#books Paulini

[amorinarose]

December 2022 Chilling with Books Corner, spotlights and Joseph in Melbourne

Feel free to make a comment

For the end of this year, I am spotlighting some of the wonderful people I have been privileged to spotlight not only over the current year but since I started blogging. If you are wondering why I start with Joseph and The Technicolour Dreamcoat then you will have to read further down. Yes, I wanted your attention. Photo by Mwabonje on Pexels.com It would be remarkably easy to lose positivity…

[heartofstanding]

Did Edward II transfer Isabella's jewelry?

I assume you're talking about the story that Edward II gave Isabella of France's jewels to Piers Gaveston. The answer: most likely not. The story seems to have originated with the Victorian historian, Agnes Strickland. Strickland possibly confused or misinterpreted a statement made in the Annales Paulini that Edward II sent the presents he received from Philip IV of France, including jewels, to Gaveston. Edward was in France at the time and presumably sent them to Gaveston in his position as regent. We don't know that Gaveston then kept the jewels - he may have only held them until Edward returned to take up custody of them. Edward may have then given some or all of the jewels to Gaveston but again: these aren't Isabella's and while it may have been tactless to do so, the jewels were Edward's own property.

Interestingly, in Kathryn Warner's first blog post about this subject she mentions one academic article and one PhD thesis that cite BL Cotton Nero D x, f. 108v as a source for this story. Warner admits she hasn't seen (or, apparently, knows much about) this manuscript but dismisses as "another chronicle, not compelling evidence" and "basically ... hearsay". This is literally the only time that manuscript is mentioned on her blog and it goes unmentioned in all other discussions (on her blog and in her biographies) of the incident (indeed the manuscript is never mentioned again on her blog and isn't referenced in any of her books). I don't know what the manuscript says since I don't have access to it but it's intriguing there may be contemporary proof of the story. All the same, it seems very unlikely that Edward would have shown Gaveston such outrageous favouritism to the detriment of his wife and only one source recorded it.

tl;dr: it most likely didn't happen but there may be a contemporary chronicle that claimed it did.

[centrestagereviews]

Track of the Week: Nightclub Medley - The Bodyguard Musical

Track of the Week: Nightclub Medley – The Bodyguard Musical

Performed by Paulini and the cast of The Bodyguard (Australia). The Bodyguard will tour the UK from 28th January and will star Melanie Thornton. Further casting will be announced at a later point. For more information or to book your tickets click here. Video courtesy of YouTube and Image courtesy of Google Images

[musicandbooksaremyhappyplace]

i think that this is going to be the source for conflict in future books because paulini is to good a writer to just do something like that for no reason. He sees the things that are wrong with arya’s ascension to the throne and he’ll make it up in the future.

But i entirely agree with all of these arguments

I understand that Arya during the series was next in line for the throne, but it’s stated multiple times that she is one of the youngest elves, and she openly scorned the dwarves for their religion and idols, as well as overall being an incredibly opinionated person. Was it really right for her to be the ambassador for the elves when she wouldn’t even take her time to understand the cultural differences and be at least respectful to the dwarves?

[thesoulprophecies]

I haven't got an addiction... honest.

[fan-ravioli]

Can anyone tell me if there's a specific reason why Cristopher Paulini didn't put Arya and Eragon together at the end and Murtagh and Nasuada?

Like, we were expecting some couple at the end of the books and the only couple we had was Roran and Katrina,who were already a couple at the beginning of the saga ;-;

[meilleurevents-blog]

Meilleur events International celebrity performer, SARAH C.

International recording artist, Sarah C is known for her trademark powerful and soulful voice and dynamic stage presence. As a respected vocalist she has appeared as a guest judge on Channel 7’s “All Togther Now.” She has also performed backing vocals on shows such as Ex Factor and for some of the biggest names in the business such as Kylie Minogue, Jessica Mauboy, Daryl Braithwaite, Anthony Callea, Tim Campbell and Paulini. Recently Sarah had the exclusive honour of performing for Hollywood Royalty and Oscar winners Goldie Hawn and Ms Susan Sarandon.

Not booked your tickets yet!! Hurry and schedule a visit for an outlandish experience.

