Quick Looks at Movies and Books ... in June

... catching up ... on this list of what I've read this year.

• The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne -- ruined for me by my high school literature teacher, I discovered Hawthorne's talent thanks to the urgings of my two daughters who both loved the book. I was surprised and delighted by Hawthorne's almost contemporary voice as his practical asides commented on human nature in this story of Hester Prynne, condemned by the community for adultery. We see that her involuntary public confession, the child Pearl who was the result of the adultery, leads to Hester's redemption. On the other hand, the man involved suffers incredibly thanks to his secret. We also see Hester's husband, who turns up unexpectedly, falling prey to the desire for revenge which is a hollow goal. Quite satisfying and recommended. I listened to this from Florida's Lit2Go site which is a nice resource for classic literature. Amended to add: I found Hawthorne pithy, practical, and funny. Just when the story would begin to lag he would make some dry comment about just what every other person was interpreting from the comet that held such meaning for Arthur Dimsdale and I would literally laugh out loud. Yes. I did.
  
  
• The Edge by Dick Francis (reread)***** -- I am enjoying dipping back into Dick Francis over the summer. One of my favorites, The Edge is based around a Canadian train journey that has the theme of racing and an acted murder mystery (written in the 1980s when such mysteries were all the rage). Tor Kelsey, an undercover agent for the British Jockey Club, is assigned to spy on wealthy Julius Apollo Filmera, who apparently enjoys blackmailing horse owners into giving him their prize horses. Not only must Kelsey investigate Filmera's suspected current extortion but he must make sure that nothing happens to the train or those on it. This book is great fun from the details of how the train is managed to the racing information (always a Francis specialty) to the actors and their play to Kelsey's investigation. Additionally, our honeymoon was at Lake Louise and Banff so I could perfectly picture some of the glorious scenery being described.
  
  
• Straight by Dick Francis (rereading)*****--Derek Franklin, a steeplechase jockey nursing a broken ankle, learns his older brother (19 years older), Greville, has been accidentally killed. Naturally, since this is Dick Francis, we suspect at once that Greville's death was no accident and that Derek's attempts to sort out mysteries in his brother's gem selling business will result in mayhem and violence before it is all sorted out. That's just what happens. A favorite of mine.
  
  
• Break-In by Dick Francis (reread)*****--Kit Fielding is enjoying a successful career as the primary steeplechase jockey for a European princess's horses. His twin sister, Holly, and her husband, Bobby, suddenly become the targets of a scandal about their finances and are about to go bankrupt when they ask Kit to help solve the mystery of who is behind it all. To add to the confusion, Holly and Bobby are from families that would make the Hatfield's and McCoy's look friendly. A perfectly plotted mystery that also takes us behind the scenes of the newspaper industry, specifically the tabloid industry in England. Another favorite of mine.
  
  
• Snake Agent by Liz Williams****-- I heard about this series on the horror podcast Pseudopod. The first of the series, the reader is plunged into action in progress so that I repeatedly kept checking for other books because I was sure there was a previous one that started off a bit slower and explained more. Nope. Set in 21st century Singapore, with Asian-flavored Heaven and Hell as mighty influencers of human life, Detective Inspector Chen and his sidekick, Demon Zhu Irzh, must traverse all areas to solve the mysteries that come their way. In this scenario, a department in Hell is poising itself for a coup of both Hell and Earth. Chen and Zhu Irzh have both personal and professional reasons for not wanting this to happen. With some help from the Chinese Goddess of Mercy, Kuan Yin, they investigate. This possibly sounds shallow but is not as Williams effectively melds mystery, horror, and fantasy into an absorbing, original book.
  
  
• The Demon and the City\ by Liz Williams****--second book in the series begun in Snake Agent. Detective Inspector Chen is on holiday in Hawaii leaving Demon Zhu Irzh holding the fort when the feng shui goes terribly awry in Singapore. Naturally this means mighty plots are afoot to take over earth ... this time from Heaven (based loosely on Chinese mythology). Also a cracking good yarn.
  
