Sometimes I feel like I am the world’s biggest cheerleader (figuratively, OK) for movie nights in Halifax. I can’t help it. There’s nothing like getting together with a group of awesome people, be it at a theatre, in a bar, or someone’s living room, and watching a movie together. You don’t get that communal feeling at regular screenings–it’s more likely that you’re willing loud folks’ heads to explode, Scanners style.

One of my favourite local movie nights starts up again tonight… Monday Night Massacre! It is fantastic for serveral reasons:

1) They play horror/cult/exploitation/and b-movies.
2) There is fun trivia and neat prizes.
3) It’s free.
4) It’s in a bar, so you can have one of Gus’ famous tiny drafts while watching the film.

Starting off the year right is Slumber Party Massacre 2. It looks pretty terrible and gross… and yet… hilarious. It’ll be a good time, I swear.

The screening starts at 10:00 PM. If you come early you can catch some of the weekly comedy night that also happens at Gus’. Not too shabby for a Monday night!

Lauren always aims for the head. Follow her on Twitter @laurenoostveen.

It’s been kind of a lazy summer for me on the blog. Mostly because the rest of my life has been so busy. But I do promise to pick things back up…after vacation! That’s right, I’m going to Amsterdam and Bruges for two weeks. I’ve got at least one guest post lined up for while I’m away though. After I get back I’ll talk about the trip and then it’ll be back to business as usual.

If you’ve missed my writing (thanks, you’re sweet!) you can check out the CBC Book Club where I’ve been a contributing blogger since the beginning of the month. Here are my fave posts for movie adaptation month so far:

When love falls apart: Literary crushes who are heartbreakers on the silver screen

Infographic: 10 things that make for epically bad movie adaptations

An interview with a vampire (sympathizer): Becca Wilcott, author of the unofficial True Blood guide

See you (virtually) soon!

Theatrical poster

I’ll come right out and say it: I’m a fan of Tarantino. Even if you’re not, or simply didn’t enjoy the movie Inglourious Basterds (we can still be friends, right?), I thought I’d recommend a few good books about World War II. War movies and violence in films aren’t usually my thing—yes, I realize I’m kind of a paradox right now—but there are a few exceptions.

Honestly, I generally can’t even read about gore. A couple years ago, a friend recommend a book called the The Ruins because it was the scariest book she’d ever read. I actually had to do the equivalent of covering my eyes while watching a movie by skipping several pages. I can’t even imagine what the movie was like. In addition to which, I now have an unhealthy suspicion of flowering vines.

My imagination = rampant.

In any case, here are my recommendations of books that are more about intrigue than gore.

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami—As with most of his writing, this book crosses genres. It’s part detective, part historical fiction with a good mix of the surreal. Among the narrator’s bizarre encounters in an alternate reality of Tokyo is an ageing war veteran who is unalterably affected by the terrible acts he witnessed during Japan’s forgotten campaign in Manchuria.

Downhill Chance by Donna Morrissey—A distinctly Canadian take on the Second World War, Morrissey captures outport life in Newfoundland incredibly well and without all the expected clichés. Maybe it’s because Cokebaby is from “the Rock” but what I love about this book is reading about the way of life and the interesting turns of phrases. The story takes place against the backdrop of World War II in pre-Confederation Newfoundland when a man returns from the war broken and guarding a terrible secret that takes on a life of its own long after his death.

The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje—Much like Tarantino’s non-linear storyline, this book takes the same approach. It’s the story of four people and their lives during the Second World War: a critically burned English man, his Canadian nurse, an Italian thief and an Indian sapper in the British Army. There are so many beautiful sentences and paragraphs in this book that it must have been quite a task for the movie to do it justice. Despite having first read it well over 10 years, it’s my go-to book for inspiration when writing.

That’s all I’ve got for this movie. If you’re so inclined, friend me on Shelfari where you can check out what else I’ve been reading.

Do you have any recommendations for books about World War II?

American theatrical release poster

I know a lot of people really loved this movie. That said, if I was going to sum up District 9 in 140 characters or less, I’d write: possibly one of the most unsubtle movies I’ve seen in a long time in terms of theme. But I’m not writing this post to critique the movie.

If you liked District 9 for the themes the movie addressed of racism and xenophobia, I’m only going to recommend one book. My rationale: it’s a heavy topic and this book really encapsulates the unfairness of war and refugee life.

Better yet, it’s a true story.

Considering I rarely read non-fiction, it takes a pretty spectacular work and writer for me to actually recommend one. So, here goes:

A Long Way Gone: memoirs of a boy soldier by Ishmael Beah—The title is pretty self-explanatory. It’s the story of a boy caught up in the civil war in Sierra Leone. One moment he’s playing with school friends and the next he’s being trained to kill. I recall an interview on The Daily Show that moved me to pick up the book, in which Beah said that his return to “civilized society” was more difficult than the process of becoming a child soldier. He believed that dehumanizing children is a relatively easy task and the reason why so many of them were recruited. It’s a heartbreaking story but also one filled with hope and determination.

