Elijah David

Back in January I listed the books in my TBR pile/shelf that I was most looking forward to reading. This month, I'm going to update that list because a) I have read a few from that list and b) my reading desires change with the hour. Cold Days by Jim Butcher Now that I've read Changes and Ghost Story (and have given myself some time to recuperate), I'm ready to dive into the next Dresden Files book. I'm really interested to see where the series goes after the stunning duo that was books 12 and 13. A Report from Group 17 by Robert C. O'Brien This is the last book in the O'Brien read/watch series, and I've partly been holding off on it because after this, there will be no more new-to-me O'Brien books. Yes, there are the NIMH sequels written by his daughter, but still. I'm going to read it because I need to finish the series, but please don't be upset if it takes me a little longer. The Witchwood Crown by Tad Williams I t...

Welcome to the second half of my look at the film adaptation of Z for Zachariah . This time, I'm going to look at the differences between the book and the film and talk about how those differences affect the story. I knew going into the film that there were going to be differences -- primarily that there was a third character introduced into the main conflict, giving the film a love triangle of sorts. This is, quite possibly, the largest departure from the story in the book. I say possibly because I think there is something that better qualifies -- but more on that momentarily. The addition of Caleb (everyone has Biblical names here; even Ann is derived from Hannah) actually could have served to emphasize the book's themes very well. His appearance would have been a major concern to the paranoid John from the book, and the potential romantic tension between Ann and Caleb would definitely have rankled the possessive and outright predatory man O'Brien depicts in his ...

I've finally returned to the Robert C. O'Brien Read/Watch Marathon with the 2015 film adaptation of Z for Zachariah . As I did with The Secret of NIMH , this post will be a running commentary from my viewing of the film. I'll follow up next time with a comparison of the book and the film. So. Many. Logos. (There were probably over a full minute of studio and distributor logos.) Nice establishing shots of the empty and run-down buildings. This dystopia town looks like Rossville (a city near where I live). Books! They have Ann going for books like she said she wanted to in the book! But why does she have a suit? It's not the  suit, is it? Is this a flash forward? The HD version of this is very intense. (I am not usually a fan of the way HD feels, like I'm actually in the room where the movie/show is happening. It's too real for me.) The dog is here! :) :( Ok. Now we seem to be back to the book. The valley, the church, etc. all looks right. It almost...

Z for Zachariah is Robert C. O'Brien's last novel, published posthumously by his wife and daughter (after they completed it based on his notes). Despite the fact that O'Brien's family finished the book for him, the style remains consistent throughout -- though I wouldn't necessarily say it's O'Brien's style. The reason for that is this: in the three novels of his that I've read so far, he maintains a different voice in each. Mrs. Frisby has its omniscient narrator peeking into the minds of animals, The Silver Crown 's narrator is more limited, sticking almost entirely to Ellen's perspective, and Z for Zachariah is written in first person as journal entries of the main character, Ann Burden. Set in an undefined future (from the perspective of the '70s), Z for Zachariah  follows Ann Burden's account of how she survives following a nuclear and biological war in her native valley. Ann's peaceful if isolated life is immediatel...

The Silver Crown  is O'Brien's first novel, published three years before Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH . It follows ten-year-old Ellen as she seeks to discover the origins of the silver crown that mysteriously appears on her pillow the morning of her birthday. After her home burns down and she is left an orphan, Ellen attempts to reach her Aunt Sarah in Kentucky, encountering many strangers and a few new friends along the way. While my edition of the book was put out by Aladdin Fantasy and is compared to The Lord of the Rings  in one of the back cover blurbs, I have to say that I found the book more reminiscent of science fiction novels like C.S. Lewis' Ransom books and L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time . (By the way, Wrinkle  preceded The Silver Crown  by five years.) The book also shares some similar philosophical musings with the show Person of Interest  (especially the show's last three seasons). Although the book opens with a fairy-tale-like tone with...

Since I didn't talk much about the film in my review of Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH , and my post about The Secret of NIMH focused primarily on my reactions to the film after so many years, I thought I would take the time to talk about the differences between the two and my hopes for the new film (or film series). There are three major differences right off the bat. The first change is this: the title has been changed from the book to a more generic (and boy-friendly?) one for the film. This might have been due in part to the second major change: Mrs. Frisby is now Mrs. Brisby. I understand that the name change was prompted by copyright concerns with Frisbee, but honestly it caused my younger self a great deal of confusion as I wasn't always certain whether the characters in the film were saying Brisby or Frisby. When I found the book, I still wasn't sure which was correct. In any event, I hope the new film (or series of films) keeps the original title -- or at the ...

I'm going to treat this post as something more like a running commentary than an actual review. What follows are my thoughts as I watched the movie The Secret of NIMH for the first time in (at least) 7 years. Wow. There's magic from the first scene of this movie. Which is based on a science fiction novel. Arthur C. Clarke, where are you? Nicodemus is a bit creepy with the warts and such, but I like introducing the mystery of Jonathan's connection to the rats this early. Nicodemus' book sets Jenner's character up and mentions Thorn Valley, though you can't read it all without pausing. (I had to go back because I missed some of the dialogue in this quiet scene.) Mr. Ages' house got moved from an old farmhouse in the book to an old combine in the movie. That's mostly an atmospheric change, I think, but it fits with the technological advancements of the rats. "Great Jupiter, woman!" -- Why don't we have exclamations like th...

I'm starting off the read/watch marathon with the book that started me on this kick and inspired the film(s) that alerted me to O'Brien's work: Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH . Before I get into my thoughts on the book itself, I want to take a minute to talk about my copy of the book, pictured below. I'd actually like to get a better copy, maybe a hardback. This one's a former library copy (hooray book sales!) that's in decent shape, although the front cover is being held on by library-grade book tape. More than that, it has the wrong title because it's a movie tie-in for the Don Bluth film (which I'll take a look at next week if all goes well). It does at least feature the original title in parentheses, but it doesn't have any of the requisite "8 pages of stills from the movie!" inserts. I'll try to avoid any more mentions of the film and its changes to the story in this post because that's what the movie post is f...

Apparently, the classic sci-fi novel Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH  is getting another adaptation, this time as a  live-action film . Hearing this news has solidified a nebulous idea I have been toying with: rereading and rewatching the original book and film in order to share my thoughts on both with you all. Why? Because  The Secret of NIMH  was the first  sci-fi/fantasy film I remember encountering as something new. I had seen Disney films, Star Wars, and Indiana Jones at home. They were staples of my childhood. But one night during a sleepover at my aunt's house, we watched  The Secret of NIMH and I became enthralled. When I later discovered it was also a book, I checked it out from the school library. At the time, it was too long for me to finish in the initial checkout limit and it became the first book I had to renew. I remember staying up late in order to keep reading (this might have been my first up-later-than-is-advisable book as well)....