C.K. Kelly Martin's Blog, page 16
September 4, 2012
The past is a foreign country: 80s Movies
Before I get down to my movie list I wanted to shout a quick but loud hurray! Yesterday is YA Reads Book of the Month. Head on over to read their review. I'll also be guest blogging there during the month.
Continuing on with my 80s series (see previous posts on 80s TV and intro to the 80s) today I want to focus on my favourite movies from the first half of the decade. My family bought their first VCR in 1986 and while we were fairly late in getting a machine there were plenty of other people who didn't have a videocassette recorder until then either. In the early 80s people usually watched movies in a theatre or on TV (full of commercials and usually quite awhile after a movie would've finished its theatre run). Theatre runs were also longer than they are today, probably because there was less competition from other types of entertainment which had yet to develop (videogames were in their infancy, the Internet as we know it today wouldn't be born for years to come and in Canada dedicated movie channels were brand new and had few subscribers in the early 80s).
For the first few years of the decade one of my major problems in movie-going was getting the box office clerk to sell me a ticket for movies with an AA rating while I was underage. The Canadian rating meant adult accompaniment was required for viewers under the age of 14 and was usually applied to PG-13 type material. In grades 7 and 8 I was the youngest of my friends but also the tallest and as the majority of the movies we wanted to see fell under the AA rating we'd generally slather on the makeup and try to appear as blasé as possible while approaching the ticket counter. Mostly it worked and like millions of other Canadian kids I saw oodles of AA rated movies well before I turned 14. However, some of the movies listed below I caught up with when they were shown on TV, when our VCR showed up on the scene or when my parents subscribed to the movie channel. You'll see from a few of the groupings I've done here that my top twenty list is a bit of a cheat and even with the groupings comes in at 22. But hey, there were so many movies I loved during that period that making a true top twenty list was pretty impossible. It's also important to note that this is time capsule type list�the movies from the period I would'e called my favourite then, but not necessarily now.
Top 20 + personal film favs from 1980-1985 in no particular order:
E.T. (1982, directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Henry Thomas and Drew Barrymore) This is a movie that totally wears its heart on its sleeve. I went to see the tale of a lost, Reese's Pieces loving alien at the theatre numerous times when it was originally released and I cried at E.T.'s demise on every occasion.
Gorky Park (1983, directed by Michael Apted, starring William Hurt, Joanna Pacula, Brian Dennehy, Lee Marvin and Ian Bannen) /The Big Chill (1983, directed by Lawrence Kasdan, starring William Hurt, Kevin Kline, Jeff Goldblum, Meg Tilly, JoBeth Williams and Tom Berenger)/Body Heat (1981, directed by Lawrence Kasdan, starring William Hurt and Kathleen Turner)/Altered States (1980, directed by Ken Russell, starring William Hurt and Blair Brown). You can see by this William Hurt grouping I was a big fan and if Children of a Lesser God had been made a year earlier I would've squeezed it in here too. In Gorky Park Hurt plays a Moscow police detective investigating a triple homicide. The Big Chill centres on a large group of college friends reunited for the weekend by the death of one of their friends. Body Heat sees Hurt paired with Kathleen Turner who wants him to murder her husband. The film was considered super hot in its day. Altered States, where Hurt plays a scientist conducting experiments that cause him to regress genetically was every bit as trippy as Body Heat was sexy. But personally I like it best when Hurt plays angst which puts Gorky Park at the head of the pack.
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981, directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Harrison Ford and Karen Allen). Snakes, Nazi bad guys, the Ark of the Covenant and Harrison Ford as our archeologist hero, but then, I don't really need to tell you about this movie, do I? In my opinion it remains one of the best adventure films ever made.
After Hours (1985, directed by Martin Scorsese, starring Griffin Dunne, Rosanna Arquette, Teri Garr and John Heard). Griffin Dunne plays a word-processor unlucky enough to run into Rosanne Arquette in a coffee shop one evening. Soon he's having the worst night of his life in an after-hours New York not unlike an adult version of Alice's 'Wonderland.'
Blade Runner (1982, directed by Ridley Scott, Starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer and Sean Young). It's bizarre to think this wasn't the runaway hit it should've been (a victim of bad timing, it seems, as it was released the week after E.T.) but this sci-fi thriller only looks and feels better as time goes by. Rutger Hauer, as the replicant Roy is mesmirizing, but then so is everyone in this movie, which carries with it an aura as thick as smoke but cool as granite. I'm dying to see what Ridley Scott does with the coming sequel.
The Empire Strikes Back (1980, directed by Irvin Kershner, starring Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher)/Return of the Jedi (1983, directed by Richard Marquand starring Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher) My favourite Star Wars movie remains The Empire Strikes Back. Ending on that dark note, with victory uncertain, left us all wanting more. But who can frown at celebrating Ewoks? So I couldn't leave Jedi off the list.
Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982, directed by Amy Heckerling, starring Jennifer Jason Leigh, Sean Penn, Judge Reinhold and Phoebe Cates). Most 80s teen movies were so gentle that this one about a group of California young people seems comparatively hard-edged and realistic. Sean Penn is highly entertaining as stoner Jeff Spicoli but it's Jennifer Jason Leigh's naturalistic performance that you can't take your eyes off.
Letter to Brezhnev (1985, directed by Chris Bernard, starring Peter Firth, Tracy Marshak-Nash and Alfred Molina). Endearing British romantic comedy about a working class girl who falls in love with a Soviet sailer during his one night in Liverpool. Unable to forget him she writes to Soviet leader Brezhnev asking for help in allowing them to be together.
Poltergeist (1982, directed by Tobe Hooper, starring Craig T. Nelson, JoBeth Williams and Heather O'Rourke). I first went to see this film about a family terrorized by ghosts with my own family while we were visiting California and I couldn't stop thinking about the tree behind my bedroom while lying in bed that night. And who would ever give a kid a toy clown? That's just cruel. They're creepy as hell.
This is Spinal Tap (1984, directed by Rob Reiner, starring Michael McKean, Christopher Guest and Harry Shearer). Mock documentary about a hard rock band that inspires genuine fondness for the characters while offering up classic "this one goes to eleven" moments.
The Breakfast Club (1985, directed by John Hughes, starring Emilio Estevez, Molly Ringwald, Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy and Anthony Michael Hall). If, like me, you were a teenager in the 80s there's ZERO possibility you haven't see The Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink and Sixteen Candles. But The Breakfast Club remains the best of the bunch. The five stereotypes the film throws together for morning detention may not have been as clearcut in real life but they're not total fabrications either.
Restless Natives (1985, directed by Michael Hoffman, starring Vincent Friell and Joe Mullaney). Two Scottish friends commit colourful, non-violent hold ups of tourist coaches in the highlands and become folk heroes and tourist attractions in the process. Loveable and highly entertaining.
Reckless (1984, directed by James Foley, starring Aidan Quinn and Daryl Hannah)/Desperately Seeking Susan (1985, directed by Susan Seidelman, starring Rosanna Arquette, Madonna and Aidan Quinn). The Aidan Quinn grouping! I actually did an entire blog entry on Reckless in August 09) but if you want the short version it's this: High school student Tracy (Darly Hannah) falls for Rourke (Quinn) a guy from the wrong side of the tracks. Desperately Seeking Susan sees a married suburban woman (Arquette) falling into Susan's (played by Madonna) crazy life when a conk on the head gives her amnesia. Lucky for Arquette, Madonna's life comes with an attachment to cool projectionist Dez (Quinn).
Until September (1984, directed by Richard Marquand, starring Karen Allen and Thierry Lhermitte). I haven't seen this film in yonks but at the time found the romance between exceptionally blue eyed but married Frenchman Thierry and loveable but single Karen Allen extremely charming. I'm kinda surprised they haven't remade it yet.
