Susan May's Blog: Susan May Official Website, page 9
September 23, 2013
WHERE IS YOUR DREAM?
Mariam Cheshire wrote to me via Good Reads about a month ago. When I had a quick check on her bio I realized what a truly amazing person she is. Mariam is 86 years old and embarking on a writing career and diving right into social media. Wow! I love this new era of publishing and communication where anyone can participate no matter how old, where they live, or their message. So, I asked Mariam if she would like to write a guest blog post for me. A person like Mariam has a lot of wisdom to share with all of us. And meeting Mariam and reading her wonderful essay I was inspired to open my blog to other writers who had something to share. You can read how to submit here. Mariam certainly had an impact on me and I hope she will have the same effect on you. But for now, enjoy Mariam’s wonderful post and do support and encourage her by visiting her new blog and I would recommend buying her book The Alternate Safe World of Sanctuary. Its received some rave reviews and at currently 99 cents for an e-copy its amazing value for you to be able to connect with this wonderful woman. Mariam you have certainly inspired me. Thank you.Where is your dream? by Mariam Cheshire
“I have a dream.” These words are now building blocks in our history. We hear the power of Martin Luther King’s voice and another small voice speaks inside of each of us. “Do I have a dream?” The answer comes clear and true. You might be going from the tumultuous teens into the growing years of the twenties. How does your dream appear? Are there visions of someone to love, a bond for the future and kiddles who would progress further than you do? Is this a time to conquer the business, the creative, the money world? There might be hopes of writing and travel.
Then come the thirties. Maybe the 20’s dreamer is too busy to think beyond what needs to be done today. When children are in the picture the Friday night football games could take precedence over far away rainbows. Goals could be tucked away in the desk drawer. Today’s schedule keeps the busy thirty-some person from pulling it out to check. Where is the dream? When the forties come over the horizon there comes a skid, a halt and a look around. Yes, the green lights flash on the road ahead You can ask “Am I on track?”
If you haven’t reached the fiftiesyet, you will discover how quickly they merge into the sixties and seventies, even the eighties. We are comfortable, we can settle here. Maybe on rainy days we can take the dream out of the closet , dust it off, brighten it up. No two people will make the same choice. We hear Alexander Pope who has told us, “Whatever is, is right.” My dream of grade school years was pushed from start to stop, from give-up to a steady gallop. Despite getting mired down in mud from time to time, my dream came out of its cocoon. At 86 I am flapping my wings wanting to fly! When we follow our dream it becomes part of our being and turns into Reality as we grow with it.
This blog is written to tell you . . . Take minutes from your busy life, brush away the cares of today and . . . FOLLOW YOUR DREAM!
With love, I sign as mother, step-mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, aunt, cousin, friend, correspondent and writer. Mariam Lewis Heiny Cheshire
Links for MariamThe Alternate Safe World of Sanctuary (Amazon) - http://goo.gl/DvCspBLOGSPOT - http://bit.ly/16l7kWPGOODREADS - http://goo.gl/gYkqsu
ABOUT MARIAM
Mariam Cheshire, at the age of 86, is publishing her first novel, “the alternate safe world of Sanctuary”. She began writing when she was six and her first rejection came from Liberty magazine.
In the third grade. Mariam clearly stated her ambition. “I am going to travel and write.” A paper box became filled with rejection slips, but successes with small magazines kept the typewriter working late on many nights. Travel became a Way of Life flying standby to countries around the world. With a backpack carrying only the necessities she landed in the city of her choice and found a hostel or B&B with the bathroom down the hall. Mariam speaks of a wonderful life – writing - seeking family history in genealogy libraries - flying Cubs into the blue yonder – airline flights to faraway places - photography and printing in her own darkroom - painting oil landscapes with her mother - playing with rocks for one-of-a-kind necklaces - and always beautiful love.
September 16, 2013
Please Rock Our World!
Do you want to write a guest post for my blog?
