Spotlight: Emma Woodhouse

Emma Woodhouse (Emma)

Emma was played by actress Romola Garai. 

Emma with Mr. Knightley

Movie: Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 7.5

Main characters: Mr. Smith, Clarissa

Genre: Ummm...life

Primary actors: Jean Arthur, James Stewart

Length: Slightly over 2 hours

Time period: 1930's

Exciting events: Amazingly long speech, rush to get newspapers out,  bad guys

Year it came out: 1939

My overall opinion: A good movie! It's not a kids movie (they wouldn't find it interesting) but it is interesting! A unique and unfortunately fairly accurate look at politics through the eyes of a young senator.

Help!

I know I haven't yet published any spotlight posts. (I've got some in the works, maybe later today!) But for now, I can't decide who my third one should be. (See? Told ya I have some in the works ;) So go and vote in the poll on the right! It could be:

• Elinor Dashwood (Sense and Sensibility)
• Legolas (Lord of the Rings)
• Peter Pevensie (The Chronicles of Narnia)
• or Buttercup (The Princess Bride)

And don't worry...they'll all be done at some point. :) But for now...I can't decide!

I Beat the Odds

Author: Michael Oher

Genre: Auto-biography, sports, life

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 8

Type: Biography

Number of pages: 250

Time period: Present

Main characters: Michael

Exciting events: Foster care

Passage from book: I felt myself breaking into a sweat as I walked up to the doors of the Department of Children's Services office, and it had nothing to do with the fact that it was summertime in Memphis. I never would have dreamed a dozen years ago that I would walk willingly up to those doors....and now I was headed inside.

My overall opinion: Michael's story is the one on which The Blind Side movie is based. Which, btw, I haven't seen yet. Someday! It was an interesting story, good for a one time read. Not riveting, but I wasn't bored to tears either.

A New Series/Set!

Yes! I don't know what you will think of this compared to the Doubles series...hopefully these will be almost as fun. :) I'm calling this one The Spotlight Series.

So what I'm going to do is spotlight individual characters. Oh dear, this is hard to explain. Hold with me here... I will choose one character from a movie I like. Example: Aragorn from Lord of the Rings. I will write a post with probably few words and many pictures of that character. Maybe some interesting facts if I can find some.

Some of these characters will be men, some women. I'll try and be even. :)

When I do someone like Mr. Darcy, I would only do from one movie per post. Therefore, IF I had liked both the Firth and MacFadyen Darcys, I would do two posts. One for the Firth Darcy, one for the MacFadyen Darcy.

Is this making sense? :P

Also, the reason it's a series/set is because I don't plan to do these in a month and then be done. Hopefully, whenever I watch a new movie where I have a couple of characters who I really like, I'll do a spotlight of each of those characters.

Another way to describe these posts would pretty much be a picture collection for that character/actor/personage.

Have someone you want me to be sure to remember to do?? Feel free to say so in a comment. I may or may not do him/her. :)

300th Post!

Wow, can you believe it? I'm still processing this amazing fact. :) 300 posts...many reviews and some other great things too! I've had so much fun getting this far, and I hope you've enjoyed it too.

Currently: 38 followers! As you may have noticed, I announced on the sidebar bar that when I have forty-five followers, I will have another giveaway! So tell your friends. :)

Now for some facts. I have no idea whether or not YOU enjoy this, but I sure do. :)

Number of reviews by...

RATING:
10: 9
8: 64
8.5: 55
9: 38
9.5: 29

TYPE:
Biography: 12
Book: 186!
CD: 9
Children's book: 7
Fiction: 120
Historical fiction: 18
Movie: 32
Non-fiction: 28
Song: 19

And the rest you'll have to look up for yourself. ;)

Okay, gotta go. Keep an eye out my next fun series/set (explanation about it coming tomorrow!), guest posts, and tons more book, movie, song, and CD reviews. :)

Cleopatra: A Life

Author: Stacy Schiff

Genre: Biography

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 8

Type: Biography

Number of pages: 361

Time period: Bible times (slightly before Christ...had you realized that?)

Main characters: Cleopatra, Antony, Caesar

Exciting events: Cleopatra's life is indeed exciting!

My overall opinion: It was good and I learned a lot about Cleopatra. I recommend this book to anyone with even a faint interest in her! While you may not read it word for word, I'm sure it will be enjoyable. :)

Movie: A Man For All Seasons

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 7.5

Main characters: Sir Thomas More (and yes, I spelled that right), King Henry VIII

Genre: Adventure

Primary actors: Paul Scofield, Orson Welles

Length: Two hours

Based on: I believe it's based on the book/play called A Man For All Seasons by Robert Bolt.

Time period: 1500's

Exciting events: Yeah.

Year it came out: 1966

My overall opinion: It was a good film and I learned a lot about Sir Thomas More and the general people from that time period. I recommend it.

Mary: Queen of Scots

(sorry about the terrible picture...some books are impossible to find good pictures of!)

Author: Emily Hahn

Genre: Biography

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 8

Type: Biography

Number of pages: 184

Time period: 1500's

Main characters: Mary, Darnley, Bothwell, Elizabeth (the First, of England)

Exciting events: Escape, capture, death, etc.

My overall opinion: It was an excellent biography and I learned a lot about the Scottish Mary.

Female Doubles: Post 3

My third and final female doubles post! This has been such a fun series of posts to do; I anticipated and relished putting each post together. :) There is a possiblity that I will do more in the future, if I find a bunch more doubles. You never know. :) So, without further ado, let's go!

