Day 2 of 30 Day Photo Challenge.

This is the eye-witness account of being inside Auschwitz from Eva Mozes Kor, one of the many sets of twins that were allowed to live in the camp so that medical experiments aka human atrocities could be undertaken on them without concent. The story is enlightening, another horror story of how awful human beings can be to each other, but it also has that generosity of spirit that many survivors seem to share. The afterwords were interesting, adding context to some of the controversies Kor has been the centre of, but ultimately, it’s her story and it’s an important one.

I remembered this as a huge teen film from the late 90s, so have been desperate to watch it but it’s just not been available anywhere. Suddenly, out of nowhere, it popped up on Amazon Prime so I hot-footed it to the sofa with some popcorn and settled in. I was nervous, I’ll admit, because the concept is about as mysogynistic as it gets and I wasn’t sure it would have aged well. Of course the initial bet is in bad taste, but actually, overall, the film wasn’t as bad as I thought it might have been, Laney held her own when it mattered and there were some good guys in amongst the worst of the worst (looking at you PW).

Day 1 of 30 Day Photo Challenge.

I’ve had a few months now that are more passive, reading challenges, so it’s time to turn the creative flow back on and do something productive. I’m going for something a bit more traditional this month - it’s June, it’s potentially summer, the sun should be out more than it isn’t, and there should be an opportunity for some good photos. That’s right, it’s a 30 days of photos challenge, where the plan, quite simply, is to take a fresh photo every day.

This is more of a self-help book than I was imagining, although it made a nice change from the traditional memoir that follows a chronological story from birth to school to success. Instead, Jimmy kicks off with advice right from the start, and whilst structuring it around his journey through life so far - including the death of his mother, taking over Bruce Springsteen’s dressing room, and of course, that tax situation. It was really good, very readable, and with plenty of wisdom that you want to take on board.

At the start of May’s 30-day challenge, I thought it was going to be a bit of a slog to get through a poem a day. By midway through, I was coming round to the idea, and by the end of the month, I think I’m okay with a bit of poetry now and then. I don’t think it’s something I want to keep up reading every day, despite having the book that makes it super easy with one poem for each day of the year. But I might keep it handy and catch up once in a while.

I was expecting this to be awful, but the trailer was kinda funny and there were actually good reviews for it, so why not? Actually, it was a riot. It’s one of those absolute fever dream movies where the makers have thrown everything and the kitchen sink in there… but it was hugely entertaining and really worked!

In coming up with plans for my various 30 day challenges this year, I stumbled across the 30 Days Wild initiative - an annual challenge from the Wildlife Trusts that encourages people, particularly kids, to get outside in nature and do wild things every day. It can be a fundraising thing, or just a participatory thing and it’s such a great idea. From 1-30 June, take part in the UK’s biggest nature challenge!

I’ve gone down a bit of a subscription rabbit hole recently. In working through various replacements for household goods as I go through this zero-waste obsession, I’ve found a lot of things that offer subscriptions, so that if it’s something you get along with, you can have it turn up to your door without thinking too much about it. Given the current pricing pressures in the UK, subscriptions can be a bit hit and miss - it’s good to know what you are paying out and when, but on the flip side, it’s useful to have control and delay payments where necessary.

Wonderful Whitney is so good, you can’t go wrong with an album that starts with I Wanna Dance with Somebody. This has good pop vibes, Whitney’s incredible vocals, and a few songs that you know along with a couple that you probably don’t. It does feel like maybe it gets a bit commercial in the middle, some of those songs don’t stand out as well as they might, but there’s enough to like to make it a winner.

Well, I wasn’t expecting this. Harry Styles is one of those people that I can tell is super talented and I respect the process, but the output isn’t necessarily my cup of tea. Clearly desperate to have been alive in the 1970s, the outfits, the David Bowie obsession, it’s just not my thing. So I wasn’t anticipating this to be a good album, particularly after I skipped the second album for the watermelon nonsense. Turns out, it was brilliant! Right from the get go, the album grabs you and yes, it does have that David Bowie feel, it also brings in elements of Prince, but this time it’s got nice pop-style undertones that are more unique to Harry, which gives it a different feel - somehow fresh but also nostalgic. I loved it.

