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Video Games, Coca Cola, and White Bread

Our little family just returned from a quick trip south. My husband G. Grod’s elderly grandmother is declining and confined to bed. We wanted to see her again, and to have her see our boys, 8 and nearly 6, so we finagled last-minute flights.

She said, “Why is everybody comin’ to see me? I’m not goin’ anywhere!”

There was a constant stream of visitors, relatives, and food. The boys did get to see her, though young Guppy was acting up, I suspect out of an inability to grasp what was going on. 8yo Drake, though, was happy to go in, see her and chat for a bit.

There’s not a lot to do in rural SC, and no other kids to play with, so we let the boys have free rein with the Gameboy, Angry Birds and other handheld games. They ate fried chicken several times, dessert after every meal, white-bread sandwiches, and were allowed Coke on the flight home. They seemed a little delirious with their good fortune and the uncharacteristic laissez-faire parenting. I wonder if later in life they’ll make the connection between what was happening and why they were given so much freedom.

Posted 26 January 2012 † girldetective § Parenthood ‡ Comments (1) °

In Thrall

I’m reading Lonesome Dove, the book that’s sat the longest on my shelves without me giving up on it, and I’m loathe to put it down. I should be working on an article. Cleaning the house. Writing my novel. Doing laundry. Shovelling snow. (Why is spell check rejecting ’shoveling’? I thought the rule of thumb was ‘get the ell out’?) Yet all I want to do is read this book, and get lost with these characters, even as I get a mite too attached to them. They keep dying, which is what I suppose happened, way back then in the west.

Posted 20 January 2012 † girldetective § Books § Reading ‡ Comments (5) °

How to Watch a Film

Casper Newbolt’s advice on how to watch a film from “The Rules” at IFP, link via The Morning News:

The Rules make absolutely no prejudice, they allow you to love anything you want, but simply ask that you think for yourself.

I’ll be thinking on this one for a while. I try very hard to determine whether a movie or book will be worth my time before I go see it so I break Rule 1, which is

Go into the film without having read or watched anything. Trailers are acceptable, as they are sometimes created by film directors themselves, though even that sometimes is questionable.

Yet some of my favorite viewing experiences have been films I had no knowledge or expectations about, such as Short Cuts and Shadowlands.

Posted 19 January 2012 † girldetective § Movies § Thinking and Theories ‡ Comments (1) °

“Just Kids” by Patti Smith

I’d heard great things about Patti Smith’s memoir Just Kids even before it won the National Book Award. Having finally gotten around to reading it, I kind of fell in love with it.

It was the summer Coltrane died. The summer of “Crystal Ship.” Flower children raised their empty arms and China exploded the H-bomb. Jimi Hendrix set his guitar in flame in Monterey. AM radio played “Ode to Billie Joe.” There were riots in Newark, Milwaukee, and Detroit. It was the summer of Elvira Madigan, the summer of love. And in this shifting, inhospitable atmosphere, a chance encounter changed the course of my life.

It was the summer I met Robert Mapplethorpe.

What I knew about Smith was that she was the godmother of punk, and the iconic photo of her from the cover of her album Horses. What I knew of Robert Mapplethorpe was censorship scandal over S & M photography, and he died from AIDS-related illness.

What I didn’t know filled a book. I was surprised and interested to learn that she started her artist’s life in poetry, and he his in painting, sculpture and other medium. She didn’t become a musician and he didn’t become a photographer for quite some time. And that time, their youth and their young love affair as they grew into the artists they’d become, is the subject of Smith’s book. She paints gruesome pictures with beautiful words of the early years–rough jobs, no jobs, starving and scrounging for food and art supplies. But she also details their many years in the art culture of the 70’s in NYC and specifically in the Chelsea Hotel. These parts of the narrative were like reading a history of a time I knew little about and was fascinated to learn. Directly after finishing, I did some further research online and plan to explore more of her music and his photography. Perhaps not the latter when the kids are around, though. Like Wise Blood, this book involved me and provoked me to find out more.

A word of warning about e-books. I read this on my nook. My edition had a lot of pictures, but not nearly as many as did the paperback edition. Do not read this electronically. Get the paperback edition of Just Kids. A book about a photographer should contain the maximum number of photos possible, not be limited because of ridiculous permission battles.

