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Tethered (The Ties that Bind #3)
Tethered (The Ties that Bind #3)
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Tethered by Elanor Bertin was a book full of searching, friendships, and finding out who you are.

I'll be honest I struggled through the first part of this book, I just didn't understand where it was going. But I liked Jacqui. So I kept reading. I thought it was interesting how Eleanor Bertin grew Jacqui as a character, it was like watching a flower bloom. Slow at first and the wham, beautiful flower is open and grown. I liked the life lessons that Jacqui learned along the way through the story, and the helpful spirit she had towards the other characters, she showed a lot of courage. But I just had trouble liking how she handled different situations, it is probably because it is not how I would have handled the situation. The secondary characters really helped build the sense of small community life and I really enjoyed them. The only other different thing is the ending, but you'll have to read it to find out why :)

I do recommend reading this book if you like second chances, slow build romances, and journeys of growth. I give it 3 out of 5 stars for the reasons given above. I will be reading more books by this author, this book just happens to not be my favorite.

*I volunteered to read this book in return for my honest feedback, the thought and opinions expressed within are my own.
  
I truly enjoyed this adventure across the country!
I have read several of Misty M. Beller’s books now and she is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors in the Christian historical fiction genre. This is the first book in The Mountain Series and a great introduction to the series overall! I will be buying the rest of the series.
    From the very beginning, Misty M. Beller grabs your imagination with intrigue and travel. With so much going on in the first few chapters I was nervous that the rest of the book would not live up to the beginning’s standards. I was pleasantly surprised when that same even pace was kept through the whole book! The vivid descriptions through Leah’s travels across the country and the descriptions of everyday life on the mountain were fascinating and believable. It got my imagination involved. The plot was believable (Mostly, I mean it is a work of fiction), and it flowed well from one scene to the next keeping a hint of mystery along the way.
    The characters in this book were interesting. I loved Leah’s faith; I strive to have the faith she displays. I also liked her unwavering strength when things got tough on the mountain, she showed such a positive spirit and seemed like a joyful person. Gideon... Silent and quiet at first, great with animals, like to chop wood, Mm, talk about a mountain man
  
Beetlejuice (1988)
Beetlejuice (1988)
1988 | Comedy, Fantasy, Horror
Micheal Keaton (1 more)
Tim Burton
Say His Name
Beetlejuice- is a halloween classic. Its also a tim burton classic. The cast is really good, the fantasy gothic horror element is really good. Its also a dark film, and its PG and it does have some not PG moments. Its a excellent movie.

The plot: After Barbara (Geena Davis) and Adam Maitland (Alec Baldwin) die in a car accident, they find themselves stuck haunting their country residence, unable to leave the house. When the unbearable Deetzes (Catherine O'Hara, Jeffrey Jones) and teen daughter Lydia (Winona Ryder) buy the home, the Maitlands attempt to scare them away without success. Their efforts attract Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton), a rambunctious spirit whose "help" quickly becomes dangerous for the Maitlands and innocent Lydia.

Burton cast Ryder upon seeing her in Lucas. O'Hara quickly signed on, while Burton claimed it took a lot of time to convince other cast members to sign, as "they didn't know what to think of the weird script.

Warner Bros. disliked the title Beetlejuice and wanted to call the film House Ghosts. As a joke, Burton suggested the name Scared Sheetless and was horrified when the studio actually considered using it.

Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian is in development hell and now its shelved. So the likely chance of it coming out is unlikely, but who knows.

Like i said before Beetlejuice is a excellent Halloween Classic.
  
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Pete Wareham recommended Baba Ramdev by Musafir in Music (curated)

 
Baba Ramdev by Musafir
Baba Ramdev by Musafir
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"In 2000, I went into the shop and I bought some jazz that I knew I wanted to get, and I said to the guy, "what else can I get?", and he pointed out this album with camels on it. I thought, I'll give that a try, and it was this Nubian music, which I got really into and also I bought another one, which was an Algerian CD. I listened to that for a bit and then I just kind of stopped and didn't really listen to world music for 10 years. Ali Hussan Kuban was the doorway to all the rest of them. I heard that in 2011 and I've basically been searching ever since for anything else that feels that way. A few years later, one of the things I found was this track 'Baba Ramdev'. It's just so incredibly joyful and it feels like an epic adventure. There's something absolutely epic about it, to me. It sounds like they're outside. How you seen any of those YouTube videos of the Gypsies of Rajasthan, the colourful dresses they wear and the dances they do? It's pretty incredible. And they're always in some really remote-looking rocky outcrop, somewhere in the desert. And the cover of this album as well, the guy with the amazing moustache. I love that whole spirit, really wild and free - that's what the song feels like to me."

