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Book Review: I’ve Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella

By Amazon, Books & Authors, Reviews2 Comments
ive-got-your-number-sophie-kinsella-book-cover Sophie Kinsella is quickly becoming the Queen of chick-lit. In her latest book I’ve Got Your Number, we meet Physiotherapist Poppy whose just got engaged to Magnus Tavish. Magnus has given her a priceless family heirloom, an emerald engagement ring. But while at her hen party – a Marie Curie Champagne Tea in a Hotel she looses the ring when the fire alarm goes off.

Poor Poppy searches high and low for the ring, but cannot find it. So she leaves her number with the hotel receptionist and goes outside to ring a friend to see if she’s got the engagement ring. A hoodie on a bike rides past and snaps her phone out of her hand and makes a quick get-away. Poppy worried that the hotel won’t be able to get hold of her, goes back to the hotel to tell them that her phones been stolen. But then she sees a phone in a bin in the hotel foyer and thinks finders, keepers.

The phone belongs to Sam Roxton’s PA and it rings. Sam tells Poppy she must stop a group Japanese business men led my Mr. Yamasaki from leaving, as jobs are at risk if she doesn’t. Poppy gets Sam to agree to let her borrow the phone if she stops the business men from leaving. What follows is the most hilarious scene in the book where Poppy announces she’s a singing telegram. She sings “Mr. Yamasaki, Mr. Yamasaki” in the style of ‘Single Ladies’ by Beyonce. The business men like it and then Sam arrives. Poppy takes her leave quickly, before Sam can change his mind about borrowing her the phone.

A relationship starts to develop between Poppy and Sam, as Poppy continues to look for her engagement ring and forward Sam’s calls, text and email messages.

We learn more about Poppy’s life and about her fiancé Magnus. Poppy feels inferior to Magnus’ super-intellectual family, Antony & Wanda Tavish have both had articles published in journals and spend most of their time reading academic literature or debating it. Poppy seems to be a “people pleaser” and doesn’t like the conflict involved with saying “No.” Sometimes it feels like Poppy sees what she wants too and ignores the rest. Although the reader comes to understand the reasons why, early on in the book I felt myself getting frustrated with her because of it. As for Poppy’s men…

Magnus plays an arguably small role within the story. At the beginning of the book his role is bigger and as the story continues it wains. Poppy and he met through her Physiotherapy work. At first he seems OK – a little boring perhaps, but as the book goes on and revelations are made that change what you think about him. Magnus is a serial proposer, who has offered the emerald engagement ring to many women – including the Wedding Planner.

Sam is a executive of White Globe Consulting Group. But there’s ongoing office politics with potentially massive consequences – which is a usual plot line for Kinsella. Poppy can’t help read some of the messages on the phone intended for Sam’s PA. Poppy makes some assumptions based on the texts and emails for Sam about him, most of which turn out to be wrong. Poppy also finds it increasingly frustrating that Sam doesn’t respond to messages she feels important. So she decides to reply to some on his behalf with some funny consequences.

The book brings Poppy and Sam together in the end as you’d expect. The use of text messages to bring them together is interesting and I suppose it fits in to the “modern use of technology.” I would have preferred them to talk, but that’s just me. The book made me laugh, get teary eyed and feel good at the end. Everything that you’d want from a chick-lit book. You can buy I’ve Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella on Amazon.

Blog soon,

Antony



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Book Review: Handling Edna The Unauthorised Biography by Barry Humphries

By Amazon, Books & Authors, History, ReviewsNo Comments
handling-edna-barry-humphries-book-cover Barry Humphries has been with Edna Everage since the very beginning. In Handling Edna: The Unauthorised Biography by Barry Humphries he describes how they met, and the adventure she’s dragged him along for ever since.

Before the book even begins there is a “Note to the Reader” eluding to the fact that some people have come to believe that Barry Humphries and Dame Edna are essentially the same person. Humphries writes that he hopes to shed some light on where this belief came from, so that the reader can make their own decision about what they believe.

The first chapter starts in Moonee Ponds, Australia and describes how Barry and Edna met. Humphries writes in the first person, and throughout the book uses description to indicate the decade and location of events he describes.

Each chapter gives an entertaining and fascinating insight into Barry’s life and career (or lack of), Edna and her family’s life and careers, her rise to stardom (and Barry’s lack of understanding as to why) and the problems that it brought her – all in a chronological order.

