Friday, February 14, 2025

Week In Review #7

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I read six books this week.

14. First State of Being. Erin Entrada Kelly. 2024. 272 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, Newbery Medal, MG Speculative Fiction, MG Fiction, Time Travel]

Read this book if....

  • You like keeping up with the Newbery Medals and Hnor books
  • You enjoy so called "historical" fiction set in 1999
  • You enjoy time travel elements
  • You enjoy coming of age stories

15. Buster Keaton: A Filmmaker's Life. James Curtis. 2022. 810 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, adult nonfiction, biography]

Read this book if....

  • You are curious to learn more about Buster Keaton--his life and films
  • You enjoy biographies
  • You enjoy the history of cinema and have a fondness for silent films especially

14. Ratnip: Lost and Found in the City. Cam Higgins. Illustrated by Allison Steinfeld. 2025. [February] 128 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars, animal fantasy, early chapter book]

Read this book if....

  • You enjoy animal fantasy written for children
  • You enjoy stories with rats
  • You like to keep up with new series for young readers


15. Trouble Finds Plum. Matt Phelan. 2023. 128 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, animal fantasy, early chapter book, j fiction]

Read this book if....

  • You enjoy series books
  • You enjoy illustrated chapter books for young readers
  • You like humorous animal fantasy


13. Christ Crucified: A Theology of Galatians. Thomas R. Schreiner. 2024. 176 pages. [Source: Review copy] [christian nonfiction, theology, bible commentary, 4 stars]

Read this book if....

  • You are looking for a weighty scholarly treatment of Paul's letter to the Galatians



14. Happy Lies: How a Movement You (Probably) Never Heard Of Shaped Our Self-Obsessed World. Melissa Dougherty. 2025. 272 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, christian nonfiction]

Read this book if....

  • You are a Christian
  • You want to learn how to discern right from almost right
  • You want to make sense of so-called "Christian" culture and why it is at odds with the Bible


Century of Viewing Round-Up for Week 7
1910s

  • 1918 Moonshine is META gold. The intertitles of this Arbuckle/Keaton short are GREAT. It has many great sequences. Definitely plays like a LIVE-ACTION cartoon complete with the gag of how many people can fit in a small car. (And the curling the barrel of a gun to shoot around the corner gag).
  • 1918 Good Night, Nurse is another Arbuckle/Keaton short. It is SILLY for sure. I think my favorite bit was Keaton as woman with umbrella kicking Arbuckle! (Granted he was trying to steal her umbrella in a horrible rain storm.) Plenty of smiling Keaton bits in this one. The story was strange.