Get Tickets: http://bit.ly/2RdDxjo

[filipport]

Kropka. Członek rodziny. Doceniam fakt, że wpadacie do mnie po portrety swoich bliskich. Pierwszy tatuaż Pauliny i pierwsza praca wykonana w nowym studiu @kult.tattoo (Karmelicka 9) Wielkie dzięki Paulina! … Family member. I appreciate the fact that you come to me for portraits of your loved ones. The first tattoo of Paulina and the first work done in the new studio @kult.tattoo Many thanks Paulina! Zapisy/Booking: ⚓️DM 📞Tel: 12 422 05 36 📧E-mail: kultkrk@gmail.com ___ #filipport #kulttattoofest #tattoo #tattoos #realistictattoo #art #ink #tattooartist #tattoolife #tatuaje #portraittattoo #portraitofdog #dogtattoo #portret #tatuaggio #tatuaż #tattoopeople #tattoodesign #blackandgray #tattoostyle #bestfriends #blackports #krakowtattoo #blackworktattoo #tatuatori @darkartists @inkedmag @radtattoos @best.tattoos.ig @inksoul @leadthefollowers (w: Kraków, Poland) https://www.instagram.com/p/CdL8EuNIZwV/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[jomuses]

CHRISTOPHER PAULINI IS GONNA PUBLISH ANOTHER BOOK IM SO HAPPY!

[aureluspl]

CIERPKIE WINOGRONA Bożena Gałczyńska-Szurek Po odczytaniu testamentu męża obrazek idyllicznego związku Pauliny rozpada się na drobne kawałki. Kobieta postanawia wyruszyć do Grecji, by znaleźć spadkobiercę należnego jej majątku i zdemaskować oszustwa męża. Czy uda się jej odkryć tajemnice podwójnego życia Janka? Kim są ludzie ze starych fotografii? A może nic nie jest takie, jak nam się wydaje? Autorka przeplata malownicze opisy greckich krajobrazów i zwyczajów z barwną historią miłosną. Nieszczęśliwy romans z przystojnym Grekiem utwierdzi Paulinę w przekonaniu, że winogrona nie zawsze mają słodki smak. #książka #książki #aurelus #book #books #lektura #czytam #czytamy #lubieczytac #kochamczytac #ksiązkadlaciebie #taniaksiążka #romans #grecja #testament #śmierć #pozorymylą #wakacje #winogrona #tajemnica https://www.instagram.com/p/ByXIhW4BAHL/?igshid=lva86eedjp63

[paperwhisperings]

Do you have a favorite book? Or any recommendations?

I don’t really have a favourite book. No, not really. But I do have several that I almost never get bored of reading:-

- All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven- The Mortal Instruments series & The Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare- Harry Potter by J.K.Rowling- The Inheritance Cycles by Christopher Paulini

I’ve recently read the Cut & Run series (and related books such as Sidewinder series and Warrior’s Cross) by Abigail Roux (and Madeleine Urban). Despite some plot holes, these are pretty great too. The only thing is that they contain pretty explicit M/M sex scenes. Some people may not take kindly to that. :)

[jadelotusflower]

May 2021 Roundup

Watching

Chess: The Musical - My second live theatre experience for the year, but this time with no seating restrictions. It certainly felt weird and uncomfortable to be packed into a full house again, even if everyone was wearing masks. I've never seen Chess performed, although I have watched the 2008 concert version many times. I enjoyed seeing it properly staged and sung live, even though I suspect there may have been some illness in the cast as there was issues of breath control and strained voices on occasion. Natalie Bassingthwaighte has a good pop/rock voice and she killed Nobody's Side but was just fine with the rest (including a patchy British accent). Paulini has the pipes as Svetlana, although I do wonder if she would have made a better choice for Florence. The other standout was Brittaine Shipway as The Arbiter, usually a male role but actually working much better gender flipped and having a powerful female character outside of the love triangle (and who spends almost the entire show onstage observing).

Mank (dir. David Fincher) - A love letter to old Hollywood through the eyes of Herman J Mankcovitz as he writes the screenplay for Citizen Kane and looks back on his days in the studio system. Some familiarity with that film is required, or at least the broad brushstrokes and the main players - William Randolph Hearst as the inspiration for Charles Foster Kane, the actress Marion Davies, and Welles himself (who looms as a shadow figure throughout most of the film, shot in shadow, or profile, or in costume until the climactic confrontation with Mank). Gary Oldman is somewhat miscast as Mank imo; he carries every one of his 65 years and is just not believable as a 43 year old Mank, affected with alcoholism and a broken leg though he is. Maybe it’s that Mank (as the film depicts him) is just not very interesting - we’ve seen the self destructive drunk with acerbic wit so many times there’s just nothing new in it and feels quite tiresome. He is however a fulcrum for the other more interesting characters to work around; the lens through which we see Hollywood in action. And there’s a lot going on - the ruthless duplicity of Louis B Mayer, the writers rooms at work, the rich and powerful dismissing the rise of Nazism, Hearst bankrolling a campaign against socialist Upton Sinclair. This video is worth watching dealing with some criticisms, particularly the depiction of historical events, Marion Davies, and authorship. The rest of the cast is however very good - Amanda Seyfried as Davies, Charles Dance as Hearst, Tom Burke as an uncanny Welles. It was also nice to see Robin Hood alum Sam Troughton as John Houseman!