Source
  
The SpongeBob Musical: Live on Stage! (2019)
The SpongeBob Musical: Live on Stage! (2019)
2019 | Adventure, Comedy, Musical
An overall good musical event, mostly deserving of its Herculean 12 Tony nominations (there should be a criminal investigation into how it only took home one). As someone who's been a die-hard SpongeBob fan since I was a fetus, not only does this capture the essence of what makes the show so great both in appearance *and* in spirit - but I wasn't vetting on this being as timely as it was (tackles prejudice, media vs. government, and takes a jab at climate change deniers just for the hell of it which of course I always endorse). The casting couldn't be better (Ethan Slater is pretty much the human embodiment of SpongeBob), the production is like a vibrant splashpad of childhood wonderment and SpongeBob trademarks brought to life - some of the best aesthetics the theatre has to offer, the songs are good (even if none really stick out), it's very funny, and most importantly it has a deep understanding of the source material and a selfless willingness to please the fans without pandering (they even reference Battle for Bikini Bottom [!!]). The introduction of Tom Kenny's Patchy the Pirate sent my kid self to the moon and back again. This is what happens when you want to make something that's good out of an existing IP. Never cared for Best Day Ever as an SS song but this may have just converted me.
  
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Kirk Bage (1775 KP) rated Schindler's List (1993) in Movies

Jan 18, 2021 (Updated Feb 25, 2021)  
Schindler's List (1993)
Schindler's List (1993)
1993 | Biography, Drama, History
The fourth in my series of films you would recommend to an alien to explain humanity dovetails nicely with my Hall of Fame inductee this week. It is Steven Spielberg’s seminal anti war epic Shindler’s List (1993).

This one speaks for itself in many ways. As an exploration of evil and the men behind the atrocities committed during the late 30s and early 40s by Nazi Germany it is indispensable. The role played by Ralph Fiennes is especially brave and resonant in reminding us of how ego and power can corrupt beyond the point of anything recognisably human. But it is in the moments of resilience, defiance and sacrifice by the survivors that we fully appreciate the depths of the human spirit. A career defining performance by both Liam Neeson and Sir Ben Kingsley makes this a breathtaking and heartbreaking spectacle in every brutally emotional scene.

I will never forget seeing this in the cinema on its initial release and experiencing the absolute silence as the credits rolled and everyone left the screen and into the night with their thoughts and reflections, simply stunned by its impact. It demonstrates the very best and the very worst of human action and inaction in one perfect movie. Never an easy watch under any circumstances, but one worth dissecting and appreciating for all its genius – the directing, acting, cinematography, music, editing, everything is as near perfect as a film can be.
  
The Gift of the Magpie
The Gift of the Magpie
Donna Andrews | 2020 | Mystery
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Who Used a Helping Hand to Murder?
This year at Christmas, the churches in Caerphilly, Virginia have started a Helping Hands for the Holidays charity event, and Meg is right in the thick of it, organizing and helping. One of their projects is helping Harvey the Hoarder declutter and fix up his house before the county is called to intervene. Day one goes pretty well, but when Meg shows up for the second day, she finds him lying in a pool of blood in the garage. Are the rumors of a treasure hidden in the house true? Did that get Harvey killed?

I always enjoy visiting Meg, and this book was no exception. The sub-plots involving her large family slow down the main mystery early on, but as a fan of the series and the characters, that’s a minor complaint. Once the mystery gets going, it is strong with several good suspects and twists before we reach the great climax. The sub-plots still weave in and out of the main mystery, and I really enjoyed them and the Christmas spirit they give us. I didn’t find this book quite as funny as some of the others, maybe because it left me contemplating which side of the hoarder or collector line I’m on. If you are looking for an entertaining mystery set at Christmas, there’s still time this year to cozy up to the fire and enjoy this mystery.
  
The Farewell (2019)
The Farewell (2019)
2019 | Comedy, Drama
In the West, families celebrate each other in death. If someone is dying, the news is shared and every one comes together to tragically revere their family member. In the West, they celebrate their family member in life. They do not let someone know that they are dying instead bringing a sense of joy by coming together. This culture clash between the New World ideas and Old World ideas populate Lulu Wang's new film "The Farewell." The family matriach has stage 4 cancer, but rather than tell her that she is dying, the two brothers and their families stage a wedding. One son emigrated to America and raised a liberal arts educated daughter who struggles to make ends meet. One son went to Japan and raised his son. Left behind, the sister and a niece took care of their mother. It is revealed how much the sister has sacrificed for this matriach, but she is happy to give her sister the joy to live. Is it wrong to tell a lie if it makes a person's life better? Which idea of death do you follow? Awkwafina gives a surprising performance as Billi, the Asian-American artist who loves her grandmother and struggles to understand how this lie is good. Shuzhen Zhao plays Nai Nai, the family matriach, with spirit and style, the kind of performance Oscar would notice if they gave notice to Asian performances.
  
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