I’ve mentioned before that I’m completely into the Top of the Pops replays on BBC Four at the moment, as they have reached the early nineties and I’m loving this era of music… we’re heading rapidly towards Backstreet Boys and Spice Girls and so much more goodness. They recently rounded out the year 1992 with the Christmas special, and at this moment in time, Whitney Houston had her vice-like grip on the number one spot with I Will Always Love You. This, of course, from the movie The Bodyguard featuring Kevin Costner.

Often, if I have a spare minute to fill and I’m near an Apple TV, I’ll pop up YouTube and have a riffle through what the US chat shows have been up to. I’ve often posted here about Jimmy Fallon and James Cordon and the silly antics they get up to, but I’ve got a new go-to that I tend to check first - Kelly Clarkson. If you’d have asked me three years ago who could take up a new chat show and make it not only work but be amazing, I don’t know that Kelly would have been my first pick but she’s brilliant. Bubbly and obviously awesome, but also with a self-confessed over-competitiveness in the games, alongside a keen willingness to bond with her guests… it’s pure and frothy and I love the clips I find.

This is Simone Biles’s story of getting to the Rio 2016 Olympics and becoming one of the most decorated gymnasts ever. It’s a courageous story of dealing with whatever life throws at you and coming out stronger, fitter, faster, better - standing by what you believe in and making sure that you keep things fun even when the pressure is high. It’s a good story, told well, and an interesting first chapter in Biles’ journey. However, I do feel like there’s more to be told, after everything that’s happened post-Rio. Who knows if there’ll be another book, but if there is, I’ll be reading and highly recommending it, no doubt. These are inspirational stories from someone so young.

The zero-waste challenge is still ongoing in my household, or maybe I should call it the reduce-waste-as-much-as-possible-because-zero-is-unrealistic challenge. When I use things and throw things away, I try to take a minute to think about if there’s a better alternative, and quite often find that there is, even if it’s not a perfect swap. That’s good news and it’s always a nice feeling when you embed something more virtuous into your life.

This is a relatively short novel that dips into the lives of several characters in a rainy Scottish holiday park, highlighting the boredom and thought processes of everyone from a young engaged couple, several kids tormenting each other, angst-ridden teenagers, bored housewives, and older couples just getting by. It is so well-written and completely engrossing, but I have to admit to being a bit disappointed by the narrative, and the ending. I thought there would have been more of a connection between the disparate stories, something to weave them all together. But I enjoyed the process of reading and will look for more from this author.

It’s important to set the scene for this: we bought this (probably in a sale) a while back and have talked about watching it for quite a long time. Both of us can remember having seen it when we were younger and having really liked it… as kids. But would it hold up on a rewatch? We were urged into watching it now because it’s the perfect Sunday night movie and ahead of the upcoming TV show on Disney+. I was worried though. It’s magical, it’s people going on a journey, would it have the same disappointing effect that the hobbits had?

I’ve seen this before but not for a while, and having had a run of very bad films, was keen for a certified winner. This is that film. It’s emotional and moving and sad, enraging and enlightening in equal measure. Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington are two powerhouses by themselves, so put them together and it’s an incredible on-screen partnership.

The Rasmus popped up twice in my radar in the same week which was a clear sign that I had to listen to one of their albums. Firstly, in the discussion of the retirement of ye olde iPods, I was reminsicing about some of the early songs I had listened to religiously on that amazing device. Then, of course, they popped up on Eurovision this year, with a really good rock song that didn’t perform that well overall. Nevertheless, I had to dig this album out and suddenly remembered how much I loved it! In the Shadows and Guilty are SO good, and the rest really stands up as some fab early 00s rock. More, please.

