Mirkwood Reflections

I've divided this post into several categories, ranking the movies I've seen that were released in 2010. ENJOYED IT - Would recommend Toy Story 3 Ramona and Beezus Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Knight and Day How to Train Your Dragon Despicable Me The A-Team Iron Man 2 Inception Diary of a Wimpy Kid ENJOYED IT - Not necessarily for everyone (or guilty pleasures!) Sorcerer's Apprentice, The Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief Charlie St. Cloud Babies Tron: Legacy (moved from the top category since I think this may be a love it or hate it movie) INDIFFERENT - Not a lot of feeling one way or the other Tooth Fairy Robin Hood Life as We Know It Letters to Juliet Leap Year Last Song, The Eclipse (The Twilight Saga) Extraordinary Measures Clash of the Titans Dear John Book of Eli, The Alice in Wonderland MIXED FEELINGS - Liked some parts, disliked something about it When in Rome Voyage of the Dawn Treader (The Chronicles of ...

Here are some movies that came out in 2009 that I saw on DVD during the past year. My reactions are given and I've put the ones I recommend in BOLD to make it easy on ya! Amelia - bleh An Education - bleh The Blind Side - LOVED IT! Bright Star - LOVED IT! Couple's Retreat - a stinker Dance Flick - a few laughs, but mostly distasteful Extract - Yuk Fame 2009 - Boring The Hurt Locker - Turned it off a few minutes in Ice Age 3 - can't remember if I actually watched it or if the kids just did, lol The Lovely Bones - SO suspenseful! Me And Orson Welles - Very good ! New Moon - um, well... It was Twilight. New York I Love You - a stinker Pippa Lee - good acting, rotten story Precious - same thing as Pippa but worth watching Sherlock Holmes - enjoyed very much! Star Trek 11 - liked it far more than I imagined I would Up in the Air - liked it until the ENDING - AUGH!! Where The Wild Things Are - loved it! Whip It - very compelling The Young Victoria - A WONDERFUL MOVIE!

I've missed posting here monthly, but quarterly will have to do for now. Maybe soon I can post more regularly. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen - 9/8/2010 Excellent - Classic Re-read (AUDIO version) Catherine Morland visits Bath and falls in love. I am so glad I read this again. The girls I am teaching are reading all 6 of the Austen novels this school year and I'm reading along with them, of course. Northanger Abbey was first. The reading experience was so much richer this time around. Listened to the librivox version . I'd Know You Anywhere by Laura Lippman - 9/10/2010 Good - Suspense Eliza Benedict is contacted by her kidnapper/rapist 25 years later because he wants her testimony to save him from the death penalty. Interesting since it deals with the aftermath of a serious crime - not just the immediate results, but the long term effects on a victim's life. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins - 9/20/2010 Good - Young Adult Katniss becomes a reluctant leader in the Rebellion...

Have not been doing well with updates here. Here are my summer reads. The comments in italics are my thoughts as of today, so some of the less memorable books won't be very detailed. Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon - 6/10/2010 Excellent - Historical Fiction Re-read (AUDIOBOOK) My second time reading the latest book in the Outlander series. Loved it more listening to it. But you? You must start at the beginning. Whiter Than Snow by Sandra Dallas - 6/17/2010 Good - Historical Fiction Poignant tale of children caught in an avalance in a 1920's mining town Very touching story with an interesting presentation. Each story is told independently and then woven together at the end. Loved it, though it was sad. The Burning Wire by Jeffrey Deaver - 6/22/2010 Good - Thriller Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs combat a perp killing people with electricity. Better than the last Deaver I read which seemed to be slightly soapbox-oriented. Read It and Eat by Sarah Gardner - 6/29/2010 Excelle...

As you may have surmised from the lack of recent posts, life has overtaken me. The part-time job I've taken means less time for writing and much less time for reading. I have all I can do to keep up with my book club's selections. (And I have managed it so far, but the size of the Dickens volume I am supposed to tackle this summer has me quivering in a lump in a lonely dank corner.) So, here are my April and May reads - pitiful list, though it may be. Becca By the Book by Laura Jensen Walker 4/2/2010 Good - Inspirational This was an inspirational romance and I neglected to write a summary. I remember it was about a book club, mostly about the non-Christian member of the club. I also did not realize it was part of a series of books and it wasn't the first one in the series, or I probably would not have read it. When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead Good - Children's (Read Aloud) I believe this was the Newbery Award winner for 2009. Mysterious and engaging, the book addres...

Titanic National Geographic special This was really interesting - about how many errors were involved in the sinking of the Titanic. From the inferior iron rivets to a insulting comment made by the radio operator, so many tiny things contributed to the sinking of the great ship. It helps that I have been fascinated by the Titanic since I first heard of it as a child. Law-Abiding Citizen Found this one really distasteful. I don't watch a lot of "R" movies and this would be a good example of why not. Really gory vigilante justice film. Even Gerard Butler and Jamie Foxx didn't save it. Save your time. Alice in Wonderland Watched this in the theater with my sister - her treat! Thank you, Janet! It was rather surreal, but that comes with the territory, eh? Both Lewis Carroll and Tim Burton fit that category neatly. A beautiful film - lots of vivid colors and interesting things to look at. Sherlock Holmes Not as good as I'd hoped, but maybe I was too tired to appreciate...

Five books in March. Fewer than I'd have preferred due to my new part-time job and to reading Wuthering Heights . See below... Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier - 3/3/2010 Good - Fiction Elizabeth Philpott and her spinster sisters move to Lyme and befriend Mary Anning, a fossil hunter who discovers complete skeletons of never-before-seen creatures. This was interesting, something different than usual. I love Chevalier's books. Brava, Valentine Adriana Trigiani - 3/9/2010 Good - Fiction Valentine's brother joins the business and they investigate production of the ready-to-wear shoe line, plus Valentine reconnects with Gianluca from Italy, and family secrets explode all over the place. I liked this one better than the original Valentine novel. In fact, I've enjoyed this one more than any Trigiani I've read since Big Stone Gap. Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte - 3/17/2010 Difficult - Classic Classic tragedy of Heathcliff and Cathy - read it yourself if you want to ...