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Review: A Very Secret Service, Season 2

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Ladies and gentlemen, WE HAVE SEASON TWO. More specifically, we’ve had season two since August, but I binged the first eleven episodes in a week and then couldn’t bring myself to watch the last one. (I didn’t want it to be over!) So I procrastinated watching the season finale until the end of October. Because, let’s be real— it took three years to get season two out there; who knows how long we’ll have to wait for season three? The show has definitely changed since the first episode, in both good ways and not-so-good. Some brief thoughts: The “scratchy”? cinematography for the first couple (?) of episodes was distracting and didn’t lend much to the overall experience. I mostly was wondering what the heck was wrong with their camera. I miss the simplicity of season one; this season is much darker and more intense. The simplicity was part of what made season one so light-hearted, witty, and fun. I disliked how the main plot line changed; it became too complex and soap ope...
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The 10 Great Books of My Life

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What are the greatest books you've ever read? Not good, not favorite...but great. What are the books that are truly masterpieces? I have read many, many books so far in my short life. Hundreds and hundreds. Of those hundreds--perhaps a thousand?--only a few are worthy in my eyes of the adjective "great," in the true sense of the word. Many will disagree with my list, and that makes total sense--for, truly, what forms our opinions and reactions to books but our own, personal experiences? Thus far in my life, I have settled on these ten novels--some old, some more contemporary; some more complex than others--as the greatest I have yet read, in no particular order. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens Life of Pi by Yann Martel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry* To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier Les ...
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Review: The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

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In  World  War II France, two sisters weather the war, and defy the Nazis, in different ways. A lot of  ways . Like, an unrealistic amount of ways, maybe? ~ This was so emotional and I loved the themes and questions which lay beneath the events and characters. What an incredible story. I def liked All the Light We Cannot See more, because (besides the fact that ATLWCS was FAR better as far as the artistic prose; The Nightingale ’s writing style was nothing special) I had issues with Isabelle’s character, especially in the first half. She was so extreme so soon, without much insight to make her a believable, solid character. I needed more. She was 2D to me almost up until the very end. At first, she seemed so unrealistic that I was having trouble reading about her at all.  Like, I’m the same age as Isabelle and I know I have more sense than her. And also it was REALLY cliché and a tad unrealistic at a lot of times—like, no way all the stuff that happened to ...
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Review: Save the Date by Morgan Matson

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Save the Date, by Morgan Matson. Charlie's sister is getting married. She is so excited for all of her siblings to be together all in one place--their home. And then chaos ensues. Matson, as always, has written another group of amazing characters into being. Unique, individual (each sibling was their own, different person), fun, super witty—the characters are what drive her books. They feel so real, forming a strong foundation for each book. The plot of this book in particular was a let down for me. Most of the book was focused solely on every single thing going wrong at the main character’s wedding. EVERY. Single. Thing. To the point of ridiculous unbelievability. Some of the mishaps made sense, and that they would trigger additional mishaps also made sense. But others...nope. Totally unrealistic. To the point that I considered not finishing at all. The family themes and underlying issues going on within the Grant family universe were the best parts of the book. The side n...
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Review: All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

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FIVE FANTASTIC STARS. The tale of two teenagers ( blind Marie-Laure of Nazi-occupied France, and German Werner, a radio technology  prodigy )  trying to make it through the chaos of World War II. "So many windows are dark. It's as if the city has become a library of books in an unknown language, the houses great shelves of illegible volumes, the lamps all extinguished... But there is a machine in the attic at work again. A spark in the night." ~~~ I don’t know what I could ever write that could ever do justice to the masterpiece that is this book. So raw, so honest, so beautiful and real. I’ve never experienced war, but I felt that this book was very realistic (and  unapologetic)  in its portrayal of wartime and its effects on people and their lives. This book dares to emphasize the fact that, no, you don’t know what happens to everyone in the end. Not everything is resolved. Closure is not something life owes you; closure does not always exist.   E...
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On Journalism

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The free press is the fourth estate, equally important to the fabric of any democracy as a nation's legislature, executives, and judiciaries. Journalists protect the citizens by holding accountable those in power. Without journalism checking up on the actions and motives of the higher-ups, investigating and exposing covered-up wrongs and sinister plots, society would fall into chaos, deception, and become everything George Orwell feared. Without the dissemination of news, without the education of the people-- censorship and ignorance leads inevitably to oppression and blind loyalty. Just look back at Nazi Germany, look at the Soviet Union, and then look at today. To me, reporters represent what superheroes would look like in the real world, Robin Hoods in real life. To me, Clark Kent's vocation as a reporter represents no coincidence. This current trend of vilifying the press is scary. In fact, it feels apocalyptic. "Fake news" is not a pair of words to toss out...
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Review: Les Demoiselles de Rochefort

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I don't know what it is about Demy and Legrand, but their opening scenes always have me grinning like crazy (I always find myself saying, "wow, this is fun"). They know how to start off with a bang. The opening number of Les Demoiselles de Rochefort  (in English, The Young Girls of Rochefort) , bursts with sunny jazz happiness and choreography that made me want to dance along. So the performers (specifically the ensemble) might not be the best dancers, or the most synchronized--so what? To me, the choreography was more of an unbridled celebration of movement, of what dance should feel like, of freedom. It made me happy, and that's what musicals should do. I had more problems with the plot of this movie than I did with Demy's previous Les Parapluies de Cherbourg. I'm not sure if this was done on purpose, but the storyline was sloppily cliche and predictable to the point of being ridiculous. In the end, everything was suddenly and miraculously, all at o...
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