The Terminator (1984, directed by James Cameron, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton and Michael Biehn). With all the sequels its spawned the Terminator plot needs no explanation. While this first film now feels dated it's still a damn cool idea and the spark between Linda Hamilton and Michael Biehn feels genuine. The romance is my favourite aspect of this movie.
Legend (1985, directed by Ridley Scott, starring Tom Cruise, Mia Sara and Tim Curry). It's been so long since I've seen Legend that I'm damned if I can remember what it was about. Some fantasy whimsy about a demons, a unicorn and a fairy princess. It had a terrific vibe about it.
Little Darlings (1980, directed byRonald F. Maxwell, starring Kristy McNichol, Tatum O'Neal and Matt Dillon). Fifteen-year-olds Kirsty McNichol and Tatum O'Neal compete to lose their virginity first while at summer camp and end up feeling differently about it than they expected. What impressed me watching this as a young person was that it didn't feel as if the movie was being didactive, although it definitely has a message. Neither was it sensationlist.
The Company of Wolves (1984, directed by Neil Jordan, starring Angela Lansbury and David Warner). These interwoven tales of wolves are a visual feast and delightfully heaven on atmosphere.
Heaven Help Us (1985, directed by Michael Dinner, starring Andrew McCarthy, John Heard, Mary Stuart Masterson and Donald Sutherland)/St. Elmo's Fire (1985, directed by Joel Schumacher, starring Demi Moore, Rob Lowe, Andrew McCarthy, Emilio Estevez, Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy and Mare Winningham/ Class (1983, directed by, starring Rob Lowe, Jacqueline Bisset and Andrew McCarthy). The Andrew MCarthy grouping. Like with William Hurt, I prefer Andrew McCarthy when he's playing angsty which he does frequently in these movies about 1) a boy's prep school 2) a group of fresh-out-of-college friends and 3) an innocent prep school boy who falls into an affair with a sophisticated older woman who just happens to be his roommate's mother.
Romancing the Stone (1984, directed by Robert Zemeckis, starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner) The chemistry between the two leads makes this picture about a romance writer drawn to Columbia where she meets rough around the edges Douglas. Pure fluff, but plenty enjoyable.
The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984, directed by W.D. Richter, starring Peter Weller, John Lithgow, Ellen Barkin and Jeff Goldblum)/Firstborn (1984, directed by Michael Apted, starring Peter Weller, Teri Garr, Christopher Collet and Cory Haim)/Of Unknown Origin (1983, directed by George P. Cosmatos, starring Peter Weller and Jennifer Dale)/Shoot the Moon (1982, directed by Alan Parker, starring Albert Finney, Diane Keaton, Karen Allen, Peter Weller). The Peter Weller group! These three films have nothing in common aside from Weller's coolness. He's at his coolest as Buckaroo Banzai, an almost Doctor Who like figure that battles evil alien invaders. In Of Unknown Origin he fights a different foe, rats that infest his townhouse. But in Firstborn it's Weller who's the bad guy, dragging Teri Garr into a destructive lifestyle and forcing her young son to take action.
The World According to Garp (1982, directed by George Roy Hill, starring Robin Williams, Glenn Close, Mary Beth Hurt and John Lithgow). My first introduction to John Irving's writing was via this film where Robin Williams offers a wonderful performance as the gentle but flawed Garp, son of one-of-a-kind nurse Jenny. The World According to Garp has such a warmth and perceptiveness about people that I couldn't grasp in its entirety when I first saw the movie, being as young as I was. But I knew enough to know I loved it.
Other notable movies from 1980-85:
Gandhi (1982), Back to the Future (1985), Witness (1985), The Right Stuff (1983), Ghostbusters (1984), The Road Warrior (1981), Tron (1982), Footloose (1984), Flashdance (1983), Fame (1980), Gremlins (1984), Time Bandits (1981) Superman II (1980), War Games (1984), Excalibur (1981), The Jewel of the Nile (1985), Blue Lagoon (1980), The Shining (1980), National Lampoons Vacation (1983), A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), Amadeus (1984), The Color Purple (1985), Ordinary People (1980), Tootise (1982), The Killing Fields (1984), Out of Africa (1985), Scarface (1983), The Outsiders (1983), Gregory's Girl (1981)
Continuing on with my 80s series (see previous posts on 80s TV and intro to the 80s) today I want to focus on my favourite movies from the first half of the decade. My family bought their first VCR in 1986 and while we were fairly late in getting a machine there were plenty of other people who didn't have a videocassette recorder until then either. In the early 80s people usually watched movies in a theatre or on TV (full of commercials and usually quite awhile after a movie would've finished its theatre run). Theatre runs were also longer than they are today, probably because there was less competition from other types of entertainment which had yet to develop (videogames were in their infancy, the Internet as we know it today wouldn't be born for years to come and in Canada dedicated movie channels were brand new and had few subscribers in the early 80s).
For the first few years of the decade one of my major problems in movie-going was getting the box office clerk to sell me a ticket for movies with an AA rating while I was underage. The Canadian rating meant adult accompaniment was required for viewers under the age of 14 and was usually applied to PG-13 type material. In grades 7 and 8 I was the youngest of my friends but also the tallest and as the majority of the movies we wanted to see fell under the AA rating we'd generally slather on the makeup and try to appear as blasé as possible while approaching the ticket counter. Mostly it worked and like millions of other Canadian kids I saw oodles of AA rated movies well before I turned 14. However, some of the movies listed below I caught up with when they were shown on TV, when our VCR showed up on the scene or when my parents subscribed to the movie channel. You'll see from a few of the groupings I've done here that my top twenty list is a bit of a cheat and even with the groupings comes in at 22. But hey, there were so many movies I loved during that period that making a true top twenty list was pretty impossible. It's also important to note that this is time capsule type list�the movies from the period I would'e called my favourite then, but not necessarily now.
Top 20 + personal film favs from 1980-1985 in no particular order:
E.T. (1982, directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Henry Thomas and Drew Barrymore) This is a movie that totally wears its heart on its sleeve. I went to see the tale of a lost, Reese's Pieces loving alien at the theatre numerous times when it was originally released and I cried at E.T.'s demise on every occasion.
Gorky Park (1983, directed by Michael Apted, starring William Hurt, Joanna Pacula, Brian Dennehy, Lee Marvin and Ian Bannen) /The Big Chill (1983, directed by Lawrence Kasdan, starring William Hurt, Kevin Kline, Jeff Goldblum, Meg Tilly, JoBeth Williams and Tom Berenger)/Body Heat (1981, directed by Lawrence Kasdan, starring William Hurt and Kathleen Turner)/Altered States (1980, directed by Ken Russell, starring William Hurt and Blair Brown). You can see by this William Hurt grouping I was a big fan and if Children of a Lesser God had been made a year earlier I would've squeezed it in here too. In Gorky Park Hurt plays a Moscow police detective investigating a triple homicide. The Big Chill centres on a large group of college friends reunited for the weekend by the death of one of their friends. Body Heat sees Hurt paired with Kathleen Turner who wants him to murder her husband. The film was considered super hot in its day. Altered States, where Hurt plays a scientist conducting experiments that cause him to regress genetically was every bit as trippy as Body Heat was sexy. But personally I like it best when Hurt plays angst which puts Gorky Park at the head of the pack.
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981, directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Harrison Ford and Karen Allen). Snakes, Nazi bad guys, the Ark of the Covenant and Harrison Ford as our archeologist hero, but then, I don't really need to tell you about this movie, do I? In my opinion it remains one of the best adventure films ever made.
After Hours (1985, directed by Martin Scorsese, starring Griffin Dunne, Rosanna Arquette, Teri Garr and John Heard). Griffin Dunne plays a word-processor unlucky enough to run into Rosanne Arquette in a coffee shop one evening. Soon he's having the worst night of his life in an after-hours New York not unlike an adult version of Alice's 'Wonderland.'
