The Hunger Games Movie Night

If you're like me, you're eager for anything to do. So check this out: Lionsgate is running a free series of movie nights, starting with a showing of The Hunger Games tonight.

I posted a very short review of the movie back in 2012.

You can add to Lionsgate's donation to the Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation to support out-of-work theater employees.

You can also buy a special snack pack with free shipping from Snack Nation and Popcornopolis will have a movie night offer and donate 10% of sales to the Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation.

ETA additional details on Popcornopolis offer:

Popcornopolis knows you can’t have a movie night without popcorn, so they are also offering consumers a special promotion as well

Movie lovers can shop www.popcornopolis.com with promo code MOVIENIGHT for 15% off + Free Shipping! In addition, Popcornopolis is proud to donate 10% of all MovieNight sales back to the Will Rogers Foundation to assist theater employees.

 

🍿 Share your #LionsgateLIVE movie night with us using @popcornopolis and #popcornopolis

So let's enjoy a night at the movies!

Enjoy a night at the movies with Lionsgate, and your friends and family!

Join us for a free screening event of THE HUNGER GAMES on YouTube Live this Friday, April 17 at 9pm ET / 6pm PT.

Watch-along and engage in the conversation online using #LionsgateLive.

Stay tuned for DIRTY DANCING on April 24, LA LA LAND on May 1, and JOHN WICK on May 8!

THE HUNGER GAMES ON LIONSGATE LIVE – FRIDAY, APRIL 17 AT 9PM ET / 6PM PT

Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube | #LionsgateLive

Every year in the ruins of what was once North America, the evil Capitol of the nation of Panem forces each of its twelve districts to send a teenage boy and girl to compete in the Hunger Games.  A twisted punishment for a past uprising and an ongoing government intimidation tactic, The Hunger Games are a nationally televised event in which "Tributes" must fight with one another until one survivor remains.

Pitted against highly-trained Tributes who have prepared for these Games their entire lives, Katniss is forced to rely upon her sharp instincts as well as the mentorship of drunken former victor Haymitch Abernathy.  If she's ever to return home to District 12, Katniss must make impossible choices in the arena that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

The Hunger Games is directed by Gary Ross, with a screenplay by Gary Ross and Suzanne Collins and Billy Ray, and produced by Nina Jacobson's Color Force in tandem with producer Jon Kilik. Suzanne Collins' best-selling novel, the first in a trilogy published by Scholastic that has over 23.5 million copies in print in the United States alone, has developed a massive global following. It has spent more than 160 consecutive weeks/more than three consecutive years to date on The New York Times bestseller list since its publication in September 2008, and has also appeared consistently on USA Today and Publishers Weekly bestseller lists.

Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Donald Sutherland, Stanley Tucci, Lenny Kravitz, Willow Shields.

Rated PG-13

Review: Tiny Pretty Things

By Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton
Available now from HarperTeen
Review copy

There are a number of review copies stacked in various places around my house. Yes, I know I haven't reviewed any of them in more than a year. I moved Tiny Pretty Things up my to-read list after a Netflix adaptation was announced. They have a good track record with YA properties, so I'm looking forward to what they'll do with this story of scheming ballet students.

Tiny Pretty Things is told in alternating points of view between ballet students Gigi, Bette, and June, with the prologue from the school's former top ballerina, who has to leave after an engineered accident. Gigi is the new girl who gets bullied because she instantly rises to the top; however, she's hiding a medical condition that could end her chances of dancing professionally. Bette is balancing romantic drama with trying to reclaim the top spot, while her mom berates her for not being her sister, a current ballet star. June works to hide her eating disorder while trying to discover who her secret father is.

I honestly found all three of the girls somewhat hard to like, but I liked that all three had real determination and drive, despite often channeling it in destructive ways. (The academy has male dancers, too, each with their own agenda, though they don't get their own point of view sections. They're mostly suitably hunky love interests who might perform some of their own backstabbing.)

If you're read Gossip Girl or one of the many series it spawned, this is pretty familiar ground. (Even the escalation to attempted murder.) The setting at least means the girls are fighting over something real; it is their future career on the line. Still, don't go in expecting realism. Their antics are pretty over the top. Conversely, I often found June's eating disorder too real, especially the explicit details in how she fakes a higher weight for weigh-ins. The potential tips felt slightly irresponsible to me.

I did appreciate that packager CAKE Literary made a commitment to diversity. For example, June is Asian and Tiny Pretty Things addresses the race problem in the ballet world and that June knows she'll always have to be better than the white girls to get picked for roles ahead of them.

While I enjoyed Tiny Pretty Things as a frothy, dramatic read with ballet flair, I have not yet picked up the sequel, Shiny Broken Pieces. I have made it a goal to read it before the Netflix series comes out. I'm looking forward to seeing who ends up on top!

Self Isolation, Not Shelf Isolation

In this time of social distancing, I know I'm not the only one turning to books to fill my spare time. Books are not only entertainment, but a connection to our fellow humans (that can be made from more than six feet away).

The blogger in her Matilda sweatshirt

Things in my part of Texas have turned for the cold and rainy, so I pulled out my Matilda sweatshirt from Out of Print. (By the way, they're donating 25% of profits from their current promotion to the Book Industry Charitable Foundation to help booksellers through this time.)

Wearing this sweatshirt reminds me of reading Matilda, and I find its messages comforting in this time:

So Matilda’s strong young mind continued to grow, nurtured by the voices of all those authors who had sent their books out into the world like ships on the sea. These books gave Matilda a hopeful and comforting message: You are not alone.

On Amélie Wen Zhao and Blood Heir

I think Francina Simone's video on the issue is terrific. (I'll have to keep an eye out for her books.)

Prime Book Box Kids?

At the beginning of October, I was browsing Amazon and saw a banner ad for a program I hadn't heard of before: Prime Book Box Kids. I instantly clicked.

Amazon has tried to move into the subscription box marked before; most notably, with the Prime Sweets Box. Books seem like a more natural fit for Amazon.

Now I did try the Prime Sweets Box a few times. However, it had one huge drawback: you couldn't list any preferences or choose your sweets in any way. As I currently have braces, this meant a quarter to a third of each box I received I had to give away due to nuts, caramel, or other foods I'm not supposed to eat.

Amazon seems to have learned for Prime Book Box Kids. First, none of the books in your box will be ones you've previously purchased on Amazon. Second, you'll have a number of alternate choices to choose from if you aren't interested or already own one of the choices in your box. That freedom to make sure you get what you want is a nice bonus. I do like my subscription boxes a surprise, but not too much of a surprise.

You can also adjust the frequency to every 1-, 2-, or 3-months and you can skip boxes. Both are good options for further flexibility. (More is listed in the FAQ.)

The price is a little rich for my blood. Each box is $22.99 (including shipping) and includes two hardcover books (for the older age ranges) or four board books (for the babies). Amazon promises each will be at least 35% off list price and no more expensive than it would be on the site. So it is a deal, but personally, I prefer paperbacks, and not just for the price point. Especially for children's books, where they can go through a large quantity. $11.50 isn't bad for one book, but it's more than a paperback.

I do think it is a good idea, and bet a lot of families will love it. It might make a good gift during the Christmas season.

Are any of you subscribed to a book box?