We got a nook color because it was well reviewed, we thought it was time to check out an e-reader, and because we could get Angry Birds to distract our boys in restaurants. On the Angry Birds front: big win. But as a reader, while I do like the ability to adjust the text size, I don’t like it as I do a physical book. I’m travelling this weekend and mulled whether to take the nook or a book. Downside to nook: have to take charger and the nook color only has about 8 hours of battery, which is about the length of my trip. Also, it can’t be used during takeoff, and landing. Thus, it’s staying at home, and I’m taking a real book, the oldest shelf sitter I have, one I’m unlikely to finish it in a weekend. I’ll have to see how I do with the tiny text, though. I’ll take my magnifying glasses, as the bifocals I just ordered won’t be in till next week. Happy reading, folks, in whatever format suits you!

Posted 12 January 2012 † girldetective § 2012 Books ‡ Comments (3) °

“Momofuku Milk Bar” by Christina Tosi

I waited a while on the reserve list at the library to get the Momofuku Milk Bar baking book by the chef at the famous NYC bakery. I was excited to try some of the recipes.

Till I read them. I paged through the entire book, and think I found two that didn’t include glucose, or other odd ingredients like corn powder. This is a book that doesn’t translate well for this home chef, who doesn’t want to go anywhere special or online for special ingredients, or use corn syrup or glucose rather than cane sugar.

Next time I’m in NYC, though, I’m totally visiting. The stories, photos, and baked goods are stunning.

Posted 12 January 2012 † girldetective § Books § Food and Drink ‡ Comments (3) °

“Wise Blood” by Flannery O’Connor

I’d never read Flannery O’Connor before, which felt like a huge omission as I fancy myself a writer. So when I started a book group last year, her names was one of the first to go on my TBR list, and we’re starting off the year by reading her first novel, Wise Blood, in January.

That morning Enoch Emery knew when he woke up that today the person he could show it to was going to come. He knew by his blood. He had wise blood like his daddy.

Wise Blood is a short book, just over 200 pages with wide margins. But it’s an uneasy read, and a provoking one. A young man named Hazel Motes takes the train to a bigger city than the tiny place he grew up, and meets an array of strange and amazing folks. He brazenly proclaims a heresy, saying he’s founding The Church of Christ Without Christ, and yet he continues to seek the company and blessing of a blind preacher, all the while pursued by another unusual fellow named Enoch. This is a powerful book, one that immediately provoked me to seek more about its author. I now have her biography by Brad Gooch, and have begun reading the Complete Collected Stories, which contain four of the chapters of Wise Blood. It is a rare book that sort of pushes me out of the reading experience with a hunger for more information, and this book is one of them. I look forward to gleaning more as I continue to ruminate on it.

Posted 12 January 2012 † girldetective § 2012 Books ‡ Comments (0) °

The Last Batch of Christmas Movies (or is it?)

This is the third entry of Christmas movies, (here are the first and second.) Apparently, Connie Willis is not a compatible movie recommender for my husband and me. In the back of her story collection, Miracle, which I enjoyed, she lists a dozen Christmas movies she recommends. I was looking for a new gem in there, but mostly found duds.

The Three Godfathers (1948). On Willis’ list. John Wayne, John Ford, a Christmas western! Should be terrific, right? We watched with the boys, who actually rather liked it, though my husband and I were unimpressed by the heavy-handed symbolism, and he slept through much of it.

The Miracle at Morgan’s Creek (1944), directed by Preston Sturges. Also on Willis’ list. Great comedic director Preston Sturges–should be great, right? The slapstick felt forced and it was a rather strange little movie about a woman who finds herself knocked up at Christmastime. Good, but not one to add to the rotation every year.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) Not a Christmas movie, you say? Well, it was out at Christmas, so my husband I went on a date to see it. Solid, and very good, it evokes the 70’s both in look and in filmic and storytelling style. Aside from a handful of too-brutal shots, this was quietly impressive, and I loved the performances.

The Ref (1994). Dennis Leary in his first starring ranting role. This is good. Funny, with some great lines. Not a classic for the ages, but one that we’ll probably watch again next year.

You’ve Got Mail (1998). As The Shop Around the Corner is my favorite holiday movie, many people have asked over the years if I’ve seen this, one of its remakes (the other is Judy Garland’s In the Good Old Summertime.) Wish I’d consulted Timeout Movie Guide before we watched it. They sum it up well: TRAVESTY. And it is. Hated it. Go watch Shop Around the Corner.

