Books I have previously read:

Update: 7 Jan 04 — I haven't updated this since September because, honestly, other than some travel books on the Southwest, I don't believe I've read any books. That's scary! However, I went on vacation for a week in October, then the Thanksgiving holidays, then the Christmas and New Year's holidays, with both travel and guests during that two week time period. As well, since September, any extra time I may have had has been spent on job hunting, as my internship ends on January 23rd. I have not had time to read a book for fun. :-\ I hope that changes very soon!

Apologia: 26 Sept 03 — To say that I am behind in updating this list would be an understatement. Off the top of my head, I cannot think of any books that I read between Feburary and June, except for a book on copyright that I am still reading off and on. I started on that book in April. I'll look around, though, as I may have read one or two during that time period, but I just can't think of one right now. It was a hectic period, though, what with house/petsitting, apartment hunting, moving, unpacking, writing papers, and preparing for my trip to Japan. I would not be surprised if I wasn't reading anything outside of work. It wasn't really until July that I had time to read for fun again. Thus, from this paragraph up to the "Shackleton" review are the books that have enlightened my life from July to September.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Book 1), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Book 2), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Book 3), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Book 4) and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Book 5) by J.K. Rowling. This is a fabulous, fabulous series of books. Already, I cannot wait for the next installment. The books follow a boy by the name of Harry Potter through his seven years of Wizard training at a school called Hogwarts. Each book tells the story of what happens to Harry during that school year. Each book just gets better and better. I was late to reading this series, mostly because of graduate school. I finally watched the first movie with my niece and nephew last January. I watched the second film (on DVD) this summer. Finally, in July, I read the first book, then zoomed through books 2-5 over the past two weeks. I was sad to finish #5 last night. If you have not read this series, I would highly recommend starting on it today. There is a lot of hype about this series, but once you read it, you'll discover why, and see that it is well deserved. [late July and September 2003.]

All Creatures Great and Small, All Things Bright and Beautiful, and All Things Wise and Wonderful by James Herriott. I first read these books as a child, and just loved them. James Herriott is the pseudonym for Alf Wight, a veterinarian who first began practicing in Yorkshire in the 1930s. The 4 novels are his pseudo-biographical tales of the animals he took care of and the people he came to know and love. These are wonderful, wonderful stories. James Herriott has a great love for both animals and people, with all of their idiosyncoacies. I was house- and petsitting in Los Alamos in July, and the owners of the house have these books, so I started re-reading them. The fourth one, The Lord God Made Them All, I have not yet re-read. [late July/early September 2003.]

The Endurance by Caroline AlexanderThe Endurance Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition by Caroline Alexander. In late 1914, Sir Ernest Shackleton set out with a 27 man crew, with the goal of being the first explorers to cross Antarctica on foot. Instead, the ship became trapped in the polar ice, and eventually disintegrated, leaving the crew and 70 sled dogs to survive on the pack ice. This rendering of their story is taken from the diaries of the crew, and is augmented by photographs by the expedition photographer, Frank Hurley. Every member of the expedition survived, although the dogs had to be shot at one point because there was not enough food for both the humans and the dogs. It is a fascinating tale of stupidity and heroism. [January 2003.]

The Summons - John GrishamThe Summons by John Grisham. A quick read. I haven't read any of Grisham's more recent novels, but this is standard John Grisham -- a small town in Mississippi with a lawyer battling larger, sinister forces while trying to stick to some modicum of ethics. I enjoyed this read. [December 2002.]

Geisha - Liza DalbyGeisha by Liza Dalby. Liza is the only Westerner to have become a geisha. I started reading this anthropological study in August 2002, then set it aside as the semester revved up, but returned to it after the semester ended this month. It is a fascinating insight into one aspect of Japanese culture. Dalby does a good job of mixing research with stories about the geisha that became her friends and opened their world to her. [December 2002.]

Rebecca Blood - The Weblog HandbookThe Weblog Handbook Practical Advice for Creating and Maintaing Your Weblog by Rebecca Blood. I like her advice on building a blog for yourself, not for anyone else. :-) [December 2002.]


Movies I have previously reviewed:

Update: 7 Jan 04 — I have not seen many movies the past few months, due to the reasons I listed above on why I have not read many books the past few months. Also, due to my finances, I have not had the money to go to the cinema. I saw some movies in December, though, and will update this page with those next week.

Apologia: 26 Sept 03 — Like my booklist above, this review of movies I've seen is sadly out of date. I can't remember what I went to see in the Spring, but I'll mention two movies I saw over the summer -- Whale Rider and Winged Migration.

Whale Rider: Directed by Niki Caro. Starring Keish Castle-Hughes as Pai. The full list of cast and crew is available. Whale Rider is the story of a girl who “should have” been born a boy, and the struggles she faces to attain her inheritance. Set in New Zealand, it features stunning scenery and a strong performance from Keisha Castle-Hughes. Go see it, if you have not yet. I have seen it twice, myself. Yes, New Zealand does look like that, and, yes, New Zealanders do live like that. Did I also mention that this film has won, at last count, nine awards from film festivals all around the world?

