Category: TV

Tidy Tidbits: Reading & Viewing

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RECENT READING

Mayes & husband (Walter.com)

Women in Sunlight by Frances Mayes

With the publication in 1996 of Under the Tuscan Sun, Frances Mayes shone a spotlight on one of the lovely Italian hill towns in Tuscany.  Since then, “her” town of Cortona has become a tourist attraction, and she has milked the area and her life there for several other nonfiction books.   I read Under the Tuscan Sun when it first came out and then, several other books by Mayes.  

Fast forward, and around 2003, I hosted Mayes at Lehigh University for a Friends of the Libraries event.  Last month, the Chief Penguin and I spent several very pleasant days in Cortona sitting in the main square, dining around, and soaking up the architecture and the history.  For all these reasons, I was keen to read Women in Sunlight, Mayes’ new novel.

At heart, I’d say Mayes is much more of an essayist/memoirist and poet than she is a novelist.  This book features a writer, Kit, in her 40’s who lives in Tuscany, and three senior women, who rent an old villa and become her neighbors.  The women are new friends from North Carolina who met while visiting a retirement community in Chapel Hill.  One is an artist, another has a green thumb, and the third is a seasoned traveler and organizer.  Camille, Susan, and Julia are all single, and each is recovering from loss of a spouse through death or desertion.  Over the course of a year, they bond with one another and with Kit, become acquainted with the townspeople, and have their horizons expanded through more travel.

Much of the novel reads like a travelogue.  Mayes deftly paints word pictures of the beautiful surroundings and mouthwatering descriptions of meals and food in general.  Except for Kit, I found the other women somewhat diffuse and not well distinguished one from another.  Also, Kit’s focus or wandering attention to writing her memoir of her friend Margaret was a distraction and didn’t enrich the plot.  

Overall, this was a mixed reading experience.  I liked aspects of the book and was curious enough about how the women evolved to read to the end with a bit of skimming here and there.  (~JWFarrington)

VIEWING

Lessons in Chemistry (Apple TV+)

Mad & her mother (Entertainment Weekly)

I loved Bonnie Garmus’ novel, Lessons in Chemistry, as did everyone in my book group.  I wondered if it could be translated into a successful series, and I’m pleased to say it has been.

Garmus was involved in this production, and the series is exceedingly well cast.  Brie Larson as chemist and later TV star Elizabeth Zott is spot on, and Lewis Pullman as scientist Calvin Evans has the right combination of indifference, fierce dedication, and hidden charm.  Child actress Alice Halsey plays the delightfully idiosyncratic Madeline, Zott’s daughter.  

Set in 1950 and into the early 1960’s, the series showcases women’s second class status (some might say third) outside the home with pathos and humor.  Elizabeth is smart and determined, but subject to blatant sexism and belittlement.  Nonetheless, she is a force to be reckoned with, and despite many obstacles, she perseveres. 

There are 8 episodes in total with new episodes being released weekly through November 24.  The first two episodes are free.  

All the Light We Cannot See (Netflix)

Marie & her father (Netflix)

The Chief Penguin and I have watched the first two episodes of this four-part mini-series.  Based on Anthony Doerr’s novel with the same title, it’s intense and powerful.  I must admit that it’s been too long since I read the novel to be able to assess how closely the series hews to the book. Whether or not you’re familiar with the book, this story of young blind French broadcaster Marie, and Werner, a misfit Nazi radio operator in occupied coastal France (Saint-Malo, to be precise) is compelling and will quickly draw you in.  It also demonstrates the staying power of a voice on the radio.

As a side note, last year the CP and I visited St. Malo, walked this once walled city, and and climbed up to its ramparts overlooking the mouth of the Rance River.  Recommended!

The Sommerdahl Murders, Season 4 (Acorn)

Dan & the principals including Josefine (Rotten Tomatoes)

The Chief Penguin and I have enjoyed the earlier seasons of this Danish crime series, and this latest one held our interest also.  The triangle of crime solvers and best friends Dan Sommerdahl, Flemming Torp, and Marianne Sommerdahl (Dan’s ex-wife) is complicated by Dan’s new love interest, Josefine Sundby.  The crimes are intriguing, and always lingering in the background is puzzlement about what fishmonger Oscar is hiding.  There are eight episodes, each an hour long, and most crimes are dealt with in 2 parts. Recommended!

Note: Header photo is in town square, Cortona, Italy, ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved.)

Tidy Tidbits: Reading & Watching

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FAMILY DYNAMICS IN FICTION

Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

Author Patchett (NEH)

Ann Patchett’s latest book is just out and it’s a good one.  Part of it is built around Thornton Wilder’s Our Town, long a staple of high school English classes.  When I was that age and we read Wilder’s play, I thought it tedious and mostly boring.  Later in life, I saw several stage productions and liked it somewhat more.  Recently, the Asolo Repertory Theater in Sarasota presented it and, it was wonderful!  Whether it was age (mine) or the quality of the performance, I felt like I appreciated the play fully for the first time.

