Brief Book and Movie Reviews
If you read my design article with Smashing Magazine, you know I’m not a huge fan of star ratings, but I like writing reviews. They remind me of what I enjoyed or wished was different, and they help me make recommendations, which I also like doing. With that in mind, here are a few brief reviews from recent reads and watches.
You can follow along and see more book reviews on Goodreads and movie reviews on Letterboxd.
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
Book Review
A novel written by Gabrielle Zevin.
I finished reading the last page and asked myself, Why did I like this book?
It’s a simple premise. Two friends try to make games together with varying levels of success. But success and failure means something different to each of them, and their reactions to outcomes and to each other’s reactions, while hard to agree with at times, always make sense, because Zevin has created two unique characters who are fully, and wonderfully, and tragically human.
That is a long way of saying that I like this book, because the story is well told.
Nanny
Movie Review
A horror movie written and directed by Nikyatu Jusu.
Anna Diop’s—the main actor’s—range from sweet and charming to haunting and angered drives the film. Her actions, speech, and mannerisms do a lot of heavy lifting to create a character, Aisha, you feel for, despite the story sometimes introducing disparate elements that can distract viewers from empathizing with Aisha. Even after the credits roll, you’ll probably still wonder how some of the elements connect, but that reflection feels more like a welcome challenge than one intending to frustrate you with ambiguity. Plus, the strong main character, dark story, and beautiful cinematography are more than engaging enough to make a well-crafted horror film. My biggest wish is that they would remove the “scary” CGI. It actually detracts from the quieter and more grounded horrors Aisha faces.
The Book of the Cat: Cats in Art
Book Review
An art book written by Angus Hyland and Caroline Roberts.
I may have read the best book I will ever read.