You know, I do a lot of talking on this blog about movies I’ve watched (or occasionally books I’ve read), and I know many of you read those posts and use the recommendations. And it warms my heart knowing that. True story. However, I’d really love to hear some recommendations from YOU for a change. What have you read or watched recently?
Tell me what it was, and tell me what you’d give it out of 4 stars–and most importantly, please tell me why. Because I love me some reviews, and a lot of the time the only ones I get to read are my own.
Share the love!
Watched: Premium Rush, Iron Man 3, Monsters University. I’d give the first two 3/4 stars. (3/4 stars is my standard for “films/books/media that I expected to like and did.” I reserve 4/4 stars for “films/books/media that changed my life,” and I won’t award that grade unless I’ve seen the film or read the book more than once.) Monsters University I’d give 2.5/4 stars. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t as good as Monsters Inc. or some of Pixar’s other films.
Read: Fables, vol. 1, which I’d give 3/4 stars and Leviathan, which I loved and would therefore give 3.5/4 stars.
Thanks for sharing, Katya. I’ve seen Iron Man and read Leviathan. Enjoyed them just like you. MU is one I might go take the kiddos to . . . haven’t decided yet.
I watched the bbc series Call the Midwife on Netflix and loved it. If you don’t mind babies being born, it’s super interesting to see the world from a different perspective. I’ve been noticing that a lot of British tv has a different perspective; the things they focus on are just a little different than I think we get in the US.
Also, I’ve been reading the Beyonder series by Brandon Mull. Don’t know if you’ve gotten to those yet, but I think they’re worth a read. I wouldn’t say they’re as great as Fablehaven, but they’re solid and entertaining 🙂
Watched the first season of Continuum on Netflix. I’m always up for Scify and this didn’t disappoint. I give it four stars.
Oh! Also, I don’t know if you’re a Star Trek or comic book fan, but I read the Star Trek comics that are supposed to come after the 2009 movie, and that lead up to the new one, and they were fantastic! I was kind of shocked how good they were story wise and character wise. You can really hear the characters as you read, and feel like it’s all one big cohesive story.
I second Becky on Call the Midwives. Loved it. But I also love all things birth related too. It is great.
I’m a mostly non-fiction reader and I’ve discovered a new author I love. Mary Roach is a science writer and she takes some interesting topics and makes them fascinating. I’ve read Stiff (all about dead bodies), Packing for Mars, and I’m currently reading Gulp (about the digestive system) and I live the way she writes. She gets me laughing out loud.
I tried one episode of Call the Midwife, but found it distressing. Maybe it was too soon after MC was born and we should give it another shot. I’ll add Continuum to my queue, and some of those non-fiction books look super. I should give them a shot, too.
My most favorite recent read was A Tale for the Time Being, by Ruth Ozeki, which is fiction that combines contemporary Japan, writing, physics, Zen, and a touch of magical realism. It’s one of those books that tricky to describe but a really great read. It was a bit slow starting out, but as the story built I started to totally love it.
I haven’t watched anything lately, sadly, other than Monsters University with my kids. I second Katya’s opinion–it was fun, but not great.
Awesome. I’ll have to check it out.