Audiobook Review: As You Wish

As You Wish: Inconceivable Takes from the Making of the Princess Bride by Cary Elwes

Narrated by: Cary Elwes, with guest appearances
Genre: Memoir
Maturity Level: 2
View on Goodreads
Rating: ⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆

From actor Cary Elwes, who played the iconic role of Westley in The Princess Bride, comes a first-person account and behind-the-scenes look at the making of the cult classic film filled with never-before-told stories, exclusive photographs, and interviews with costars Robin Wright, Wallace Shawn, Billy Crystal, Christopher Guest, and Mandy Patinkin, as well as author and screenwriter William Goldman, producer Norman Lear, and director Rob Reiner.

The Princess Bride has been a family favorite for close to three decades. Ranked by the American Film Institute as one of the top 100 Greatest Love Stories and by the Writers Guild of America as one of the top 100 screenplays of all time, The Princess Bride will continue to resonate with audiences for years to come.

Cary Elwes was inspired to share his memories and give fans an unprecedented look into the creation of the film while participating in the twenty-fifth anniversary cast reunion. In As You Wish he has created an enchanting experience; in addition to never-before seen photos and interviews with his fellow cast mates, there are plenty of set secrets, backstage stories, and answers to lingering questions about off-screen romances that have plagued fans for years!

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I LOVED THIS BOOK! It was like watching a behind-the-scenes or making-of film, but obviously no such thing exists. This is the next best thing. The only thing that could have made it better would have been if Elwes had collaborated with other members of the cast and production team to make it an all-play. Which, honestly, he kind of did, so it could almost not be better.

Calendar Girls September Wrap Up

Wow, I can’t believe September is already over. It’s still 90s degrees here in Texas. I have to say that I am READY for October. Like, literally, I am prepared. We’ve already got Halloween costumes…

We had a great month with Calendar Girls talking about books about pirates. The overwhelming consensus is that we love pirates, but most of us haven’t read very many books about them. So Imma take a second and (once again) plug Erin Morgenstern’s new book The Starless Sea which is at least partly about pirates. CAN’T WAIT!

Pirate’s Life for Me
Favorite Book About Pirates

Our Picks

Treasure Island – Katie (that’s me!) @ Never Not Reading
Daughter of the Pirate King – Adrienne @ Darque Dreamer Reads
Seafire – Liz @ Stellar Kitten Book Reviews
The Princess Bride – Dani @ Mousai Books
These Rebel Waves – Flavia @ Flavia the Bibliophile

Our Favorite Pick is…

Six Degrees of Separation: The French Lieutenant’s Woman to Angels and Demons

Six Degrees of Separation is a monthly blog event hosted by Kate at booksaremyfavoriteandbest. It’s inspired by the 6 Degrees of Separation, a movie game where you attempt to connect actors in six movies or less. But we do it with books!

This month we’re starting with The French Lieutenant’s Woman by John Fowles.

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Well, I’ve never read The French Lieutenant’s Woman. 20th century literature, ick. However, I read the synopsis on goodreads! It appears to feature a looooove triangle. Another classic novel featuring a love triangle is…

Fun Fantasy Recommendations

About 5 years ago (maybe a little more) a fun idea for a book came to me in a dream. I may have even written a page or two in my journal, but I’ve never been able to write more than a chapter or two of a book. One summer I got halfway through a Northanger Abbey contemporary YA, but other than that ideas have always ended pretty much at the idea board. Besides which, I don’t think I’m a particularly good writer, and this idea is too good to waste on bad writing. So I’ve not ever done much other than dream about it.

But recently something I said offhand on twitter made my husband say something to me which got all kinds of lightbulbs going on this story again. I now have a bare-bones outline and ONE character name! But it’s still mostly living in the idea realm.

Most likely this story will never get written. As I said, it’s too good of one to waste on my poor attempts at writing fiction. However, I am officially not giving up on it. Instead I am leisurely pursuing it. No actual writing yet, just jotting down ideas as they come to me. However, I am starting to run out of ideas and need some inspiration.

That, bookish friends, is where you all come in! I want to read some books or watch some movies in a similar vein. Not for ideas, so much as to get more familiar with the genre. In particular, I’m not very funny and I would like to absorb some good humor, and I am not very whimsical and need to find my inner-whimsey.

So!

Recommendations for fantasy books/movies/TV that are of the action/adventure variety, especially if they are funny. Bonus points if they’re really just for fun and not especially serious. Examples include: The Princess Bride, The Neverending Story, The Pirates of Penzance, Hook, Dragonheart, and Stardust (movie or book, they both get the idea).

Thanks guys! Looking forward to adding some stuff to my to-be-read and to-be-watched lists! ❤

Hocus Pocus Book Tag

Because it wouldn’t be Halloween without Hocus Pocus, and I wouldn’t be doing my job right if I wasn’t spreading the Hocus Pocus love, I’ve created my very own blog tag.

Dun dun DUUUUUNNNN!!!!!

I hope you enjoy it! I’ve certainly had fun dreaming it up and creating it.

Rules:

There are no rules. It’s YOUR blog. But if would be nice if you linked back to me, and maybe the person who tagged you too. Share the love folks.

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The Sanderson Sisters

A great trilogy.

It should be a surprise to no one that I’m choosing The Lord of the Rings. I mean, favorite book, obviously favorite trilogy. Do I need to say any more?

Review: The Princess Bride

The Princess Bride by William Goldman

Genres: Action/Adventure, Fantasy, Fiction
Maturity Level: 2
View on Goodreads
Rating: ⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆

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As a boy, William Goldman claims, he loved to hear his father read the S. Morgenstern classic, The Princess Bride. But as a grown-up he discovered that the boring parts were left out of good old Dad’s recitation, and only the “good parts” reached his ears.

Now Goldman does Dad one better. He’s reconstructed the “Good Parts Version” to delight wise kids and wide-eyed grownups everywhere.

What’s it about? Fencing. Fighting. True Love. Strong Hate. Harsh Revenge. A Few Giants. Lots of Bad Men. Lots of Good Men. Five or Six Beautiful Women. Beasties Monstrous and Gentle. Some Swell Escapes and Captures. Death, Lies, Truth, Miracles, and a Little Sex.

In short, it’s about everything. 

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This is one of the very few cases where I actually enjoy the movie more than the book, which, if anything, is a testament to how fantastic the movie is, because this is easily one of the funniest books I have ever read.

Unpopular Opinions Book Tag

Because if you know me, you know that I have lots of unpopular opinions, and I really enjoy sharing them. Especially when I’m right. 😛

Saw this one on thebookcorps and I couldn’t resist tagging myself. Because I can never get enough of unpopular opinions. Also, I agreed with every single one of hers, so they can’t be THAT unpopular! Check out Laura and her blog, always a good read.

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A Popular Book or Book Series You Didn’t Like

Guys, I don’t like The Mortal Instruments. They’re stupid, and childish, and not even particularly well-written. Which is too bad, really, because I can usually get behind anything that involves the slaying of evil creatures. Also, I couldn’t get past how much I hated all the characters’ names.