Libri, film, telefilm: Aprile 2018

Aprile, dolce dormir… ehm, leggere. Ammetto che questo mese mi è scivolato via dalle mani a una velocità incredibile e che davvero non so dove sia andato a finire. Siamo già arrivati a maggio, l’anno accademico sta per concludersi, tra dieci giorni torno in Italia per un mese. Il tempo vola, parrebbe. Intanto, però, tra un volo e l’altro, ecco a voi, come ogni mese, le letture e i telefilm delle ultime settimane.

p.s. troverete forse più libri del solito perché ho incluso anche le letture della Weekathon primaverile.

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Libri, film, telefilm: Febbraio 2018

Febbraio è stato il mese delle letture in inglese e del recupero degli ebook sul Kindle. Di sicuro il viaggio a Padova e ad Abano Terme ha aiutato a smaltire un po’ di arretrati e adesso ecco qui il resoconto del mese più corto dell’anno. Come ogni mese, ho tirato le somme e ora sono pronta a condividere con voi le mie letture e le mie maratone Netflix. Voi che cosa avete letto? Quali film/telefilm avete visto? Suggerite ché la wishlist ha sempre fame.

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Libri, film, telefilm: Gennaio 2018

Libri, libri e ancora libri. Come ogni mese, siamo giunti al giorno del giudizio. Il 2018 è iniziato bene con letture decisamente piacevoli e interessanti. Come potrete notare, i libri che mi hanno accompagnata per tutto gennaio sono soprattutto “strascichi” natalizi. Troverete racconti ambientati al tempo di Natale, foreste coperte di neve e heartwarming stories. Mi si perdoni: il Natale mi rende stucchevole e gli effetti collaterali durano per una ventina di giorni almeno.

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NERVE: Libro VS film, ovvero cose che accadono quando l’editor sviene durante il lavoro

Nerve è un romanzo di Jeanne Ryan dal quale è stato di recente tratto un film, diretto da Henry Joost e Ariel Schulman. Ho letto il romanzo prima di vedere il film, come faccio quasi sempre. Ero curiosa di vedere la pellicola perché amo Emma Roberts, che ho conosciuto grazie ad American Horror Story: Coven. Non solo: la trama mi sembrava estremamente interessante e attuale. Eppure, qualcosa è andato storto. Forse per la prima volta nella vita, sono costretta a pronunciare una frase incredibile. Il film è meglio del libro.

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#bookreview: Sunset in old Savannah by Mary Ellis

After having left the Natchez Police Department, Beth has started working in pairs with her colleague Michael Preston as a private investigator. One day, their agency informs them that they have to take care of a new case in Savannah, a characteristic little town in Georgia. When they go there, Beth and Michael meet Mrs Doyle, an old lady who, after a 40-years-long marriage, suspects that her husband has an affair with another woman. For the sake of privacy, she’s hired Beth and Michael from abroad. Almost as soon as the job starts, they find out that nothing is what it seems to be. Mrs Doyle’s husband really has a relationship with another woman, but Mrs Doyle doesn’t seem to care. Why? The situation becomes less and less clear when Mrs Doyle calls them in the middle of the night to denounce an attempt to kill her on the shore. The couple of private investigators seems to have a lot to find out during their forced vacancy in old Savannah…

 

I really appreciated this book which is the fourth title of “The secret of the South Mysteries” series. The characters are perfectly analysed and they’re really enjoyable, especially through their interactions.  Indeed, I think that the real value of this book has to be found in dialogues. As I writer, I can testify that dialogues are the most difficult part to write, but Mary Ellis is perfectly capable of sorting them out.

The setting is always well depicted and it makes you think you just want to be there, in old Savannah, walking  and watching everything around you. I’m sure I’ll read the other books of this series because Mary Ellis is an author who is worth following.

#bookreview: The yellow envelope by Kim Dinan

Kim has got the life she’s always wanted to live: a good job, a husband who really loves her and a nice house in a good neighbourhood. Still, at some point of her life, she starts feeling like something is missing. Anxiety never lets her alone  and her life doesn’t seem to fit her anymore. One day, she realises what she really wants to do: to travel the world and to write books. These have always been her dreams, but she’s given up to them a long time before. At the beginning, her husband Brian is really skeptical about that, but then he gives in and the couple finally decides to sell everything they own and to start travelling the world. Shortly before their departure, Michele, Kim’s first boss, gives them a yellow envelope which contains a short letter full of instructions and a 1000$ check. There are just three rules to be followed. One of them consists in giving away that money following the instinct and nothing else, in order to make the world a better place to live in.

From Ecuador to Argentina, from Nepal to Indonesia, Kim and Brian’s journey entertains the reader while teaching him that life has to be taken as it is, without forcing it or trying to be something we’re not meant to be.

I really enjoyed this book and I’ve finished it in few days. What really strucks me is the complete honesty of the book. Kim never tries to soften the blow and she doesn’t want to make travel seem as a 24/7 happy adventure. On the contrary, she tries to show us how travel can be heartbreaking and emotionally hard to bear and, at the same time, she also explains how the world can be supportive when things become unsustainable.

I think this is an incredible good book to be read not only for travellers but also for anyone else. Indeed, the main aim of the book is not to tell you “Look how brave I was! You should do the same!”. Not at all. The main aim of the book is to make you question yourself and the life you’re living, in order to understand that sometimes life is worth a radical change.