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Sex, Love, and Dharma: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Relationships
Book
The people of ancient India understood that most humans are incomplete without an intimate partner,...
Stitch Your Own Silver Linings: A breakthrough guide to helping yourself to happiness - no matter what
Book
Have you ever had the experience where one minute life is wonderful, and you are on top of the...
The Hidden Secrets of Water: Discovering the Powers of the Magical Molecule of Life
Book
"Human beings are inexorably drawn to water because ...it reveals both the origins and purpose of...
AV
A Victorian Scientist and Engineer: Fleeming Jenkin and the Birth of Electrical Engineering
Gillian Cookson and Colin Hempstead
Book
This title was first published in 2000: In a life of only 52 years, Fleeming Jenkin established his...
Churchill's Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare: The Mavericks Who Plotted Hitler's Defeat
Book
'A magnificent story, brilliantly told. Read it!' Anthony HorowitzSix gentlemen, one goal - the...
Germany: Memories of a Nation
Book
From Neil MacGregor, the author of A History of the World in 100 Objects, this is a view of Germany...
Dog Days is a moving, and at times very funny, book about three people: George, Dan and Lizzie. It is NOT a book about dogs - which is what I thought it would be about to some extent - but the main characters do all have dogs. And they are dogs with a purpose. All three of the main characters are going through difficult times in their lives, and their dogs are the ones who give them love, support and a reason to keep going.
George, Dan and Lizzie are all vulnerable characters: whilst Dan and Lizzie seem to suffer in silence, George is happy to let the world know how angry he is. The comedy element of the novel comes from George, but you can see the grief of the sudden loss of his wife behind his bluster and foul language.
Dan is a counsellor with OCD, which he keeps largely hidden. The only person he seems to socialise with is his cousin, Luke, who he goes running and dog walking with. And that’s his life: work, Luke, Fitz (his dog). Dan has a secret, and I think to begin with, it’s a secret even from himself.
Lizzie is another complex character. There’s a lot going on with her: she’s in a women’s refuge with her young son and won’t talk about what happened to her. She seems to be punishing herself about a mistake she believes she has made. And it’s a bit of an “Oh wow!!” moment when that reveal comes along.
This book had me laughing out loud and having a bit of a weep in equal measure. It’s an emotional book. I really, really enjoyed it, and would definitely recommend it.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for serialising this.
George, Dan and Lizzie are all vulnerable characters: whilst Dan and Lizzie seem to suffer in silence, George is happy to let the world know how angry he is. The comedy element of the novel comes from George, but you can see the grief of the sudden loss of his wife behind his bluster and foul language.
Dan is a counsellor with OCD, which he keeps largely hidden. The only person he seems to socialise with is his cousin, Luke, who he goes running and dog walking with. And that’s his life: work, Luke, Fitz (his dog). Dan has a secret, and I think to begin with, it’s a secret even from himself.
Lizzie is another complex character. There’s a lot going on with her: she’s in a women’s refuge with her young son and won’t talk about what happened to her. She seems to be punishing herself about a mistake she believes she has made. And it’s a bit of an “Oh wow!!” moment when that reveal comes along.
This book had me laughing out loud and having a bit of a weep in equal measure. It’s an emotional book. I really, really enjoyed it, and would definitely recommend it.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for serialising this.
LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell (2009) in Movies
Apr 11, 2021
I mean, just read the title. Its reputation absolutely precedes it - one of the most hateful, tasteless, depraved movies ever to have a wide release within the last 50 years. Pure sleaze, one last battle cry from the 2000s signature brand of worshipping the most objectionable fratbro stupidity there is out there (no surprise that this, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳, and 𝘔𝘪𝘴𝘴 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩 all came out the same year) - which usually I'm averse to, but even after having seen thousands of movies at this point even *I* was shocked at how mean they played this. On that level alone I admire it for the sole purpose that this would never get made today; it set out to be vile and by God did it accomplish that without reservation. I also like how they (smartly) removed all pretense and for once in one of these just decided to play the lead character as a self-confessed sociopath (not to mention Matt Czuchry is fucking aces in this role). They take the entire core concept of these movies and - against all expectations - flip it right on its head so rather than us being expected to empathize with this creep, the story instead becomes about how the people around him cope/rationalize with being friends with a psycho. And on that note, the three leads are cleverly realized as the three types of misogynist you're likely to see in these sorts of college groups (the one with no delusions about his hatred of women, the one who also hates women but plays coy about it, and the one who's convinced he's above it all despite enabling the previous two while also casually partaking in it himself albeit not as often). My biggest gripe? The porno-cheap production. You couldn't get a real director to touch this thing? But hey the dwarf stripper stuff is *riotously* funny.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2589 KP) rated Arsenic and Adobo in Books
May 5, 2021
Murder of an Ex
After a disastrous breakup with her fiancé, Lila Macapagal has moved back to Shady Palms, Illinois, and is trying to help her aunt save her Filipino restaurant. One issue the restaurant is having is Derek Winter, Lila’s high school sweetheart who has becoming the local food critic and has written several nasty reviews of Tita Rosie’s Kitchen. When he comes back for yet another meal, he winds up dropping dead in his meal. Now the police are looking at Lila as a murderer, Tita Rosie’s Kitchen is closed until further notice, and Lila feels like the only hope of a happy ending is figuring out what is going on herself. Can she keep herself out of jail?
