2021 Reading Challenge and FY2022 Movie Challenge
July 1 marked the beginning of the fiscal year 2022. I track my movies watched on the fiscal year, and the final results of that year are HERE. I officially watched thirteen movies over twelve months which, I believe, can best be described as 'pathetic.' I hope to do better in the coming year, but I'm not off to a rip-roaring start.
Unsurprisingly, I'm doing better at reading books. FanSee
2021 Reading Challenge
1.) A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab.
2.) Dark Voyage by Alan Furst.
3.) Ravenwood, 4.) Zypheria's Call, and 5.) The Hermit of Lammas Wood by Nathan Lowell.
6.) A Difficult Truce by Joan Wolf.
7.) Storm Front by John Sandford.
8.) Paladin's Grace by T. Kingfisher.
9.) Paladin's Strength by T. Kingfisher.
10.) A Promised Land by Barack Obama.
11.) The Watergate Girl by Jill Wine-Banks.
12.) Margarita and the Earl by Joan Wolf.
13.) Outlawed by Anna Worth.
14.) Faro's Daughter by Georgette Heyer.
15.) A Difficult Truce by Joan Wolf. I usually love Joan Wolf's Regencies but, on rereading this one, not all of them. Set in Ireland at the end of the 18th century, Wolf uses a fictional romance between an English nobleman, Charles Standish, Duke of Dacre, and Christina McCarthy, the daughter of a leader of the fight for Irish independence as a vehicle for the story of the parliamentary fight for Irish Home Rule. I can believe such an alliance could have taken place as a gambit to prevent McCarthy from becoming the leader her father had been. I have a hard time believing the alliance would have resulted in a tranquil marriage and a genuine love affair.
16.) Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin. I read this tome in paperback and, at 754 pages, found its physical size to be challenging. Still, I'm glad I bought the physical book: I have frequently misplaced books on my Kindle, lost somewhere in cyber-space, and "Team of Rivals" is a keeper. Besides that, Goodwin introduces many players who were well-known...or famous...in their day but whom I had never heard of. I did quite a bit of flipping back and forth through the book to reacquaint myself with characters. This was such a worthwhile read, but I found myself slowing down as I neared the end. I knew the story wasn't going to end well for my favorite character, Abraham Lincoln, or for the country I love, these United States. Had Lincoln lived, our history of the post-war period would be different, I sincerely believe.
17.) Arabella by Georgette Heyer was a much quicker read than "Team," thank goodness. I last read it only three years ago, and this time I figured out why it isn't one of my favorite Heyers. It isn't until we are almost 20% through the book that Mr. Robert Beaumaris, soon to be Arabella's true love, makes his first appearance. Tsk, tsk, I thought. This was Heyer's 24th book, so I can't chalk that error up to inexperience, and it is preceded by books that I love, including "Frederica" and "A Civil Contract." However, after Arabella and Beaumaris meet, the book improves, although never to the very top ten or so of my Heyer list.
18. 19. and 20.) A Darker Shade of Magic, A Gathering of Shadows, and A Conjuring of Light by V.E. Schwab. I read "Darker Shade," the first book in this trilogy, in January; it was the first book I posted to my 2021 list. You can read my review HERE. One line in my write up sums up how these books affected me. I wrote, "I have purchased the other two but am taking a rest before moving on." That rest lasted until May 10th, at which point I felt I had to reread "Darker Shade" to be able to read the rest of Schwab's tale intelligently. I finished all three on May 21st, having read 1,546 pages. I thought Schwab's world-building was original and well-done, with four parallel worlds and less than five people able to travel between them. Those people...Kell, Delilah Bard, Holland, Rhys, Alucard Emery...were interesting, attractive characters whose interwoven stories were strong enough to hold up over all those pages, but still! I dedicated a lot of hours to Schwab's world, and I'm not sure I'll want to reread. Rereading for me is ultimate accolade. Time will tell whether Schwab's work earns it.
21.) Stolen Girls by Wolfgang Bauer. The subtitle of "Stolen Girls" is, "Survivors of Boco Haram Tell Their Tales," and therein lies the strengths and weaknesses of this book. I loved the transcriptions of the interviews of the women freed from the Boco Haram. They flow, so that I could almost hear the women speaking, and if they don't always go into the detail I'm interested in, well, that's understandable. These are ordinary people who have survived an extraordinary experiences. They may not realize that the parts of their ordeal that seem mundane to them are of interest to western readers. The interviews are set within Wolfgang Bauer's much needed stage setting and background explanations. Unfortunately, Bauer's sections sound like they were translated from the German, and not particularly felicitously. The photographic portraits of the women, however, are remarkable.