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011) A solid action flick and good date night and popcorn flick. Some dodgy plot points, and Paula Patton as the token female was the weak link in a strong cast, but then she was surrounded by Tom Cruise, Simon Pegg and Jeremy Renner, so perhaps she just looked bad in comparison? I’d love to have more than one woman in the next one, and to have them both be awesome, and not just pretty stick figures.

The Sure Thing (1985). Willis’ list reminded me that this is a Christmas movie! And one of my favorites from when I was a teen. Still funny and eminently quotable.

Gib’s friend: Forget her, I hear she only likes intellectuals
Gib: So? I’m intellectual and stuff.
Gib’s friend: You’re flunking English. That’s your mother tongue, and stuff.


Meet John Doe (1941). Also on Willis’ list. Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck directed by Frank Capra–should be great, right? Nope, a slog, and one that gets increasingly preachy and shrill as it goes on. Again, wish I’d checked the film guide before committing to this one.

I thought we were done with the Christmas movies, what with it being Epiphany and all, but in cleaning up we discovered Scrooged, which I’d bought and forgotten about. I wished we’d stopped with Sure Thing and gone out on a high note, since John Doe was such a drag. Not sure whether to just put Scrooged away till next year, or give it a go. Perhaps I’ll consult my movie guide first.

Posted 09 January 2012 † girldetective § 2012 Movies ‡ Comments (4) °

“Make the Bread, Buy the Butter” by Jennifer Reese

I was a fan of Jennifer Reese’s when she was books editor at Entertainment Weekly. When they downsized books, though, they let her go. I did some searching, and was happy to find her blogging online at Tipsy Baker. She’s recently taken many of her home-economics-gone-mad escapades and written them up, along with recipes, in Make the Bread, Buy the Butter, which I reviewed earlier this week at Simple Good and Tasty, one of the other sites I write for.

For each food, Reese advises whether to make it or buy it. Granola? Make. Grape nuts? Buy. Hot dog buns? Make. Hamburger buns? Buy. Mayonnaise? Both. Like most modern food lovers, Reese values seasonal, local, sustainably produced foods. But she’s not a harsh ideologue. She acknowledges that sometimes you’re up for making things from scratch and sometimes you’re not.

It’s a cookbook as well as a charming food memoir. Highly recommended.

Posted 07 January 2012 † girldetective § 2012 Books § Food and Drink ‡ Comments (1) °

“Bridget Jones’ Diary” by Helen Fielding

When I watched the dvd of Bridget Jones’ Diary as part of our holiday movie fest, I realized I could no longer remember what the similarities and differences to the book were. So re-reading Bridget at the first of the year was a joy. Many of the things in the movie, the best things, are lifted straight out from the book, weird stuff in the book is elided or changed. Overall, the movie is a faithful adaptation, retaining the spirit if not all of the details. The book made me laugh, and was a cheering way to start the year.

Posted 07 January 2012 † girldetective § 2012 Books ‡ Comments (2) °

“Teckla” by Steven Brust

Teckla is the third novel in the sword and sorcery Vlad Taltos series, and it was something of a slog for me, especially when compared to its predecessors Jhereg and Yendi. Revolution of peasants and a failing relationship do not make for a fun read. Read the series, but don’t start with this one.

Posted 07 January 2012 † girldetective § 2012 Books ‡ Comments (0) °

Free Will, Free Won’t, or Nothing’s Free?

From USA Today, and accessible yet provocative column, “Why You Don’t Really Have Free Will” (via The Morning News)

The debate about free will, long the purview of philosophers alone, has been given new life by scientists, especially neuroscientists studying how the brain works. And what they’re finding supports the idea that free will is a complete illusion.

Apparently I’m not really deciding whether go to the coffee shop today, or anything else. I’ll be mulling over this for a while.

Posted 05 January 2012 † girldetective § Religion § Thinking and Theories ‡ Comments (0) °

Russell Hoban

Russell Hoban died earlier this month. I read his books about Frances the badger and the out-of-print Emmet Otter’s Jug Band Christmas when I was a child. I read them now to my own children. I watched the Emmet Otter muppet adaptation with my family earlier this month. This lesser-known holiday special was written up both at NPR and the Onion AV Club this year.. I read Hoban’s The Mouse and His Child to my sons earlier this year. And I finally read his cult classic, Riddley Walker, which has now become one of the first books I think about when some book/movie/comic trots out an apocalyptic trope. Hoban’s books have been and are so important to me. I’m sad for his passing, but will continue to celebrate his weird, lovely and wide-spanning works. Via.

