A Man Called Ove by Fred Blackman: As Unassuming Book Filled with Heart

I'm assuming it's my Type-A personality, but I love lists.  Checking boxes off a list gives me so much joy that it should be concerning.  Grocery lists, lists for what I need to get done over the weekend, and even lists for what to pack on vacation are all part of my routine.  So when Buzzfeed publishes their lists relating to books and movies, I get all kinds of geeked out.  The first list I saw was a list of books to read that were going to be movies, which is actually how this whole blog thing started back in 2013/2014.  The most recent list I found was this which is a list of 31 heartfelt books to read. The list included Me Before You, which I blogged about before and is one of my favs, so I knew it was a good list.  This list is where I found another favorite book which is why I am here today.  A Man Called Ove was not a book that looked particularly heartfelt when I read the back.  It looked like it was about a grumpy old man who hated the world after losing his wife.  It seemed sad and lacking of the exact thing it had, which is heart.  I am so glad I read it anyway because it is definitely one of my favorite books I've read yet.  

Ove thinks life should be simple.  You work hard, pay your bills, follow the street signs, mind your own business, and you should get along just fine.  He's been this way his whole life living in black and white.  Then he met Sonja, and found more color he ever knew possible.  Sonja loved Ove in all his seriousness and grumpiness and Ove lived his entire life doing anything he could for her.  So when she died, that's when Ove stopped living.  He saw no point in going on and just wanted to be with her again, so he developed a plan to kill himself.  He had his folder with all of his bank information, directions for the will, where he should be buried (right next to Sonja), and not to make a fuss of anything.  The problem was, each time he tried to do it, his pesky neighbors got in the way.  Whether it be a ride to the hospital, repairing a bike, or saving an old friend from being taken from his home- Ove could not be left alone.  He even got as far as jumping in front of a train, but ended up saving someone else from the train who accidentally fell at the same time Ove did.  It appeared Ove had a difficult task at hand.  To Ove, it should't be this difficult and his neighbors needed to start minding their own business and leaving Ove to die. 

What I love most about this book is Ove.  He is gruff as can be but has such a good heart.  He is also a romantic even though you'd never know it.  He just loves his wife which is all he's ever done.  Just to give you an example,  here are two of my favorite lines:

As you can see, this grump of a man, is sweet and loving.  This story ends up being so much more than Ove trying to end his own life. The more his neighbors unintentionally get in the way, the more you learn about Ove's back story and theirs, and the more you fall in love with all of them.  It truly is beautiful how they are all intertwined and how in the end, they all become one extended family.  I don't want to give too much away so will leave you with saying that this book will make you laugh, cry, and reflect on what forms love can take. A beautiful story that will pleasantly surprise you. 

Fist Fight: Two Teachers and Two Sets of Fists

So my husband and I have this system when life throws us unwanted curve balls, we see a movie.  Friday was definitely that day and instead of staying home and being sad, we saw a stupidly hilarious movie, and were so glad we did.

Andy Campbell is a teacher at a public high school and is known as the nice guy.  His wife is due any day now and he is set to dance with his daughter at her school talent show.  It also happens to be the last day of school, so you'd think life couldn't be better.  This school, however, has some unruly high schoolers, especially seniors, and is creating some extreme pranks such as traps throughout the school, a horse running free, and some not so appropriate images mowed into the lawn.  The administration  is also making huge cut backs, so many jobs are on the line.  Andy's school is literally a mess and it gets much worse when he rats out a teacher for using an ax to chop up a desk after freaking out on a student.  The teacher does not take being ratted out so well and tells Andy he needs to meet him in the parking lot at 3 o'clock to fight.  So now Andy has to find out if he still has a job, maintain some order in an unruly school, meet his daughter for their dance, and fight another teacher. Andy doesn't know what to do, but he is sick of being the nice guy who always getting walked on.  He can either try to make amends with his fellow teaching partner, ignore the fight altogether, or prove he isn't a doormat.

