classic. Unlike some of their more recent attempts, The Lion King holds true to the source material which has delighted fans for over 25 years. While the story doesn’t bring anything particularly new to the table, the photo realistic lions and their supporting cast feel as fresh as they ever have. If you aren’t a fan of the classic animated movie, The Lion King won’t necessarily change that, however the imagery alone may be reason enough to see it. I hope Disney takes note of this movie in particular, that fans don’t need a re-imagining of the stories that captivated our youths to bring the magic back. The Lion King is a testament to how the Disney classic still holds up today, and how to make something old feel new again.
http://sknr.net/2019/07/11/the-lion-king/