Book Review: Turn of the Screw by Henry James

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Author: Henry James
Title: Turn of the Screw
Narrator: Vanessa Benjamin
Publication Info: Blackstone Publishing, 2008 [Originally published in 1898]
Summary/Review:

Henry James’ work of Gothic fiction is a ghost story that works on many levels.  The novella is presented as an account by a governess charged with caring for the orphan children, Flora and Miles.  With an immediate fondness toward the children, the governess grows concerned about the mysterious presence of a man and a woman affecting the children’s behavior.  She ultimately comes to believe that they are the ghosts of the previous governess Miss Jessel and valet Peter Quint, both of whom had been close to the children.  The governess’ attempts to protect the children lead to tragic twists.  It’s a story that features a strong sense of eeriness but also metaphorical without being heavy handed.

Recommended books:

Rating: ****

World Cup Rooting Interest – Quarterfinals

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The round of 16 featured some exciting matches and big disappointments.  While it’s not surprising that the USMNT fell to Belgium, it was frustrating that the game was not even competitive with the US making big mistakes that lead to four Belgian goals.  Mexico seemed to be the stronger side but couldn’t hold off England in one of the most dramatic matches of the tournament so far.  And Egypt was up 2-0 late in the game over Argentina, before the defending champions scored 3 quick goals in the final minutes.  And this was after an Egypt goal was overturned by a very questionable VAR call.  The only real upset in this round was Norway’s victory of the five time champions of Brazil.

So now there’s less of the world at the World Cup with six of the surviving teams from Europe, plus Argentina representing South America and Morocco from Africa.

Here are my quick picks for the Quarterfinals. Current FIFA ranking in parentheses.

❤️ – team I want to win
🧠 – team I think will win

France (3) vs. Morocco (7)

I expect this will be the most exciting match of the quarterfinals.  France has clearly been the best team of the tournament, but the match will be played in Foxborough and the Moroccan community here in Massachusetts is energized, so maybe it will feel like a home game for them? By the way, even though the USMNT is eliminated, this match has some relevance to America 250 as Morocco was the first nation to recognize US independence in 1777 while France was the USA’s first military ally in 1778.

❤️ – Morocco
🧠 – France

Spain (2) vs. Belgium (9)

Even though Belgium eliminated the USA, again, they’re still the underdogs, with a third place finish in 2018 their best outcome so I suppose I’ll root for them.

❤️ – Belgium
🧠 – Spain

Norway (31) vs. England (4)

Despite being a prominent European nation, Norway is only participating in their fourth men’s World Cup and playing in the quarterfinals for the first time (Norway has done much better at the Women’s World Cup). Striker Erling Haaland has achieved folk hero status with his goal scoring, so let’s hope he has some more goals in him.  England, meanwhile, has the most annoying fan base, so I would he happy to see them eliminated.

❤️ – Norway
🧠 – England

Argentina (1) vs. Switzerland (19)

Argentina looked vulnerable scrambling to score last minute goals in their wins over Cape Verde and Egypt. Switzerland doesn’t seem like the team that will take them down, but one can hope.

❤️ – Switzerland
🧠 – Argentina

Book Review: Angel of Greenwood by Randi Pink

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Author: Randi Pink
Title: Angel of Greenwood
Narrator: Mia Ellis
Publication Info: Tantor Media, 2021
Summary/Review:

This novel is set in Greenwood, Oklahoma – the prosperous Black neighborhood often called “Black Wall Street” – in the days leading up to and including the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921. The plot focuses on two teenagers caught in the midst of the crisis. Isaiah Wilson hides his sensitive side and his interest in books and poetry by hanging out with the school bully, Muggy. He maintains a crush on Angel Hill, a girl seen by most as a church-going goody-goody, but hiding a troubled family life as her father endures a terminal illness. Their wise English teacher Miss Ferris, pairs them together for a summer job operating a mobile library on a three-wheeled bicycle.

Working together prompts Isaiah to break ties with Muggy and become a more responsible member of their community. An unlikely friendship and romance grows as Angel and Isaiah share their innermost selves and begin to come of age. They also argue about the best course of action for the Black community, with Angel admiring Booker T. Washington while Isaiah advocates for W.E.B. DuBois’ point of view. Their Washington/DuBois debates are an interesting way of incorporating Black Civil Rights history into the novel although their conversations come off more didactic than natural. All of this ultimately leads up to the heartbreaking and infuriating destruction of Greenwood by white supremacist mobs. Angel and Isaiah both suffer loss but with moments of heroism, and a surprising note of hope at the novel’s finish.