Posted 31 December 2011 † girldetective § Books § Kids Books ‡ Comments (0) °

My 2011 in Movies

No links or italics here, sorry. Links are in individual entries in 2011 Movies link on the right.

Favorite Things I Watched: Bridesmaids, Thor, The Wire Season 4 (my favorite thus far), Captain America, Moneyball, The Man Who Knew Too Much, Slings and Arrows, Spaced

Good to Watch Again: Die Hard, 16 Candles, Groundhog Day, Ghostbusters, North by Northwest, Stand by Me, Out of Sight, Ocean’s 11, Iron Man,Bridget Jones’ Diary, The Shop Around the Corner

Good with the kids: Ponyo, Nausicaa, A Christmas Story, The Muppets, The Muppets Christmas Carol

Not so good with the kids: Kung Fu Panda 2, Tangled, Megamind

Kind of hated: Dark Crystal, Black Swan, The Illusionist, Ghost Writer, Weird Science, Rio, 500 Days of Summer

2011 Movies:

Die Hard
Megamind
The September Issue
A Prophet
True Grit (2010)
The Friends of Eddie Coyle
Real Genius
Greenberg
High Noon
Ponyo
Tangled
Ghost Writer
Spaced (television series)
Hamlet (BBC, David Tennant)
16 Candles
Weird Science
Groundhog Day
Night Train to Munich
Ghostbusters
The Kids Are Alright
The Man Who Knew Too Much
North by Northwest
Charade
The Three Musketeers (Gene Kelly one)
Fahrenheight 451
Stand by Me
Thor
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
Anchorman
Kung Fu Panda
Jane Eyre (2011)
Kung Fu Panda 2
Exit Through the Gift Shop
The American
The Secret in their Eyes
500 Days of Summer
The Town
Slings and Arrows S1 and 2
Hamlet (Ethan Hawke)
Rio
Ratatouille
Donnie Darko
The Fighter
Fair Game
The Illusionist
Bridesmaids
The Hours
The Muppets Take Manhattan
Nausicaa
Easy A
Black Swan
Out of Sight
The Good German
The Informant!
The Social Network
Ocean’s 11
Zodiac
Iron Man
Iron Man 2
Ocean’s 12
Zombieland
A Knight’s Tale
Captain America
Let the Right One In
Murder My Sweet
The Muppets (2011)
The Dark Crystal
The Wire S4
Bridget Jones’ Diary
The Shop Around the Corner
A Christmas Story
The Lemon Drop Kid
The Muppet Christmas Carol
Moneyball
While You Were Sleeping

Posted 31 December 2011 † girldetective § 2011 Movies ‡ Comments (2) °

More Christmas Movies & Shows

And the hits just keep on comin’. I have very much adopted the 12 days of Christmas as the boundary for the holiday, since I often don’t get my act together till about 11pm on Christmas Eve.

The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992). 8yo Drake and 5yo Guppy had to be cajoled into this, but both enjoyed it a lot by the end, unlike Emmet Otter, which only Drake and I enjoyed. G. Grod slept through much of it. An interestingly faithful adaptation.

Doctor Who Christmas Special: The Doctor, The Widow and the Wardrobe (2011). Good, not great. It felt like current show runner and writer Stephen Moffatt was protesting WAY too hard that Women Are Smarter, perhaps in response to the many critics who say that his writing along gender lines isn’t exactly forward thinking. But Matt Smith does funny doctor very well: “I _know!_”

While You Were Sleeping. Recommended by Connie Willis in her collection of Christmas stories, Miracle. Sandra Bullock is a lonely singleton who accidentally gets enveloped by the family of a man in a coma. Released in ‘95, it looked and felt more like an ’80s flick. Hokey, with a terrible and manipulative soundtrack, it’s strangely winning, largely due to Bullock’s and Bill Pullman’s charm.

Posted 31 December 2011 † girldetective § 2011 Movies ‡ Comments (0) °

My 2011 in Books

Best Books I Read Last Year (loved): A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan. I finished it, then read it immediately again. It was intriguing, complex, and engagingly constructed. I hugely enjoyed William Gibson’s Bigend trilogy: Pattern Recognition, Spook Country and Zero Country. The Lonely Polygamist by Brady Udall took Utah polygamy and made it sympathetic and even universal. The Year We Left Home by Jean Thompson is a deep and moving American family portrait. Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse was so rich and complex I read it twice.