This movie was hilarious in that stupid funny way you'd expect after seeing the trailer.  It clearly would never happen in real life and the concept was far fetched, but it made me laugh a lot which was exactly what I needed.  So if you are in the mood for some dumb humor and you don't mind a lot of profanity, this is your movie.  Rotten Tomatoes gave it 32% and IMDB gave it a 6/10.  I'd say IMDB was spot on.  It isn't going to win any awards and tended to drag a bit, but I promise you'll laugh if you can appreciate it for what it is.  I also think teachers will appreciate the sentiment and message it sends regarding cut backs and expectations of educators.

Two Very Different Movies with One Thing in Common: Space

There were two movies coming out this winter that I knew I had to see.  After seeing both, I was more impressed with one than the other, but also thought it interesting how they had something in common.  You see, both movies shared the human interest of space travel in common and though one was from our past and one from our possible future, were equally as interesting.

Hidden Figures

Plot: This movie was about three intelligent, African American women who had to fight their whole lives to proof their intelligence in a world run by white men.  They had two things going against them which were their race and their gender.  During this time in US history, women were secretaries and every aspect of the US was separated by color from where you drank to what restroom you used.  You'd think NASA would be different, but it was far from it.  These three young ladies each worked for NASA in a computing department, but were capable of much more.  Each had their own battle in order to get out of computing and prove their intellect. After Russia had a successful mission into space, NASA was under the wire and pressure was on for us to send our men to the moon.  This allowed the girls to show NASA just what they were capable of.

Review: With the current state of the divisions of race in our country, I delayed seeing this.  I didn't want it to add to my discontent, but am happy to report that it was inspiring more than anything.  One of the women, Katherine, had to literally walk 20 minutes to the nearest colored bathroom and her co-workers designated a colored coffee pot for her to use.  One day when asked where she goes and why it takes her so long, she lost it and explained that it was due to the color of her skin.  This scene was powerful and so well acted.  You could see and feel in the injustice and how she finally let it all out.  I loved how this scene then sent a change through NASA and her boss who was typically reserve and conservative, began making changes such as removing all colored bathrooms and explaining there would be no division in NASA.  Another compelling story was from Mary who could't work on a project until she had a specific degree, but the problem was that she couldn't take the needed classes, because it was an all white school.  The best scene was when her boss explained she had no excuse since he was a Polish Jew who  got to where he was.  Mary fought her way to that degree and was able to convince a judge to change the ruling.  So as you can see, this movie was filled with inspiration.  IMDB gave it a 7.9/10 and Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 92%.  I would give it a 9.5/10.  The only reason why is because I wished it ended on a more inspiring note, but it was based on a true story so I can't blame the film for that.  I highly recommend this for all to see for a reminder of how diversity can be beautiful.

The Space Between Us

Plot: A young astronaut learns she is pregnant as she is on a mission to Mars.  Her baby is delivered on the planet and left without a mother as she died during child birth.  This leaves NASA with quite the predicament.  Here is this baby whose body is not able to handle the travel to Earth let alone its atmosphere, so they are left with no choice, but to have him live on Mars.  Fast forward 16 years later and like any teenager, Gardner is itching for interaction with others his age.  He is able to communicate with a girl from Earth via the internet and after finding some hints about where his real father could be, he is determine to get to Earth.  After some convincing of his sudo mom on Mars, Gardner is granted his wish.  Once arriving on Earth, the rebellious teen in him kicks in and he runs away to search for his lady friend and his father.  He does find his lady friend, Tulsa, quickly and the two are off on an adventure, but first he must convince her of where he is really from.  She soon finds out the guy she thought she knew is from a world she's never known and realizes he doesn't have much time as his body is slowly showing just how not from Earth he really is.  They are determined to find his father in time before it's too late.

Review: The best word to sum up this movie in one word is, cute.  I loved the concept of exploring space and the science behind the human body and how it would be tricky with a baby only ever living in Space.  However, the plot was well suited for a younger crowd.  If I was 16/17, I would have eaten this up, but with more life experience, it seemed cheesy in parts.  The plot twist at the end was predictable, but the science and scenes were pretty cool.  I'd say if it was a Sunday morning and you saw this on Netflix, give it a go, otherwise save your money.  IMDB gave it a 6.2/10 and Rotten Tomatoes gave it a whopping 18%.  This really tells you how it is, because Rotten Tomatoes has been pretty generous lately, so for them to give it that low of a score, you know it's lacking.  I would give it a 5/10.  It's all about perspective and at 31, I need more in a movie.