Hi everyone. I hope you are having a great start to the new year. We are in the midst of packing up the house right now in order to move. It’s been a bit crazy because we are still waiting for the renovations to finish at the new place. It’s coming down to the wire for when our movers are coming in a week, argh.
Anyways, I’ve filled a lot of boxes in preparation. And who knew you could accumulate so much in 14 years. It’s just all the closets, drawers, and books, oh goodness! I think I forgot about it when I last moved in 2008 from Arlington, Va., and had to get rid of all my furniture to come to Canada. I sold it on Craigslist, or something. People came and drove it away. Now I’m trying to pare down the books, which is hard.
In other news, the Oscar nominations will be announced Jan. 24 and I’ve been seeing some films that will likely be Oscar contenders. So far I’ve seen these films below:
- Elvis for which actor Austin Butler gave an amazing performance
- She Said which is a strong #MeToo flick
- The Fabelmans based on Steven Spielberg’s family and early childhood
- Tar in which Cate Blanchett plays a star orchestra composer-conductor, and
- The Whale that tells the story of a morbidly obese man’s troubles
I just saw The Whale with Brendan Fraser and it’s quite powerful. I was sort of blown out of my chair by the end. It all takes place in the lead character Charlie’s apartment as he goes about his life as an online English teacher while dealing with his health issues and trying to reconnect with his estranged daughter.
When you see it, you can tell it’s based on a play (by Samuel D. Hunter in 2012) because the dialogue and characters play out in close proximity. There’s a nurse who comes by to check on Charlie and then his teenage daughter and ex-wife, as well as a young missionary boy who says he’s trying to save Charlie. So it’s interesting how these characters interact and what comes to pass in Charlie’s life. There’s much pain and anger in this story! But man it cuts to the heart too. See it at your own discretion.
Other likely Oscar contenders I still want to see are the Irish film The Banshees of Inisherin about a lifelong friendship that stars Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell, Women Talking about a Mennonite colony, and Living that’s set in 1950s London, starring Bill Nighy. Have you seen any of these movies or the ones above?
And now I’ll leave you with a couple reviews of novels I finished lately.
Trespasses by Louise Kennedy / Riverhead / 304 pages / 2022
Whoa this is a tragic story but so well told. The novel and circumstance really gave me a flavor of Northern Ireland in the 1970s during the Troubles and it seems certainly one of the best novels I’ve read about the time, place, and people caught up in the ongoing violence.
The story is about: Cushla, a 24-year-old Catholic woman, who lives outside Belfast, works as teacher during the day, and takes care of her alcoholic mother at night. Sometimes she fills in at her family’s pub, which her brother runs. There she meets an older Protestant married barrister (Michael) who invites her to attend Irish/Gaelic language classes with a group of his friends. Pretty soon a clandestine affair develops between them, which Cushla tries to control and keep under wraps — while also trying to help out a young boy (Davy) at school who’s being bullied. Later when his father is attacked by sectarian violence and put into the hospital, things begin to unravel and play out for all.
Uh-oh Cushla has a lot on her plate: her alcoholic mother, her student’s problems, and her secret affair that will have grave consequences if anyone finds out.
The story starts out pretty slowly but picks up from late middle to the end. The gritty descriptions of the time, place, and violence seem spot on (much alcohol, cigarettes, and sex in this) and captivatingly reveal Cushla’s emotions of getting involved with an older married man who’s Protestant. You’ll want to find out what happens to them all. By the end I was pretty ripped apart. Kudos to the author. It’s hard to believe this was her first novel.
Women Talking by Miriam Toews / Bloomsbury / 240 pages / 2018
Yep this was my first completed book in 2023! I picked it up so I would get a better idea of it when I see the feature film coming out starring a wide array of actresses. I listened to the audiobook read very well by actor Matthew Edison.
And whoa this is quite a dark and disturbing story about a Mennonite colony whose women are being attacked at night while they sleep. At first they think it’s demons or something, but then they realize it’s some men in the colony who are drugging them (this is not giving anything away as it’s told early on that’s what has happened).
Thereafter most of the novel consists of two days of eight women — who are illiterate and never been out in the world — discussing how they plan to proceed to what’s happened. Around and round they go making arguments for and against about whether to stay and fight for their safety and security, or to leave the religious colony altogether. Their discussions get quite philosophical as they explore the rationale behind their thinking and what they want for their future and how their faith shapes their beliefs too. Granted I got a bit impatient waiting for them to make up their minds on what to do when I felt ready from the get-go.
