frankie Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 It does! We have a whole section for cds and dvds, too, as well as all kinds of games and magazines Oh, and a Starbucks for those of us with a coffee addiction! Awesome! When do we fly in? I'll bring my own selection of coffee Frankie, I'd not heard they remade Sybil, and even though I'm not a fan of any remake the cast looks to be pretty good. Thanks for pointing me in the direction of your TBW list too - there are some mighty fine looking titles on that list! I think some sort of must-see-movies-before-you-die thread is in order... We need something where we can go off on all sorts of tangents without getting into trouble No problems at all! You are definitely welcome to suggest movies that I ought to add to that list, it's kind of short at the moment. A MSMBYD thread would be cool indeed, but rest assured if you ever have anything particular to talk to me moviewise, this thread is wide open as well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 The Garden of Eden by Ernest Hemingway Two different synopses from Amazon: From Publishers Weekly An edited version of a narrative abandoned by the Nobel laureate, The Garden of Eden is about a young American couple in Europe on an extended honeymoon. PW stated that while the manuscript is of scholarly interest, it does not hold up as a "bona fide Hemingway novel." From Library Journal A few shards survive in the sandy ruins of Hemingway's garden of Eden: the pastoral and sensual delights of loving and swimming in Provence and Spain; the pleasure the hero, a novelist, feels when he writes "truly" about his father and hunting in Africa. The rest is madness, cruelty, and corruption. Unfortunately, neither the joy nor the terror profoundly engages the reader. The bisexual grotesqueries that bind David Bourne, his antic wife, and their complaisant woman lover are for the most part silly or banal, not even sufficiently bizarre to shock. What we have here is juiceless gossip. As fiction, the book utterly failsclumsily plotted, thematically vague and indecisive, the characters unfleshed caricatures. Even Hemingway's lyrical eloquence is stripped to frayed cliches. How then to justify publishing an edited version of a manuscript Hemingway labored over unsuccessfully for 15 years? Thoughts: What to make of this novel? It was my first Ernest Hemingway and I think maybe I should have started with something else. Having been told by the reviews above and the blurb on the back cover that this is by no means the best or truest Hemingway, I'm not discouraged to read some of his other novels. I found the characters and especially the dialogue completely weird and unbelievable. I had to think whether it was because I was reading the book in Finnish. I also had to constantly remind me that this book was written in the 40s-50s (?) which definitely has an impact on how the certain themes are portrayed in the novel. There isn't really all that much too the story. The characters spend their days eating, drinking and swimming, and when the main male character turns into writing the reader is unfortunately introduced to that story as well. The main female character is totally absurd. Once I got over my initial (unsuccessful) efforts to get into the book and enjoy it, I got a few laughs out of her totally irratic opinions. Ah, these thoughts will have to do, I don't feel like going into the book when I didn't enjoy it that much. 2/5, only because I got a few laughs (which Hemingway most probably didn't intend) out of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peacefield Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 Great review, Frankie! For some reason even though Hemingway is a world-renowned author, some of his writing can be challenging. At least for me. I've only ever read 'The Sun Also Rises' and 'The Old Man and the Sea,' but both did take me a bit to get into and even one I had to restart a couple of times. I'm very glad I read them though . Have we discussed the film 'Smoke Signals?' If not you definitely need to add it to your list. Hop to it, Frankie! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted January 8, 2011 Author Share Posted January 8, 2011 Great review, Frankie! For some reason even though Hemingway is a world-renowned author, some of his writing can be challenging. At least for me. I've only ever read 'The Sun Also Rises' and 'The Old Man and the Sea,' but both did take me a bit to get into and even one I had to restart a couple of times. I'm very glad I read them though . Hm, thank you for the warning, without it I might have gone into reading his novels and would've started thinking I might be stupid in the head I'm happy to hear you're glad you read the books though, because I've been wanting to read those titles for a while now. They're on the 1001 Books list, but I've always been curious about Hemingway for other reasons as well. Have we discussed the film 'Smoke Signals?' If not you definitely need to add it to your list. Hop to it, Frankie! I'm not sure, the name doesn't ring a bell. While I don't mind adding it to my list, I'd like to hear more about it if you don't mind sharing your thoughts? What makes it so great? I've earnt the right to buy for books, and I already have one coming my way so there's an opening on my bookshelves for three more. I'm now going to spend some time going through my wishlist and play.com, deciding which 3 books to order. I'm happy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted January 8, 2011 Share Posted January 8, 2011 (edited) Great review Frankie, very insightful , I have only read 'The Old Man and Sea' and it took me some time too to read Edited January 8, 2011 by Weave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted January 8, 2011 Author Share Posted January 8, 2011 See, peacefield, it's not just you then I'll have to try and make sure to read him only when I have my thinking cap available. Thanks Weave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peacefield Posted January 9, 2011 Share Posted January 9, 2011 Yes, I think Hemingway definitely requires a thinking cap . Frankie, Smoke Signals is one of my fave films! Ask Noll, she's a fan too. It's based on a book of short stories called 'The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven' by Sherman Alexie. The film centers around two friends on the Coeur d'Alene Indian Reservation in Idaho and a kind of pilgrimage one of them takes to discover what happened to his father after he left his wife and son. I would highly recommend . