Mirkwood Reflections

I finished six books in April, including one really long one. I also listened to most of an audiobook. Encyclopedia Brown Finds the Clues #3 by Donald Soboll 04/02/09 Good - Childrens (999 Category: Nostalgia) The amazing boy detective solves 10 mysteries. I read all the Encyclopedia Brown books when I was a kid. I read this one aloud to my kids. The 100 Best Worldwide Vacations to Enrich Your Life by Pam Grout 04/13/09 Good - Non-fiction (999 Category: 9 and Counting) 100 Unforgettable possibilities for travel, divided into artsy getaways, volunteer vacations, learning retreats, and wellness escapes I expected more from this book than I got. Seemed very politically correct. But my favorite ideas were: Assington Mill book binding & restoration class, sketchbook class with lewisblehrman.com, a variety of writers workshops, Plein air painting with paintinggypsies.com, research bottle nose dolphins blue-world.org, Italian art arthistoryabroad.com, safari surf school in Costa Rica

Picture three very stressed-out ladies at the end of a very long day. What they need is something light-hearted, something humorous, something distracting..... I've tried 3 times to write this review of 17 Again , but I just couldn't seem to move beyond "It's funny! We laughed and laughed. And, by the way, don't take your preteen to see this even if she does have a crush on Zac Efron." But tonight I went again with two other friends and I think one more attempt at this review should bear fruit. There aren't too many movies that I pay full price to see more than once. ( Lord of the Rings comes to mind! lol) Maybe you've heard that the movie is just a rehash of a familiar plot - What would happen if you could go back to your youth and try it again? Movies along these lines are common - Freaky Friday, Big, Peggy Sue Got Married , even Back to the Future and It's a Wonde rful Life . Let's see. Mike O'Donnell had a promising high school basket

Three quick reviews of forgettable movies... Yes Man had some charming moments and some that had my teenager literally rolling on the floor laughing. But Zooey Deschanel, usually drily exuberant, didn't shine like she did in other films. Carrey was Carrey, so if you usually like him, you'll find this amusing. A couple objectionable scenes prevent me from giving a wholehearted recommendation. Yes Man review at screenit.com Duplex - I'd never heard of this film, despite it being fairly recent. Turns out there was good reas o n. A promising beginning quickly degenerated into not-so-humorou s pratfalls and silly jokes. Eventually the storyline went right where I thought it would. Despite a twist at the end, it left a sour taste in my mouth. Don't waste your time. Duplex review at screenit.com Bedtime Stories - I expected more than the flimsy storyline and flat jokes. Sandler was himself, and that's ok. We expect it. Keri Russell seemed to be trying too hard. The be

I'd like to go see this movie, but it's not playing in very many cities. I'd have to drive about 90 minutes. Hmmm.... 60 Second Trailer Spot, Widow's Might from John Moore on Vimeo .

Some people have a number of them on the go at any given time, perhaps a reading in bed book, a breakfast table book, a bathroom book, and so on, which leads me to… Are you currently reading more than one book? Right you are! If so, how many books are you currently reading? Oh, wow. Um. Six, I guess. Seven if you count what I'm reading to the kids. Some of them more actively than others. Is this normal for you? Definitely. I usually have at least one fiction and one non-fiction read going. Where do you keep your current reads? All over the place? One on the end table, one in the bathroom, the rest stacked either in the library basket or here and there around. What about you? I'd love to hear your answers - blog them, facebook them, or just leave them in the comments!

Eight books again in March. Making good progress toward the 999 Reading Challenge. Deadly Reunion by Florence Case - 03/09/09 Poor - Inspirational Police officer Angie is sure that Warren Detry killed his wife and is now planning to kill Angie's sister and maybe Angie as well. Can her former love Boone protect her? I really wanted to like this book which I won in a blog contest, but I just didn't. I found it confusing and cliched. Soup by Robert Newton Peck - 03/09/09 Excellent - Read-aloud Misadventures of Robert and his mischievous friend Soup are described in this pithy and humorous memoir This is one of the books from my own childhood that I'm reading aloud to my children. Not politically correct at all, but very very funny! Very Valentine by Adriana Trigiani - 03/14/09 Good - Fiction Valentine Roncalli is apprentice to her grandmother, a master shoemaker and owner of the Angelini Shoe Co in NYC, an 100 year old financially unstable company that makes custom wedding s