Books I Read:
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle: I think this is pretty easily described; it's classic Holmes and Watson. I had no clue before reading this that Sherlock Holmes uses cocaine recreationally - he's a little more hard cord than I would have originally thought. The stories are interesting and I even impressed myself when I solved the story before it's conclusion! It's more a collection of mysteries but each one offers suspense, intrigue and an exciting conclusion. It's easy to see why a character created so long ago is still so popular in modern day - it's just good stuff!
And now for the shocker - that's it. I can't think of anything else that I've read this month. I've looked at a lot of magazines, but the book list has been dangerously low. I'm about to make up for it though.
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle: I think this is pretty easily described; it's classic Holmes and Watson. I had no clue before reading this that Sherlock Holmes uses cocaine recreationally - he's a little more hard cord than I would have originally thought. The stories are interesting and I even impressed myself when I solved the story before it's conclusion! It's more a collection of mysteries but each one offers suspense, intrigue and an exciting conclusion. It's easy to see why a character created so long ago is still so popular in modern day - it's just good stuff!
And now for the shocker - that's it. I can't think of anything else that I've read this month. I've looked at a lot of magazines, but the book list has been dangerously low. I'm about to make up for it though.
Books in the Queue:
Then Came You by Jennifer Weiner: I love all of Jennifer's previous books and so when we discovered the Book Fair in Harrisonburg, VA...it was ON! I bought both her most recent books and can't wait to start reading them - once they arrive in the box that my parents are shipping...because I may or may not have bought too much over the Thanksgiving visit. Oops!
Wideacre by Phillipa Gregroy: Phillipa Gregory writes the most incredible historical fiction! I love her books about the wives of Henry the 8th; anyone ever hear of a certain book/movie called The Other Boleyn Girl? Yeah, she wrote it and tons of other books that are just a great. This book was just $3...so I had to grab it up too!
Out of Oz by Gregory Maguire: This is the final book in the series that began with Wicked. I've read the whole series so far, including Wicked, Son of a Witch and A Lion Among Men and this book rounds the story out. From what I can tell, in this story Dorothy has finally arrived and is causing trouble for everybody. I can't wait to see how the story of Elphaba and her descendants finally winds down.
Can't Miss Television:
Parade's End - I was not entirely sure if this should fit into the category of a movie or TV, but since it's a miniseries and it came on TV...the can't miss television section is where it landed. It tells the story of British aristocrat Christopher Tietjens, who marries a cruel woman who may or may not be carrying his child and only after marrying her, meets the one woman he could truly be in love with. Because Christopher believes in the so-called "parade" of the aristocracy; he refuses to divorce his wife to seek his own happiness, even though his wife is callous, hateful and at one point even leaves him for another man - only for a time of course; her husband's money calls her name a bit too loudly and because he wants to appear inscrutable, he takes her back. Once WWI begins, England is swept into another type of parade and Christopher realizes that maybe he should learn to seek his own happiness for once. I really enjoyed this and since it's set in early 1900's England, the costumes were amazing to look at too!
 |
| Really excellent - if you have 5 hours to spare... |
Movies I've Watched:
Thor: The Dark World - I have been waiting for this movie for months now, so I bought a ticket the day before it came out to make sure I would have a seat in the theater on Friday, November 8th. I'll make a confession: I love Loki. I know he's technically a "bad" guy...but he steals the movie completely; everything he does is so nuanced and just like the characters in the movie, you don't know from one minute to the next whether he can be trusted. I'm still undecided on if I like this one as much as I liked the first; I wasn't particularly amazed with the villain this go-round but the Thor/Loki/Jane and her band of science geek buddies; those were all good fun. I'm also a huge comic nerd and I've thoroughly enjoyed watching how Marvel has (in a way that I think is truly genius) stitched together all these films and I love seeing how each movie adds another piece to the puzzle - I especially like that at the end of the credits (the real end, after the two extra scenes - not the beginning end, when people who are clueless get up and leave) it says onscreen: Thor will return. Delightful. Bring on the fun!