Recently, Beah spoke at the Rebecca Cohn here in Halifax in support of the non-profit Child Soldier Initiative organization. Since escaping from the war, he’s worked as a member of the Human Rights Watch Children’s Rights Division Advisory Committee and has spoken before the United Nations, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Center for Emerging Threats and Opportunities (CETO) at the Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory.

If you’re so moved, there are lots of foundations to get involved with to assist people affected by the war, disease, poverty, and lack of simple resources like water. On Twitter alone there’s the Stephen Lewis Foundation, charity: water, Twestival and so much more. Closer to home, there are people like @statsgirl, president for the Society of Artists for Autism, who was able to turn lemons to lemonade with Metro Transit recently.

I will now descend from my little soap box.

You can leave more Twitter non-profits and people that are making a difference in the comments section.

The End Begins

Just a couple of notes about the movie Terminator Salvation before I get to the books part of this post. First, what was up with that ending? Second, and I know this is picky for an action flick, but was it just me or were there glitches in Cyberdyne Systems’ programming of Marcus Wright’s accent?

Anyway…this film brought to mind, perhaps rather obviously, books about salvation. Here are some great reads that I think would go along really well with the theme:

Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood—That’s right. If you follow me on Twitter you’ll know this is my handle, chosen among other reasons because it’s one of my favourite books. It’s a fictional account of the real life of Grace Marks, one of the most notorious female murderers in Canadian history. Whether she was truly instrumental in the deaths of her employer and his housekeeper or simply an unwitting accessory is unknown. The story is told between the perspectives of Grace Marks and a fictional doctor who studies her case in hopes of determining her guilt or innocence. You can hear an excerpt by yours truly on Seen Reading.

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick—The plot of this book laid the groundwork for one of my all-time favourite movies: Blade Runner. In it, Rick Deckard (a bounty hunter) is tasked with “retiring” six escaped Nexus-6 model androids. In this dystopian world, androids are used for menial labour or jobs considered too dangerous for humans. Like Terminator Salvation, this novel also explores the theme of what it is to be human. As a side note, will be released as a series of comic books this year. AND there’s talk of webisodes based on the world created by Philip K. Dick.

The Wars by Timothy Findley—If you didn’t read it in high school, do yourself a favour and pick up a copy. It’s a Canadian classic about 19-year-old Robert Ross who enlists as a soldier in the First World War after a personal tragedy. The story is told essentially by one historian’s reconstructions based on archival materials, including interviews with the few living people who knew the young man. It’s not just a tale about the Great War but the internal wars that we all wage as human beings.

Your turn: what books would you recommend based on this theme (or to go along with the movie)?

The future begins.

Cokebaby and I went on a double “date” with another couple to catch dinner at Opa in the Park and Star Trek at the movies (don’t fret, a food review will be posted separately). Again, this is definitely not a film review but I have to say that I really enjoyed the acting in this flick. Acting is something that I don’t recall having ever considered in a predominantly action oriented film but I have to give credit where it’s due and the actors captured the elements of the original characters without going overboard as they easily could have done.

Now, I don’t read a lot of books about space exploration but I do like to pick up the an occasional book that falls under the Speculative Fiction genre. So, the books I’m going to recommend are related more to alternate realities and the whole time-continuum theories. As an aside, I have to mention that if you prefer standard plot devices that are grounded very much in the real world, these books probably aren’t for you. I’ve recommended some of them to friends who wound up not being able to get through them and others who have devoured them.

Ysabel by Guy Gavriel Kay — Besides being a driving influence to travel to the south of France, this book transcends any categorization. It’s part fantasy, part historical fiction. The protagonist is 15-year-old Ned Marriner who has accompanied his  father to Provence for a six-week photography shoot. He finds himself immersed in a history filled with Celtic tribes and Roman Legions in more ways than one as figures from these ancient battles arrive in the present to claim and change lives.

Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami — From by far one of my favourite authors comes a dual narrative. The odd-numbered chapters are told from the perspective of a “Calcutec” (a human data processor who has been trained to use his subconscious as an encryption key). The even-numbered chapters are told from the perspective of a newcomer to a strange, isolated walled Town who is assigned the job of “dreamreader.” The two story lines eventually converge to explore concepts of consciousness, the subconscious and identity.

Raw Shark Texts by Steven Hall — This book kind of reminded me of a text version of The Matrix. The main character, Eric Sanderson, wakes up one morning to discover he’s suffering from some form of amnesia. He receives a series of letters and packages signed “with regret and hope” from the First Eric Sanderson. Although warned not to do so, Eric tears open the parcels and discovers a complex world where he and his former self are being pursued by a shark that hunts him through written words.

