2nd Question: What is the best book or movie (or both!) that you enjoyed this year? Why did you enjoy it? Your answer does not need to have been published or released this year.
I recently watched Julie & Julia and fell in love with a part of the story that still makes me smile. Of course I loved watching a movie about a blogger and enjoyed the food stuff, but oh my heavens did I adore the love story between Julia and her husband. I did not expect the layered infertility theme at all and can think of two moments in the film that were so brief, so simple, and so honest that had me in tears.
{ 34 comments… read them below or add one }
I have two favorite books from this year. They are The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein and The Knitting Circle by Ann Hood. I loved them both so much that I wrote them each their own posts (Enzo Post and Knitting Circle Post). The Art of Racing in the Rain made me laugh and cry and was just such a wonderful book. Everyone needs to read it. The Knitting Circle is a truly wonderful book but, for some of us, it will hit too close to home. The book centers around a couple who has lost their young daughter but, despite the sadness that is written about, the book isn’t a depressing book. It ends up being inspiring.
We finally(!) saw Gran Torino a few weeks ago. What a powerful movie. An unusual example of how actions speak louder than words (even when the words are horribly offensive racial epithets), and how important character is.
I’ve read a lot of books, but I can’t think of a favorite. I did read Julia Child’s memoir (My Life in France), which was pretty good. However, I didn’t read Julie and Julia, because some of the reviews indicated that Julie made herself out to be a self-absorbed twit. I wouldn’t mind to see the movie, though.
I think I scared some innocent moviegoers next to me when I saw that in the theatre because I turned into a sobby mess in that one moment with the letter from her sister. Messy messy sobbing.
Hunger Games is the most enjoyable, if disturbing, book I read this year, along with its sequel. I don’t see a ton of movies, so I am blanking on that. I know I actually hooted and shrieked aloud when watching 2012, which had the kinds of special effects that are not good for people with motion sickness and which I found delightful. But seriously, I am mega easy to entertain.
In the Woods, Tana French
Also the sequel
And the Stieg Larsson books
The books, ‘The Golden Compass’ along with the 2 books that followed and ‘The Creative Family’ (Soule).
I forgot how awesome kid sci fi can be. I couldn’t put them down. So, much fun and such a good story.
And, ‘The Creative Family’ was the first crafty/parenting book that has really hit home with me. Some really great ideas in their. I checked it out the library (as I do with most books nowadays), but think I need to buy my own copy.
The best book I read this year was Gone With The Wind. I had it on my self for years and saw the movie about a zillion time, but it was daunting! Other than I have read a lot of Chic Lit and Beach Trash. As for movies I really, really liked Funny People – though a lot of people hated it.
But I will be checking back to see everyone else’s books to expand my reading list.
Best movie – Star Trek! I don’t go out to the cinema any more (though I’d love to see Avatar) and rarely do I wish I’d seen a flick on the big screen, but ST was it. If this is the new face of the franchise bring! it! on! JJ Abrams did just the perfect job – pacing, humor, drama, action, even a wee touch of romance (literally the perfect touch). Fabulous.
Best book? Well, I may work in a bookstore but I rarely get a chance to read these days so I’ll go with…The Vegetarian Myth for non fic, and the Monsters of Templeton for fiction.
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin on librivox. It is completely amazing to imagine the way in which the basic functions of our country were conceived and developed in the minds of men and women who are real and interesting characters
Love librivox
I don’t think I read any books or saw any movies. Hmm.
Actually, just in this last week I read Spindle’s End because Barb gave it to me for Christmas and it was awesome.
I will blog about this, because there’s no way I can fit it all in a comment.
I wasn’t expecting the infertility moment either. I gasped and ended up sobbing with her. I know exactly what that feels like.
The movie touched my heart in so many ways. Must own it.
I’m drawing a blank. I don’t go to movies much because its so expensive I did enjoy Star Trek, Up, and HP6.Saw Coraline on Netflix, liked it, Angels and Demons was meh. Dark Knight was ok too.And that’s it that’s all the movies I’ve seen this year
books God I can’t remember the books either. I go to the library when I can and my selections are all over the place. I read Anne Lamott, David Sedaris, Isabel Allende, historical novels about Queen Elizabeth, Deep End of the Ocean (stoopid), I Know This Much is True (couldn’t get through it it was awful)
The best movie I saw this year was probably “Up.” Bawled my eyes out (IF themes there too), but loved it.
