"No one is as proud as a Tudor." D.L Bogdan introduces, what could possibly be, one of the most extreme feminists from the 16th century, Margaret Tudor Queen of Scots, in her new book The Forgotten Queen. In this fictionalized history novel, Margaret struggles through the life of a Royal and the limitations she has as a female in a traditional man's world. Being married at the early age of twelve and moved to the "barbaric" country of Scotland, she strives to accomplish the goal of bringing peace between England and Scotland set by her father, and her personnel goal of living out a pampered, satisfied existence. But when continuous tragedies plague her, and she is taken advantage of by those who claim to love her, Margaret discovers that she can bring the peace and she can live a happy life, but can she accomplish them together?
In many historical fiction novels, if the author intends to write about the entire life of the character it can become tedious, like an extremely long and detailed history lesson proving that the author did not just make up the events, but that they actually did research on this time in history. While occasionally some of the details are unneccessary, Bogdan does an excellent job of not making this book into an elaborate, speculative research paper. And considering that she has written three other books on the Tudors, and has studied history in college, it is safe to assume that this book is pretty accurate concerning what occured in the life of Margaret Tudor.
If this was a traditional novel, the character would be seen as a static character; never changing, not experiencing that epiphany before the climax that if she changes her ways, then maybe things will end up differently. Instead, Margaret is consistently shown as being selfish, materialistic, and blonde throughout the whole of her life. Even when she has moments of resolve to change her ways, she never does. Normally, this kind of main character would make the story uninteresting, however since it is based off of a real person and real events, it can only be suspected to be how Margaret Tudor actually was in real life. Still, at times it can be quite annoying reading from her egotistic point of view.
Bogdan's book does a remarkable job of bringing the story of a true forgotten queen (due to the infamy of her brother Henry VIII) to light, and showing the trials of Regal women from the past in a way that can be enjoyed by modern audiences.
Are you ready for the most frightastic experience a monster can have? Welcome to college. In Pixar's new film and first ever prequel Monsters University, Mike Wazowski begins his freshmen year at the college of his dreams, and is now able to pursue his goal that was set when he was a monster tike: to become the all time around best scarer. But when fellow scare major James P. Sullivan comes into the picture, and his scaring abilities are questioned, Mike will have to do everything in his power to prove that there is more to this little monster than what they all see, and that you can find friends in the most unlikely places.
Following the success of the first movie Monsters Inc., Pixar made a gamble on making their first prequel based off that film. While Pixar is known for their achievement in sequels like the Toy Story franchise and films for the world of Cars (which will now include the upcoming movie Planes) many speculated on whether they would triumph in the art of prequels. Monsters University proves that they can.
This movie, while may not be as admirable as the first film, is still a delight to watch. While children will laugh at the slapstick comedy, adults will find the tie in to the college atmosphere recognizable and true making it even more hilarious. Pixar ingeniously incorporates all that makes college what it is into the monster equivalent from the preppy SGA members to the fraternities and sororities ROR (Roar Omega Roar), HSS (Eta Hiss Hiss), JOX (Jaws Theta Chi), PNK (Python Nu Kappa), and the fraternity of Mike and Sully OK (Oozma Kappa).
This film not only expands more on the monster world and on how Mike and Sully first became friends, but also does a remarkable job of referencing back to the first movie, revealing things that may not appear important, but then is shown that there is more to the simple things than the audience realizes. It also manages to bring back to focus that this is definitely not a sequel; screams are the only power source, there is no laugh floor, and children are still the deadliest things in the universe. The presence of the closet doors and the scream tanks also aids in bringing back the first movie, showing that it is still the monster world, only a different part of it.
They may have not broken the all time scare record, but Pixar has succeeded in making a wonderful prequel to one of their most popular movies.
A lot can change in one summer, especially when you're not expecting it. In her new book, The Moon and More, bestselling author Sarah Dessen introduces Emaline, a native of the small, beach town Colby who has been doing the same thing her whole life, and who's future didn't look any better. Then the summer before her freshmen year of college, the arrival of a documentary film crew and sudden split from her longtime boyfriend begins a whirlwind of change for Emaline. As the summer winds down, Emaline must learn the value of not only where she's been, but also where she's going; of when to hold on and when to let go. It all can only happen in the summer.
Sarah Dessen has become famous with her works about different struggles that girls face in their adolescent years, creating memorable characters who go through trials like image issues, rape, divorce, abuse, and identity problems to name a few, and who all grow stronger through them. Although Dessen has included in this new book the conflicts of divorce and the repercussions of them, the main struggle--Emaline's fear of new things versus what she is familiar with--appears as a new course for the author, while still staying with her theme of issues teenage girls face. While many girls do unfortunately face those mentioned above, Dessen takes a detour from extreme scenarios, and creates one that is probably the most familiar to her audience; change is inevitable, and how a person takes the change can affect how the person will grow.
Along with this new addition to her theme, what other Dessen fans may notice is that she has also changed the way Emaline interacts with her ex and new boyfriend. Dessen uses a very familiar formula when it comes to the relationships in her books, however this book reveals a different kind of result by the end of the story, that may appear minor, but varies greatly from her other works.
While she does deviate from her usual story telling style, The Moon and More is an excellent read, the change added allows it to stand out from her other works. This is the perfect book to read for summer, making the reader question just like Emaline did: what changes will this summer bring?