The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger — I’m not going to lie to you. This book is as much a romance as it is science fiction. But if you’re going to allow the labels to deter you from reading it, I really think it’s your loss. You could just watch the movie when it comes to theatres this summer (starring Rachel McAdams & Eric Bana), but how often does the film version really outshine the book? The novel is told through alternating first-person perspectives: Henry DeTamble, a librarian at the Newberry Library in Chicago, and his wife, Clare Abshire, an artist. Henry has a rare genetic disorder that causes him to involuntarily travel through time. So, when Clare meets Henry at the Newberry Library at the opening of the novel, he has never seen her before despite her having known him since early childhood.

I’m sure I’m not the only person reading this blog that’s seen the movie, so now it’s your turn: what books would you recommend?

[On a somewhat related note, Robert J. Sawyer is interviewed in the upcoming issue of All Rights Reserved literary journal which will be released in the fall of 2009!]

Come a little closer, bub

All I’m going to say about the movie is that the intro sequence was the coolest one I’ve seen in a while. What I really wanted to do with this post is recommend a number of related books, like I did for Slumdog Millionaire. But, you know what? I really couldn’t come up with any.

I used to love the X-Men series and, in fact, Wolverine was my favourite character. There was a time I used to read more comics and graphic novels along with all the other books I could get my hands on. However, when I tried to think of the last graphic novel I read, it was Cancer Vixen by Marisa Acocella Marchetto. And that came out in 2006!

While I’m really looking forward to reading Skim by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki (the Book Club pick in June for the new CBC site that I’m working on), I think I need to get back on track with this genre again. So, I’m going to put it out to you: what graphic novels should I put on my reading list? Or, what books would you recommend for someone who enjoyed the X-Men Origins: Wolverine movie?

Last week Cokebaby and I treated ourselves to dinner and a movie up in Bayer’s Lake. While I mostly go for vegetarian fare when I’m cooking for myself or going out to restaurants there are exceptions. And, truthfully, they mostly come in burger form. This time I tried out Señor Jack’s Jalapeño Burger from Jack Astor’s with a side garden salad (who can resist the curly rings of pickled beets, huge croûtons, and blackberry dressing?). Best. Burger. Ever. There was just enough of a spicy kick, complimented with a sweet pickle relish. I was in burger heaven, oblivious to all the cows giving me stink-eye.

Official movie poster

But the meal wasn’t even the best part of the night. It was the movie Slumdog Millionaire (which took home a whole bunch of Oscars last night). As the title of this post oh-so-subtly suggests, this isn’t a critique of the film in any way, shape, or form. Except, that is, to say you should probably go see this film if you haven’t already. And if you have, well, you know what I mean.

Oh, also, you have to watch this end credit sequence. And, finally, I want the yellow scarf that Latika wears with a white t-shirt and jeans. It’s the must have fashion accessory of the season IMHO.

We went into the movie not knowing very much about it besides the praise of friends (and seemingly the world). I didn’t even realize it was based on a book originally published as Q & A by Vikas Swarup (HarperCollins). Being a bookworm, it brought to mind a few good reads I’ve picked up over the course of the past few years. So, if you enjoy(ed) the movie and want to read books that are similar, check out these titles:

The Song of Kahunsha by Anosh Irani (Doubleday)—Upon hearing that the orphanage that has cared for him since he was an infant is to be torn down by land developers, Chamdi runs away in search of his father. The sheltered world that he leaves behind is a far cry from the streets of Bombay. It’s a world of violence and destitution. But he meets two street children who take him under their wing. Together they scrape by and search for a means to escape poverty.

Shining Hero by Sara Banerji (HarperCollins)—A well-to-do adolescent girl is charmed by a Bollywood star passing through her village. Nine months later she is horrified to discover she’s giving birth to a baby that she subsequently sends down-river. The infant boy, Karna, is discovered by a woman desperate for a child of her own and who takes him in as her own. But fortunes turn quickly and soon he is forced to seek out his birth mother who has since married and had another child.

The Toss of a Lemon by Padma Viswanathan (Random House)—Inspired by her own family’s history, the author creates a fictional tale of a child-bride who is soon widowed. According to the rules of her caste she must live out much of the rest of her life like a ghost: wearing white, and from dawn to dusk she is not permitted to contaminate herself with human touch, not even to comfort her small children. Her son grows up to reject the principles of caste and welcomes the ways of a modern India, eventually causing a rift between them.

The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy (Random House)—Shifting between 1969 and 1993, this is the story of fraternal twins growing up in the state of Kerala. It’s a complex book that captures a lot of interesting points about the period, such as the Communism movement, the caste system, and the Syrian Christian way of life. The author also uses Malayalam words throughout which adds to the richness of the book.

So, there you have it. A few extras to take away after you’ve seen the movie. Do you have any recommendations for books, music, or films to go with Slumdog Millionaire?

P.S. I’m also loving the movie soundtrack.