22., 23., 24., and 25.) Broken Prey, Naked Prey, Extreme Prey, and Invisible Prey by John Sandford. I had a sort of a plan when I decided to re-read some of Sandford's Prey series. I didn't want to re-read the early Preys, but it was too soon, I thought, to re-read the most recent of the 31 novels in the series. So I re-read the 16th, "Broken Prey;" the 14th, "Naked Prey"; the 26th...hardly mid-list!..."Extreme Prey; and the 17th, "Invisible Prey." I did not take notes, a major mistake. Now all four have blended into one large, murky blur. I remember having differing reactions to each book, but no more. Ugh. I must do better in the future, I know. I will. Hopefully.
26. The Searcher by Tana French. After 25 years with the Chicago police force, Cal Hooper has retired to Ireland, purchased a run-down cottage, and is working on fixing it up. (It needs a lot of work.) He meets his neighbors and is gradually drawn into the life of the community, including some of its problems. As I said here, A Rainy Day and a Book, "I enjoyed it, and it fit perfectly into the mood created by overcast skies and a steady, workman-like rain: nothing fancy but not letting up, either."
27. Landslide, The Final Days of the Trump Presidency by Michael Wolff. I bought "Landslide" because I have an unhealthy interest in learning about all the awful, dangerous, and...hopefully...personally embarrassing things Donald J. Trump has done. I found the awful and I found the dangerous, but I didn't find the personally embarrassing. If Trump is continuously embarrassed and secretly cringing at his own stupid outbursts and actions, he has managed to hide these reactions from the world. Wolff certainly never hints at any embarrassment on Trump's part. As far as the book itself, it runs 309 pages and feels padded, as though Wolff promised to produce a 300 page book, and so had to expand his stage-setting and his explanations beyond what contemporary readers need. Oh, well, my copy of the book is now going out to circulate among my family. We are all interested although not fans, not at all.
FY2022 Movie Challenge
1.) The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard with with Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson. I can honestly say that I enjoyed this silly little movie even though that the plot defies analysis. Oh, I understand it's general story arc: somebody is trying to kill Darius Kincaid (Jackson) who has hired Michael Bryce (Reynolds) to protect him and his wife (Gabriella Wright). This involves a lot of explosions, gun battles, and chases but I have no idea what plot point caused each encounter. However, Ryan Reynolds is indeed attractive and fun to watch, and the job the movie's make up crew has done on his injured face is phenomenal. Watching it heal over the course of the movie was fascinating.
Unsurprisingly, I'm doing better at reading books. FanSee
2021 Reading Challenge
1.) A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab.
2.) Dark Voyage by Alan Furst.
3.) Ravenwood, 4.) Zypheria's Call, and 5.) The Hermit of Lammas Wood by Nathan Lowell.
6.) A Difficult Truce by Joan Wolf.
7.) Storm Front by John Sandford.
8.) Paladin's Grace by T. Kingfisher.
9.) Paladin's Strength by T. Kingfisher.
10.) A Promised Land by Barack Obama.
11.) The Watergate Girl by Jill Wine-Banks.
12.) Margarita and the Earl by Joan Wolf.
13.) Outlawed by Anna Worth.
14.) Faro's Daughter by Georgette Heyer.
15.) A Difficult Truce by Joan Wolf. I usually love Joan Wolf's Regencies but, on rereading this one, not all of them. Set in Ireland at the end of the 18th century, Wolf uses a fictional romance between an English nobleman, Charles Standish, Duke of Dacre, and Christina McCarthy, the daughter of a leader of the fight for Irish independence as a vehicle for the story of the parliamentary fight for Irish Home Rule. I can believe such an alliance could have taken place as a gambit to prevent McCarthy from becoming the leader her father had been. I have a hard time believing the alliance would have resulted in a tranquil marriage and a genuine love affair.
16.) Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin. I read this tome in paperback and, at 754 pages, found its physical size to be challenging. Still, I'm glad I bought the physical book: I have frequently misplaced books on my Kindle, lost somewhere in cyber-space, and "Team of Rivals" is a keeper. Besides that, Goodwin introduces many players who were well-known...or famous...in their day but whom I had never heard of. I did quite a bit of flipping back and forth through the book to reacquaint myself with characters. This was such a worthwhile read, but I found myself slowing down as I neared the end. I knew the story wasn't going to end well for my favorite character, Abraham Lincoln, or for the country I love, these United States. Had Lincoln lived, our history of the post-war period would be different, I sincerely believe.
