BookAuthorGenreRating
MatrixLauren Graffliterary fiction/strong female characters/historical fiction1
The Kitchen FrontJennifer Ryanwomen’s fiction/historical fiction/strong female characters/friendship2
One Italian SummerRebecca Serlewomen’s faction/Mother-Daughter relationship/dealing with death/self discovery3
The Paris ApartmentLucy Foleypsych thriller/mystery4
The Book of TeaKakuzo Okakuranon fiction/Eastern philosophy5
The Ladies Midnight Swimming ClubFaith Hoganlight, friendship, things work out in the end, female power6
  1. Gorgeous language and vivid descriptions and words that you can get lost in. The point of this book isn’t so much in getting from point A to point B, but how the author does it. There is some depth to this, much to make you think about. I would not read this on the beach. Good for book clubs.
  2. This is a light read. However, I enjoyed it and thought it was an interesting look at how women survived WWII in England. Though the plot holds little surprise, I thought it was written without the usual cliched language.
  3. I like a good mother/daughter relationship book, and this one had some good moments. While some of it I thought was a bit “too much” on the whole I found this to be a pleasant, if not too exciting journey into a young woman discovering what is important in her life. I don’t think it’s good for book club.
  4. While this is something that would be considered a page turner, I was not flipping the pages at my usual rate. I did not love the main character, she was very blah to me, and this is the type of book that I think you need to like the protagonist in order to get into the book. Admittedly the last 80 pages was a decent roller coaster ride.
  5. There are parts of this book about tea and the ceremonies of that I thought were quite interesting and informative- some lovely insights. However, I detected a bias against Western philosophies. I don’t like to think of one as being better than another, or that any way is wrong, so there were parts of this book that I didn’t appreciate.
  6. This is so light you couldn’t even use it as a paperweight. This book is the equivalent to a very insipid Hallmark movie. I. Could. Guess. Everything. That. Was. About. To. Happen. If you need to shut your mind down and read, this is the ticket. If you want an actual book, keep searching.
MovieGenreWhere SeenRating
The BatmanDC comic/dark/dystopianTheater/AMC1
AtticaDocumentary/2022 Oscar NomineeAmazon Prime2
AutomatDocumentaryTheater/Film Forum3
The Outfitpsych drama/thrillerAMC4
After Yangdrama/sci fi/dystopianTheater/Quad5
Cyranodrama/musical/period/2022 Oscar NomineeTheater/AMC6
  1. I like my super hero’s dark, mysterious and on motorcycles…This is a dark, absorbing ride through Gotham. Beautifully filmed with gorgeous camera work. Pattinson was born to play the dark knight. At 3 hours, I felt it could have been a tad shorter, and I would have cut the ending which I felt gilded the lily…otherwise good for the genre.
  2. Straight up, no bells and whistles doc about the 1971 Attica uprising and aftermath. Well researched and executed. Disturbing however, so be prewarned…
  3. I love New York history and the automat was a very big part of that. I thought this was a light, fun doc that gave me some history of Horn & Hardart and the Automat. Fun clips from Mel Brooks and conversations with Carl Reiner, Ruth Bader Ginsberg and Colin Powell
  4. A very understated psych drama with some twists and turns. The whole story takes place in a tailor shop and I like movies that are able to contain the drama within a few rooms- very play like. Not for those who prefer lots of action.
  5. This movie straddles the line between dystopian and sci fi, yet with a very subtle feel. Probably too subtle because the point is kind of buried in dreamy imagery and an understated Colin Farrell.
  6. First thing I thought of was that Shakespearean monologues are very similar to rap. I know Cyrano was written by Rostand, but a monologue is a monologue. I fear Joe Wright may have watched Hamilton before directing this movie. One earworm of a song and a few pretty speeches by Dinklage does not a movie make. Second thing I thought was there’s a reason why Keira Knightly used to do period pieces- I find many actors are not cut out to play characters from any time but the present.
Documentary Short TitleRating
When We Were Bullies1
The Queen of Basketball2
Audible3
Lead me Home4
Three Songs for Benazir5
Though I saw these at IFC theater in NYC, I think they can be streamed on either Netflix or HBO. These are the five 2022 Oscar nominees for Best Documentary Short.
Live Action Short TitleRating
Please Hold1
Ala Kachuu- Take and Run2
The Long Goodbye3
On My Mind4
The Dress5
These are the five 2022 nominees for Best Live Action short. I saw these at IFC in NYC and I am not sure if they are available to be streamed.

48 thoughts on “My Month in Books and Movies- March 2022”

  2. This is such a well done presentation of reviews. I do wish the titles were repeated at the beginning of each comment. I have to keep scrolling up and down to remind myself.

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  3. I agree with Betty and as always enjoy your thoughts on movies and books. Speaking of books, today is Tolkein Reading day (just learned about this myself) for the Middle Earth fans out there. You enjoyed The Batman, I was going to avoid this movie simply because I have had enough super hero movies but this sounds more like The Joker (Joaquin Phoenix) which I really enjoyed.

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    1. The dc movies are very different than the marvel. I thought patinson was an excellent Batman. My only problem was the length, and that it’s obviously the first part of a movie. I’m not thrilled about the current movie climate of leaving movies unfinished. But I liked it

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    1. The process is the director didn’t follow it through. Cyrano does a rap style monologue in the beginning of the movie and it ends there. Roxanne wasn’t up to the task, and neither was Christian. It floundered

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      9. Ah, I read fiction mostly to escape and hopefully some of the mysteries and crime stories I read do not happen to me or mine. Analytics, I save and from time to time read the news when I am feeling which one is true, today.

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      10. I’m going to blog about this…but reading is literally analyzing words sentences paragraphs and chapters to come to a conclusion. You’re not creating a story you’re analyzing the words on a page

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      11. I am a very fast reader. I was making a point that I often find myself drawn to the same books. I don’t keep a list because I just like to enjoy reading and making a list makes it a chore for me. Reading is not math which is why I like it so much!! Enjoy your day, LA.

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  9. I remember reading The Book of Tea and thought the same thing as you did. As for everything else on your lists, I’ve not heard of them or only in passing. Where do you find these books and movies?

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    1. 3 of the books were for book club…the kitchen, matrix, and swimming. I’d read the authors of paris and Italian before and enjoyed the genre and style. Tea book blogger Kim talked about

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  10. Lauren Graff’s “Fates and Furies” was one of my top books a few years ago, but I haven’t read anything from her since.

    Also, I debated seeing “The Batman” yesterday (by myself, naturally), but the running time scared me off.

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  11. Pingback: My Favorite Books – Waking up on the Wrong Side of 50
  12. Pingback: My Favorite Movies-2022 – Waking up on the Wrong Side of 50

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