I can’t believe this album. At first, I was enjoying it well enough - it’s that same old Jason Aldean vibe of getting over a heartbreak with as much alcohol as possible. Whiskey Me Away is quite a clever title, you know? But then, we get to track six… God Made Airplanes. OH REALLY? Apparently, God made airplanes, runways, and half price tickets. WTF? What’s so frustrating about this song is that it’s a great premise, got to get on a plane because it’s the only form of transport that won’t turn back, but if he just changed it to ’that’s why I’m on an airplane’ rather than the actual lyrics, it would still scan and he wouldn’t have written off over 100 years of engineering. I couldn’t concentrate on the rest of the album for the rage.

This is such a fascinating topic, it’s a shame it’s done so poorly in this movie. The pacing is really off - the first thirty minutes are bafflingly full of information and then the next ninety are so drawn out it’s eye-rollingly boring. The weird moments that poke fun at Ian Fleming seem really out of place, whoever wrote this seemed to have a real vendetta against the many writers that emerged from the military in the war. It’s a good cast but the love triangle at the middle of it had very little going for it - there wasn’t a lot of chemistry. It was just dull and best avoided.

Nope, nope, nope. Just couldn’t continue with this one. It was poorly made, with all those cheesy one-liners and rubbish intense stares, and all based around the concept that the moon isn’t natural at all but some kind of hollow AI thing. It’s a movie that just feeds love to the conspiracy theorists and this is such a stupid one to go with. Bleurgh. Roland, mate, what’s going on?

The second book in the John Puller series and it’s another good mystery where Puller gets involved at a certain level and then gradually finds a deeper and more disturbing plot is behind it all. Baldacci’s writing is exceptionally good as a pageturner, it’s short and sharp, tight sentences and keen paragraphs that just keeps you wanting to read more. And I really like Puller as a character, he’s got the skills and tightlipped manner that his career has given him, but can let his guard down occasionally and give us insight into the man behind the military bearing. Can’t wait for the next one.

I’ve not set any hard and fast rules about how much to update my blog during a particular 30 day challenge because they’re all so different, and have different outputs. I only wrote an intro and an outtro to the Core challenge because what else is there to say? I didn’t gain a six pack so let’s move on. Meanwhile, I wrote three times about the Marvel Comic book challenge because there were things I needed to get off my not-very-defined chest.

Everyone in this was just awful. The book is told from a handful of different points of view, and details the lead up to, the actions at, and the aftermath of a terrible sleepover party. An accident occurs and the fallout of it brings many other secrets to light with the threat of a lawsuit looming over a couple of different families. I just thought everyone was terrible and actively disliked them, but having said that, it was very well written and just slipped by as I was keen to know what was going to happen.

What the hell is this movie? It’s a 1 out of 5, it’s terrible. And yet it’s also somehow unmissable? It’s made up of startling moments and the very occasional genius moment, but they are buried in a really bad movie with terrible lighting and colours and a pretty poor message of older vs younger women. The faces that kept popping up were an endless surprise - Olivia Colman just loitering in the background, Graham Norton as a studio dresser, Mackenzie Crook facing Michelle Pfeiffer’s unexpected wrath, and so many more. At heart, I liked the chemistry between Pfeiffer and Rudd, that bounced off the screen, and there just aren’t enough words to describe how talented Saoirse is even at this young age. Isn’t It Moronic is an anthem and should have been the words. Genuinely awful film. But also… you have to watch it.

I wanted to like this but it is so dull. So very, very dull. You’d think a movie with these three leads couldn’t go wrong, but they somehow manage to make Jamie Dornan unlikeable whilst Sebastian Stan isn’t around enough to actually get any sense of his character. Shailene Woodley does a good job, but the film is mostly made up of her looking moody and sad, which doesn’t really sustain the almost two hour runtime. I quite like the way the story is told, with the snippets of this young woman’s life, past and present… it’s just a shame there isn’t enough substance to the story to make it worthwhile.

