October Books

As You Like It - William Shakespeare

I have always been much more of a fan of Shakespeare’s tragedies (with the exception of Much ado about Nothing) and I have to say that I am just not a fan of this pastoral comedy, but watching the play performed made it a lot more bearable than reading it, which I guess is to be expected but I was expecting a little more. The jury is still out on whether I nailed the essay on it though…

Black and White Photographer - Han Yujoo

This short story by Han Yujoo is available to read via Issuu or Buk thanks to the LTI Korean Library (there are also so many more short stories from Korea available on there for free too!)

The Black and White Photographer follows a young boy who is kidnapped and held in a storage room for a week. In this 20 page short story, Yujoo explores how a young mind would try and grapple with such a traumatic and alien experience.

Tale of a Mad Painter - Kim Dong-in

Another Korean short story that I read on Buk, this one also is a little dark and reads kind of like a Grimms Fairytale. The story is a story within a story, a writer is hiking and he decides to make up a story as he admires the view. The story he makes up is about a painter who is unsightly, and as a result he becomes a recluse, one day he meets a blind girl. I won’t tell you the conclusion as it’s well worth a read.

Walden - Henry David Thoreau - Nearly finished/ might not get to the end because it is oh so dull!

Oh dear. I am most definitely not a fan of Walden, in fact I could indeed say that this may just be the most boring book I have ever had the displeasure of reading. Thoreau is a self-entitled twit, whose occasional moment of poetical flare or interesting philosophical musing is overshadowed by his irritating egocentric narration. Also not much even happens, a whole chapter is dedicated to the hoeing of a bean field! I had to read this for uni and it’s safe to say I will never read Thoreau ever again!

Autumn 2019 TV Watchlist

These are all the shows I am either already watching or will be watching this autumn.

His Dark Materials - BBC & HBO

To say this adaptation of Philip Pullman’s wildly popular book series is highly anticipated wouldn’t quite cut it. Ever since the divisive end to Game of THrones this year everyone has turned there attention to His Dark Materials as it promises to fill the fantasy, family and intrigue gap that that the end of Thrones has left.

나의 나라 (My Country: The New Age) - Netflix & JTBC

Yang Se-jong and Woo Do-hwan in a period drama together, what else could a girl need? A friendship turned into rivalry, epic fight scenes, beautiful cinematography and a blossoming love triangle!

Besides swoon worthy leads and epic imagery I always like watching Period dramas or 사극 (Sageuk) as they are called in Korea as even though they are highly fictionalised, watching them gives you a glimpse into the countries history. My County: The New Age is set at the end of the Goryeo dynasty and the dawning of the Joseon dynasty which is a rather fascinating time.

This is the Korean drama that everyone is talking about right now and it’s easy to see why. And luckily we get it the same day it’s released so there’s no worries of spoilers or having to wait eons for English subs to come along.

Watchmen - HBO & Sky Atlantic/Now TV

Set in a alternate present, Watchmen follows Det. Angela Abar as she navigates a world where masked vigilantes have been outlawed. As a fan of the Zack Snyder movie I have had this series on my radar since it was announced so I’m thrilled it’s finally nearly here!

배가본드 (Vagabond) - Netflix & SBS TV

A plane crash kills over 200 people including stuntman Cha Dal-gun’s young nephew, with the help of rookie NIS agent Go Hae-ri he will stop at nothing to expose the truth. From the get go this series is heart wrenching, but the pace and execution of the stunts and fight scenes will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Giri/Haji - BBC 2 & BBC iPlayer

Giri/Haji which translates to Duty/Shame follows Kenzo Mori a Detective from Tokyo who travels to London to track down his missing but presumed dead brother who may or may not have killed the relative of a Yakuza member. This drama will be in both Japanese and English in a similar vein to last year’s’ Strangers a thriller set in Hong Kong.

Catherine The Great - Now TV

Helen Mirren is Catherine The Great in this lavish period drama which follows the later life of the Russian Empress as she navigates court life and a multitude of lovers.

Plan Cœur Saison 2 (The Hook Up Plan Season 2) - Netflix

Plan Cœur aka The Hook Up Plan is a French Rom-Com series that focuses on a trio of friends and their adventures and misadventures in love. Season 1 was brilliant and now season picks up 4 months after the events of last season. Julio has given up his job as a male escort but how long will that last and can Elsa really trust him?? Seasons 1 & 2 are streaming on Netflix now so check it out if you haven’t already!

That’s my Autumn 2019 TV Watchlist, what are you planning to watch as the evenings get darker and colder?

September Books

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - J.K Rowling

Listening to Harry Potter on audiobook has become one of my favourite moments of the day, I get up and get ready for work listening to the story unfold. It’s a relaxing start to the day and I find myself chuckling along to the antics of Harry, Ron and Hermione. I think this one has been my favourite so far as I enjoyed the twist, I didn’t expect Sirius to be good at all! And I love how sassy Snape is, it never fails to make me laugh.

At Dusk - Hwang Sok-yong

This book was rather wonderful, I found myself being absorbed by the story and I also find reading fiction from other cultures massively interesting. At Dusk meditates on the modernisation of Korea through the eyes of an architect that literally helped build the city around him. It’s melancholy and powerful as we explore the history of the character from impoverished boy to a powerful yet lonely man.

