Posted tagged ‘books’

Unbroken

January 4, 2015

Another date night last night. Paula and I went to see the movie Unbroken at a the Terraces theater in San Pedro. We like the Terraces theater because it’s close to home and they have a senior rate. Last night, the senior price was $6, After the movie we picked up some BBQ chicken, potato salad and some other kind of salad for dinner.

Unbroken” is the movie directed by Angelina Jolie and starring Jack O’Connell that is true story of Louis Zamporini. The film is based on the best selling book of the same name by Laura Hilldebrand. It follows the story of Louis becoming an Olympic track star and then serving as a bombardier in the South Pacific. The film is rated PG13 for violence.

Louis_Zamperini_at_announcement_of_2015_Tournament_of_Roses_Grand_Marshal

Louis’ bomber crashes in the South Pacific. He then spends 47 days in a life raft and is eventually captured by the Japanese. He then spends the rest of the war in various Japanese prison camps.

I am always amazed how film makers manage to make scenes look so realistic. The crash scene of the bomber looks so real. You actually feel the director had a camera on board a bomber and then crashed it in the ocean.

This film is not for the faint of heart. It spends a great deal of the film showing what it was like for him in the prison camps. But he survives. Zamperini had been scheduled to be the Grand Marshall of the 2015 Rose Parade. Unfortunately, he died this past July, Here is the link to the Wiki entry for Louis Zamperini.

Louis Zamperini is famous in these here parts. The Torrance Air Port is named after him. Torrance High School named its sport stadium after him.

Laura Hildebrand is also the author of “Seabiscuit” Another book worth reading.

Good film and a good book. Go see the film and read the book.

Shameless Plug

August 27, 2014

I recently discovered that my good friend Bob Simington has written a book titled “My Stories: The Stories I Tell My Friends and Family”. It is available on Amazon Kindle for the outrageous price of $2.99 (or free is you have Kindle Unlimited). It’s a great read. Do not delay. Click here to get your copy from Amazon.

Senator (Book Review)

July 7, 2012

Senator is a fictional account of a Republican US Senator from Massachusetts written by Richard Bowker. Full disclosure, Richard Bowker is my brother. But to be fair, I paid full price for the Kindle version. Actually, I think I bought the hard cover version when it was first published back in the mid 1980’s.

Senator

Senator is the story of a young US Senator from Massachusetts who in the first chapter discovers that his mistress has been murdered. The plot thickens. It’s quite a mess for a Senator up for reelection.

The story unfold quickly as we discover the many characters and potential killers of the young reporter. Many times throughout the book, I had to remind myself that this was fiction. The murder adds a whole new dimension to the stresses of running for high political office.

So who killed Amanda? Was it his wife? His brother Danny? His old college roommate? One of his aides? I won’t tell, you’ll have to read the book.

Senator is the second of four books by Richard that have been e-published. Available both from Amazon Kindle and Barnes & Noble. Worth the price. Other books include “Pontiff”, “Replica” and “Dover Beach”