My Weekly Books and Films Update
Linking up with:
Stacking the Shelves (details)
Sunday Post (details)
Mailbox Monday (details)
HAPPY THINGS:
1. Happy mail - Received a letter from a cousin I had not heard from in a while.
2. Baked my first macaroni and beef casserole - mmmm, comfort food coma.
3. Tea time at the monthly Planner meeting at the Crown and Crumpet.
Freebie: from the free bin at Green Apple Bookstore
by Eleanor Catton
-Literary
Amazon | Goodreads
BEEN curious about this since it became a Man Booker Prize winner in 2013. Also, that cover!
For Review:
by Syrie James
-Historical, Romance
courtesy of author -Thanks!
Amazon | Goodreads
SECOND in the Dare of Defy romance series set in the 1800's. Syrie is one of my favorite authors who exudes a Jane Austen style.
by Rodica Doehnert
-Historical, Romance, Vienna
courtesy of Amazon Kindle First -Thanks!
Amazon | Goodreads
PICKED this because I am collecting stories set in Vienna for a binge read.
Author event:
Parenthood in the Age of Fear
by Kim Brooks
-Memoir, Women's Studies
Release date: August 21, 2018
Amazon | Goodreads
One morning, Kim Brooks made a split-second decision to leave her four-year old son in the car while she ran into a store. What happened would consume the next several years of her life and spur her to investigate the broader role America’s culture of fear plays in parenthood. In Small Animals, Brooks asks, Of all the emotions inherent in parenting, is there any more universal or profound than fear? Why have our notions of what it means to be a good parent changed so radically? In what ways do these changes impact the lives of parents, children, and the structure of society at large? And what, in the end, does the rise of fearful parenting tell us about ourselves?
Fueled by urgency and the emotional intensity of Brooks’s own story, Small Animals is a riveting examination of the ways our culture of competitive, anxious, and judgmental parenting has profoundly altered the experiences of parents and children. In her signature style―by turns funny, penetrating, and always illuminating―which has dazzled millions of fans and been called "striking" by New York Times Book Review and "beautiful" by the National Book Critics Circle, Brooks offers a provocative, compelling portrait of parenthood in America and calls us to examine what we most value in our relationships with our children and one another.
Bookshop in West Portal, San Francisco, CA hosted a conversation between Kim Brooks and local author, memoirist and mom, Marie Mutsuki Mockett. Mom shaming and thoughts on the current parenting scene were questioned and discussed.
A True Story About What Makes a Man
by Thomas Page McBee
-Memoir, LGBTQ
Release date: August 14, 2018
Amazon | Goodreads
In this groundbreaking new book, the author, a trans man, trains to fight in a charity match at Madison Square Garden while struggling to untangle the vexed relationship between masculinity and violence. Through his experience boxing—learning to get hit, and to hit back; wrestling with the camaraderie of the gym; confronting the betrayals and strength of his own body—McBee examines the weight of male violence, the pervasiveness of gender stereotypes, and the limitations of conventional masculinity. A wide-ranging exploration of gender in our society, Amateur is ultimately a story of hope, as McBee traces a new way forward, a new kind of masculinity, inside the ring and outside of it.
In this graceful, stunning, and uncompromising exploration of living, fighting, and healing, we gain insight into the stereotypes and shifting realities of masculinity today through the eyes of a new man.
Booksmith hosted an evening conversation with Thomas Page McBee and Virgie Tovar to celebrate the release of Amateur: A True Story About What Makes a Man. Masculinity and boxing were hot topics at this event.
Other book-ish stuff:
September 1 - October 31, 2018
details and signup | my picks
AND watched: on DVD
Director/screenplay: Scott Cooper
Based on manuscript by: Donald E. Stewart
Stars: Scott Shepherd, Rosamund Pike, Ava Cooper
-Adventure, Drama, Western | imdb | my rating: 4
In 1892, a legendary Army captain reluctantly agrees to escort a Cheyenne chief and his family through dangerous territory.
GOT the wild west feels of turbulence, violence, angst and sadness.
At The Top
Director/Writer: Ishmael Bernal
Stars: Rita Gomez, Vic Vargas, Eddie Garcia
-Drama, Philippines | imdb | my rating: 5
A taxi dancer (Rita Gomez) and taxi driver (Vic Vargas) are fished out of poverty and anonymity by a commercial film director (Eddie Garcia). The obsession with success forces them to affect images as movie stars, which suppress and eventually destroy them as persons and lovers.
DUE to technical difficulties, I watched this without subtitles. But, with a basic synopsis and the visuals and performance the messages make their mark on the struggles actors face.
Lu bian ye can (original title)
Director/Writer: Gan Bi
Stars: Yongzhong Chen, Yue Guo, Linyan Liu
-Drama, Mystery, China | imdb | my rating: 4
While travelling the countryside to locate his nephew, a small town doctor finds himself interacting with people from his past and future.
MIX of beautiful views and poetry create an artful film.
* comment and TELL me what you have acquired for your shelves recently
Thanks for stopping by :-)
