So, because I think blogging should be a fun hobby and not a chore, I’ve decided to cease posting on this blog and radically changing my blogging habits. During my experimental time off, I realized I didn’t want to give up blogging entirely but I needed to scale things way way back and change how I did it. Thus, I decided on a few things:

• I am moving my web presence over to tumblr (http://jencorner.tumblr.com/), which is a “microblogging” platform. I like it because the focus is on posting short posts and comments aren’t an option unless you install them. (I am not.) The idea is that I will post when I feel like it (mostly thoughts on books, movies, lists and photos of my dogs) and encourage an atmosphere of “no obligation” blogging. If you choose to visit to find some ideas for new reads or you just need a cute dog fix, you can swing on by. If you don’t want to, that is OK too. I want to get back to writing for my own enjoyment and not out of a sense of obligation. And I extend that freedom to you … please don’t feel like you have to visit my new place unless you really really want to.

• I am cutting way back on the time I spend reading your blogs. I find that I don’t want to give it up entirely (I’ve seen your children grow up for goodness sakes … you guys helped me through the deaths of my parents), but I just can’t devote the time required to read all your posts every week and leave comments. I plan on lurking more, skimming over posts to look for ones that really interest me and only leaving comments when I have something meaningful to say. Please don’t be offended if I don’t visit as often. As Seinfeld said: “It’s not you, its me.”

I’ve been blogging regularly for about 4.25 years now. That is a long time (an eternity in the blogging world, I suspect). It is has been fun, but my life is branching out into different directions. I’m busier than I was in the past so my time feels more limited. Something had to give and I decided that blogging had to be it. I hope you can understand. This doesn’t mean “goodbye.” (After all, at my new place there is a “Ask me anything” link that lets you, well, ask me anything.) This decision is really driven by a need to bring more balance back into my life. I’m sure you can understand … after all, we all have busy lives and blogging should enhance them, not become a chore or a burden. I’m going to leave this blog in place until my domain runs out. I’ll be moving content off to ensure it is on Goodreads and stuff (if we’re not already, let’s be friends on LibraryThing, Goodreads or Shelfari so we keep up on what books we’re reading … you guys are the #1 source for helping me find new books to read) and collecting my personal writings into possible book (I know … I’ll have time to actually write my possible book or, more realistically, a book format of my blog to commemorate all that I’ve been doing for the past 4 years here.)

Thank you for all your support and interest over the past four years! I so appreciate all your encouragement, support and comments. It has been a fun  … this little blogging journey … but now it is time for a new phase in my “Internet life” — one that involves more actual “life” and less “Internet.” Be well, and I’ll be in touch … just not as often.

xxoo

Jenners

P.S. Trisha, I guess you win Tag Chicken since I gave up first. I’ll miss our little game … I was kind of interested in brainstorming Satan’s last name. Who knows, maybe I’ll address that over at my new place!

Tata for now!

Note To Self: 30 Women on Hardship, Humiliation, Heartbreak and Overcoming It All 

This book is a collection of 30 different essays by women from all different walks of life—including some celebrities (Sheryl Crow, Camryn Manheim, Mariska Hartigay)—reflecting on the lessons learned from various life-defining moments. Most of the stories fall under the three categories of hardship, humiliation and heartbreak. Each woman reflects on what brought her to the life-changing moment and how things proceeded from there. Each essay ends with a brief “note to self” about the lessons they learned.

As with all books of this ilk, the essays are wildly uneven. Also, it becomes difficult not to “compare” the hardships and heartbreaks to each other. Is it really so awful to become “ugly” when someone else writes about seeing their mother shot dead by their father? Other times, you feel like the person was bringing the problem onto themselves a bit (as with the women who couldn’t leave cheating spouses). The other problem was that the short essay format forces each woman to condense their experiences—sometimes shortchanging the agony and difficulties they faced. (The essay on the woman whose young son died comes to mind.)

Despite these shortcomings, the book held my interest as the various obstacles faced vary wildly and satisfied the voyeur side of me. It is amazing what difficulties people can face and end up being stronger as a result. If this type of book is your “thing,” then I’d recommend it. Otherwise, I think it ended up being a weaker read than I was expecting and I was disappointed.

SpongeBob SquarePants is really a water sponge just who seems to be just like a real house sponge. She life in reference to his furry companion snail, Gary the gadget guy, at a two-bedroom, totally furnished pineapple. She enjoys his or her job for a “burger” location called the Krusty Krab, where exactly the guy delivers Krabby Patties. He will be a constructive sponge just who usually seems to be on your advantages for daily life irrespective of his or her authentic skill when traveling himself and the like within sweaty situations. Even if his or her best friend, Ike, is really a starfish, SpongeBob is a authentic star of one’s assortiment team for underwater figures.

