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Film Reviews – Mockingjay Part 2, Steve McQueen & True Romance

11.19.2015 by Nicola //

Mockingjay Part 2

This afternoon I’ll be on BBC Radio Scotland with Janice Forsyth and Gavia Baker-Whitelaw to review the week’s film releases.

First up will be the final instalment of Suzanne Collins’ dystopian book-to-movie series The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 starring Jennifer Lawrence.

We’ll also be taking a look at a new documentary on Steve McQueen: The Man and Le Mans, and revisiting a 90s favourite which is being reissued by the team at Park Circus: True Romance, directed by Tony Scott, written by Quentin Tarantino and starring Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette.

Tune in to BBC Radio Scotland from 2pm, stream online, or catch up on iPlayer.

Categories // News Tags // film, Film Review, jennifer lawrence, mockingjay, suzanne collins, the hunger games

October Reads | 52 Books 2015

11.16.2015 by Nicola //

I am very late to getting around to posting these. I do apologise.

So – here are my thoughts on the nine books I read in October.

did-you-ever-have-a-family

64. Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg
★★★★★ – Literary agent Bill Clegg’s debut novel was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and found its way onto my review pile. This is beautifully and subtly drawn. I’m usually a sucker for multiple character perspectives, but these were overly detailed in ways that left me a little cold.

Read my full review in the Big Issue.

 

fates-furies

65. Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff
★★★★★ – The more you put into this book, the more you get out of it. It’s a fairly standard story of a marriage, followed by a complete deconstruction of its set-up. Groff’s insights are on point and it’s the characters rather than the plot that spark surprises and turns throughout. One of my favourite books of the year.

Read my full review in the Big Issue.

 

grandmother

66. Grandmother Divided by Monkey Equals Outer Space by Nora Chassler
★★★★★ – I read this in one sitting on a train and although a few scenes and general impressions stick in my mind, I can barely tell you what this book is about. It’s a family drama set in NYC, there’s a lot of drugs and alcohol involved, and its most interesting character – a psychic – is incidental to the plot. Give this one a miss.

 

1004

67. 10:04 by Ben Lerner
★★★★★ – Ben Lerner’s a very decorated author. New Yorky, intelligent, nuanced and insightful characters… yet somehow underwhelming.

 

in-order-to-live

68. In Order to Live by Yeonmi Park
★★★★★ – Yeonmi Park’s autobiography tells of her experiences living in then defecting from North Korea. It’s tightly written and, though harrowing at points, never verges into misery or melodrama. I read this in two sittings. A remarkable woman and a remarkable story.

 

Poor Things
69. Poor Things by Alasdair Gray
★★★★★ – Alasdair Gray is very darkly comic and very on the nose. Here he borrows heavily from Frankenstein and related stories, adding a layer of comedy and politics that’s laid on so thick you can barely read the characters beneath. I was never able to forget that I was reading a story by Alasdair Gray that outlines Alasdair Gray’s cleverness and Alasdair Gray’s ability to put Alasdair Gray in Alistair Gray’s novel. I see what you did there, Ally, but I’d had enough after 100 pages.

 

barrel-fever

70. Barrel Fever by David Sedaris (audiobook)
★★★★★ – My final Sedaris book! I’ve been reading his books for years now, always whenever one happened to cross my path – so reading his first published book last didn’t give it the best chance to stand out. I listened to this as an audiobook with the author’s signature wry vocal performances, some featuring his sister Amy. As ever with his works, I preferred the personal essays to the stories here. Not his best work, but still Sedaris.

 

on-cats

71. On Cats by Charles Bukowski
★★★★★ – I couldn’t help but request this title when I spotted it on a website for advanced readers copies. Bukowski’s poetry is gruff and gentle as he expresses love for his pet cats so profound it’s near tangible. Some poems and short passages are a bit repetitive, playing on the same ideas and interactions, but overall this was a great wee collection to read before bed, and would make a lovely gift for any literary cat lover.

 

faces-in-the-crowd

72. Faces in the Crowd by Valeria Luiselli
★★★★★ – I bought this debut after purchasing the author’s latest book, The Story of My Teeth, but vowed to read it first so as to follow Luiselli’s growth as an author. I loved her essay collection, Sidewalks, and here I found many of her best quirks. The story is fragmented and divided by stars, popping up in different times, places, and character perspectives and relying on you as a reader to keep up – or to break it down farther on your own terms. I’d need a lot more words to do it justice, but I was not disappointed.

 

Your turn! Read anything good this month?

 

Categories // News Tags // 52 books 2015, audiobook review, ben lerner, Book Review, david sedaris

Book Week Scotland 2015!

10.08.2015 by Nicola //

Book Week Scotland 2015

Book Week Scotland is a week-long celebration of books and reading that takes place every November.

This year’s it’s taking place on Monday 23 – Sunday 29 November 2015.

It’s a wonderful week of events covering all types of reading, writing and books with events happening across Scotland. Check out the full programme here.

Meantime, here are some of my personal highlights (aka events I might attend)! As you can probably tell, there were too many things to choose from, so I’ve grouped together some events to help you navigate the programme, too.

 

A Brew, A Book and a Banter

Glasgow Libraries, various times, FREE

There are a whole host of these events taking place at local libraries, many of them with special guests in attendance – and they’re free! Click through to find out if there’s one at your local library.

 

Bring and Borrow a Book Bonanza

Glasgow Women’s Library, 2–4pm on Thursday 26 November, FREE

Become a Borrower during Book Week Scotland and you could become GWL’s 3000th borrower and win a prize!

To participate in this event, you just come along and bring along a preloved book gift for us that you think GWL readers might like to add to the lending collection. Tea, cake and fantastic book recommendations will be provided. I’m excited for this one!

The Glasgow Women’s Library is also offering some of their brilliant guided tours, so check those out too.

 

Electronic Publishing & Writing in the Digital Age

City of Glasgow College, 7pm on Thursday 26 November, FREE

A Q&A panel of writers and publishing professionals who’ll be discussing the implications of the digital marketplace on writing and publishing.

I attended a similar event a couple of years ago and am curious to see how things have changed since then. This year’s panellists include Ed James (bestselling digital novelist), Adrian Searle (Freight Books), Kyle MacRae (Blasted Heath Publishing).

 

Space and Lit with Michel Faber

Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh, 7.30pm Saturday 28 November 2015

A reading from Michel Faber along with the modular synths and tape delays of band Found. Music, books, food and drink. Sounds good to me!

 

Vote for a Quote

As always, Book Week Scotland comes along with an online promotion. This year you can Vote for the Quote You’d Most Like to Share. What will yours be?

 

Spoken word events

Some particularly fun-sounding ones include Afternoon Tea & Scottish Tales, A Night in the Gutter, and What We Wrote.

 

Author events

There are loads of events with Scottish authors throughout Book Week, including ones with Janice Galloway, Kirsty Logan, and comic book artist Mark Millar.

 

Ongoing Book Week events

As well as scheduled events, there’ll be some fun things going on throughout Book Week. I love this one: you can also put the Scottish Book Trust to the test with their drop-in Staff Book Off where a member of the team will chat to you about your bookish tastes and give you some book recommendations.

 
 

Your turn! Have any Book Week Scotland events taken your fancy? Let me know in the comments below or tweet me @robotnic.

See you there!

Categories // Books, News Tags // 2015, book events, book week scotland

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