The narrative also follows a young woman trying to find her feet in an increasingly difficult economic climate, at first its hard to see how these stories fit together but towards the end it all comes into place for a satisfying yet sad ending.

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - Philip K. Dick

As a massive (and I mean massive) fan of the movie I decided that I needed to read the source material, however it soon became very apparent that the film took a very different approach. Turns out, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? is actually quite boring! I know, I didn’t think I would feel that way but I really struggled to read this one. The film did well to drop Mercerism (what a load of rubbish) and to not make Deckard so insufferably obsessed with real animals!

I didn’t get round to reading many books this month, some things have been occupying my mind and I am still slowly working through Anna Karenina, I will perhaps finish it in October…but maybe not as I have an immense amount of reading ahead of me for uni.

Russian Cinema - Лето (Leto) Review

Лето (Leto) which means Summer in English is a Russian Biographical Rock’n’Roll Musical set in 1980’s Leningrad in the dying days of the Soviet Union. It’s a love letter, a celebration to an era of dawning hope and rebellious youth which is beautifully captured by director Kirill Serebrennikov.

Leto follows the rise of one of the most iconic rock musicians of 80’s Russia, Viktor Tsoi of rock band Kino and his relationship with fellow musician Mike Naumenko of Zoopark and how they both navigated artistic expression, living in relative poverty and restricted success. The film also cleverly comments on the nature of the biographical film with a character who breaks the fourth wall after certain (unrealistic) moments to insist to the viewer that that event never really happened.

There is a frenetic energy in Serebrennikov’s direction which really shines in the musical interludes which include an aggressive cover of the Talking Heads’ Psycho Killer and a dreamy rendition of Passenger by Iggy Pop. Doodles appear on the screen in these musical interludes to create a mixed media music video like moment that instantly grabs your attention.

Teo Yoo a Korean actor born and raised in Germany steals the spotlight as Viktor Tsai and his understated performance and character evolution holds the film together.

Another moment that feels so creative and fun is when the characters recreate a range of rock’n’roll album covers, the nostalgia it conjures up in this quirky sequence is undeniable.

Leto is available to rent on Mubi

August Books

A little late posting this but I decided to post it anyway…

Judging my the amount of books in this post it would seem that during August I became superhuman with the power to read super fast. Alas, this is not the case, as nearly all the books I read this month were short stories ranging from 21 pages to 50 or just over a 100. The goal was to get back on track with my Goodreads 50 books in a year challenge so that is why I read so many short stories. Clever huh?

Kong’s Garden - Hwang Jungeun

I read Hwang’s I’ll Go On earlier in the year and fell in love with her storytelling style so when I found out that like Hang Kang she had written a short story that was part of the 여유 (Yeoyu) collection from Strangers Press I knew I had to get my hands on it too! What follows is the mystery of a girl who disappears and Cat that takes up residency at the narrators place of work.

Left's Right, Right's Left - Han Yujoo

Another short story from the 여유 (Yeoyu) collection from Strangers Press. Left’s Right, Right’s Left takes place on a staircase as the narrator is trying to flee an assault within the span of a minute. As she flees she recalls memories from years gone by. This little story had an intriguing premise but it felt like something was missing, something I can’t quite put my finger on.

She Must be Mad - Charly Cox

A collection of poems that I received from Netgalley some time ago. She Must be Mad is a self-aware study of womanhood, the transition a modern girl makes to become a modern woman. It’s a tough emotional journey but the poems that are beautifully and wittyly written reflect the bittersweet moment wonderfully.

Lord Arthur Savile's Crime - Oscar Wilde

Witticisms abound in anything that Wilde wrote and Lord Arthur Savile's Crime is no exception. The eponymous story follows Saville as he attends a party and has his palm read by a chiromantist, his fate is to become a murderer. Saville in a farcical twist decides that he must murder in order to carry on with his life and marry his sweetheart. Highly recommend reading this for a little chuckle.

The Memory Police - Yoko Ogawa

A wonderful insightful and powerful read which had me weeping at its closing sentence. This is a book that you must read and I wrote a longer review on this blog so check that out and get this book in your life.

https://www.catecrafter.com/blog/the-memory-police-book-review

Diary of a Murderer - Kim Young-ha

A smart collection of shocking short stories, Diary of a Murderer (the title story) is a masterful stroke of genius and it is of no surprise that the short story was adapted for film in 2017 in Korea. The story follows a old man who gave up being a serial killer but as he has aged so has his mind, he gets diagnosed with Dementia and to try and keep track of his life he writes a diary. I won’t say anymore but it’s well worth a read and I’ll be watching the film asap.

Animal Farm - George Orwell

Classic, thematic and very much a story of its time. As many will already know this anthropomorphic tale is an allegory for communism, but more specifically the Soviet Union. Animal Farm is a quick read but it packs a punch and leaves you thinking long after the last page.

March Yarn - Mieko Kawakami

Kawakami’s short story March Yarn is a simple and quick read. Like a lot of the Japanese novels or short stories I have read this one also falls into the Slice of Life genre that has a little sprinkling of strangeness. A husband and wife stay at a hotel and the wife has a strange dream. I won’t say much more as it may spoil the atmosphere of the story.

Basically this month was my attempt at clawing back my goodreads challenge of reading 50 books in a year. So August was populated with tiny fiction, and I bloody did it!!