50/50 Challenge: Books and Movies Update

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Well...I've already fallen off the movie documenting wagon. This year, I was going to review every movie I saw, whether new or not, but this quickly has come to a halt. Maybe I was overreaching for this goal? 

Since my last challenge update, I've seen nine new movies, four of which I reviewed on Examiner.com. They are as follows:

#6 - American Sniper

#7 - Blackhat

#8 - The Wedding Ringer

#9 - The Equalizer

#10 - Gliz Zii (The Uncles)

#11 - Trespass

#12 - The Boy Next Door

#13 - The Negotiator

#14 - The Life of David Gale

"The Life of David Gale" is a movie I've been wanting to see for a long time, but never took the time to just watch it. After finally checking this out from the library, I got to enjoy another deadpan Kevin Spacey performance. I was able to figure out the twist beforehand, which I credit to my TV watching of shows like Scandal, Stalker, and Scorpion. Oh hey, alliteration.

If you haven't seen "American Sniper," I highly recommend it due to Bradley Cooper's phenomenal performance. I read his Vanity Fair interview, which said that he stayed in character throughout the duration of filming and packed on something like 20 or 30 pounds of muscle. Can't say that I wouldn't be happy if he took home the Oscar.

If you're wanting a laugh, see anything with Kevin Hart. "The Wedding Ringer" isn't highly original, but it's a fun, feel-good time. If you want to cry from wasting your money, see "Blackhat" because that was one of the worst movies I've seen in some time. I think the one before that was "Godzilla."

On to books! The last two I've read are:

#5 - Lean In - Sheryl Sandberg

#6 - Eating Wildly: Foraging for Love, Life and the Perfect Meal - Ava Chin

The first one was the focal point of a good discussion at book club. I, not a true fan of the book, was fascinated by others' point of view. My big hangup with books like this is that it seems to have an "all or nothing" attitude surrounding it, which makes it a little tough to want to "lean in" all the way. Listening to others who truly enjoyed the book, it helped me not look at it with such a critical eye. Regardless of viewpoint, I think it's an important topic of discussion.

Ava Chin's book is different from anything I've read before. She discusses her life foraging for roots and vegetables in New York City. I love any stories that talk about Manhattan, as I consider that city my first true love, and her unique adventures there are an interesting perspective to a different type of cooking. The book interweaves stories of her family, whom she is close with, and also her romantic relationships, too.

I'm currently reading It Was Me All Along, a memoir by Andie Mitchell, which I'm enjoying so far. I got this one for free from Blogging for Books. If you like free books, sign up with the site. They send you one free book for each review you leave. It's pretty easy and the books are sent out quickly. This is the fourth book I've received from them since signing up. They have new selections all the time.

So, I'm off to a good start for the first month of the 2015 challenge. Let's see if I can keep that momentum. Any book or movie suggestions, send my way!

50/50 Challenge Update: First of the Month

Well let's just come out and say it, July was a blur. Yes, I was traveling during a lot of it, but I just think -- kids are going back to school! What even happened in July?!

I am just getting over a summer cold, which was the absolute worst. Note: Tylenol Cold & Sinus mixed with baking-inside-my-apartment temperatures is not a good combo!

But now onto my challenge update, which I am still determined to conquer this year. #thingsgeekssay

Movie #29: Magic in the Moonlight

I wrote a lengthier review of the movie, but I was a little underwhelmed.

21. The Rosie Project by Graeme C. Simsion

22. How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

23. Summer House with Swimming Pool by Herman Koch

The last book I received free from Blogging For Books. If you love books like I do, then you should sign up to! The only "catch" is that you leave a review of the book you receive. How easy is that?

Summer House with Swimming Pool by Herman Koch

Herman Koch writes in such a way that has the reader intrigued at what's to come but not in a hurry to get there. For Summer House with Swimming Pool the novel is a mystery unfolding, but not a typical page-turner pace that most thrillers have. That's not to say the writing is slow or dull; it's more to the credit of the writer for setting the tone early on and allowing the reader to craft the story in the mind. 

Dr. Marc Schlosser is a family doctor who is bored with what he does and has a watered down look at the world. He and his wife are constantly invited to social events and after one such premiere, he meets actor Ralph Meier, a larger than life personality, who at the beginning of the story has wound up dead after a possible misdiagnosis, and the story travels backwards from there. The description of Ralph and more importantly, what he does (hacks at a swordfish on the patio to cook up on the BBQ) gives the reader a keen sense of what type of personality we are dealing with from him. 

Ralph is a ladies' man and takes an interest in Marc's wife, Caroline but is fleeting, while Marc, on the other hand, take an interest in Ralph's wife, Judith. They follow-up with a dinner party at the Meier's house, and this begins the subplot to the story that creates an interesting tension and intertwining of the families. 

The Schlosser family (Marc, Caroline, and their two daughters Julia and Lisa) take a camping trip near the Meier's summer house where they have been invited as guests. After their teenage daughter, Julia runs into the Meier's son, Alex the two families come together again and end up spending time together at the summer house. The families then face a dark turn and the details that follow lead to clues regarding Ralph's death.

It's interesting to hear the voice of Marc and how he sees things from a doctor's perspective in comparison to a father's and also in comparison to any other average person. Details from a doctor's perspective, while matter-of-fact, can be gruesome to the reader or at least create some discomfort, but it fits with the darker tone of the story. 

I enjoyed the writing of this book and the story overall. It definitely would ignite interesting discussion.