Blade Runner (1982, directed by Ridley Scott, Starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer and Sean Young). It's bizarre to think this wasn't the runaway hit it should've been (a victim of bad timing, it seems, as it was released the week after E.T.) but this sci-fi thriller only looks and feels better as time goes by. Rutger Hauer, as the replicant Roy is mesmirizing, but then so is everyone in this movie, which carries with it an aura as thick as smoke but cool as granite. I'm dying to see what Ridley Scott does with the coming sequel.
The Empire Strikes Back (1980, directed by Irvin Kershner, starring Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher)/Return of the Jedi (1983, directed by Richard Marquand starring Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher) My favourite Star Wars movie remains The Empire Strikes Back. Ending on that dark note, with victory uncertain, left us all wanting more. But who can frown at celebrating Ewoks? So I couldn't leave Jedi off the list.
Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982, directed by Amy Heckerling, starring Jennifer Jason Leigh, Sean Penn, Judge Reinhold and Phoebe Cates). Most 80s teen movies were so gentle that this one about a group of California young people seems comparatively hard-edged and realistic. Sean Penn is highly entertaining as stoner Jeff Spicoli but it's Jennifer Jason Leigh's naturalistic performance that you can't take your eyes off.
Letter to Brezhnev (1985, directed by Chris Bernard, starring Peter Firth, Tracy Marshak-Nash and Alfred Molina). Endearing British romantic comedy about a working class girl who falls in love with a Soviet sailer during his one night in Liverpool. Unable to forget him she writes to Soviet leader Brezhnev asking for help in allowing them to be together.
Poltergeist (1982, directed by Tobe Hooper, starring Craig T. Nelson, JoBeth Williams and Heather O'Rourke). I first went to see this film about a family terrorized by ghosts with my own family while we were visiting California and I couldn't stop thinking about the tree behind my bedroom while lying in bed that night. And who would ever give a kid a toy clown? That's just cruel. They're creepy as hell.
This is Spinal Tap (1984, directed by Rob Reiner, starring Michael McKean, Christopher Guest and Harry Shearer). Mock documentary about a hard rock band that inspires genuine fondness for the characters while offering up classic "this one goes to eleven" moments.
The Breakfast Club (1985, directed by John Hughes, starring Emilio Estevez, Molly Ringwald, Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy and Anthony Michael Hall). If, like me, you were a teenager in the 80s there's ZERO possibility you haven't see The Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink and Sixteen Candles. But The Breakfast Club remains the best of the bunch. The five stereotypes the film throws together for morning detention may not have been as clearcut in real life but they're not total fabrications either.
Restless Natives (1985, directed by Michael Hoffman, starring Vincent Friell and Joe Mullaney). Two Scottish friends commit colourful, non-violent hold ups of tourist coaches in the highlands and become folk heroes and tourist attractions in the process. Loveable and highly entertaining.
Reckless (1984, directed by James Foley, starring Aidan Quinn and Daryl Hannah)/Desperately Seeking Susan (1985, directed by Susan Seidelman, starring Rosanna Arquette, Madonna and Aidan Quinn). The Aidan Quinn grouping! I actually did an entire blog entry on Reckless in August 09) but if you want the short version it's this: High school student Tracy (Darly Hannah) falls for Rourke (Quinn) a guy from the wrong side of the tracks. Desperately Seeking Susan sees a married suburban woman (Arquette) falling into Susan's (played by Madonna) crazy life when a conk on the head gives her amnesia. Lucky for Arquette, Madonna's life comes with an attachment to cool projectionist Dez (Quinn).
Until September (1984, directed by Richard Marquand, starring Karen Allen and Thierry Lhermitte). I haven't seen this film in yonks but at the time found the romance between exceptionally blue eyed but married Frenchman Thierry and loveable but single Karen Allen extremely charming. I'm kinda surprised they haven't remade it yet.
The Terminator (1984, directed by James Cameron, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton and Michael Biehn). With all the sequels its spawned the Terminator plot needs no explanation. While this first film now feels dated it's still a damn cool idea and the spark between Linda Hamilton and Michael Biehn feels genuine. The romance is my favourite aspect of this movie.
Legend (1985, directed by Ridley Scott, starring Tom Cruise, Mia Sara and Tim Curry). It's been so long since I've seen Legend that I'm damned if I can remember what it was about. Some fantasy whimsy about a demons, a unicorn and a fairy princess. It had a terrific vibe about it.
Little Darlings (1980, directed byRonald F. Maxwell, starring Kristy McNichol, Tatum O'Neal and Matt Dillon). Fifteen-year-olds Kirsty McNichol and Tatum O'Neal compete to lose their virginity first while at summer camp and end up feeling differently about it than they expected. What impressed me watching this as a young person was that it didn't feel as if the movie was being didactive, although it definitely has a message. Neither was it sensationlist.
The Company of Wolves (1984, directed by Neil Jordan, starring Angela Lansbury and David Warner). These interwoven tales of wolves are a visual feast and delightfully heaven on atmosphere.
Heaven Help Us (1985, directed by Michael Dinner, starring Andrew McCarthy, John Heard, Mary Stuart Masterson and Donald Sutherland)/St. Elmo's Fire (1985, directed by Joel Schumacher, starring Demi Moore, Rob Lowe, Andrew McCarthy, Emilio Estevez, Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy and Mare Winningham/ Class (1983, directed by, starring Rob Lowe, Jacqueline Bisset and Andrew McCarthy). The Andrew MCarthy grouping. Like with William Hurt, I prefer Andrew McCarthy when he's playing angsty which he does frequently in these movies about 1) a boy's prep school 2) a group of fresh-out-of-college friends and 3) an innocent prep school boy who falls into an affair with a sophisticated older woman who just happens to be his roommate's mother.
Romancing the Stone (1984, directed by Robert Zemeckis, starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner) The chemistry between the two leads makes this picture about a romance writer drawn to Columbia where she meets rough around the edges Douglas. Pure fluff, but plenty enjoyable.
The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984, directed by W.D. Richter, starring Peter Weller, John Lithgow, Ellen Barkin and Jeff Goldblum)/Firstborn (1984, directed by Michael Apted, starring Peter Weller, Teri Garr, Christopher Collet and Cory Haim)/Of Unknown Origin (1983, directed by George P. Cosmatos, starring Peter Weller and Jennifer Dale)/Shoot the Moon (1982, directed by Alan Parker, starring Albert Finney, Diane Keaton, Karen Allen, Peter Weller). The Peter Weller group! These three films have nothing in common aside from Weller's coolness. He's at his coolest as Buckaroo Banzai, an almost Doctor Who like figure that battles evil alien invaders. In Of Unknown Origin he fights a different foe, rats that infest his townhouse. But in Firstborn it's Weller who's the bad guy, dragging Teri Garr into a destructive lifestyle and forcing her young son to take action.
The World According to Garp (1982, directed by George Roy Hill, starring Robin Williams, Glenn Close, Mary Beth Hurt and John Lithgow). My first introduction to John Irving's writing was via this film where Robin Williams offers a wonderful performance as the gentle but flawed Garp, son of one-of-a-kind nurse Jenny. The World According to Garp has such a warmth and perceptiveness about people that I couldn't grasp in its entirety when I first saw the movie, being as young as I was. But I knew enough to know I loved it.
