Every time I go in Target (which I have to admit is a lot...), I spend some time in the movies/books section. For a solid few months, I'd see this weird grayish book with a strange girl on the front floating in midair. One day, I skimmed through the pages, came across pictures of some creepy man with no pupils and a dog with the head of a girl, and immediately put it back on the shelf.
Shortly after, I saw a commercial for a new Tim Burton movie about a headmistress and a home of weird kids, one of whom had a working mouth on the back of her head. I love Burton's work, so when I realized it was an adaptation of the book I was too chicken to look at, I decided it couldn't be THAT bad and gave Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children a shot.
My first impression wasn't great. I almost quit/dropped the book before the first chapter even began. On one of the introductory pages, there's a picture of a girl, which I later learned is the lead female character Emma Bloom, covered in shadows and basically staring into your soul.
Still, I pressed on and I'm so glad I did. The story centers on Jacob Portman and the special bond he and his grandfather, Abe, had throughout his childhood. Abe tells Jacob tales of the home he stayed in as a child, where there were children with special abilities, including an invisible boy and a girl who could levitate.
Jacob assumed these were fairy tales, until he makes the journey to the long abandoned children's home and enters the "loop" - the same day repeated over and over for eternity. This particular loop is on September 3rd, 1940, the day before all of Abe's friends, the peculiar children that Jacob assumed were fictional, die in a bomb explosion from the war. In this loop, they are perfectly safe and never age.
Jacob befriends the invisible boy, Millard, and finds more than a friend in the girl who can create fire with her hands, Emma Bloom. Emma also happened to be in love with Jacob's grandfather when Abe was part of the loop, which isn't awkward at all......
Going into this book, I didn't know what to expect. I don't deal well with stories that involve creepy kids, but the peculiar children are fantastic. They each have their own special ability, and work to help Jacob recognize his own talent, which is unfortunately the ability to see dark shadow creatures called hollows.
The second and third books of the series are waiting on my bookshelf, and I can't wait to see what happens to Jacob and his peculiar friends as they battle hollows and protect their loop.
It's almost the start of 2017, which means new beginnings and an overflow of Oprah Winfrey weightloss commercials. Yes, I want to be a better person and do great things like the rest of us this year, but more importantly, I'm already planning ahead for all of the music, books, movies, and shows I want to take in over the next 12 months.
Music
NIALL HORAN - Let's all take a deep breath because my favorite member of One Direction is releasing an ALBUM. A few months back, Niall released the single, "This Town," which was pure heaven. The simple melody and vocals suited him perfectly, and I have my fingers crossed that the album will follow a similar style. Niall recently told E! News that he's still in the writing and recording process, but "it should be coming soon."
FALLING IN REVERSE - On a similar note, another of my favorite bands, Falling In Reverse, just released a heart-wrenching single called "Coming Home" which I can only assume means a new album is coming. The song has a different, more relaxed and futuristic vibe than most of their heavier music, which myself and other fans have come to know them for. I'm all for some chill, emotional songs, but it won't be a Falling in Reverse album without Ronnie screaming about an ex, drugs, and the general stupidity of humanity.
Movies
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST - It's a tale as old as time, yet I will forever love Beauty and the Beast. A real-life version of the Disney classic will be released in March, with one of my favorite actresses, Emma Watson, as Belle. Only quick clips have been released over the past few months, but we finally have a full-length trailer to hold us over until the movie officially hits theaters.
Books
HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD - If there's one obsession that has stayed with me since my grade school days, it's Harry Potter. Over the summer, I got my hands on Harry Potter and The Cursed Child as soon as it hit shelves. However, it's now December and I still haven't touched it. Why? I couldn't just jump into a new Harry story after years since The Deathly Hallows. It just wouldn't seem right. So, I started from book one and am working my way through the series. It's been years since I read them, and the story still holds the same excitement and magic as when I was a kid (as does my undying love for Malfoy). Hopefully The Cursed Child doesn't disappoint.
GAME OF THRONES - A few months ago, I powered through every season of Game of Thrones and fell in love with everything from the theme song to the million storylines to keep track of. After consulting with several friends about the book series and getting mixed reviews, I decided to give them a try. These will need to wait until after Harry Potter, but I can already see they may very well take until 2018 to finish....talk about small print!