1920s

  • 1920 Convict 13 is silly, surreal, and overall fun. Not a favorite, but, certainly this Buster Keaton short is enjoyable. (Loved the spanking fish scene.)
  • 1920 The Scarecrow was even more enjoyable the second time around. I absolutely loved it. I cannot emphasize too much how FABULOUS the ending is. Love seeing Buster Keaton and Sybil Seely together.
  • 1921 The Boat. I think of this one as the sequel to One Week. Was it meant to be? Maybe. Maybe not. In this one, Buster is building a BOAT for his family--which now includes TWO pork-pie hat wearing boys. Will it be smooth sailing? What do you think?!?! Is his boat Damfino aptly named? YES. I loved this one so much. Another Buster Keaton, Sybil Seely short.
  • 1921 High Sign. Buster Keaton is irresistible. This one is purely silly but man he's adorable. Buster Keaton plays both HITMAN and BODYGUARD. And it all starts with the wanted ads...
  • 1921 Hard Luck. This one was not my favorite or best Keaton short. However, it does have its bright moments--just a lot of dark ones too. The premise is that his life is so bad that he wants to end it. He rides horses and goes high diving....the ending is surreal.
  • 1921 The Goat. Buster is THE GOAT for sure. Though why they titled the film this I'm not sure. This wonderful short--featuring some epic chases and epic trains--was a DELIGHT. And of course it all involves mistaken identities....and odd circumstances. This one is a MUST for sure.
  • 1925. Go West. Just when I think I can't love a Buster Keaton film any more than I do....along comes Go West. Words cannot express how much I absolutely LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this movie. Buster Keaton plays FRIENDLESS; he's homeless, jobless, and riding trains. He heads west (of course) and finds himself barreling down a hill unto a new opportunity--a ranch hand. He befriends--albeit slightly reluctantly--a cow named BROWN EYES. The two become inseparable. But what will he do when it's time for the cattle to be sold??? I want to watch this movie a hundred million times. This is the movie I "compelled" my Dad to watch. (I did have to bribe him.)
  • 1926 Battling Butler. How much did I love this Buster Keaton film? So much I watched it twice. How much was I expecting to like it? Not as much. You see it's supposedly a "boxing" film. Who wants to watch a film about boxers boxing???? Certainly not me! Or so I thought. Sigh. Buster Keaton plays Alfred Butler, a rich, spoiled man thoroughly dependent on his valet. "Arrange it" is one of his refrains. His father insists on a trip to the mountains to make a man of him. On the trip--hunting and fishing--he ends up falling madly in love with "mountain girl" (that's how she's credited on screen). He proposes (not even needing the help from a love advice column). She accepts. Her family is reluctant until they learn he's Alfred Battling Butler. (He's not). The two share a name--but nothing else. He pretends to be a boxer little knowing he'd be called upon to go the distance and actually face a real boxer (though not in the ring). Will she still love him when the truth comes out??? Buster Keaton needed a double in this one...though not for the boxing....don't be silly. He needed a HAND DOUBLE for showing off the engagement ring in the box since he was missing the tip of his right index finger. (He does not use a hand double in all his films.)
  • 1927 Children of Divorce is a silent film starring CLARA BOW and GARY COOPER. Who knew that Gary Cooper acted in silent movies?!?!?! This one was a melodramatic depressing downer. So I ended up wanting most of my time back. Yet I can't say that I regretted seeing BABY Gary Cooper.
  • 1928 The Cameraman. Is this one Buster Keaton's most "romantic" silent film????? Maybe. Maybe not. But swoon and sigh. It was FABULOUS. Buster Keaton plays a photographer who falls madly in love with a young girl who works for a news agency? He trades in his camera for an ancient film camera, and, away he goes to try to win her heart by getting the BIG story. This one has it all--even a monkey. The BATHHOUSE scenes are not to be missed. This one is charming through and through. I definitely want to watch again-again.
  • 1928 The Circus. This is my first Charlie Chaplin movie. It was DIFFERENT than Keaton for sure. Keaton almost always, always, always, always gets the girls--at least in his silent films/shorts. I suppose The Tramp will always be The Tramp and he'll never settle down and have a wife and kids? This one had some great scenes. I am not hooked on Chaplin yet, however. Still I am glad I started with this one.

1940s

  • 1944 Since You Went Away is an emotional war drama starring Claudette Colbert, Jennifer Jones, and Shirley Temple. A wife and daughters struggle with life on the homefront during World War II. Many changes come their way and they open their home to a boarder--a retired officer. This one was LONG nearly three hours. It was written by Selznick and the music score was by the same one who did Gone With the Wind. This one definitely feels classically epic.

1950s

  • 1957 Desk Set is a Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn romantic comedy set at an office. Need I say more? Maybe. Maybe not. If you love these two, I probably won't need to sell you on it. This one does have a slightly slower plot, perhaps. But I thought it was worth it in the end. It definitely has a LONG Christmas scene if you're looking for almost Christmas-y movies to watch in the Fall.

2010s

  • 2010 Inception is one of my all-time favorite movies. The more I see it, the more I love it. Of course, the more you see it, the more you understand it. Minimum of two views to "get" it. The soundtrack is all kinds of wonderful.

© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

15. Buster Keaton: A Filmmaker's Life

  

15. Buster Keaton: A Filmmaker's Life. James Curtis. 2022. 810 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, adult nonfiction, biography]

First sentence: The man in the pork pie hat is unhappy. His head down, arms akimbo, he paces grimly as a documentary crew captures him on film.

Premise/plot: What you see is what you get: James Curtis' delivers a biography of the legendary 'larger than life' film star Buster Keaton. In some ways, there was not a hat Buster Keaton didn't wear. He did all the jobs--quite literally--in the film business. And, of course, he's quite famous FOR his hats. It IS a full biography--mainly. Starting with his parents upbringing and subsequent marriage through his death and legacy. There's also a strong focus on his entertaining--his work on stage, on film, behind the cameras, in front of the cameras, etc. Some films get their own chapters, I believe. Though many aspects of his life--his work--is covered, the book is never gossip-y or frivolous. It is a serious book about a legendary, one-of-a-kind comic. It is PACKED with details about his silent films especially. Less so, perhaps, with his later work. But I think overall, this one will DELIVER exactly what readers want most, to learn more about the man whose creative genius gave the world unforgettable, incredible FILMS (and shorts). So if the book perhaps focuses a little more on his 'golden era' if you will, I'll allow it.

My thoughts: Yes, the book is LONG, LONG, LONG. However, it was a joyous journey. I began my deep dive into anything-everything Buster Keaton in January. It was a slow start, perhaps, two to three films a week. Nice, steady pace. By the end of January, I was gloriously in all the way and watching almost exclusively Buster Keaton related movies. In some cases, rewatching again, again, again.

As I read through the book, I'd peek to the next chapter to see which film(s) I'd need to see. I think SEEING the films (features, shorts, whatever) BEFORE reading the chapter(s) made a difference. It made me appreciate the book more, encouraged me to go back and watch the film again, and in general made me a nuisance to anyone within reach. DID YOU KNOW THAT....

I found it a fascinating read. I do wish, however, it had MORE PICTURES and LARGER PICTURES. I wouldn't mind it being a thousand pages long (instead of 800) if it meant MORE pictures of Buster.

 

© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Tuesday, February 11, 2025

14. First State of Being

   

14. First State of Being. Erin Entrada Kelly. 2024. 272 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, Newbery Medal, MG Speculative Fiction, MG Fiction, Time Travel]

First sentence: Peaches, Michael Rosario thought. That's what we need. His mother loved peaches. If the world came to a standstill at midnight on January 1, 2000, at least she would have two things she cherished: peaches and Michael.

Premise/plot: The year is 1999. Michael Rosario, the narrator, struggles with worry and anxiety. His biggest anxiety at the moment is the end of the world, aka Y2K. He is secretly hoarding food and supplies. Since he doesn't have money to pay--he's a kid, after all, just twelve--he's picked up the habit of shoplifting. His second biggest anxiety is that his mom will lose another job--just like before. Right now they are living paycheck to paycheck, he fears what would happen....if. There are so many 'ifs' of the future. He does have friends in the apartment complex, and, I believe he's friends with some--at least one--of the adults as well. But it is his new friend, Ridge, a friend who claims to be from the FUTURE and even has a book in hand that details historical events, who may just change his perspective and help him come into 'the first state of being' (aka living IN the moment, IN now).

 My thoughts: I enjoyed this one. I am so glad I finally read it. It had been on my want to read list for months. It recently won the Newbery Medal. I thought the premise of a time traveler was interesting. It is more usual, more typical, to read books from the point of view of the time traveler, that is not the case here. Michael is tempted--incredibly tempted--by trying to find out anything, everything, something--about the future. Here is his opportunity to KNOW what the future holds...but would knowing change things for the better or the worse? And what if the theories of how damaging knowing could be if it leads to changes.


© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Saturday, February 08, 2025

Week in Review #6

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I read nine books this week.