Other notable movies from 1980-85:
Gandhi (1982), Back to the Future (1985), Witness (1985), The Right Stuff (1983), Ghostbusters (1984), The Road Warrior (1981), Tron (1982), Footloose (1984), Flashdance (1983), Fame (1980), Gremlins (1984), Time Bandits (1981) Superman II (1980), War Games (1984), Excalibur (1981), The Jewel of the Nile (1985), Blue Lagoon (1980), The Shining (1980), National Lampoons Vacation (1983), A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), Amadeus (1984), The Color Purple (1985), Ordinary People (1980), Tootise (1982), The Killing Fields (1984), Out of Africa (1985), Scarface (1983), The Outsiders (1983), Gregory's Girl (1981)
August 30, 2012
Yesterday Blog Tour
Many thanks to Lindsey over at Random House Canada for assembling the upcoming Yesterday blog tour! Also BIG thanks to the terrific Canadian bloggers taking part for their cool guest blog ideas and questions. Here's the final tour schedule:
Diary of a Bookworm September 23 Just a lil' Lost September 24 Mermaid Visions September 25 Evie Bookish September 26 Midnight Bloom Reads September 27 Book Nerd September 28 I hope you'll drop by one of the stops and say hello. I'll be the tall woman in Doc Martens nursing a Coca-Cola. About a week ago I received my first hardcover copy of Yesterday and it's so stunning that I can still hardly believe, whenever I lay eyes on it, that it's not some cool sci-film directed by Sofia Coppola (I know she hasn't directed a sci-fi movie yet but I can always dream an adaptation of my book will be the one!) but my very own novel. Thank you, Nicole De Las Heras, for this this beautiful looking book! With the release right around the corner, on September 25th, I was inspired to re-design the website to match up with the novel and create double-sided (because My Beating Teenage Heart has it's paperback release on the same day) bookmarks to be used in giveaways and stuff. Also because, let's face it, I have way too much designing this stuff to consider NOT doing it.
As for my next blog post here, that will be posted early next week and I'll be talking about my favourite movies from the early 80s. The following post will cover technology and toys from the 80s and I'm saving favourite music for last but here's a peek�Such A Shame, from Talk Talk's second album, It's My Life (1984).
To this day I regret never seeing Talk Talk play live and I'm still pretty much convinced from here to 2063 that there was no one cooler in the 80s than Talk Talk lead singer Mark Hollis.
Many thanks to Lindsey over at Random House ...
Many thanks to Lindsey over at Random House Canada for assembling the upcoming Yesterday blog tour! Also BIG thanks to the terrific Canadian bloggers taking part for their cool guest blog ideas and questions. Here's the final tour schedule:
Diary of a Bookworm September 23 Just a lil' Lost September 24 Mermaid Visions September 25 Evie Bookish September 26 Midnight Bloom Reads September 27 Book Nerd September 28 I hope you'll drop by one of the stops and say hello. I'll be the tall woman in Doc Martens nursing a Coca-Cola. About a week ago I received my first hardcover copy of Yesterday and it's so stunning that I can still hardly believe, whenever I lay eyes on it, that it's not some cool sci-film directed by Sofia Coppola (I know she hasn't directed a sci-fi movie yet but I can always dream an adaptation of my book will be the one!) but my very own novel. Thank you, Nicole De Las Heras, for this this beautiful looking book! With the release right around the corner, on September 25th, I was inspired to re-design the website to match up with the novel and create double-sided (because My Beating Teenage Heart has it's paperback release on the same day) bookmarks to be used in giveaways and stuff. Also because, let's face it, I have way too much designing this stuff to consider NOT doing it.
As for my next blog post here, that will be posted early next week and I'll be talking about my favourite movies from the early 80s. The following post will cover technology and toys from the 80s and I'm saving favourite music for last but here's a peek�Such A Shame, from Talk Talk's second album, It's My Life (1984).
To this day I regret never seeing Talk Talk play live and I'm still pretty much convinced from here to 2063 that there was no one cooler in the 80s than Talk Talk lead singer Mark Hollis.
August 24, 2012
The past is a foreign country: 80s TV
First, if you want a chance to win a copy of Yesterday head on over to Xpresso Reads and drop your name in the hat. Now, following on from my intro to the 80s post, it's time to delve into some of my favourite shows from the first part of the decade. This is all stuff that Freya might've run into while flicking channels (with the monster-sized corded remote that was in use at the time). Because this post is focusing on the 80s I'm leaving out all the 50s-70s repeats I would've watched in the 80s, but they made up a lot of my viewing then too (I have to admit that to this day I love watching Theodore Cleaver's antics in Leave It to Beaver).Back then the TV environment was very different from today and most popular shows were on the three big networks ABC, CBS and NBC (Fox didn't launch until fall 1986). Here are my most-loved shows from 1980-1985, in no particular order, with some notes on each.
Simon and Simon (weekly primetime show)
Sort of like a detective version of The Odd Couple but featuring two brothers who run a detective agency together (also sort of like Supernatural without the demons!). Rick was the freewheeling one with the cowboy hat and A.J. was his strait-laced younger brother. So big a fan of the show was I that I wrote the program asking for a signed photo and actors Gerald McRaney and Jameson Parker obliged. While I quite liked them both I had a definite JP crush at the time.
City Limits (Fridays & Saturdays from around 12:30 to dawn)
Only Canadians of a certain age will remember this classic video show hosted by Chris Ward. It ran for about five hours through the night, and starting at around fifteen years old I would park myself in front of City Limits for as many hours as I could keep my eyes open. This was pre-MuchMusic, which started in the summer of 1984, so at the time City Limits was the closest thing we had to MTV but also somehow cooler because its late timeslot made it seem almost like a secret. Broadcaster and songwriter Christopher Ward hosted and City Limits is where Mike Myers character Wayne Campbell first appeared. Mike used to drop by City Limits as his alter ego. Sadly I couldn't find one existing clip of the show to link to or embed.
Three's Company (weekly primetime show)
Remake of British sitcom Man about the House. Premise: Aspiring chef Jack Tripper pretends to be gay so his uptight landlord won't mind him living with two cute women his own age. Silly as that sounds (although most sitcoms sound pretty silly anyway!) John Ritter's easy charm made the show loveable.
The Equalizer (weekly primetime show)
Edward Woodward has such a steely vibe that he was perfectly believable as Robert McCall a retired intelligence officer who has turned to directly helping civilians for free. I see this as an ancestor of today's Person of Interest. They're even both set in New York.
Late Night with David Letterman (Mondays to Thursdays from 12:30 - 1:30)
The first time I saw Letterman I was sleeping over at a friend's house and her older sister happened to be a fan. When Late Night began in 82 it was way past my bedtime so it wasn't until I was about fifteen that I was able to catch it myself and even then it was somewhat of a rarity (my school insisted on starting in the morning!) but for several years whenever I was in a crappy mood just tuning in to Late Night would set me right. It was funny in a way that I'd never seen before at the time, as well as being another show that almost felt like a secret by virtue of its timeslot. Check out this clip of rival:
Family Ties (weekly primetime show)
This family oriented sitcom ran from 1982-1989. A left-wing couple bring up their ultra-conservative son (played by Michael J. Fox) alongside their two daughters. Mostly the show was played for laughs but it had its serious side, tackling issues like drug abuse, racism, alcoholism and suicide.
General Hospital (Monday - Friday, 3-4PM)
One of my favourite General Hospital storylines included secret agent Robert Scorpio and an arch-villain's evil plot to build a weather machine capable of creating something called "carbonic snow" which could be used to freeze the world (I swear I'm not making this up! It was an actual GH plot in '81). Here Scorpio finds kidnapped love interest Holly.
But I started watching around about the time of Luke and Laura's romance and was just as entranced by it as everyone else. Now I'm appalled that show ever developed a romance between the two considering Luke had actually raped Laura two years earlier. Disturbing, harmful and incredibly insensitive - this is exactly the kind of attitude that fuels rape.
