| Book | Author | Genre | Book Club/Beach Read/Personal Growth/How To | My Ranking/Goodreads rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| She Walks in Beauty | curated by Caroline Kennedy | poetry anthology | personal growth | 1/3.98 |
| The Family Remains | Lisa Jewell | psychological thriller/sequel | beach read | 2/3.94 |
| People Person | Candice Carty-Williams | women’s fiction/family/comic overtones | book club light | 3/3.75 |
| Horse | Geraldine Brooks | part historical and part present day/how blacks are treated in America/drama/multiple perspectives | book club | 4/4.36 |
| Bibliophile: An Illustrated Miscellany | Jane Mount | book about books/reading | fun | 5/4.33 |
| Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing | Matthew Perry | non fiction/memoir/addicition/celebrity | beach read | 6/3.87 |
- She Walks in Beauty– This is an anthology of poems that deal with women in one way or another. I like poetry anthologies because I like reading a mix of poems, and I liked the forwards by Caroline Kennedy. Works if you want a mix of poems from different people
- The Family Remains I loved the first in this series, The Family Upstairs so I was excited to see a sequel- alas, while good, it doesn’t pack the wallop of the first novel. It’s fun and a light read, but I don’t think I’d tell you to run out and read it. It was what I needed one particular week though.
- People Person– Williams is a solid writer with a flair for crafting a gorgeous sentence and she maintains a distinct voice. Her characters really come alive on the page, and you feel their emotions, though there are a lot of characters, so some revert to stereotypes. I just wasn’t interested in the story of this particular dysfunctional family, but that’s not to take away from the many plusses this book has
- Horse– There are people who love this book. I am not one of them. Too many different perspectives, but the voices are not unique- I only knew who was speaking because of the setting, not the character thoughts. The plot is formulaic and predictable. The writing is eh. While I applaud the author for tackling this subject matter, at least write it so I can’t wait to pick up the book.
- Bibliophile-This is a cute little coffee table type book and the perfect time waster for a reader. Curated collection of book stores and libraries and book tidbits. Cute and fun but nothing earth shattering
- Friends– I am a big Matthew Perry fan. I am not a fan of this book. While I applaud Perry for confronting and speaking about his addiction issues, this book just rambles on, repeats itself, and has little organization. There are parts that are highly entertaining, but doesn’t work as a memoir. That being said, I applaud the courage it took for Perry to write and discuss this. Kudos to him, and for the fact that he is willing to help out anyone in need as per addiction issues.
| Movie | Genre | Where Seen | My Ranking/RT critic/RT Audience |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Banshees of Inisherin | drama with some comedic overtones, morality tale | Theater- AMC | 1 98/75 |
| Black Panther: Wakanda Forever | Marvel franchise/super hero | Theater – AMC | 2/ 84/95 |
| The Menu | psych thriller/dark comedy/satire | Theater- AMC | 3 89/78 |
| Till | drama/based on a true story | Theater- AMC | 4 98/97 |
| Aftersun | drama/coming of age/father- daughter relationships | Theater- AMC | 5 97/78 |
| She Said | the account of the reporters who broke the Harvey Weinstein story | Theater-AMC | 6 86/88 |
| Eternal Spring | documentary/foreign language (Mandarin) animated | Theater- Film Forum | 7 77/99 |
| Utama | foreign language (Quechua and Spanish) drama/family | Theater- Film Forum | 8 95/not enough audience scores |
| All That Breathes | documentary/foreign language (Hindi) environmental | Theater- Film Forum | 9 100/70 |
| EO | foreign language (polish/Italian) almost no dialogue. morality tale/fable | Theater- Film Forum | 10 98/not enough audience scores |
| Armageddon Time | drama/coming of age/set in 1980’s NYC | Theater- AMC | 11 75/47 |
- Banshees This is a well crafted film. It’s beautifully filmed and lit, with some really gorgeous frames to look at. Solid acting by the main stars, especially Colin Farrell who really shows what a fine actor he is. It’s a tale of loneliness, isolation and despair, and what getting into your head too much can do to someone. This film is not for everyone- but it is excellent filmmaking.