A few highlights (in no particular order) include Barry being the warm up act for Dame Edna – for various shows; Edna’s time in Hollywood; Barry’s stint in hospital with alcoholism and Edna being his only visitor; Barry’s love life; Barry’s impersonation of Edna on two occasions – the first for his benefit and the second trying to help her; Edna’s poor mental health – in particular in relation to the death of Norm (her husband).

As the chapters go on, towards the end of the book you start to get a fictional feel to the book especially in the final few chapters. Earlier in the book Barry is handed a letter for Edna by Madge. Madge instructs Barry to only give the letter to Edna when she dies. In the final chapter Madge finally dies in hospital. Barry remembers the letter and it reveals that Edna’s missing daughter Lois was taken by Madge in a moment of madness (which explains why Madge tolerated Edna over the decades). Madge writes that she gave Lois to some old friends to raise as their own, with Lois calling her Auntie Madge. In the hospital, the nurse turns out to be called Lois and is upset as her Auntie Madge has just died.

Having read the book do I believe that Barry Humphries and Edna Everage are the same person? Yes I think they are the same person, but that only makes Humphries even cleverer. The factual parts about Barry’s life are interesting to read, but the fiction about Edna is even more interesting. It not only makes the book very entertaining, but it gives an insight into the psyche of Humphries.

The book was a brilliant read, and as you’d expect from a bibliography it has several glossy photo pages throughout the book. You can buy Handling Edna: The Unauthorised Biography by Barry Humphries on Amazon.

Write soon,

Antony



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Film Nights

By Reviews, TV, Online Streaming & FilmsNo Comments

Monies been tight, so what better way to enjoy a cheap night in than a Film Night?

I’ve had a few film nights recently, picking up a DVD or two for a fiver and then settling down with some popcorn. So what have I watched and what have I thought? Well…here goes…

Paul
Simon Pegg and Nick Frost have created some brilliant films such as Shaun of The Dead and Hot Fuzz. Paul is their latest film about two sci-fi geeks who travel to America for a road trip of UFO hot spots. Then by chance they meet Paul.

Paul is an alien who’s been hanging out in a military base but has decided to catch the first ride home. In pursuit of Graeme (Pegg), Clive (Frost) and Paul are federal agents. Along the way they meet Ruth a Christian Fundamentalist who comes along for the ride and Graeme finds he likes. What follows is an hilarious sci-fi comedy which ends with Paul getting home, Graeme and Clive writing a book that everyone at Comic Con assumes is fiction.

Monsters
The film starts 6 years after NASA discovered the possibility of alien life within our solar system. A probe was sent to collect samples and on it’s return it crashed over Central America. It created an Infected Zone taking up half of Mexico.

The film starts in Mexico were the two central characters are introduced. Kaulder is a US Journalist trying to get photos of the aliens for a paper he works for and Sam the daughter of the owner of the paper. Her father instructs Kaulder to get her home safely. They are forced to go through the Infected Zone to get back to the US.

What follows is a story about the development of a relationship between the two main characters. The acting is weak at best and although there are the occasional action scenes, the film is somewhat forgettable. If I’d seen the film on the TV, I certainly wouldn’t have bought it.

The Last Airbender
Aang is the last Airbender and appears in the Southern Water nation. The Fire nation soon discover him and chase after him. The Fire nation want dominance over all and they’ve already killed off the Air nation, mostly dominate the earth nation and are starting to dominate the Water nation. Each nation has the ability to manipulate their element.

Traditionally one member of the Air Nation becomes the Avatar: the one that keeps balance and peace between all nations. Aang was the chosen one but ran away as he didn’t want to be the Avatar. The Avatar has mastery over all the elements which is how they must keep balance. Aang sees the suffering of the people and decides to become the Avatar. But he needs to learn how to manipulate Water, Earth and Fire.

In this film he learns to manipulate Water and Earth but the Fire nation are closing in on him. As the film comes to an end I realise that the story is to continue in another film. I tried to Google the next film but it turns out that Nickelodeon haven’t decided if they are making the next film or not yet.

The Mist
This film is based on the book by Stephen King. It’s a horror-type-film based in a small town in New England. After a storm, a mist develops and envelops town while a father and his young son are in a supermarket. People try to leave the supermarket but there are things in the mist, creatures from another dimension. It turns out that an Army Base close by had been working on a way to make a window to other dimensions but accidentally created a door – allowing the mist and the creatures through too their world.

