May 2020 Recommended Reading/Viewing

[Coír Draoi Ceítien]

Well, May is here, and, like it or not, it looks like we might still be staying indoors for a while. So, until the restrictions pass, here are a few recommendations to pass the time. Some you might have seen before, but I'm kind of running out of titles myself, and it's never a bad thing to revisit classics. I still want to open up the scope of the recommendations to make up for my shortcomings, but until I get the word to do so, I still have a few titles left right now.

Reading: The Forgotten Beasts of Eld (1974) by Patricia A. McKillip

Sybel, daughter of the wizard Ogam, lives on Eld Mountain in Eldwold, surrounded by beasts of legends past - except one, the Liralen, which she desires most to possess - and cares nothing for the world of men...until a young knight brings an infant to her doorstep. Reluctant at first, she takes the child as her own and grows fond of him, but when his father, the King of Eldwold, comes to claim him, this sets off a chain of events that will send her on a path of bitterness and vengeance that may bring war to the world. The inaugural winner of the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1975, McKillip's first novel, published at age 26, is an extraordinarily natural work, a fantasy of what seems an effortless, otherworldly nature; ostensibly for young adults, it is hailed as a modern classic by some and continues to draw new readers in to this day.

Trade: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1616962771/?coliid=I1FA5GE5JCG3R&colid=8VP4IOWRKQ0&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it
Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/Forgotten-Beasts-Eld-Patricia-McKillip-ebook/dp/B083G6HS76/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&coliid=I1FA5GE5JCG3R&colid=8VP4IOWRKQ0&qid=&sr=



Viewing: Ladyhawke (Richard Donner, 1985)

From the director of The Omen, Superman, The Goonies and the Lethal Weapon franchise comes this medieval fairy tale about two lovers cursed by a jealous bishop to live out half-lives - the woman by day as a hawk, and the man by night as a wolf. Into this mix comes a young thief, newly escaped from the dungeons of the bishop, who soon finds that he may be key to breaking the curse. Beautifully shot with wonderful acting (see Leo McKern as the jovial, penitent friar Imperius), period-appropriate costumes, and an interesting yet blatantly anachronistic soundtrack (courtesy of progressive rock outfit The Alan Parsons Project), it's a quite underrated film that probably deserves more than just a cult following.

DVD: https://www.amazon.com/Ladyhawke-Rutger-Hauer/dp/B01LTHXLWQ/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=ladyhawke&qid=1588382191&sr=8-4
Blu-Ray: https://www.amazon.com/Ladyhawke-Blu-ray-Rutger-Hauer/dp/B00W81K9C8/ref=sr_1_4?dchild=1&keywords=ladyhawke&qid=1588382191&sr=8-4
Amazon Video: https://www.amazon.com/Ladyhawke-Rutger-Hauer/dp/B000PY6BBI/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=ladyhawke&qid=1588382191&sr=8-1

So that's it for May. I hope to hear good things from you all very soon!

[Raven]

I've always liked the movie Ladyhawke. Almost wish we'd get a remake.