This is a good book of advice and insights for women to take on board about how they should see themselves in the world and how the world should start behaving just a little bit better. There’s no real new news in this, but it’s always good to have a reminder and the affirmations contained within. The book covers a lot of topics in a short amount of time, so there’s not huge amounts of detail but it’s another one that will just make you that much more confident about the space you take up, and that can only be a good thing.

I’ve been meaning to write about Slow Horses for a week or so now, having wrapped up watching the six-episode first season - it’s brilliant! The first episode had me concerned, the opening sequence of a terrorist hunt in an airport going wrong was fab but then followed up by a grumpy boss being awful to his employees. However, the intrigue overrides that and once you hit the second episode, you can’t look away.

Honestly, Who Needs Love Like That has been stuck in my head for a week… even from just reading the title when I added the album to my library, and then, of course, after listening to the album twice. It’s not a bad thing though, I love it! Erasure are so brilliant and this is a great dance album full of great pop tunes bringing together Andy’s incredible voice alongside Vince’s sick beats. I like that we can go from the upbeat moments to slower songs like Oh L’Amour and everything in between. Top work.

A great second album from Sigrid, this is full of great messages including the motto ‘it’s just a bad day, not a bad life’ which I love. The album flows well from start to finish and it all has that great pop style with Sigrid’s soaring vocals over the top. The only downside to this album is, for me, there are no real stand out tracks, no huge pop singles like there were on the first album. But that doesn’t stop me wanting to listen to it over and again.

This was a weird one, taking place so much later than all the others with so much time passed. I couldn’t quite get my head around what Leto II was, even though there were plenty of descriptions, as gross as they all were. I did like the way it ended, that was good, and Siona was a really good strong female character - that’s something this series has done quite well. I was intending to read all the six original Dune novels but if I’m honest, I think I’m done with them now.

Mm, what a brilliant film. This has such bad reviews but it’s so wonderful! It’s quirky but in the best way - Orlando saying I’m fine constantly even though no one asks is a brilliant way to kick things off. It’s emotional and heartwarming and has some real showstopping moments: the map, Susan’s five minutes of stand-up, stealing beer from a bridegroom… lots of highlights. Alongside that, it has a brilliant Dawson’s Creek style soundtrack, particularly to accompany the mini road trip at the end. Loved it.

What a weird film this is, the tone is all over the place. It’s not funny enough to be a comedy, it’s too gory to be a kid’s film but it’s also not scary enough to be a proper horror. It somehow balances in between them all and doesn’t quite manage to come together. Having said that, it was kinda fun to watch, and I did wonder how it was all going to work out along the way, plus the twist is fun when it comes at the end. Alex Winter being in this is so odd, he’s not menacing at all, whereas I absolutely believe Kiefer Sutherland would kill me in my sleep just from a look. Could have been better but I can understand how it becomes a bit of a cult classic.

This is a really good movie, I think it’s trying to be a bit clever and I’m not sure it lives up to its own hype, but very entertaining along the way. Matt Damon is really good, naturally, and Ed Norton does a great job being a guy you love to hate. The only two downsides to this movie are that a) it assumes knowledge of poker, although even the bits they did explain I will never understand anyway and b) John Malkovich’s insane accent. What went into the choices behind that voice?? But otherwise, very good and the kind of film that makes you want to go to Las Vegas just to try your luck.

Loved the style of this. Short, sharp scenes piecing together a crime novel with a new duo of cops at the helm that you can’t help but love. It was very visual, you can tell the author has experience of television, the way it was pieced together. Just small things like focusing on two bit-part characters before the main ones walk in… Anyway, I liked it and the story was good - I did guess the twist, but it unfolded very well with a thrilling ending and hopefully a good lead in to the second book.

