media update: November

NOTE TO G (OR ANYONE WHO PLANS TO SEE BONES & ALL):  Don't read fiction review #4.

Asterisks denote something I particularly enjoyed or found especially worthy of my time; double asterisks are reserved for the creme de la creme. As always, your mileage may vary.

FICTION

1. Small Game* by Blair Braverman:  Mara joins a reality show in which she and four strangers are dropped off in the wilderness to survive on their own for six weeks.  But one day the crew unexpectedly vanishes, and what started as a game becomes a fight for survival.

2. White Horse by Erika T. Wurth:  Kari has always wanted to know what happened to her mother, who disappeared when Kari was only two days old.  When her cousin gives her a bracelet that belonged to her mother, Kari begins seeing disturbing visions, and she sets out to discover the truth.

3. Aesthetica* by Allie Rowbottom:  Anna lives for Instagram, and she's willing to change her face and body to keep the likes coming.  But when she gets older, she decides to undergo Aesthetica, a dangerous procedure that will undo every nip, tuck, and filler she's ever had. 

4. Bones & All* by Camille DeAngelis:  Maren has had cannibalistic compulsions since she was an infant.  Unable to cope with covering up Maren's crimes, her mother abandons her when she's 16, and Maren goes on a road trip to find her long-lost father.  Pitch black and impossible to put down.

2022 TOTAL SO FAR: 46

NONFICTION

Nothing this month.

2022 TOTAL SO FAR:  8

MANGA/GRAPHIC NOVELS

1. See You Tomorrow at the Food Court by Shinichiro Nariie

2. Other Ever Afters: New Queer Fairy Tales* by Melanie Gillman

2022 TOTAL SO FAR:   22 graphic novels and 32 volumes of manga

MOVIES

1. Gerald's Game:  Gerald wants to play a little game with his wife Jessie (Carla Gugino), but it ends up with him dead and her handcuffed to a bed.  With no neighbors around for miles and a hungry dog getting ever closer, Jessie must use all her wits to survive.  A very good adaptation of the Stephen King book.

2. Enola Holmes 2:  Enola, sister of Sherlock, investigates the disappearance of a match factory worker and uncovers a more sinister plot.  Like its predecessor, it's fun, and Millie Bobby Brown is charming as Enola.

3. Nomadland*:  After losing her job and her husband, Fern (Frances McDormand, who won the best actress Oscar last year for her excellent performance) travels the country in her van, picking up odd jobs and meeting other nomads.  Quiet but compelling.

4. Sicario: Day of the Soldado:  A federal agent arranges the kidnapping of a cartel kingpin's daughter in hopes of escalating the Mexican drug war; needless to say, this plan goes tits up.  An exciting sequel.

5. Don't Worry Darling*:  Alice (Florence Pugh) lives an idyllic life in the community of Victory, but the cracks begin to show.  It's a shame the assorted dramas during and after filming overshadowed this movie, because it's really good.

6. Bullet Train*:  Five assassins duke it out on a Japanese bullet train in this fun action comedy.

7. Bubble:  Tokyo becomes closed off from the rest of the world by a giant bubble.  Groups of people still live inside, using the altered gravity to compete in parkour races, and a teenager is rescued by a mysterious girl.  If the story had been even half as good as the animation, it would have been an easy five stars, but it was muddled and the ending was unsatisfying.  Still, it's worth watching because it's some of the most gorgeous animation I've ever seen.

2022 TOTAL SO FAR:  72