Tuesday, January 21, 2014

50/50 Challenge PLUS -- Is 2014 My Year?!


This is my official third year trying to meet the 50/50 goal. I don't think meeting the movie goal is going to be a problem, but the book goal always trips me up. I am starting out strong with already three books under my belt. At this pace, I should get to 50 by the end of the year, no problem!

This kind of confidence is so easy to have a few weeks in. Come September, you might be hearing me sing a different tune.

The second book I read this year was the popular "Divergent" by Veronica Roth mostly because I want to see the movie this spring, and everyone knows it's better to read the book first. This was actually my third attempt to read the book because I expected it to take right off just like "The Hunger Games." "The Hunger Games" it is not. It is a good book, just not the great one I had hoped for. The premise is fantastic, but the language and story lost me a little and I felt myself skimming over a few pages to get to the next good part.

The third book I read is "The Husband's Secret" by Liane Moriarty. I read this for one of the millions of book clubs I am part of and also because it's been highly recommended by all the fashion magazines I read. Again, I appreciate the premise of this book, but the story was muddled by all the different characters to keep track of, which is part of which makes the story fascinating. I liked it, but didn't love it.

When it comes to movies, I dove right in and saw two in one week. "Ride Along" with my favorite comedian, Kevin Hart was just as funny as I thought it'd be. It's not the kind of movie you're just raving about for weeks, but it is the kind of movie that you're laughing with throughout the 90-plus minutes its running. Kevin Hart is hilarious. That's it. I love him. I would love to meet him. 

"Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit" was a good action flick with an aging Kevin Costner, boring Keira Knightley, and an sit-up-and-notice performance from Chris Pine. 

The third movie was a documentary that I watched as part of a project I'm on. "Hot Coffee" highlights the "lady who sued McDonald's after being burned by hot coffee" but really it's so much more than that. It covers tort reform (a term I had never known about) and employee arbitration (pay attention to what you sign!) in an interesting, appealing, and empathetic way, just as most good documentaries do.

So...I'm off to a great start! Up on high horse, pat on back, here I go!

Book #2: Divergent by Veronica Roth
Book #3: The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty

Movie #1: Ride Along
Movie #2: Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit
Movie #3: Hot Coffee

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