January Preview

The Sunday Salon.com
This month sees a slew of strong novels coming out, seven of which are debut novels; see the list at the right. It’s a bit hard to choose which ones beckon me most.

I’ve heard good things about George Saunders’ new short-story collection “Tenth of December,” which I likely will pick up.

I’m also a bit drawn to Lara Santoro’s provocative new novel “The Boy,” which has gained high praise according to Amazon from authors such as Anne Lamott, Emma Donoghue and Alice Sebold.

I might also be in the mood for a story set in Africa, in that case “White Dog Fell From the Sky” by Eleanor Morse

could be the one, as I’ve heard good things about it.

In movies, I’m still hoping to see a couple of strong December releases that got by me, notably “The Impossible” and “Zero Dark Thirty.” So far my favorite films of 2012 have been “Lincoln” and “Life of Pi” but I’m still holding out that those two listed above could alter my best of list, but we shall see.

Also in January look for “Broken City,” which could be an enticing film about a political scandal that stars Mark Wahlberg and Russell Crowe.

As for new music, it’s sort of slim pickings in January (see list at bottom right), so instead I will spotlight the new episodes of “Downton Abbey” ( hooray Season 3 starts tonight!) as well as “The Good Wife,” which is my only other TV show, along with “The Walking Dead,” of course, which is on hiatus till February.

The British show’s latest season seems to hinge on what is going to happen at Downton after the estate goes bust, which should throw an interesting wrench into everything. I’m not exactly sure who my favorite character is on the show, but I sort of like Lady Mary because she is sly and crafty and usually gets the guy she wants. (And thankfully he is no longer impotent from his war injury.) Though my yellow Lab pup likes Isis, Lord Grantham’s dog, who she thinks looks just like her. Go figure.

These are just some of my picks. Which January releases are you most looking forward to?

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The Darlings and Les Miz

The Sunday Salon.com

I finished my year in reading with Cristina Alger’s financial thriller “The Darlings,” which is a quick, entertaining novel about the reverberations surrounding what turns out to be a Ponzi scheme at a large hedge fund in New York.

It begins as the manager of the fund has apparently jumped off the Tappan Zee Bridge right as the SEC has started to close in on him, leaving his business associates reeling as the far-reaching sham is ultimately revealed. The fund’s founder, billionaire investor, Carter Darling pleads ignorance of the scheme and tries to keep his wife, two daughters and sons-in-law together in its wake. But chaos and questions abound, notably, will his son-in-law, Paul, the firm’s general counsel, stand by the family patriarch or cut a deal to save his own skin, and who in the end will be left standing.

“The Darlings” is a story about a rich New York family’s undoing, where bonds and loyalties are put through the ringer. It definitely reminded me of the Bernie Madoff scandal and family, and vividly sets the scene of a New York in crisis, around the time of the financial crash in 2008 when Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns went kaput and thousands lost their jobs. The characters are all seemingly both good and bad and the lines get blurred between who’s guilty, responsible or a victim, which makes for a good thriller-type book. I found “The Darlings” slick and well-done but ultimately I was glad to leave behind the unsettling, Madoff-like moneyed atmosphere it conjures.

Meanwhile, I was able to see the musical film “Les Miserables” this week with eight of my relatives, which was a bit fun. Most of them had seen it before as the Broadway musical or as the 1998 film starring Liam Neeson, but this was my first time seeing it. While I liked some of the songs, music and performances in it, I found that as a musical it wasn’t exactly my cup of tea; I’m not a true fan or follower of musicals generally. Yet I appreciated “Les Miz’”: its history, the book, its period of revolutionary France and its story of redemption. It was epic in scale no doubt and I was curious to see it. But I didn’t feel it was exactly for me, and some parts seemed to drag, while others were more interesting. Perhaps I just need to dive into the soundtrack. What did you think of it?

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Silver Linings Playbook

Just a short post today as Christmas is near and we are enjoying the holidays with my family in Southern California. It is so nice to be here! I plowed through my Christmas shopping all in one day yesterday, which must be some kind of record for me.

Although quite busy, I did manage to see “Silver Linings Playbook” this past week, which is about a guy named Pat (played by Bradley Cooper) who goes home to live with his parents after getting out of a mental institution as he attempts to get his life back together. He’s bipolar and coping with treatment but is driven to get his old teaching job back and reunite with his separated wife though both seem sort of far-gone and out of reach. Then he meets Tiffany (played by Jennifer Lawrence) who has mental issues of her own but seems to see through to Pat. They embark on a rocky friendship as they come to grips with their own difficulties and the road ahead.

