50 Books Challenge 2013 - # 26: The Loop by Nicholas Evans

Title: The Loop
Author: Nicholas Evans
Story: Things aren't going too well for wolf biologist Helen Ross. At 29, she's unemployed, single, and has just learned that her father is marrying someone younger, richer, and prettier than herself. Back in her lonely log cabin in Cape Cod, frantically chain-smoking, she receives a message from her former lover Dan Prior. Prior, also a biologist, works for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service wolf-recovery program. In return for helping him track the lupine posse, Prior will provide her with a cabin, truck, and a snowmobile for good measure in a rustic little town called Hope, just outside of Helena, Montana. Within moments of her arrival, she finds out what she's up against: a small town with a long history of wolf fear and loathing, no resources, and a powerful rancher who will do whatever it takes to eliminate the wolves. The rancher, testosterone-saturated Buck Calder, has got the community riled up after a wolf stalked his daughter's home and killed the family dog. He won't stop until every last endangered wolf is dead, which proves problematic for Ross when she decides to romance his 18-year-old son, Luke.
Start: july 11th 2013
End: july 18th 2013
Comment: Last year I read Nicholas Evans' "The Horse Whisperer", which totally surprised me by being better then I thought. So when I saw "The Loop" I just had to pick it up. It has been catching dust on my shelve, so during this theme I just needed to finally read this book. And this book was even better. For some reason wolves have always fascinated me, more then horses. A wolves howl is actually my favorite noise. It's really interesting to read about the wolves and Helen's research. What I like in the beginning, athough it's a bit slow, that each character gets its own chapter of introduction. Evans is very detailed about their history, so you really get to know all the characters and they have depth. Helen was my favorite, we had some things in common. And Abe was my least favorite, he was an ass! Evans is like the male version of Sara Gruen, who also writes novels about animals and nature and they both grab you with their wonderful writing.
Rating: 5/ 5

Top 5 Thursday: Jim Carrey Movies

One of the funniest actors in the business. He has made some great movies, memorables ones. With Kick-Ass 2 coming up I thought it would be great to sum up his five best movies in my opinion.

5. Dumb and Dumber
Rewatched it just recently and I remember actually seeing this one in theatres. What a bunch of idiots, but it's such a good time watching. Every time.

4. The Cable Guy
An obsession gone bad. Jim Carrey is just freaky in this movie. I love that scene where he and Matthew Broderick are at that medieval dinnershow. Just when you thought he couldn’t get any weirder.

3. Liar, Liar
A movie I can watch over and over again and never get tired of and still laugh. I think it’s impossible to work opposite Jim, because he can’t take anything seriously. The bloopers at the end are worth watching as well.

2. The Truman Show
A more serious movie, but the concept and idea behind it is just genius. I love this movie. That part where it’s raining, just on him, is unforgettable.

1. Ace Venture: Pet Detective
This is without a doubt the most hilarious movie he made. The walk, the talk, the hair, Ace Ventura is one goofy character. Remember the scene in the nuthouse, where he’s wearing the tutu?

They Almost Made the Top 5: The Mask, Lemony Snicket’s a Series of Unfortunate Events, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Bruce Almigty, Yes Man, Man on the Moon

In the Picture: The Characters from "Up in the Air"

"Up in the Air" isn't a very spectacular movie, but it's a movie I really enjoy every single time. And that's basically because of the actors and how they portray their characters. It's only three main characters, but here they are.

Ryan Bingham
Played by: George Clooney
Ryan Bingham is fully dedicated to his job. He lives it, he breaths it, he IS the job. It’s Ryan’s entire identity. He fires people for bosses who don’t have the guts to do it themselves. Ryan tries to keep personal relationships as far away from him as possible, including his own sisters who he hardly ever sees. He’s pretty happy with his life the way it goes and it gets better when he meets Alex, his female self.

Alex Goran
Played by: Vera Farmiga
Alex Goran is a fellow traveller and she is turned on by Ryan’s credentials. Alex has the same look on life, she just wants to have casual meet ups with Ryan, no strings attached. But is Alex who she really is?