 |
| The movie has Thor in the title...but that's not who is on the poster...is it? |
Pacific Rim - This movie, I don't think I would have chosen to watch had I not been baby-sitting. I kept two of my favorite "babies" in early November and they wanted to watch one of their movies; almost as proof that they aren't babies anymore, they chose Pacific Rim and proceeded to tell me each plot point mere minutes before it unfolded onscreen - hilarious! The breakdown: these giant alien/monster things called Kaiju come up through the ocean and attack Earth. At first we can't beat them but then we create some program with these gigantic robots called Jaegers that are "driven" by two people who link together and control the robots via brain waves. Yeah - it's like some creature feature/robot movie on steroids The visuals are pretty impressive and the action is fascinating but...eh. It's only okay. And the names of the characters are a hoot - seriously: Stacker Pentecost, Hercules Hansen, Hannibal Chau...who comes up with this stuff?? It IS pretty funny to hear a six year old tell you "there is just only a little blood, a little bit of nose blood but be tough and we can watch it, okay?" Ha-ha, okay kid.
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire - This movie was absolutely excellent! It met and surpassed all the expectations I could have had for it; it was just phenomenal. If you are reading this and don't know anything about the Hunger Games trilogy, I'm going to have to go ahead and assume you live under a rock...but I won't post spoilers. Each one of the actors in these films is so perfectly cast in their roles and it just makes the movie(s) that much more of a joy to watch. The situation in the Capitol is getting serious in Catching Fire and now Katniss much adjust to knowing that many more lives than just her own lay on the line as a result of her actions at the end of the 74th Hunger Games. The second outing is better than the original and it has left me waiting with baited breath for the next installment!
Frozen - Disney's newest animated offering and boy, what an excellent offering it is. The movie tells the story of the Snow Queen; with it's own Disney twist, of course. The story-line is great, the songs are all wonderful and really performed with an almost Broadway-like intensity and there are no innuendos or "ugly" words that might make the movie inappropriate for kids in an attempt to make the parents laugh. There really aren't even any scary moments, so it's perfect for kids...and adults like me that are really kids at heart. My favorite character, hands-down was Elsa - the Snow Queen, but all the characters were great and it was especially great because it is the story of love between two sisters. Everyone with me now "Aaaaawwwww!"
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire - This movie was absolutely excellent! It met and surpassed all the expectations I could have had for it; it was just phenomenal. If you are reading this and don't know anything about the Hunger Games trilogy, I'm going to have to go ahead and assume you live under a rock...but I won't post spoilers. Each one of the actors in these films is so perfectly cast in their roles and it just makes the movie(s) that much more of a joy to watch. The situation in the Capitol is getting serious in Catching Fire and now Katniss much adjust to knowing that many more lives than just her own lay on the line as a result of her actions at the end of the 74th Hunger Games. The second outing is better than the original and it has left me waiting with baited breath for the next installment!
 |
| Excellent movie - go see it! |
Frozen - Disney's newest animated offering and boy, what an excellent offering it is. The movie tells the story of the Snow Queen; with it's own Disney twist, of course. The story-line is great, the songs are all wonderful and really performed with an almost Broadway-like intensity and there are no innuendos or "ugly" words that might make the movie inappropriate for kids in an attempt to make the parents laugh. There really aren't even any scary moments, so it's perfect for kids...and adults like me that are really kids at heart. My favorite character, hands-down was Elsa - the Snow Queen, but all the characters were great and it was especially great because it is the story of love between two sisters. Everyone with me now "Aaaaawwwww!"
 |
| I love it - so much. |
Music I've Listened to:
Wake Me Up by Avicii
Let it Go by Idina Menzel, from Frozen (as well as a majority of the soundtrack)
Parade's End soundtrack
Catching Fire soundtrack
The delicious feast we had on Thanksgiving day - my Momma always makes such a wonderful spread for us and this year was no exception; the food was delicious and the company was even more wonderful!
Cupcakes from Georgetown Cupcakes, my special favorite this time was the Lemon Berry, so crisp, delicious and moist.
 |
| YUM |
What I'm Looking Forward to In December:
The annual Christmas cookie swap that my church has - it never disappoints; good fellowship, good food and tons of delicious cookies! I can't wait!Christmas parties - I've already got a couple on the calendar and I can't wait to go to them, have some laughs and a good meal with my fellow party-goers.
Christmas lights, Christmas TV specials (hello...The Sound Of Music Live? I'll be on my couch Thursday night to watch that)....basically anything and everything to do with Christmas, I'm looking forward to it.
And most especially - CHRISTMAS! And my family visiting for Christmas!
No comments:
Post a Comment