This is a solid debut. The mystery starts off quickly, and Lila learns plenty of secrets on her way to uncovering what really happened. The climax is suspenseful and creative. The characters are all strong. We even learn a bit more about Derek that makes him a little sympathetic although not completely likable. The rest of the cast is strong. A few supporting players blend together, but that is done on purpose, and we see glimpses of their individual personalities. We do have the beginnings of a love triangle here. Some of Lila’s friendships are so strong already, they help make those characters more real for us. I did feel a few of the themes of the book weren’t quite as well developed as I would have liked. Hopefully they will be explored more in further books. If the descriptions of food make you as hungry as they made me, you’ll be happy to see the four recipes at the end of the book. This is a strong debut, and I already can’t wait to find out what happens next to the characters.
This is a solid debut. The mystery starts off quickly, and Lila learns plenty of secrets on her way to uncovering what really happened. The climax is suspenseful and creative. The characters are all strong. We even learn a bit more about Derek that makes him a little sympathetic although not completely likable. The rest of the cast is strong. A few supporting players blend together, but that is done on purpose, and we see glimpses of their individual personalities. We do have the beginnings of a love triangle here. Some of Lila’s friendships are so strong already, they help make those characters more real for us. I did feel a few of the themes of the book weren’t quite as well developed as I would have liked. Hopefully they will be explored more in further books. If the descriptions of food make you as hungry as they made me, you’ll be happy to see the four recipes at the end of the book. This is a strong debut, and I already can’t wait to find out what happens next to the characters.
Jesters_folly (230 KP) rated The Purge: Anarchy (2014) in Movies
Jul 14, 2021
Contains spoilers, click to show
The Purge Anarchy is the second film in the Purge franchise and shows more of the effect the purge is having on the general populous.
The film follows three groups who are all out during the annual purge for different reasons but who are forced to come together to help each other.
Some of the questions raised in the first film are expanded on, is the Purge really a way to help stop normal crime or is there a more sinister reason. It also raises the question, Is there any good reason to purge? We see it used as a way to make money, an excuse to behave in 'base' ways and a way to get revenge.
Purge Anarchy follows the main protagonists as they make their way to safety and has some of the sense of suspense the first movie has but also has a lot more violence, a lot of which is in the background as the group try to avoid it.
'Class' is also brought up with an anti-purge group producing media saying that the true purpose of the purge is really just a way of getting rid of the lower class and the poor, with more evidence of this as the film progresses.
Over all the Purge Anarchy is a good movie, it looses some of the tension of the first film by widening the area the film is set but, if they had just done another home invasion film it would have been 'more of the same' and taking it out into the streets enables the franchises law to grow. There are a few questions left at least partly unanswered but there are (at time of writing) three more films and a series so hopefully these are answered later.
The film follows three groups who are all out during the annual purge for different reasons but who are forced to come together to help each other.
Some of the questions raised in the first film are expanded on, is the Purge really a way to help stop normal crime or is there a more sinister reason. It also raises the question, Is there any good reason to purge? We see it used as a way to make money, an excuse to behave in 'base' ways and a way to get revenge.
Purge Anarchy follows the main protagonists as they make their way to safety and has some of the sense of suspense the first movie has but also has a lot more violence, a lot of which is in the background as the group try to avoid it.
'Class' is also brought up with an anti-purge group producing media saying that the true purpose of the purge is really just a way of getting rid of the lower class and the poor, with more evidence of this as the film progresses.
Over all the Purge Anarchy is a good movie, it looses some of the tension of the first film by widening the area the film is set but, if they had just done another home invasion film it would have been 'more of the same' and taking it out into the streets enables the franchises law to grow. There are a few questions left at least partly unanswered but there are (at time of writing) three more films and a series so hopefully these are answered later.