They said it couldn't be done, then again they also said man couldn't fly. DC has achieved a goal that when first announced, made audiences cringe at the habitualness of it all: they managed to reintroduce Superman as a new movie franchise. Man of Steel, directed by Zach Snyder and produced by the Dark Knight's director Christopher Nolan, retells the forever popular tale of Clark Kent, the last son of Krypton, and his journey of discovering who he is and who he will become: the red caped Superman.
What this movie does, which 2006's Superman Returns failed to do, is establish a modern version of the famed hero. While the first film attempted to be a somewhat fifth sequel to the first four from the late seventies and eighties, Warner Brothers dared to start from the very beginning, with Kal-El's origin. This was a major risk for the company to do, especially after many complaints from fans about ANOTHER origin story, and it being about the hero of all heroes. However, just like there was an outcry then acceptance over The Amazing Spider-Man, Man of Steel has gained the general approval rapidly within its opening weekend.
The success of this movie lies in many aspects; you can't just choose anyone to be a part of something as massive as the United States' most popular myth. Choosing a new face to don the cape (Henry Cavill) was a wise choice, and mixing him in with movie pros (Russell Crowe, Amy Adams, Laurence Fishburne, Diane Lane . . . just to name a few) was an even better choice; combining the old with the new. This strategy, likewise, works miraculously with the story almost everyone in the world knows. While the expectation of the average Man of Steel attendee is to fall asleep during the first thirty or so minutes of the movie where they explain how Clark came to Earth, that said attendee will be very surprised as they're proven completely wrong. From details about Krypton (in this film it is more of a dessert landscape than a white tundra as shown in the '78 movie) to new facts about Clark's early work (who knew he was a fisherman?), these new bits of information that though seem minuscule, add up to give more of an explanation as to why Superman is the way he is.
Even though Christopher Nolan was not the director, his presence was very evident in the Man of Steel. The use of a non-linear timeline, much like what is seen in Batman Begins, causes the feeling of being on a roller coaster, one which you do not recover from until the first hour of the movie is done. After this confusing backward and forward motion, drawn-out scenes of extreme destruction (ten times worse than all three Transformers movies combined) to Smallville and Metropolis becomes tedious and wearisome. The time that was used to show this could have been used in a more beneficial way, for example, establishing the adult Clark Kent better.
Even with the changes to the story and the unnecessary excess of violence, the traditional tale stays true to what we all are so familiar with while also answering a few questions that have plagued fans for years. This healthy balance makes the film enjoyable, while also bringing a fresh take to the Superman mythos.
Magic has returned to the silver screen, and it comes in the form of the original (NOT based off of a book; when was the last time that happened?) movie Now You See Me. In this new thriller, four former street magicians (Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Isla Fisher, Dave Franco) are brought together to pull off the heist of a lifetime, all while putting on a performance that no one will ever forget. When a level-headed woman from Interpol (Mélanie Laurent), a frazzled FBI agent (Mark Ruffalo), and a former entertainer turned magic buster (Morgan Freeman) start to hunt them down, the Four Horsemen must pull out all their tricks in order to elude them, and to be able to perform their greatest spectacle of all.
Not only is this film extremely entertaining, it keeps you on the edge of your seat. What is amazing about this movie, is that it perfectly reflects the feelings experienced at a true magic show; the feeling of awe, the questioning of how it is done, the expectation of what will happen next, and the thrill of not being denied the enjoyment of a good, quality, show.
There are multiple twists in this movie, yet none of them cause the audience to despise the surprises (unlike the recent disappointment of a good number of movie goers when they met Trevor from Iron Man 3). The story line has an impeccable balance of thrill and comedy, where one moment the atmosphere will be tense during an interrogation, and the next the mind reading member of the group (Harrelson) will start giving a therapy session to the two agents about their relationship, although they just met.
There have been many complaints about unanswered questions left by the movie, though perhaps that is the point. Who hasn't left a magic show with a question or two buzzing around in their mind? And can we say . . . sequel?
Taking a break from wizards and spells (looking at you, Harry) Now You See Me reintroduces the art of the true magician, and their amazing ability to enchant us with their clever tricks and performances. With a spellbinding cast and mesmerizing storyline, Now You See Me will make you believe in magic once again.
From the coauthor of Beautiful Creatures, Icons is the first of a series about four teens growing up in a world where the Lords, a mysterious group of aliens, has taken over Earth and has decimated a majority of the population. The four come to discover that they are the only people on the planet who may have a chance of fighting back; if only they could learn to work together.
While the story concept is interesting, the book itself is a complete disaster. For the plot, think The Hunger Games meets I Am Number Four; it's what would have happened if Ender hadn't won the game. The world is utterly demolished, people are either being used as slaves to build a mysterious structure for the Lords, starving on the streets, or working for the Lords to keep the other two groups in line. The writing is confusing, making it difficult to follow who is speaking and what is occurring. For where the characters are located, there is barely any description, so it is challenging to picture what their surroundings are like.
What is clear, however, is that Stohle is attempting to write in the style and to create a book that is equivalent to the works of past great dystopian writers, as is evident by the name of the Jarvis-like, omnipresent, computer doctor: Dr. Orwell Bradbury Huxley-Clarke.
This book had the potential to be a thrilling, futuristic sci-fi novel, introducing a new exciting series to the market. However, because of the choppy writing, the rushed tempo, and the lack of character development, Icons falls short of the high expectations set before it.
