Reading like it's my job #15: Fantasy reads, Knives Out; The Lost Book
This week I want to tell you about what I’m reading, an awesome movie that I saw, and make a children’s book recommendation. Let’s go!
I’m now a proud member of two book clubs; one at work and one with friends. If I could make a career out of being in book clubs, I would. They are a lot of fun.
My work book club is reading The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman. This is book one in the His Dark Materials series. There was a bit of drama because some members wanted to read La Belle Sauvage first and go through the books chronologically instead of by publishing date, but I used a Reddit thread to convince them this was a bad idea. HBO has made this into a series and I’m excited to see how it stacks up. I’m 2 chapters in and really enjoying it.
My friend book club is reading The Hobbit. It’s been fun to go back and revisit this epic work of fantasy, especially because I picked up the graphic novel version illustrated by David Wenzel at the library and have been reading it with my sons. They love it. They especially liked the stuff with Gollum and keep wanting to go back to it. If you want to see a chubby two year old with a lisp say “Preciousssss….my preciousss…..” then you should FaceTime me. It’s pretty funny. Can’t wait until they are old enough to watch the LOTR trilogy.
Finally, I’ve committed myself to reading the entire 5 book, 4,000+ page “A Song of Ice and Fire” series by George R. R. Martin. Holy cow that’s a lot of pages. I got the box set on loan and I love seeing it on my book shelf. I’ll dedicate an entire future newsletter to that one. So much to talk about.
In a nutshell, I’ve got a lot of fantasy. Probably too much if I’m being honest. After I finish book 2 of “A Song of Ice and Fire” I’ll probably read a non-fiction just to cleanse the pallet.
I also saw a wonderful movie called Knives Out and I’ve been telling everyone about it. It is a must see. I love Rian Johnson (the director) and I loved the cast. The best way to describe this movie is tight, which to me is the opposite of sloppy. It’s crisp and smart. The actors are having fun, especially Daniel Craig. This was a nice change of pace from the brooding Bond. I recommend it without reservation to anyone looking for a great time at the theater. It's my favorite movie of 2019, barely edging out "The Farewell" which I wrote about earlier this year.
Finally, check out “The Lost Book” by Margarita Surnaite. We picked it up from the library and it had a fun twist at the end that my kids enjoyed. It got the type of reaction I always want when reading to my kids: The big eyed, raised eyebrow, gaping mouth reaction. And my youngest now carries the book around saying “We found it! We found it!” It has some heavy handed imagery about adults and their devices, but it served as a good reminder to get my nose out of my phone, especially when I’m with my kids.
That’s all for me this week. I hope you are finding joy in books and films and also living a life worthy of its own story. Until next time!
Kyle