  
• The Singapore Wink by Ross Thomas***--one of Thomas's earliest works this thriller mystery has enough turns and twists to make most other novelists proud. When I tell you that it is a good read but that Thomas went on to write increasingly good and labyrinth books then you know that he is a writer to seek out. The stunt man who inadvertently killed a fellow actor years ago is told that it actually was a deliberate ploy on the victim's part to escape the mob. Naturally, the mob wants the stunt man to go find the supposed "victim" and bring him back ... for reasons much too complicated to go into here. It gets even more complicated from there on in ... of course.
  
  
• Trap Door by Sarah Graves***--there's something refreshing about a mystery that has all the earmarks of a "cozy" but actually features a woman with an adolescent son who is an alcoholic. It adds an element of reality not usually found in the typical mystery series featuring a wife and mother. She does have a schtick, however, a la the extreme emphasis on cooking or knitting or sewing that is typical of "cozy mysteries." This too, however, is unusual. Home repair. The protagonist is fixing up her ancient house in Maine while solving the very frequent murder cases that pop up in their town. I thought this was the first of the series and instead it is the 10th book. However, I liked it well enough to backtrack with my next library visit.
  
  
• Odd Hours by Dean Koontz***--my review is here.
  
  
• Hard hearts are for cabbages: A novel by Vii Putnam (reread)****--I originally read this in my high school library and never quite forgot it. At the time I didn't realize how rare a find this is ... a depiction of
  American gypsy life from the insider's point of view of a child. Vii Putnam is half gypsy so one imagines that there is a fair amount of fact in this novel, at least it certainly reads that way. Completely charming and one that I will be pursuing to see if the copyright was renewed. If not I will be reading it at some point in the future at Forgotten Classics.
  
  
• The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper: Recipes, Stories, and Opinions from Public Radio's Award-Winning Food Show by Lynne Rosetto Kasper and Sally Schneider****--in spite of my complaints about some of the absolute worst book design I've ever seen, the content is very good (which just annoys me more about the design). I haven't made anything from this yet but definitely will. One word of warning: this book title may make you think that it is all one needs to know about the "basics" of cooking supper. Not so. It is an interesting mix of basic information with some extremely sophisticated taste combinations that may be intimidating to a beginning cook. Which is probably exactly why so many cooks are raving about it.
  
  
• The Knitting Man(ual): 20+ Projects for Guys by Kristin Spurkland, John Valls**** -- whether you are a knitting man or knitting for a man, this book has some excellent basic patterns for sweaters, socks, hats and more that are lifted a bit above with simple twists that add a bit of sophistication. I will be referring to this in the future when I get my projects for each of our girls off the needles and it is Tom's turn to be in my knitting "sights."
  
  
• Silence by Shusaku Endo*****-- Christianity in a nutshell. An amazing book that provides so much food for thought. The tale of a 17th century Jesuit priest as he is smuggled into Japan to serve the Christians under persecution, is discovered, and undergoes the ultimate test of faith. Endo, writing for the Japanese, is examining the questions of how Christianity must adapt to be truly meaningful to the Japanese and also the question of what Christian faith truly consists of. He leaves these questions open enough that there was a considerable amount of debate at our book club and almost everyone had a insight that was fascinating. I almost avoided this book because I heard it was so depressing. The author's considerable talent holds us far enough away from the details of persecution to allow this to become an intellectual consideration while still being a personal experience. An extraordinary book that I am glad I read.
  

... and on this list of what I've been watching:

• Iron Man****--Really great look at a comic book character who must reform his dissolute, uncaring life and take responsibility for having had his head in the sand while his company has actively hurt others. Robert Downey Jr. is perfect in this dual role of the rakish, devil-may-care playboy and reformed savior of the people.
  
  
• Lawrence of Arabia****--much better than I thought it'd be. I imagined something like Dr. Zhivago, long and boring and instead of ice ... lots of sand everywhere. There was sand with fantastically beautiful shots of the desert. This was a surprisingly compelling look at the life of an extraordinary man in extraordinary times. O'Toole did a fantastic job of portraying innocence and enthusiasm with a strange twist (how about that lit match thing?) which then turns into an intermittant Messiah-complex. It was sheer pleasure to watch so many great actors portraying the different roles ... especially young Omar Sharif. What a looker!
  
  
• Lars and the Real Girl****--my review is here.
  
  
• Wall-E*****--my review is here.