You can hear the Luke character admit his crime to his sister, Bobbie, here:
Kate & Allie (weekly primetime show)
Two divorced long-time friends move share a house and raise their kids together which seemed like somewhat of a novel arrangement at the time. Divorce really only became common in North America during the 70s and 80s. I confess I barely remember any specifics about the show, except that the characters were likeable.
St. Elsewhere (weekly primetime show)
My mom and I were totally devoted to this angsty medical drama that ran from 82 - 88. It was both realistic and emotional in a way which most 80s shows just weren't, and featured a strong cast including Denzel Washington, Bruce Greenwood, David Morse, Mark Harmon and Ed Begley Jr. No surprise that later my mom and I both became devotees of E.R. too! My heart still melts a little at the sound of the St. Elsewhere opening credits tune.
The New Music (weekly show, Saturday night?) Canadian cutting edge magazine style show about music that started in 1979 and was eventually incorporated into MuchMusic in what evolved into a less interesting tone and format. In the 80s I considered host Daniel Richler the epitome of cool (I even list him as one of my heroes in the school yearbook). I still have his autograph somewhere along with 1985's anti-drug slogan: "Stay alive in 85". Below you can see him interview the band Cabaret Voltaire around the 1:12 mark:
August 19, 2012
The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there
To celebrate Yesterday's release, in the run-up to September 25th I'll be blogging about the early 80s (1980-1985). Just like Yesterday's main character, Freya, I was sixteen in 1985 and if you were a teenager then too, these blog entries will be a trip down memory lane, back to the days of new wave music and the glory of Atari. If you weren't around for the early 80s, welcome to the time before cell phones you could fit in your pocket and the Internet as we know it today! This first post is an introduction to the period and will give you an idea (or remind you) what was happing culturally and politically during that time. Ready? Let's get started.
1980
* The arcade game PacMan is released in Japan in May and then in October in the U.S.A. sparking PacMan mania in 1981.
* John Lennon is assassinated in New York City.
* Ted Turner establishes CNN, the first all news TV service.
* The Rubik's Cube gains worldwide popularity.
* The world population is 4,434,682,000.
* In 1980 the average new house in the U.S. costs $68,714., the average U.S. income per year is $19,170 and a gallon of gas costs $1.19.
* Terry Fox launches his Marathon of Hope, a cross-Canada run to raise money for cancer research.
1981
* An assassination attempt is made on U.S. President Reagan.
* AIDS is first recognized by the CDC: five men in Los Angeles have a rare form of pneumonia seen only in patients with weakened immune systems.
* IBM introduces Personal Computers (PC).
* After fourteen months, fifty-two American hostages are released, ending the Iran hostage crisis, within minutes of Ronald Reagan succeeding Jimmy Carter as the President of the United States.
* Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer are married at St Paul's Cathedral in London drawing a global TV audience of over 700 million people.
* On August 1st the 24 hour a day music television station MTV is launched on cable television in the U.S.
* The first launch of a space shuttle (Columbia) occurs.
* Luke and Laura get married on TV soap General Hospital. Their wedding becomes the second most watched in history.
1982
* Argentina invades the Falkland Islands.
* Michael Jackson releases Thriller which sells 20 million copies making it the largest selling album up to that time.
* The Vietnam War Memorial opens in Washington, DC.
* Prince William is born in West London.
* Sony launches the first consumer compact disc player.
* The Commodore 64 PC is released.
* Time Magazine names the computer its man of the year.
* The first artificial heart transplant takes place, the receipent lives 112 days.
* The Toyota Camry is introduced.
1983
* The popularity of Cabbage Patch Kids causes a Christmas shopping frenzy in the U.S.
* Camcorders are introduced.
* President Reagan announces a defense intiative to intercept enemy missiles, a plan which becomes popularly known as "Star Wars."
* The first flight of the Space Shuttle Challenger occurs in April. Several months later Sally Ride becomes the first American woman in space.
* A Provisional IRA bomb kills 6 Christmas shoppers and injures 90 outside Harrods in London.
* McDonald's introduces the McNugget.
1984
* The PG-13 Movie rating is created.
* The Apple Macintosh is introduced and swells the ranks of new computer users.
* The Space Shuttle Discovery lands after its maiden voyage.
* Stonewashed jeans are introduced.
* Famine in Ethiopia begins, killing a million people by the end of the year.
* Crack, a smokeable form of cocaine, is first introduced in the LA area and soon spreads across the U.S.
* Canadian Music TV station MuchMusic launches on August 31.
* Novelist William Gibson coins the term cyberspace in his book Neuromancer.
1985
* Continuing famine in Ethiopia prompts the Live Aid Rock Concerts in London and Philadelphia which raise over $600M for famine relief.
* The Hole in the ozone layer, first detected in 1977, is now indisputable.
* Mikhail Gorbachev becomes the last president of the Soviet Union.
* New Coke hits the Market, flops and is quickly replaced with Coke Classic ( the original formula).
* The wreck of the Titanic is discovered.
* The first Nintendo home entertainment system is introduced.
* Leaded gas is officially banned in the US.
And that, in a nutshell, was the first half of the 80's, the backdrop of events against which we all lived our lives from 1980 - 1985. Next time I'll be talking about my personal favourite TV shows from the period. Future posts will also cover music, movies and favourite technology/toys from the era. In the meantime, if you need more 80s in a hurry check out my post on my blast from the past vacation in 1981. Don't miss the photos!
August 13, 2012
My Beating Teenage Heart: child of the universe edition
I've seldom been so happy to see the back of a summer month as I was when August hit. July outright sucked on multiple levels. But so far August has been a breath of fresh air (thank you, universe!)and not just because our air conditioning was finally, finally fixed after twenty-seven days. So many things started to look up after July bit the dust that I thought there must have been some major astrological shift going on in my chart (not that I really believe in that, but sometimes you have to wonder...).
Anyway, with the release of Yesterday just around the corner I plan to do some blogging about the 80s in August and Septembermusic, technology, movies and TV, that sort of thing. I was sixteen in 1985 like Yesterday's main character, Freya, and there are times I wish I could go back for a visit and see how close some my rose-coloured glasses memories of the place are to the truth.
I also want to celebrate the same-day (September 25th) paperback release of My Beating Teenage Heart. You may remember that the hardcover looked like this:
Pretty creepy and atmospheric. The main thing the paperback cover has in common with its predecessor is that there's a a close-up of the girl on the cover. But the vibe of it is markedly different, I think. The paperback screams child of the universe which is pretty damn cool. And though I'm not one for faces on covers (I much prefer to imagine what a character looks like) I think this, thankfully, still leaves much of Ashlyn's appearance to imagination. I love its vibrancy.
Before last September's hardcover release of My Beating Teenage Heart I wrote a brief essay for Amazon which somehow got lost in the shuffle and was never posted, but that I'd like to share with you now:
The kind of books I love to write are solidly rooted in reality, books that focus on ordinary young people living ordinary lives but who are at a point in their lives where whatever is happening to them feels anything but ordinary. They've lost their best friend because of a line that's been crossed. They've been the victim of violence and as a result have lost their sense of trust and well-being. They've fallen in love but have been unable to hold on to it. None of these things are unusual experiences, but they matter; people's emotional lives matter. We're not just the things we do or the things that happen to uswe're how we feel about those things.
When it came to writing My Beating Teenage Heart, I wanted to write the sort of book I've described above. But after penning many YA manuscripts that were strictly contemporary in nature (three of which have already seen the light of day), I also wanted to try something a little different.
So I wrote a story about two teenage characters, Breckon and Ashlyn, whose lives are intertwined, although they don't actually know each other. Breckon is grieving the death of his younger sister and holds himself responsible for her death to the extent that it's tearing him apart inside. Meanwhile, Ashlyn, when she becomes aware of her own existence, is a consciousness without a body, at first falling through a sea of stars and then completely tethered to a boy who is oblivious to her presence. Ashlyn sees everything Breckon does. She becomes his constant witness and has no idea why. In fact, she has only the most basic inkling of who she is and initially she wants nothing more than to be free of Breckon and his anguish.
