Trashionista

FRIDAY FLICK: Get Shorty

We love Elmore Leonard here at Trashionista and the films are often as good (gasp) as the books.

In Get Shorty, John Travolta plays Chili Palmer, a Miami loan shark who's been sent to L.A. to collect on a bad debt from movie producer Harry Zimm (Gene Hackman).

Chili is also a film buff with a script idea, and he decides to become a producer. However, he's not the only mobster who wants a piece of the film action, and double-crossing fun begins.

Stuffed to the gills with Hollywood jokes, celebrity cameos, snappy dialogue and laughs, this is a great film and a very funny satire. I love Rene Russo's turn as a B-movie actress and Chili's love interest, too.

Like this? Try: Jackie Brown

BOOK REVIEW: Chinese Whispers by Marisa Mackle

When we meet Fiona Lemon, she hates her temp job as a PA, rants about bad dates, and is need of a new flatmate after a misunderstanding with her best friend, Ellie. Yep, it's a classic chick lit opening. Unfortunately, the situation with Ellie is quite minor, and  I didn't believe they wouldn't just talk about and make up... Still, I persevered with Chinese Whispers, and I'm glad I did.

Fiona lands a job as gossip columnist for Irish Femme and the hilarious insider's peek at celebrity party-life and magazine journalism is a treat.

Fiona gains a flatmate - Bunny Maguire - who is looking for a new start after a disastrous relationship. Bunny accompanies Fiona out on the town and inadvertently becomes a 'celebrity'.

Fiona has a likeable voice and the plot zings along, but there were a couple of problems for me...

First is a personal bug-bear, so feel free to ignore my ranting if you don't share it. The text is clogged with exclamation marks, which, for me, spoils a lot of the humour. For the record: if a line is funny, the exclamation mark is redundant. If the line isn't funny, the exclamation mark is irritating.

Okay. Still with me? My second problem was the handling of one plot strand. I don't want to give too much away about the ending, but it felt very out of kilter with the light-hearted feel of the book. Also, I felt that Fiona (and Bunny's) attitude to Bunny's abusive ex-partner just wasn't believeable. They simply didn't seem bothered in the way I would've expected them to be...

Still. This was a fun, quick read and I would certainly try another of Mackle's books.

Rating: 3/5

Like this: Try: Miss Understanding by Stephanie Lessing

AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Anna Davis

Yes, I know we've already had an author interview this week, but - call it end of November madness - here's another. Anna Davis is the author of The Shoe Queen, which, if you like books and you like shoes (and, let's face it, who doesn't?) should be right up your alley. Review coming soon. (Do you know, I actually thought about writing "shoe-n" then. I need a holiday.)

Please describe your latest book in 15 words or fewer:

Passionate affair between a married society woman and a famous shoe designer
in 1920s Paris.

Where do you like to write your books (in bed, a coffee shop, an office)?

I would LIKE to write them in a sparsely furnished house at an exotic location with a great view of mountains, sea etc. I ACTUALLY write them in a very cluttered, dusty study that I share with my husband, while looking out the window at the hideous cladding on the house across the road.

Your favourite chick-lit book?

I don't really read chicklit. If you can include historical fiction in that, I'd say Suzannah Dunn's The Sixth Wife, which I read recently.

Your favourite female heroine (if different from above!), and why?

Undine Spragg in Edith Wharton's The Custom of the Country. She's a kind of Footballer's wife on the loose in the genteel society drawing rooms of early 1900s New York. She's sort of hideous but you have to love her for it.

What tips would you give to any of our readers who want to become writers?

One of the things that makes a really good novelist is the ability to edit and rewrite (over and over if necessary). Writing the first draft of a novel can be fun, but it's when you reach the end that the real work begins. Also, don't do it for the money - the money's usually rubbish.

What are you reading at the moment?

Beyond Black by Hilary Mantel. It's a spooky novel about a fat clairvoyant!

What are you working on now? (If you can give us a hint!)

A novel set in 1920s London, about a gossip columnist (she'd be one of the earliest columnists) who meets and falls for two charismatic Americans who are sworn enemies.

Do you have a theme song?