Best book — sadly, I don’t read enough book these days.
Looking forward to delving into a few while I’m at my parents over Christmas! I reviewed a few that I read this summer. One that I really enjoyed was “The Girls from Ames” by Jeffrey Zaslow (my review here: http://theroadlesstravelledlb.blogspot.com/2009/08/summer-reading-girls-from-ames-by.html )
I wrote a post about Julie & Julia in August, & I am STILL getting comments on it — not sure where they are all coming from…
http://theroadlesstravelledlb.blogspot.com/2009/08/oh-irony-julia-child-was-childless.html
I finally saw Up via netflix. Even the hubs was a bit sniffly after the beginning montage. Very sweet movie.
My favorite book this year was, by far, Outlander, by Diana Gabaldon. It involves time travel, Scottish highlanders in the 1700s, and romance, what more could you want? And the best part is, it’s the first in a series of 8 books, all of which are over 1,000 pages, so it’s enough to keep you occupied for awhile. I’m currently on the fifth book.
In terms of movies… I think I might say ‘Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.’ I read all of the books and while I wouldn’t call myself a superfan, I really thought this was the best out of all the movies so far. And I have to add the caveat that I didn’t watch a ton of movies this year.
You’re right that was a really good movie and I loved the love story part of it. I also finally sat down this year and watch Frida which which was really good and fascinating.
As far as books I’ve read so many I don’t know which I would say is the best. Hmm.
Sounds wonderful!
For me.. the book “Spindle’s End” by Robin McKinley. I just simply haven’t been that pulled into a story that wonderful and magical since I was a kid. On top of that, it had so many layers and themes that an adult enjoys.. just like almost every one of her books. And of course there were lots of animals.
I also loved “Julie & Julia,” and my favorite book this year was The History of Love, by Nicole Krauss.
“The Help” by Kathryn Stockett for books. That and Dan Savage’s “Savage Love” book.
Movies: HP and the 1/2 blood prince or New Moon. TV: tru-blood.
The book was definitely Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. I loved the original so much I thought of changing my name to Elizabeth, and really, what doesn’t improve when you add ninjas, zombies, and gore?
The movie was Up. I saw it recently, and it reminded me that even if we never manage to have a child, the hubs and I can still have adventures together.
Speaking of which, anybody care to join our newly-formed Beatles tribute band, the Beaples? We sound just like the Beatles, except instead of using the actual lyrics, we just sing “Beep!” over and over. So instead of hearing “Eight days a week / I looooooove you”, you hear “Beep beep beep beep / Beep beeeeeeeeep beep!” The plan is to get together on a street corner and have people pay us to stop singing.
BOOK: Memiors of a Geisha ~ i read it over christmas break from school last year and finished it shortly after new years (this still counts, right) and i loved the writing and the imagery… it took me a long time to read it, because the writing and words were so delicious to me, all the imagery was amazing and i didnt want to not relish every single page.
MOVIE: Revolutionary Road ~ i went to see it mainly because i am in love with Kate Winslet and wanted to see her and Leo acting together again and loved the story. it just echoed to me of so much sadness our world has in it today because we have to have the biggest and the best of things, and how we forget that a lot of times those come at an expense that is not monetary.
I loved Away We Go and half of Julie & Julia.
ohh holy crap ~ how dare i forget FAV MOVIE to include HP & The Half-Blood Prince (which came out on MY birthday *grin*)
Just watched Julie and Julia today- and teared up during the kitchen scene. Reminds me of the time I opened an email to a friend’s pregnancy announcement- and spent the rest of the day in bed crying.
