November 2008 Books and Movies

James Bond: Quantum of Solace

Hmmm, that's the first thing that came to mind when this movie had finished. Daniel Craig is still as gorgeous as ever, but this movie really was a string of action sequences with a bit of plodding plot in the middle. It's my theory that a Bond girl should have that special something that men and women alike fancy. Unfortunately, although Olga Kurylenko is a pretty girl, she wasn't a Bond girl. They did a bit better with their choice of Gemma Arterton, she at least had a unique look about her. I enjoyed Judi Dench as always, as well as the gadgets, so it wasn't a total loss. It just felt like the director took a lot of the things that were "James Bond" out of this new film, somewhat like the martinis he was drinking on the plane. Apparently, that type of martini is exactly what he drinks in the first book Casino Royale, but not what was established in the first movie. To quote someone from the IMDB board, remarkably unremarkable.

Knitting Under the Influence
Claire LaZebnik

Good and bad. Good for the unique story elements, knitting and autism, bad for the predictability of the storyline. I knew exactly who the three girls were going to end up with at the end from almost the beginning and of course, not one of them could end the novel single. That would be the real tragedy! I'm trying out authors from the short story collection below, but this one, I would give a miss.

How To Be Single
Liz Tuccillo

This book didn't get the best reviews, but luckily, I didn't read them before I started. The overall tone was a bit negative, but the characters were finely drawn and there were some uproariously funny moments. This is not a how to novel, but the story of one women's research on how to be single around the world. Just as a warning, the Thomas story is heartbreaking. I'm think I would actually read her next outing, if it was a piece fiction as opposed to a manual like "He's Just Not That Into You".

American Girls About Town (Short Stories)

I originally ordered this book from the library based on a search for Jennifer Weiner novels. I didn't realise it was a book of short stories until I had it in my hot little hands. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it also included a story by Lauren Weisberger (The Devil Wears Prada) and disappointed to find a story by Cindy Chupack (I really didn't like her novel effort, although I liked her writing for SATC). I also found a few others I liked (Nancy Sparkling and Claire LaZebnick) and have put their novels on order. There are a few other short story anthologies of this ilk out there (Irish Girls About Town, Irish Girls Are Back in Town and Scottish Girls About Town) so we'll see what they're like. At the very least, perhaps I'll find some other authors to read.