17.) Arabella by Georgette Heyer was a much quicker read than "Team," thank goodness. I last read it only three years ago, and this time I figured out why it isn't one of my favorite Heyers. It isn't until we are almost 20% through the book that Mr. Robert Beaumaris, soon to be Arabella's true love, makes his first appearance. Tsk, tsk, I thought. This was Heyer's 24th book, so I can't chalk that error up to inexperience, and it is preceded by books that I love, including "Frederica" and "A Civil Contract." However, after Arabella and Beaumaris meet, the book improves, although never to the very top ten or so of my Heyer list.
18. 19. and 20.) A Darker Shade of Magic, A Gathering of Shadows, and A Conjuring of Light by V.E. Schwab. I read "Darker Shade," the first book in this trilogy, in January; it was the first book I posted to my 2021 list. You can read my review HERE. One line in my write up sums up how these books affected me. I wrote, "I have purchased the other two but am taking a rest before moving on." That rest lasted until May 10th, at which point I felt I had to reread "Darker Shade" to be able to read the rest of Schwab's tale intelligently. I finished all three on May 21st, having read 1,546 pages. I thought Schwab's world-building was original and well-done, with four parallel worlds and less than five people able to travel between them. Those people...Kell, Delilah Bard, Holland, Rhys, Alucard Emery...were interesting, attractive characters whose interwoven stories were strong enough to hold up over all those pages, but still! I dedicated a lot of hours to Schwab's world, and I'm not sure I'll want to reread. Rereading for me is ultimate accolade. Time will tell whether Schwab's work earns it.
21.) Stolen Girls by Wolfgang Bauer. The subtitle of "Stolen Girls" is, "Survivors of Boco Haram Tell Their Tales," and therein lies the strengths and weaknesses of this book. I loved the transcriptions of the interviews of the women freed from the Boco Haram. They flow, so that I could almost hear the women speaking, and if they don't always go into the detail I'm interested in, well, that's understandable. These are ordinary people who have survived an extraordinary experiences. They may not realize that the parts of their ordeal that seem mundane to them are of interest to western readers. The interviews are set within Wolfgang Bauer's much needed stage setting and background explanations. Unfortunately, Bauer's sections sound like they were translated from the German, and not particularly felicitously. The photographic portraits of the women, however, are remarkable.
22., 23., 24., and 25.) Broken Prey, Naked Prey, Extreme Prey, and Invisible Prey by John Sandford. I had a sort of a plan when I decided to re-read some of Sandford's Prey series. I didn't want to re-read the early Preys, but it was too soon, I thought, to re-read the most recent of the 31 novels in the series. So I re-read the 16th, "Broken Prey;" the 14th, "Naked Prey"; the 26th...hardly mid-list!..."Extreme Prey; and the 17th, "Invisible Prey." I did not take notes, a major mistake. Now all four have blended into one large, murky blur. I remember having differing reactions to each book, but no more. Ugh. I must do better in the future, I know. I will. Hopefully.
26. The Searcher by Tana French. After 25 years with the Chicago police force, Cal Hooper has retired to Ireland, purchased a run-down cottage, and is working on fixing it up. (It needs a lot of work.) He meets his neighbors and is gradually drawn into the life of the community, including some of its problems. As I said here, A Rainy Day and a Book, "I enjoyed it, and it fit perfectly into the mood created by overcast skies and a steady, workman-like rain: nothing fancy but not letting up, either."
27. Landslide, The Final Days of the Trump Presidency by Michael Wolff. I bought "Landslide" because I have an unhealthy interest in learning about all the awful, dangerous, and...hopefully...personally embarrassing things Donald J. Trump has done. I found the awful and I found the dangerous, but I didn't find the personally embarrassing. If Trump is continuously embarrassed and secretly cringing at his own stupid outbursts and actions, he has managed to hide these reactions from the world. Wolff certainly never hints at any embarrassment on Trump's part. As far as the book itself, it runs 309 pages and feels padded, as though Wolff promised to produce a 300 page book, and so had to expand his stage-setting and his explanations beyond what contemporary readers need. Oh, well, my copy of the book is now going out to circulate among my family. We are all interested although not fans, not at all.
FY2022 Movie Challenge
1.) The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard with with Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson. I can honestly say that I enjoyed this silly little movie even though that the plot defies analysis. Oh, I understand it's general story arc: somebody is trying to kill Darius Kincaid (Jackson) who has hired Michael Bryce (Reynolds) to protect him and his wife (Gabriella Wright). This involves a lot of explosions, gun battles, and chases but I have no idea what plot point caused each encounter. However, Ryan Reynolds is indeed attractive and fun to watch, and the job the movie's make up crew has done on his injured face is phenomenal. Watching it heal over the course of the movie was fascinating.