English
Audacious Games: The Future is Redeemed in 'Cloud Atlas'
10/08/2012
Movie lovers are buzzing about a star-studded film with a dizzying plot that opens Oct. 26. Perhaps one of the most challenging book-to-movie translations to date, Warner Brothers' Cloud Atlas features Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Broadbent, Susan Sarandon and Hugh Grant, and is helmed by A-list directors Lana and Andy Wachowski (The Matrix and V for Vendetta) and Tom Tykwer (Run Lola Run and The International).
‘A Christmas Carol:’ It’s Still the Pure of Heart That Matter
11/30/2009
From the classic 1951 Scrooge with Alastair Sim, to the 1992 The Muppet Christmas Carol, to Disney’s 2009 3-D adaptation starring Jim Carrey, which opened at number one the first weekend in November, Dickens’ beloved A Christmas Carol has been in constant reproduction following its original 1843 publication. Generation after generation has sought to adapt the tale not only for film, but theatre, television, ballet, radio and opera.
This St. Patrick’s Day, Discover Hidden Irish Literary Gems
03/01/2010
With shamrocks hung on doors and parade plans in the works, March is full of all things St. Patrick’s Day. Along with the festivities comes a curiosity about the culture they represent. A good way to get acquainted with the Irish is to pick up a novel by one of the island nation’s gifted authors.
Retelling 'Jane Eyre:' A Modern Y.A. Story
09/09/2010
Young adult (y.a.) fiction is a huge market in the publishing industry. According to the Association of American Publishers, paperbound book sales in children’s and y.a. titles topped $1.5 billion in 2009. But while these books are usually written for readers between the ages of 14 and 21, they also have immense crossover appeal to older audiences, says April Lindner, Ph.D., associate professor of English at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, Pa.
Love on the Air: ‘The Bachelor’s’ Medieval Romantic Roots
02/06/2012
The music swells as a luxury limo whirrs up to an exotic location at dusk. A beautiful woman emerges from the vehicle and is met by many hopeful, dashing suitors who will vie for her hand in marriage. The winner will be chosen on the season finale, but along the way there will be sun-drenched, sparkling days and romantic, moonlit nights that will alternately thrill or disappoint the contestants and their audience.