Other Books with both Style and Substance (really liked): The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, What Was She Thinking, Genghis Khan, The Hours, Half of a Yellow Sun, God on the Rocks, The Funny Man, Freedom, The Death of Adam, The Memory Artists

Worthy re-reads: In the Woods, The Likeness, Gilead, Carter Beats the Devil, The Road, Handmaid’s Tale, The History of Love

Enjoyable reads: I Think I Love You, Bad Marie, The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake, House of Tomorrow, Lamb, D’Aulaire’s Book of Norse Myths, News to Me, Savages, The Thousand, The Gargoyle, The Girl of Fire and Thorns, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, The Family Fang, Jhereg, Yendi, Miracle, The Hottest Dishes of the Tartar Cuisine

Previously recommended-to-me classics I’m glad I finally read: Life with Jeeves, Riddley Walker, The Master and Margarita

Really Good Graphic Novels: The Alcoholic, Drinking at the Movies, Fables (though not Super Team), Dream Country, Unwritten, Finder, Batwoman: Elegy, Sweet Tooth

Kind of hated, or at least actively disliked parts: Ex Machina v10, Room, One Day, The Finkler Question, The Red Tent, Absence of Mind, Gingerbread Girl, The Fate of the Artist, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Everything is Illuminated, An Equal Music, Special Topics in Calamity Physics, Fables: Super Team, Blood, Bones & Butter

Read with the kids: The Mouse and his Child (too complex and dark for 5 and 7yo), Odd and the Frost Giants, The Magician’s Nephew (wish we’d started with Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe), Charlotte’s Web. 5yo Guppy had trouble with most of these, but liked Odd and Charlotte by the end. My husband is now reading them Lord of the Rings following the Hobbit, and they’re enjoying them a lot; I think the enthusiasm of the reader in this case helps a lot.

No links or even italics here: too much info to cram in on the last day of the year. For links, look in 2011 Books link to the right.

Ex Machina v 10 by Bryan K Vaughn
The Alchoholic by Jonathan Ames
Drinking at the Movies: Julisa Wertz
Fables v 14: Bill Willingham
Pattern Recognition: William Gibson
Life with Jeeves: Wodehouse
In the Woods: Tana French
The Likeness: Tana French
Spook Country: William Gibson
Zero History: William Gibson
Room: Emma Donaghue
Gilead: Marilynne Robinson
I Think I Love You by Alison Pearson
One Day: David Nicholls
Carter Beats the Devil: Glen David Gold
The Finkler Question: Harold Jacobson
The Road: Cormac McCarthy
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Bad Marie by Marcy Dermansky
Nox: Anne Carson
Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake: Aimee Bender
Handmaid’s Tale: Atwood
What Was She Thinking (Notes on a Scandal): Zoe Heller
Negotiating with the Dead: Atwood
Riddley Walker: Russell Hoban
The Death of Adam: Marilynne Robinson
House of Tomorrow: Peter Bognanni
The Red Tent: Anita Diamant
A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
Lamb by Christopher Moore
Dream Country: Neil Gaiman
Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World:
Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse: Louise Erdrich
The Mouse and His Child by Russell Hoban
Unwritten v1 by Peter Gross
Fables: Rose Red by Bill Willingham
Absence of Mind: Marilynne Robinson
Finder: Voice: Carla Speed McNeil
Batwoman: Elegy: Greg Rucka
The Wordy Shipmates: Sarah Vowell
Gingerbread Girl: Paul Tobin
Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse again
American Gods: Neil Gaiman
The Magician’s Nephew: C.S. Lewis
Odd and the Frost Giants: Neil Gaiman
D’Aulaire’s Book of Norse Myths
Mrs Dalloway: Woolf
Planetary: Warren Ellis
The Hours: Michael Cunningham
News to Me: Laurie Hertzel
Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency: Douglas Adams
The Long Dark Tea Time of the Soul: Douglas Adams
The Mrs. Dalloway Reader: ed. Francine Prose
Half of a Yellow Sun: C. Adiche
Everything is Illuminated: Jonathan Safran Foer
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close: Jonathan Safran Foer
The Lonely Polygamist: Brady Udall
Savages: Dan Wilson
The Magician’s Elephant: Kate DiCamillo
The Fate of the Artist: Eddie Campbell
God on the Rocks: Jane Gardam
The Thousand: Kevin Guilfoile
Finder, library 1: Carla Speed McNeil
The Gargoyle: Andrew Davidson
The History of Love: Nicole Krauss
An Equal Music: Vikram Seth
The Year We Left Home: Jean Thompson
Master and Margarita: Bulgakov
Unwritten v 4: Peter Carey
Sweet Tooth v1: Jeff Lemire
Special Topics in Calamity Physics: Marisha Pessl
Sweet Tooth v2: Jeff Lemire
Get in if You Want to Live: John Jodzio
The Girl of Fire and Thorns: Rae Carson
Sweet Tooth v3: Lemire
The Funny Man: John Warner
Freedom: Jonathan Franzen
Is Everyone Hanging Out without Me? Mindy Kaling
The Family Fang: Kevin Wilson
Jhereg: Steven Brust
The Memory Artists: Jeffrey Moore
Fables v16: Willingham
Yendi: Brust
Miracle and Other Christmas Stories by Connie Willis
The Hottest Dishes of the Tartar Cuisine: Alina Bronsky
Blood Bones and Butter: Gabrielle Hamilton
Charlotte’s Web: E.B. White

