Quick takes on Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey incoming! Skip ahead to The Sunday Collection if you don’t want my opinions before seeing the film. Curtis and I saw it last weekend and had a great time sitting in a cold, dark theater for three hours, but I had MANY thoughts as I was watching. But please note: I reserve the right to change my mind! I only saw the film once! It was three hours and a lot to take in!

In somewhat sequential order…

• About five minutes into the movie, maybe ten, I leaned over to Curtis and said, “A someone who studied/taught The Odyssey for years, all of this exposition is physically painful.”

• John Leguizamo, what are you doing here?

• It’s so nice to see Anne Hathaway’s face move. More moving faces please.

• How did they film in a cave. Sorcery.

• John Bernthal, you and your 2026 beard and bro-y accent are taking me right out of this movie.

• On a better note, Himesh Patel, you are a way more compelling actor than Matt Damon! You are a STAR, baby!

• Then again, re: Matt Damon, this is a lot of choreography to remember and his body is probably very, very sore.

• Oof. Damon doesn’t have the charisma I was hoping for. Odysseus is supposed to be an asshole you can’t help but root for because he is charming and smart and gets in trouble for being hotheaded—not a dead serious commander (in my reading).

• I’ve seen posts about Nolan not giving the women enough to do in this movie, but their moments are quite poignant. IDK it could be way worse! Circe is gonna win an award! I kept waiting for Charlize Theron to hold up a Dior perfume bottle, though.

• The Hades scene is my FAAAVE. So theatrical (in a stage play, puppeteering, tangible kinda way). Love the way that was filmed and performed.

• Okay, that homecoming speech made me tear up, for spouse-with-combat-PTSD-reasons.

• Robert Pattinson out here out-face-acting everybody.

• Hate to be that person, but yeah, the costumes looked medieval at one point? I got a little confused by those wardrobe choices.

• Love a theme being shoved down my throat.

• What a fun time. Must talk about this film with everyone, now.

The Sunday Collection

• Oh, Aldi. How I love thee. Thank you for putting those delicious little dark chocolate covered biscuits on sale for 1.99 last week. And for the new Organic Dubai Creamer to try in my iced matcha lattes.

• I ran out of my Maelove serums a few weeks ago and decided to try Innbeauty, which has been on my wishlist forever! A three step Innbeauty routine cost the same as my Maelove line-up, so it was a no-brainer. I love it! After just two weeks of using the exfoliating toner pads, Green Machine serum, and Extreme Cream moisturizer, my dark spots are lighter, my skin feels softer, and my under eye area looks less puffy. I like that I can just buy refills for these products when I run out.

• After hyping myself up for the horror scenes, we watched Widow’s Bay. I hate scary movies; my aversion to jump scares and gore gets worse every year. BUT the genius writing, brilliant acting, and well-timed humor of this show won me over. It’s the best show of the year and worth watching through my fingers.

• I took my boys, along with their grandmas, to Bookworm Gardens just before the heat dome peaked and air quality plummeted. I’m so glad we made it out and can’t wait to go back and spend more time playing in each display. If you’re in WI or driving through the state, I highly recommend the gardens as a family activity.

• Instead of making scones with my frozen cherries, I made these amazing cherry muffins. I'm going to use the same recipe but with peaches or blueberries next time.

Book Report

The Wilderness by Angela Flournoy

I know “interconnected short stories” isn’t a selling point for most readers, but me? I see that phrase and I am SOLD. It’s how I would describe Flournoy’s second novel, as each chapter feels like a cohesive story in itself, building a web of relationships between characters in brief glimpses and coming-of-age scenes. Flournoy’s most interesting choice is opening each vignette with a scene-setting piece of prose that showcases her talent and makes this short novel feel larger in scope. Because this read more like short stories, it was easy for me to dip in and out of over the course of a couple of weeks. I didn’t feel compelled to read it quickly, and that felt right, letting the themes simmer between reading sessions.

A Study in Sparkling by Jodi McAllister

I adored An Academic Affair earlier this year and knew we would get a book about Fiona and Satoshi next. I was so impressed by McAllister’s risk-taking in this novel, with quite long chunks of email and text exchanges moving the plot and emotional tension forward. Rather than feeling out of place, these digital epistolary moments were propulsive and REAL. Any modern relationship relies on typed communication these days, of course, but it’s not always done well in romance novels. With Satoshi as a wine bar owner and Master Sommelier to be, and Fiona as a frequent customer and budding wine expert herself, wine metaphors were an obvious choice here. But McAllister deploys them well, with brief “tasting notes” before each chapter and strategic wine details throughout the story to enhance sensory details or draw out themes. It could have been cliche or excessive, but she achieved the perfect balance.

Anticipated August Book Releases

• Meet Me In The Garden by Nina Lacour

• Murder Bites by Mimi Montgomery

• Take What You Can by Naima Coster

• Queen Mab by Emily McBride

• In What World by Bridget Morrissey

• The Song of Stork and Dromedary by Anjet Daanje, tr. David McKay

• Demons and Diplomacy by Megan Frampton

ICYMI

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