Time Traveler’s Wife Chicago Advance Screening Tickets!

Aug 032009

TTTW Poster 201x300 picture

Some time ago I read a quirky little book called “The Time Traveler’s Wife” about Henry, a ‘chronologically challenged’ Chicago librarian and his wife, Claire. I thought it was fantastic, personally.

Now, “The Time Traveler’s Wife” is being made into a movie by WarnerBrothers. It stars Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana (*sigh*) and comes out Friday, August 14th.

HOWEVER, my loyal Chicago readers do not have to wait until Friday, I have tickets to offer you to the advance screening on Tuesday, August 11th!

The first 20 people to click the link below can download up to two passes for the screening at 8 pm on Tuesday at the AMC River East at 322 E. Illinois in downtown Chicago.

If you click and find that all the tickets are gone you can check back, we may get more tickets later this week if these go quickly!

Get your screening passes here!

Unfortunately I can’t join you, because we’re getting back late that day from vacation, so I expect you all to come back and leave me comments about how you liked the movie, I’ll have to go the opening weekend.

The Seamstress – Book Review

Aug 032009

The Seamstress by Frances de Pontes Peebles

Emilia and Luczia grew up in the early part of the 20th century in the small village of Taquaritinga, Brazil with their aunt after losing both of their parents. Aunt Sofia is the seamstress for the local colonel and teaches both girls her skill. Luczia’s life is irrevocably changed when she falls out of a tree as a child. Set incorrectly, her elbow is locked, causing the arm to be difficult to use and setting her apart from others in their village, making her unmarrigeable to any of the local boys. Young adulthood shows Emilia and Luczia to be two very different people: Luczia has grown used to the freedom of being different while Emilia desires to be fashionable and get out of the interior of Brazil, to go to Recife, if not to an even bigger city.

From these attitudes, the girls’ choices pull them apart. When a cancageiro called the Hawk comes through Taquaritinga he invites Luczia to join him and his gang. As a result of the stress of losing her neice to the cancageiros and her exposure to stormy weather that night, Aunt Sofia passes away, prompting Emilia to do whatever it takes to get out of Tanquaritinga where there is no longer anything to hold her and to Recife. In their new realms, both girls end up attaining some measure of noteriety as they try to make their ways as best as they can. Although they are now living very different lives, the way they live them will begin to draw the girls back together again.

The first thing that you’ll notice about “The Seamstress” is that it is long, nearly 650 pages. Once you notice that, you may guess that it isn’t exactly jam-packed with action. Well, you’re right, it is hard to write 650 pages that are jam-packed with action. That being said, “The Seamstress” is not a book I had to slog through in the least. Rather, it was one where I would suddenly say, “Wait, did I just read 50 pages? How did that happen?” It is both a quick read and a book that had me so enthralled that I didn’t notice the passage of time until my baby reminded me of it.

I loved the characters of Emilia and Luczia and how they grew over the course of the book. I loved the storyline that de Pontes Peebles put together. Mostly, though, I loved the way that, through this book, I was immersed in pre-WWII Brazil. I fell fully into Brazilian society, understanding the challenges of the countryside and the cities and the difficulties of balance between the two. This was simply fantastic historical fiction for giving me a sense of place ant time. I hope that de Pontes Peebles writes more!

“The Seamstress” is now out in paperback, which helps the weight issue of wanting to haul a 600+ page book with you everywhere you go.

Buy this book from:
Powells.
A local independent bookseller via Indiebound.
Amazon.

Thank you to the publisher for sending me this book to review!

TSS: July 2009 Reading Wrap-Up

Aug 022009

tss picture I completed 9 books in July, which I think is pretty darn good considering I have a brand new baby in the house! I’ve only reviewed half of them so far, though. Partly because I had a few reviews that still needed to be written from before Daniel was born and partly because it is a lot easier to get reading time in than writing time. I’m going to go with the positives, though, and concentrate on the fact that I read over 3,000 pages instead of thinking of my 4 unwritten reviews. I’ve finished a total of 111 books this year, which means that even if I keep reading just 8 books per month I should be able to hit my goal for the year of 15o books.

After my list of what I read this month, you’ll find a list of the other reviews I posted, as well as some other posts from this month that might be of interest:

What I Read:

Fiction
A Secret Alchemy by Emma Darwin (this leans a little towards historical fiction, but I’m going to classify it as fiction)
In the Kitchen by Monica Ali
Only Milo by Barry Smith (review pending)
The Last Days of the Lacuna Cabal (review coming August 5th)

Historical Fiction
The Seamstress by Frances de Pontes Peebles (review coming August 3rd)

Mystery
The Big Steal by Emyl Jenkins

Nonfiction – Health
Smart Mama’s Green Guide by Jennifer Taggart

Nonfiction – Natural World
Wicked Plants by Amy Stewart

Nonfiction – Biography
American Eve by Paula Uruburu (review coming August)

Pick of the Month

I can’t really sum this book up quickly, so you will have to come back on Wednesday and read my review. Suffice to say that it is completely bizarre and I was completely enthralled.

Guest Posts:

“I Can’t Believe That Story Came Out Of Your Brain!” by Karen Harrington, author of Janeology
“Those Who Do Not Study History Are Condemned To Repeat It” by Donna Woolfolk Cross, author of Pope Joan

Book Spotlights/Discussions:

“War on the Margins” Released Today
Reading Biographies: “American Lion” – Book Spotlight
Catherine De Medici – “The Devil’s Queen” and Something I’ve Never Seen Before

What I Reviewed:

Fiction
The Blue Notebook by James Levine
The Lost Hours by Karen White
The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett

Young Adult Ficton
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Wake by Lisa McMann
Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr

Historical Fiction
The Belly Dancer by DeAnna Cameron
A Rose for the Crown by Anne Easter Smith
Sacred Hearts by Sarah Dunant
The Traitor’s Wife by Susan Higginbotham

Memoir
Expecting Adam by Martha Beck

Nonfiction – Sociology
Gang Leader for a Day by Sudhir Venkatesh

Nonfiction – History
In Triumph’s Wake by Julia Gelardi