Though there’s seemingly a lot of yelling in “Silver Linings Playbook,” it’s quite a feel-good movie by the end. Tiffany gets Pat to enter a dance competition, and the father, a bookmaker, has the whole family into the Philadelphia Eagles. So there’s football, dance, family and mental issues along the way.

I enjoyed the movie enough and think Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence did a good job in it. I guess I didn’t LOVE the movie, but thought it was worth seeing. It’s a bit over-the-top or unreal in places, like the football or dance competition etc. I guess it’s not exactly a harrowing view of the mental aspects or impoverished situations that many mentally ill people or their families face but it doesn’t totally duck the hardships or illness either. It seemed a bit careful in that regard. I liked “Silver Linings” but wasn’t overly caught up in it.

So for big end-of-year movies: I’ve now seen “Lincoln,” “Life of Pi,” “Argo” and “Silver Linings Playbook.” But yet there’s still “Les Miz,” “The Impossible,” “The Hobbit,” “Zero Dark Thirty” and perhaps “On the Road” to see. “Les Miz” has got to be the most talked about film of the year so I’m most curious to see that, as well as the gritty “Zero Dark Thirty.” I find it a bit hard to choose my favorite so far between “Lincoln,” “Life of Pi” and “Argo.” What is your favorite film so far this year?

Happy Holidays.

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Life of Pi

Finally, “Life of Pi!” Yea. I did it, saw it, lived it. Well not actually, but you know what I mean. Director Ang Lee’s film is visually gorgeous and a feast in 3D. For some reason I was skeptical that it would be any good or not a letdown of Yann Martel’s wonderful 2001 novel. But instead I was pleasantly captivated by the film, which should rank among my top ten of the year.

A lot of people read the book and know it’s about a teenage boy, Pi, from India who becomes shipwrecked at sea and loses his family. He’s stranded on the ocean in a lifeboat with a few zoo animals that were among the ship’s cargo. Soon though it’s just Pi and a Bengal tiger, named “Richard Parker,” who are left to fend for themselves to survive.

It’s quite a survival adventure tale, and is told by Pi as an adult many years later to a writer who’s interested in his story. At the end there’s a reckoning or plot twist in Pi’s tale that changes the perspective on the shipwreck and what has happened on the lifeboat. If one looks, there is religious symbolism along the way. I’m still wondering a bit about the odd island of trees that they find and have to leave toward the end. Does it really represent the Garden of Eden?

The layers of “Life of Pi” make it quite interesting. And for a book that supposedly couldn’t be made into a film, this adaptation does quite well. (Truth be known: I need to revisit the book as it’s been a long time.) In the film, the animals and adventure look very vivid and real thanks to the filmmaking and 3D technology. The screen comes to life amid the sea and might leave you feeling a bit seasick during the scary storms, in which the waves toss the lifeboat all over the place. I also liked that Ang Lee kept to an international cast and didn’t use actors recognizable from Hollywood. “Life of Pi” has an authentic feel to it, which helps it succeed.

If you get a chance, see it this holiday season on the big screen (the 3D is worth it). And though, fans of the book may quibble with it I don’t think they’ll leave disappointed.

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Two Books in Brief

I enjoyed the two books pictured in this post this week. You wouldn’t think they would have any similarities in common, other than their short length. Yet both include some vivid sentences and wisdom.

As for “Ru,” I was drawn to it after I heard the author Kim Thuy talking about it on NPR a couple weeks ago. Her first page, which was read on the radio, snapped me to attention:

I came into the world during the Tet Offensive, in the early days of the Year of the Monkey, when the long chains of firecrackers draped in front of houses exploded polyphonically along with the sound of machine guns.
I first saw the light of day in Saigon, where firecrackers, fragmented into a thousand shreds, coloured the ground red like the petals of cherry blossoms or like the blood of the two million soldiers deployed and scattered throughout the villages and cities of a Vietnam that had been ripped in two.
I was born in the shadow of skies adorned with fireworks, decorated with garlands of light, shot through with rockets and missiles. The purpose of my birth was to replace lives that had been lost. My life’s duty was to prolong that of my mother.

“Ru” is an autobiographical novel that parallels Thuy and her family’s boat journey out of Saigon after the Vietnam War to a crowded Malaysian refugee camp for four months and eventually to a new life in Quebec. It’s told in a series of vignettes, the memories of which usually encompass a page each in the book and are shuffled back and forth between the various times of her life.

On the good side, the novel made me feel what it was like for the “boat people” who came over from Vietnam, their risks, fears and struggles. It also showed a glimpse into Vietnamese families and their culture, and especially expressed the feelings of living in a place of war and peace. “Ru’s” quite lyrical in the way it’s written, the passages evoke poetry in places, which I found both evocative and moving.