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted January 10, 2011 Author Share Posted January 10, 2011 Peace, sounds good and quirky and it made the list A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett My temporary Internet connection is sucking ass at the moment so instead of an Amazon synopsis, I'll provide you with my own for those of you who don't know the story. Sara Crewe, whose mother is dead and who currently lives with his loving father in India, is at that age when she needs to start school. Her rich father enrolls her in this English boarding school while he goes back to India to work in the diamond mines his friend has discovered. He soon becomes bankrupt and Sara, who was at first a privileged student, is made to work for her food and keep at the school. There are a couple of twists in the story, but that is the basic setting. How does Sara cope with being reduced to a slave, having all the other kids making fun of her? Thoughts: Who hasn't seen the movie A Little Princess with Shirley Temple? I'd be very surprised if there was one person to raise their hand. I was very familiar with the story and was expecting a good read. However, there are a few things they've changed for the movie and I was waiting for certain things to happen, which then didn't, and it did affect my reading a little bit. I hate it when they change something that's a pretty big element in the novel. Anyways, other than that I really enjoyed the novel. It's one of those feel good books, where you sympathise with the main character who's been mistreated unjustifiably. You know everything will turn out for the good in the end but it doesn't matter because you enjoy the journey. I loved it how Sara was able to enjoy the little things in life and she did not give into the circumstances. And I loved her neighbor who does this most amazing thing for her. A true classic and deserves it's place right up there with Little Women and all the rest. 4/5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 Who hasn't seen the movie A Little Princess with Shirley Temple? I'd be very surprised if there was one person to raise their hand. *timidly raises hand* I haven't seen it. I don't even know much about the story, but I would like to read this one day, especially since reading your awesome review. Have you read The Secret Garden? If so, how does it compare to A Little Princess? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shin Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Great review of the Little Princess Frankie. I haven't read it but I do have The Secret Garden in my TBR list. Might just add this one too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vodkafan Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 I am sure I have seen a little princessknocking around the house somewhere - maybe in one of the children's bookcases. Might read it one day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted January 11, 2011 Author Share Posted January 11, 2011 *timidly raises hand* I haven't seen it. I don't even know much about the story, but I would like to read this one day, especially since reading your awesome review. Have you read The Secret Garden? If so, how does it compare to A Little Princess? Wow Kylie, you really haven't seen it? Well, I would definitely recommend it to you, it's such a wonderful classic. And I dare you to watch it without crying in the end There are a couple of different versions of the movie, make sure you watch the 1939 version with Shirley Temple, that's the real deal. Now, I'm going to confess to not having read The Secret Garden. I do have it on my TBR though and I was actually thinking about reading it soonish, it would go nicely with my current theme of children's classics. Great review of the Little Princess Frankie. I haven't read it but I do have The Secret Garden in my TBR list. Might just add this one too. Goody goody! I wonder if Frances Hodgson Burnett has written other novels... *hurries over to wiki* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janet Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 (edited) Did she write Little Lord Fauntleroy too? I haven't seen the film with Shirley Temple either, and nor did I know of it's existance (I haven't seen the recent adaptation but did watch a BBC adaptation in the 1970s) but I did read the book years ago and remember being charmed by it. ETA: She wrote loads! Edited January 11, 2011 by Janet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted January 11, 2011 Author Share Posted January 11, 2011 Ah yes, I'd forgotten about Little Lord Fauntleroy, which may be due to the fact that I don't know anything about that novel. Burnett was indeed a prolific writer and it came as a surprise to me that she even wrote novels for adults. Janet, I heartily recommend you watch the movie if you ever get the chance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kidsmum Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 We used to have the video of The Little Princess with Shirley Temple & I agree that's the best version, it's funny isn't it when you get to know & love a movie it affects how you feel about the book or subsequent movie adaptations. I found that with the Wizard of Oz when I read it to my DD I kept comparing it to the movie & I just didn't enjoy it as much as if I'd come to it as a new story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucybird Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 I've only seen the recent version of A Little Princess, it used to make me cry. I hope you like The Secret Garden too, I read them one after the other when I was a teenager, and thought A Little Princess was better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted January 12, 2011 Author Share Posted January 12, 2011 (edited) We used to have the video of The Little Princess with Shirley Temple & I agree that's the best version, it's funny isn't it when you get to know & love a movie it affects how you feel about the book or subsequent movie adaptations. I found that with the Wizard of Oz when I read it to my DD I kept comparing it to the movie & I just didn't enjoy it as much as if I'd come to it as a new story. I haven't actually seen the other versions but I really love the one I've seen, and I take no responsibility on hyping the movie if people watch the wrong version It's definitely intriguing how watching the movie can affect our reading and seeing other