Natalie Keener
Played by: Anna Kendrick
Natalie is Ryan’s new colleague and has innovative ideas for the company they both work for. In order to understand the job, Natalie tags along with Ryan. They are each others complete opposites. Natalie does believe in love, marriage and committing to someone and doesn’t seem to believe that Ryan isn’t looking for any of that. They have a rocky start, but have mutual respect for each other eventually.

Favorite Character: Natalie Keener

Weekly Photo Challenge 2013 - Theme # 28: Sky

Here is this weeks theme.

This is one of the easiest themes I had so far, because there is a sky everywhere you go. This picture was taken on my balcony, around 8 in the morning. A clear sky, hardly any clouds.

DVD Collection Update (5)

I bought five new movies. And I decided to b a little but more creative with the pictures.

I wanted this one for a very long time. I owned the first, second and fourth already, but "Die Hard with a Vengeance" has actually always been my favorite in the series.

With adding the third movie, I just went all the way and completed the collection. I know a lot of people say that "A Good Day to Die Hard" isn't that good, I only bought it too have the entire "Die Hard" series. That's also why I bought that last "Indiana Jones" film.

When I was rewatching "Drive" not so long ago, I realized there are so many great Ryan Gosling movies I still need to see. "Half Nelson" is one of them. The synopsis sounds great and was nominated for an Academy Award for his role.

"Whale Rider" is a movie that I saw once, but it left a very deep impression on me. It's a fantastic film, gorgeous, breathtaking. And a young girl like Keisha Castl-Hughes captivated me completely.

I heard so many great things about this movie. One tip was to keep tissues ready. It's a true story about the editor of the French Elle who, after a stroke, is fully paralized. He doesn't give up and tries to make something of his life. Can't wait t finally see this.

Movie Trailer Sunday (96)

A great week for trailers. Here are this weeks trailers.

Lovelace
Description: In 1972, before the internet, before the porn explosion, "Deep Throat" was a phenomenon: the first scripted pornographic theatrical feature film, featuring a story, some jokes, and an unknown and unlikely star, Linda Lovelace. Escaping a strict religious family, Linda discovered freedom and the high-life when she fell for and married charismatic hustler Chuck Traynor. As Linda Lovelace she became an international sensation, less centerfold fantasy than a charming girl-next-door with an impressive capacity for fellatio. Fully inhabiting her new identity, Linda became an enthusiastic spokesperson for sexual freedom and uninhibited hedonism. Six years later she presented another, utterly contradictory, narrative to the world, and herself as the survivor of a far darker story.
Director: Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, Peter Sarsgaard, Sharon Stone, Juno Temple, James Franco, Wes Bentley, Hank Azaria, Robert Patrick, Bobby Cannavale, Chris Noth, Eric Roberts, Adam Brody Chloe Sevigny, Sarah Jessica Parker
Trailer: Trailer "Lovelace"
Comment: Come on, James Franco as Heff!

Saving Mr Banks
Description: When Walt Disney's daughters begged him to make a movie of their favorite book, P.L. Travers' "Mary Poppins," he made them a promise - one that he didn't realize would take 20 years to keep. In his quest to obtain the rights, Walt (Hanks) comes up against a curmudgeonly, uncompromising writer who has absolutely no intention of letting her beloved magical nanny get mauled by the Hollywood machine. But, as the books stop selling and money grows short, Travers reluctantly agrees to go to Los Angeles to hear Disney's plans for the adaptation. For those two short weeks in 1961, Walt Disney pulls out all the stops. Armed with imaginative storyboards and chirpy songs from the talented Sherman brothers, Walt launches an all-out onslaught on P.L. Travers (Thompson), but the prickly author doesn't budge. He soon begins to watch helplessly as Travers becomes increasingly immovable and the rights begin to move further away from his grasp. It is only when he reaches into his own childhood that Walt discovers the truth about the ghosts that haunt her, and together they set Mary Poppins free to ultimately make one of the most endearing films in cinematic history.
Director: John Lee Hancock
Starring: Tom Hanks, Emma Thompson, Colin Farrell, Paul Giamatti, Jason Schwartzman, Bradley Whitford, Annie Rose Buckley, Ruth Wilson, B.J. Novak, Rachel Griffiths, Kathy Baker
Trailer: Trailer "Saving Mr. Banks"
Comment: Tom is my man! I can't wait to see him as Walt Disney.