Recommended books:

Rating: ***1/2

Book Review: Feet of Clay by Terry Pratchettt

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Author: Terry Pratchettt
Title: Feet of Clay
Publication Info: Victor Gollancz, 1996
Summary/Review:

Once again, there’s a plot to remove Lord Vetinari the Patrician of Ankh-Morpork, who is slowly being poisoned by means the evade Sam Vimes’ skills of “detectoring.”  Meanwhile the city’s guilds and nobels attempt to make Nobby Nobbs, of all people, their puppet ruler after learning that he may be heir to the royal family.  And Captain Carrot investigates a series of murders apparently committed by a golem that has gone mad, followed by several golems dying by suicide, and a golem named Dorfl falsely confessing the crimes.

This may be the best Discworld novel I’ve read yet.  It ties together it’s disparate threads perfectly and is full of humor, wordplay, and imagination.  Plus it provides great character moments for the large cast that includes the werewolf guard Angua, a female dwarf and forensic expert Cheery Littlebottom, the vampire Dragon King of Arms, and an unfortunate adventure in the sewers for guard Fred Colon and Wee Mad Arthur, a Nac Mac Feegle. The underlying social message that condemns the aristocracy and slavery is also well-done

Favorite Passages:

You wouldn’t find slum-dwellers in these pages, but you would find their landlords. And, while it was regarded as pretty good evidence of criminality to be living in a slum, for some reason owning a whole street of them merely got you invited to the very best social occasions.

The real world was far too real to leave neat little hints. It was full of too many things. It wasn’t by eliminating the impossible that you got at the truth, however improbable; it was by the much hard process of eliminating the possibilities. You worked away, patiently asking questions and looking hard at things. You walked and talked, and in you heart you hoped like hell that some bugger’s nerve’d crack and he’d give himself up.

Rating: ****1/2

 

Discworld Reviews Master List

No. Title Published
1 The Colour of Magic 1983
2 The Light Fantastic 1986
3 Equal Rites 1987
4 Mort (radio drama)
5 Sourcery 1988
6 Wyrd Sisters (radio drama)
7 Pyramids 1989
8 Guards! Guards! (radio drama)
9 Eric (radio drama) 1990
10 Moving Pictures
11 Reaper Man 1991
12 Witches Abroad
13 Small Gods (radio drama) 1992
14 Lords and Ladies
15 Men at Arms 1993
16 Soul Music 1994
17 Interesting Times
18 Maskerade 1995
19 Feet of Clay 1996
20 Hogfather
21 Jingo 1997
22 The Last Continent 1998
23 Carpe Jugulum
24 The Fifth Elephant 1999
25 The Truth 2000
26 Thief of Time 2001
27 The Last Hero
28 The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents
29 Night Watch (radio drama) 2002
30 The Wee Free Men 2003
31 Monstrous Regiment 
32 A Hat Full of Sky 2004
33 Going Postal
34 Thud! 2005
35 Wintersmith 2006
36 Making Money 2007
37 Unseen Academicals 2009
38 I Shall Wear Midnight 2010
39 Snuff 2011
40 Raising Steam 2013
41 The Shepherd’s Crown 2015

Other books by Terry Pratchett I’ve read:

Book Review: Life Hacks for a Little Alien by Alice Franklin

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Author: Alice Franklin
Title: Life Hacks for a Little Alien  
Narrator: Sally Phillips
Publication Info: Hachette Audio, 2025
Summary/Review:

Written as a guidebook for the novel’s young protagonist, Life Hacks for a Little Alien is the story of a girl growing up in suburban England with undiaganosed neurodivergence. Her odd behavior and unwillingness to talk much isolate her.  Most of the adults in her life range from clueless to heartless, and her mother is dealing with a serious mental illness.  So deciding she’s an alien and creating a guide to life seems a reasonable coping strategy.

A key part of the story is the protagonist becoming fascinated with the mysterious Voynich Manuscript, a 15th century codex written in a language no one is able to decipher. Librarians, archivists, and ultimately a linguist act as guides for her journey through the Voynich Manuscript.  The novel ends on a hopeful not, albeit as the protagonist is still a teenager it feels like there is more to her story.

Franklin takes the unusual approach of writing the novel in second person.  Perhaps it’s rarely used because it gets a bit grating to constantly be addressed as “you.”  But thematically it works as the protagonist trying to understand herself from outside herself.