* means I haven't watched it

Jennifer Ehle

Elizabeth Bennet (Pride and Prejudice, 1995)

Myrtle Logue (The King's Speech, 2010)*

Elizabeth Spriggs

Mrs. Jennings (Sense and Sensiblity, 1995) {{on the right}}

Mrs. Goodenough (Wives and Daughters, 1999)

{{no picture}}

Elizabeth Taylor

Katharine (Taming of the Shrew, 1967)

Cleopatra (Cleopatra, 1963)* {{I've seen portions only}}

Amy March (Little Women, 1949) {{that movie has some good scenes! I like it}}
 

Julia Sawalha

Lydia Bennet (Pride and Prejudice, 1995)

Jessie Brown (Cranford, 2007)*{{correct picture, right?}}

Dorcas Lane (Larkrise to Candleford, 2008)*

Emma Thompson

Elinor Dashwood (Sense and Sensibility, 1995)

Nanny (Nanny McPhee, 2005, and Nanny McPhee Returns, 2010)* {{I've seen the first, not the second}}

Beatrice (Much Ado About Nothing, 1993)*

And so we end the doubles posts for now! Remember to let me know any mistakes I overlooked in here, and in the future, when you find a neat double, mention it to me! Thank you. :)

The Girl in White Armor

(couldn't find picture)

Author: Albert B. Paine

Genre: Biography

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 6.5

Type: Non-fiction

Number of pages: 240, but it's an easy read, written for kids

Time period: 1400's

Main characters: Joan of Arc

Exciting events: Battles

My overall opinion: I found it boring. :( However, I learned some things from it anyway.

Beyond the Cross and the Switchblade

Author: David Wilkerson

Genre: Conversion, missions, life, evangelism

Series: It is the sequel to The Cross and the Switchblade, and it should be read after that. So I guess it might be the Cross and the Switchblade series...

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 9

Type: Non-fiction

Number of pages: 191

Time period: 1970's

Main characters: David

Exciting events: Gang life

My overall opinion: It was an excellent follow-up to The Cross and the Switchblade. This one had a long chapter/letter about End Times that was intriguing. And also some good marital advice...though obviously that's a bit pre-mature for me. :P If you've read and enjoyed the first book, you'll like this one too!

Ben-Hur

Author: Lew Wallace

Genre: Adventure, life, romance (light)

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 8

Type: Fiction

Number of pages: 382

Time period: Bible times (specifically Jesus)

Main characters: Ben Hur, Messala, Amrah, Tirzah, Esther, Iras

Exciting events: A big chariot race...most exciting. :)

My overall opinion: It's a good book, rather hard to read. But once you get into it, it's a great story! There is a very exciting chariot race, several women, time in the galleys, leprosy, miracles by Jesus, and much more! I think this is worth at least one read. :) And then do see the movie...it's also good (if a bit old) and follows the book quite closely. Learn about the movie here.

Pearl in the Sand

Author: Tessa Afshar

Genre: Romance, life

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 9

Type: Historical fiction

Number of pages: 314

Time period: Bible times (specifically, the time of Joshua and Jericho)

Main characters: Rahab, Salmone, God

Exciting events: Jericho's destruction!

My overall opinion: This is the story of Rahab. It was very interesting. :) I do recommend it! Definitely read it if you can get a copy.

Giveaway on Book Ponderings!

This giveaway is for the sequel to Making Waves which I believe I reviewed not long ago. It's called A Great Catch and I think the cover looks just a fun. Here, look:

Fun, yes? Want to win? Click here by June 3 to enter!

Coronation of Glory

Author: Deborah Meroff

Genre: Biography (historical fiction)

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 9

Type: Biography/historical fiction

Number of pages: 298

Time period: 1500's

Main characters: Lady Jane Grey, Edward, Mary, many others

Exciting events: Court intrigue!

Passage from book: I remember perfectly that day in early spring of the year 1547. It had been only three months since our Sovereign King Henry the Eighth was laid in state beneath the stones of St. George's Chapel at Windsor; now my guardian and I were on our way to visit the Queen Dowager.

My overall opinion: An excellent book! Lady Jane is telling the story herself (hence the historical fiction) and at the same time, it's a biography of her. It was very very interesting. Deborah Meroff did a great job! I highly recommend this book, especially to anyone interested in King Henry's time.

Movie: Jane Eyre

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 9

Main characters: Jane, Mr. Rochester, Adele, St. John, many others!

Genre: Romance

Series or set: It does come in a TV series of 11 episodes.

Primary actors: Timothy Dalton, Zelah Clarke {{interesting fact: Dalton also acted in "Wuthering Heights"... as Heathcliff!}}

Length: Between four and six-and-a-half hours. I'm not sure. And I can't find it for sure anywhere on the internet. Anyone know?

Based on: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Time period: 1800's

Exciting events: Oooo, yes.

Year it came out: 1983

My overall opinion: A great Jane Eyre adaption. I definitely recommend it as an accurate portrayal of the book. Do read the book too. :) A few scenes might be a bit scary for younger kids, but overall I think you'll like it. :)

Movie: Ivanhoe

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 8.5

Main characters: Ivanhoe, Rowena, Rebecca, Brian Du Bois-Guilbert

Genre: Adventure, historical fiction movie. :)

Primary actors: Steven Waddington, Ralph Brown, Susan Lynch, Victoria Smurfit (yes, that's really her last name)

Length: 4 1/2 hours!

Based on: Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott

Time period: 1100's

Exciting events: Many!

Year it came out: 1997

My overall opinion: I enjoyed this movie a lot! What I did was read the book (or at least attempt to), then watch the movie. I think that's a good way...the book is a hard one to read. The movie is helpful to understanding it. This version follows the book quite closely. I recommend it!

Rowena.

I know the above is a terrible picture...I'm sorry. But it's hard to find pictures.

Rebecca. Like I said...hard to find good ones. :(