The Favourite is NOT my favorite. Far from it. The movie is set in England in the early 1700s when Queen Anne (Olivia Colman), losing her health and mental capacities, relies on her brilliant friend Lady Sarah (Rachel Weisz) to help her run her Government and her private life. Into this palace situation enters penniless Abigail (Emma Stone) who claims she’s a distant relative of Lady Sarah. Lady Sarah makes a Huge Mistake in finding Abigail a job as a scullery maid.

The cunning Abigail manages to insinuate herself close to the Queen. And, in a bold move, Abigail both betrays Lady Sarah to her political opponent and arranges to cause Lady Sarah to fall from the Queen’s grace. The Favourite wallows in duplicity, deceit, and treachery. But all of this skullduggery is undercut first by Director Yorgos Lanthinmos (The Lobster and The Killing of a Sacred Deer) flashing visual cue cards before scenes in the movie. I found this practice annoying. But what I found more annoying was the soundtrack that blared random sounds and irksome atonal “music” detracting from what was happening on the screen. Wonderful cast, dull script. The Favourite reminds me of Stanley Kubrick’s Barry Lyndon: looks sensational, but is as empty as a politician’s promises. GRADE: C

I enjoyed Otto Pensler’s first Bibliomysteries volume (you can read my review here) so I read this new latest volume. These anthologies require the stories include books and bookstores in their plots. I enjoyed Peter Lovesey’s “Remaindered” about a successful heist where the loot ends up in a bookstore. F. Paul Wilson’s baroque “The Compendium of Srem” explores the impact of a book with Special Powers. I also liked Thomas Perry’s “The Book of the Lion”–the legendary book by Chaucer–that might be worth $18 million in a cunning scheme. Megan Abbott blends books and a tormented young woman into a dangerous mix. James W. Hall’s “The Haze” features a ancient hit man in a nursing home reading crime novels and hallucinating. Once again, Bibliomysteries: Volume 2 keeps the pages turning. GRADE: B+
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Introduction / Otto Penzler — vii
Remaindered / Peter Lovesey — 1
The compendium of Srem / F. Paul Wilson — 29
The gospel of Sheba / Lyndsay Faye — 71
The nature of my inheritance / Bradford Morrow — 119
The sequel / R.L. Stine — 167
Mystery, Inc. / Joyce Carol Oates — 195
The book of the lion / Thomas Perry — 235
The mysterious disappearance of the reluctant book fairy / Elizabeth George — 267
From the queen / Carolyn Hart — 311
The little men / Megan Abbott — 343
Citadel / Stephen Hunter — 381
Every seven years / Denise Mina — 479
Condor in the stacks / James Grady — 503
The travelling companion / Ian Rankin — 549
The haze / James W. Hall — 585

The Detroit Lions (5-8) take on the hapless Buffalo Bills (4-8) in another meaningless NFL game. The Bills have signaled that they intend to play more rookies and 2nd year players in these final games of the 2018 season. In effect, these are “Preseason” games as players audition for jobs for 2019. The weather for the game should be mild: 40 degrees with a slight breeze. Steve Tasker, former Buffalo Bill Special Teams ace and now a commentator for CBS Sports, said the reason the Bill have THREE home games in December harks back to last season’s highly rated “Snow Game.” The NFL was hoping for another Winter Wonderland game like that one, but so far it’s snowed here on weekdays, not weekends. How will your favorite NFL team perform today?

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse starts with Brooklyn teenager Miles Morales getting a bite from a radioactive spider that gives him Spider-Man powers. But before Miles can adjust to his new skill set, the world alters with a rip in the space-time continuum and more Spider-like characters from various dimensions appear. Miles first meets a slovenly Peter Parker (who has just broken up with Mary Jane). Then there’s Spider-Woman. And Spider-Man Noir (from the black & white 1930s). And an anime version with a robot Spider-Creature. Most bizarre is the talking Spider-Pig: Peter Porker. Together, the various incarnations of Spider-Man need to cooperate to close the rip in the space-time continuum before they die in this dimension where they cannot survive for long. The plot revolves around Miles as he tries to explore his new powers and to work with the other older and more skilled characters. Miles also has some issues with his policeman father who dislikes vigilante super-heroes.

The animation explodes on the screen and delights the eyes! Phil Lord who worked on The LEGO Movie is co-writer of the script for Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse which means the pacing of the movie, along with the frequent humor, is excellent. Action, fun, and suspense… what more could you want? I can’t wait to see it again! GRADE: A

Generous Maggie Mason sent me this wonderful, supersized (1126 pages!) collection of novels from the Roaring Twenties. Leslie Klinger’s annotated edition of these classic crime novels is a reader’s delight! Not only does this old-fashioned Dictionary size book deliver some of the best American mystery fiction of that decade, it provides plenty of additional information on the texts. My favorite novel of this group is Dashiell Hammett’s Red Harvest. Hammett’s tale of violence and corruption set the template for future crime novels. Next, I enjoyed rereading Ellery Queen’s The Roman Hat Mystery. I prefer the early Ellery Queen puzzle novels to the later ones. Some experts consider The Roman Hat Mystery to be one of the very best of the Ellery Queen novels. I’m not a big fan of Earl Derr Biggers’ The House Without a Key or S. S. Van Dine’s The Benson Murder Case but both novels have historical significance. Little Caesar by W. R. Burnett, an underrated novel, morphed into an iconic movie.