But the women here are at a big disadvantage since in their Mennonite colony all the power rests with the men: the rules, how they live, and that the women are not allowed even to learn how to read or write. Cripes it’s hard to fathom that this horrible society exists (like the Taliban?), but the novel is based on a true story of a colony in Bolivia in 2009.
I thought it was clever how the story is narrated by August Epps, a former ex-communicated male colony member, who takes the minutes of the women’s meetings, writing them down and sympathizing with their cause. And though at first I couldn’t seem to keep track of the various female characters in the story and their points of view, as it went on I became more familiar with them and a couple heroes in their midst began to step forward: namely Ona and Salome. These women show much courage by plotting a way forward for the women, and a sense of suspense and danger emerge towards the end. Perhaps the story’s middle had a little too much talking and not enough action but that was my only qualm in a story that otherwise was very effective and scary to contemplate.
That’s all for now. What about you — have you read these books or seen the movies and if so, what did you think?
Good luck with moving — sounds very stressful!
best… mae at maefood.blogspot.com
Thanks Mae. Yeah it’s has been a bit stressful as of late. One good thing is that new place is about 50 mins away so we have been able to drop things off ahead of the movers. Every other day I’ve been making a trip there to drop off a load of stuff. Just odds & ends that don’t fit well in boxes etc. Hope you are well. Enjoy your week.
Trespasses sounds compelling, but I’m not sure I’m in the mood for reading a tragic story right now. Still, I think I will bookmark it for later.
Elvis is the only movie on your list that I have seen. It was the music and the dancing that most amazed me. The actor who played Elvis was Elvis.
Good luck with the moving. We last moved thirty-eight years ago, when our son was a baby. My husband is a rock collector and I, of course, am a reader. People, even those we love so much, told us they would never help us move again. And we haven’t.
Hi Deb, it’s good think you’ve stayed put. How many books do you have in your house? Do you donate them? I probably will give a few boxes away, though that doesn’t make a big dent in the many bookshelves I have in the house.
The Elvis film was quite a throwback to that era. I liked the music in it too.
Have a great week.
Both of those books have had a lot of positive mention in the blogs that I read recently, but, like Deb, I’m just not sure I am up for either of them at the moment. Perhaps later in the year. And I haven’t seen any of the movies that have been Oscar-mentioned. I really do sound like a recluse, don’t I? Oh, well…
I add my best wishes for your move. I have moved six times in my adult life and I hope never to go through that again!
Hi Dorothy, I hadn’t realized you had moved that much in life but it seems like you have been where you are now for a long while. No need to move again — as you have a beautiful garden 🙂 …
We will see how it goes, one week left! Have a great week.
Whenever I had something major happening, such as a move, I kept telling myself “this time next week/month, it will be finished. Babysteps.” In some ways, it helped to reduce some of the stress and anxiety.
When we moved here from Nebraska, we got rid of a lot of books. To be honest, I don’t miss them and if I do decide I want to reread something that I did get rid of, I can always go to the library. With that said, I still have two full bookcases, so it’s not like I got rid of all of my books. 🙂
I don’t know if my family would want to watch The Whale, but Elvis is definitely on the watch list!
Thanks Lesley – that’s good advice about how to go about this big move. Little by little we’ll get there. Our movers come next Monday.
I hope to get rid of several boxes of books — but both me & my husband have too many. We might be giving away more stuff once we get there – because we’ve run out of time to sort it now.
I’d be curious what you will think of the movie Elvis. We broke it up into 2 parts (nights) since it’s long. We liked it quite a bit but it does jump around quite a bit. Cheers. Have a great week.
Good luck with the move! You’re right, it’s a chance to pare down and think about what you really need and want, but it’s also so tiring.
I didn’t love Women Talking when I read it, but it’s getting such good press…
Hi Helen, perhaps the Women Talking movie will be better than the novel. It could be the case. There’s quite a cast of actresses. I hope to see it if it gets here.
And thanks. We probably will pare down but not until we get to the new place & start unpacking as we’ve run out of time. Next Monday is D-day!
Hope you are well. Cheers. I recall you moved recently … and know how it gets.
I totally want to read Trespasses and Women Talking – great reviews! I especially want to read Women Talking before I see the film although I’m woefully behind on watching any new movies. I did see a preview of The Whale and sounds powerful. Best of luck with your move and hope it’s as stress-free as possible!
Thanks Iliana. I hope things come together for the move. One week left.