Spongebob and Gary … but no “Ike”

Intense. From the opening scene (a blank screen where we listen to real calls for help during 9/11) to the last shot (of Jessica Chastain’s CIA analyst Maya letting emotion overwhelm her for the very first time), Zero Dark Thirty had me on the edge of my seat. The action scenes—from a tense moment at Camp Chapman where analysts wait for an Al-Qaeda mole to arrive for a high-level sitdown to the heart-stopping hunt for a Bin Laden’s courier on a crowded street in Pakistan to the seemingly real-time Navy SEAL takedown of Bin Laden’s walled fortress—feel like you’re watching from the inside as a participant. The quieter scenes are adrenaline-filled too: will the Saudi prince take the bribe and provide a vital phone number? Are the detainees on the tape talking about the same man? At other times, you’re tensed for violence as terrorism acts arrive abruptly and without warning—making you, as a moviegoer, feel the suddenness and bone-chilling shock of such attacks. This isn’t a movie for the light-hearted or those looking for a “pleasant night at the movies.” And then there are the torture scenes…

Provocative. The torture scenes (as well as where Bigelow and her writing partner Mark Boal got their information) are the primary area of controversy swirling around the film. Presented matter-of-factly, the scenes play without embellishment. We see a detainee being waterboarded, deprived of sleep, hung from chains, shoved into a box. We see Maya’s reaction (which mirrors our own) and then, at a pivotal moment, her true feelings about the place of torture in the CIA playbook. The film has been heavily criticized for being “pro-torture.” I don’t think it is … it is presented as something that the CIA did and therefore must be addressed. It does make you think though. Would those detainees have given up information with standard (instead of “enhanced”) interrogation techniques? In the war on terror, can you really “play by the rules” and expect to get results? Would “tradecraft” have been enough? I don’t think the film provides answers to any of these questions, but it asks them and, therefore, asks the viewer to come to their own conclusions. It is a muddled and gray area, to be sure. For all the outrage and disgust we felt at the photos of Abu Ghraib, Zero Dark Thirty shows you the before, during and aftermath of the torture and lets you come to your own conclusions about its appropriateness or use.

In addition, the film’s look at a contemporary event  (which is still relatively fresh and unexplored by historians with a long view) forces us, as viewers, to decide what we feel about the verity and truth of the material presented by the filmmakers. How much is accurate? How true to life is the information? The film is based on first-hand accounts of these events, but, as we know, we all bring our own biases, misremembrances and prejudices to our experiences, especially one as sensitive as the hunt for Bin Laden. I would say that the film doesn’t feel overtly political but it can’t help but be a reflection of some of the murkier areas of the United States government and its operations.

Well-Crafted. The film covers a span of 10 years and a very convoluted and difficult operation. There was no “point A to point B” type of detective work that led to the execution of Bin Laden. It was messy, confusing, slow and uncertain. Yet, with Bigelow’s clear-eyed direction, we’re able to follow the story from beginning to end. This is saying something as I’m not always the best at figuring out complex movies on my own (just ask Mr. Jenners). However, I was able to follow along without confusion (even with the oftentimes confusing and similar Arabic names).  Given the messiness of the situation and the amount of time between the actual events and the release of the film, it is absolutely stunning how precise and well-made this film is. It’s like they cut through all the BS and went to the core of the story and brought it to life for us to see. It really is a stunning piece of filmmaking at every level.

Finally, a note on the acting: Jessica Chastain is riveting as Maya. She brings a steely intelligence and intensity to the role that I didn’t know she had in her. I was really impressed. Another standout for me was Jason Clarke as Dan, a CIA analyst who conducts much of the torture but still makes you feel like this is a guy doing his f-ed up job for the right reasons.

If you want to see a piece of unflinching filmmaking that has something important to say about a contemporary history, then make the time to see Zero Dark Thirty. It isn’t pretty. It isn’t easy. It isn’t fun. Nor should it be. What it might be is the best movie I’ve seen all year.

The topic of my guest post is this guy:

Don’t know who this is? Go and find out at my guest post!

I’d seen a theatrical performance of Les Miserable years ago, and loved it. I’d forgotten about many of the songs, but I don’t think there is a bad one in the bunch. It was a treat to revisit such gorgeous songs as Bring Him Home and On My Own. And the stirring thunder of songs like Look Down and Red and Black and Do You Hear The People Sing? were exciting and thrilling to hear via a Dolby sound system. Even the chorus-type songs like End of the Day and Master of The House stick with you. (I kept thinking of that Seinfeld episode where George can’t keep singing Master of the House.) If you like the music of Les Miserables, the film version is a real treat and incredibly well done. If, however, you are like my husband and can’t stand this type of thing, you’d hate it. There really is no character development … the story flies along at a fast clip with people falling in love after two glances, promising to raise a child after a chance encounter and undergoing life transformations midway through a song. You just need to give yourself over to the story and the music and the acting and you’ll have a wonderful time. But be sure to bring tissues! My friend and I forgot and were sniffling and wiping our eyes through the whole thing.

