December 2022 Recommended Reading and Viewing

[Coír Draoi Ceítien]

Not only have we reached the end of the year, but we've also entered the 5th year anniversary of Recommendations!

As a side note, for those unaware, the forum was down for an entire month, thus November was skipped, but we seem to be back (for the time being).

Anyway, Merry Christmas, everyone! I'm sure glad to put this year behind us. Enough has happened that I feel in need of a fresh start. As winter gets underway, here are a couple recent pleasures I've experienced that I hope you find just as entertaining.

Reading: Till We Have Faces (1956) by C. S. Lewis

This novel, a retelling of the Greek myth of Cupid and Psyche, was Lewis's final work of fiction, subsequently considered his best and most mature by the author himself as well as friends and fans. The narrator of the story is Orual, a homely princess of the kingdom of Glome and half-sister of Psyche, who rails against the gods for what she considers the unjust suffering of both herself throughout her life and of Psyche when she is offered up as a sacrifice to the God of the Mountain and taken as his bride; a deep misunderstanding of the situation leads Orual to convince Psyche to disobey the command of her new husband, resulting in her exile and Orual's years of misery, only to find that the gods may not be as cruel as previously perceived. A rich tale told arguably better than any of his previous and more better-known works such as Narnia, it is a meditation on love in all its forms, with the Christian themes much more subtle than seen before, representing (perhaps) the pinnacle of the form of fiction for the veteran author.

Trade: https://www.amazon.com/Till-We-Have-Faces-Retold/dp/0062565419/
Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/Till-We-Have-Faces-Retold-ebook/dp/B01EFM8NMK/



Viewing: Jumanji (Joe Jonston, 1995)

Based on the children's picture book by renowned illustrator Chris Van Allsburg (of The Polar Express fame), the film centers around a mysterious supernatural board game that, when played, causes an African jungle and its deadly inhabitants to cross over into the regular world. The main action of the story takes place in the then-contemporary year of 1995, when two children, recently moved to a New Hampshire home, discover the game, unaware of its powers, and end up releasing a man from twenty-six years earlier who became trapped inside its world; together with the man's old childhood friend - who had been the other player at the time of his disappearance - they have to complete the game that started in 1969 in order to stop the chaos unleashed on an unsuspecting public. It's a rather clever film that, at times, is much darker than the usual expected children's fare and, subsequently, viewing with considerably young children should be approached with caution. Still, it makes for an interesting experience, the kind that makes you feel that they don't make them like this anymore.

DVD: https://www.amazon.com/Jumanji-Kirsten-Dunst/dp/B073VS8VCG/
Blu-Ray: https://www.amazon.com/Jumanji-Remastered-Blu-ray-Digital-Williams/dp/B075FZF161/
4K: https://www.amazon.com/Jumanji-4K-Ultra-Blu-ray-Digital/dp/B075G3J9HB/
Amazon Video: https://www.amazon.com/Jumanji-Robin-Williams/dp/B00170GYES/


Happy Holidays!