It wasn’t so long ago I was a newbie in blogging, twitter, Good Reads, Google+, and Facebook.It’s been two years (September 2011) since I dived into this world. Through trial and error I now feel pretty confident using all the social networking programmes that are supposedly there to create an author platform to help you sell your books.You know what I’ve discovered? If selling books is your goal then you will soon grow tired of maintaining your blogs, twitter and Facebook account, and the myriad of other social programmes out there. What I have found is that this social networking world is filled with wonderful people who want to connect, share, enliven, encourage others, and learn. It astonishes me the time people dedicate to share their passion and knowledge with their connections, followers, and friends. And all for FREE.
You can try and sell your book to all these people with whom you’ve connected, but I figure, unless you’ve connected with them in a "non-using" way first, they probably are not going to be greatly interested in what you have to sell. You become a social network door-to-door salesman and, in fact, something worse. You become more akin to a crazy personrunning up to strangers on a street shouting, “Buy this! Buy this! You should buy from me because we are walking on the same street.” I am sure you get the picture.The friends I have made since entering this on-line world have become as real to me as my friends who live in my area, and I am so grateful to them and all those wonderful sharers out their I would like to give back. So, that brings me to my new idea. I am full of ideas, just like an excited five year old—ask my husband who has to listen to them constantly.
I am offering a helping hand to you out there who may be new or even if you have been around awhile and would like to spread the reach of your message. If you have a blog post and would like me to host it here and then after to continue to promote it on twitter and facebook, please email me at susanmay21@iinet.net.au. Use the heading, "Blog Post." If I like your post I will put it up here for you and continue to promote it via my networks from time to time. For what its worth, I have around 35,000 followers across the social media I use which is growing daily by about 100. Most are on twitter. You can also promote it as well. See… then it’s a win: win proposition. I love those type of deals.
A couple of rules:· The post must be educational about writing or an experience in writing; or if not writing something inspirational that would encourage a writer. (I ask this because most people who follow me are writers, so I’d like to keep them happy.)· Keep it between 400 and 1,000 words. (if its outside this, please check with me).· Send at least three photos (they can be of yourself or pictures illustrating your points.· Ensure you add links to your website or where your book is sold and a short 2 to 3 line bio if you like. If you are taking the time to create a post of value then I want you to get some benefit from it.· Give me a snappy title to plug.· Proofread and spell check it. You want to put your best foot forward. (Sorry I haven’t got the time to do much in the way of editing.)· Don’t be annoyed with me if I can’t accept it. I will send you a quick note why and if I think it can be changed to suit my site. Then you can change it or forget it.· I will let you know when your blog post is up and send you the link. If you want something minor changed once its up you can let me know but I can’t guarantee how quickly I can change.· I will put the blogs up when I can, in between my own writing. So don’t hassle me if it is not up the same day or same week. If I accept it I will put it up. I promise.
· Follow my blog via the feeder you are most happy to use. Leave a comment on your blog post, like “Thanks for posting my blog. I love you, Susan May.” And then tick that you want to be kept updated if someone comments. This way you can follow the comments and answer them if you like.So, that’s it. Pretty simple. I look forward to hearing from you and sharing your interesting story or words of wisdom. Please rock mine and my wonderful friend's worlds!
P.S. I just found this video via a social networking author friend. This is what it is all about: "Giving is the best communication."
This Three Minute Commercial Puts Full-Length Hollywood Films to Shame
Courtesy of Gawker.com
August 20, 2013
CALLING THRILLER FANS IN PERTH WESTERN AUSTRALIA
The fabulous thriller writer Michael Robotham is visiting Perth. I looooove Michael Robotham! I will be there standing in line for the signing. Wild serial killers couldn't keep me away. Why don’t you get your book club down to Scarborough Library and meet him. It's FREE!
When: Tuesday 10 SeptemberTime: 10.30am - 11.30am Where: Scarborough Library
Bookings essential please phone 9205 7420
Michael Robotham's 2012 novel, “Say You're Sorry” was named by Stephen King in his top 3 reads of 2012. And I wholeheartedly agree. It's a brilliant book and his upcoming novel, “Watching You” is fantastic as well. I will be reviewing it shortly. And he is here in September giving a talk at Scarborough Beach library for FREE. Wow!
