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Book/Anime/DVD Recs, 3/1/09
Sunday, March 1st, 2009 10:42 amIn books:
Trail of Crumbs: Hunger, Love, and the Search for Home , by Kim Sunee: I had fully intended to read this book while waiting to see if I got placed on jury duty or not, but then I started reading it one day last week, and then I couldn't put it down. Sunee is an accessible and relaxed writer whose prose slides by, punctuated by recipes for unbelievably delicious-sounding Provence-style/French cooking, with a few Korean recipes thrown in. (I cannot wait to make the "easy" kimchi.) However, the story of her search for her racial and feminine identity is ultimately a saddening one, as she is thwarted on both fronts by a series of people and expectations that she cannot free herself of. ( Read more, with spoilers. )
Watchmen, by Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons: ... Wow. What a mind-( Read more, cut for spoilers and language. )
In anime:
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time: I enjoyed this, with only a few reservations. The animation was good quality, the story definitely got my attention (I'm a sucker for coming of age stories, and urban fantasy, and everyday settings, and this had all three at once), and although the pacing was a little slow at first, the overall tone and plot were solid. I was just disappointed in the ending, and there was one character who I would have liked to have had more screen time. However, well worth putting in my Netflix queue.
On DVD:
The Wire: I know we're late jumping on the bandwagon for this show, but what a riveting story, told with no punches pulled and compelling characters. It's the first time in a long while that I deliberately sought out spoilers for a show, just to make sure that my favorite character did NOT die during the course of the story. The best thing about this story is the lack of an absolute morality--all the characters are shades of grey, and even those whose side we're "on" are completely and totally human, sorting through their failings as adults and grasping at minor triumphs as they navigate the often stormy waters of the Baltimore police force and legal hierarchy. We're just finishing Season 1 and looking forward to Season 2.
Trail of Crumbs: Hunger, Love, and the Search for Home , by Kim Sunee: I had fully intended to read this book while waiting to see if I got placed on jury duty or not, but then I started reading it one day last week, and then I couldn't put it down. Sunee is an accessible and relaxed writer whose prose slides by, punctuated by recipes for unbelievably delicious-sounding Provence-style/French cooking, with a few Korean recipes thrown in. (I cannot wait to make the "easy" kimchi.) However, the story of her search for her racial and feminine identity is ultimately a saddening one, as she is thwarted on both fronts by a series of people and expectations that she cannot free herself of. ( Read more, with spoilers. )
Watchmen, by Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons: ... Wow. What a mind-( Read more, cut for spoilers and language. )
In anime:
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time: I enjoyed this, with only a few reservations. The animation was good quality, the story definitely got my attention (I'm a sucker for coming of age stories, and urban fantasy, and everyday settings, and this had all three at once), and although the pacing was a little slow at first, the overall tone and plot were solid. I was just disappointed in the ending, and there was one character who I would have liked to have had more screen time. However, well worth putting in my Netflix queue.
On DVD:
The Wire: I know we're late jumping on the bandwagon for this show, but what a riveting story, told with no punches pulled and compelling characters. It's the first time in a long while that I deliberately sought out spoilers for a show, just to make sure that my favorite character did NOT die during the course of the story. The best thing about this story is the lack of an absolute morality--all the characters are shades of grey, and even those whose side we're "on" are completely and totally human, sorting through their failings as adults and grasping at minor triumphs as they navigate the often stormy waters of the Baltimore police force and legal hierarchy. We're just finishing Season 1 and looking forward to Season 2.