Just sometimes I got a bit lost in “Ru,” not knowing exactly who or what she was talking about, and maybe I couldn’t understand everything because of a cultural gap or perhaps the book’s back-and-forth structure. But still “Ru” left me with an impressionable picture of the boat people and of a survivor who seems grateful to have come through the hard sides of both war and peace.

“Good Dog. Stay.” from 2007 by Anna Quindlen was another pretty impulsive read this week. (Who knew she wrote a dog book?) It arrived in a package of dog books from my sister-in-law who was giving her collection away to us because we had recently gotten a puppy. The book is actually about Quindlen’s older dog, Beau, who is in the last stages of his life. In her usual wise and witty prose, Quindlen tells stories about Beau’s life and what she has learned from him along the way. Interspersed throughout it are lovely photos of a wide variety of dogs.

For anyone who appreciates canines or has lived through the passing of an old dog, “Good Dog. Stay.” is quite a soothing and touching quick read. It makes me want to read more dog stories, as well as other titles from Anna Quindlen. I think we can relate. Among other things, she knows the value of a dog’s life well-lived.

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December Preview

It’s Christmas season and that means lot of big movies are coming out this month, see the list at the top left.

Of course the biggest ones, Peter Jackson’s film of the JRR Tolkien novel “The Hobbit” and Tom Hooper’s film of the Victor Hugo novel “Les Miserables” are must-sees. I will be ready and planted for those. But there’s also a few good dramas I want to see, too, notably “Zero Dark Thirty” about the search for Osama bin Laden, “The Impossible” about the 2004 Indonesian tsunami, and “On the Road” Walter Salles’ film of the Jack Kerouac novel. I won’t be missing any of these.

If you need lighter fare though, check out the comedies; perhaps Judd Apatow’s “This Is 40” might be suitable with your eggnog.

As for books out this month, see the list at the top right. I’m not sure if anything grabs me in a huge way, but Sebastian Faulks is often an author I have liked in the past. His latest novel “A Possible Life” involves five characters in different time periods. There’s also Nick Tosches’ dark narrative “Me and the Devil,” which both Johnny Depp and Keith Richards hail, which scares me perhaps a bit about this one.

For a debut novel that’s getting good press, check out Juliann Garey’s “Too Bright to Hear Too Loud to See” about an executive whose life unravels from bipolar disorder. It sounds like a good yarn but maybe better after all the holiday festivities pass by.

In albums out this month — see the list at the bottom right — I pick Bruno Mars’ new one “Unorthodox Jukebox” to jump up the charts. He was a funny host on “Saturday Night Live” not long ago and is one talented dude.

These are just some of my picks. Which December releases are you most looking forward to?

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Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band in Vancouver, B.C.

I’m still excited about seeing Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band in concert on Monday night at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, B.C. It was a big treat to myself and at some expense to go, but of course in the end it was totally worth it.

I’ve been a fan since probably the “Born to Run” album in 1975 and have seen him numerous times over his long career; the first time being in 1981 at the L.A. Forum. A friend of mine urged me to go this time saying you never know how much longer the E Street Band will be touring. So with that thought in mind I had to go, and of course I wasn’t disappointed. It was just so excellent a show, I don’t know where to begin.

Bruce played songs off of every album and kept his set list spontaneous and fresh, often taking requests from signs in the audience. He has always mingled with his fans and let people participate, but this time it was more than ever. He used a stage that went far into and around the floor to sing and dance and get people into it. He even crowd-surfed all the way back to the main stage at one point, which isn’t bad for a 63-year-old.

I still don’t know how he does it all. The energy, the songs, the passion! He plays nonstop for hours and is in his element every step of the way. I don’t think he’s ever let a fan down. Maybe he didn’t play “Atlantic City” or “The River” or “Born in the USA,” but he plays so many great songs that you’re blown away more than you could ever know.

If I try to think of a personal highlight to the show, there’s almost too many to single out. Was it when he pulled an 80-year-old onstage to dance with him during “Dancing in the Dark”? Or was it when a young girl in the audience sang with him on “Waitin’ on a Sunny Day”? Or was it the touching tribute he gave to deceased band members Clarence Clemons and Danny Federici? Or was it when he sang “Racing in the Street,” “Because the Night,” or his signature song “Born to Run”? Or was it any of the rest of his fantastic songs? I was pretty thrilled during the whole three plus hours, a tingling bunch of adrenaline dancing to every moment.

