A Farewell to 2008

. . . Which was a good year in many ways. Here's my summary of what new books, films, and television I found outstanding in year 2008. Of course I did many other things in 2008 besides stare at pages and a screen, but that would get too personal. Anyway, I like making lists ;)

(Note: My 'top-5's' are certainly my favorite five of the year, but not in any particular order. That'd be too hard.)

Books: 

1) The Last Unicorn: I adore this book, in case none of you had guessed already, and I've already made sure to try to pass along that love to numerous acquaintances and family members. I have loved the film since I was a child of three years old, but the book is even better. The closest thing to real magic, I think, that I have discovered this year.

2) War and Peace/Les Miserables: W&P doesn't really belong in the list, I suppose, because I started it a couple of years ago, but I finally finished it this summer. So I believe it deserves a mention. When my favorite character died and there was still a couple of hundred pages left, I wasn't sure I would be able to finish the story. It is a great credit to Tolstoy's writing powers that I was able to finish, and not only finish, but enjoy the remainder of the novel. And Les Miserables is a beautiful read. I've probably got more dog-eared pages on that book than any other in my collection besides The Lays of Beleriand. If everyone could develop characters on the page like Hugo can, the world would be a happier place.

3) The King of Elfland's Daughter: Like a bright, clear wind, invigorating and wondrous. This year has been a fantastic year for me regarding he discovering of authors I never read before, and Lord Dunsany is one of the jewels of the collection. Whenever I get discouraged by too much browsing in the fantasy section of the library, somebody always comes along to restore my faith in imaginative powers. Dunsany did the job for me this year.

4) Howl's Moving Castle/Fire and Hemlock: Okay, so these tie. Both kept me up past my bedtime reading and lost in a refreshing fantasy world. Both also worked together to make a Diana Wynne Jones fan of me, and isn't Andromanche pleased? Though I still don't understand the swimming horse at the end of F&H. Meh.

5) The Once and Future King: I think I read this for my seventeenth birthday, not my sixteenth . . . oh, whatever. I get my book timeline confused. But this book is incredible, just . . . incredible. It's got some of everything, and though in turn hilarious, biting, heart-breaking, and epic-ly glorious, it's always thought-provoking, and always just right.

HM: That Hideous Strength, The Deerslayer, The Pathfinder, Emily's Quest

Biggest Letdown: Inkdeath (Dustfinger just isn't Dustfinger!) and Mutiny on the Bounty (When there's 'mutiny' in the title, there should be a mutiny in the book. Sheesh).

Films: Ah, 2008, otherwise known as The-Year-Of-Disappointing-Films-In-Theatre. Yeah, I wasn't really impressed by many new releases this year. In fact, I think I went to the movies only . . . thrice, for Wall-E, Prince Caspian, and then when I was compelled by a friend to see The Dark Knight with her. Which, for the record, I feel is nowhere near as good as everyone says it is, and does NOT make my top-5 film list here. Ha!

1. Prince Caspian: I know this one will be controversial with Tolkien fans--I expect Laura has bones to pick with it--and I know it was different from the book. But I still really enjoyed the film, and though Barnes isn't blonde, he makes for a good Caspian. The story was well-told and the acting excellent (with the possible exception of Susan?). I am eagerly awaiting VotDT, which I have very high hopes for, considering Reepicheep, Caspian, Edmund and Lucy will be the stars.

2. Master and Commander: Far Side of the World: A surprise favorite. Of course I hated this film fiercely when it was in theatre, because it had 10 Oscar nommies when Return of the King had 11. But now that RotK is safely basking in the glory of its record sweep, I finally felt curious about the film and bought it when I saw it on sale at Target. And boy am I glad I did. It is breathtaking. Crowe's acting is excellent, but Paul Bettany really carried the film for me, as did the wondrous cinematography and music (when the music shows up, that is, which is rare).

3. Edward Scissorhands: Okay, I expected to enjoy this one. And I did. I also nearly cried, which I am embarrassed about, but oh well. It's an enchanting fairy tale, with more heart than I've observed in other Burton movies, and Depp's performance is heartbreaking. This is a film I took to HI with me :)

4. Peter Pan (2003): Another surprise. I never thought much of the theatrical poster for this film in 2003, and so I never watched it. Again, I bought it on a whim. And again, I was blown away by the film. Much truer in tone to the source material than the Disney classic is, I also loved Sumpter and Hurd-Wood's portrayals of their characters--teetering between play and seriousness. Jason Isaacs' Hook, however, was a definite highlight of the film. My only quibble is that I didn't much like the woman who played Tink.

5. Howl's Moving Castle: Yet another surprise (good grief!)! I am so not an anime person, and I had not yet read the book . . . but I really loved the film. And even after reading and liking the book, which is very different, I like the film. The animation is beautiful, but the storytelling even more so. And that soundtrack doesn't hurt, either!

Biggest Letdown: Gah, where to begin? There were so many films this year that I thought had potential when I heard about them, and which I never went to see because the trailers and reviews for the end product were so horrid. Tale of Despereaux ranks very highly here. I mean, I adore the book. Millions of people adore this book. So why change it for screen? *mutters nasty things about Hollywood people*

Television: So I don't watch much television, and therefore won't really have much of a list for you. Mostly this is television on DVD, which . . . I guess counts. But it also means that I don't watch it regularly.

1. Doctor Who (Amazing)

2. 1 Litre of Tears (Inspiring)

3. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson (Russian)

Heh, and that sums up my media absorption of 2008. As to my activities of 2009--I'm keen on reading more of Beagle and Dunsany, am terrified of the Sherlock Holmes film which is being released, and am dreading Tennant's departure from DW. Oh, and I'm taking up knitting again. I haven't knitted anything in many years, though I've sewed a good deal, but the habit is appealing to me, so I've decided to try my hand at it once more. My New Year's Resolution is to receive my first official rejection letter by a publication agency. Might as well start my collection now, eh?

Also, tomorrow I will bake lembas. I'll try to get photos for you.

And this is absolutely the longest post I've ever inflicted upon you poor readers! Well, I hope that's not a bad sign for the upcoming year . . .