Posted 31 December 2011 † girldetective § 2011 Books ‡ Comments (0) °

“Blood, Bones and Butter” by Gabrielle Hamilton

Subtitled “The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef,” Gabrielle Hamilton’s memoir Blood Bones and Butter was one I wanted to love. Then, as I read it, I wanted to like it in a sustained manner. By the end, though, I was finishing it just to finish it.

It has some wonderful stuff in it, particularly about the value of hard work, the echoes of childhood trauma, and kitchen culture. But for me, Hamilton’s book lacks a key element to a good memoir: a sense of humor, about oneself particularly. The book’s subject matter is not light stuff: childhood neglect, early drug abuse and an unpleasant marriage. But these felt all the heavier to read because of skipping around in time, and describing things in detail, multiple times, like her relationship with her sister:

“She’s the only one in my family who’s held on tight to me, and I will never let go of her.” (153)

“I fully and completely and 100 percent understand and comprehend what she is saying–to its fullest meaning–within hte first fifteen seconds. And unfailingly by the end of the third sentence. I’m not saying I’m that smart. I’m saying I get her that well. We Two Are One.” (154)

“I understand every single word of it, every stop for gas, every detour. I think exactly what she thinks.” (154)

“she’s the only member of my family that I still know the entire, detailed landscape of.” (156)

A few times she would announce an event as if the reader should know it, then go on to describe it. Why not just lead up to it? Further, she includes the insight of an older person who’s gone through therapy when writing events and relationships, rather than showing us those things through herself at that stage.

This book made my fingers itch to edit it: arrange events in chronological order, cut excessive description, remove the hindsight, and gently emphasize points of tenderness and humor. Despite some good parts, I can’t recommend it. It’s reviews are positive, though, so I’m in the minority on this one. YMMV.

Posted 31 December 2011 † girldetective § 2011 Books ‡ Comments (2) °

“The Hottest Dishes of the Tartar Cuisine” by Alina Bronsky

My friend of New Century Reading recommended The Hottest Dishes of the Tartar Cuisine by Alina Bronsky. She mentioned it was an interesting contrast to Bulgakov’s Master and Margarita, I found this novel had the same kind of staggering, head-tilting, WTF-ness as that Russian classic. It’s a funny, bizarre and tragic story (sometimes all at once) of three generations of Russian women with a Tartar background told by the fearsome and boggling grandmother, Rosalinda who was hateful, but not necessarily without charm, or at least wit, however lacerating:

Sulfia wasn’t very gifted. In fact, to be honest, I’d say she was rather stupid. And yet somehow she was my daughter–worse still, my only daughter…

But I also felt sorry for her…This daughter I did have was deformed and bore no resemblance to her mother. She was short–she only came up to my shoulders. She had no figure whatsoever. She had small eyes, and a crooked mouth. And, as I said, she was stupid. She was already seventeen years old, too, so there was little chance she would get any smarter.

But as the book goes on, we learn that perhaps Sulfia isn’t as stupid as Rosa thinks, and perhaps Rosa is not the most reliable narrator. Bizarre, but entertaining.

Posted 30 December 2011 † girldetective § 2011 Books ‡ Comments (0) °

Let the Christmas Viewings Begin…

Christmas season, and time to break out the Christmas books and DVDs. Our collection and things we borrow from the library gets a little longer each year. Like the “5 Gifts” post, I will try to post this earlier, say after Thanksgiving, next year.

