Book Opinion - The Glass Hotel

To be fair, I haven't finished this one yet.  The Glass Hotel is our second book club book with my colleagues.  I'm about a third of the way through for our discussion on Friday afternoon.  So far, it's interesting.  Whether I would recommend it would depend on how the book ends and also on the reader.  It does jump around to different characters (third person limited points of view) and different times.  I'm bad with navigating times, but I kind of start with wherever I start with and then every chapter after that is a "before" or "after", but I have trouble remembering years and dates - in real life and in fiction.

Stay tuned for my more thorough thoughts.

Edited:  I finished.  I was on board until the last 50 pages and then I just can't.  I could get over the changing points of view (it switched to first person at a couple of points after being third person limited for so long).  I thought that worked, and I didn't mind the change in time.  I just can't handle the the very end.  I thought some of the language was really striking, but I wanted to feel something for anybody, and I never did.  I was indifferent to the two "main" characters and had mild disdain or pity for others.  It does seem like the internet liked the author and book and, to be fair, I don't read a lot of mainstream fiction so maybe it's just me.  I'll just go back to memoirs and romance.

Movies We Watched - The Lovebirds

I caught this one last Friday.  I had been looking forward to it because I love both Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani.  I thought the movie was a perfect Friday night movie.  I got lost a little in the mystery, but I thought the leads were good enough to carry any slower part or weaker part of the film.  It was very compact so it can be watched in less than an hour and a half which, in our house, is a huge plus.  My brain has trouble comprehending longer pieces.  Or non-fiction (which is why Husband watched Grant on the History channel all by himself last night - my only input was to remark how hot Grant was at one point).  Anyway, if you like either of these folks as actors or comedians, I'd recommend this movie.  I may watch it again.

Movies We Watched - The Big Flower Fight

I've had some trouble focusing and concentrating so these little Netflix competition shows have been perfect.  This one had the accents and quirkiness of The Great British Bake-Off, but it didn't have the complete charm.  It was still perfect for a quick little binge.  I still had my favorite teams and the teams I couldn't wait to see go.  I did feel like the contestants were good-natured while continuing to be competitive.  I really liked the father/son team a lot even though they didn't have the polish or skill some of the other teams had.  I won't give away any spoilers, but I was happy with how it played out.  Maybe if there had been a mini challenge or a way of gaining advantages, that would have upped the pressure and competition, but I get that the focus was to make it light and positive.  

Week asdlkjfa;slkdjfasdklfj

So, we're still being socially distant and sheltering in place.  We've got a little routine down, but the days run together.  

Captain has taken to it well. He has taken a lot of coronavirus information in and processed it, and he's been strangely cool. He's got all his stuff, all of his people. He still hates Zoom calls, but he's been getting better. I think having a birthday helped - new toys especially video games. This house has always been a videogame-free house, but that's over.  He's doing ok with school.  He hates reading and writing and it's hard to keep him motivated.  Luckily, I've found some worksheets online and an app he really likes that has actually helped him write.  It's too early to see if it's been helping him read.  He's very behind the milestone with reading and writing.  He does love being read to though.

Little Miss is all over the place. She's ok depending on the minute of the day. She misses the structure of school and her friends. We've been doing some cooking and baking which helps. Nothing major, but I think the whir of the mixer helps calm her. 

The photo below is from a visit with my parents who dropped some presents off while maintaining distance in the parking lot of our building. My mom crocheted The Child from The Mandalorian for me (well, the kids, but we're sharing custody).

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2020 #thechild #facemasks

A post shared by April Moore (@princessapr) on May 10, 2020 at 3:03pm PDT

Movies We Watched - Upload

OK, I know that some of these "movies" are really series.  I just didn't want another Label for sorting purposes.  So, as you may have guessed, this latest one is also a series that better get a second season.  The first season ended in a cliffhanger.

So, I recently made my way through all 10 episodes of Upload on Amazon Prime.  I liked it.  I wanted it to be funnier.  The commercials made it seem funnier or quirkier.  Once the plot kicked in, I got more intrigued.  There were some cringe-y, awkward scenes which I don't love, but I liked Nathan and Nora.  I loved Nathan and his niece.  I'm curious about Ingrid.  I didn't like her, but she did make me laugh.  Either way, I think it ended strong and now we'll never know how long we have to wait for another season.  There better be one though.

Movies We Watched - Never Have I Ever

OK, it's not a movie.  It's a tv show.  I almost watched it all yesterday, but I had to go to bed.  I have 3 episodes left.  I'm writing this and making the assumption that the last 3 episodes continues the quality and style of the rest of the series.  I really like this series a lot.  It's funny and clever.  John McEnroe is the narrator which is hilarious.  He also asks as a guide to the characters and the is a great way to explain Devi's culture and inner thoughts to the viewer.  Plus, he's just hilarious.  I love that the show is centered around Devi, but it also breaks and shows you her friends, her family, and her enemies separately so you get a pretty full picture which helps see Devi's strengths and weaknesses.  All the characters are three-dimensional and quirky without being caricatures.  

Movies We Watched - The Half of It

I wanted to see this movie when it was advertised on Twitter awhile ago, and I missed the release date, but I caught it yesterday (it only released 5 days earlier). It was so good. I liked so many things about it. I liked the storytelling and the way it was filmed, almost like a dream. I loved how funny it was, how timeless it seemed. I love a unique love story. I don't want to ruin the ending, but in a story where you may suspect things don't end well, this ends the best way it could and with happiness and optimism. I felt all the feels and ended up crying and laughing all at the same time which is always so glamorous. Plus, now I want to try taco sausage and want dumplings ASAP. I highly recommend this movie on Netflix.

On a sidenote, there was zero authentic Asian representation for me growing up.  I remember reading Just As Long As We're Together by Judy Blume and was like this girl is Asian and adopted.  What?!  We have a ways to go, but I love some of the offerings out there.