Litsy

Moving Pictures: (Discworld Novel 10) | Terry Pratchett

so-so

1/? I have a feeling someone's going to read this and accuse me of lacking a sense of humour. Know that I find some of Pratchett's writing hilarious, AND I have issues with some of it.
I regularly appreciate how Pratchett weaves social commentary into fantasy comedy, but upon reread I'm not sure that method was successful in this book.

Robotswithpersonality 2/? I think maybe the awe for old Hollywood 'magic' might have gotten in the way of telling a less adventurous, more hilariously critical tale. Maybe Hollywood being so shallow makes even the commentary seem shallow, especially post SAG-AFTRA strike, and this many years after the start of #MeToo. Going into detail about the ugliness of Hollywood, about dreams that can seduce people into accepting unreasonable behaviour, it all leaves a bad taste. 3d

Robotswithpersonality 3/? Exploitation, film execs vs creative people, not paying actors well, and historically, animal abuse:
He's the canny yet oft neglected jester figure of the story who always lands on his feet regardless of whatever life throws at him, but Gaspode permanently being used and cast aside just makes me sad. 3d

Robotswithpersonality 4/? I normally can enjoy the melding of modern institution with ye olde fantasy especially if it's turned on its head, but Pratchett's ultimate message in this book is not that the institution is corrupt but the idea is sound and you need to do the best you can to confront it and make better individual and communal choices, like the City Watch books; instead it's that the institution represents a power that's better at the bottom of the sea. 3d

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Robotswithpersonality 5/? It feels less like the momentary triumph in an ages-long battle against moral decrepitude and more the author, after presenting all the dazzling aspects with a sense of wonder (and foreboding), washing his hands of an industry that has no redeeming features to offer. Upon reflection, possible correct, not in respect to the creative medium of film, but the modern film industry, which is a depressing conclusion. 3d

Robotswithpersonality 6/? And then there's the elephants motif running though as a message of excess and further greed and danger and exploitation, basically everything about the characterization of the people from Klatch and the made up foreign figures (probably a mirror for how they were historically depicted in early films) is winceworthy. I want to put it down to Pratchett's aforementioned fun with puns, and sharp satire, but overall it seems like a bunch of lazy 3d

Robotswithpersonality 7/? jokes and timeworn stereotypes about 'foreigners' while simultaneously attempting to make elephant traders sound like small town British businessman. The line between commentary on and reinforcement of racism and xenophobia is a little too blurred for my taste. 🤷🏼‍♂️ 3d

Robotswithpersonality 8/8 Oh, and it's probably just a function of being published in the 90s, but the heteronormative nonsense with Ruby and Detritus, not to mention Victor and Ginger, did not improve my impression of this story taking a little too much inspiration from early 20th century film. 🙄 (edited) 3d

9 likes7 comments

Mpcacher

Bury the Lead: A Quill & Packet Mystery | Elizabeth Renzetti, Kate Hilton

pick

This is a lighter mystery featuring Cat, who is a journalist with a small town paper. When a famous actor dies on stage during a performance, Cat (who was already doing a piece on him) investigates. The story has humour, parental angst, lots of small town doings and some #metoo drama. I enjoyed it and look forward to the next in the series. Thanks to NetGalley for digital advance reading copy. 3.75/5 stars.

6 likes

dabbe

Kiss in Space: Poems | Mary Jo Salter

#poetrymatters
#carole
@TheSpineView

#wintergames2024
#holidaybookdragons
@StayCurious @LiseWorks
+20 points (10 for photo, 5 for post, 5 for also being a fab book!)

Time to rewatch THE THIN MAN. 🖤

curiouserandcurioser @dabbe love The Thin Man movies!💜 2w

dabbe @curiouserandcurioser #metoo They are so adorable together! 🤩 2w

TheSpineView Great choice!😍😍😍 2w

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willaful Her husband sounds like my kinda guy. 2w

curiouserandcurioser @dabbe they are! Some of my very favorite movies;)💜 2w

dabbe @willaful Especially on New Year's Eve! 🍸 2w

dabbe @TheSpineView 💙❄️💙 2w

41 likes7 comments

dabbe

Untitled | Untitled

#poetrymatters
#visible
@TheSpineView

TheSpineView 😍😍😍 4w

kspenmoll Love this! 4w

dabbe @TheSpineView 🧡🤎💛 4w

dabbe @kspenmoll #metoo #greatminds 🧡🤎💛 4w

40 likes4 comments

Read4life

Cozy Winter Vibes: A Blank Lined 120 Page 6X9 Journal for the Winter | Paige Paige Cooper

#SeasonalSpiritShare #SSS @dabbe

Snow. Warm drinks. Cold, crisp weather. Books. Fireside reading. Gingerbread everything. Family.

