Quarantine Watch List

We're not only big readers - we all enjoy narratives through television and movie as well! Here are some of the things we've been watching recently.

Rebecca T: I just finished a grand rewatch of all 4 of the Hunger Games movies. I reread the book and then rewatched the movie and I was really blown away by how faithful the movies are to the books - there are whole sections of dialogue lifted straight from the books! Obviously, there are a lot of things missing. That's just what happens with movie adaptations. But these are some of my favorite and, in my opinion, some of the best done book to screen adaptations. Now I'm ready to read The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes!

rachelyons: I discovered Chopped was on Hulu so I’ve been watching approximately 20 hours of it per day.

Jenn N: I have been watching a DVD box set of Cagney & Lacey gifted to me by my boyfriend. When I was a kid my mom was on a bowling league on Monday nights. For some reason I always wanted to stay up and watch Cagney & Lacey which came on at 10pm. My dad only allowed me to watch the opening credits before going to bed. The show holds a special fondness in my heart of a simpler time. I caught a rerun on an obscure cable channel a few weeks ago. It was awesome. Extremely well written, engaging and still relevant and relatable despite the passage of time. My boyfriend then surprised me by sending me the box set of the complete series to subdue the quarantine blues.
 
Melanie:
I'm watching Ugly Betty for the first time.
 
Alan:
In the last week, I've completely caught up on
Better Call Saul
The Good Place
Forged in Fire
Brockmire
I'm halfway through book 5 of 5 in Chris Fox's Void Wraith series. That's about 40 hours on Audible.

Now I'm sifting through Naked and Afraid, looking for unwatched episodes, while my wife and I are waiting for the new season of Dead to Me.

Albert:
Upload on Amazon, Also, I am catching up on Ru Paul's Drag Race.

NaomiRuth:
I just finished watching Bryan Fuller's Wonderfalls. I am planning on re-watching the first season of American Gods next.

What We're Currently Reading

Hey everybody, we're back like Backstreet, LOL!! Here is the first of what we hope to be many blog posts as we endeavor to relaunch our blog.



I thought we'd keep it simple by checking in to see what everyone has been reading lately.


I have been on an Greek Tragedy kick, so I'm reading through The Complete Greek Tragedies Volume III: Euripides. The collection includes different translators, some of whom I like and some of whom I do not. (I'm not a huge fan of Richard Lattimore, for whatever reason. I did enjoy William Arrowsmith's "Heracles.") I am currently reading "Helen." I love reading the plays that connect with the House of Atreus and all of the drama and angst that invariably happens. All the drama. All of it.

Strange Weather by Joe Hill. I’ve been in a bit of  a reading funk lately, and his books have never failed to suck me right in. This one is no exception. It’s a book of 4 novellas, and one of the stories was so deliciously horrible that it ruined my entire day.

The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie. I am also in a bit of a reading rut and her books always help me get back into it.










The Centurion's Wife by Davis Bunn & Janette Oke. I've been working my way alphabetically through the books on my Nook and this one was up next! It's about a slave in Pilate's house who is betrothed to a Centurion who has been tasked to track down the truth around Jesus' death. 

My daughter and I are reading Nancy Clancy: Super Sleuth by Jane O'Connor.  It's an early reader book featuring an older Nancy from the Fancy Nancy picture books. 

Basic Economics: 5th Edition, by Thomas Sowell.

Why? Self education. 










Danielle C. is reading Real Men Howl by Celia Kyle and Marina Maddix. It's pretty good so far has some elements that I haven't seen before which is nice.

Albert is reading The Vegetarian by Han Kang.  It had great reviews.

Stacey is reading Into the Water by Paula Hawkins. I was shopping at Barnes & Noble, and then went to grab a coffee at the cafe and relax a bit with a book, and it caught my eye so I added it to my "to be read" list on my phone. My sweet boyfriend went back and grabbed it for me.

I’m currently reading When Life Gives You Lululemons by Lauren Weisberger. It's the second sequel to The Devil Wears Prada. It’s focused on Emily who is now in PR and she’s hilarious. 








What about you?  What are you reading?  Share with us!

Give Thanks

There is just a few days left before Thanksgiving!  Are you ready?  I still haven't gotten the green beans for the casserole or more importantly the wine!  However, the most important part of the holiday is to remember to celebrate and be thankful for your blessings in life.  I polled the BWOBNY crew to see what they're most thankful for.

Albert is thankful "love."

Eileen gives thanks for her family, friends and her job, despite the crazy times there.  She is also thankful for books and her Borders family.

