I have just been to see the English language remake of The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo.

It is an excellent film.

CARE! Blasphemy Alert – It is much better than the Swedish original and Rooney Mara is better than Noomi Rapace as Lisbeth.

With the Swedish original I said that I had some gripes and minor quibbles. (See Post 5th Oct 2010). Well I only have one quibble about this version –AGAIN THERE IS NO BILLY’S PAN PIZZA!!! (At least I don’t recall seeing one).

This time the casting is perfect and they got Erika Berger right. I also think the way the story was presented/ condensed was better. In fact I will go so far as to say that the resolution of the Harriet mystery is even better than the book. (Although it is the best book ever written and beyond criticism, as an Australian I did wonder at the stamina of someone who could fly from London to Melbourne then Melbourne to somewhere in the NT and immediately turn around and fly all the way back to Stockholm and not suffer from even a tiny bit of jet lag.)

Also this film included a number of important elements that were omitted in the Swedish film. Some of these are:

• Lisbeth’s Discovery Holger Palmgren after his stroke
• The take down of Hans-Erik Wennerström is more fully fleshed out including Lisbeth installing Plaque’s electronic cuff to tap his      phone/internet line and her borrowing the money from Mikael Blomkvist to finance the takedown.
• Pernilla (Blomkvist’s daughter) is in it and, as in the book, is the one who solves the Biblical codes in Harriet’s diary
• Trinity and Bob the Dog make a brief appearance in London.

Even the ending of the movie is better (and similar to the novel) with Lisbeth getting more than a little peeved when she sees Blomkvist with Berger.

My advice – Don’t take any notice of the naysayers and intellectual snobs i.e. the “anything with sub titles must be better” critics. It is a far better film than the Swedish version – And I still give the Swedish version top marks. The opening credits alone are almost worth the admission price.

It is a long movie (about 2½ hours) but was so good that I hardly noticed the time go by. If they had immediately followed it with another 2½ hours of the Girl who Played with Fire I would have sat through that as well.

Here’s an excerpt:

A San Francisco cable car holds 60 people. This blog was viewed about 2,300 times in 2011. If it were a cable car, it would take about 38 trips to carry that many people.

Click here to see the complete report.

Please refer to my Post “Game of Thrones” 20th Sep 2011.

I am now into the 4^th book in this series, “A Feast for Crows” (30% according to my Kindle) and I am loving them.

For the uninitiated, this series has a large and fanatical following and I am well aware that the original fans may well look down their collective noses at us “Johnny-come-latelies” who have only come on board since the TV series.

But the one big advantage that we late comers have is that we can read straight through the whole 5 books that have been published so far. (This is what I am doing). The most recently published book is No 5 with 2 more to go.

The first book (Game of Thrones) was published in 1996 and diehard fans have had to wait (sometimes a little impatiently going by forum comments) for each book to appear; Every 2 years for the first three and then 5 years for the fourth and a bit longer for the fifth.

I promise , when I finish Book 5, I will try really hard not to become one of the people who complain about the delays but I am not at all certain if I will be able to honour my undertaking.

I won’t be giving away any spoilers. Read the books for yourselves, it is worth the effort (and they do require some effort to keep up with all of the characters and locations etc.). But as I said in my previous post, there are any number of web sites and Wikis to help.

I just want to say a bit more about my original assessment of a couple of the characters. My misgivings about Catelyn Stark have been confirmed. On the other hand I now like Sansa. Clearly the Stark side of her is starting to take over from her Tully inheritance.

Tyrion (The Imp) goes from strength to strength in my opinion as does Arya. Although, if you ever find yourself strolling through the 7 Kingdoms, or the places across the Narrow Sea, and you happen to run across Arya, don’t upset or provoke her. You will be sorry if you do.

It is a “no brainer” to reveal that Queen Cersei still tops my hate list. On the other hand my attitude towards The King Slayer (Jamie Lannister) and The Hound (Sandor Clegane) has softened.

I can’t say much more without giving something away apart from a general warning not to get too attached to any character. There is plenty of killing and dying.

I “read “the first 3 books on Audible but had to change to the Kindle edition for the fourth. There is an Audible version but it is not available to Australians. However I am not overly concerned as Audible changed the reader for Book 4 and there are a lot of complaints about this reader. Thankfully the original reader (the excellent Roy Dotrice) returns for Book 5 and this Audible version is available to Australians.

The main reason I slightly prefer the Audible version is that you can listen while doing things like driving, house work, lawn mowing or exercising. (They are long books). Nevertheless, I am enjoying reading Book 4 on my Kindle. The one big advantage of the Kindle versions is the price. About $10 for each book or $25-49 for the first 4. (You save almost half the cost of the cheapest Kindle with the 4 book deal as opposed to buying the paperbacks).

My rating for all of the books that I have read so far remains at 10 out of 10.

How should it all end? Well here is my (very) humble opinion.

Dany should regain the Iron throne. I think she would be a strong but fair ruler. Her “Hand” should definitely be The Imp. He has proven himself in battle and he is not only very wise and street smart, but because of all that has happened to him he will be a good and fair “Hand” who will be kind to the common people. (The brothels in the 7 Kingdoms could expect a boom period with Tyrion as “Hand.)” More importantly, they would both quickly recognise the threat from the north and provide full support to the Night’s Watch as well as bringing all of the factions into line to face the common enemy.

