May in Review

Books Acquired:
Faceless Killers by Henning Mankell
Tooth and Nail by Ian Rankin
Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer
The Simple Art of Murder by Raymond Chandler
How To Eat: The Pleasures and Principles of Good Food by Nigella Lawson
My Little French Kitchen by Rachel Khoo
Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant by Tony Cliff
Side Effects by Woody Allen
Getting Even by Woody Allen
Mere Anarchy by Woody Allen

Books Read:
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer
Richard Stark’s Parker: Slayground by Darwyn Cooke
The Player of Games by Iain M. Banks

I was apparently still on a bit of a book-buying high after the book sale last month. There were a few novels I had on my wishlist that I couldn’t find at the sale, so I thought I’d pick them up at the local used book store afterwards. Tooth and Nail is the next book in the Inspector Rebus series, which I’m still deciding if I like or not, and I’ve always wanted to try a Kurt Wallander novel after loving the BBC adaptation so much, so I also picked up the first in that series, Faceless Killers.

The Simple Art of Murder contains a famous essay, that the collection is named after, and eight short stories that were written before Philip Marlowe. I didn’t realize this existed, so of course I had to pick that up as well. Annihilation I just kept seeing around and threw that in the basket as well. I’ve read it already and have my eye on the next two.

We found ourselves back at the book store at the end of the month as well, and I thought I’d pick up the rest of the Woody Allen books. They have a great cookbook selection too, many of which were quite heavily discounted. I’ve been looking for How to Eat for a while now, but it doesn’t seem readily available around here at the moment, so I was happy to find that.

Movies watched:
Penguins of Madagascar (2014) – This had some cute moments, but it didn’t really hold my interest.

Inside Out (2015) – Fantastic Pixar movie. What a great story, and perfectly executed too. Really enjoyed this.

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014) – Very unique. I love how it was filmed, with the interesting scene transitions and the weirdly out-of-place special effects, and the story kept me interested right through. The over the top stage acting, which I think was on purpose, was fun but also a little tiring. Overall a great movie, though.

TV watched:
Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Season 3 (2015) – Just as good as the last two seasons. Silly fun. There was a new character introduced mid-season that I’m not too fond of, but I’m still enjoying this.

Games played:
Uncharted 4 (2016) (PS4) – I haven’t finished this, as I got a bit sidetracked halfway through, but I am in love with this game so far. Brilliant voice acting and writing. The combat is still bland and tedious, but it’s worth pushing through for the story.

Overwatch (2016) (PC) – I wasn’t really excited for this coming out, but it’s fantastic. Each character has a really unique playstyle, so there’s a lot to master before getting bored. I see myself playing this one for a while.

What have you been reading/watching/playing this month?