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Jenna (87 KP) rated The Book Thief in Books

Jul 29, 2017  
The Book Thief
The Book Thief
Markus Zusak | 2016 | Fiction & Poetry
9
8.8 (129 Ratings)
Book Rating
Everything (0 more)
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Contains spoilers, click to show
I really enjoyed the fact that Zusak chose the write the novel from the perspective of Death. It was an interesting take on the causes and consequences of war, what it means to have compassion for your fellow human being, and doing the right thing even when doing so is difficult. I felt it also showed the complexities of war. War is never as simple as black and white, right and wrong. It's also - at its heart - a story about a young girl who loves to learn.
  
A Simple Favor (2018)
A Simple Favor (2018)
2018 | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
Bordering on very good and excellent. Started watching it and thought it would be similar to Girl on a Train but how wrong I was, can't really talk about the film without giving too much away but there are plenty of twists and different tangents going on. The film has been narrated as if it was a true story with a voice over at the beginning and what happened next at the end, haven't read the book but don't think it is is true. One final thing always look out for the quiet ones.
  
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Doug Jones recommended Meet Joe Black (1998) in Movies (curated)

 
Meet Joe Black (1998)
Meet Joe Black (1998)
1998 | Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

"Coming up to more recent years, I think Meet Joe Black, again, was a tear-jerky chick flick for me that I loved. And the performances…Anthony Hopkins can do no wrong, Brad Pitt‘s become a favorite as well, and Claire Forlani — stop already! All that girl has to do is blink and I’m enraptured. And that was another romance with a sci-fi twist; death coming to take a holiday."

Source
  
The Last Confession of Autumn Casterly
The Last Confession of Autumn Casterly
Meredith Tate | 2020 | Young Adult (YA)
10
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
A powerful story of two sisters
The Last Confession of Autumn Casterly hooked me from the first chapter. The sisters Ivy and Autumn lost their mother to cancer three years ago, and their father has remarried. Ivy is a nerd girl band geek and Autumn is the “bad girl”, dealing drugs and getting into trouble. They barely communicate, but when Autumn is kidnapped, Ivy knows something is very wrong and does not give up on Autumn despite others assuming that Autumn’s disappearance is just due to her own bad behavior. This book is a well written thriller with excellent characters, and skillfully explores the bond between the sisters, friendships, and families. The author also examines how girls’ lives are valued less than those of boys. It was hard to put down and thought provoking.
  
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Reiko LJ (126 KP) rated Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017) in Movies

Jul 23, 2018 (Updated Jul 23, 2018)  
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)
2017 | Action, Adventure, Comedy
Great cast and chemistry (1 more)
A genuine message at the end of it all
Don't judge a game by its box
Contains spoilers, click to show
I can hold my hands up and genuinely say I was wrong about this film and all my pre-judgements of it.
When the initial trailers dropped I was appalled - not only had they besmirched the good Jumanji name with a cheap remake but it had tropes ahoy and fanservice nonsense with Karen Gillan running round in a skimpy outftit. Also the Jack Black playing a female character just felt like a dodgy observation on a man being funny pretending to speak like a woman.

Well. I was totally wrong.
It sold itself as good fun and it delivered with some actual depth bringing up the rear.
The tropes I was worried about were flipped on their head. The geeky guy didn't chase the popular girl and get her in the end - he always liked the geeky girl. The game gave them a platform to express their mutual feelings to each other and to gain confidence in general.
The jock learned about strengths outside of his physicality. The popular girl learned about being selfless and seeing the world outside of her phone.
The video game format was a great way to bring the film to the modern age and had some really smart nods to aspects within them.

 Definitely not what I expected, pleasantly surprised. Hell, the ending even brought a tear to my eye! 100% glad I gave it a shot
  
TW
The Wrong Girl (Jane Ryland, #2)
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
This is the second book about reporter Jane Ryland and Boston detective Jake Brogan. This time around, Jane is helping a former co-worker find out if she was sent to the wrong woman while trying to track down her birth mother. Meanwhile, she is also covering a murder that Jake is investigating. A woman is found murdered. Two kids under 3, both alive, are in the next room. It looks like a simple domestic dispute except the woman has no ID anywhere in the apartment.

I loved the book. It started fast and never let me go until I reached the end. The characters were great as well, and I had a blast spending time with all of them.

I got the book via Amazon Vine.

Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2013/07/book-review-wrong-girl-by-hank.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.