(In rereading this, I realize I didn’t give any information on the plot. I’m kind of assuming that, at this point, most people know that the story takes place during French Revolution and follows the story of a former prisoner, Jean Valjean, on his journey of redemption. It is a big, epic story that covers many years and it really is a little opera. That being said, I went with a friend who had never seen the theater version and didn’t even know what the movie was about and she loved it.)

The Risk of Darkness

The Risk of Darkness is the third book of the “Simon Serrailler mystery series” (though, honestly, I think it could just as easily be the “Lafferton mystery series” as Simon often seems like a minor player in his own books). This is, to be honest, one of the oddest mystery series I’ve ever read, which is part of the attraction for me. In the first book, Simon barely made an appearance, and the ending was so shocking that I had to reread it to make sure I read it right. The second book dealt primarily with a child kidnapping case, which was left unresolved. In this third book, the child kidnapping case is picked up again as we find out “whodunit” (the answer isn’t one you could have figured out, but the “who” is particularly interesting).

As always, we get involved in the happenings of Simon’s family, particularly his sister Cat. (And let me tell you, Susan Hill isn’t afraid to knock off her own characters. No one is safe!) We also see Simon having strong feelings for a woman (sadly, not the oft-used and abused Diana)—whose attraction might be her very unavailability. Finally, a major story thread is the death of a young wife, whose crazed and bereaved husband goes off the rails as a result. As with the previous two books, we flip back and forth between all these plot lines and get into the heads of all the characters (from a murderer to a victim to the murderer’s family and everyone in between).

Part of why I like this series is that I never know where Hill is going to take it. Any one could die at any moment. New story lines are introduced and may or may not be continued in future books. Simon is a bit of a cad who has some major character flaws and often seems like a cipher in his own series. Hill writes fluidly from the points of view of children, men, women, victims, criminals, and the police. She gives minor characters story lines that continue from book to book. You never know who might appear in the next book or what minor plot point might turn out to be critical. It is a unique series (and if you’ve read another like it, please let me know!), and I’m intrigued about where she will take the fourth book, The Vows of Silence. If you’re looking for a well-written, unusual and unpredictable mystery series, this would be worth checking out.

As you may know, today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in the United States. This year, BB and I were lucky enough to take part in our community’s MLK Day of Service. It was a really rewarding experience, and I wanted to share thoughts on the day.

• One of our local councilmen organized the event. There were 12 different activities that we could sign up for, including: working at the local animal shelter, making cards for servicemen and the students at Sandy Hook, organizing the local food bank pantry, and teaching Zumba to seniors. Of course, we signed up for one of the few outdoor activities, which made me wish that perhaps MLK’s holiday could be moved to a warmer month.

• When we registered, everyone got a t-shirt. They were out of kid’s sizes and only had adult L and XL sizes. The lady doing the registration literally took the shirt off her back (a medium) to give to BB. She was wearing a flesh-colored tank top underneath and everyone started hooting and cheering—except for BB, who was scandalized to get “a used t-shirt that some lady already wore.”

• A few older African-American women got up to speak and became very emotional recalling the civil rights struggles that they had participated in during the 1960s. One woman recalled a time when she was asked to leave a church because it wasn’t “for colored people.” That woman is now a preacher and just preached a sermon in that church a few weeks ago. It was emotional to see hear these women and see the depth of emotion that Dr. King and the civil rights struggle evokes. It made me glad for BB to hear these stories and learn a bit about this part of our country’s history.

• Our mayor was there. Guess what his last name is? Mayer. This makes him Mayor Mayer. It is impossible not to giggle at this. It reminded me of Major Major Major from Catch-22.

• Our service project was cleaning up the local war memorial in the park. (BB thought we were cleaning up trash from the park and kept saying “I hope I get one of those sticks with the needles at the end.”) Unfortunately for him, the project involved raking leaves, pulling weeds and only doing minor trash pick-up (and not with “needle sticks”). At the end, the group leader asked BB to play on all the playground equipment to “check it for safety” as the last part of his project. Needless to say, BB was thrilled to comply.

