Monday Movie Meme – Best Biopics

September 13, 2010September 13, 201011 Comments

Feature Presentation…MONDAY MOVIE MEME

This week’s movie topic is all about Biopics…

There are lots of movies these days that tell the stories about the lives of real people. We prefer the sweeping tales of a person’s life story as opposed to snapshots of moments in their time. Sometimes the films feature people we’re already familiar with and other times they introduce us to them. Either way, we had a hard time coming up with biopics featuring women – maybe you can rectify that in your post.

Visit the Bumbles for more biopic choices.

Biopics aren’t my favorite type of movie. I think it’s because I’m always wondering what is real and what got added just for the movie. But here are a few that I enjoyed…

1. Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash in Walk the Line (2005)

2. Katherine Hepburn and Peter O’Toole as Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine and King Henry II in The Lion in Winter (1965)

3. James Cagney as George M. Cohan in Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)

4. Leonardo DiCaprio as Howard Hughes in The Aviator (2004)

5. Mel Gibson as William Wallace in Braveheart (1995) (I know great artistic license was taken with this one, but I loved it)

What about you? Do you have a favorite biopic film?

This Time Together: Laughter and Reflection by Carol Burnett

September 9, 201031 Comments

Finished unabridged audio 9-1-10, rating 4.5/5, memoir, pub. 2010

Narrated by Carol Burnett

I love Carol Burnett. I loved her variety show, The Carol Burnett Show. The woman is funny and sincere and real. This memoir covers the time she was getting started in show business. She talks about meeting Jimmy Stewart and Cary Grant, two of my faves, and how starstruck she was. She had an elevator encounter with John Steinbeck which I loved.

She talks about her time in New York, living with other girls and working on Broadway. I loved hearing about how she got her own show started, personal stories about castmates, and the honest confessions, like when she got her chin. She touches on her three marriages and the death of her daughter, Carrie, which give this memoir depth. Moving from Los Angeles to New York and back again showcase the fortunate life of this comedienne.

These stories of her life are fun to listen to and I must recommend the audio version since she reads the book herself. It made me want to buy her old shows from the infomercials I always see on tv. If you are a fan this is a must read.

I checked this audio book out of the library.

The Lake House, by James Patterson

September 8, 201015 Comments

Finished 9-3-10, rating 2/5, fiction, pub. 2003

Sequel to When the Wind Blows

I remember reading When the Wind Blows when it came out and really liking it. I think it may have been my first Patterson novel. It is about six genetically engineered children who were stolen from their parents and experimented on in secret. They were rescued by Frannie, a veterinarian, and Kit, and FBI agent.

Fast forward to this sequel and Frannie and Kit are suing the biological parents for custody, because they love the children so much. The children, with bird genes, have imprinted Frannie and Kit as their true parents. The media are fascinated by these children who can fly and the courthouse is bedlam. When the dust settles the children are sent to their individual homes and a new set of bad guys comes for them. They escape together and find Frannie who finds Kit.

No disrespect to the five people who chose this for me (sorry Mom), but I thought this was bad. I thought Frannie and Kit were selfish. The bad guy and his clones said the silliest things. I thought the love/sex story between 12 year olds Max and Oz was terrible. Here’s a sample…

“Max, you are very young!” I said. “And you, too, Oz.”

“In human years Frannie. But we’re more than human,” Max said. “We’re special, remember? And we’re also in love. Deeply, passionately, wonderfully in love.”

She combed her hair with her fingers and tied it up into a loose knot. “Our bird genes makes us mature for our age. In fact, I think we’re probably about your age,” she added, her eyes twinkling irresistibly. “You’re old enough to mate, aren’t you?”

She had me there.

Chapter 81

It was told in true Patterson style with alternating viewpoints and lots of sentence long paragraphs and even more exclamation points. Um, I can’t recommend this book to anyone. If you liked When the Wind Blows, reread it instead of looking for a great sequel here.

This is from my personal library and was chosen by Donna, GMR, Mom, Sue and Rebecca. Here’s what they had to say…

“I am totally a fan. I like the Maximum Ride Series but they are not as good as the original Max stories of When the Wind Blows and the Lake House.” Rebecca

“Awesome writer and a great book.” GMR

“I havent read this one yet but Patterson’s books never fail to have something in there to surprise me.” Donna

Round 3 Quiz Winners

September 7, 201011 Comments

Round Three of my Tuesday Quizzes has come to an end and the top of the Leaderboard looks the same as Round 2. ‘Nise from Under the Boardwalk takes home the top prize again with 944 points! Congratulations Nise 🙂 And the randomly chosen winner (I drew out of a bowl) is…Jo-Jo from Jo-Jo Loves to Read! Yay Jo-Jo 🙂 They will both receive a small gift from me.