I approached My Beating Teenage Heart as though it were based in reality, the same way I did with my previous books. While the situation is out of the ordinary (at least as far as our understanding of life goes), at heart it's very much the story of two teenagers' emotional lives. I hope reading the details of Breckon and Ashlyn's story makes you care about how they feel about things they've done and the things that have happened to themthat would mean I've done right by them.
Anyway, with the release of Yesterday just around the corner I plan to do some blogging about the 80s in August and Septembermusic, technology, movies and TV, that sort of thing. I was sixteen in 1985 like Yesterday's main character, Freya, and there are times I wish I could go back for a visit and see how close some my rose-coloured glasses memories of the place are to the truth.
I also want to celebrate the same-day (September 25th) paperback release of My Beating Teenage Heart. You may remember that the hardcover looked like this:
Pretty creepy and atmospheric. The main thing the paperback cover has in common with its predecessor is that there's a a close-up of the girl on the cover. But the vibe of it is markedly different, I think. The paperback screams child of the universe which is pretty damn cool. And though I'm not one for faces on covers (I much prefer to imagine what a character looks like) I think this, thankfully, still leaves much of Ashlyn's appearance to imagination. I love its vibrancy.
Before last September's hardcover release of My Beating Teenage Heart I wrote a brief essay for Amazon which somehow got lost in the shuffle and was never posted, but that I'd like to share with you now:
The kind of books I love to write are solidly rooted in reality, books that focus on ordinary young people living ordinary lives but who are at a point in their lives where whatever is happening to them feels anything but ordinary. They've lost their best friend because of a line that's been crossed. They've been the victim of violence and as a result have lost their sense of trust and well-being. They've fallen in love but have been unable to hold on to it. None of these things are unusual experiences, but they matter; people's emotional lives matter. We're not just the things we do or the things that happen to uswe're how we feel about those things.
When it came to writing My Beating Teenage Heart, I wanted to write the sort of book I've described above. But after penning many YA manuscripts that were strictly contemporary in nature (three of which have already seen the light of day), I also wanted to try something a little different.
So I wrote a story about two teenage characters, Breckon and Ashlyn, whose lives are intertwined, although they don't actually know each other. Breckon is grieving the death of his younger sister and holds himself responsible for her death to the extent that it's tearing him apart inside. Meanwhile, Ashlyn, when she becomes aware of her own existence, is a consciousness without a body, at first falling through a sea of stars and then completely tethered to a boy who is oblivious to her presence. Ashlyn sees everything Breckon does. She becomes his constant witness and has no idea why. In fact, she has only the most basic inkling of who she is and initially she wants nothing more than to be free of Breckon and his anguish.
I approached My Beating Teenage Heart as though it were based in reality, the same way I did with my previous books. While the situation is out of the ordinary (at least as far as our understanding of life goes), at heart it's very much the story of two teenagers' emotional lives. I hope reading the details of Breckon and Ashlyn's story makes you care about how they feel about things they've done and the things that have happened to themthat would mean I've done right by them.
July 30, 2012
Summer Hot & Cold
As you may or may not have noticed it's been awhile since I've been on the blog. It's been a hell of a summer and not in a good way. The Dublin/London vacation was terrific but before and after, not so much. There've been several personal things going on behind the scenes that have made life trying, and a couple of less personal things that have thrown my schedule entirely out of whack. One of the main issues is that we've been without working air conditioning for over three weeks at this point. If we had a house we'd no doubt be spending most of our time hanging out in the basement where it'd be cooler but since we live in an apartment that soaks up the sun like a sponge there's not much coolness to be found!
Did you know that even turning on lights and running fans sends the temperature up a degree or two? As a result we've been doing a lot of flapping around in the dark like bats, which isn't actually as entertaining as the new Batman movie (I know this because I went to see it yesterday and loved it), but I digress.
Seventeen short months ago, in February 2011, our old heat pump/AC unit bit the dust and was replaced so to be dealing with a complete breakdown so soon again is no fun. In fact, the lack of air conditioning in a July heatwave is significantly less fun than the lack of heating in February because, like I said, this place sucks in and retains warmth like nobody's business. I mean, if holding on to heat were an Olympic sport my apartment would be in the running for a gold medal.
We now have a portable unit cooling the bedroom but the rest of the place gets pretty darn sweaty by early afternoon and cooking is a thing of the past. First thing every morning and last thing every night, when the outside air is finally fresher, we try to cool the apartment down as much as possible because God knows how roasting it would get in here otherwise. We've also been spending as much time out of the apartment as possible—at the movies, the mall, the library, my parents' respective houses etc. Needless to say I'm not getting a heck of a lot done and I still don't know when the heat pump/AC unit will be fixed. The company that handles the manufacturer's warranty have hauled it off to the shop to get to the heart of the problem and in the meantime it's continually degrees of toasty and ick.
Now, how one picks up a cold (or whatever exactly it is that I have) in the middle of such a warm July, I don't know, but I've somehow managed to accomplish it. For almost two weeks I've been slinking around my icky hot apartment (plus the mall, the movies, etc.) with tissues and lozenges, coughing and sneezing miserably.
While it's too late to make a long story short I will say that this summer has been rotten. So personally, I would like to be granted a do-over for the season. Or, to wake up tomorrow and for it to be September 1st. I don't know who I have to apply to in order to accomplish this but if you have the name of someone who can swing it, please forward me their contact details ASAP.
Yours in sickness and humidy,
C.K.
Did you know that even turning on lights and running fans sends the temperature up a degree or two? As a result we've been doing a lot of flapping around in the dark like bats, which isn't actually as entertaining as the new Batman movie (I know this because I went to see it yesterday and loved it), but I digress.
Seventeen short months ago, in February 2011, our old heat pump/AC unit bit the dust and was replaced so to be dealing with a complete breakdown so soon again is no fun. In fact, the lack of air conditioning in a July heatwave is significantly less fun than the lack of heating in February because, like I said, this place sucks in and retains warmth like nobody's business. I mean, if holding on to heat were an Olympic sport my apartment would be in the running for a gold medal.
We now have a portable unit cooling the bedroom but the rest of the place gets pretty darn sweaty by early afternoon and cooking is a thing of the past. First thing every morning and last thing every night, when the outside air is finally fresher, we try to cool the apartment down as much as possible because God knows how roasting it would get in here otherwise. We've also been spending as much time out of the apartment as possible—at the movies, the mall, the library, my parents' respective houses etc. Needless to say I'm not getting a heck of a lot done and I still don't know when the heat pump/AC unit will be fixed. The company that handles the manufacturer's warranty have hauled it off to the shop to get to the heart of the problem and in the meantime it's continually degrees of toasty and ick.
Now, how one picks up a cold (or whatever exactly it is that I have) in the middle of such a warm July, I don't know, but I've somehow managed to accomplish it. For almost two weeks I've been slinking around my icky hot apartment (plus the mall, the movies, etc.) with tissues and lozenges, coughing and sneezing miserably.
While it's too late to make a long story short I will say that this summer has been rotten. So personally, I would like to be granted a do-over for the season. Or, to wake up tomorrow and for it to be September 1st. I don't know who I have to apply to in order to accomplish this but if you have the name of someone who can swing it, please forward me their contact details ASAP.
Yours in sickness and humidy,
C.K.
July 9, 2012
The Books of Summer
For the last couple of weeks I've been meaning to write a blog entry about recent YA books I'd highly recommend and I'm not letting another day get by me without talking up Never Enough (by Denise Jaden), This is Not a Test (by Courtney Summers) and Happy Families (by Tanita S. Davis).