Recommended books:

Rating: ***

World Cup Rooting Interest – Round of 16

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An exciting Round of 32 saw some top-ranked teams fly through with ease (France, Spain. Mexico) while others faced unexpected challenges (Brazil vs. Japan, England vs. Congo DR, Argentina vs. Cabo Verde) and shocking early exits (Germany to Paraguay, Netherlands to Morocco). 

All 3 co-hosts have advanced to the round of 16 as well as two African nations. Otherwise, it’s starting to look like a typical tournament with Europe (7 teams) and South America (4 teams) filling out the bracket.  

Here are my quick picks for the Round of 16. 

❤️ – team I want to win

🧠 – team I think will win

Canada vs Morocco

❤️ – tough choice, slightly favoring Canada

🧠 – Morocco

Paraguay vs France

❤️ – France (although it would be hilarious if Paraguay keeps knocking off top European teams

🧠 – France

Brazil vs Norway

❤️ – Norway (by a hair)

🧠 – Brazil

Mexico vs England

❤️ – Mexico

🧠 – Mexico

Portugal vs Spain

❤️ – Portugal

🧠 – Spain

USA vs Belgium

❤️ – USA

🧠 – USA

Argentina vs Egypt

❤️ – Egypt

🧠 – Argentina

Switzerland vs Colombia

❤️ – Colombia

🧠 – Colombia

Bird Nerd Report – June 2026

~ Liam ~ Leave a comment

With the passing of spring migration and the increase in other obligations, my bird observations dropped precipitously in June.  But I still had some good outings to Olmsted Park, Jamaica Pond, Millennium Park, and my first time tracking birds at Crane Beach in Ipswich.

Oh, and I found some old photos of birds from my visit to Amsterdam in 2010.  Since I knew the date and location of these observations I added them as a retrospective checklist to eBird.  This had the effect of adding three birds to my life list:

  • Egyptian goose
  • Eurasian coot
  • White stork

Life List =  168
New Life Birds in June 2026 = 1

  • Willet at Crane Beach on June 14

2026 Year List =  110
First of Year Sightings in June 2026 = 6

  • Killdeer at Crane Beach on June 14
  • Willet at Crane Beach on June 14
  • Eastern Towhee at Crane Beach on June 14
  • Least Tern at Crane Beach on June 14
  • Willow Flycatcher at Millenium Park on June 16
  • Indigo Bunting at Millenium Park on June 16

Complete May 2026 List = 51

Row # Common Name
1 American Goldfinch
2 American Herring Gull
3 American Robin
4 Baltimore Oriole
5 Barn Swallow
6 Black-capped Chickadee
7 Blue Jay
8 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
9 Brown-headed Cowbird
10 Canada Goose
11 Carolina Wren
12 Cedar Waxwing
13 Chimney Swift
14 Chipping Sparrow
15 Common Grackle
16 Common Raven
17 Common Yellowthroat
18 Double-crested Cormorant
19 Downy Woodpecker
20 Eastern Kingbird
21 Eastern Towhee
22 Eastern Warbling Vireo
23 European Starling
24 Gray Catbird
25 Great Black-backed Gull
26 Great Blue Heron
27 Great Crested Flycatcher
28 House Finch
29 House Sparrow
30 Indigo Bunting
31 Killdeer
32 Least Tern
33 Mallard
34 Mourning Dove
35 Mute Swan
36 Northern Cardinal
37 Northern Flicker
38 Northern Mockingbird
39 Northern Yellow Warbler
40 Piping Plover
41 Red-bellied Woodpecker
42 Red-winged Blackbird
43 Ring-billed Gull
44 Rock Pigeon
45 Song Sparrow
46 Swamp Sparrow
47 Tree Swallow
48 Tufted Titmouse
49 White-breasted Nuthatch
50 Willet
51 Willow Flycatcher

Previous Reports:

100 Years of Movie Musicals: Easter Parade (1948)

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Next year marks the 100th anniversary of the movie musical, and to celebrate I’m embarking on a two-year project to watch 100 movie musicals from 1927 to the present!