A morning of Suspense with Michael Robotham
Come and meet internationally renowned crime author Michael Robotham at Scarborough Library. “Say You’re Sorry” was selected as one of the ‘Get Reading - 50 books you can’t put down’ for 2012. Formerly a journalist for major newspapers and magazines in Australia, Britain and America, he has won international crime awards and two Ned Kelly awards for Best Crime Novel. This will be an opportunity to get an up close and personal with Michael and purchase his latest novel. There will also be time for a book signing. Read an interview of mine with Michael late last year. He is a fascinating man.
Delving into Dark Minds
Visit Michael’s website:
http://www.michaelrobotham.com/
ANOTHER GREAT WRITER SPEAKING
Another great writer, Stuart MacBride, is coming to Perth. Do try get out and see him speak. He’s travelled all the way from Scotland to meet his readers.
An evening of Suspense with Stuart MacBride
When: Monday 9 September 2013 Time: 6.30 – 7.30pm
Where: Osborne Library
Bookings essential please phone 9205 7900
Close to the Boneis a new crime thriller from the number 1 best-selling author of Shatter the Bones and Birthdays for the Dead. For McRae things are finally getting better... until the first body is found chained to a stake.
He’s already dealing with warring gangs; missing persons; brutal attacks on immigrants; and also feeling the heat from his superiors and the local crime boss. But when another body turns up, he begins to wonder if those little knots of bones he’d been finding are more important than they look... Stuart MacBride’s Logan McRae series has already sold over 1.1 million copies. Shatter the Bones reached no 1 on the Sunday Times Bestseller list.Visit Stuart’s website:
http://stuartmacbride.com/index.php
HarperCollins launches new unsolicited submissions portal
For all those writers looking for that book deal, here is some exciting news for you. I hope Harper Collins has plenty of readers. I think they will be inundated. Good luck everyone who submits. Remember to polish your manuscript until it is beautiful and shiny, and the most important tip: KEEP WRITING
HarperCollinsPublishers ANZ is excited to announce the launch of its new online unsolicited submission program, The Wednesday Post, which will be going live, Wednesday 21 August 2013. Our goal is to uncover, develop and promote the most outstanding voices writing today.
The new portal can be accessed at www.wednesdaypost.com.au and will also link from the HarperCollins homepage (in Australia and New Zealand). Submissions are accepted every week on Wednesday only. Aspiring authors will be asked to present synopses of their work and the first 50 pages of a manuscript. We are looking for writers at every stage of their career, from closet scribes to those who have a history of publication.
Adult and YA books are the focus for this initiative, and we will be accepting manuscripts in both fiction and non-fiction genres. We are particularly seeking exceptional contemporary women’s fiction. The Wednesday Post will respond to authors within three weeks if we wish to see more of their work. All submissions will be considered for print and e-book publication as well as digital-only publication, which is an area we will be actively growing in the coming years through a dedicated e-only publishing model. We are eagerly looking forward to our first intake of submissions and encourage all hopeful authors to apply. We love a good story, and if you have one to tell we want to hear from you.July 30, 2013
The Heiresses by Alison Rushby ★★★
Reviewed by Katelyn (aged 13) Meet Katelyn.
In 1926 Thalia, Erato and Clio are summoned to London by Hestia, a long lost Aunt that none of the girls knew they had. When they arrive from their individual homes, the girls discover that they are triplets who were separated at birth. Hestia also informs them that they are heiresses to their mother’s fortune which is currently under the control of their greedy half-brother, Charles. The sisters move into their Aunt Hestia’s London house and begin their new lives together, while plotting to get their inheritance from the loathsome Charles.
While the girls are in London they realize something. Each of them is there for a reason:
Thalia is there to get away from her dark past.
Erato is there to achieve her dream.
Clio is there to help save the only mother she has ever known.
The girls realize that they must trust no-one; let alone each other.
The plot for this book is very good and witty. I would recommend this for thirteen year old to fifteen year old girls.
Thank you to the kind people at Pan Macmillan for our review copy.