Jess B. is thankful for "her family, friends, and Gutenberg for inventing the printing press."

Jess P. gives thanks for her friends and family, especially her healthy baby girl.


Mallory is thankful for her family and friends.

Naomi reflected, "Is it bad that my first thought was not family and friends but, books and stuffed socks that look like wombats? I'm also grateful for my family and the friends that let me rub their heads and eat their chocolate. AND I'm grateful that I will finally graduate next January in the year 2014. Huzzah!"

Rachel gives thanks for "my family, the beard, Luna (my cat), cats in general, friends, and books!" 

Rebecca is thankful for her friends and family plus... "I'm also grateful for my jobs. Even if they drive me crazy at times, I love teaching and I love being able to work around books regularly and I love going to school full time. My life is full, but in a good way! And I'm grateful for the people that put up with my craziness."



Stacey gives thanks for "Love. My adorable nephew. Becoming closer with my sister this past year. And of course the freedom to read anything my special heart desires."

Finally, I'm thankful to be surrounded by my friends and family this Thanksgiving.  I'm grateful to be able to feast and watch Muppet movies with my grandparents again.  I'm also thankful for my adorable cat, and all my friends and family who have helped and supported my movie project, this blog, and my endless ideas." 




What about you guys?  What are you thankful for?  Please share with us.  Happy Thanksgiving!

 

We Got the Beat

In addition to books, we also sold a lot of music at Borders.  It was my job to set up the new music displays each week and often the current popular music baffled me.  Other than Lady GaGa, I can't think of a current artist who I really enjoy.  I decided to find out what the BWOBNY crew likes to listen to and we'd love to hear from you as well.

 
Alan rocks out to the legendary Queen and AC/DC. 

Albert enjoys the band NOFX, which he calls "a classic."

Jennifer P. kicks it up to Gaelic Storm, Nightwish, and Christina Perri.

Naomi likes to mix it up with Switchfoot, We Were Promised Jetpacks, and Of Monsters and Men but her favorites change depending on her mood. 

Rachel, who often brought her favorite mix-tapes (CDs) to play in the store has many favorites including: Bright Eyes, Pickwick, The Black Keys, M. Ward, My Morning Jacket, Coheed and Cambria, Feist, Fleet Foxes, The Dear Hunter, and Kimbra.

Rebecca meanwhile taps her foot to the sounds of Christian rock band Mercy Me. 

I'm obsessed with 80's bands especially Duran Duran, The Go-Go's and Berlin.  I also love British rocker Robbie Williams.  






What tunes are you guys interested in?  Please share with us!

Go Fourth and Read Great Books !

Sorry to post so late but I just spent a wonderful day in nearby Goshen, NY at there annual, Great American Weekend to celebrate the Fourth of July holiday.  It is a wonderful event full of crafts, antiques, and yummy goodies.  The hot-dogs and baked good sold the Goshen United Methodist Church are simply the best I've ever had.  If you're in our neck of the woods tomorrow, stop by.  You won't be disappointed.

Now I'm back at home with a stomach full of delicious goodies and fireworks are going off at the nearby racetrack.  In the midst of all the festivity, it's important to stop and appreciate the true meaning of this holiday.  July 4th is Independence Day.  It's a day to remember the adoption of the Declaration of the Independence on July 4th, 1776 and celebrate the freedom and privilege that came with it.  I polled my fellow bloggers to see what works of literature, other than the Declaration of Independence, celebrates American Patriotism to them. 

Jennifer P. and Jessica P. both agree on the summer reading classic, "Johnny Tremain." The children's novel follows fourteen year old Tremain, a newpaper delivery boy and messenger to the Sons of Liberty in the days leading up to the American Revolution.

Meanwhile, Albert recommends "Johnny Got His Gun," by Dalton Trumbo which is the story of young American soldier's horrifying experiences in World War I.

Rachel suggested the John Steinbeck depression-era classic, "The Grapes of Wrath," and the "Felicity" stories by Valerie Tripp from the "American Girl" collection.  The series follows young Felicity Merriman as she grows up in Williamsburg, VA during the years 1774-1776.

Finally, I think anyone looking for a great historical, patriotic read should check out any one of David McCullough's works.  He won the Pulitzer Prize for "1776," is certainly a perfect read for the holiday.





Now we'd like to hear from our readers.  What book celebrates American Patriotism to you?

