5 Minute Reviews: The Magnificent Seven

 Let the record show that Vincent D’Onofrio as Jack Horne was almost my only reason for seeing this one, and he did not disappoint. Neither did anyone else--this movie was so much fun, guys. So. Much. Fun. I’m kind of surprised by how much I ended up loving it.

 First, though, let’s go over the mediocre stuff. The villain is named Bartholomew Bogue, so it’s a miracle anyone ever took him seriously, even if he is one step away from bathing in the blood of infants. The town he invades is called Rose Creek and looks a little...shinier than I’d expect an old West mining town to look. (Then again, I’m no expert on the old West.) And if the name Bartholomew Bogue didn’t tip you off, the story is not exactly morally complex.

 None of the mediocre stuff bothered me. The plot’s predictable, but watching it I never got the feeling that anyone thought they were reinventing the wheel. It’s the predictability that lets you relax and just enjoy the characters--like I said, my favorite is Jack Horne, but I also loved Faraday (who’s played by Chris Pratt), and they’re a couple side characters who I REALLY would have loved to see more of. In a nutshell: there’s not so good stuff mixed with very good stuff, and I think the very good stuff wins out in the end. I’ll be rewatching it once the DVD comes out.

Catching Up

 Hey! It’s been a while.

Thanks to my fall semester classes, anything approaching a regular blogging schedule is off the table, but since I posted exactly once in August, a roundup is in order. Here are some of the things I’ve watched/read/done since then.

by crqsf

Pacific Rim
Saw the trailers when it first came out, made a “watch this one day” mental note to myself, finally sat down and watched it three weeks ago. I loved it. LOVED it. The jaegers, the kaiju, the hand-wavy science, the fact that everyone’s essentially one big, dysfunctional family...objectively, I get that it’s not for everyone, but I also don’t think it’s possible to hate a movie where the guy with the least ridiculous name is called Raleigh.

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Fringe
 My sister checked this out after hearing that John Noble (aka Denethor) played one of the main characters. We’re about a quarter of the way through season 1. As far as the plot goes, I’m not hooked, but I adore the relationship between Walter and Peter Bishop. They flip the traditional father-son dynamic--Peter’s forced to become the legal guardian of his not-all-there, mad scientist dad--in a way that’s both very sad and very funny.
Also watched: Pan’s Labyrinth, Horrible Bosses, The Witch, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (season 1).

The Wicked Boy

This book is nonfiction and true crime (one of my biggest guilty pleasures). It centers around the case of a 13-year-old boy living in Victorian (1890s-ish?) London, who admitted to stabbing his mother to death. It’s hard to describe why I enjoy books like this without feeling sleazy, but it basically boils down to wanting to know the motivation. It’s like reading a mystery--the main point, at least for me, isn’t figuring out who did it, but why they did it. Not that they’re many good reasons for killing your mother…

Writing
Writing has been sucking-pudding-through-a-straw slow, and I honestly don’t mind. Aside from learning how to fit it in without slacking on schoolwork, I’ve been thinking about which direction I want my next stories to take. I’ll never stop loving fantasy, but lately I haven’t been inspired to write many fantasy stories of my own. Most of my new ideas are in a more contemporary/realistic fiction vein, and I’m excited to start working on something again but also terrified that I won’t be able to pull it off. Hopefully I’ll be blogging more about this soon.

How was August, and how has September treated you so far?

MMGM: Once Upon a Crime

 In my personal ranking of ‘fantasy series you really should read’, The Sisters Grimm is right up there with The Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia. I adore these books, and Once Upon a Crime is one of the best of them all.

 Here’s the setup: After their parents mysteriously disappear, Sabrina and Daphne Grimm are forced to move to Ferryport Landing, a podunk town in upstate New York overrun by fairy tale characters. In Once Upon a Crime, they, their grandmother, the ex-Sheriff, and Mr. Canis, and old man acting as a human vessel of the Big Bad Wolf, travel to New York City. They’re searching for the kingdom of Faerie, in order to help Sabrina's sometimes friend/mostly enemy, Puck. He was injured protecting Sabrina, and only his family can heal him.

 Unfortunately, Puck’s family is even more dysfunctional than the Grimms. Before long they’re roped into solving a murder. Sabrina struggles to protect Daphne while consulting psychics and chasing suspects in a stolen subway car, but her sister is more independent than she’d like to believe. They share an extremely sarcastic, slightly mean-spirited sense of humor, which is--let’s be honest--my favorite type of humor.

“Daphne was still sound asleep, so Sabrina shook her until the little girl opened her eyes.

‘Whazzabigidea?’ Daphne grumbled.

‘Get up, we’re going to jail,’ Sabrina said, helping her out of the car.”

These books have a bit of a Roald-Dahl-type vibe to them--halfway through their murder case Sabrina and Daphne are kidnapped by pirates, then picked up by Social Services, then fostered by a just-paroled serial killer. It’d be awfully grim if it weren’t so funny, and by the end Sabrina’s more than earned her happy ending. Still, I can’t wait to read her next adventure.