• It felt really good to work with different members of our community—including some older African-American veterans who brought the group together and took a special liking to BB. At one point, a few of us adults were talking about how many kids today (including my son) are really growing up to be “color blind” in many ways. I love that when my son describes someone’s physical appearance, he describes their hair, eye color and clothing before mentioning their skin color. I love that he lives in a neighborhood where children of all races and ethnicities play together. I love that he finds it normal to live in a fully integrated neighborhood where half the folks on our block have a different skin color from his—and he doesn’t find that unusual or odd. I know there is still racism and inequality in our country, but today was a wonderful reminder of the many strides that have been made. It felt good to be a part of our community and work together to accomplish a positive goal.  I think Dr. King would be thrilled to see that his holiday is about something other than a “day off” from school or work.

I really have nothing bad to say about this movie. It was funny, touching, real, zany, lovable and everything else in between. For me, Bradley Cooper’s performance was the biggest surprise. I’ve mostly seen him in The Hangover movies (since the first one plays on TBS every 14 minutes), and I wasn’t prepared for how good he was in this role. He plays a bipolar man whose just been released from a mental institution (liberated by his doting mother) and is trying to get himself together to win back his ex-wife. (It was the near-fatal beating of her lover that landed him in the institution.) His portrayal of Pat Jr. was just spot-on. He conveyed so much with just his eyes, which I think is the hallmark of a really good actor. Jennifer Lawrence—as an equally “crazy” widow who forms an unlikely and uneven friendship with Pat—matches Cooper all the way. Their relationship was a breath of fresh air, and you root for them to get through all the BS that keeps people apart and find each other. But this isn’t a movie that just relies on the brilliant performances of its two leads. Everyone in the movie shines. DeNiro and Weaver (as Pat’s parents) just kill it as Pat’s concerned parents who aren’t sure how to handle him (and in whom we see the roots of some of Pat’s problems). Chris Tucker was comic gold as one of the Pat’s fellow patients from the institution, who is constantly breaking out and showing up at Pat’s door. Seriously, everyone in the movie is so darn good.

The other huge draw for me was the Philadelphia setting and how Eagles fans were portrayed  which I don’t believe was exaggerated for comedic effect—Philly fans really are that nuts! Since I live just outside of Philly, this was a treat for me as it is always fun to see your local area portrayed on screen. And if you need to sell this movie to the man in your life, tell them there is some  football stuff as well as Robert DeNiro. (It will soften the dance scenes … which are deliciously fun and loopy. The dance competition scenes at the end were a delight.)

In short, this movie had everything I look for in film. Thank you, David O. Russell, for this loopy, fun, touching bit of cinematic greatness. I hereby grant you 5 stars!

Side Note: Since most of us are bookish people, I should mention that the film is based on a novel by Matthew Quick, which (of course) I’m going to have to read. If you’re read the book and seen the movie, how did they compare?

The Forgotten Garden

About three chapters into this book, I knew I was in for a treat. Morton has written a sprawling, meticulously plotted novel that spans decades, interweaves stories and is filled with good old-fashioned storytelling. It felt delicious to read … like slipping into a hot bath and settling in for a long soak. (Perhaps that is why it took me an unprecedented 10 days to read!)

The story—which alternates between three different time periods—deals with the issues of identity and family ties. The main story concerns a 4-year-old girl who is found alone on a dock in Australia—seemingly alone in the world after arriving on a ship from England. Adopted by the harbormaster after no one claims her, the girl grows up unaware of her origins, until her adoptive father reveals it to her after his wife’s death. Shocked and unbalanced by this news, the girl pursues the mystery of her identity and biological family—using only the meager clues left to her. Upon her death, the mystery is taken up by her granddaughter, who has a tragic story of her own. Shifting between the present day, the mid-1970s and the early 1900s, The Forgotten Garden unfolds slowly and carefully—with Morton interweaving each story line seamlessly.

I have to say that I admire Morton’s skills in crafting this story. She does a brilliant job of mixing Eliza’s, Nell’s and Cassandra’s stories in a way that felt fluid and natural. We’d learn something in one time period and then go back and get the details in the next chapter. I really enjoyed this way of telling the story. It felt like historical fiction mixed with contemporary fiction mixed with literary fiction. The mystery at the heart of the book was also satisfying … I thought I’d figured everything out only to have Morton toss me a curve ball. I love when that happens!

The other aspect I enjoyed was how the Eliza Makepeace character is a writer of fairy tales, and we get to read these stories at different points throughout the book. I loved how the fairy tales shed light on the events of the story … without that always being immediate obvious to the reader. The only thing that could have improved the story even more is if they had included the illustrations that were created for the fairy tale book! (I suppose that is asking a little too much though.)

I totally get why people gush over Kate Morton. If this is the kind of books she writes, then sign me up for more! This was a very satisfying read, and I’d recommend to anyone who enjoys good old-fashioned storytelling that is crafted with care by the author. So, Morton fans, which one should I try next?