versions of the same movie, and actually you'll be witnessing another example of that in my next book review. I've only seen the recent version of A Little Princess, it used to make me cry. I hope you like The Secret Garden too, I read them one after the other when I was a teenager, and thought A Little Princess was better. I did pick up The Secret Garden last night, and I'm so loving it, I read 72 pages before I dozed off! So far it's even better than A Little Princess. I think it's a bit meatier, I find the characters a bit more three dimensional. But I'll leave it at that for the time being, I don't want to jinx the rest of the book for me! Edited January 12, 2011 by frankie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted January 12, 2011 Author Share Posted January 12, 2011 Heidi by Johanna Spyri Thoughts: I've never read Heidi before and have never even wanted to eventhough it's a true classic. I always thought that there was only going to be the Alps, some goats and a kid running around and everyone would be yodeling. Certainly not my favorite things. Then I happened to catch the beginning of the movie Heidi (this version, with the ever so talented and handsome Robert Bathurst ) during the holidays. I thought to myself, "Oh no it's Heidi, switch the channel, somebody, please!" but then nobody did, and I couldn't help but take a glimpse at the movie every now and then, and soon I noticed that I was totally paying attention and enjoying myself! I really loved it, it was so funny and charming, and it was brilliantly cast. Emma Bolger as Heidi did an amazing job and I will definitely watch the movie again whenever there's a chance. So I decided that I want to read the book. As it just so happens, Mum and I had been clearing out our bookshelves back at home of the books nobody would ever read, and I have the books here in Joensuu to take them to a charityshop. I was pretty sure one of the books was Heidi and yep, there it was. So I didn't even have to go to the library. Now, as opposed to my previous book review, this time it really helped that I'd seen the movie first. I found the book kind of lacking in description of the characters and the scenes. Maybe it was because I'd seen the movie and had so much enjoyed it, that I couldn't translate that warmness of some of the characters into the book. I'm not saying that there was anything wrong with the book itself, I just think that I would not have enjoyed it that much had I not first seen the movie. Over all it was a pretty nice read. There were some preachy preachy stuff in there which did bother me a bit and I had to skip a few paragraphs. Not something I would re-read and I'm going to pass the book along, but I'm definitely glad that I read it. 3/5 As for the movie, I cannot recommend it enough Watch it!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 That pretty much sums up my thoughts on Heidi, Frankie. I wouldn't re-read it, but it was an OK read. Having said that, I should go and add it to my pile of books to get rid of. I'm surprised that you're surprised that I haven't seen that Shirley Temple movie! They don't exactly play such old movies on TV very often ya know! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted January 12, 2011 Author Share Posted January 12, 2011 (edited) I'm surprised that you're surprised that I haven't seen that Shirley Temple movie! They don't exactly play such old movies on TV very often ya know! What an earth can you mean?? Didn't you have a whole file of golden oldies on your TV?! I just found out that Shirley Temple who was in A Little Princess also played Heidi in one of the movie versions. So I definitely have a theme going on, now that I'm also reading another Frances Hodgson Burnett. How cool am I? I have a theme and I didn't even know it. And yay for finding another book to get rid of! Edit: Got rid of some typos/grammatical errors. Consistency with the prepositions, frankie! Even if you're wrong, at least be consistent about it Edited January 12, 2011 by frankie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 Yes, but they never seem to show Shirley Temple movies. I'm glad you're loving The Secret Garden. I've read it a couple of times and I love it. There's an excellent movie version from the mid 1990s which I've seen several times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kidsmum Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 Heidi, there's a movie that made me cry buckets when I was a kid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted January 12, 2011 Share Posted January 12, 2011 And yay for finding another book to get rid of! Actually I didn't find another one to get rid of. I went looking last night and it was already on my pile to get rid of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted January 13, 2011 Author Share Posted January 13, 2011 Yes, but they never seem to show Shirley Temple movies. I'm glad you're loving The Secret Garden. I've read it a couple of times and I love it. There's an excellent movie version from the mid 1990s which I've seen several times. I recommend that if you ever find a cheap enough copy of the movie, you go and buy it The movie version you're talking about, would it happen to be the same peacefield is thinking about, it was a 1993 version (or was it 1995?), anyways some John Lynch dude played someone in the movie. Sound familiar? Heidi, there's a movie that made me cry buckets when I was a kid I can relate to that Actually I didn't find another one to get rid of. I went looking last night and it was already on my pile to get rid of. Excellent, you'd already beat yourself to it I'm now going to write my thoughts on The Secret Garden and then I'm going to battle against my January blues and try and get myself out of the apartment. Perhaps I'll visit the library, I haven't been there more than once after I came back to Finland. I have loads of books I want to get rid of so I can take them there and see if I can find something for myself in return. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 (edited) Aw, sorry you're feeling blue Frankie. I saw on the other thread that you couldn't decide what to read next. I went to your TBR pile to find you a book, but it's just too hard to choose one! I hope you find some great stuff at the library. And yes, Peacefield and I are recommending the same version of the movie. Edited January 13, 2011 by Kylie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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