11. Magnolia Wu Unfolds It All. Chanel Miller. 2024. 160 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, Newbery Honor, mg realistic, family, friendship, light mystery]

Read this book if...

  • You enjoy coming of age novels with strong friendship themes
  • You enjoy books set in New York City
  • You enjoy books about race/racism
  • You enjoy books with LIGHT mysteries (missing socks)
  • You enjoy reading Newbery Honors

12. Up, Up, Ever Up! Junko Tabei: A Life in the Mountains. Anita Yasuda. Illustrated by Yuko Shimizu. 2024. 48 pages. [Source: Library] [nonfiction picture book, 3 stars]

Read this book if...

  • You enjoy nonfiction picture book biographies
  • You have an interest in outdoors adventures and sports (mountain climbing)
  • You have an interest in conservation activists
  • You enjoy reading Caldecott Honors


13. Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World: The Extraordinary True Story of Shackleton and the Endurance. Jennifer Armstrong. 1998. Random House. 144 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, nonfiction, history, biography, adventure, South Pole, survival]

Read this book if...  

  • You enjoy nonfiction books for middle grade (on up)
  • You enjoy adventure/survival stories
  • You enjoy history and biography
  • You have an interest in Antarctic explorers/exploration
  • You love a compelling nonfiction narrative

11. Noodles on a Bicycle. Kyo Maclear. Illustrated by Gracey Zhang. 2024. 40 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, Caldecott Honor, historical picture book, picture book]

Read this book if...

  • You enjoy historical picture books
  • You enjoy books set in other countries [Japan]
  • You enjoy learning about other cultures
  • You enjoy reading Caldecott honors
  • You enjoy fantastic storytelling


12. Gnome and Rat First Snow (Gnome and Rat #3) Lauren Stohler. 2024. [November] 80 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars, graphic novel, early chapter book]

Read this book if... 

  • You enjoyed the first (or second) Gnome and Rat book
  • You enjoy early chapter books
  • You enjoy early graphic novels
  • You enjoy humorous graphic novels


13. Pasta! These Names are Fun To Say. Felice Arena. Illustrated by Beatrice Cerocchi. 2024. 32 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars]

Read this book if...  

  • You like silly books that beg to be read aloud
  • You enjoy noodles!

10. Found: God's Will. John F. MacArthur Jr. 1972/1998. 64 pages. [Source: Bought] [Five stars, christian nonfiction, Christian living]

Read this book if...

  • You are looking for GOOD, solid advice on how to better live the Christian life
  • You are looking for quick reads with substance



11. C.S. Lewis at War: The Dramatic Story Behind Mere Christianity. Focus on the Family Radio Theatre. Paul McCusker screenplay. 2013. Tyndale. 2 Discs. [Source: Inter-Library] [4 stars, audio book]

Read this book if...

  • You have an interest in C.S. Lewis
  • You have an interest in British RADIO during World War II
  • You enjoy audio plays


12. The Indigo Heiress. Laura Frantz. 2025. 416 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, christian fiction, historical romance, clean historical romance]

Read this book if... 

  • You have a weakness for Scottish men [and their accents]
  • You enjoy historical romance [clean historical romance]
  • You enjoy christian historical romance
  • You enjoy MARRIAGE OF CONVENIENCE stories
  • You don't mind a little melodrama