What are some of your favorite middle grade books?

MMGM is hosted by Shannon Messenger. 

Publication News: "Salty Tea and the Sea"

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My selkie-inspired story, Salty Tea and the Sea, is out today. It’s a short (just under 2,000 words) piece about families reuniting, fairy tales, and, of course, tea. I’ve wanted to write a selkie story for ages, and this one couldn’t have been published in a nicer magazine. Kith Issue 03 is full of other food-themed fantasy stories, so do go check it out if you’re interested!

There’s a sense of loss, loneliness, and mystery to selkie folklore that’s always inspired me, and I hope it comes across in my own story. In hindsight, another big inspiration was Jane Yolen’s poem The Selchie’s Children’s Plaint, especially these lines: But Mama goes first, leaving us/ with only a box empty of promises/ and a cold kitchen.

You can find my story here.

Writing Resolutions 7.4.16

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* Write the stories you want to tell, not just the stories you want to read.

* Work hard and make your stories the best they can be.

* Know when to stick with it.

* Know when to quit.

* Giving up isn't always a bad thing, if you've done your best.

* Be crazy.

* Experiment.

* Have fun.

* Worldbuild.

* Pay attention to atmosphere—it's really important if you want to enjoy what you're writing.

* Check the logic of it.

* Nothing is wrong with middle grade.

* Nothing is wrong with YA.

* Nothing is wrong with any other age category/genre/tense/type of story. Do what you want.

* Your routine doesn't have to be like anyone else's.

* Productivity just for productivity's sake isn't worth it.

* WRITING IS NOT THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU WILL EVER DO.

I’m posting these here mostly so I won’t forget them. I might elaborate on a couple later, especially resolution #1, which I’ve been thinking about A LOT lately. Writing has been tough lately, but getting better.

The Birthstone Book Tag

  I stole this one from Joni. It looked way too cool to pass up.

  January - Garnet

  Name a character who you think is evil/dark

  The Governor from The Walking Dead comics is pretty much irredeemably bad (the guy could eat puppies for breakfast and it wouldn’t surprise me). Opal Koboi from the Artemis Fowl books is pure evil but also hilarious. The Beast from The Magicians is terrifying.

  February - Amethyst

  Name a book you think of as regal

  The Lord of the Rings trilogy, obviously, but also the Earthsea Cycle by Ursula K. Le Guin, especially book number three, The Farthest Shore.

  March - Aquamarine

  Name a character who you think of as weak, or as more of a follower

  My birthstone is aquamarine, so I kind of resent the “weak” implications. :) I’m going with Clover from Entwined. On first impression she is more of a follower (quiet, cripplingly shy, avoids conflict), but as the story goes on she proves herself just as strong as her sisters.

  April - Diamond

  Name a book that you love, but isn’t very well known

  Her Own Song by Ellen Howard is one of the saddest, sweetest middle grade books ever, but it’s been out of print for a while. On the plus side, you can still find cheap used copies on Amazon. It’s about a white girl growing up in the early 1900s who discovers that her first adoptive parents were Chinese.

  May - Emerald

  Name two characters who balance each other out.

  Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson from Marvel’s Daredevil comics, Bruce Wayne and Alfred Pennyworth from DC’s Batman comics, and Willy Henry and Pellinore Warthrop from the Monstrumologist series.

  June - Pearl

  Name a character who’s loyal

  Leo Demidov from Child 44.

  July - Ruby

  Name a book that aggravates you/makes your blood boil

  Not too many. I tend to be pretty laid back about most books. Charles Dickens’ treatment of most of his female characters does get on my nerves, and anything with a really strong patriarchal bent (so, some classics and a certain subset of Christian books) rubs me the wrong way.

  August - Peridot

  Name a supporting character you preferred to the main character

  I waver back and forth on whether I prefer Susan to Lucy in the Narnia books.

  September - Sapphire

  Name a book that you found to be calming.

  Reading anything by Susanna Kearsley is very relaxing.

  October - Opal

  Name a book with a pretty cover

  I ADORE this copy of Peter Pan.

  November - Topaz

  Name a book with a resilient protagonist

The first one to jump into my mind was The Outsiders. Pretty much all the main characters are resilient, in their own individual ways. S. E. Hinton’s other book, Tex, has a main character who doesn’t appear to be resilient at first, but actually is.

  December - Blue Zircon

  Name a fictional friendship you’d love to be a part of
The entire gang in The Outsiders (kind of feel like a girl would throw off the dynamic, though). Most superhero groups, but especially the batfamily. Hanging out with the Pevensies (or just C. S. Lewis) would be fantastic. Gen and Costis from The Queen of Attolia have the weirdest, most adorable bromance ever, so I wouldn’t want to intrude, but then again...