Television
BEYOND - Every year, Freeform (previously ABC Family) launches a few new series. Some stick like Pretty Little Liars while most fizzle out after one or two seasons. The station is premiering Beyond on January 2nd, and it seems like something I can easily get hooked on. The plot of the show focuses on a guy named Holden who wakes up from a coma after 12 years and needs to figure out what happened to him. In typical Freeform fashion, I'm sure there will be some love interests and sketchy people who you know from the first episode had SOMETHING to do with the coma.
So, if you need me in 2017, I will be binging all of the above while working on my abs and trying to mentally curse out less people on the subway. Happy New Year!
As much as I've been trying to contain it until after Thanksgiving, today I transitioned into full on Christmas elf. I blasted "O Come All Ye Faithful" by Pentatonix in my car, and turned into a complete five-year-old when I spotted Santa at the mall.
So, to keep the spirit going, I've decided to share some of my favorite holiday movies that I have to watch each year before Christmas can officially occur.
1. A Christmas Story
Every year on Christmas day, I obsessively watch the TBS 24 hour marathon without getting the least bit sick of Ralphie's excitement over his new Red Ryder or Scut Farkus' obnoxious laugh. Towards the end of the night, I always need to battle my family for the remote, but complaining that it's the "last showing" and how I "won't see it again for a year" usually wins out.
It's just a story that you can't get tired of. Ralphie is your typical middle-school boy, struggling through class and bullies, and all he wants for Christmas is an "official Red Ryder, carbine action, two-hundred shot, range model air rifle" but his mom keeps putting her foot down, concerned about his safety. In the end, his grouchy but loving dad comes through and gives him the gun, disguised as a present from Santa.
Watching the marathon will forever be one of my favorite yearly traditions. On Christmas Eve, my mom always makes anchovy gravy and fried shrimp, and after dinner, we break out the coffee and butter cookies as Ralphie gazes into the toy store window to get his first glimpse of Red Ryder.
2. A Christmas Carol (George C. Scott version)
There's so many versions of A Christmas Carol out there. Endless actors have done a solid job at playing Scrooge, but the version with George C. Scott is the only one that I grew up watching, and therefore holds a special place with me.
Yes, it's the same story as all the others, but there's something about his portrayal and delivery of Scrooge that adds a new dynamic to the character. You still dislike Scrooge, but there's a comical sarcasm that Scott brings to the scenes that makes you want to like him and actually root for him.
He plays greedy and mean well, but joyous and apologetic even better. When he wakes up on Christmas morning after his visit from the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, he leaps up and down on his bed yelling "Merry Christmas to the world!" The scene gives you the urge to leap around your house doing the exact same thing.
A Christmas Carol is my Christmas Eve tradition (yes, I manage take a break from A Christmas Story). I'll usually start the DVD a little after 10pm, this way by the time Scrooge wakes up on Christmas morning, it's after midnight and actually Christmas in real time.
3. The Polar Express
I'm going to be honest...when this first came out, I wasn't a fan. I thought it was very lengthy and that the storyline was slow. Man, was I stupid. A few years ago, I decided to give it another shot and by the final credits, ended up on my couch in tears surrounded by empty chocolate wrappers. Needless to say, I was pretty touched.
First off, the music is absolutely beautiful. It's a similar melody that plays in the background for many of the scenes, and it's perfect for the setting and storyline. Several songs are extremely catchy, including the hot chocolate one on the train, and "When Christmas Comes to Town."
My absolute favorite is Josh Groban's "Believe" that plays through the final credits. I never got chills like I did the first time I heard it - from the lyrics to the melody, it's an all around wonderful song for the entire year.
"Believe in what you feel inside, and give your dreams the wings to fly. You have everything you need...if you just believe."
The storyline managed to give me chills as well. The main boy is getting older and is starting to question the reality of Santa Claus. It's not until he gets to the North Pole and physically sees him, that he fully believes. The boy receives the first gift of Christmas from Santa - a bell from his sleigh. Only people who truly believe in Santa can hear the bell's chime.
Over the years, his friends and little sister stop hearing the bell. This part depressed me to no end because I remember (spoiler alert) when I realized Santa didn't exist as a kid. However, the boy continues to hear the chime even as an adult. Moral of the story - no matter how old you get, you can't lose that magic and excitement of childhood. Reality will set in, there will be responsibilities. But through it all, you can't stop believing in happiness and dreams.
There's so many other great movies that if I kept going, Christmas would be over. So I'll leave you with quite possibly the greatest holiday song of our time...
