BOOK REVIEW: Fairy Tale by Stephen King

 

Charlie Reade is a young man about to graduate high school. Though he is reasonably handsome and has been athletically successful most of his life, Charlie has been through some tough times. His mother was killed in a tragic accident when he was only a child and his father turned to alcohol to drown his own grief, which led Charlie down some dark paths and into some choices that he now regrets. But then he becomes the only friend of the hermit who lives in the big old house at the top of the hill and falls in love with the man’s equally old dog. When the man dies suddenly, he leaves Charlie his entire estate and, among all the other papers, a cassette tape on which the old guy tells a story that is clearly unbelievable. However, upon further investigation and to his utter astonishment, Charlie finds that the story is absolutely true. For the old man has left the boy not only a magical place, but the chance for a life changing experience, as well as an incredible responsibility to not only protect what he has been given but to also make sure that two entire worlds do not end up destroying each other.

This novel is just what its name indicates, a fairy tale. Over three decades ago, Stephen King wrote a book called The Eyes of the Dragon which was similar. In it, a good, honorable prince fought to save his kingdom from a demonic sorcerer.  However, in this, the prince is a young man from our world, and the danger is from the desires of members of a corrupt royal family that have made a deal with the very essence of evil. This is a dark fairy tale, in that there is a great deal of bloodshed and body parts, and most of the people involved, even the good ones, are well equipped for killing when they must. King has an uncanny way of weaving a web of events that keep coming back to the old bedtime stories that he was told as a child (one in particular), thus becoming the theme of the narrative and still having the ability to work their own form of magic. There are many who have not and will not like this, mainly because it is not in King’s usual vein of horrible beings and nightmarish happenings, but it is a fairy tale worth the telling. And worth the reading as well.

 

MOVIE REVIEW: Knock at the Cabin

 

While vacationing at a remote cabin, a gay couple named Eric and Andrew and their adopted daughter, Wen, find themselves at the mercy of four unexpected visitors who tell them that they will have to make an impossible choice to stop a worldwide catastrophe. Though they want to put their captors’ words down to nothing more than an elaborate delusion, as the things that are predicted slowly begin to unfold, the two men find themselves beginning to believe that what they are told may be the truth. But can they do what is being asked of them? Could you bring yourself to kill someone you loved if it meant saving the world?

Based on a book titled The Cabin at the End of the World, this is a film by M. Night Shyamalan, who is known for his unique and unusual movies that have strange plot twists. This is mainly a character study of several different personalities being brought together under extremely difficult circumstances, with a unique perspective of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse for a backdrop. Starring ex-WWE champ Dave Bautista as the leader of the home invaders, and Jonathan Groff and Ben Aldridge as the gay couple, this also has a young child actor, Kristen Cui, who is outstanding as Wen, and a surprise guest appearance by Rupert Grint as one of the intruders. This has several scenes of murder and suicide in it, so it is not recommended for children. However, like all Shyamalan’s films, this one will keep you thinking about it long after it is over. A little disturbing but excellently done, it is worth the watch.

BOOK REVIEW: The Method by James Patterson and Zachary Quinto

 

This was more of a listen than a read. An audio drama from one of the most prolific authors today and one of the best performers to grace both film and stage, it follows a struggling actor who, after being a child star on a hit series, is trying to find the right part to once again launch him into the limelight. Along the way, a friend introduces him to an online teaching series called The Method, which is a completely immersive technique of leading an actor into the mind of a character. However, when the character happens to be a serial killer, getting into a mind like that may cost everyone their futures.

The production of this reminds me of the old radio dramas that were the rage in the early 20th century. As with any form of entertainment, there were the cheesy, corny ones, and then there were the ones that won awards and became entertainment legends. This is definitely one of the latter. The listener is drawn into the world of a young man who is attempting to bring a psychopath to life and ends up losing his own identity in the process. Quinto's ability to use only his voice to make you see through the eyes of a murderer is incredible, and paired with Patterson's writing the story takes on a life of its own. I definitely recommend this for anyone who is interested in discovering what audio drama is, but be prepared to be creeped out by one of the most endearing monsters to come along on a long time.