Women Talking is an unusual book — much of it is one discussion! But I think the movie will have a bit more. And The Whale was quite good I thought. It was better than I thought it would be. I hope you are well. take care.
Susan, do I ever know what you mean about moving after 14 years living in one place! We have done it (after 16 years in Boston to move here), and now knowing that another move eventually would be wise, after currently 17 years here (but not yet)! I wish you the very best with your move. How do we accumulate so much beloved stuff!
Trespasses is on my list.
Movies: We keep waiting for the price to come down on some of these, on The Fabelmans, especially.
Looking forward to your thoughts after all the dust settles!
Thanks Judith. So you’ve been there 17 years. We bought this place in 2005 so we are in the same boat. I think it’s cool where you live now. Must be a beautiful area. We hope to get out away from the big city as well. A quieter life hopefully.
The novel Trespasses felt very authentic to me … the Irish words she uses and everything else. It’s pretty good! We also thought The Fabelmans was good too. I didn’t realize that was the background Spielberg had. His parents were a bit different or maybe his mom was. See what you think.
Hope all is well there. No snow here in 3 or 4 weeks. a bit crazy.
Moving is always a lot of work. When we moved into our current house, we move from .10 miles away and we had sooooooo much even though we dumped two huge dumpster’s worth of stuff. The moving guys even commented. Ahem.
I think I’d like The Whale. Elvis was very good. Butler deserves the nod. I was creeped out by Hanks in that movie though.
Hi Ti. Yeah Hanks was strange as the manager in the Elvis movie. I was wondering about Austin Butler vs. Brendan Fraser as best actor in a role, but I think probably Butler is right to get it for all he had to learn & do.
I hadn’t realized you had moved from so close by. That helps. Even the fact that our new place is about 50 mins away has helped us make many trips & drop off things there. Still there’s plenty the movers need to take on Monday. Ugh. So much to do left! Have a great week.
How exciting that you are moving to your new place! But also stressful – I hate packing. It’s a good opportunity though to get rid of stuff, you are not using anymore. “Luckily” flats in London are typically not that big, so it’s limited how much stuff I can accumulate. I’ve seen much praise for Trespasses, I will probably pick it up at some point.
Hi Stargazer. Yeah Trespasses is well done! I think you’d find it good. The details feel quite authentic.
Did you say you moved from Denmark to London? That would be tough. It’s good you haven’t accumulated too much at your flat. We will likely get rid of stuff more when unpacking once there. Cross fingers for next week. Hope all is well there. I liked your review of The Swimmers. Cheers.
Moving is an excellent cure for collecting Stuff. I hope it goes smoothly for you!
I listened to Trespasses as an audiobook late last year and it was very good; quite gripping. You’re not sure what will become of Cushla as she has really put herself out there. I like to listen to the books set in Ireland as you can hear the accent and the authentic pronunciation of things & names. Rated 5*!
I’m trying to get 2023 off to a good reading start which is a little harder than last year. I think we were still a little cordoned off from the world then & now things have gotten very busy again.
We’ll celebrate your move next week!
Hi Sarah thanks for stopping by! Yeah I thought Trespasses seemed very authentic. I also listened to the audio version and was drawn into it. Cushla is surely playing with fire!
Things are getting close now to the Big Move Day on Monday and we are coming down to wire. Upstairs seems like it’ll be ready but Robert’s basement so far is not. I think we’ll cull mostly once we start unpacking there, though I have set aside a few boxes of books to donate already but still have a wall full.
We look forward to seeing you all soon. I hope I can find my clothes ….
I haven’t seen a movie in a very long time. But am eager to watch the Oscars, in case….
I got rid of most of my books but it took a year of dedicated boxing and giving to various organizations and groups including the local library. Whew! That was a chore!
Good luck with your moving.
Wow Harvee – that’s impressive if you were able to give most of your books away. I’m doing my best to give away some but will likely keep too many others.
And thanks the move is turning out to be major. We will see how it goes. Enjoy your weekend.
Packing up your whole house is such a big job! And so is paring down your books. I wish you luck with all of it.
Thanks Lark. Ugh what a chore moving has been. Monday is the big day. Much to do till then. Cross your fingers. Have a great weekend.
Moving is so stressful. We had to “move” out of our upstairs so we could get new flooring and I still haven’t unpacked several of the boxes which now are taking up room in the garage. Good luck.
Thanks Anne. We made it here! Though I think unpacking will take months. Still we are excited now about the change. I hope your new flooring will make up for the disruption. The best to you. Have a great week.