RELEASE Date: May 2013
MORE information: CLICK HERE
READ an extract: CLICK HERE
AUTHOR’s Website: http://allisonrushby.com/
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Having failed at becoming a ballerina with pierced ears (her childhood dream), Allison Rushby instead began a writing career as a journalism student at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. Within a few months she slunk sideways into studying Russian, began writing her first novel and, most importantly, joined the Chocolate Appreciation Society. Over the past ten years, she has published five books for young adult readers and five for adult readers in the women’s fiction genre. She is originally from Brisbane, Australia, but spent 2011 and most of 2012 living in Cambridge, UK, where she mainly spent her days whingeing constantly about the weather.
Raven Girl by Audrey Niffenegger ★★★★ ½
However, they both expressed interest in me reading them “Raven Girl”. In the end, my hubby sat in and for several nights our family eagerly anticipated the next reading. Reading this book with them was a wonderful experience. First they wanted to read it; then they didn’t want me to stop. They loved the story and wanted it read again. A miracle.“Once there was a Postman who fell in love with a Raven.”
The opening line in this modern-day, dark, fairy tale begins a marvelous tale of a postman who “thought he had seen just about everything Her Majesty’s Postal Service could offer in the way of danger and difficulty, hilarity and boredom”. When he rescues a baby raven, which has fallen from her nest, they fall in love and eventually have a baby raven girl who has human form but speaks in raven. Like any child, the raven girl is not happy with herself and seeks to be transformed.
Niffenegger puts words together from which spin magic. She is also a talented artist. In “Raven Girl”, she not only wrote a charming tale, she also illustrated it beautifully using the 17th century technique of aquatint, which uses metal, acid, wax and rosin to achieve delicate tone and detailed images. July 28, 2013
Devil in the Hole by Charles Salzberg ★★★★
Reviewed by Tracy Harris
James Kirkland is not your typical nosy neighbor. So, when he notices all of the lights blazing in his neighbors house, he’s curious but not curious enough to knock on the door and inquire after their health. He is inquisitive enough to notice that the lights are slowly burning themselves out. A phone call to the police results in the discovery of the gruesome murders of an entire family including the dog, minus one member. John Hartman, husband, son and father of three is missing and all evidence points to him as the prime suspect.
We are given an unusual insight, discovering the story through the eyes of a cast of characters who have their own individual opinion on the man who is John Hartman. From the senior investigator who has become obsessed with apprehending Hartman, to his former mistress, to past work colleagues and even his postman. Even Hartman’s side of the story is revealed through his viewpoint; a man who has committed the unthinkable crime and managed to elude authorities but not himself.
Based on a true story, the John List murders, reading the first page to Devil in the Hole is like having just one potato chip. You simply must have more.
Read this book if you want to treat yourself to a novel that is different, a novel not told from the traditional single viewpoint, but through multiple character’s viewpoints. I felt this allowed an opportunity to discover each individual’s opinion of Hartman, through their own distinct and unique interactions. This way we have an opportunity to attempt to understand how such a horrendous crime impacts everyone.
Thank you to author Charles Salzberg who contacted us directly and supplied a copy of his novel.
PURCHASING DETAILS: Click here
IN AUSTRALIA: Click Here
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Charles Salzberg is a New York-based novelist, journalist and acclaimed writing instructor.
[image error] A celebrated and popular creative writing teacher, he has been a Visiting Professor at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, and has taught writing at Sarah Lawrence College, Hunter College, the Writer’s Voice, and the New York Writers Workshop, where he is a Founding Member. He is a consulting editor at the webzine Ducts.org and co-host, with Jonathan Kravetz, of the reading series, Trumpet Fiction, at KGB in New York City.
Visit Charles’ website here.
Weekly Film Review Round Up-July 28 2013
This is a catch up Film roundup. I’ve been away for two weeks on a wonderful holiday in the Hunter Valley, a wine growing area of Australia, with a quick pop-in to Sydney to see the Manchester United football (soccer) match against the Aussie All Stars. Manchester won 5 to 1 and it was interesting to see a stadium of almost 90,000 Australians barracking for an overseas team and booing their own countrymen. Poor form I thought but then I am not a soccer fan (I was dragged along).