In Tom Lake, Lara, in a dreamlike way, slowly unwinds for her three adult daughters, the long-ago story of her brief career in summer stock and her love for now famous actor Peter Duke.  She played the role of Emily in Our Town and another part in Fool for Love.  Duke, older than Lara, is magnetic, attractive, and enamored of her, but perhaps not all he seems.  With his steady reliable brother Sebastian and Lara’s dancer colleague Pallace, they make a foursome for swimming and tennis.  Throughout, Lara tells her daughters more than she ever has about that summer, unspooling the events slowly, keeping them in suspense, but also holding back some memories too painful to divulge.  

Set against the pandemic and the family’s cherry orchard in northern Michigan, Emily, Maisie, and Nell eagerly gobble up the details of their mother’s experiences interspersed with bouts of cherry picking.  It’s a novel of young love, friendships made and ruptured, the lure of the stage, and the quiet joy of a stable marriage.  

Lara played the role of Emily in Our Town in high school and then was sought out for Tom Lake.  it’s helpful, but not essential, to be familiar with the play.  Knowing it enriched the reading for me. With three sisters and a cherry orchard that soaks up hours and dollars, there are faint echoes of Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard.  

Without a lot of fuss, Patchett captures what it was like during the pandemic when time was suspended.  These three young women, a farmer, a vet in training, and an aspiring actress, are “trapped” on the farm helping out their parents since their workers have left.  I liked this novel the more I got into it with its slight twists and ended up loving it.  Recommended!  (~JWFarrington)

A MEMOIR OF LOVE MIDST ILLNESS

Left on Tenth:  A Second Chance at Life by Delia Ephron

Delia & Peter (NYPost)

More people probably know about Nora Ephron, Delia’s more famous novelist sister who died of acute leukemia in 2012.  Delia Ephron is also a novelist and playwright.  When Delia’s first husband died of cancer several years after her sister’s death, she never expected to find love again and so soon.  She and Peter Rutter got together quickly; he a psychiatrist, she a writer who had forgotten about dating him in a much earlier stage of life.  

There is joy in this memoir and pain and fear when Delia develops leukemia, her sister’s disease.  Hers is a variation. The medical sections of this memoir are not for the fainthearted, but Delia’s path was smoothed and made more bearable by the legions of friends from all stages of her life and the unending encouraging support of new husband Peter.  It’s a bracing, fast-paced, involving story, and if you have the courage for it, it’s well worth it.  I read it in a day!  (~JWFarrington)

RECENT VIEWING

The Empress (Netflix)

Franz & Elisabeth (ComingSoon.net)

A historical German drama, The Empress is about the making of Empress Elisabeth of Austria. In 1863, Elisabeth and her mother and sister Helene travel to meet the young Emperor Franz Joseph. Helene is expected to become the emperor’s bride. Instead Franz Joseph selects the unruly and rebellious Elisabeth.

Thus begins a battle of wills. Battles between Elisabeth and her mother-in-law Sophie who is accustomed to wielding all the power, between Elisabeth and Maximillian, Franz’s disruptive, but seductive younger brother, and between Elisabeth and Franz as she chafes against filling the mold of perfect empress.

The acting draws one in, the costumes are sumptuous, and it’s an engaging series. One might feel some comparisons with the Queen Charlotte season of Bridgerton; one review even praised the costumes here above those. Season 1 has eight episodes and a second season is planned. (~JWFarrington)

Manhattan (Amazon Prime–modest cost for ad free screening)

Abby & Charlie & Frank (Decider)

With the Oppenheimer movie attracting crowds, the availability of the 1981 documentary The Day After Trinity for streaming, it is probably not surprising that this 2014 series about the Manhattan Project popped up for viewing on Amazon. I don’t recall reading anything about it when it was first released.

In any case, Manhattan offers a different perspective on life in Los Alamos. It has fictional characters, but their activities are based on historic events. There are two competing groups of scientists working on the atomic bomb, one under the loose direction of the determined, almost maniacal Frank Winter and the other guided by Reed Akley and the arrogant and ambitious Charlie Issacs. But Los Alamos is run by the Army, so there are soldiers and numerous rules and regulations to ensure the secrecy of the mission.

And there are the wives and families of the scientists, many reluctantly and grudgingly trying to create a life midst dust and dirt with few amenities. Liza Winter is a PhD botanist frustrated at having had to give up her career, a character I find especially appealing. Abby Isaacs, high-toned mother of a 3-year old, becomes a switchboard operator.

