Reviews In Ten Words: July & August 2009

September 1, 2009 | Filed under Reviews

Non-Fiction

  1. Claire Harman – Jane’s Fame (How Jane Austen Conquered The World): Follows the trajectory of Austen’s fame from contemporary till modernity.
  2. David S. Kidden & Noah D. Oppenheim – The Intellectual Devotional to Modern Culture (Revive Your Mind, Complete Your Education and Converse Confidently With The Culturati): Extremely America-oriented, more focus on international culture would beneficiall.

Fiction

  1. V.C. Andrews – Broken Flower: Another Andrews that goes nowhere slowly, heroine with precocious puberty.
  2. Elizabeth Aston – The Second Mrs. Darcy: Shamelessly borrows Austen names/locales for an entirely unrelated tale.
  3. Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith – Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Best novel ever given quirky undead twist that’s actually believable.
  4. Janet Aylmer – Darcy’s Story (Pride and Prejudice told from a whole new perspective); Carrie Bebris – Pride and Prescience (Or, A Truth Universally Acknowledged); Gwyn Cready – Seducing Mr. Darcy; Amanda Grange – Darcy’s Diary; Sharon Lathan – Mr & Mrs Fitzwilliam Darcy (Two Shall Become One): Glorified fan fiction, but I will accept anything vaguely Austen-esque.
  5. Bill Brooks – Bonnie and Clyde: The focus on the thought processes of secondary characters lends
  6. Claire Cook – Must Love Dogs: Maybe I need to watch the movie to appreciate it.
  7. Janet Evanovich – Plum Spooky: A comedown from the general high calibre of Plum novels.
  8. Ian Fleming – Casino Royale, The Spy Who Loved Me: Very different in style, with the latter much more experimental.
  9. Winston Groom – Forrest Gump: Film was more entertaining, but the book is very satirical.
  10. Syrie James – The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen: A focus on the “mysterious unknown suiter” of Austen’s twenties.
  11. Stephen King – Misery: Not fond of psychological thrillers, but this was a beauty.
  12. Gabriel Garcia Marquez – One Hundred Years of Solitude: Really hard to get into, perhaps better in original Spanish.
  13. Nancy Moser – Just Jane: Doesn’t quite capture Austen’s dry wit, though does tries admirably.
  14. Rachel Pine – The Twins of Tribeca: Typical “moral girl sucked into corporate evilness, then redeems herself”.
  15. Jean Plaidy – Spain for the Sovereigns, The Captive of Kensington Palace, The Widow of Windsor, Queen Jezebel: Nothing left unsaid – Plaidy always maintains an extremely high standard.
  16. Curtis Sittenfeld – American Wife: Main character barely disguised, clearly fictional “Life of” Laura Bush.

Movies

  1. Apocalypto (2006): Powerful; some of the best chase sequences I’ve ever seen.
  2. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (2009): I LOVED IT. (It could have included more from novel).
  3. Idiocracy (2006): Underrated movie shows the potential future dystopia commercialisation could cause.
  4. Pineapple Express (2008): Good for cheap stoner laughs, just don’t take it seriously.

6 Responses to Reviews In Ten Words: July & August 2009

  1. I’ve had Apocalypto downloaded for quite some time now and still haven’t found the time to watch it. Now I think I will.

    Erica on September 1, 2009 #

  2. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (2010)???

    It’s only 2009.

    Darnielle on September 1, 2009 #

  3. I’ll review your mum in 10 words in a minute.

    Maren on September 1, 2009 #

  4. You read even more than I do :) Great to see the stuff you posted, gives me some ideas as to what to read as soon as I get my e-reader this week.

    Harry Potter was OK but I surely didn’t think it was the best movie of them all. Maybe I just expected too much after reading the book but I’ve heard the same from those who haven’t read any books.

    Chans on September 1, 2009 #

  5. Oh gosh, if you think Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is good, I should probably read it. The novel has drawn a mixed reaction from my book club. I liked Plum Spooky, but I agree that it’s a far cry from Evanovich’s earlier Plum novels.

    You’ve been reading a lot of Austen offshoots, some of which I’ve been wanting to read.

    Alex on September 1, 2009 #

  6. I love Idiocracy.

    Jennifer on September 2, 2009 #

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