What follows is a brilliant film with suspense, action and characters that all deal with the stress of life threatening situation in different ways. Eventually the father and son and a few other characters escape to a car and drive. They drive and drive until they run out of petrol. The father has a gun with four bullets but there are five people in the car.

They all feel hopeless, so he shoots the others and then in emotional state gets out of the car shouting the creatures in the mist to come for him. But at that point the army turns up to clear up their mess and eradicate the creatures. That’s how the film ends and I couldn’t help being disappointed that they’d given up hope.

Season Of The Witch
This film is set in the time of the crusades with two particular crusaders. After slaughtering women and children in the name of god they decide to leave the crusades. Known as deserters a Cardinal catches them. He agrees to let them go home if they first transport a girl suspected of being a dangerous witch to a remote monastery so that Monks can perform a ritual to rid the land of her curse. But is she an innocent girl or a witch?

There’s a lot of suspense in this film but the end of it is good. At the end the witch becomes a powerful demon trying to distory all copies of a book full of rituals to banish him and other demons. Needless to say the crusaders are successful but die in the process and the girl is free of the demon. The end of the film is good, but it does drag through the middle.

Blog soon,

Antony

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Book Review: The Magician’s Guild (Book 1) by Trudi Canavan

By Amazon, Books & Authors, ReviewsNo Comments
The-Magicians-Guild-Trudi-Canavan While shopping with Steve the other month, he recommended I read The Magicians’ Guild (Book 1) by Trudi Canavan. I’m pleased to say I thoroughly enjoyed The Magicians’ Guild (Book 1) by Trudi Canavan which is the first book in The Black Magician’s Trilogy. The book is split into three distinct parts.

In part 1 we are introduced to the city of Imardin in the land of Kyralia (with some maps). We are quickly absorbed into this world were there are Magicians in a Magician’s Guild and King Merin. King Merin orders for “the purge” to take place once a year to rid the city of the lower class. “The purge” is undertaken by Magician’s from the guild creating a magical forcefield and driving the lower classes out of the city and into the slums. While “the purge” is taking place among the crowd a young girl named Sonea throws a stone at the shield putting her rage behind it. To the surprise of her and the crowd the stone penetrates the shield and knocks a magician unconscious. Chaos follows with the magicians firing force strikes at the crowd. Cery a wannabe thief and friend helps Sonea escape.

They seek refuge with thief’s and start to realise that Sonea has natural magic. The magicians Lord Rothen, Lord Fergun (the magician she had knocked unconscious), Dannyl and others also know that she’s a natural. They know that a magician without control over her magic is dangerous so they go in search for her.

In part 2 a thief agrees to hide her from the magicians guild, thinking that a magician in his employment will be useful in the future. During this period of hiding, Sonea’s magic becomes more unstable and somewhat dangerous (she seems to set fire to a lot of furniture). So Cery sneaks Sonea into the Magician’s Guild with the hopes of learning how to control her power.

However this is unsuccessful an in Part 3 Sonea faces her fear of the Magicians and goes to them for help. A character to particularly take notice of is Akkarin the head of the Magician’s Guild who seems to be hiding something, as Sonea accidentally discovers one night. There is far too much that happens in this book to explain in detail, which is why I’ve kept it brief.

Throughout this book I enjoyed the depth of the introduction of the characters. Each character has motivations, some are apparent whereas others are mysterious. Each character has past experiences that as made them who they are, with their own strengths, weaknesses and flaws. I enjoyed the reading about the classes: the rich living near the palace and the poor living in the slums. And in later books the micro-cultures of the different races is particularising interesting. The micro-cultures influence on the characters gives a hint of realism in a strict fantasy series.

At points in the book it gives experiences of characters, information from dialog that you take note of. You notice these red herrings as they appear unexplained or irrelevant to the story at the time. These red herrings encourage you to keep reading to reveal why the experience or information was given and what it means for the characters and story. Having read all three in the trilogy, these red herrings add to the over arching story of the world of Imardin and each one is an essential link to the next part of this story.

If you’re into fantasy books or would like a good introduction to them I would recommend The Magicians’ Guild (Book 1) by Trudi Canavan.

Blog soon,

Antony

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