So, most of these films have been in your local popcorn distributor for a couple of weeks. There is quite a choice at the moment and some good ones coming up over the next few weeks. You should see my preview diary. On one week there is five screenings.
(My movie Pick of the week)
This Is The End
★★★★
Opens in Australia: 18th July, 2013
Other Countries:
Release Information
OUR THOUGHTS
This is Seth Rogan all the way. If you don’t like high school toilet humour, ala ‘Pineapple Express’ and ‘Superbad’, then you will probably wish for the end of the world whilst watching his latest outing, ‘This is The End’.I am a fan despite not loving toilet and sex humour (some of it combined explicitly in the same scene in this) and yet there is something about the exuberance of Rogan I really love. He is simply the coolest uncool guy in Hollywood.
Be warned, this is silly ridiculous but if you go along with the ride, you will find yourself chuckling and imagining the fun this bunch of Hollywood A-Listers had mocking their own celebrity. It’s a long way from ‘The Breakfast Club’ but we’ve evolved haven’t we? You will find every extreme in this, including actors peeing into their own mouths (yep, that’s right). Don’t take the kiddies.
STUDIO BLURB
The comedy This Is The End follows six friends trapped in a house after a series of strange and catastrophic events devastate Los Angeles. As the world unravels outside, dwindling supplies and cabin fever threaten to tear apart the friendships inside. Eventually, they are forced to leave the house, facing their fate and the true meaning of friendship and redemption. (c) Sony
BEFORE MIDNIGHT ★★★★
Opens in Australia: 18th July
Other Countries: Release Information
Perth, Australia: See at Luna Cinemas
OUR THOUGHTS
[image error]I’ve not seen the first two in this series, ‘Before Sunset’ and ‘Before Sunrise’. However, after this one I am going out to find them. It’s a beautifully crafted piece that is so true to modern day romance, as opposed to the fluffy pieces we are constantly delivered, you will hear yourself saying, ‘I know that feeling’, ‘I’ve said those words.’ This is a film made with respect for the medium of film and, it is also a very true portrayal of adult love. It’s not about how beautiful is love, it is about how true is love even though it is hard to maintain when life happens to you.
STUDIO BLURB
It has been nine years since Celine (Julie Delpy) and Jesse (Ethan Hawke) reconnected on the streets of Paris in Before Sunset, having met on a train to Vienna nine years earlier in Before Sunrise. Now the parents of two children, the couple are vacationing with friends on the coast of Greece.
Director Richard Linklater continues his enchanting tale of a chance meeting between two strangers, bringing to it a nuanced perspective only gained by years lived. Life carries with it new responsibilities and attitudes, forcing the two dreamers to reassess what they each want next. Bolstered by an increasingly refined onscreen chemistry between lead actors Delpy and Hawke, Before Midnight is a fitting third chapter in one of the great love stories of American independent cinema.
THE WOLVERINE ★★★
Opens in Australia: 25th July
Other Countries: Release Information
OUR THOUGHTS
Reviewed by Tracy Harris
[image error]Director James Mangold returns us to the universe of the X-Men and one of their most popular characters, Wolverine. Since his last appearance on film, Logan has hidden himself away in a remote part of Alaska, partially to lick his wounds after the death of his love, Jean Grey, but also to protect the world around him from the chaos that follows the beast that is Wolverine. After a slight altercation involving illegal hunters and a grizzly bear which Wolverine calls friend, Wolverine is reluctantly dragged out of his solitude by the striking Yukio (Rila Fukushima) who has been sent by a ghost from his past, Yashida, who wishes to see him once more before he dies.
This sets in motion a plot which could ultimate cost Wolverine his life. Wolverine’s spends much of the film doing what Wolverine does best, fighting down and dirty through the streets of Tokyo.
The Wolverine is an enjoyable action film aimed at the fanboys (and girls) Hugh Jackman recreates Wolverine accurately, playing him as a world weary hero, surviving rather than living. One of the highlights is the character of Yukio, who lures Wolverine back into our world. She’s a strong, smart and sassy character, who seamlessly combines her modern life with that of traditional Japan, fights like a samurai and she can foretell death, the perfect sidekick for Wolverine.
