The Casual Vacancy and Other Media

Since school started, I have consumed a limited amount of media because of schoolwork. On the first day of classes, though, I purchased and began reading my copy of JK Rowling's The Casual Vacancy. I finished literally in the last week of the quarter, and I think my main reaction is this: This is NOT Harry Potter. This book contains a lot of intrigue, insight into life in a small British town, it's very sexy, and also quite criminally-oriented. There are a lot of different types of characters, and it is certainly a tragedy. I think, opinion-wise, I'm neutral on it because I wouldn't say I hated it, but I don't think it's re-read-worthy. It's not bad, but it's not great. Read it if you want.

Other things I've read have been for class: Survivial in Auschwitz by Primo Levi, Night by Elie Wiesel, Soundless Roar by Ava Schieber, A Scrap of Time by Ida Fink, Panther in the Basement by Amos Oz, some Philip Roth, Grace Paley, and other short stories. I read Learning Like a Girl by Diana Meehan, Relentless Pursuit by Donna Foote, and Ain't No Makin It by Jay MacLeod. I also re-read An Abundance of Katherines by John Green and a few magazines. I am currently on a re-read of The Hobbit and it is awesome.

Television wise, I watched the new season of Doctor Who, and then did some Netflix watching. I watched the documentaries The Lottery and Waiting for Superman. I also watched all of Arrested Development and began How I Met Your Mother. I even re-watched Doctor Horrible, some Buffy, and some Firefly. I had to get used to Arrested Development. If I hadn't watched it all at once, I don't think I would have stuck with it because the characters are all so loathsome. It was often funny, but it's not my favorite. I like HIMYM so far, mostly because Neil Patrick Harris is awesome. And, a side note, but Firefly sounds a lot different after you know a little Chinese.

As for movies, I've only seen Skyfall this quarter, and I really liked it. I loved the canonical references and the action. It was fun to have all the elements I love in a Bond movie come together, and the performances of the actors were great. I saw The Hobbit the other night and it was pretty awesome. Everything was really pretty, the costumes were amazing, the acting was phenomenal, and the character designs were very specific and outstanding. My only critique is that there was not very much plot advancement and they probably could have done with two films instead of three. That said, I can't decide if the trilogy was a mistake until I see the next two films, and I appreciate that they wanted to take the time to tell the story as well as set up the LOTR trilogy.

I think that's it for things I've seen and read this fall. Wish there was more to talk about.

Today is awesome because I had the most wonderful Tae Kwon Do evening!