I didn’t even have a ticket before the show but wound up scalping and got a close seat diagonal to the stage. It was amazing. I could see the Man so closely, his face, his expressions, his sweat, the band. He seemed to be having a total ball, as was I. So if you get a chance to see the E Street Band even these days, don’t pass it up, even if it’s out of town. He plays a fair share of both the new and the old. So it’s just right. And the band is as good as ever, with special recognition to Mighty Max on the drums for putting it all on the line and to Jake Clemons for playing the sax just like his dad used to. Below are the songs Bruce sang in order – if you can handle them.

Set list:

Shackled and Drawn
Out in the Street
Hungry Heart
We Take Care of Our Own
Wrecking Ball
Death to My Hometown
My City of Ruins
Spirit in the Night
Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street?
Red Headed Woman
Streets of Fire
Because the Night
She’s the One
Cover Me
Darlington County
Waitin’ on a Sunny Day
Raise Your Hand
The Rising
Badlands
Land of Hope and Dreams
* * *
Racing in the Street
Radio Nowhere
Born to Run
Dancing in the Dark
Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town
Tenth Avenue Freeze-out

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Ender’s Game

A member of my book club picked “Ender’s Game” to discuss this week, which surprised some of us. Not many of us typically read science-fiction, and this novel came out in 1985; it was expanded from a 1977 short story. Was it really something we could get into?

Still I was curious. Apparently most guys I know seem to have read “Ender’s Game,” which won the Nebula and Hugo awards when it came out, and it is being released as a movie in 2013, with Harrison Ford, Abigail Breslin, Ben Kingsley and Viola Davis among others. It’s quite a cast. So I was willing to check out the book to see if it was more than just fodder for teenage boys.

The novel is set in the future after humans have fought two conflicts in space against an insect-like alien creature referred to as “buggers.” It’s about a young, gifted boy, Ender Wiggin, who is taken away from his family on Earth to train for the next war against the buggers at the exclusive Battle School, located in Earth’s orbit. He leaves behind a malevolent brother, Peter, and his beloved sister, Valentine, who he wont see for years.

At Battle School, Ender excels in military tactics amid the non-gravity atmosphere and leads his squad to victory in war games against the rest. He dominates the game but struggles with how his superiors manipulate his life and tip the playing field against him to groom him to be the ultimate leader. The pressures that he is the one to lead the forces to save Earth weigh on him, and he fears he’s like his brother, capable of hurting others.

After a grueling few years, he’s promoted to Command School, where a former war hero, Mazer Rackham, trains him using a war simulator. Soon Ender is commanding fleets on the simulator, practicing all-out war against the alien buggers. The simulations ramp up until his final test, which is like no other. What follows is an abrupt twist at the novel’s end that took me a bit by surprise.

Essentially, it’s a novel that involves becoming a leader, and what makes a good one. There’s a lot of war games and practice in it. I guess that’s why the U.S. Marine Corps has required the book in the past on its reading list. But it also raises ethical and moral questions about the military and waging war or obliteration.

“Ender’s Game” took me a while to get through, but I found it a surprisingly decent read, even though it’s not something I would normally pick up. It’s reading that’s a bit geared to young adult males, but it’s also semi-thought-provoking sci-fi, which is worth picking up every once in a blue while.

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Lincoln

Being a history fan, I jumped at the chance to see Steven Spielberg’s film “Lincoln” and I’m glad I did. I knew it was partly based on Doris Kearns Goodwin’s 2005 book “Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln,” which I haven’t read yet but know it’s about the president and three political opponents he chose for his Cabinet. The book details how Lincoln over time was able to win over his administration and turn rivals into allies.

I was curious to see how the film would portray the 16th president, who in the annals of history is often deemed larger than life. Could it even be done? It was hard to imagine it wouldn’t be just another sentimental Hollywood biopic. But I was pleasantly surprised. The screenplay and the performance by Daniel Day-Lewis as Lincoln are terrific and keep it from falling into those pitfalls. It humanizes Lincoln perhaps more than we’ve seen before on film. He’s not merely the man who makes great speeches and stands aloof in his black top-hat, depressed by the ravages of the Civil War. In the film, he’s a father, husband, storyteller, jokester and a man who meets with his rivals and the common people. He’s under extraordinary stress from different directions but manages to rise to the tasks before him.

Still it’s a film that might not appeal to everyone because it contains a lot of dialogue and not a lot of physical action onscreen. It focuses on just the last few months of Lincoln’s life in 1865 when he’s trying to pass the 13th Amendment, banning slavery, through the House of Representatives. There’s bickering among his Cabinet and fierce division over it between Republicans and Democrats on the Hill. (It reminds one of today’s deep divisions.) Lincoln is taking a huge risk to pass the amendment, which could prolong the war which he wants to end. Despite this, he plunges forward. The film hinges on whether Lincoln’s “team” can get enough votes to pass it. The pressures and ramifications appear enormous. The film’s like watching democracy in motion with both its positives and warts.