As my fanboy brother said after viewing this film, “not even Wolverine’s healing powers can save some of this film.” And that’s a shame, because The Wolverine certainly had the potential to be so much more than this.
STUDIO BLURB
In modern day Japan, Wolverine is out of his depth in an unknown world as he faces his ultimate nemesis in a life-or-death battle that will leave him forever changed. Vulnerable for the first time and pushed to his physical and emotional limits, he confronts not only lethal samurai steel but also his inner struggle against his own immortality, emerging more powerful than we have ever seen him before.
PACIFIC RIM ★★ ½
Opens in Australia: 11th July 2013
Other Countries: Release Information
OUR THOUGHTS
Reviewed by Tracy Harris
Giant robots fighting giant alien monsters from another dimension. What more can one say?
It’s our not so distant future and the Earth is under attack by Kaijus, colossal monsters which are emerging from a portal to another dimension on the floor of the Pacific Ocean. The world has united in an attempt to fight these Kaijus by creating Jaegers, gigantic humanoid shaped robots, mind controlled by specially selected pilots. These Jaegers have successfully fought the Kaijus but the military have shut them down, instead focusing on building huge seawalls surrounding each continent. This is a grand idea until the Kaijus break through and leave humanity’s fate in the hands of the last five operational Kaijus, their pilots and their support crews.
If you suspend your common sense, check reality at the door and ignore plot holes the size of a giant alien monster, then you’ll enjoy this film. It is squarely aimed at teenage boys. See this if you love the 1998 Godzilla or the Transformers of 2000s, but remember, you have been warned.
STUDIO BLURB
When legions of monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity’s resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge. But even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju. On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroes – a washed up former pilot (Charlie Hunnam) and an untested trainee (Rinko Kikuchi) – who are teamed to drive a legendary but seemingly obsolete Jaeger from the past. Together, they stand as mankind’s last hope against the mounting apocalypse.
The Way, Way Back
★★★
½
Opens in Australia: 25th July 2013
Other Countries:
Release Information
Perth, Australia:
See at Luna Cinemas
OUR THOUGHTS
Here is another ensemble Indie coming of age piece dissecting American family values. This has wit and depth and a stellar cast. I love the way Steve Carell takes opportunities to play dramatically against typecast. He is quite unlikable in this. Toni Collette is her usual solid self and Allison Janney is seriously brilliant providing great comedy.When I received the preview invite I replied to the publicist, “You had me at Sam Rockwell.” And it’s Rockwell, playing the cavalier manager of a water park, who lifts this out of mediocre territory. I didn’t love the ending but everything before was a real summer holiday.
STUDIO BLURB
THE WAY, WAY BACK is the funny and poignant coming of age story of 14-year-old Duncan’s (Liam James) summer vacation with his mother, Pam (Toni Collette), her overbearing boyfriend, Trent (Steve Carell), and his daughter, Steph (Zoe Levin). Having a rough time fitting in, the introverted Duncan finds an unexpected friend in gregarious Owen (Sam Rockwell), manager of the Water Wizz water park. Through his funny, clandestine friendship with Owen, Duncan slowly opens up to and begins to finally find his place in the world – all during a summer he will never forget. (c) Fox Searchlight
What have you seen this week? Did you find our comments helpful or do you disagree? Share your thoughts with us.
July 6, 2013
SHIFT by Hugh Howey ★ ★ ★★★
A MASTER STORYTELLER STRIKES AGAIN
The beautiful blue covered book that is SHIFT, prequel to Hugh Howey’s mega-hit WOOL, sat on my bedside table for a week; not because I didn’t want to read it but I was simply delaying gratification. I knew once I started it, I would devour the 576 pages in a few days and then I would be forced to leave the world of Howey’s Silo and would have to wait months until the final book in the trilogy was released. It’s hard to find eloquent words to describe my love for the genius of Hugh Howey. Reading his work reminds me of how I felt almost forty years ago when I first read Stephen King’s CARRIE. For me, no author has ever measured against Master King’s writing. There are many great writers who have penned wonderful books but Howey and King have one thing in common. They are storytellers before they are writers.
