
Christine A. (965 KP) rated The Night Swim: A Novel in Books
Aug 4, 2020
Having worked in the criminal court system for years, I was looking forward to The Night Swim by Megan Goldin. The premise that you follow along with a podcast to reach your own verdict of a current and controversial trial sounded intriguing. I found myself angry by the main character's obvious slant on her podcast. If her role was to present an unbiased reporting of the events in court, she failed at her job. Her reporting of the case proceedings and the investigation taken are accurate, detailed, and complete. Goldin successfully captures the emotions involved in sensitive cases such as the one podcaster Rachel Krall covers for the third season of her podcast, Guilty or Not Guilty.
Goldin's story of the trial, the people involved, and the overlapping, interconnected tale from the past are woven into a clever novel narrated by Bailey Carr, January LaVoy, and Samantha Desz. All three narrators are accomplished voice actors. LaVoy narrated books by Patterson, Deaver, Grisham, and Goldin's New York Times Bestseller, The Escape Room.
The narrators' voices matched the story well, but the speed in which they spoke was too slow for me, and I listened to the story at a faster rate.
This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 8/3/20.

Sharpe's Tiger (Sharpe, #1)
Book
The prequel to the series, describing Sharpe's experiences in India. Sharpe’s Tiger describes the...

The House of Da Vinci
Games and Entertainment
App
Enter The House of Da Vinci, a new must-try 3D puzzle adventure game. Solve mechanical puzzles,...
Crisis and Constitutionalism: Roman Political Thought from the Fall of the Republic to the Age of Revolution
Book
Crisis and Constitutionalism argues that the late Roman Republic saw, for the first time in the...

ClareR (5950 KP) rated A Long Petal of the Sea in Books
Jan 14, 2020
This is the sweeping historical story of the Dalmau family, their role in the Spanish Civil War, their escape in to France (which was horrific), and their journey to Chile as refugees on the ship ‘Winnipeg’ arranged by the poet Pablo Neruda.
It’s a devastating and yet heartwarming look at humanity and it’s ability to endure. I hadn’t known about the concentration-style camps that the French forced the Spanish refugees in to after Franco and his right wing party won the Civil War. It looks as though people have always been able to destroy one another in inhuman ways (this is no surprise to me, by the way). We see more of the use of concentration camps in Chile after the military coup.
The main characters, Victor and Roser Dalmau continue to see Chile as their home, over and above Spain. They show us that home is where your friends, family and community are - and that you can make this home anywhere.
This book really is a joy to read. I’ve learnt so much of the history of this time, as well as having the pleasure of just reading a great story.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury for my copy of this book to read.

Deer Island
Book
At the beginning of the 1980s Neil Ansell chose a life of voluntary poverty working for the Simon...
Hit the Road, Jack: Essays on the Culture of the American Road
Gordon E. Slethaug and Stacilee Ford
Book
All travelers know the seductive power of the open road and its suggestions of possibility, escape,...

Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated The Invisible Man Returns (1940) in Movies
Dec 7, 2020
The plot: Wrongly accused of murdering his brother, Geoffrey Radcliffe (Vincent Price) is found guilty and sentenced to die. But when sympathetic Dr. Griffin (John Sutton) injects him with a serum that renders him invisible, Radcliffe is able to escape and search for the real culprit. With Inspector Sampson (Cecil Kellaway) of Scotland Yard hot on his trail, Radcliffe begins to suspect that a recent hire in his family's mining company might have the answers he seeks.
Following the commercial success of Son of Frankenstein, Universal Studios announced the development of The Invisible Man Returns in March 1939.
In May, Joe May was announced as the director of the film with either Boris Karloff or Bela Lugosi hinted at playing the lead.
Vincent Price when he was not covered by bandages or special effects only appears as himself for one minute in the film. Price spoke on the film saying that the special effects were done with Price being draped in black velvet and working against a set draped in black velvet. Price also spoke about working with Hardwicke, who he recalled "didn't like doing this film; he was facing home problems at the time. We became very close."
Its a great movie.

Under the Volcano
Book
One of the twentieth century's great undisputed masterpieces, Malcolm Lowry's Under the Volcano...

Scream All Night
Book
A darkly hilarious contemporary realistic young adult novel about growing up and finding your place...