I love winter and the calm I feel when there‘s snow on the ground, a coffee in one hand and a book in the other.

dabbe #metoo It is the most wonderful time of the year. I need snow, though! 😂 Thanks for sharing. You're on the #sss list! 🤎🍁🧡 1mo

60 likes1 comment

dabbe

All the President's Men | Bob Woodward, Carl Bernstein

#SundayFunday
@BookmarkTavern

I have always been fascinated by the Watergate scandal, and this book reminds me of the days of excellent reporting and research in the search for truth. Every time I read it, I learn something new.

TheSpineView I read this in high school. 1mo

dabbe @TheSpineView #metoo! And saw the movie. I've read it multiple times since (and seen the movie ... #hubbahubba RR!) 1mo

TheSpineView @dabbe I loved the movie. 1mo

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peaKnit Loved this movie, we picked it apart in my college White Collar Crime class. 1mo

dabbe @TheSpineView 🧡🍁🤎 1mo

dabbe @peaKnit Where was this class when I was in college? I would have loved to have taken it! 🤩 1mo

BookmarkTavern I‘ve seen the movie, but I‘ve never read the book. I definitely should do that. Thanks for answering! 1mo

Bookwormjillk @dabbe my neighbor took us on a boat ride today and we went past the Watergate. The urge to re-read this is strong right now! 1mo

dabbe @BookmarkTavern It's so good! YW! 🤩😂🤗 1mo

dabbe @Bookwormjillk Okay, how cool is that? Perfect timing for a reread, too! 🤩😂🤗 1mo

peaKnit It was at UW-Whitewater (Wisconsin) I had a criminal justice minor. I wish true crime podcasts were invented in the early 90‘s, I was true crime before it was cool 🤣 1mo

dabbe @peaKnit My fascination with true crime goes back to Ted Bundy. Who killed multiple women, including two of them at Chi Omega Sorority at FSU. I was a Chi Omega at U of A in the mid 1980s. We all had to sleep on a sleeping porch together BECAUSE of TB. We weren't allowed to sleep alone. Ever. 😱 1mo

DogMomIrene @peaKnit Want to audit that class! 1mo

peaKnit Omg, Ted Bundy sparked my interest in crime. I feel like I know everything there is to know about him and get so excited when I learn a new nugget. How scary though being in college, and the same sorority that was victimized, at that time, he was absolutely unhinged when he went to Florida. The most complete psychopath I have ever learned about. Have you read Bright Young Women? (edited) 1mo

dabbe @peaKnit Nope. It's now on the TBR! 🤩 1mo

45 likes15 comments

LiteraryinPA

The Ocean at the End of the Lane: A Novel | Neil Gaiman

pick

I understand why this is such a beloved book. Strange, beautiful, grotesque, contemplative… for a book that was under 200 pages, it will stay with me for a long time. 💗

Awk_Word_Smith Amen. 2mo

Soscha I hate to even mention this as Gaiman is such a great & beloved writer but he‘s got some #metoo issues. I won‘t link but you can look that up. 😕 2mo

LiteraryinPA @Soscha Oh no! I‘m really glad you mentioned it, though. I‘ll read up on it. 2mo

Shemac77 Loved this book! 2mo

Cheryl_Russell_BookNotes I love Neil Gaiman, but I didn‘t like this book. Maybe I need to read it again. 🤔 2mo

65 likes3 stack adds5 comments

marleed

BookSpinBingo | Untitled

The proportion that one month holds to the entirety of my life has become minuscule. I‘m sitting here thinking can I somehow attribute this to climate change, something, anything 🧐 Yes, aging 🤣🥴. Ah well.

November 2024 #BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

dabbe 🎯!!! #metoo 2mo

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 2mo

45 likes2 comments

dabbe

Harold and the Purple Crayon | Crockett Johnson