Even more exciting is that Howey is one of the new breed of Indie Hybrid authors, self-publishing his e-books and licensing the paper-book distribution rights to major publishers. So, he can write and deliver great reads quickly; no more waiting for the publishing world’s limit of one release a year.
SHIFT takes us back to the beginning before Wool; before the world was laid waste and toxic by something that happened sixty years ago, forcing the few thousand remaining human beings to live in two hundred storey silos. The silos are layered with not only physical levels but political and social stratas and are governed under strict rule. None of the Silo inhabitants remember what happened before.
Whilst reading Wool, (which I recommend reading before Shift) there were what you could presume were plot-holes (as it turns out they were purposely there). These are resolved in Shift as we travel from the destruction of Earth to the monotonous existence of the inhabitants of Silo One who are cryogenically frozen and awakened for their shifts of varying lengths.
This new world and its progression through several hundred years is told through the stories of various characters: the engineer who unwittingly designed the silos, a shift worker who remembers fragments of another life, a courier who becomes embroiled in an uprising, a child trapped for years in a computer safe room.
It is science fiction work but it crosses genres ingeniously and the reason for Howey’s huge success is the human stories he tells. Through his wonderful and rich characters Howey challenges us to contemplate hope and humanity. Just like King’s millions of loyal fans who read every book he releases, there will be few initiates to the Howey style who will not continue to follow him wherever he chooses to write. And that’s the kind of passion a good story-teller evokes.
My review copy of Shift thanks to the hardworking people at RANDOM HOUSE Australia.
For more information please visit http://www.randomhouse.com.au
Australia and New Zealand: May 2013
To purchase: click here
July 5, 2013
Weekly Review Round Up 5/7/2013
(My movie Pick of the week)
In The House (Dans La Maison) ★★★★
Opens in Australia: 27th June, 2013
Perth, Australia: See at Luna Cinemas
Other Countries: Release Information
OUR THOUGHTS
Ooh La La. This is a bit delicious. It’s a fascinating mystery and you will be ducking and weaving with the twists and turns. Is it real or just a wild story within a story? This is why I love French Cinema. Their film-makers have a way of looking at ordinary lives and transforming them into art and mystery. Sometimes they’re crazy and sometimes they are amazing. This is both. Loved it.
STUDIO BLURB
A 16-year old boy, Claude, (Ernst Umhauer) insinuates himself into the house of a fellow high-school student, Rapha, (Bastien Ughetto) and writes about his family in essays that perversely blur the lines between reality and fiction for his jaded literature teacher, Germain (Fabrice Luchini). Intrigued by this gifted and unusual student, Germain rediscovers his taste for teaching, but the boy’s intrusion sparks a series of uncontrollable events. Kristin Scott-Thomas plays Germain’s wife, Jeanne, a contemporary art gallery director, who, alongside her husband, avidly follows Claude’s semi-imaginary escapades, while Emmanuelle Seigner plays Rapha’s mom, Claude’s object of desire. (c) Cohen Media
Man of Steel ★★
Opens in Australia: 27th June 2013
Other Countries: Release Information
OUR THOUGHTS
No, no, no. This is not good what they have done to Superman. And it is almost unforgivable that director, Zac Snyder (Sucker Punch, 300) managed to make Michael Shannon act badly. I thought that was impossible. Its spot the ‘A’ list actor but that means nothing if they have nothing to work with. Something has gone terribly wrong in Hollywood when nobody tells Directors they have gone too far and repeated the same scene too many times. Yes, there is a spectacular fight sequence but we don’t need two of them that drag the film out to 143 minutes. And there are plot holes big enough for Superman to detonate some kind of weird bomb in. Another reboot that needs another reboot. Super-boring.