Passion, both scientific and sexual, drives this compelling drama, and the Chief Penguin and I are completely hooked on it. Season 1 has thirteen episodes and Season 2, ten episodes, each about 45 minutes long. Highly recommended! (~JWFarrington)

DAILY BREAD

Bread Bandits

Sarasota has a brand new bakery on Osprey Avenue. Two guys from Canada are using European methods to create some wonderful breads and pastries. The Chief Penguin and I, he the very particular baker in our household, visited their shop the other morning and joined a line of six people at the counter. We went home with a loaf of sourdough for me and a loaf of multigrain for him plus several kinds of croissants, plain, almond, and chocolate almond. The breads make delicious toothsome toast. The lovely croissants have a crisp outer layer and are the best ones I’ve eaten in some years. So, if you’re up for a new treat, gander down and meet the Bread Bandits!

Note: Header image of fall foliage ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved.)

Maine Moments: Late Summer Reading & Viewing

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AFTERMATH

Peaceful view of Sarasota Bay

When Hurricane Idalia came barreling toward the Florida Gulf Coast, we watched, worried, and wondered from Maine.  Had we been home, we would have once again landed on the doorstep of our good friend in Venice where we sheltered last year during Ian.  

Our little island was a lucky place. Idalia left only storm debris and extra water here and there, but no damage to our building or others.  Anna Maria Island and downtown Bradenton, however, had significant flooding.  A big sigh of relief here and a cautious hope that Florida escapes further big storms this season.

As summer waned, I dove into several more books, and the Chief Penguin and I found some entertaining and some serious viewing. Next week I’ll share an overview of my summer reading.

JUST BECAUSE FICTION

I call this group “just because” fiction, because they are books that I came across or picked up that I might not otherwise have read.  But did read.  Summer is a time to do something different, read more widely, read remaindered titles, or just dabble with an unfamiliar author.  Did I love all these works?  No, I didn’t.  Did I finish them?  Yes, even if in one case, I skimmed a lot.  So, proceed with caution.

The English Teacher by Lily King

I got this on deep discount at Sherman’s in Boothbay Harbor because I’m a fan of King’s more recent novels. Published in 2005, The English Teacher is a story of adolescence and of a new marriage.  Peter is a high school sophomore with a new set of stepsiblings whom he desperately wants to like and to have like him.  His mother, Vida, never a wife until now, is the English teacher and her class is studying Hardy’s Tess of the d’Urbervilles.  

Vida is struggling in the marriage and her life.  Peter gets assigned to her class and discussions there bring to a head Vida’s unresolved issues.  King’s writing acutely portrays the anguish of both son and mother.  It’s an emotional book and one I found painful at points.

Margreete’s Harbor by Eleanor Morse (2021)

Appropriately for my summer, this is a novel set on the Maine coast from 1955 to 1967.  I did not know Eleanor Morse, but she has written several other novels and lives on Peaks Island.  

The character who catalyzes events is Margreete, a 70ish woman who is becoming forgetful and showing signs of early dementia.  This character alone may be enough for some of a certain age to set the novel aside. 

Liddie, Margreete’s daughter, and her husband Harry and their children Eva and Bernie, move from Michigan to start a new life with Margreete.  Liddie is a professional cellist and Harry a high school history teacher who holds strong views about the Vietnam War.  

This is a domestic novel in the truest sense capturing the small details of daily life as seen from the individual perspective of each family member.  I liked parts of it, but found it overly detailed and wished that it had been shorter.

Think of Horses by Mary Clearman Blew

Author Blew (inland360.com)

As a memento of our June trip to Montana, I purchased this novel in Big Fork.  Blew is the author of other books and nonfiction. Think of Horses, published in 2022 by the University of Nebraska Press, is the last book in her Montana quartet and set in the present. The other three take place in 1925, 1975, and 2012.

Tam Bowen, a successful romance novelist, has returned to her home county for the summer.  An unwed mother at 17, now age 50, she has had no recent contact with her adult son, Rob.  Tam relates easily to horses as her deceased father was a consummate horse-breaker, and he trained her.  Through horses, she makes the acquaintance of James, a neighbor, and his half brother teenage Calvin.  

Tam’s early life story made her the subject of gossip and in some quarters, hatred.  Returning to the area, she raises the ire and the violent tendencies of some of her neighbors.  These four individuals, Tam, Calvin, James, and even Rob, are all fragile with heartbreak in their histories.  

How they deal with each other, and both come together and disconnect, makes for a poignant story set midst the roughness and the beauty of the west.  (~JWFarrington)

VIEWING EXTREMES

FUN CHANGE OF PACE

Red, White & Royal Blue (Prime Video)

First Son Alex & Prince Henry (Town & Country)

After all the crime shows, we’d been watching, we needed something lighter and humorous.  Red, White & Royal Blue was just the thing, a political rom-com.  I hadn’t laughed so much in a long time.