MOVIE REVIEW: Riding the Bullet

 

In 1969 a young artist named Alan Parker, who has visions of his own death, attempts to hitchhike home to see his mother when she is hospitalized by a stroke. On the way he meets an old farmer, an army deserter, and what is apparently the ghost of a man who died two years before and is now gathering souls for the Grim Reaper. This spirit gives Alan the choice of dying himself or choosing someone else to die instead, all of this being instigated by his refusing to ride a roller coaster called The Bullet when he was young, and where he first began seeing premonitions. To be able to get to his sick mother's side Alan must outwit the Angel of Death.

Inspired by a novella by Stephen King, this falls down the rabbit hole of being just a little too faithful to the work of that author. King has a gift of writing the mindscapes of his characters that can be very disturbing, but in a book there is always a hint whether or not what is being read is happening in reality or in the vastly layered mind. However, in film only audible or visual markers can let the viewer know when those periods stop or start, and here there are no such markers. Episodes of the mind are literally indistinguishable from reality, and this makes this movie really choppy and confusing to follow. It is so convoluted, in fact, that it literally wears the audience out and makes them lose interest about halfway through. I would not recommend this for anyone who has trouble telling fantasy from fact, and definitely not for imaginative children that it might excessively frighten. The only bright spot in the entire thing comes early on with the appearance of veteran actor Cliff Robertson as the old farmer that picks Alan up for one of his early rides, and who is mourning the death of his wife while also suffering from health issues. But the majority of this is a mess in film context. There are better things you can do with your time.

BOOK REVIEW: Trapper Road by Rachel Caine and Carrie Ryan

 

Gwen Proctor, recovering from injuries sustained in a battle with a madman who wanted to destroy her and everyone she loved, has become a paranoid shell of the woman she once was. She wants to do nothing more than hold her children tight and never let them go. But she also knows they are growing up and she has no right to interfere in the choices they make for their own lives. Then a shooting occurs at the school they both attend and she is called upon by the private investigation agency she works for to look into the disappearance of a teenage girl in another town. While the call seems to come at an opportune time to stay away from the press that her family seems to be the constant targets of she find that her assignment brings revelations about the missing child that represents a very present danger to her son and adopted daughter. Can they find out the truth in time to prevent another tragedy?

I found this book to be better than I expected. When an author passes away and someone else takes on the task of continuing a series they created there is a very large chance that there is so much baggage on either or both sides that the result can be very disappointing. I am happy to say that this is one of the rare exceptions. Carrie Ryan does an excellent job in staying true to the characters and storylines that Rachel Caine began. She adds a new spirit to the mix that brings the whole thing to life in a way that takes the reader back to the first novel, when the discovery of introduction was still new and exciting. It makes this an extremely entertaining and enjoyable exercise. The end is left wide open for another installment to the series and I am very excited to see where Ryan takes this story next.

BOOK BANNING: Is It the Only Way? - An Opinion

 

In this age of cultural sensitivity and easiness to offend, there have been many books banned from school libraries due to their content. The reasons behind this have been that their stories question societal norms, explore sensitive topics (homosexuality, racism, etc.), and have excessive violence in them. The titles that have shared this infamous distinction include Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, which tells of the truths left on tapes by a young girl who committed suicide, The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, which follows a young woman through her experiences in a society ruled by a theocratic regime, and The Hate U Give by Andie Thomas, that explores systematic racism and its effect on its victims. All of these are relatively new books, however banned titles can also include classics like 1984 by George Orwell, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, and The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. These are books that I am sure many can remember being assigned to read in English class with never a question as to whether or not they were fit for student perusal. Yet they are also included in some of the banned lists that have been created in some of the states in this country. The question then becomes, is banning books really the only way that we can keep our children safe from being exposed to questionable material?