A total of 35 of you participated in this round and this made me feel good. Sometimes a quiz takes me hours to do and sometimes only 20 minutes, so I’m glad that you like to play my games with me. The most popular quiz this time around was Denzel Washington was in That? Quiz. The Best Paid Author Quiz also brought some interesting comments. You might have heard Jenners scream when she saw the best paid author was James Patterson.

A few new quizzes that you’ll see again, Signed Books and Pictured Title. So, come back next Tuesday for the beginning of Round Four! Thanks for playing 🙂

August’s 5 Word Movie Reviews

September 3, 2010April 8, 201736 Comments

As I look over the movies I see that I wasn’t very satisfied with my movie choices in August. Maybe this month will be better!

If you’ve seen any of the movies leave me your 1-5 words in the comments and I’ll add them to the post. Or, if you are feeling ambitious and want to do this on your own blog leave me a link in the comments and I’ll add it to the bottom of the post. Of course, you can always just comment 🙂

(2007. Cast -Steve Carrell, Juliette Binoche, Dianne Wiest, John Mahoney, Dane Cook) Grade B

Sweet Story. Carrell Very Good.

Widower moves on. Heartfelt. Hilarious. (Michelle)

Cute, silly, charming, loved it. (Heather)

(2010. Cast- Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, Mila Kunis) Grade B

Post Apocalyptic . Protecting the Book.

Too serious for its writing. (Heather)

He’s blind; it still works. (Tony)

(2010. Cast- Tom Cruise,Kenneth Branagh, Bill Nighy, Tom Wilkinson) Grade B-

Attempts on Hitler’s Life Fail.

Interesting but no German feel. (Heather)

Tom Cruise seeks new credibility. (Tony)

(2008. Cast-Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Steve Martin, Sigourney Weaver, Greg Kinnear) Grade C+

Some Laughs. Needed More Heart.

Funny stars, goofy, obnoxious humor. (Debbie)

My pregnancy movie…so funny. (Heather)

(1998. Cast- Paul Newman, Susan Sarandon, Gene Hackman, James Garner, Liev Schreiber, Stockard Channing) Grade C+

Noir Mystery. Awesome Superstar Cast.

Newman’s incredible. The movie’s okay. (Nolatari)

(2010. Cast – Steve Carrell, Paul Rudd, Zach Galifinakas, Bruce Greenwood) Grade C

Stupid Funny. Emphasis on Stupid.

(2008. Cast – Eliza Dushku, Cary Elwes, Timothy Hutton) Grade C-

Some Bad Acting. Ending Letdown.

(2007. Cast- Ben Stiller, Michelle Monaghan, Jerry Stiller, Malin Akerman, Carlos Mencia) Grade D+

Horrible Characters & Story = Few Laughs

(2009. Cast- Ricky Gervais, Jennifer Garner, Jonah Hill, Louis CK) Grade D

Failed Potential. Cameos Best Part.

Ricky Gervais is sooo funny! (Heather)

The Sleeping Doll, by Jeffrey Deaver

September 2, 201012 Comments

Finished 8-31-10, rating 4/5, thriller, pub. 2007

Book 1 in the Kathryn Dance series

Kathryn Dance was often called a human lie detector, but that wasn’t accurate; in reality she, like all kinesic analysts and interrogators, was a stress detector. This was the key to deception; once she spotted stress, she’d probe the topic that gave rise to it and dig until the subject broke.

Chapter 2

Kathryn is kinesics expert with the California Bureau of Investigation and she has just been placed in charge of a manhunt for an escaped killer. She had been interrogating the convict, Daniel Pell, before he escaped so she was able to get inside his head which helped her stay on his trail. Pell had been the leader of a small cult and was hoping to start another after he set up after escaping. Kathryn and Pell can both read people by their behavior and manipulate conversations and situations, so they were both evenly matched.

We first met Kathryn in The Cold Moon (a Lincoln Rhyme book), but you don’t need to have read that one to enjoy this fast paced thriller. As with most of Deaver’s books I learned a lot, not only about kinesics, but cult mentality as well. I was disturbed by the interactions of the three women who had been with Pell before he went to prison. I find the reasons behind joining a cult sad and the reality of it bizarre.