Seyfried has been rightly praised and she is indeed the best part of the film (aside from the bizarre Brooklyn accent and the missed opportunity to give the role to an actual actress in her 40's), so much so I wish it had been entitled Marion and about her perspective of Hollywood. Because there’s still distance, we are viewing her from afar - the bird in the gilded cage - not privy to her inner world and that’s a shame, because she’s clearly the most interesting of the lot. It should come as no surprise that this film does not pass the Bechdel test, even though there clearly was An Attempt to boost the presence of the female characters. Other than Marion Davies, we have Lily Collins as the long suffering assistant Alexander, Tuppence Middleton as the long suffering wife Sarah, and Monika Gossmann as the enabling German housekeeper Freda. Variations on a theme, all revolving around and Mank and exerting little to no agency. There’s also, rather out of place, the silent women in the Paramount writers room, topless except for sparkly pasties. If it’s meant to be a comment on sexism of the time it fails, because it is just there, like window dressing, when female screenwriters did exist and are yet somehow completely absent. Also absent are the women who wielded power at the time - the gossip columnists Hedda Hopper and Louella Parsons who threaded the Hollywood needle much as screenwriters did. I enjoyed the film, it’s beautifully made and the time period lovingly depicted, down to the era-appropriate framing, camera lenses, music, and of course, filmed entirely in black and white. I guess I’m just less and less interested in these kinds of stories, or at least these stories told through the same old perspective. For a different take on the Welles/Mank collaboration, check out RKO 281 (that incidentally does feature both Hedda and Louella and is on youtube in its entirety). For more of the facts, The Battle Over Citizen Kane is also a very good documentary about Hearst’s attempts to kill the film. Marion Davies is also fictionalised (earlier in her career) in The Cat’s Meow, which I have not seen for many years but remember quite enjoying. Girls5Eva (season 1) - A girl group with one hit album in the 90's reunites after a rapper samples their biggest hit - this is a fun show satirising the artifice of 90's pop as well as the current music scene, with a great cast including singing greats Sara Bareilles and Renee Elise Goldsberry, and comediennes Busy Phillips and Paula Pell (who has at least ten years on the other girls, but they hang a lantern on it, and I appreciate her plot/character in no way revolved around her size). I really enjoyed it, and am still singing the ridiculous but catchy title song with big Spice Girls/B*witched energy.

Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist (season 2, episodes 5-13) - A meandering, hit and miss season overall - multiple characters introduced and given setup only to be shunted within a few episodes, plotlines picked up then pushed aside (Emily's post-partum depression that basically boiled down to "I'm on meds so I'm fine now" was particularly egregious) - I cut the show some slack because clearly covid interfered and caused a shortened season, which makes the latter half of the season exceptionally rushed. Alex Newell continues to be MVP, and his romance plot was honestly so much more compelling than Zoe's. I didn't really have a horse in the Simon/Max race, I liked both characters even if the OTP of the show was Zoe/Therapy, but while I'm happy the love triangle finally over, the speed of the back and forth really undermined the story. But I enjoyed the final twist and look forward to next season (hopefully it is renewed).

This is Us (season 5) - I don't expect much from this show other than soapy drama and emotional scenes engineered to make me cry, but is yet another reminder about why I shouldn't get attached to ships while shows are still airing. I have a soft spot for Smallville alum Justin Hartley, but Kevin's season of girlfriend's past is so damn tiresome. Maybe it's just that Madison has become my favourite character and I want the best for her, maybe it's the sloppy writing more interested in twists and turns than a compelling character arc. But hey, there's still the always excellent Sterling K Brown and Susan Kelechi Watson, and I continue to be impressed by Mandy Moore - I remember when she was a teen pop star breaking into acting and she's come so far, making all the right career choices (including pulling double duty as producer/choreographer over at Zoey's).

Reading

Mythos (Stephen Fry) - Fry's typically irreverent and witty take on the Classics (even though he is on occasion a bit twee), his focus mainly on the gods, their origin and exploits. I was a Greek mythology kid, absolutely obsessed with these stories although I never really graduated to a Greek mythology adult but rather a casual fan. It was nice to revisit this world, as many of them I had forgotten or had never known all the details (children's versions being understandably light on the rapes and grislier aspects). As Fry notes, these myths were not kindly to humanity and particularly women, which perhaps leads into the remainder of my Greek mythology reading month:

Circe (Madeline Millar)- A retelling of the Circle myth, the goddess best known for transforming Odysseus' men into pigs, and a book that I've finally got around to reading after many, many recommendations. While perhaps not all I was expecting, Millar's writing is lyrically beautiful and touches upon the nature of gods and humanity, parents and children, exile and freedom,and I enjoyed it very much.