The fact is, no ban on anything has ever worked. From the time of Adam and Eve, the forbidden fruit has always been the sweetest and most desired. Banning books results in nothing more than the fact being used as a marketing tool to bring those novels into the spotlight where the people will want to read them that much more. There is also another fact that is more disturbing. This is that there are books on the shelves of public libraries, and that have been there for more than a decade, that include vividly detailed erotica under the guise of paranormal romance. (Please see my review of Master of the Night by Angela Knight dated April 26, 2022. Writers of her ilk include Christine Feehan, to name just one.) Many of these libraries have little or no controls on who checks out their materials, so these books, in the stacks under the innocuous nomenclature of Fiction, are available to any and all, including teenage girls looking for novels that include vampires and werewolves. While everyone is losing their minds over some books that contain nothing but stories of young men and women finding their own identities, these books have been the dirty little secret of the romance genre and more than likely have been read by many young girls over the years looking for a literary thrill. Don’t get me wrong. I am not saying anything against these authors. They are excellent writers who tell fantastic stories. It is the way their work has been marketed and labeled that is the problem, and that has led to these books that are actually soft pornography being put into the general audience sections of libraries and sold on supermarket shelves alongside the work of such writers as Danielle Steel and Nora Roberts.

While banning books is not the best idea, and is actually insulting to a public who wants the freedom to read what they wish, I would say that there does need to be a change about who these materials are made available for. Many administrators would say that it is the parents’ job to monitor their child’s intake, but, especially when it comes to teens, this can be a futile if not impossible task. My suggestion would simply be a rating system for books. The computer systems used in libraries could be reprogrammed to include a three-tiered patron program based on age. These would be first for children ages twelve and younger, second for teens thirteen to eighteen, and the third for legal adults. The books themselves would be rated according to their content by the publishers. The movie, television, and gaming industries are required to give similar ratings. Why not books? There could be general consumption (G), young adult literature (T), and adult readers only (M) ratings. Once this program was in place, the libraries would be able to use their existing procedures while there would be automated safeguards to make sure a fifteen-year-old was not checking out a book that included highly charged sexual scenes, as well as scenes of overly violent action or other things that might be deemed unsuitable for children. A rating system such as this would also make it possible for vendors to try to put procedures into place that would make it at least difficult for sales of these books to minors, though online purchases would still be suspect simply because of the nature of the marketplace involved. But at least those occurrences would be out of the jurisdiction of the institutions that are supposed to be safe places for young people, such as libraries.

While this system is not perfect (as nothing ever is), it would be a way to at least limit the cause of the issue. As I said before, I have read these authors and find their talent very real. It is their style that makes them problematic for younger audiences. However, authors do not normally have control over how their work is marketed, so they should not be blamed for this debacle. Also, I would think that that this is a more serious issue than trying to ban classic books that have been the standard of English reading assignments for decades. The people that are responsible for the banning of books do have the correct motives, but somewhere between motive and execution of action something has gotten lost. The only thing that banning books has managed to accomplish is to make those same books even more popular and put them on the bestselling lists as a result. If these people really do not want their children reading these stories, perhaps they should pay more attention to what is in their child’s hands than what is on the library shelves. Especially considering what they have already allowed them to be exposed to for the past decade.

MOVIE REVIEW: Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

 

After escaping from prison, a leader of a gang of thieves tries to reestablish his relationship with his estranged daughter and finds that the man he trusted to take care of her has turned his child against him, and made a deal with a demon in the process. In trying to get his daughter back and save the city she lives in, he builds a new gang of outlaws that includes an unreliable sorcerer, a shape shifting druid, and the female barbarian who helped him raise his family after his wife's death.

This stars Chris Pine, who plays his usual character who acts cocky and self-assured while hiding a slew of complicated emotions. His costars include Michelle Rodriguez (Widows), Justice Smith (Jurassic Park: Dominion), and Sophia Lillis (Gretel and Hansel). Don't expect much character development or world building from this one. The world is already fully realized and, though there are some emotional moments between father and daughter, the people are there simply to keep the action going and the special effects buzzing. The actors do their best and, though the script bogs them down at times, their considerable talent does keep the CGI, which is extravagant, from taking over entirely. It's not great art, but it is a fantastic and fun joy ride. A little gory in places, so young children should be supervised, but still a good one for family night.