- Wakanda Solid sequel to the Black Panther/Marvel franchise and wonderful tribute to Chadwick Boseman. Wakanda Forever. You either like these movies or you don’t. If you like the genre, see this.
- The Menu– This is how you do a satire about the rich and powerful. Beautifully paced movie about the working class vs the elite- with a perfect stony faced Ralph Fiennes…There are a few dark moments- but I thought they were handled really well. If you want a pleasant diversion, this is probably not the movie- but if you want to think, try it out.
- Till– The story of Emmett Till is one that needs to be shared, and this is a solid retelling of that story. Danielle Deadwyler is very good as Mamie Till-Mobley. The director wields a very deft hand at portraying a movie that is about violence at its core, yet shows remarkable restraint.
- Aftersun- This is another literary fiction movie- character driven, minimal plot, ambiguous. I’m not quite sure about the ending of this film, but I have opinions and I think I know what happened, but I’m not sure. Though less than 2 hours of screen time it does move a little slow. If you like your films like this it’s worth a stream, but if you like plot and action stay away.
- She Said– well made retelling of the Weinstein story and how it ignited a movement against sexual harassment. Well made, but not earth shattering- a little slow and long, and lacked gravitas of Spotlight or All the President’s Men.
- Eternal Spring– Interview style doc, done with much animation, about when Chinese TV was taken over by members of Falun Gong, and what happened to the people that did it. Dare to stand up to the party and you will suffer. Gave me insight into something I didn’t know much about.
- Utama– Family/relationship drama about a couple that live in Bolivia and farm llama’s. Slow moving story about a grandson trying to understand his grandparents decision to stay and work in a rural area, and the grandparents resenting their son’s escaping to the city. Shows that all families have issues.
- All That Breathes– Fly on the wall documentary, which in this case left a lot of unanswered questions. We follow the lives of two bird rehabilitators, but we don’t get that much insight other than the glib headlines of poor air quality in Delhi. We also get a backdrop of political unrest, but we don’t get as much info as I would like
- EO– THere is almost no dialogue in this movie, and I go to movies for the dialogue. Morality tale/fable about cruelty, kindness and modern Europe as seen through the eyes of a donkey. I was not a fan.
- Armageddon Time– It’s hard to have a coming of age story if you don’t like the protagonist- and I really didn’t like the him. The movie has so many messages floating around and not one of them is played through from start to finish. A waste of really good acting talent and two hours of my life.
Waking up on the Wrong Side of 50 
I am off to see an advanced showing of Puss in Boots: The Last Wish & maybe Guillermo del Toros Pinoccio
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Both on my list! We are seeing Devotion today. Lots are worthy movies out this week.
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We are watching our granddaughter a few days a week now. I found Tom Thumb starring Russ Tamblyn from about 1962 and The March of the Wooden Soldiers with Laurel and Hardy. These are holiday classics that I am happy to share with my 4 year old granddaughter.
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Growing up, thanksgiving was going to my grandparents and watching March with my grandfather. 💗💗
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Isn’t that a great memory. That’s what I want my granddaughter to remember.
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We don’t go to the movies much, and your list and summary reminded me of why. So many of the movies being produced just don’t interest me.
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I am a fan of words…a great movie or play is as good as a great book for me. Sometimes the subject doesn’t matter…just the way it’s done
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I’ve always been of the opinion that dialogue is everything, so I probably wouldn’t have enjoyed EO either.
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Me too. I love words. Without words I don’t feel thecsame
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I’m really liking the sound of The Banshees of Inisherin. I’m hearing so much good stuff about it, and the Irish film industry in general. Thank you also for the review of Matthew Perry’s book. I won’t rush to read it and might wait until there’s a good deal on it.
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It’s really well made film. Great dialogue and acting.
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Thanks for going back to listing them by your rankings! I knew Horse and the Matthew Perry memoir had received good reviews. Now if I read them I’ll keep your ratings in mind. I’d also be curious to know how you’d feel about one I just read called Lessons In Chemistry. Another sort of post-pandemic adjustment I have yet to make is to return to the movie theaters. Your reviews remind me that I might be missing something there, too.
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Lessons in chemistry is my favorite book from this year. Loved it. Don’t remember when I reviewed it though
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