Movies and Television
-
Miss Marple: The Thirteen Problems/The Tuesday Club Murders
“Human nature is always interesting… And it’s curious to see how certain types always tend to act in exactly the same way.” p 167 Hello! Today, I am here to talk about the Miss Marple introduction we deserve, known in the UK as The Thirteen Problems and in the US as The Tuesday Club Murders. And in fact, a few of these short stories did appear in print before the Murder at the Vicarage, so I feel justified in making this statement. The Book I am realizing as I start this reread that I have actually not read a lot of the Miss Marple books in their original form as…
-
Weekend Joys in Books and More: January 15th
Happy Friday! I know that I have certainly been shaken by what is happening in the US over the past few weeks. It is a lot to process, and I am trying to take as much time as I can to give both myself and those around me grace as we process the almost insane amount of baggage we are being handed. This week, I have 5 things to help you start your weekend off in the best frame of mind possible. 1.) When I get tense at night and have trouble sleeping, I tend to lean towards soothing audiobooks. My go to is Lord of the Rings, and I…
-
Miss Marple: Murder At The Vicarage
“I know that in books it is always the most unlikely person. But I never find that rule applies in real life. There it is so often the obvious that is true.” p 216 Hello!Welcome to the first post of my 2021 Miss Marple read through. In which the choice of first person narration is confusing, we visit St Mary Mead, and the inimitable Jane Marple solves her first case with very little effort and lots of knitting. The character of Jane Marple was inspired by Christie’s grandmother, although “much more fussy and less spinsterish”, and I have always enjoyed her calm, observational style of murder solving. She is the…
-
Weekend Joys, Books and More: January 8th
This first week of 2021 is proving to be no less eventful! I hope you all have a wonderful and relaxing weekend. 1.) My obsession over the holiday break was this relaxing and soothing television show. Who knew kiln firing could be so dramatic!? 2.) I love a good literary map – Take this fun quiz and see how many of these do you recognize? 3.) This is such a sweet gift idea! 4.) Ice Skating + Drag = This incredibly cool video. 5.) The internet of the early 2000s was a weird place.
-
Weekend Joys, Books and 2021!
Hello everyone, Well, the first day of 2021, and I am here to share a few fun weekend treats to enjoy the first day of this new year! 1.) I don’t know what I find more amusing, this SNL skit, or these responses. 2.) Are you a leftover lover or a leftover hater? Either way, you may enjoy this new show. Now I need the cookbook. 3.) What should your first book of 2021 be? I got These Violent Delights, which is a Shangahi based adaptation of Romeo and Juliet and looks really cool. 4.) If you are wanting to read more in 2021, check out my post about ways…
-
Weekend Joys in Books and More: December 4th Edition
Hello, I hope you all had a great week and are enjoying settling into the holiday spirit. As one of our kiddos said yesterday when discussing what month it is, it is certainly “Christmas Month” in our house. Enjoy the links below and have a great weekend! 1.) Enjoy Stacey Mei Yan Fong’s weird and wonderful 50 Pies / 50 States project! 2.) This is by far the best The Christmas Carol adaptation out there. Guillermo del Toro agrees with me so I must be right. 3.) This website is super fascinating and fun to explore! I’ve been watching a lot of period TV, and this gives me major shelf…
-
A Jane Austen Re-read: Persuasion
Hello, I’ll be back in the next few days with a few other things, but today, I bring you the last of Jane Austen’s books, Persuasion. This short and sweet book is a great one, and I have been looking forward to it! There are spoilers below. If you haven’t already read this book or watched one of the movies, this post likely isn’t going to make much sense anyway. Rereading The Book Persuasion is the story of 27 year old Anne Elliot, the second daughter of Sir Walter Elliot, a spendthrift landowner who ends up having to relocate to Bath to reduce expenses. Anne is sensible, quiet and reasonable,…
-
A Jane Austen Re-read: Northanger Abbey
Hello! Another week in quarantine, another Jane Austen marathon down. This week, I have been hoping for spring to come, and trying to stay upbeat despite some dreary weather. I’m working on what comes next on this blog, because I have one of these books left, so let me know if there is anything you want to see! Next week, we are wrapping up this series with Persuasion, which is both short and one of my favorites, so I am looking forward to it! There are spoilers below. If you haven’t already read this book or watched one of the movies, this post likely isn’t going to make much sense…
-
A Jane Austen Re-read: Emma
Hello everyone, The fact that Emma is so popular means that it took me an extra week just to make it through the sheer volume of Emma’s many adaptations, and I didn’t even get to them all – however, I am here now, and I have to tell you that you are in for a treat! I approached this book with some dread because when I first read Emma, I did not like it all that much. I thought Emma was annoying, and the central relationship between Harriet and Emma was grating, and many of the characters felt a little more one-sided than in some of her other books. I…
-
Small Literary Joys
One of the things about loving storytelling for me is that I love seeing the joy in others when they are super excited about something. I was reminded of this this week when something lovely popped up on a social media feed – Patrick Stewart reading sonnets! I don’t love sonnets, but I do LOVE Patrick Stewart, so I immediately had to watch this. As his beautiful voice started to read a poem I had never heard before, I found myself focusing not on the words as much the pure joy and enjoyment that he was projecting! Take a look at one of his below, and if you like them,…