Out of the Furnace
Description: Russell Baze (Christian Bale) has a rough life: he works a dead-end blue collar job at the local steel mill by day, and cares for his terminally ill father by night. When Russell's brother Rodney (Casey Affleck) returns home from serving time in Iraq, he gets lured into one of the most ruthless crime rings in the Northeast and mysteriously disappears. The police fail to crack the case, so - with nothing left to lose - Russell takes matters into his own hands, putting his life on the line to seek justice for his brother.
Director: Scott Cooper
Starring: Christian Bale, Casey Affleck, Zoe Saldana, Woody Harrelson, Forest Whitaker, Willem Dafoe, Sam Shepard,
Trailer: Trailer "Out of the Furnace"
Comment: Great ensemble cast.

The Lifeguard
Description: Leigh, almost 30, is living a seemingly perfect life in New York. But when her career and love life both come crashing down, she flees to her suburban hometown and regresses right back into high school life. Picking up right where her teen halcyon days left off, she moves into her old room with her parents, hangs out with friends who never left town, and reclaims her high school job as a condo-complex lifeguard. But as Leigh enjoys shirking off adult life and responsibilities, and enters into an illicit affair, she begins a chain reaction that affects those closest to her.
Director: Liz W. Garcia
Starring: Kristen Bell, Mamie Gummer, Joshua Harto, Amy Madigan, Alex Shaffer, Martin Starr
Trailer: Trailer "The Lifeguard"
Comment: This could be my life, because I always wanted to be a lifeguard.

Austenland
Description: Jane Hayes is a seemingly normal young New Yorker, but she has a secret. Her obsession with Mr. Darcy, as played by Colin Firth in the BBC adaptation of "Pride & Prejudice," is ruining her love life: no real man can compare. But when a wealthy relative bequeaths her a trip to an English resort catering to Austen-crazed women, Jane's fantasies of meeting the perfect Regency-era gentleman suddenly become realer than she ever could have imagined. Decked out in empire-waist gowns, Jane struggles to master Regency etiquette and flirts with gardeners and gentlemen�or maybe even, she suspects, with the actors who are playing them. It's all a game, Jane knows. And yet the longer she stays, the more her insecurities seem to fall away, and the more she wonders: Is she about to kick the Austen obsession for good, or could all her dreams actually culminate in a Mr. Darcy of her own?
Director: Jershua Hess
Starring: Keri Russell, J.J. Feild, Bret McKenzie, James Callis, Jennifer Coolidge, Jane Seymour, Rupert Vansittart
Trailer: Trailer "Austenland"
Comment: OK, I'm an Austen fan, but not this big.

In My Mailbox (105)

Six cards this week. It's going into the right direction again, more cards then last week. The first postcard came from St. Petersburg, Russia. Beatiful painting.

Sent: june 5th 2013
Received: july 7th 2013
Distance: 1,800 km (1,118 miles)
Travel Time: 32 days

From Minsk, Belarus came this super adorable kitten. How lovely!

Sent: july 1st 2013
Received: july 7th 2013
Distance: 1,486 km (923 miles)
Travel Time: 6 days

My first offical "Keep Calm and..." postcard. It's from Great Brittain' capital London. I'm so happy with this card!

Sent: june 20th 2013
Received: july 8th 2013
Distance: 425 km (264 miles)
Travel Time: 18 days

A gorgeous ballet card from Basel, Switzerland. It's a calendar and the sender had this card and never found anyone to send it to. I happen to like ballet, so I'm more then happy to get this card.

Sent: june 30th 2013
Received: july 10th 2013
Distance: 420 km (261 miles)
Travel Time: 10 days

From Kharkiv, Ukraine (finally some place else than Kiev) I got this flowery card. Sadly enough the writer on put "Happy Postcrossing" on the back.

Sent: july 5th 2013
Received: july 11th 2013
Distance: 2,131 km (1,324 miles)
Travel Time: 6 days

I'm not a fan of the multiview tourist cards, but this is a little different. It's watercolored I think. The card is from Duisburg, Germany.

Sent: july 4th 2013
Received: july 11th 2013
Distance: 89 km (55 miles)
Travel Time: 7 days

Thanks Elena, Olga, Aleksandra, Vera, Marina and Michelle for you great postcards this week!!!