Title: Easter Parade
Release Date: June 30, 1948
Director: Charles Walters
Production Company: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Main Cast:

  • Judy Garland as Hannah Brown
  • Fred Astaire as Don Hewes
  • Peter Lawford as Jonathan Harrow III
  • Ann Miller as Nadine Hale
  • Jules Munshin as François,
  • Clinton Sundberg as Mike
  • Richard Beavers as the singer of “The Girl on the Magazine Cover”
  • Jeni Le Gon as Essie
  • Jimmy Bates as the boy in the toy shop
  • Norman Barker as the trombonist in the duet with Garland
  • Jimmie Dodd as the cab driver

Synopsis (via Letterboxd):

On the day before Easter in 1911, Don Hewes is crushed when his dancing partner (and object of affection) Nadine Hale refuses to start a new contract with him. To prove Nadine’s not important to him, Don acquires innocent new protege Hannah Brown, vowing to make her a star in time for next year’s Easter parade.

My Thoughts:

Don Hewes loses his dancing partner and romantic interest Nadine Hale when she decides to pursue her own career. In a huff, Don decides that he can train a dancer in a restaurant floor show to be his new partner, selecting Hannah Brown.  With Hannah’s inexperience and trouble distinguishing left from right things don’t go well at first.  But ultimately Don redoes the choreography to emphasize Hannah’s talents and they become a hit on Broadway.

The plot is very much a Pygmalion tale before My Fair Lady brought that story to Broadway.  And like Eliza Doolittle, Hannah falls in love with her mentor even though he’s not very kind to her.  Astaire returned from a short retirement to do this film after Gene Kelly was injured.  It’s success revived his career and started a string of musicals where he’s cast against much younger women and is kind of a jerk to them.

The plot and dialogue drag this movie down, but the musical numbers are absolutely wonder.  And fortunately you don’t have to wait too long for the next one to start.

Rating: ***1/2

World Cup Rooting Interest – Round of 32

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The group stage of the 2026 Men’s World Cup provided a lot of exciting soccer!  Three of my adopted teams – Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, and Morocco – advanced to the knockout rounds, while home nation the United States is having their best World Cup ever.  Curaçao, Haiti, Scotland, New Zealand, and Iran are all going home but each had moments where they proved they belonged at the tournament.

Better yet, the vibes have been great.  Visiting fans are enjoying their time in North America, immigrant enclaves are rallying behind their mother countries, and those of born here are loving it all.  Boston has been buzzing with the fans of Scotland, Cabo Verde, and Norway leading the party.  And the dire predictions of traffic snarls, public transit failure, and small businesses suffering have not materialized.  In fact, Bostonians are more chill than I’ve seen in a long time.

Oh, and I bit the bullet and splurged on tickets for the next game in Foxborough (so-called “Boston Stadium”) with my song.  Looking forward to the once-in-a-lifetime experience with Germany and Paraguay.

Below I’ve listed all the games in the Round of 32 and the teams I’ll be rooting for (My support) and the teams I predict will win (My picks).

Germany vs. Paraguay

Not a strong rooting interest here.  Germany is not the powerhouse of old but still a strong side.  Paraguay have advanced from the group stage with a stodgy defense and no goal scoring ability, not usually a recipe for advancing in the knockout rounds.  Mostly I want to see a close game with goals scored by each side.

My support: Paraguay My Pick: Germany

France vs. Sweden

Despite my tendency to support underdogs, France has been the most exciting team in the tournament so far with Kyllian Mbappé, Michael Olise and Ousmane Dembélé all piling up goals.

My support: France My pick: France

South Africa vs. Canada

I’m watching this game as I write this, and have no strong favorite as both South Africa and Canada are making their debuts.  But I’ll lean toward Canada as our neighbors and co-hosts to advance.

My support: Canada My pick: Canada

Netherlands vs. Morocco

This is a tough one as I’ve long been a fan of Netherlands, but I’ve adopted Morocco as one of my times and they seem to be the most likely team from Africa to make a deep run.  Whatever happens this game will be a must-watch as the teams are fairly evenly matched.

My support: Morocco My pick: Netherlands

Portugal vs. Croatia

This another game that should be fairly evenly matched.  I’ll lean toward Portugal because they’ve had less success in recent tournaments than Croatia, as well as being from Eastern Massachusetts I kind of have to.

My support: Portugal My pick: Portugal

Spain vs. Austria

Another match which I don’t have strong feelings about.  Spain were the favorites entering the Cup and despite not dominating their group they’ll still be expected to go far.  As for the Austrian team, I just don’t know much about them.  I suppose if Spain wins they’ll set up a nice Iberian Derby in the round of 16.

My support: Spain   My pick: Spain

USA vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina

My home country is the favorite in knockout team round for the first time every and of course I’m going to root for them.  With apologies to BiH.