I was lucky to read Denise Jaden's newest offering several months ago and at that time this is the blurb I wrote for it. “A poignant, important book, Never Enough tackles self-esteem and body image issues while always remaining true to its three-dimensional characters. Denise Jaden has created a cliche-free zone filled with hurt, heart, and personal strength. Jaden's tender sympathy for her characters and dedication to honest storytelling shine through every page.”
A couple of weeks ago Denise posted a blog entry about the sex in Never Enough and her trepidation about how others might react to it which is definitely worth a read. Never Enough is above all realistic about the lives of contemporary girls and the issues they face—self-esteem/social pressure to meet physical ideals and expressions of sexuality that they may feel drawn to in some ways but which can also fall very short of meeting their romantic or sexual ideals. Girls deserve books like Never Enough which are brave enough to reflect their world as it is and not how we wish it to be. I don't think there's ever been a time in history where girls have been under as much pressure to meet unrealistic standards of physical beauty. Back in 2010 a British GirlGuiding poll found found 50% of those aged 16 to 21 would consider having surgery to change their looks. In the United States alone 5 - 10 million women and girls suffer from anorexia and/or bulimia. So this is the society that Loann and her older Claire are growing up in.
One of the other things I loved about this book was the complexity of Loann and Claire's relationship. Initially Loann envies and almost idolizes Claire but as Claire's battle with an eating disorder grows ever more serious, feelings of responsbility and worry for Claire make Loann seem more like the older sister. Never Enough comes out tomorrow and if you love realistic contemporary YA books as much as I do you'll want to add this warm, sensitive and very true to life novel to your collection.
To coincide with the release of the book Denise has put together this self-esteem video of authors talking about how they didn't feel good enough as teens:
Interestingly, Courtney Summers latest book This is Not a Test begins like an intriguing family drama so initially seems as if it could inhabit some of the same territory as either Never Enough or Happy Families. Sloane's been left alone with her abusive father by older sister Lily, who was her constant emotional support. Essentially Sloane's a broken girl in a broken family for all of four pages and then...then the entire world breaks.
The drama unfolds at a gallop and Sloane's fight for a survival is sometimes bloody, sometimes more of a psychological game than a physical one and often plain luck—a luck Sloane, in her damaged condition, almost resents. Courtney Summers assembles a diverse group of high school students that survive—at least for a time— the zombie outbreak along with Sloane. Here Summers's incisive talent for detailing completely natural, often painful teen interactions that refuse to bow to any stereotypes is at its height.
The incessant tension—a perfect mixtue of Sloane's psychological torment at being abandoned by her sister and the physical threat presented by zombies, literally at the door—makes this my favourite Courtney Summers book yet. The two elements feed into each other to create a deliciously bruising concoction. There are so many moments where we feel Sloane's loss more acutely than we feel the fear of a world gone mad, only to be throttled back into matters of life and death. Clear Eyes, Full Shelves posted a wonderful review of This is Not a Test today. In it they likened its feel to that of the Australian classic series Tomorrow, When the War Began (a series I adore and spoke about on the Wrtiers Read blog), a very apt comparison as both books revel in character insight and development where lesser stories would've allowed the action to overwhelm the story.
As a side note this book has been optioned by Sony for a possible TV movie and I'd love to see what they do with it!
Last but not least I want to rave about Tanita S. Davis's new YA novel, Happy Families (recent interview with her where she discusses Happy Families up at The Happy Nappy Bookseller). In the Before section of the book twins Ysabel and Justin do indeed seem to be part of a happy family complete with two supportive parents and no pressing issues in sight. It's the unseen things which are the heart of the problem and in this case Ysabel and Justin's father wants to begin living his life as a woman. Does this mean Ysabel and Justin will have no father, they wonder? And how will their church and friends react?
I've never encountered a book that dealt with this subject matter from the point of view of the children it affects before, and I love that Tanita does no sensationalizing in this book. Twins Ysbael and Justin are both down to earth, well-centred kids and their parents are thoughtful responsible people. That doesn't mean everyone deals with the situation effortlessly and there are outbursts, awkward exchanges and adjustments to be made. I really felt for everyone involved because there's no wrong side here, just a complicated issue brought about the false gender binary that society imposes upon people.
I have to add that the tantalizing way Tanita Davis writes about food had me drooling nearly as much here as in her very first book, A La Carte, about aspiring seventeen-year-old chef Lainey. I hope all three of these books find the wide readership they deserve.
I was lucky to read Denise Jaden's newest offering several months ago and at that time this is the blurb I wrote for it. “A poignant, important book, Never Enough tackles self-esteem and body image issues while always remaining true to its three-dimensional characters. Denise Jaden has created a cliche-free zone filled with hurt, heart, and personal strength. Jaden's tender sympathy for her characters and dedication to honest storytelling shine through every page.”
A couple of weeks ago Denise posted a blog entry about the sex in Never Enough and her trepidation about how others might react to it which is definitely worth a read. Never Enough is above all realistic about the lives of contemporary girls and the issues they face—self-esteem/social pressure to meet physical ideals and expressions of sexuality that they may feel drawn to in some ways but which can also fall very short of meeting their romantic or sexual ideals. Girls deserve books like Never Enough which are brave enough to reflect their world as it is and not how we wish it to be. I don't think there's ever been a time in history where girls have been under as much pressure to meet unrealistic standards of physical beauty. Back in 2010 a British GirlGuiding poll found found 50% of those aged 16 to 21 would consider having surgery to change their looks. In the United States alone 5 - 10 million women and girls suffer from anorexia and/or bulimia. So this is the society that Loann and her older Claire are growing up in.
One of the other things I loved about this book was the complexity of Loann and Claire's relationship. Initially Loann envies and almost idolizes Claire but as Claire's battle with an eating disorder grows ever more serious, feelings of responsbility and worry for Claire make Loann seem more like the older sister. Never Enough comes out tomorrow and if you love realistic contemporary YA books as much as I do you'll want to add this warm, sensitive and very true to life novel to your collection.
To coincide with the release of the book Denise has put together this self-esteem video of authors talking about how they didn't feel good enough as teens:
Interestingly, Courtney Summers latest book This is Not a Test begins like an intriguing family drama so initially seems as if it could inhabit some of the same territory as either Never Enough or Happy Families. Sloane's been left alone with her abusive father by older sister Lily, who was her constant emotional support. Essentially Sloane's a broken girl in a broken family for all of four pages and then...then the entire world breaks.
The drama unfolds at a gallop and Sloane's fight for a survival is sometimes bloody, sometimes more of a psychological game than a physical one and often plain luck—a luck Sloane, in her damaged condition, almost resents. Courtney Summers assembles a diverse group of high school students that survive—at least for a time— the zombie outbreak along with Sloane. Here Summers's incisive talent for detailing completely natural, often painful teen interactions that refuse to bow to any stereotypes is at its height.
The incessant tension—a perfect mixtue of Sloane's psychological torment at being abandoned by her sister and the physical threat presented by zombies, literally at the door—makes this my favourite Courtney Summers book yet. The two elements feed into each other to create a deliciously bruising concoction. There are so many moments where we feel Sloane's loss more acutely than we feel the fear of a world gone mad, only to be throttled back into matters of life and death. Clear Eyes, Full Shelves posted a wonderful review of This is Not a Test today. In it they likened its feel to that of the Australian classic series Tomorrow, When the War Began (a series I adore and spoke about on the Wrtiers Read blog), a very apt comparison as both books revel in character insight and development where lesser stories would've allowed the action to overwhelm the story.
As a side note this book has been optioned by Sony for a possible TV movie and I'd love to see what they do with it!