The Penelopiad (Margaret Atwood) - Another retelling, this time from the pov of Penelope. I've wanted to read this since coming across a quote ("be like water") that I used for a fic, and the novel, while very short, is typical of Atwood's masterful writing style and love of multi-layered meta. Like Circe, this does not paint Odysseus in a good light, as Penelope reflects back on her life from the Underworld, her story interspersed by the Greek Chorus of the maids butchered on Odysseus' return to Ithaca, and the story is as much a vindication for the innocent maids as Penelope.

Writing

Nothing posted this month, but words written for Against the Dying of the Light (1111), The Lady of the Lake (1006), and Here I Go Again (1390). That makes a total of 3,507 for the month and 27,469 so far this year.

[madebymichael-blog]

MELBOURNE SEASON CONFIRMED FOR THE BODYGUARD AS MORE CAST ANNOUNCED

roducers Michael Harrison, David Ian and John Frost today announced that the Melbourne season of the international award-winning hit musical THE BODYGUARD will play at the Regent Theatre from 24 August. The 2017 Australian tour of THE BODYGUARD will commence at the Sydney Lyric Theatre on 21 April, before playing at the Lyric Theatre, Brisbane from 19 July, then moving to the Regent Theatre, Melbourne. Tickets go on sale for the Melbourne season on 27 February through Ticketmaster. Joining the principal cast of Paulini as Rachel Marron, Kip Gamblin as bodyguard Frank Farmer and Prinnie Stevens as Nicki Marron will be Andrew Hazzard (Spring Awakening) as Sy Spector, Patrick Williams (Hair) as Bill Devaney, Brendan Irving (The Rocky Horror Show) as the Stalker, Damien Bermingham (Chicago) as Tony, and Glaston Toft (Jersey Boys) as Ray Court. Also joining the cast of THE BODYGUARD are Anthony Bartley, Samantha Bruzzese, Amy Campbell, Olivia Cariniato, Chris Van Doren, Heath Keating, Bree Langridge, Sasha Lian, Samuel McKeown II, Priscilla Stavrou, Max Trengove, Blake Varga and Geoffrey Winter. The young actors who will play Rachel Marron’s son will be revealed later. “We have an incredible cast for THE BODYGUARD, led by two extraordinary singers, Paulini and Prinnie Stevens, and leading man Kip Gamblin in his first musical theatre role,” said John Frost on behalf of his co-producers. “I can’t wait to get into the rehearsal room and watch the show unfold. I have no doubt Australia will fall in love with this iconic story and those soaring ballads all over again.” Based on the smash-hit Warner Bros 1992 film written by the acclaimed, Oscar-nominated screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan (Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Big Chill, The Empire Strikes Back), THE BODYGUARD features a book by Oscar winner Alexander Dinelaris (Birdman). Former Secret Service agent turned bodyguard Frank Farmer is hired to protect superstar singer Rachel Marron from an unknown stalker. Each expects to be in charge – what they don’t expect is to fall in love. A ‘BRILLIANT!’ (The Times), breathtakingly romantic thriller, THE BODYGUARD features a whole host of irresistible classics including Queen of the Night, So Emotional, One Moment in Time, Saving All My Love, Run to You, I Have Nothing, Greatest Love Of All, Million Dollar Bill, I Wanna Dance With Somebody and one of the greatest hit songs of all time – I Will Always Love You. www.thebodyguardmusical.com.au @TheBodyguardAU #TheBodyguardAU SEASON DETAILS SYDNEY Venue Sydney Lyric Theatre, The Star Season From 21 April Performance Times Tues 7pm, Wed-Sat 8pm, Matinees Tues & Wed 1pm, Sat & Sun 2pm, Sun 6pm Prices: From $69.90* Bookings: ticketmaster.com.au or 1300 795 267 Groups 8+ call 1300 889 278 * A ticketmaster handling fee of $8.45 will be levied at purchase. A delivery fee may also apply depending on the chosen delivery method BRISBANE Venue Lyric Theatre, QPAC Season From 19 July Performance Times Wed to Sat 7.30pm, Matinees Wed 1pm, Sat 2pm, Sun 1pm & 6pm Prices: From $69.90* Bookings: qpac.com.au or 136 246 Groups 8+ call 07 3840 7466 * Transaction fees apply MELBOURNE Venue Regent Theatre Season From 24 August Performance Times Tues 7pm, Wed/Thurs 7.30pm, Fri/Sat 8pm, Matinees Tues & Wed 1pm, Sat & Sun 2pm, Sun 6pm (performance times vary weekly) Price Tickets from $69.90* Bookings ticketmaster.com.au or 136 100 Groups 8+ 1300 889 278 TICKETS ON SALE 27 FEBRUARY * A Ticketmaster handling fee of $8.90 will be levied at purchase. A delivery fee may also apply depending on the chosen delivery method