 Century of Viewing Round-Up for Week #6

1910s

  • 1917 Coney Island is a short starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Buster Keaton. If I hadn't already been long gone, way past head over heels, truly madly deeply in love with Buster Keaton BEFORE watching this one, it would send me there. This one has a lot of mischief--as Roscoe is trying to escape his wife...and everyone (including Roscoe) is after Buster's girl. (The girl does seem like she just wants a ticket to the amusement park.) BUSTER AS LIFEGUARD.
  • 1917 His Wedding Night is another short starring Roscoe Arbuckle and Buster Keaton. This one has Buster Keaton in the role of a delivery boy. Sounds like a small part, except, for Buster there are no small parts. The bride-to-be asks HIM to model the wedding gown, and, well the VILLAIN kidnaps Buster by mistake. EVERYONE is fooled even the groom himself. It's silly. Buster laughs and smiles. It's nice enough. The story isn't the best. But BUSTER.
  • 1917 Oh, Doctor! This is another Roscoe Arbuckle and Buster Keaton short. In this one, the comedy duo play father and son. Buster is dressed up as a kid. Roscoe plays a HORRIBLE doctor who gets duped by other horrible people. Probably my least favorite short I've seen so far this year. 
  • 1917 The Rough House is another Arbuckle/Keaton short. Buster Keaton plays a handful of different roles in this one. It is not my favorite or best. I'm not sure if Oh Doctor or The Rough House is my least favorite. Still I don't regret watching it because it does have Buster!
  • 1918 The Cook. Yes, I watched The Cook in January. Yes, The Cook factors into my zealous obsession of sorts with Buster Keaton. This one is in some ways broken into three acts: Buster as waiter/dancer; Buster and friends eating spaghetti; and the friends all hanging out on the beach. Two out of three are PERFECTLY PERFECT. Not sure why the beach scene stuff is part of it??? But still, one not to be missed.
  • 1918 The Bellboy is another Arbuckle/Keaton short. In this one the two play bell boys at a less than luxurious resort. The two share an interest in the manicurist. This one is funny...zany even. Plenty of stunts and antics. I think this was the short where I started to better appreciate Arbuckle.
  • 1919 Backstage is another Arbuckle/Keaton short. In this one the back-stage help is forced to become THE ON STAGE talent on very quick notice. There's a villain [boo, hiss] but thank goodness for Buster's quick thinking! This one was HILARIOUS. And I absolutely loved so many things about it.

1920s

  • 1920 The Scarecrow stars Buster Keaton and Sybil Seely. In this one, Buster Keaton plays a farmhand in a "like triangle" with the farmer's daughter, I believe. Two farm hands (living together) are in pursuit of the same girl. This one also BORROWS Luke the Dog from Roscoe Arbuckle. The ENDING OF THIS ONE WAS SO WONDERFULLY SILLY.
  • 1920 Neighbors is a Buster Keaton short. He is truly, madly, deeply in love with the girl next door. The parents of BOTH object--violently, as in get the cops involved violent. Will these two ever get married?
  • 1922 My Wife's Relations. This is a Buster Keaton short. I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED it. Buster Keaton is FALSELY "accused" if you will of breaking a window. A woman literally drags him before a judge to tattle on him. The judge--who only speaks POLISH--thinks they are a couple wanting to get married. YES, the pair finds themselves married to one another...for better or worse. She takes him home to her large Irish family--multiple generations. This one never stops. Every single scene had me at hello. It was HILARIOUS. I loved every single second. I watched it THREE  times in two days.
  • 1922 Cops. I am just going to have to divide this one into two parts. As far as STUNTS and action sequences go, it is worth the hype. Chances are if you've seen a montage of Buster Keaton's stunts, you've seen all the best highlights of Cops. Scene after scene after scene you see Buster performing incredible stunts. BUT. I absolutely hated the story so much. Well, that's not fair. THE ENDING WAS THE WORST. Like, a chase scene is *only* good as far as I'm concerned if he's not caught. It might not be a popular opinion, but I did NOT care for Cops at all. Well, I can definitely appreciate the stunts and some sequences. But that ending is HORRIBLE.
  • 1923 Three Ages is a feature-length Buster Keaton film. Three "timeless" love stories are woven together. The ages are the stone age, the Roman empire, and the modern world (1920s). Buster is in love in all three, the family opposes him as suitor, and another rival is preferred. This one has a HILARIOUS scene where Buster is reacting to crab on his plate. Is it the best Buster Keaton feature? NO. Of course not. But I enjoyed elements of it. 
  • 1926 The General. Is The General *still* my favorite Buster Keaton feature film. Probably. Definitely. Perhaps. I may just have to watch it 89 more times to be certain. (You think I'm joking, but I'm not. I've already watched it three times--twice in January, once in February.) The plot: Johnnie Gray, a train engineer, wants to enlist in the Confederate army after Ft. Sumter is fired upon. However, he's rejected as a soldier to his own dismay and that of his girl (one of his two loves) and the girls' family. Dejected, he continues on with his regular work UNTIL one day when spies kidnap the two things he loves most--his train, THE GENERAL, and his girl, Annabelle.