Nah. I've always got a song on the brain and today it's Franz Ferdinand's Take Me Out. More often than not it's something my 4-year-old daughter listens to all the time, like Bob the Builder or Alice the Camel. Argghh!

What question have you never been asked in an interview, but think you should have been? (Tell us the question and answer it too, if you like!)

Q: What's your guilty secret?
A: All of my heroines in my novels have a guilty secret. The secret lies behind and at the heart of everything and is often the reason they behave the way they do (badly). It's a question I should be asked but which I probably wouldn't answer!

Thanks, Anna!

BOOK REVIEW: Agnes & The Hitman by Jennifer Crusie and Bob Mayer

A new Jennifer Crusie novel is always a treat, but lately, you don't just get Jennifer Crusie - her last three novels have been collaborations. First Don't Look Down, the first "romantic adventure" written with Bob Mayer, then The Unfortunate Miss Fortunes, written with Eileen Dreyer and Anne Stuart and now another Bob Mayer partnership: Agnes & The Hitman. I've read so much about Agnes & The Hitman on Crusie's blog that I've been desperate to read it almost from the time they started writing it ... I finally got the chance and I wasn't disappointed.

"Cranky" Agnes Crandall is a food writer, who has just had moderate success with a book called Mob Food. She's also recently bought her dream house, in partnership with her fiance, Taylor, but part of the property agreement was that she host a wedding for the previous owner's granddaughter. Unfortunately, Brenda (the previous owner), will get the house back if the wedding doesn't happen and, since that's what she wants, she's going all out to sabotage the wedding.

When a man with a gun turns up in Agnes's kitchen (ostensibly to kidnap her dog), her friend Joey calls a hitman named Shane to come and protect Agnes. But Shane's got problem's of his own. His boss is retiring and wants Shane to take over ... and it appears before long that someone's trying to kill him too.

My head hurts from trying to explain any aspect of this story without giving something away, but it's not so complicated when you read it, honest (okay, it's a little bit complicated, but, like Janet Evanovich's books, if you don't struggle to place everyone and just let it all wash over you instead, it all becomes clear in the end). Plus - and you'll know this if you read Crusie's blog - there are flamingoes.

I liked Agnes & the Hitman even better than Don't Look Down (and I liked Don't Look Down a lot). Agnes now joins the (long) list of my favourite Crusie characters and Shane is sex on legs. The minor characters are charming, hilarious and completely barmy and it's so skillfully done that you can't see the join between Crusie and Mayer's writing (even though you know that if there's any "YEC - Yucky Emotional Crap", it's unlikely to be Bob). Still, the YEC (which is neither yucky nor crap), the guns, bombs, boats, dogs and flamingoes all come together perfectly to create a gripping, romantic and fun read.

Rating: 4/5

Like this? Try Don't Look Down by Jennifer Crusie and Bob Mayer or any of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum books, starting with One for the Money

MOVIE MAGIC: Decent Exposure

Sarah's just read and enjoyed Phillipa Ashley's Decent Exposure and Phillipa's emailed us with some exciting news.

The TV/movie the rights have been optioned by Fox, which is part of 20th Century Fox. If they go ahead with the project, Phillipa says, it seems most likely it is going to be a TV movie. A writer/producer has been assigned, but no casting news as yet.

So any suggestions? Who do you think would be good for the heroine, Emma? And what about "Mr July"?

Related posts: Phillipa Ashley's Decent Exposure wins the Joan Hessayon New Writers' Scheme Award | Wish You Were Here by Phillipa Ashley | More Movie Magic

Chick Lit Heroine Grudge Match: Suze v Isabel

It seems that last week you were ambivalent about the fate of Maggie Walsh (Angels) and Sadie Nelson (The Sweetest Taboo).

Let's see if two YA chick lit heroines can spark a discussion... May I present two seriously cool sixteen year olds; Susannah Simon(Suze) and Isabel (Belle).

Susannah Simon

The books: The Mediator series by Meg Cabot: Love You to Death, High Stakes, Mean Spirits, Young Blood, Grave Doubts  and Heaven Sent.

Loves: Her ancient leather jacket, her friends.

Men: Jesse. Very hot and unfortunately dead. Haunts her bedroom.

hoe Isabel ('Belle')

The book: Let's Get Lost by Sarra Manning.