If you’re interested in classic crime novels, Classic American Crime Fiction of the 1920s is a must-buy. If you have a casual interest in older mysteries, this group offers plenty of entertainment and detailed information. I know plenty of mystery fans who would love to find em>Classic American Crime Fiction of the 1920s under their tree! Have you read these classic crime novels? Thanks again, Maggie! GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Introduction / by Otto Penzler — v
Foreword / by Leslie S. Klinger — ix
A note on the texts — xxvii
The house without a key / by Earl Derr Biggers (1925) — 2
Appendix: The House without a Key on film — 250
The Benson Murder Case / by S. S. Van Dine (1926) — 252
Appendix: S. S. Van Dine sets down twenty rules for detective stories — 497
The Roman Hat Mystery / by Ellery Queen (1929) — 502
Red Harvest / by Dashiell Hammett (1929) — 778
Little Caesar / by W. R. Burnett (1929) — 970
Appendix: Introduction by W. R. Burnett — 1115
Bibliography — 1123
Acknowledgements — 1126

Every 13 seconds, someone buys a Jack Reacher book. That statistic was cited in an article on Lee Child in last month’s ATLANTIC. Just in time for the Holidays, a Jack Reacher novel shows up with an entertaining puzzle and some graphic violence. Reacher is wandering around New Hampshire, where his father Stan Reacher, grew up. Reacher decides to visit Laconia, his father’s hometown. However, a quick search at the City Clerk’s office produces no Stan Reacher. Reacher’s father also told people he was born in June, but sometimes he said his birthday was in July. That’s Lee Child’s signal Things Are Not What They Seem.

On a second track of Past Tense, a young Canadian couple have car trouble and find a motel deep in the woods. Yes, shades of Psycho. Eventually, their story and Reacher’s story intersect with violent results. We learn a bit more about Jack Reacher’s family and their secrets. We learn you don’t want to have your car break down in the middle of Nowhere. Do you like Lee Child’s Jack Reacher novels? GRADE: B+

Yesterday, I was summoned for Jury Duty in Niagara Falls, New York (not Niagara Falls, Canada!). Step by step, inch by inch, I made my way into the court house along with 92 other prospective jurors. We had to do some paperwork, then we went through Jury Orientation, and then we were taken from the Basement waiting area to the court room on the Second Floor.

This was a civil case so they only needed six jurors and two alternates. I was one of the 12 prospects chosen at random to begin the selection process. The Judge questioned us. The plaintiff’s lawyers questioned us. The defendant’s lawyers questioned us.

A drunk driver drove his vehicle onto the North Tonawanda Walking Path. He hit two people who were walking their dog. He and his car went into the Erie Canal and had to be rescued. Those are the sketchy facts we were given. The driver has pleaded Guilty. but, now the couple who were injured are suing North Tonawanda claiming the Walking Path wasn’t designed for Safety.

After undergoing all of the questioning, seven of the 12 prospective jurors were dismissed. I was one of them. I’m figuring my status as a North Tonawanda resident familiar with the crime scene counted heavily against me. The remaining prospective jurors will be reporting tomorrow because one more juror and two alternates need to be selected. I’ll be sleeping in! Have you been on Jury Duty lately?

For that Hamlet fan on your Gift List, here’s the wonderful 25th Anniversary Edition of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. Two minor characters in Shakespeare’s marvelous play provide both context and humor to the proceedings. Tom Stoppard’s play morphed into this movie version starring Richard Dreyfuss, Tim Roth, and Gary Oldman in a wacky blend of illusion and reality in Shakespearean drama.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead includes the Bonus Features of Interviews with Tom Stoppard, Gary Oldman, Tim Roth, and Richard Dreyfuss. GRADE: A

James Mustich, a former bookstore owner, once did a thought experiment: If he only had room for 1000 books in his store, which ones would they be? The result is 1000 Books to Read Before You Die. Mustich organizes the books alphabetically by author. This produces some weird juxtapositions. Bryan McGee’s Confessions of a Philosopher rests next to Norman Mailer’s Armies of the Night. George Orwell’s Collected Essays, Journalism, and Letters snuggles up to Ovid’s Metamorphoses. You get the idea. Clearly, 1000 Books to Read Before You Die is a browser’s delight. Plenty of covers and photos of authors to savor! If you have a book lover on your gift list, this book would make a perfect present! GRADE: A

For the first time in the 2018 NFL season, the Buffalo Bills are favored over an opponent. This week, the Bills (4-8) are 3 1/2 point favorites over the New York Jets (3-9). Neither of these teams are going anywhere this season so the only reason to watch this game is the play of rookie QBs Sam Darnold for the Jets and Josh Allen for the Bills. The weather will be cold (32 degrees) but sunny. No snow in the forecast. How will your favorite NFL team do today?