Song For Rosaleen - Pip Desmond

Pip Desmond is a Wellington author who has has written this memoir about her mother.  From  a young doctors wife to a mother of six, Rosaleen Desmond had always had a busy and active life.  As she grew older she helped to care for her husband as he had a brain tumor, helped her children with their families and volunteered for many local organizations.  In her mid seventies, the family begin to notice that their mother is beginning to struggle with her memory and day to day tasks.

It is at times a pretty confronting read, as Pip and her siblings try to help their mother as her memory loss continues, and they try to keep her safe and looked after.  From living in a large family home with difficult access, they get her to a smaller home closer to family, then to a studio apartment at a care home.  I did like the stories about the family growing up, and this is just another part of the story, and an experience that many  of us will go through with our own parents. 4/5

Music Monday - A Heartbreak - Angus & Julia Stone

I am so in love with this song.  I haven't listened to a lot of music lately, more podcasts too and from work.  I did download  some songs this week to freshen up my playlists.  It must be the springtime,  and a few more days out in the sun need some more tunes.

The Joy Luck Club

Amy Tan has to be one of my favorite authors, writing stories about Chinese American families that are just beautiful.  It is hard to believe that this 1993 movie adaption of her novel The Joy Luck Club is  now  25 years old, but when I watched it this afternoon I still found it engaging and warm, and I think I treasured more the stories of mothers and daughters.  I also recognized that for many of us now, the stories about what people endured during the second world war belong to our grandparents generations, few of whom now survive, and these first hand stories are being lost.

So it still made me a little teary listening to the women tell their stories, to think of 15 year old girls being sent off to be married, to a mother being forced to leave her twin baby girls on the side of the road, to a mother having her son dragged away from just after giving birth.  4/5

Wonder

After weeks of illness I am trying to get back into the rhythm of things that make me happy, good books, movies, candles, good food, walks and all the things that I enjoy.  Tonight I splurged a whole 99c on this movie from Apple itunes to watch.  I remember seeing the ads and had the vague feeling that I got the book out from the library when they got it, but didn't get into it after a couple of pages so I sent it back.  Therefore I didn't have high hopes for the movie, or any idea of the story.

Sometimes it is nice to be pleasantly surprised and in a whole lot of ways.  Julia Roberts was sweet and natural in the role of mother, with a nice relaxed hairstyle and wardrobe.  Is it weird that I would like her to be my mother too, even though we are the same age?  I wasn't put off by Owen Wilson, who usually annoys me in any comedies I have seen him in.  He seems as he ages that he suits the more light dramatic roles.  Have you noticed that nothing changes about him in any role he plays?  Always the same haircut, similar clothes - like he just rocks up and plays himself.

Anyway the story is about Augie a young man with a facial deformity, who after being home schooled heads off to start middle school.  He is nervous and scared of being bullied, but has to step into school alone and try to find his way, find friends and make his way through each day.  A story about courage and friendship that although is more of a family movie is still sweet for all ages.  4/5

The Lido - Libby Page

Sweet and delightful come to mind when I think of this book.  It is the story of Kate who is 26, and living a lonely life as a journalist at a local Brixton newspaper.  She is offered the story of writing about the local outdoor swimming pool The Lido, which the council is considering selling to a big corporation.  She meets 86 year old Rosemary, who swims outside each day and shares her stories and her friendship with Kate.

Although a simple story in its premise, I liked the story about friendship and connection and about enjoying your life no matter what your age is.  I lived near Brixton many years ago, and can picture the parks and houses and this book reminded of lovely London summers.  4/5

The Death of Mrs Westaway - Ruth Ware

Hal is struggling to make things meet, working as a tarot card reader in Brighton she returns alone each night to her cold small flat, and is trying to hide from the landlord.  She opens a formal letter to let her know that she has been given an inheritance and must go to the Cornwall family home to find out what she gets. 

I don't know about this one, I felt it plodded along and promised thrills and mystery but somehow failed to deliver and I was a bit bored. 3/5

Music Monday - Running Up That Hill - Kate Bush/First Aid Kit

I love the original version of this song, but I really like First Aid Kit and their version.  Singing live, the girls still manage to make this song their own.

Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows - Balli Kaur Jaswal

This books seems ripe for being made into  a cheeky English Sunday night movie.  Nikki decides to do something different with her life and signs up to teach creative writing at a local Sikh community centre in London.  The ladies who arrive though have different ideas about what they want to learn.  For some they want to learn English, but many of the older woman want to share Erotic stories.  Nikki finds herself learning about these women, their experiences and marriages and how these stories are compensating for the lack of passion in their lives.  4/5

Coming Soon

I've been stuck with the 100 day cough after my flu of the 2018 film festival meaning I missed 10 movies I had booked, and I haven't been able to go back to the cinema since.  So it will be nice when I can go back.  These movies look good and i will add to my list to see.

The Andy Cohen Diaries - Andy Cohen

Andy Cohen is a Bravo TV host and producer, and in this book he writes a diary following a year in his hectic life.  He is quite the name dropper, and the amount of celebrities he mentions does begin to blur after a while.  It is quite often amusing, he is quite witty and not scared to be a bit scathing about the people he meets and dates.  I did like his relationship with his new found dog, who seems to be the love of his life, but was left enamored with his manorexia and obsession with his weight.  Still he was quite the hard worker, and although he manages quite a few holidays scattered here and there, he does seem to be doing lots of shows, charity events and schmoozing.  His days are packed with meals out with a big gang of friends, and I was impressed at his stamina thinking that his life would exhaust me. 3/5

Music Monday - Falling Slowly - Glen Hansard & Lisa Hannigan

This song won the Academy Award for original song in 2008, for the 2006 Irish film Once, and it always tugs on my hearstrings to hear it played.  There is something magical about the tune, the lyrics and the two voices singing it.

Little Fires Everywhere - Celeste Ng

This is the story about the Richardsons, a family with four kids living the average life in 1990's Shaker Heights Ohio, when Mia and her daughter Pearl arrive in town, and move into their rental things beginning to shift and change.   A bit of a slow starter for me, I kept thinking as I read this one that everyone has a story to tell, and what we do and say ripples across many other people.

I did feel a bit confused, not really knowing whether I was reading an adult book or one aimed at young adults, as much of the story focused on the kids Trip, Moody, Lexi, Izzy and Pearl.  3/5

American Made

After a day of doing nice things and an afternoon of relaxing, for me it is nice to dish up the dinner and sit on the couch and watch a movie.  Itunes and apple TV have made it easier, especially with 99c and 2.99 specials.  Especially when cinemas here charge $17.50 for a seat, it has to really be a good movie for me to want to see it. 

So American Made is a bit of a Tom Cruise movie very loosely based on a real story about Barry Seal, a TWA pilot who became involved with the CIA and ended up being a drug and guns smuggler between several countries in Central and South America and the US.  Tom Cruise does a good job of holding the whole movie, but I can't help but being left with the feeling that the movie felt like it would have done well 10 years ago and that the whole thing just felt a bit smug and self important.  Maybe a drug smuggler story is not really the thing for this middle aged lady viewer.  3/5