1930s

  • 1930 Free and Easy. Buster Keaton feature film. OH MY HEART. I am so conflicted. On the one hand, the ending is SO sad. I could almost taste tears sad. So much was conveyed without saying a single word. [Buster is great at that.] Back to the plot itself,  it starts in KANSAS. Buster plays an agent accompanying a young, beautiful woman who hopes to become a Hollywood star. Elvira is joined by her protective, domineering mother. As the story unfolds, it seems EVERYONE including Elmer (Buster) and her mother have star potential and gets work in movies....except for her. She falls in love with a [boo, hiss] guy who is a WOLF I tell you. This one has some great scenes in it. It's a movie about making movies. It stars Buster Keaton. It is a MUSICAL with song and dance numbers. How could I not love this one. Yet, it caused me to yell at the tv. I fully expected Elvira to come to her senses and see how much Elmer loved her--in every way that mattered. The song YOU DON'T KNOW ME comes to mind. I definitely want to rewatch this one a couple of times at least before returning to the library. (Let's be honest, unless a hold comes in, it will be living here for a while.)
  • 1934 Le Roi des Champs-Elysees. Missing is Buster's wonderful voice: it's dubbed into French. This is a FRENCH movie never released in the United States. I was able to watch with English subtitles. Buster plays two roles in this one. A LOVABLE BUT CLUMSY fellow who can't seem to get anything right (though he lands a role in a play) and a GANGSTER JUST RELEASED FROM PRISON. This one perhaps suffers from being unevenly paced. But the last half of the movie was all kinds of fabulous. Once the plot unfolds and the action begins, I was definitely enjoying it!!!
  • 1938 Vivacious Lady stars Jimmy Stewart and Ginger Rogers. He marries her [a New York City show girl [performer]] on a whim and takes her home to meet his family...or does he. Will he ever tell his uptight family about his WIFE? This one features a fight-scene between his wife and his supposed girlfriend. The writing is great. It's definitely an enjoyable romantic comedy.

1940s

  • 1940 His Ex Marks the Spot. Buster Keaton plays a man [ELMER, I believe] in a difficult position. His current finances are being DRAINED by his having to pay alimony to his ex-wife. His current wife is MAD, MAD, SUPER MAD at their current situation. She's suffering because of the alimony payments. The ex has it "better" than the current wife. To stop the payments, he decided to ask his ex-wife and her boyfriend to move in with them. This of course leads to many opportunities for comedy.
  • 1940 The Villain Still Pursues Her is a parody/comedy. It parodies old-fashioned morality tales that warn of the dangers of alcohol. Edward Middleton falls prey to a mustached villain--the trickery occurs on his wedding day, no less. As his life crumbles, a faithful family friend WILLIAM DALTON (BUSTER KEATON) stands by and watches over the family. I can't say that I loved this one. But Buster Keaton's role was fabulous and the joy of the picture. It was silly and over the top. But fun nevertheless--like the pie throwing scene.

1950s

  • 1950 The Jackpot. James Stewart's character learns the hard way that free is not always "FREE" when he wins a radio quiz show and his entire world collapses as a result. Also features Barbara Hale before her time on Perry Mason.