Alex Claremont-Diaz is the son of the U. S. President while Prince Henry of the U.K. is the spare.  The two don’t hit if off initially and cause an embarrassing display at a wedding.  When they do become involved romantically, they must keep it a secret.  With a female president, a Hispanic first son, and a gay couple, this is contemporary comedy.  It’s great fun. Highly recommended for relief from everything serious!

TRAGEDY OF WAR

Generation War

Charly, Greta, Wilhelm & Friedhelm (The Telegraph)

Generation War is a German series aired in 2013 that follows five young Berliners as they serve and suffer in the Second World War from 1941 to 1945.  When first aired in Germany, it was watched by millions, but also the focus of much public debate.  

Greta is a bartender who aspires to become a popular singer; Viktor, a Jew, is her tailor boyfriend; Charlotte (Charly) is enthused about the prospect of nursing at the front, while brothers Wilhelm and Friedhelm are an army officer and an enlisted soldier respectively.  

As presented on American TV, the production is in three parts, each about 90 minutes long.  Narrated by Wilhelm and told from the German perspective, it contains some of the most brutal and almost physically punishing scenes of war I’ve ever seen.  

These 20-year-olds are initially full of idealism for a quick victory and, except for Viktor, accepting of the goals set out by Hitler.  They compromise their values, they see and do things that are horrible, and they are rendered emotionally numb by the machinery of war. 

This is strong stuff.  It’s an excellent series, but one that requires fortitude on the part of the viewer. Highly recommended!  For another perspective, here is a review from NPR that appeared in 2014.  

Note: Header photo of Maine coast and other of Sarasota Bay ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved.)

Maine Time: Brunswick Break & More

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EVOCATIVE PHOTOGRAPHY

Emma at the Mirror 2006 (Melissa Ann Pinney)

Earlier this week, we drove down to Brunswick to Bowdoin College. This campus is one out of central casting with its expansive green and soaring church spires. On this day, the green was being readied for the return of students.

Our mission, however, was to visit the latest exhibit at the Bowdoin College Museum of Art.  People Watching: Contemporary Photography since 1965 is a wonderful exhibit.  Wide ranging in appeal with 120 works by a variety of photographers, most, but not all, Americans.  The exhibit is divided into sections featuring photos on the street, at home, at work, and self portraits.  Here are a few photos that I particularly liked.

When the Storm Ends I Will Finish My Work 2021 (self portrait by Meryl McMaster)
Woman in Leopard Print 2019 (Quasmi)

SPICY LUNCH

While in Brunswick, we also met my Scarborough cousins for an Indian lunch at Shere Punjab.  We four had enjoyed this restaurant last year so returned for a rematch.  It’s a small place, welcoming, and looks to be family-run.  We began with an order of samosas, and they were excellent, some of the best I’ve had recently.  

Entrees range from chicken, shrimp or lamb curry to chicken tikka and chicken masala, along with several vegetarian dishes. You decide your level of spiciness from 1 to 10.  Three of us increased our level from what we’d ordered before.  I went from a 3 to 4 for my chicken curry (plenty spicy for me), while the Chief Penguin and my cousin had a level 6 on their chicken masala.  Add in some papadums, chutney, wedges of garlic naan, and you have a filling, satisfying meal.  

RECENT VIEWING

Murders in London

London Kills (Acorn)

Vivienne backed by Rob, Billie & David (amcnetworks.com)

The Chief Penguin and I were addicted to London Kills until we had watched it all.  There are 4 seasons and 20 episodes total.  Each episode is 45 minutes, and some nights we watched two of them back-to-back.

Every episode, detectives from the elite murder squad race out to the latest crime scene.  They examine the body, arrive at their initial determination of cause of death and likely weapon, and then decide who will do the “death knock” visit.  None of these cases is straightforward, even if they seem so.  There are always individuals with connections that lead to other crimes and corruption or tangled motives and unlikely accomplices. 

The detectives are Detective Inspector David Bradford (the boss), Detective Sergeant Vivienne Cole, Detective Constable Rob Brady, and trainee DC Billie Fitzgerald.  When the series opens, DI Bradford has just returned from leave.  His wife has been missing for months and the case is still open.  

In a twist that is typical of this series, Amber, the woman who reports the first murder, appears in a later episode with a purse belonging to Bradford’s wife.  Initially, David seems put off by Vivienne’s case comments, but she is sharp and insightful, often with the key observation.  Rob is also a good detective and a decent guy who has a personal friendship with the boss.  Trainee Billie is talented, but her soft approach to suspects occasionally leads her astray.  

They are an appealing team who mostly work together well, and the series is an exciting one.  It is fun to see Sharon Small as Vivienne Cole.  She played the nondescript but smart Barbara Havers in the Inspector Lynley series.  Highly recommended!  I’m keen for a Series 5, yet to be announced.

Note: Most photos by JWFarrington. Header photo is Monday Morning, Mother of Two by Elinor Carucci, 2010.