Loves: Not much. Isabel rules school with an iron fist; even her friends are scared of her.

Men: Atticus Smith. Isabel meets Smith at a party. He is lovely and seems to like her, but he's also older, and she lies to him. Lots.

Conclusion: If this was a contest based on covers, Isabel would win hands down, even though Suze has got more of them... Isabel is quite a hard character - she is not particularly likeable for the first part of the book; personally, I wouldn't like to fight her. However, Suze has lots of practice fighting ghosts (they can touch - and therefore hurt - her).

Or do you all think I should grow up and stop reading so much teenage fiction? (Don't answer that).

NaNoWriMo - I, er, missed it

So tomorrow is the last day of November and NaNoWriMo has completely passed me by. Thank goodness I wasn't trying to compete this year because no doubt I'd only have a couple of thousand words. Seriously (and I know I say this every year) where did November go?

So how did you all get on with National Novel Writing Month? Are you on course to type "The End" tomorrow? Have you finished already? Did you give up? Will you do it again next year? (I think I will. At least when I've got 1667 words to type each day, I actually *notice* November!)

Let us know.

Related posts: Kay Sexton's NaNoWriMo | Jenny Gardiner does NaNo | And they're off! NaNo starts today

BOOK NEWS: The Smart One by Ellen Meister

I loved Ellen Meister's debut, Secret Confessions of the Applewood PTA and I'm really looking forward to her next book. Sadly, it's going to be a while. The Smart One is due out in August 2008. It sounds fantastic though, listen (or, rather, read):

Inspired by the true story of a bizarre Long Island murder, The Smart One is the story of three sisters, all living very different lives. Bev, always considered the smart one, is divorced, unemployed, and has left behind her artistic ambitions to pursue a career as a school teacher. She knows she hasn't lived up to her family's expectations, and struggles with facing their disappointment that the promise of her bright future never materialized.

Clare, the pretty one, married well and is living the life of the perfect suburban housewife and mother. Joey, the wild one, has successfully completed rehab, which is enough to impress everyone, despite the fact that her fifteen minutes of fame as the lead singer for one-hit rock band has long-since fizzled.

Like most sisters, Bev, Clare and Joey have never fully resolved the old slights and jealousies from years gone by. But they aren't the only ones with issues from the past. They're shocked to discover their next-door-neighbor, Sam Waxman, has his own skeleton in the closet or, more accurately, in the industrial drum hidden beneath his house. And when Bev and her sisters open the lid and see a human hand, the journey to revealing the secrets of their owns lives begins.

Okay, that sounds even better than Ellen Meister's first book. Roll on August 2008 (yep, that's me, wishing my life away for a book).

BOOK COVER: Snowglobes

Last week, when I was looking at Kate Atkinson's covers, I spotted this one for Not the End of the World. 

Isn't it beautiful? You can't go wrong with a snowglobe, in my opinion.

Related posts: The titles that got away | Book cover: The Godmother

BOOK REVIEW: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (Insight Edition)

Reviewed by Jill Hart

I must admit, though somewhat shyly, that though I am a huge fan of Jane Austen I had never read Pride and Prejudice. I attempted to read it once during my high school years, but the language seemed confusing and I gave up. So, when Bethany House announced their new “Insight Edition” of Pride and Prejudice I jumped at the chance to read it.

This new printing of Austen’s beloved classic includes the original text, but also adds side notes giving the reader a brief definition of certain terms, customs and history behind Austen’s words. The book also includes movie facts and other entertaining tidbits that highlight that many works of art that Pride and Prejudice has inspired such as the 2005 movie starring Kiera Knightley.

The editors at Bethany house did a fantastic job at selecting passages to expound on. For example, Austen speaks of Mrs. Bennet saying, “The business of her life was to get her daughters married; its solace was visiting and news.” In today’s culture this seems a bit, well, shallow, and yet the editors include a note that explains why this would have been so important a job for Mrs Bennet.

I can freely say that I loved the book even more than the movie and I felt the Insight Edition added a whole new dimension to Austen’s work. Jane Austen’s speaks for itself and yet the editors did a wonderful job of adding information that enriched the book and made it even more appealing.

Rating: 5/5

Like this? Try Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding (ha ha!)