Last but not least I want to rave about Tanita S. Davis's new YA novel, Happy Families (recent interview with her where she discusses Happy Families up at The Happy Nappy Bookseller). In the Before section of the book twins Ysabel and Justin do indeed seem to be part of a happy family complete with two supportive parents and no pressing issues in sight. It's the unseen things which are the heart of the problem and in this case Ysabel and Justin's father wants to begin living his life as a woman. Does this mean Ysabel and Justin will have no father, they wonder? And how will their church and friends react?
I've never encountered a book that dealt with this subject matter from the point of view of the children it affects before, and I love that Tanita does no sensationalizing in this book. Twins Ysbael and Justin are both down to earth, well-centred kids and their parents are thoughtful responsible people. That doesn't mean everyone deals with the situation effortlessly and there are outbursts, awkward exchanges and adjustments to be made. I really felt for everyone involved because there's no wrong side here, just a complicated issue brought about the false gender binary that society imposes upon people.
I have to add that the tantalizing way Tanita Davis writes about food had me drooling nearly as much here as in her very first book, A La Carte, about aspiring seventeen-year-old chef Lainey. I hope all three of these books find the wide readership they deserve.
July 1, 2012
Yesterday Trailer: Oh, Canada
This is going to be a mighty short entry because there's lots to do today including the Spain vs. Italy match (which I'll be watching later), writing (I hope!) and Canada Day celebrations. But for months I've been chomping at the bit to put up the Yesterday trailer and now that Random House Canada's posted it to their Book Lounge YouTube channel, it's gone public. Hurrah!
The irony that I'm posting a trailer about a book where there is no more Canada on Canada Day doesn't escape me. In Yesterday this is just one of many, many things that's wrong with the future and I fervently hope that never comes to pass. During the last few years, though, it's become increasingly obvious that we have to fight if we want to keep this country something that we can be proud of—fight the small-minded people that want to stamp on our civil liberties and destroy our natural environment, fight to keep our healthcare and education systems strong, fight the ever-growing divide between the rich and the poor. The future is far from assured and that "stand on guard" sentiment has to be more than something we just pay lip service to. Canada Day is a celebration, to be sure. It should also be a battle cry.
The irony that I'm posting a trailer about a book where there is no more Canada on Canada Day doesn't escape me. In Yesterday this is just one of many, many things that's wrong with the future and I fervently hope that never comes to pass. During the last few years, though, it's become increasingly obvious that we have to fight if we want to keep this country something that we can be proud of—fight the small-minded people that want to stamp on our civil liberties and destroy our natural environment, fight to keep our healthcare and education systems strong, fight the ever-growing divide between the rich and the poor. The future is far from assured and that "stand on guard" sentiment has to be more than something we just pay lip service to. Canada Day is a celebration, to be sure. It should also be a battle cry.
June 30, 2012
Come See About Me: Giveaway, New Review & New Website
How did nearly two weeks elapse without me posting to my blog? I'm so behind on...well, tons of things. But a few things have happened recently that I really want to mention. For one, I've created a brand new website for Come See About Me. Unsurprisingly it's called Come See About Me.com and I've started posting snippets of blog reviews of the novel there. You can also download the first seven chapters in pdf form and there's an extras page with a playlist and setting photos of Oakville (where Leah spends most of her time during the book). It's a gorgeous town and I'm not just saying that because I live there, but I do feel extremely lucky, on an almost daily basis, to be here.
Secondly, yesterday Stacked posted a wonderfully insightful, detailed review of Come See About Me up that makes me feel like I've done something right (Thank you, Kelly!). Here's the chunk that I put up on my review page:
Thirdly, I'm over at A Tapestry of Words talking about Come See About Me and "New Adult" fiction and giving away several copies of the book including a signed paperback. So drop on over for a chance to win! A Tapestry of Words also has a fantastic "New Adult" reading challenge running right through to the end of 2012. My interest in reading and writing about young characters doesn't end with high school graduation and I'm sure other people feel similarly so it's great to see books about young people who are at a more independent stage in their lives finally getting some limelight. Right now I'm in the middle of reading Nick Earl's Bachelor Kisses (three characters in their mid-twenties share a house in Brisbane) and recently finished Blake Nelson's Girl sequel, Dream School. With a bit of a boom in "New Adult" fiction currently going on I look forward to checking out more titles.
Finally, some Yesterday news. I've posted the prologue and first chapter of Yesterday on the website. For research purposes I had to spend a hell of a lot of time listening to 80s radio stations while writing this book and I have to confess that some days there was a fog of nostalgia in my apartment so thick that I could almost forget that I'm living in the twenty-first century. The 80s just feels so close in my head (how I miss my old Atari! and how well I remember my excitement at finally getting a VCR in 1986!) and when Paddy and I went to see Rock of Ages last week inside I was singing along to every song. I guess you never forget the lines to the hit songs from your youth, even when they're as silly as: "Pour some sugar on me." I was more into new wave than hard rock in the 80s but I enjoyed alot of the rock stuff too and there's nothing like a a great rendition of Here I Go Again or Cum on Feel the Noize to convince a person that going big with their hair and pouring themselves into skintight red leather pants is a good idea.
Anyway, the other thing about Yesterday is that I've had the trailer ready for months but I'm finally posting it tomorrow on CANADA DAY. So you can check my website or blog and find it on either place. Happy Canada Day weekend to all my fellow Canadians, no matter where you may be! I wish you much barbecue goodness and fun firework displays.
Secondly, yesterday Stacked posted a wonderfully insightful, detailed review of Come See About Me up that makes me feel like I've done something right (Thank you, Kelly!). Here's the chunk that I put up on my review page:
“There's a very fragile balance of being on your own for the first time and learning that...you're not as shielded from pain as you think you are. It's that last part that will make this book appealing to both older teens who are mature enough to handle the intimacy aspect, and it's this very last part that will make this book appealing to adults, as well...Martin's book is the real deal and will appeal to those who like contemporary fiction, strong characters, emotionally powerful stories, and who enjoy their sex steamy.”
Thirdly, I'm over at A Tapestry of Words talking about Come See About Me and "New Adult" fiction and giving away several copies of the book including a signed paperback. So drop on over for a chance to win! A Tapestry of Words also has a fantastic "New Adult" reading challenge running right through to the end of 2012. My interest in reading and writing about young characters doesn't end with high school graduation and I'm sure other people feel similarly so it's great to see books about young people who are at a more independent stage in their lives finally getting some limelight. Right now I'm in the middle of reading Nick Earl's Bachelor Kisses (three characters in their mid-twenties share a house in Brisbane) and recently finished Blake Nelson's Girl sequel, Dream School. With a bit of a boom in "New Adult" fiction currently going on I look forward to checking out more titles. Finally, some Yesterday news. I've posted the prologue and first chapter of Yesterday on the website. For research purposes I had to spend a hell of a lot of time listening to 80s radio stations while writing this book and I have to confess that some days there was a fog of nostalgia in my apartment so thick that I could almost forget that I'm living in the twenty-first century. The 80s just feels so close in my head (how I miss my old Atari! and how well I remember my excitement at finally getting a VCR in 1986!) and when Paddy and I went to see Rock of Ages last week inside I was singing along to every song. I guess you never forget the lines to the hit songs from your youth, even when they're as silly as: "Pour some sugar on me." I was more into new wave than hard rock in the 80s but I enjoyed alot of the rock stuff too and there's nothing like a a great rendition of Here I Go Again or Cum on Feel the Noize to convince a person that going big with their hair and pouring themselves into skintight red leather pants is a good idea.
Anyway, the other thing about Yesterday is that I've had the trailer ready for months but I'm finally posting it tomorrow on CANADA DAY. So you can check my website or blog and find it on either place. Happy Canada Day weekend to all my fellow Canadians, no matter where you may be! I wish you much barbecue goodness and fun firework displays.
