The Blind Contessa's New Machine

"On the day Contessa Caolina Fantoni was married, only one other living person knew that she was going blind, and he was not her groom."




So begins Carey Wallace's first novel. The writing is elegant, the story is moving and it as if you are reading a grown-up fairytale. The story-telling draws you in and you are dreading the inevitable conclusion that you can't but hope will not happen.

The short novel is based on a true story and it is a quick read. The details that the Contessa recalls as she loses her sight are so well detailed, that you feel you are seeing what she no longer is able to. I would have liked if the story was more fleshed out however. I felt that it was almost too short - mostly due to the pacing of the story. It did seem like it was a great idea that was not completely put down on paper.

The characters end up being the type of people I am glad I don't know in person, and I would not put this high on a list I would recommend due to this fact. I do wish that the beautiful descriptions would have led to a better read, but a Victorian morality is evident as those who lack a good moral compass end up paying for this lack. So, a mixed review from me. Beautiful language, but not a story that I felt was well-developed.

The Jone$es

"If people want you, they'll want what you've got."

A clever premise, and unfortunately a believable one, this little known film is worth watching. The story of consumerism and the way that people succumb to keeping up with "the Joneses" is well done, both by the cast and the director.

The casting seems ideal. Demi Moore seems perfect in her role as a controlling "boss" of the family, Duchovny is a good fit for the more laid back "Dad". Amber Heard as the daughter is just wonderful. She goes from manic, promiscuous "teen" to the emotional girl just looking for someone to love her, and she does it very well.

Similiar to other films, like The Truman Show and American Beauty, this story has moments of light-hearted banter and biting satire. The Jone$es is a bit too close to the truth to dismiss it. Although it does contain language and sexuality that makes it inappopriate for younger audiences, the positive elements outweigh the negative, and it is worth taking the time to check out this film.

Speak - Laurie Halse Anderson

"When people don't express themselves, they die one piece at a time."

Beginning on her first day of high school, this story is one of how Melinda finds her voice. In a matter-of-fact manner, we are told the story through her point of view. We discover that she has become an outcast because she called the police at an end of the summer party. The consequences of an action that she is unable to explain, are heartbreaking and seem to be told by someone who is really experiencing them.

Every day high school events, such as attending an assembly when you have no one to sit with and walking into a lunchroom alone, are told with such honesty that you want to cringe for the pain she feels. The characters that interact with Melinda are believable and even though you might think they are stereotypical, it feels as though they couldn't be more real.

The struggles Melinda goes through, especially highlighted by her art project, are believable and the reader just feels for her as she wonders what she thinks she should do. This story made me want to look more carefully at the teens who might be hiding themselves because they don't know how to speak.

Black Beauty

This classic story by Anna Sewell is heartwrenching but not overly sentimental. A believable autobiography of a horse, you will begin to feel every emotion that Beauty does. The writing takes you right along with him from the countryside to the city of London in Victorian England.

The pictured copy is from the "Whole Story" publishers, which is the one I read this time (I realized while reading, that indeed I had read this wonderful story when I was young and in my "horse-loving" stage) and it was a delightful edition, because it included facts, pictures and paintings from the time the book was originally published. I liked the added information on conditions and how things would have been when Anna Sewell wrote this novel.

Occasionally sad, the overall story is hopeful and an enjoyable read. The tale is for young readers, but an overly sensitive child may need to be told that because of books like this, the cruelty that Beauty faces (due to ignorance or carelessness) no longer exists. Even an adult, such as myself, needs to remember that although the practices of the uninformed before animal rights are no longer acceptable thanks to activists of the past, that we need to be vigilant that animals never face harm due to careless or intentional acts of humans.