1960s

  • 1962 Panic in Year Zero is a realistic take on WHAT a nuclear attack might look like--if it happened in the early 60s. It stars Frankie Avalon in a SERIOUS role. I didn't know he did anything other than beach romances. It is heavy subject handled well. I definitely thought it was a great drama. It has a great line that goes something like this: "I went looking for the worst in others and I found it in myself instead..." It's been about six or seven days since I watched it but relatively close to that.

1990s

  • 1993 Benny and Joon is a movie I absolutely LOVE AND ADORE. And now I am seeing Buster Keaton everywhere. Literally. The movie starts off with Sam (Johnny Depp's character) reading a book about Buster Keaton. Later a cardboard cutout of Buster appears at a VIDEO STORE scene. And then, of course, there's SAM'S HAT and his hat tricks. Yes, Sam's character isn't solely inspired by Buster Keaton. There are other influences as well, but still. But I've loved this one since 1993/1994--long, long, long before I had any interest in Buster Keaton. It's a FANTASTIC love story with a GREAT THEME SONG. (500 Miles).
  • 1993 Groundhog Day is a Bill Murray film that I could watch again-again-again. I do love this time-loop movie that goes from shallow to meaning of life. Highly recommended.

2020s

  • 2024 Virgin River, season 6. BOY DID I STRUGGLE WITH THIS SEASON. Well, actually the last two seasons???? I'm at the point where I don't remember why I ever started this show but I've invested so much time in the two main characters getting together that I hate to dump the series. This season was all about the WEDDING.
  • 2024 Here. Here is a premise-driven movie starring Tom Hanks (and others like Paul Bettany and Robin Wright). The main character is a PLOT of land, literally. All the action occurs at the exact same spot through the ages. I would say about 80 percent of the plot follows three generations of one family. A young couple moves into the house [shortly] after World War II. They raise their family there. Their son, Richard, raises his family there. This movie--intentional or not--brings to mind the book of ECCLESIASTES. There is *nothing* new under the sun. And this movie captures thousands of snapshots of humanity, of family, of life at its best and worst. It hits REALLY, REALLY, REALLY hard in places. And it doesn't shy away from the darker emotions. And relationships are raw. These aren't people behaving at their absolute best. These are private moments.


 

© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Wednesday, February 05, 2025

13. Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World

  

13. Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World: The Extraordinary True Story of Shackleton and the Endurance. Jennifer Armstrong. 1998. Random House. 144 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, nonfiction, history, biography, adventure, South Pole, survival]

Just imagine yourself in the most hostile place on earth. It's not the Sahara or the Gobi Desert. It's not the Arctic. The most hostile place on earth is the Antarctic, the location of the South Pole--what's the difference? The Arctic is mostly water--with ice on top, of course--and that ice is never more than a few feet thick. But under the South Pole lies a continent that supports glaciers up to two miles in depth. Almost the entire southern continent is covered by ice. The mammoth icecap presses down so heavily that it actually distorts the shape of the earth. The ice never melts; it clings to the bottom of the world, spawning winds, storms, and weather that affect the whole planet.

I have read Jennifer Armstrong's Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World five or six times now. (Most recently in 2022). The narrative is so strong and compelling, and, yes, even inspiring. It is definitely one of my favorite nonfiction books. And nonfiction isn't something I usually take the time to reread. It is rare for me to keep coming back again and again to a nonfiction book.

Originally published in 1998, Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World won the Orbis Pictus Award in 1999. The book follows "the extraordinary true story of Shackleton and the Endurance." If you are unfamiliar with this story, then you really SHOULD read this one. It is a great introduction to the subject. Chapter by chapter, the book follows Shackleton and his men on their journey to Antarctica. Almost from the start, there are indicators that their goal, their quest, will not be an easy one to achieve. After a series of mishaps--thanks to nature--it becomes a long fight to survive. 


 The story is simple and yet dramatic. I think the story would be gripping no matter who told it. But I do think that Jennifer Armstrong did a wonderful job in painting a very human picture of Shackleton and his crew. I think the ending was beautiful--very moving! This one is a book I think everyone should read. 


 

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