Friday, September 8, 2017

Bye Bye August, Hello September

photograph by me
Is it really September already? This year has been flying by, my friends, and Real Life has been keeping me on my toes. But hey, I am going to England later this month! *runs about the house freaking out because she still doesn’t quite believe it's true* Yes, I have an impending trip to England coming up this month, autumn is just around the proverbial corner, and I am slowly working on getting my reading life back into shape. So, let’s do a quick round-up of what I have been up to of late.

Reading
I just finished reading Around the World In 80 Days by Jules Verne. I adored the 1956 film starring David Niven. While the novel is very different from the fantastically whimiscal 1950s epic adventure of the film, I still loved it. It helped knowing they were different going into the book. I have picked up reading through my two volume collection of O. Henry’s short stories after a year’s hiatus and hope to tackle A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute, Saving Amelie by Cathy Gohlke, and All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr this month. We will see how that goes. I just started Saving Amelie and, so far, it is doing a fantastic job of pulling me into the story.

Writing
I finished reading through the first draft of my novel The Letters of Lee Ames with a friend the other week. I have a whole slew of notes of adjustments to make in draft two and just began rewriting the opening scene a couple of nights ago. So excited for this!

Listening
Amelie from Montmartre Soundtrack composed by Yann Tiersen
Born Again - Josh Garrels
The Crown: Season One Soundtrack composed by Rupert Gregson-Williams

Watching
August is TCM’s Summer Under the Stars, where each day is dedicated to showcasing a specific actor or actress’s films, and my DVR has been busy keeping up with all of my recordings. Highlights include:
The Cameraman (1928) a silent comedy starring Buster Keaton
Double Wedding (1938) a romantic comedy starring the team of William Powell and Myrna Loy
Terror on a Train (1953) British made suspense starring Glenn Ford. The British title for this movie, Time Bomb, is a little less melodramatic.

My latest television discovery would have to be the 1970s TV show Laverne & Shirley. It is hysterical.

So, what have you all been up to? Read any great books? Found a new favorite song? Watched any really good films or discovered a new favorite TV show?

4 comments :

  1. Just checking out that Josh Garrels song now - his music really hits the spot sometimes. I hope you enjoy the books you have planned for this month! I've read All the Light We Cannot See and A Town Like Alice, and liked them both. And Saving Amelie has been on my list for ages now. I'll be looking forward to hearing what you think of it! And all the best with your plans this month and trip to England. That sounds exciting! :)

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    1. His music has really been hitting the spot for me this summer. Thank you, I am pretty excited about the trip myself.

      I will try to write a review of Saving Amelie when I have finished it and put it on here or Goodreads. We'll see how long the review turns out. :)

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  2. How exciting about the England trip & making progress on your novel! When I read the title I thought it said Les Amies as in Les Mis, haha; I've been listening to too many musicals I think. The actual title sounds interesting, too, though. :)

    I picked up a second-hand copy of 10 000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne recently and am hoping to love it. The best book I read recently would have to be Eliza and her Monsters by Francesca Zappia; it was such a sweet, realistic portrayal of life online and writing and creativity.

    ~Annie-JoElizabeth

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    1. Is it even possible to listen to too many musicals? I think not. Thank you for your interest in my novel. Unfortunately, I kind of need to change the title. That title came when I was writing the story in epistolary form, which it no longer is.

      My little sister read 10,000 Leagues this summer and enjoyed it. That is on my list to someday read. I will have to look up Eliza and her Monsters, I have never heard of it.

      Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment.

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