Search

Search only in certain items:

    Treats

    Treats

    Lara Williams

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

    Book

    'It was the curse of the modern age, options; who needed options, when everything was essentially...

    Valentina

    Valentina

    S.E. Lynes

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

    Book

    When Glasgow journalist Shona McGilvery moves with her partner Mikey and their baby to an idyllic...

    Continent

    Continent

    Jim Crace

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

    Book

    Jim Crace's acclaimed debut novel explores an imaginary seventh continent, subtly different from any...

40x40

Butch Vig recommended Pretenders by Pretenders in Music (curated)

 
Pretenders by Pretenders
Pretenders by Pretenders
1980 | Rock
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"Every song on the Pretenders’ self-titled debut is so good. The energy is superb; it's a band playing at the peak of their powers. Unfortunately they didn't really last - they buckled under the pressure, under their own personal demons. However this record is just amazing. You put it on and the energy and vibe and Chrissie Hynde’s lyrics and singing are pretty powerful and undeniable. Chrissie Hynde is one of my favourite female artists in rock music with one of the most gorgeous voices in rock. I know that Shirley adores her and cites her as one of her influences - some lyrics of Shirley's in one of our songs, 'Special', is a total nod to Chrissie."

Source
  
40x40

David Lowery recommended Hereditary (2018) in Movies (curated)

 
Hereditary (2018)
Hereditary (2018)
2018 | Drama, Horror, Mystery

"Horror is my favorite genre, and Ari Aster’s debut is one of the scariest movies I’ve ever seen. I caught it at an advance screening in Vancouver, and had to sleep with the hotel lights on afterwards – something I haven’t had to do since 2002. I was traumatized. I wondered if the movie might be too brutal. The only way to find out, of course, was to drag as many friends as I could to see it when it opened a few weeks later. Maybe it was thanks to my loudly screaming chums, but this time around I couldn’t stop laughing. What a wicked movie. I can’t wait to rewatch it every October for the rest of my life."

Source
  
40x40

Matt Dentler recommended Shadows (1959) in Movies (curated)

 
Shadows (1959)
Shadows (1959)
1959 | Drama, Romance
(0 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"In fact, the whole John Cassavetes: Five Films set. This is the starter kit for anyone who wonders about the roots of the American independent film movement. Seeing Cassavetes’s debut, the politically charged love story Shadows, is like watching the birth of a giant. Meanwhile, Faces and A Woman Under the Influence are searing portraits of the blinding pain true love can bring when a marriage ends up tearing a family apart. The Killing of a Chinese Bookie and Opening Night, on the other hand, are noirish sagas of death and business. Plus, Charles Kiselyak’s moving documentary A Constant Forge offers up the proper historical and cultural perspective on one of American cinema’s true visionaries."

Source
  
40x40

Gaz Coombes recommended Boys Don't Cry by The Cure in Music (curated)

 
Boys Don't Cry by The Cure
Boys Don't Cry by The Cure
1980 | Alternative
9.0 (5 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"This reminds me of childhood. It was a US release that took songs from their debut, Three Imaginary Boys, along with singles from the time. I could often hear it coming through the walls of my brother’s room. And that definitely had a big effect on how I remember that period. I don’t know what it was in particular that grabbed my attention; there was just something really enticing and compelling about it. We each had little hi-fi systems in our rooms and when he went out I’d just sort of nick or borrow it, take it into my room along with other stuff like The Smiths and Siouxsie & The Banshees."

Source
  
Tribune of Rome
Tribune of Rome
Robert Fabbri | 2011 | Fiction & Poetry, History & Politics
8
6.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
I had never heard of Vespasian below starting this book, and assumed that he was a fictitious character in the same vein as Sharpe or Hornblower, just in the Roman era. Obviously I was wrong, for he in fact became Emporer of Rome after Nero (kinda).

This added a level of intrigue to the story for me, obviously this book is only the beginnings of his story, as there are another 9 books in the series. But it's definitely got me hooked.

At times I got a little exasperated with stone of the tropes and plot conveniences used, but I'm giving Fabbri the benefit of the doubt, after all this was his debut novel.