Wow! This movie touched my heart and references to the struggles of single parenthood hit close to home. I got emotional during certain scenes, so I’m glad I went to see it alone. Will Smith has incredible talent. I’ve known that ever since I saw him in Six Degrees of Separation. He certainly didn’t disappoint in this movie. Jaden Smith is adorable and a great actor as well. This one’s definitely a keeper and it inspired me to read the page-turner book, which was a whole other fascinating (true) story about Chris Gardner.

This is my all-time favorite movie. It’s definitely the one I’d take along if the deserted island scenario ever happened to me. I love this movie for the following reasons.

First of all, it’s a great body of work by my favorite film director/writer Robert Townsend. The cast is made up of many popular actors. The music is tremendous and the humor is infectious!

Secondly, this movie brings back precious memories because it came out in 1991, the year I graduated from high school. I even remember the ashy-elbowed rock-head I saw it with, and how he tried to convince me that The Five Heartbeats was an actual singing group. That fool obviously didn’t know his Motown history. DUH!

And lastly, I’ve always had a deep appreciation for soul music. I think I was born in the wrong decade, because the Motown era never ceases to fascinate and captivate me.

This movie became one of my all-time favorites by chance. I didn’t expect much from it when I rented it from Blockbuster because of the names I saw in the line up—Tamyra Gray acting? Boris Kodjoe singing? Yeah right, I thought. It was actually a pretty funny idea, so I figured I’d at least get a few laughs out of the viewing (besides, regardless of how goofy an actor he is Boris is one FINE brotha to look at).

But it turns out Kodjoe’s got some skills! I was SHOCKED when I found out he really sang his own parts. He even added a touch of Marvin Gaye flavor in one of the musical numbers ( BTW, Marvin Gaye’s daughter Nona was also part of the cast). And Tamyra Gray held her own. She actually did some good acting and she was beautiful in this movie.

My favorite part of the DVD is the extended musical performance of Yolanda Adams’ Victory. The choreography and those violins were on point! I played it over and over with my children.

By the way, this movie was refreshingly family friendly. It had a very pleasant and uplifting ending.

This is a great book for anyone who is concerned about raising
confident, successful children. I especially like the way the author integrates his military experiences as examples. The book also ignited a renewed desire to revamp my finances with its sensible suggestions.

Another winner from The Three Doctors!

I couldn’t get into this book. I guess what I love about Tan is the mother-daughter thing. Once I realized she deviated from the usual theme I lost interest. She’s still my girl, though.

I tried reading this as a young adult and couldn’t get through it. Interestingly enough, I thoroughly enjoyed it the second time around as a read-aloud with my children. The author passed away a couple of months ago.

This was a heartwarming, coming of age puppy love story. It was appropriate for my children, who are on the brink of teenhood. The characters and their thought shots were strikingly real and relevant. The book was episodic and included unique illustrations and chapter formats. So Criss Cross was a fun family read-aloud.

I have always enjoyed the works of Amy Tan. In fact, she is one of my favorite authors. Her stories are always exceptionally authentic and historically relevant, including The Bonsetter’s Daughter. I’m now motivated to do further research on Peking Man! A recurring theme in Tan’s books is the intricacy and fragility of the mother-daughter relationship.

The way Tan created a grandmother, mother, and daugher whose experiences were interwoven around the complexities of communication is phenomenal. Each woman was highly skilled at translating for others, but deficient at speaking up for self. Tan expresses this universal problem in the guise of a spooky family curse which needs to finally be broken by the daugher.

I learned that there is an opera/libretto in the works, based on this story. According to www.AmyTan.net, it premiers in San Francisco in September, 2008. I would love to see it!

I read this aloud to my children after browsing it beforehand. Therefore, I was able to prepare them for the graphic despair, and grief depicted by Kadohata. My children especially enjoyed the antics of Katie’s Uncle Katsuhisa. I had fun impersonating Katie, a Japanese-American girl, saying, “Lee-yun (Lynn), y’all need anythang?” in the southern accent she acquired after moving with her family from Iowa to Georgia. But my children were not amused and eventually demanded that I quit my bad impersonation. I tried to explain that it was written phonetically in the book, therefore I HAD to read it that way, but that didn’t work.

Overall, this is an engaging story about familial devotion in the face of disease, racism, and unjust workers’ conditions.

Great news: My library privileges have been reinstated! I’m back in business. . .