Khaled Hosseini's A Thousand Splendid Suns
The author of The Kite Runner brings another novel set in Afghanistan, only this one focuses on two women and how their lives come to connect over thirty or so years. It's very depressing at times--though not nearly as dark as his first novel--mainly b/c it highlights the horrible treatment women had in Afghanistan under the Taliban. I had problems keeping some of the many political upheavals straight, but the two main characters were very well-written and really engaging. I can't decide if the ending was realistic or not, but I liked it anyway. A.
Other good things this weekend: the movie Waitress. It is such a bummer that Adrienne Shelly was murdered--I've been a fan of hers since I first saw that classically lame teen movie Big Girls Don't Get Mad, They Get Even (also starring Jenny Lewis) and she really deserved accolades for this one. I especially loved it b/c of all the pies, and sweet old Andy Griffith (who I met last year when he was at UNC).
Also, we tried a new local pizza place that has elephant ears on the dessert menu! Elephant ears are just like funnel cake! Awesome.
I saw Waitress this weekend too--I liked it a lot but the whole Adrienne Shelly thing made me very sad while watching it, and especially during the credits where she was acknowledged "in loving memory." What a sad loss. But what a very sweet movie!
ReplyDeleteI know! And she was so cute in the movie too.
ReplyDeleteI always wonder why more places don't have elephant ears on the menu. I think IHOP has funnel cakes, but after one experience at that IHOP near Costco, I will never go back. How do you screw up pancakes? I don't know, but they did.
ReplyDeleteI was talking about Waitress with a friend of mine the other day - we both liked it, but were very sad about Adrienne Shelly. I remember my college boyfriend had a huge crush on her after we saw "Trust."
this place serves two big elephant ears smothered in powdered sugar with a side of more powdered sugar, in case you need it!
ReplyDeletei only managed to eat one and neglected to take the second one home, which i regretted the next day when i was re-craving fried dough. yum.
i wonder what we'd all think of waitress if she hadn't been killed . . . it certainly wouldn't have this sad, dark cloud over it.