The Life of David GaleThe Life of David Gale: Directed by Alan Parker. Starring Kevin Spacey, Kate Winslet and Laura Linney. The full list of cast and crew is available. This story is weird. I think that Contance (Laura Linney), David Gale (Kevin Spacey) and Dusty (Matt Craven) are all completely deranged. Worth seeing, though.

The HoursThe Hours: Directed by Stephen Daldry. Starring Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore, Stephen Dillane, Miranda Richardson, and John C. Reilly. The full list of credits is available. This film packs an emotional punch in its intensity that I cannot put into words. This film is superb. [February 2003]

ChicagoChicago: Directed by Rob Marshall. Starring Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Richard Gere, Queen Latifah and John C. Reilly. The full list of credits is available. Excellent, excellent. I saw the musical about two years ago when a traveling show came to UNC-CH, and I just loved it. I am a huge fan of Bob Fosse, and have been since I first saw Cabaret as a child. With the screen version of Chicago, I really like the way the screenwriters and the directory were able to translate the musical to the cinema by having Roxie (played by Rene Zellweger) dream many of the dance sequences. Booze, sex, jazz, and "he-done-her-wrong". What more could you want from a story? ;-) Catherine Zeta-Jones as Velma Kelly shows her musical theatre background, and Renee Zellweger, Richard Gere, Queen Latifa and John C. Reilly are also excellent. [February 2003]

Gangs of New YorkGangs of New York: Directed by Martin Scorsese. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis, and Cameron Diaz, among others. Strong. Brutal. Bloody. Cameron Diaz shines. Daniel Day-Lewis is as excellent as ever. Leonardo DiCaprio finally comes into his own, and proves he is not just another pretty face. An excellent, excellent film. [December 2002.]

Star Trak: NemesisStar Trek: Nemesis: Directed by Stuart Baird. Starring Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, LeVar Burton, Michael Dorn, Gates McFAdden, Marina Sirtis, Tom Hardy, Ron Perlman, and more. Captain Jean-Luc Picard takes on his clone. This is the best Star Trek movie to date. [December 2002.]

The Lord of the Rings: The Two TowersThe Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers: Directed by Peter Jackson. Starring Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Billy Boyd, Liv Tyler, John Rhys-Davies, Dominic Monagan, Christopher Lee, Miranda Otto, Orlando Bloom, Cate Blanchett and a whole bunch more. The second film in the LOTR Trilogy. A few more characters are introduced. It's definitely the middle section of the story. I loved it. :-) [December 2002.]

Die Another DayDie Another Day: Directed by Lee Tamahori. Starring Pierce Brosnan, Halle Berry, Toby Stephens, and Rosamund Pike, with appearances by John Cleese and Madonna, among others. Gadgets. Women. Bond is Bond. A good film, not a great film, but I enjoyed it. [December 2002.]

Before you die, you see The Ring The Ring: Directed by Gore Verbinski, starring Naomi Watts, Martin Henderson, and David Dorfman. A really good, scary film. Relatively faithful to the original, Hideo Nakata's Ringu. It could possibly give you nightmares. [December 2002.]

CDs I have previously reviewed:

Update: 7 Jan 04 — Due to the state of my finances since my student loans kicked in last July, I have not had the money to buy any CDs for many months. I hope this situtation will change this year, 2004.

Everything but the girl - like the deserts miss the rainLike the Deserts Miss the Rain by Everything But The Girl, (Collection) [Import] released 21 October 2002. I bought this album in Memphis, along with the Lena Horne album, as a good compilation album to listen to while driving. It was a good choice. (I have to admit, I can't think of my undergraduate days in the late 80s at UNC without thinking of EBTG.) There are a few nice mixes of some favorites like "Protection" and "Single". [February 2003.]

U2 The Best of 1990-2000 & B-SidesThe Best of 1990-2000 & B-Sides by U2, released 5 November 2002. A sampler of the "Best of" their singles from the 1990s. While I'm still trying to figure out how you can have B-sides in the first full decade of CDs, :-) the B-Sides provide some new versions of their singles. The 2 CD set I bought also contains a DVD with 4 videos. You can also just buy the first CD, and not the set. The non-B-Sides CD also contains the single, "The Hands That Built America" from Scorsese's "Gangs of New York". I would recommend the set to U2 fans who already have the albums and just want to have a complete collection, and the single CD to the casual listener who doesn't have the albums but wants a few singles. Nice collection. [December 2002.]

The Very Best of SupertrampThe Very Best of Supertramp by, um, Supertramp, released 11 December 2001. I just loved Supertramp when I was a kid and have a vinyl collection to prove it. This is the digitally remastered version of their 1990 release, and makes a good sampler if you don't want to purchase either Crime of the Century or Breakfast in America (the latter is on my "classic album" list). [December 2002.]