I enjoyed this one, but not as much as the Lincoln Rhyme series. The characters were interesting, but not as well-developed. It was a solid beginning to a new series and I plan on giving the second one a chance.

This is from my personal library and was chosen by Kristie, Margie, and Jason. Here’s what they had to say…

“Great book!” Kristie

“Really enjoyed it.” Margie

Free Books for September

September 1, 2010September 1, 20104 Comments

In my ongoing quest to keep books moving out and not just in I give away a few books each month. Leave a comment, tell me which book you want and I’ll get the book to you for FREE either by mail or personally if I’ll see you soon. The first one to request each book wins. Once you’ve ‘won’ the book I can get your shipping address if I need it. Also, you can come back and get a free book every month if you want. These have all been read a time or two.

1. Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift. Mass market classic. It’s an old copy (1983) but in good shape. B&N review here. for Sarah E

2. Angel Mine by Sherryl Woods. Mass market romance. Published in 2000. B&N review here. for Gautami

3. The Awakening by Kate Chopin. Trade paperback classic. This edition published in 1993 is in great condition. My review here. for Misha

4. Contemporary Latin American Short Stories. This trade paperback was published in 1996. Never been read. B&N review here. for Carol M

Happy Reading!

Best Paid Authors Quiz – Last week for Round Three

August 31, 2010September 3, 201034 Comments

Forbes Magazine released a list of the top 10 highest paid authors from June 2009-June 2010 who earned a combined $270 million in the 12 months. I’m giving you 15 authors and you need to rank the top 10 in order. The extra 5 are just ones I added to keep it interesting.

Here are the rules… 1. Open to everyone. This is the last week for Round Three.

2. No cheating. No looking at other commenter answers or Googling! Yes, we’re going by the honor system

3. Your first answers will be the only ones accepted.

Choose the top 10 best paid authors and rank them in order 1-10. Each correct answer worth 10 points. And no checking out the magazine!

1. James Patterson

2. Stephenie Meyer

3. Stephen King

4. Danielle Steele

5. Ken Follett

6. Dean Koontz

7. Janet Evanovich

8. John Grisham

9. Nicholas Sparks

10. JK Rowling

Dan Brown

Michael Connelly

Charlaine Harris

Kathy Reichs

Nora Roberts

Answers to last week’s quiz here. Current Leaderboard here.

Monday Movie Meme – Child Actors

August 30, 2010August 30, 20109 Comments

Feature Presentation…MONDAY MOVIE MEME

This week’s movie topic is all about Child Actors…Share on your blog the roles you’ve enjoyed from the younger set, linking back here at The Bumbles.

Here are five child performances I loved.

1. Natalie Portman as Mathilda in The Professional (1994). She was amazing in this story of being protected by a hired killer after her family is murdered.

2. Abigail Breslin as Olive in Little Miss Sunshine (2006). She was delightful in this movie. Who can forget the pageant? Made me want to get up and dance 😉

3. Tina Marjorino as Jessica in When a Man Loves a Woman (1994). The girl broke my heart in this movie.

4. Christina Bale as Jamie in Empire of the Sun (1987). So young to carry such a powerful movie.

5. Dakota Fanning as Lucy in I Am Sam (2001) and as Pita in Man on Fire (2004). She’s incredibly gifted.

What’s your favorite child performance? Visit The Bumbles for more.

A few pics from the baby shower

August 29, 201026 Comments

I had a wonderful day yesterday at my family baby shower! I am truly blessed with the best family and I am forever thankful. My Aunt Mary Jane opened up her home and provided a very yummy spread. My cousin Jill provided a few games, including this one…

She melted six different candy bars in diapers and we had to guess what they were. I only guessed two correctly.

My very talented cousin, Amy, usually gets paid to make these cakes, but I got this one just cause she loves me 🙂

This was the gift that freaked me out the most. Do you see how small these are?! Adorable. Please note the 7+ month baby belly.

Most of my haul for the day. These next few pics are taken in the baby’s room so you can see the two colors on the walls.

Here are my bookish gifts. The Raggedy Ann blanket was made for me by a family friend for me as a baby and my Mom included the photos of me with the blanket while I was still in the hospital.

I also received some very cute baby outfits already hanging in the closet, a few personal items for me, and gift cards, of course! After the girl fun the men came out and we grilled and hung out and enjoyed the evening. My swollen still have not recovered.

Stacy's Books

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