Emmet Otter’s Jug Band Christmas. A Muppet production based on a favorite book from my childhood by Russell and Lillian Hoban, who also wrote the Frances the badger books. The video adheres closely to the story and the Muppets are a perfect fit. 8yo Drake and I enjoyed this. 5yo Guppy said he hated it, and my husband G. Grod slept through much of it, as he does every year.

Bridget Jones’ Diary. Not for the kids, and not exactly a Christmas movie, but it starts and ends at the holidays, and I love it. I love the casting (Hugh Grant and Colin Firth), the soundtrack and timing, the humor. I feel like I might be a bad feminist for loving it so, what with Bridget only redeeming herself in the end by getting the guy, having humiliated herself yet again, by racing around town in her tiger-striped undies. Don’t care. Love.

A Charlie Brown Christmas. Guppy got to pick this one. He and Drake both loved it, though I’m not sure they’re reliable critics, as they also loved the lame ass sequel on the DVD.

The Shop Around the Corner. Not with the kids. Perhaps my favorite Christmas film, and one I love much better than that other Jimmy Stewart classic. Remade as In the Good Old Summertime and You’ve Got Mail.

A Christmas Story. No one in our family had ever seen this, which some friends considered travesty, one we corrected this year. Enjoyable, funny, but I think it’s classic would grow with repeat viewings, which we haven’t had yet. Drake liked it; Guppy didn’t.

Shaun the Sheep: We Wish Ewe a Merry Christmas (with Seasons Bleatings!) Guppy picked this, since he hated the last one. Both boys were delighted and cackled gleefully and often, as they always do with the Shaun DVDs. If you’re a Wallace and Gromit fan and haven’t checked them out, do.

How the Grinch Stole Christmas. When Guppy was younger–two or three years ago?–we watched this and he hid his eyes and said he didn’t like the green guy. He’s acquired the taste though, and loved it this year.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Before watching, Guppy said he didn’t like it. After, he’d changed his mind. Both boys were confused by the shunning of Rudolph. I’m convinced that Hermie’s (why does it sometimes sound like Herbie?) dentistry is a deliberate metaphor for something else. And the defanging of the Bumble seems more cruel every year.

The Lemon Drop Kid. Recommended by Connie Willis in her MIracle and Other Christmas Stories. Bob Hope as a con artist who owes a gangster money by Christmas. Good, not great, but has him singing Silver Bells with his co-star. Worth it, if not must-watch for every year.

More to come…

Posted 24 December 2011 † girldetective § 2011 Movies ‡ Comments (0) °

“Miracle, and Other Christmas Stories” by Connie Willis

My husband’s a fan of Willis’ books, but I’d not yet read them, so figured her Christmas book Miracle and Other Christmas Stories was as good as any to start with. In it, she has several short stories, all about weird aspects of Christmas, like what if a spirit turned up in your house, or if Mary and Joseph showed up at a church on Christmas Eve? The stories are good, but even better is her introduction and her end notes, in which she details her love of the holidays (e.g., Miracle on 34th Street), her dislike of certain aspects (the universal adulation of It’s a Wonderful Life) and includes lists of recommended reading and movies, several of which I hadn’t even heard of that are now on my list. (The Lemon Drop Kid? The Three Godfathers?) And I’ll certainly be seeking out more Willis books in the new year.

Posted 24 December 2011 † girldetective § 2011 Books ‡ Comments (1) °

“Yendi” by Steven Brust

I dove into Steven Brust’s second Vlad Taltos novel, Yendi, and finished the next day, kind of bummed I had other reading to do before tearing into the third book. These are wildly entertaining sword-and-sorcery tales, and Brust can plot like a mothereffer. The world of the books is fascinating and complex. These books hold up marvelously these 20 years later, even if they do conform to a lot of the fantasy tropes that Diana Wynne Jones tweaked in her clever The Tough Guide to Fantasyland.

My only gripe is that there are brothels and the league of witches is called The Bitch Patrol. If we can create a fantasy world, can’t we imagine a world without prostitution, of where sex workers are honored, not exploited? Joss Whedon tried and failed epically to do the latter in Firefly, though Carla Speed McNeil does an interesting take on it in her series Finder.

Posted 24 December 2011 † girldetective § 2011 Books § Weird Things That Bother Me ‡ Comments (0) °