The Blue Librarian

      Almost every girl I know wants to get married. And has a plan to do it.  We are fed since infancy with love stories and believe that our life will be a fairy tale with a prince charming that will come and swipe us up from our feet.       The problem comes along the way when we realize that the guy we fell for is no prince charming and has zero intentions of swiping us of our feet unless to carry us to the bedroom for a one night stand. But since women are classically stubborn and in strong denial, most end up believing that they can transform the frog into a prince. What they manage to do is transform themselves from Snow-white to Pretty woman.       'Sunday in New York' is a classic comedy centered along young women morality in the sixties and men's attitude towards it, from both a feminine and a masculine perspective. The cast is outstanding. Jane Fonda plays the role of Eileen, the 'probably last 22-year-old virgin' from Al...

    I love Cary Grant movies. The perfect gentleman in real life and in movies, he was an inspiration for many. Ian Fleming modeled partially James Bond character after Grant. Christopher Reeve based his portrayal of Clark Kent in the Superman films on Grant in the early part of his career. Tony Curtis started acting because he wanted to be like Grant and so on and so forth.       What made him stand up among other male actors was his sense of humor. And I have never seen him so relaxed playing like in 'Operation Petticoat'. I normally do not enjoy war movies. There is too much drama and destruction, as it should be. 'Operation Petticoat' may take place in the second world war but it is very lax and it is centered upon one navy captain's struggle to keep his submarine afloat. After being used as target practice by the Japanese, USS Sea Tiger is ' just a periscope staying on top of a ton of scrap metal ' but Lt.Commander Matt T.Sherman is determined not t...

      Long before he was known as the uptight Felix Ungar with a slight case of OCD in the 'Odd couple' or John Gustafson, Max Goldman's archenemy in 'Grumpy old men' Jack Lemmon made legend in Hollywood playing Daphne in 'Some like it hot'.       It was the fifties, the Golden Age of Hollywood, a time when Tony Curtis, Paul Newman, Marlon Brando, Ava Gardner, Marilyn Monroe and James Dean were icons.       It was the time of great movies, romantic comedies and dramas that will remain in cinematic history. It was the beginning of Jack Lemmon's carrier onthe big screen and the end of Marilyn's who will die no more than three years later.       But on the screen the three of them shine like no others and the chemistry between them is exceptional.      The story-line is set up during prohibition era in Chicago. Joe (Tony Curtis) and Jerry (Jack Lemmon) are two struggling male musicians working in one of t...

You know that moment when you have a bad day that turns into a bad week and so on and you realize that the light at the end of the tunnel might as well be a freight train coming your way? Most of us had that pleasant experience at one moment in life. When I feel down I need a book to cheer me up. Some people exercise, take yoga classes, meditate, go to therapy or drink. I have tried all these options but exercise only helps my physique, yoga and meditation require a good teacher and I am yet to find one, therapy is insanely expensive and I have read enough Freud to do it my own and drinking makes me sick. So, I am usually back to reading. On one of these occasions I have come across Ann Charles' work and it was love at first page. I prefer my books to have well-defined characters and Deadwood series is spot on. Starting with Violet Parker, the main character, who is a feisty single mother of twins (Layne - the brainiac with a panache for archaeology and Adelynn - the protector ...

I was introduced to Italo Calvino many years ago and found its writing distracting. His most notable works are 'If on a winter's night a traveler',  'Difficult loves', and 'Invisible cities' and the last two are my personal favorite. 'Difficult loves' is a collection of short stories that should have a place on your nightstand, its calming tone making it the perfect read before bedtime, one story at a time. Despite being written in the 70's most of the subjects are timeless. The title suggests love stories and the difficulty of communication but I found it being more than that. It takes a great writer to be able to capture human psyches like Calvino does and this is what makes his writing great. You do not read a book, you read excerpts from people's diaries,  delicate and uncomfortable moments that are not meant to be shared. You are part of private glimpses into their lives and see what is behind the façade required by society and con...