STUDIO BLURB
A young boy learns that he has extraordinary powers and is not of this Earth. As a young man, he journeys to discover where he came from and what he was sent here to do. But the hero in him must emerge if he is to save the world from annihilation and become the symbol of hope for all mankind. — (C) Warner Bros
Epic (3D)
★★★½
Opens in Australia: 4th July, 2013
Other Countries:
Release Information
OUR THOUGHTS
It’s charming and colourful and I feel a little sorry for ‘Epic’. What animation release wants to go up against ‘Monster’s University’ or ‘Despicable Me 2’? We needed ‘Epic’ last school holidays when there was a bunch of below par animations released. It would have rocked then. It is a good, solid story, beautifully done and I think the wee littlies will enjoy it. My twelve-year-old harsh critic enjoyed as did his tag-along mate, Alex, who wrote a full review here. But I would see the other two superstar animations before this.STUDIO BLURB
EPIC is a 3D CG adventure comedy that reveals a fantastical world unlike any other. From the creators of ICE AGE and RIO, EPIC tells the story of an ongoing battle between the forces of good, who keep the natural world alive, and the forces of evil, who wish to destroy it. When a teenage girl finds herself magically transported into this secret universe, she teams up with an elite band of warriors and a crew of comical, larger-than-life figures, to save their world…and ours. — (C) Fox
The Look of Love ★★★½
Opens in Australia: 27th June 2013
Other Countries: Release Information
Perth, Australia: See at Luna Cinemas
OUR THOUGHTS
The English do these bio-pics extremely well. The Director, Michael Winterbottom (Trishna, The Killer Inside Me) does not mind confronting audiences. ‘The Killer Inside Me’ is still one of the most violent and nasty films I have ever seen (and I didn’t like it).
In this film, we learn about the British smut King, Paul Raymond, who from this film we gather is the equivalent of Hugh Hefner or Larry Flynt. You won’t feel a great deal of sympathy for Raymond enduring the tragedies of his life.
It’s a well crafted, interesting film, albeit probably not on a person I really care to have this much detail. In saying this it is interesting to see London in the swinging sixties and seventies. Warning, there is a great deal of sexual content and nudity.
STUDIO BLURB
The Look Of Love is the quite extraordinary true story of British entrepreneur and smut peddler Paul Raymond (played by Steve Coogan), who made his fortune opening some of Britain’s first strip clubs and financing other classically un-British pursuits to eventually become Britain’s richest man. The film follows Raymond’s life in humorous fashion before leading up to the darkest parts of his life when his daughter (played by Imogen Poots) and heir to his empire dies of a drug overdose.
We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks
★★★
Opens in Australia: 4th July 2013
Other Countries:
Release Information
Perth, Australia:
See at Luna Cinemas
OUR THOUGHTS
After recently viewing ‘Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God’ produced and directed by Alex Gibney, I had high hopes for his latest documentary, ‘We Steal Secrets’. WikiLeaks is a fascinating story and in viewing ‘We Steal Secrets’ I’d hoped to learn more about the headline-making, white-haired enigma Julian Assange. However, whilst it was interesting, I don’t think there was anything here we didn’t already know.
There was some insight into Bradley Manning, the analyst who leaked the super secret military documents to WikiLeaks but instead of delving deeper into Assange and Manning, there was a lot of repetitive information which filled the film out to 130 minutes.
For documentary lovers who have been on another planet and know little of WikiLeaks it will be fascinating. Although, smoothly done, afterwards I felt rather a little spun by a documentary exposition on the evils of ‘spin’.
STUDIO BLURB
Acclaimed documentarian Alex Gibney (Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room) takes the reins for this no-holds-barred look at one of the most unusual phenomena of early 21st century media. In 2006, an Iceland-based outfit called The Sunshine Press launched the website WikiLeaks.org. As run by Australian Internet activist Julian Assange, the site’s mandate involved regularly publishing top-secret documents and covert information, often regarding governments and their respective military operations. As might be expected, this set off a firestorm between those who admired the organization’s bravado and resourcefulness, and those who argued, not unjustly, that the dissemination of data regarding such events as the U.S. war in Afghanistan could put untold numbers of lives at risk. In We Steal Secrets, Gibney relays the story of the WikiLeaks website from the inside, and moves beyond black and white to penetrate a complex network of activity guided by courage and idealism but also allegedly guilty of ethical insensitivity and hypocrisy. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
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