For those who like history films, it’s quite an entertaining ride. The cast of Cabinet members, Lincoln’s family, politicians and soldiers is large with exquisite actors playing each role, none better than Daniel Day-Lewis as Lincoln though. He’s amazing. The costumes and sets are top-notch and breathe life into the Civil War, as if you were there. It’s Spielberg after all.

I did wonder how historically accurate the film is. For instance, did the screenplay rely on actual congressional record or White House transcripts and documents for the dialogue and debate? Or was it improvised for story’s sake? It’s quite amazing how it unfolds. It’s true Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed the slaves in 1863, and followed up with his support of the 13th Amendment in 1865 before the war’s end, which he was pushing for as well. It took considerable fortitude to do, and is a good reason why Lincoln is so admired. I plan to check out Doris Kearns Goodwin’s book and others perhaps to find out more. All in all, the film does a great job, giving a vivid account of a pivotal event in U.S. history and is one that should not be missed.

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Waging Heavy Peace

Although the early ’80s were a time of a lot of gushy pop and new wave music, I recall relying on Springsteen, Neil Young, and the Pretenders to see me through high school. Back then, I was only able to bring a select group of treasured vinyl records off with me to boarding school. Among these were Neil Young’s 1977 three-record set “Decade,” which had 35 of his greatest songs up until that point, and “Live Rust,” his double-LP live album released in 1979, which is a fantastic concert recording of 16 of his classic songs.

Holy smokes I played these two albums into the ground in high school. They blew me away. Neil wrote and played songs with such soul and genius. As the years went on though, I didn’t follow his music as closely (he’s been so prolific with various artistic departures), but there have been a few albums I’ve liked. More recently his 2007 release of “Live at Massey Hall: 1971” awed and reminded me of the classic Neil.

I wasn’t about to miss his memoir “Waging Heavy Peace” to get a glimpse behind his trove of amazing songs and his long history in rock. Heaven knows, there’s been an explosion of rock star memoirs these past few years with books from Bob Dylan, Patti Smith, Eric Clapton, Keith Richards, and now Pete Townshend too. Admittedly, I’m a sucker for these memoirs. Oh to get a glimpse behind the lives of such musical heroes!

As far as Neil’s memoir goes, it’s got a bit of everything in it and is not in any chronological order (a passage about 1965 could well be followed by something that happened in 1995). He writes about his life seemingly as things come to him, about memories or ideas or his family and friends, or his bands and music, or what he’s currently up to. It’s all quite down to earth, conversational and seemingly earnest. He seems like an old, affable hippie who’s seen and done a lot of things and is trying to become a better person in later life, where he’d once perhaps been quite difficult or prickly. Neil’s always been known to be his own person with own artistic direction and has quit bands or fired musicians wherever he felt it necessary.

He talks a tad about this in the book, his regrets of things he’s done but mostly the memoir is filled with heartfelt gratitude towards his very close family, friends and musical collaborators. He speaks of those who’ve been with him with a lot of admiration. There’s hardly a bad word about anyone or any acrimony in the book. And his love for his wife and kids, two of whom have physical disabilities is quite touching.

What surprised me I guess is to learn that Neil had polio as a child and also has suffered from epilepsy. But despite that, he’s always been highly productive and involved in various projects. I didn’t realize he was an inventor of sorts, making parts for model trains, converting a car (the LincVolt) to use cleaner power technology, and creating a device to hear music with a higher quality of sound. Part of his book sounds a bit like an infomercial, plugging his innovations. They’re interesting ideas no doubt, and his passion for his hobbies seems real and consuming. I was a bit amazed by all of the various projects he’s involved in, and how productive he is; he doesn’t seem to be slowing down any. In fact, he’s in concert with his band Crazy Horse this week in our town. (How coincidental!)

I enjoyed his memoir quite a bit. It’s both humorous and touching at times and a bit different. In it, he sporadically touches on the various pieces of his life: from his Canadian upbringing to his start in music, his hitting it big in L.A., bands and touring, his life at his California ranch, his hobbies and film projects, and his place in Hawaii. I think Neil’s muse as an amazing songwriter comes through in it. There’s some insight into songs and albums, but I almost wish there were more of this and less of some of the other ramblings. I’m still wondering about “Heart of Gold” and “After the Gold Rush.” But apparently Neil will be writing another book or so he mentions. I guess 498 pages of “Waging Heavy Peace” was not enough for him! So stayed tuned.

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