I liked Julie & Julia (the movie) too, although like many I liked the Julia parts so much more than the Julie parts that I wondered why they didn’t just make the whole movie about Julia Child and skip the Julie Powell parts altogether. I started reading Julie Powell’s book last year and found her voice so obnoxious and self-serving that I had to stop. However, I also read “My Life in France” (the basis for the Child half of the movie) just before seeing the film, and I really enjoyed that–I recommend reading that, especially if you liked the Julia & Paul relationship aspect of the movie.
Although I was moved by the two brief scenes you mentioned, they were also the rare moments in the Julia sections of the film that I found a little manipulative, and to me, they failed to feel true to the actual story. It was particularly conspicuous to me because I had just read Child’s book, in which she mentions her childlessness only once or twice, and the tenor is more or less, “ehh, it might have been nice if it had happened, but not having had children was never my big regret.” Perhaps she was downplaying her real feelings in the book, or trying to put the best face on a bad situation, but I genuinely did not get the sense that not having had children was a huge disappointment in her life, and the fact that the depiction of her feelings was SO different in the movie made it feel like fiction for a second.
Anyway, I read and liked two different novels called “Stardust” this year: a fantasy in the “Princess Bride” vein by Neil Gaiman, and a noir-ish mystery about post-war Hollywood and the origins of Red Scare paranoia by Joseph Kanon.
Also ran into “Dr. Molly” in the grocery store, where we promised to have lunch in 2010–her hair has gotten really long! It looks great on her.
Happy Holidays to all y’all!
All right, I’m going there. My fave movie this year was The Hangover. Yeah, I’m about the high art.
Bookwise, I loved The Accidental Billionaires (about the founding of Facebook) and also, Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. Audiobooks are awesome!
I loved Three Cups of Tea. I am a teacher and I teach children from all over the world, at least a handful each year from Pakistan/Yemen/Bangladesh and always a few girls in hijab. I saw their faces as I read the book.
My favorite movie was The Blind Side. Went with my husband 44, sons 14 and 12 and brother 39. They all cried and I bawled. We laughed our fool heads off too! It made me want to be a better person and look for the little things that could turn into big life changing things.
Hmm, this one is tough…we used to watch every single movie that came out but I haven’t seen a movie other then Happy Feet in a long time. Nor have I done much reading other then, to prepare for the Praxis I, oh and how to stich in a ditch. hahaha
It’s been out for a million years, but I read Ken Follet’s Pillars of the Earth a few months ago; it was fabulous! I have its sequel, World Without End, on my Christmas list. I haven’t seen a movie in forever, but I would like to see Julie and Julia.
I’m glad I’m not the only one to say Star Trek, which was my favorite this year. I haven’t seen Julie and Julia yet though, so I will have to rent that soon. As far as books go, I spent a lot of time re-reading old favorites rather than discovering new ones. And because I’m usually torturing my brain with school books, there were a lot of light relief/kid books in the mix – the Harry Potter, Golden Compass and Eragon series are all favorites of mine. Oh, and I recently read the new Dan Brown – The Lost Symbol, and enjoyed that too.
I read the book Marley and Me while trying to keep Lu baking for a couple more weeks. Made me cry like a baby, the nurses were wondering if I was okay. I decided not to see the movie because it usually is never as good as the book. I think I will have to check out Julia and Julia.
I love reading and it almost sickens me to admit this..but after having my arm twisted and bent backward to read the Twilight series..I really did love it. Right now, I’m reading Certain Girls by Jennifer Weiner..usually I love her stuff but this book is going really slow.
I have two best movies for this year. I finally watched The Secret Life Of Bees…I loved it. The second movie was a Lifetime movie about CoCo Chanel with Shirley Maclaine. It was a movie that I had no intention of watching, but nothing else was on. I loved it, it really got me thinking how disappointed Coco would be at her “empire” now. She designed her clothes to fit women of every shape, size, AND economic level.
Book: “What Happened Before He Shot Her,” by Elizabeth George. It still haunts my thoughts though it’s been many months since I read it. Beautifully written story from the depths of poverty and family dysfunction, so filled with hope and possibility yet loomed over by the known fact of a tragedy that had ended an earlier book.
Movie: maybe The Reader (have forgotten the movies netflixed or tv-watched). This again twists the heart because of the lost time/ life/ moments due to some judgment of another’s.