This is a kids book but I really loved the idea and had to have a look for myself. Illustrations take us through the life of one street - starting with primitive huts and hunter-gatherers, right through Roman times, Viking invasions, the Industrial Revolution, modern times and even looking to the future. I wasn’t sure the pictures were clear enough to fully engage (maybe a digital problem?) so I would have struggled with the fun Where’s Wally style questions on each page, but as a concept this is brilliant and well executed.

I don’t know why I’ve listened to one Robbie Williams before and it was the second one rather than his first solo effort - but hey, I’m righting that wrong now. This is such an interesting album to listen to knowing its place in time - leaving a globally successful band to go it alone is such a risk, but it’s clear Robbie wanted to spread his wings and get a bit more Britpop, a bit less traditional pop. That’s clear right from the start and carries all the way through the album (Angels, oddly, doesn’t really seem to fit on here despite being such a classic).

Loved this! It’s the first album in a while that’s really got me revved up and loving it. I’ve found Miranda Lambert a bit hit and miss in the past - she’s brilliant and I love her but sometimes it’s just that bit too country. This one isn’t that. It’s fun and doesn’t take itself too seriously, and has nods to other genres. Geraldene riffs on Jolene, Music City Queen is a baffling mix of styles and features the unique vocals of The B-52’s, plus a Mick Jagger cover. If I Was a Cowboy still stands out but I loved it all from start to finish.

I’ve heard good things about this movie and after an exhausting day it was exactly the right vibe to watch - although it didn’t quite live up to the high expectations. It really took a while to get going, even with the understanding that you have to spend some time introducing characters and whatnot. It did gradually get better though, and I love a good heist movie so those elements of it were fun. But I guess it just wasn’t quite as good as some other animations we’ve seen so I could take it or leave it.

I was first aware of this short story via the Dear Reader app, but played through it without really taking too much on board. It seemed to be an odd story about some wallpaper, but hey, I don’t like the colour yellow either so I quite enjoyed it. It’s only since then that I’ve realised what the story was actually about and reading it through again properly now was quite sobering. Shining a light on the treatment of women’s mental health and the sheer misunderstanding of what to do to help, the story is short but horrifying in its own way.

This is such an intriguing idea, I couldn’t help but get completely invested right from the very start a village in the Lake District is given over to become a reservoir, so the inhabitants have to leave home and start anew…. and some secrets are left to drown under the water. Until in the present, a drought has meant the village is accessible again, and we get to find out what happened. The story is told from the point of view of characters in the village pre-flooding, and then a granddaughter in the modern age. If I’m honest, I read through the modern moments as quickly as possible to just keep dipping back into the past and find out what happened, but as the book went on, the two sides seemed to come together nicely, to secure a happy ending. Hooray!

I’m not as big a fan of Breaking Bad as some people are, I know, and I only recently completed watching the whole series. I thought it was great to start with but gradually lost sympathy with the main characters so by the end, I wasn’t that bothered. It was a great ending to a TV show, though, so I was curious what would be in this movie. It was actually pretty good - picking the vibe of the TV show right up and carrying on literally where they left off, and telling what happened to Jesse next.

Ah, loved this. It’s a time travel movie, so of course it’s up my street but it was also really well done. Aside from the paradox that just can’t be avoided, it’s a time travel movie that makes sense, stacks up all the way through, and comes to a really satisfying conclusion. Perfect. The kid was amazing, and riffed with Ryan Reynolds so well, and by the time it was the two of them plus the Gruffalo, I really didn’t want to stop watching.

Another month has ticked into action which means it’s time for another 30 day challenge to begin. This time: 30 Days of Poetry. This has come from a combination of lingering thoughts about Emily Dickinson following the exceptional Apple TV+ show, and the after effects of dipping into comics last month. Not two things that appear to have much in common at first, but the thing about the comics is, it made me see that to give a new type of media that you don’t usually like a go, you really have to give it a chance. I like the odd poem here and there, the standard classics and some old ones from childhood, but otherwise, I really don’t care about it much.