My attempt to foment a late-in-life love of comic books continues with Volumes 5 and 6 of The Flash. In these collections the scarlet speedster battles the Rogues’ Gallery, meets the Green Lantern, and tries to steer an impressionable Wally West. Unfortunately neither of these volumes has much in the way of memorable storytelling or imagery. I chose the Flash for my introduction to comics because of my love of the CW television series, which features great characters, memorable villains, and only occasionally takes a […]
Days of Their Lives
I had issues with the film One Day, which is adapted from this novel by David Nicholls, but I am so in the tank for Anne Hathaway that they hardly mattered. I always meant to go back and read the novel, and thanks to a sale on the Kindle edition I’ve finally done so. The premise, in case you’re not aware, is that the novel follows two friends, Dexter Mayhew and Emma Morley through the course of their lives by focusing on the events of […]
The Early Days of the Planet Tralfamadore
The Sirens of Titan was one of the first Vonnegut novels I ever read, but this is the first time I’ve read it since. I had forgotten whole swaths of the plot, though the central moral has remained burned in my mind ever since: “I was the victim of a series of accidents, as are we all.” But other than that, I found the whole book quite a surprise. While I was reading, I was constantly reminded of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. This […]
From Screen to Page
Anna Kendrick is one of the most likable actresses around, and one of the hardest-working, judging by her film slate. She’s been nominated for both a Tony and an Oscar, hosted Saturday Night Live, and sang in front of the President. At only 31 years old, she’s done and accomplished more than enough to merit a memoir. Like its author, Scrappy Little Nobody is very appealing. Starting with her days as a child actress in the theater, Kendrick is admirably frank about her insecurities, faults, […]
Lonesome No More!
In his essay collection Palm Sunday, Kurt Vonnegut assigns grades to all of his works thus far. Slaughterhouse Five and Cat’s Cradle get A-pluses while Mother Night, Sirens of Titan and Jailbird get As. And as for Slapstick, this novel gets a D. I first read Slapstick in the week after Vonnegut’s death, because after hearing the news I had run to the campus library and checked out every one of his books that I hadn’t yet read. Both then and now Vonnegut’s harsh appraisal […]
Third Trip to Gilead
Marilynne Robinson returns to post-war Gilead, Iowa for a third novel, following up on the prize-winning Gilead and Home for this tale of the much younger wife of the Rev. John Ames and her fractured upbringing. As a child, Lila is neglected and disdained by her relatives until the day Doll runs off with her without turning back. Raised on the edges of society, by the team she meets Rev. Ames she has seen some of the worst it has to offer, and knows almost nothing […]
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