My support: USA My pick: USA

Belgium vs. Senegal

Senegal is one of the top goal-scoring teams in the Cup so far, and possibly could use that firepower to make an historic run for an African side. I’ll root for an underdog upset.

My support: Senegal My pick: Senegal

Brazil vs. Japan

Brazil hasn’t been Brazil for a while but they’re still Brazil and unlikely to make an early exit. Still, Japan has been quietly building themselves into a solid football program, so it should be a game at least.

My support: Japan My pick: Brazil

Côte d’Ivoire vs. Norway

Got to go with Côte d’Ivoire, another African team who did great in the group stage (and unofficially representing Ireland), but the Norway team has also been impressive and their fans were great in Boston

My support: Côte d’Ivoire My pick: Norway

Mexico vs. Ecuador

Once again I’ll have to go with our neighbor and co-hosts Mexico, with no offense to Ecuador who upset Germany in the group stage

My support: Mexico My pick: Mexico

England vs. Congo DR

This one’s easy!

My support: Congo DR My pick: England

Argentina vs. Cabo Verde

Cabo Verde are the sweethearts of the tournament and of course have a lot of support from immigrant communities here in New England. Extending their fairy tale run against Argentina seems impossible but I’m hoping that they can score and make the game close.

My support: Cabo Verde My pick: Argentina

Australia vs. Egypt

Of all the fan groups to visit the USA for this tournament, I’m surprised that it’s the Australians who are kind of being dicks.  I’m chanting about school shootings in the US is really hurtful.  Anyhow, while Egypt is the favorite, I’ll still go with them as I’m hoping to continue African success in the tournament

My support: Egypt My pick: Egypt

Switzerland vs. Algeria

Well as I don’t really have a feel for either of these teams, I’m feeling kind of neutral about it. (Get it? Swiss neutrality? Never mind).

My support: Algeria My pick: Switzerland

Colombia vs. Ghana

This is a tough one as I’d like see both of these sides make a deep run.  I’ll lean towards Colombia in support of the Colombian community in Boston.

My support: Colombia   My pick: Colombia

Movie Review: Supergirl (2026)

~ Liam ~ Leave a comment

Title: Supergirl
Release Date: June 26, 2026
Director: Craig Gillespie
Production Company:  DC Studios | Troll Court Entertainment | The Safran Company
Main Cast:

  • Milly Alcock as Kara Zor-El / Supergirl
  • Matthias Schoenaerts as Krem of the Yellow Hills
  • Eve Ridley as Ruthye Marye Knoll
  • David Krumholtz as Zor-El
  • Emily Beecham as Alura In-Ze
  • David Corenswet as Kal-El / Clark Kent / Superman
  • Jason Momoa as Lobo

Synopsis (via Letterboxd):

When an unexpected and ruthless adversary strikes too close to home, Kara Zor-El, aka Supergirl, reluctantly joins forces with an unlikely companion on an epic, interstellar journey of vengeance and justice.

My Thoughts:

A woman loses everyone she loves and drowns her sorrows on an endless pub crawl across the galaxy.  A girl thirsts for revenge for the murder of her family.  Together they go on a multi-planetary quest to save the life of a dog.  This is the premise of Supergirl, adapted from comic mini-series Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow by Tom King. While last year’s Superman brought a refreshing return to optimism in superhero film’s Supergirl strikes a darker chord.  This is not the Helen Slater or Melissa Benoist Supergirl. Jason Momoa adds comic relief as Lobo, an antihero mercenary, who at least is also pursuing the movies villainous Brigand Krem of the Yellow Hills.

Plotwise the movie has a lot of elements that feel familiar, even derivative of other recent movies.  The assemblage of different types of aliens in everyday settings is reminiscent of Guardians of the Galaxy, as is the needle drops of pop songs.  The Brigands are right out of the Mad Max series with their abduction of young women as brides similar to Mad Max: Fury Road.  And as with many movies over the past decade or so, it makes you want to shout at Hollywood producers to hire people who know how to do proper lighting.

While there are many entertaining action scenes, the movie works best when it’s a two-hander with Kara and Ruthye working through their respective pain, and become surrogate sisters to one another.  Milly Alcock and Eve Ridley bring a lot of humanity to their roles, and Craig Gillespie is smart enough to trust them in the more subtle moments.  While not the revelation that Superman was last year, it’s another well-done reintroduction to part of the DC Universe.

Rating:  ***1/2