Summer Reading

As the school year begins to come to a close and summer rolls in, an event beloved by some and dreaded by others looms ahead; Assigned Summer Reading.  At Borders we worked hard to try and get the reading lists and the books on them for numerous schools in the region.  Some schools had very strict assignments that required the students to all read 2 or 3 specific titles others had very broad lists and allowed the students to choose 2 or 3 books from that list.

When I was in high school our school required all classes to read 3 books of their choosing and we were tested on them in early September.  We also had to keep a journal as we read where we were to summarize the chapters and note our thoughts on what we read.  Despite being an avid reader, I dreaded summer reading.  I wanted to read what I chose to read.  I found the assigned reading boring and the need to keep a journal monotonous.  One of the worst books I had to read was "Lord of the Flies," by William Golding.  I don't understand what a teenage girl was to learn from a group of boys who went wild after being stranded on a deserted island.  You can mock Sweet Valley High all you want but the series is full of life lessons; if you do drugs, you'll die; if you stay out all night with a boy, you'll get a bad reputation; if you drink and drive, someone is going to get hurt or killed.  Every summer I put off my assignment until the last minute and read my favorite reads all summer long.

However, after I polled my fellow bloggers, I found not everyone shared my experience.  KC loved "Lord of the Flies," and actually asked her teacher if she could go past the page limit on her assigned paper to make additional arguments.  Her other favorites included "Siddhartha" by Herman Hesse and "Miss Lonelyhearts," a novella.

Mallory had to read an assigned book every year and then write a paper on it.  She still remembers "The Red Scarf Girl," by Ji-Li Jiang.  She was amazed by the story of the horrors this young girl experienced in her life.

Rachel looked forward to summer reading and often got the assignment done early.  She found "The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck to be vivid and beautifully written. I  Like KC she also loved "Siddhartha" as well as"A Separate Peace," by John Knowles, and "The Catcher in the Rye," by J.D. Salinger.

I had to read "The Good Earth" in my freshman year of high school and I struggled to get through it.  I thought it was really boring.  I'll have to have Rachel enlighten me the next time I see her.  Jess P. and Albert had the type of summer reading assignment that I wanted, none !

Jess P. went to a school that didn't have an assigned summer reading list so she spent the summer reading what she loved such as books by Beverly Cleary and Ann M. Martin's "The Baby-Sitters Club." series.

Meanwhile Albert spent his summer days reading every "Goosebumps" book by R.L. Stine that he could get his hands on.

When I wasn't in Sweet Valley, or Stoneybrook with "The Baby-Sitters Club," I could be found not too far from Albert, over on "Fear Street," R.L. Stine's other hit series.  The "Fear Street" story, "Lights Out," is still one of my all time favorites.

So what about you?  What kind of summer reading assignments did you have?  Or, are there any teachers out there who could share what kind of summer reading assignments they give?  If so, what do you hope your students gain from the assignment?  Share with us !

What's Your Pleasure

There the books you're embarrassed to admit you like. You enjoy them but feel others will mock you for liking it.  They're guilty pleasures.  I'm sure everyone has one or several !  Here are some of our book guilty pleasures.

"Thirst" by Christopher Pike is "so cheesy" to Albert that he's embarrassed that he likes it so much.

Claire says her guilty pleasure is "The Little House on the Prairie" series, both the older and newer entries in the series.  Really Claire? That's not at all embarrassing, what are you hiding? 

Eileen, a self proclaimed nerd, loves learning new words and thus the dictionary is her guilty pleasure.

Rachel loves humor books like "Stuff White People Like," by Christian Lander or "F My Life," by Maxime Valette.  That's not that embarrassing either, being in "The People of Wal-Mart" by Andrew book that Rachel has laughed over though would be. 

Rebecca, loves to indulge with the Privilege series by Kate Brian. She says, "Adriana is the perfect psychopath!"  I agree with her and I feel a little guilty now for introducing her to this series about a crazed but loveable boarding school socialite who will stop at nothing-even murder-to get her way.

However, I'm don't feel guilty for liking "Privilege" or, "Private," the series it spun off of.  I am embarrassed to admit that I can't put down the "Fifty Shades," novels.  I read the first as a lark, which I reviewed here and I just got the sequel on Friday and I have almost finished it.  I can't get enough of the over the top romance, ridiculous over used phrases and laughable dialogue.  I think my friend Jen, is right in her comparison of "Fifty Shades" to the ultimate cult film and my film guilty pleasure "The Room."  For more on that, read here.



Now, please share your dirty little book secret with us.  There really should be no shame in enjoying a book no matter how cheesy or laughable.  So don't be shy, share !