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Jo Nesbo recommended Ham on Rye in Books (curated)

 
Ham on Rye
Ham on Rye
Charles Bukowski, Roddy Doyle | 2015 | Fiction & Poetry
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Favorite

"I read this as a young student, and I thought you had to be me or one of my friends to appreciate the raw humor and sweet sadness. So I was surprised when my father picked up my book when I was home for summer holiday, and I saw him sitting in his reading chair, laughing out loud. It’s a bit like your parents copying your playlist and actually digging it; you're not sure whether you should feel invaded or proud."

Source
  
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Zac Clark recommended Elves (1989) in Movies (curated)

 
Elves (1989)
Elves (1989)
1989 | Horror
4.5 (4 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"This thing has everything: an evil killer elf, a pervy department store Santa, a heroic homeless department store Santa played by Dan Haggerty, neo-Nazi occultists, an exploding car, The Virgin of Anti-Christmas, perms on every female character, nudity aplenty, castration, electrocution, a kitten drowned in a toilet — I could keep going. Just watch the trailer on YouTube and then find this movie immediately by any means necessary. If Troll 2 had a holiday special, this would be it."

Source
  
World After
World After
Susan Ee | 2016 | Fiction & Poetry
10
8.8 (6 Ratings)
Book Rating
My one thought right now is: why didnt I fetch the last book with me on holiday?!?

I sped through this so easily and quickly got dragged back into the series despite it being 2 and a half years since I read the first one.

Unfortunately I'm going to have to wait another four or five days till I'm back home to finish the series now and see how everything plays out with Penryn, Raffe, Paige and their crazy mum.
  
Noelle is trying to forget all about Christmas, both the holiday and the town. Currently in a dressing room she hears noises coming from the room next door. Oh great now she gets to hear a couple going at it, she truly needs a life. After hearing some commotion outside her door it flies open and a very hot man literally ends up in her almost naked lap. After one very scorching kiss he leaves her room so she can get dressed again. She hightails it out of there hoping no one sees her.

Mark waits a minute and returns to the dressing room area to get the name of the woman who just blew his mind with a single kiss. She is no where to be found, great. Work calls then, as he is needed at the station to get information on the latest robbery in town. A business was targeted and their Christmas funds stolen. Heading to the location he asks to see the owner to get more information on the theft and runs smack into his mystery kisser.

Noelle and Mark do all they can to avoid each other but the universe has other ideas for them. When Mark heads to the town of Christmas, Noelle’s hometown, to follow up on some leads on the thefts he sees exactly the life she is trying hard to leave behind. Pretending to be her boyfriend to stop the town gossip mill has him falling even harder for her.

Holiday themed romance with light mystery, was a good read for the holiday season for me. Part of the Santori Stories series, this is book #3
  
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Sarah (7798 KP) created a post in All Things Disney

May 9, 2018  
We visited Disneyworld in Sept/Oct last year. I've been a few times before, but it was my other halfs first time. Unsurprisingly it was a fantastic holiday!

So for those of you that have been to any of the Disney worlds or lands across the globe, what's your favourite ride?

For me it has to be Tower of Terror. So glad they've kept the original one in Florida and not changed it! We’re on the far right of the front row in the picture... ?
  
CH
Caillou: Happy Holidays!
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Another contribution from this bright, familiar series. this book can quickly become a favourite and whilst this one is particular to the holiday season, Caillou has several different adventures for your child to pick up. The idea of being able to support a little one in the exciting build up to Christmas alongside introducing them to the wider world and traditions of other cultures is a wonderful idea and one to be applauded. Who knows, reading this book may add to your own christmas traditions.
  
SG
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Meg is in charge of the yearly Christmas, I mean Holiday, parade. As if trying to keep the people from irritating each other isn't enough, someone kills Santa. The book starts off with plenty of laughs but it moves into more serious matters as the murder takes center stage. I did figure things out fairly early, but I was having so much fun I didn't care.

Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2013/04/book-review-six-geese-slaying-by-donna.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
  
Running Wilde (Immortal Vegas, #9)
Running Wilde (Immortal Vegas, #9)
Jenn Stark | 2017
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Hmm...

I've enjoyed this series a lot and as I'm currently on holiday in Vegas I thought it would be great to read this while I was here, imagining the Councils residences above the hotels of the Strip, but most of this book isn't even set in Vegas and I kinda lost interest about half way through for a while.

Eventually I picked it back up and finished it. The war on magic is almost here now and everything is intensifying.

Off to start book 10
  
Ticket to paradise (2022)
Ticket to paradise (2022)
2022 | Comedy
8
6.3 (4 Ratings)
Movie Rating
George Clooney (1 more)
Julia Roberts
Watched Thursday can't remember the last time I laughed so much during a film at the cinema but I did anyway the film as this a Clooney Roberts film where they play divorced couple who can't stand to be in the same room together but they decide to team up and stop there daughter from marrying someone she just met on holiday and that's where the laughs both the stars have great chemistry and it shows. Overall good afternoon viewing
  
The United States vs. Billie Holiday (2021)
The United States vs. Billie Holiday (2021)
2021 | Biography, Drama, Music
6
6.5 (2 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Strong Central Performance...The Rest Of The Film Is A Scattered Mess
Lee Daniels is a passionate filmmaker and his passion for bringing the story of Billie Holiday to the screen as the embodiment of the African American struggle against White Officials who are trying to mute her is evident in every frame of THE UNITED STATES VS. BILLIE HOLIDAY.

Unfortunately, he tries to do so much with this film, that he accomplishes very little.

Let’s start with what works in this film: the TERRIFIC performance of Andra Day as the titular character. Day embodies the troubled artist strongly and she does all of the singing of this world renowned performer. It is a superb performance and she rightfully deserves her Oscar nomination.

What doesn’t work? Pretty much the rest of the film.

Daniels has so much material to work with - and a terrific actress at the center of it - that he tried to cram EVERYTHING into this film, consequently, the film is scattered and doesn’t know what it wants to be.

Is it a biopic? A look at an artist who overcame a horrific childhood? A look at an artist that is battling demons? A look at an artist that has toxic relationships with men? Or…is it about the United States Government trying to suppress free speech in order to keep the African American from rising up in the 1950’s?

The answer is…it is all of that…and none of that. Just when you think the film has it’s footing in one direction, it pivots in another and rarely gets back to tie off the other.

For example, look at the title of the film - THE UNITED STATES VS. BILLIE HOLIDAY. So, it must be about the United States (in this instance, the Federal Drug Agents) trying to bring Billie Holiday to justice. And…at the beginning it IS about that…namely in the guise of stopping her from singing STRANGE FRUIT and trying to frame her for her drug use. So…you would think that the film will, eventually, get Holiday on stage to sing a triumphant FULL version of Strange Fruit.

You would think that, wouldn’t you.

Now…to be fair to Daniels and this film, there is about a 15 minute portion of this film in the middle that shows Holiday’s heartbreaking childhood, followed by a haunting song sung by Day. It is a very effective portion of the film, and that (and Day’s performance) are worth wading through the “highlights and lowlights” of Holiday’s life that is the rest of this film.

I have not seen the lauded 1972 LADY SINGS THE BLUES that is a more straightforward Bio-pic of the singer (starring Diana Ross), after watching this film, I think I will.

Letter Grade: B- (because of Day’s performance and that 15 minute segment)

6 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)