Cersei to die a terrible and prolonged death (naturally).

Arya – I can’t make up my mind as how it should end for Arya apart from the fact that I might stop reading the books if she is killed. Perhaps she could take over as Lord (Lady?) of Winterfell and go to Jon Snow’s aid when the White Walkers topple the wall and invade. She and Jon Snow would of course defeat the Whites and become hero and heroine of the 7 Kingdoms. She would also formally recognise her half-brother Jon Snow as a Stark.

As for all the others, I wouldn’t care to guess.

Nah! Forget it. I’ll leave it to GRR Martin but please don’t kill Arya and please don’t leave it all unanswered like “Lost”!.

Refer my post “Kindle Review” 31^st Jul 2011. When the new Kindles were recently announced, I thought that, once again, I had bought a product only to see it superseded within weeks by a better and cheaper model.

In particular I was looking at the cheapest version at USD$79. However after taking a closer look at the various models, there is one feature that I use on mine that is not on the $79 model. The model I have (now called the Kindle Keyboard – Wi-Fi) has speakers to provide for text to speech and, more importantly for me, to listen to Audible books.

Nevertheless, the $79 model is excellent value for anyone wishing to venture into the realm of E Book readers.

These are the features (apart from price) where the $79 model differs from my model

Wi-Fi  – The $79 model is Wi-Fi only. There is no choice of 3g. In my case I chose the Wi-Fi only model as I have Wi Fi at home plus a mobile Wi-Fi router. Also remember if you have an iPhone (or similar) they usually come with tethering / or the ability to share the internet package via a Wi Fi “personal hotspot” which acts just like the mobile Wi-Fi router. Failing all this you can always go to McDonalds or the increasing number of other places that have free Wi-Fi.

Keyboard – There is no physical keyboard. It has a “virtual keyboard” that is similar to many other appliances like a TV or the X Box / PS3 where you navigate to each letter and press enter. This may be a bit tedious but, apart from the initial set up, you rarely need the keyboard particularly if you use your computer to search for your books. Actually buying a book on the Kindle is no different as it is just a one (Buy) button click.

Battery – The battery “only” lasts for 1 month as against 2 months on my model. Big Deal!!

Capacity – The $79 model will hold about 1400 books which is about half the capacity of mine. However this is a non-issue. 1400 is a large number and, in any case, if you ever fill it up, your books still remain available on the free storage provided by Amazon. Therefore you can delete old books in the knowledge that they can be re-downloaded any number of times.

Sound / Speakers  – The $79 model does not have speakers or a headphone jack. This would only be important if you need “Text to Speech” or want to listen to Audible Books.

Ads – It does have ads but they are not intrusive and only appear on the home page / screen saver. I have read that people actually like the ads because many are from Amazon advertising special deals. In my case I paid extra for the “No Ads” model but I am sorry that I did. Apparently, if you decide later that you don’t want the ads, you can pay $30 to have them removed.

Size – Because it has no Keyboard, the overall size is smaller but the screen size is the same.

Weight – It weighs about 30% less that other versions. Mine is very light so this one would be even easier to hold.

Conclusion – The $79 Kindle is an excellent device and the price is more than reasonable. Even though it does not have sound, this would not be important for most people. If I did not already own a Kindle, I would probably get this model as I mostly listen to my Audible books on my iPod Touch. There are now also Kindles with touch screens but at $79 dollars it is hard to go past this model.

A Game of Thrones is the first book in the series A Song of Ice and Fire. The TV program based on the first book has just finished on Showtime and it was so good that I had to get the book. I finished “reading” my Audible copy of this book today.

I am hooked.

I can’t wait for series 2 of the TV program so I am downloading the second book “A Clash of Kings” as I write this. (Note – These are BIG books and on Audible they come in two separate download volumes.)

I do have ‘form’ when it comes to book series. I read (listened to) all of the Aubrey / Maturin series – 21 books in all including the final one that stops in mid book when the author died. Then there are the trilogies – “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” and lately “The Hunger Games”.

If this first book is anything to go by, it will be a great series. There are sword fights, wars, political intrigue, clashes between great families with murder and mayhem, not to mention plenty of drinking, whoring and general debauchery. What more could you want. Well, if you want more, how about sorcery, dragons, incest, and really bad people. And, if you are still not satisfied, there are ZOMBIES!!!

But beware, the book abounds with literally hundreds of characters and I am not ashamed to say that I am having trouble remembering them all. When I read “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” I had to go to Wikipedia to make sense of all of the Vangers and the myriad of funny sounding Swedish names. Likewise, I have had to go to the various on line sites for Game of Thrones.

This is the link to the HBO site http://www.hbo.com/game-of-thrones/index.html . It has some very good information about the TV show that also helps with the first book. If you download and print the “Viewer’s Guide” you will get a map of Westeros plus details of the various Houses / Families. I found this most helpful.

Wikipedia has pages and pages on both the books and the TV series. However, be careful with Wikipedia as storylines are revealed on most of the pages.

This is a good page to read to get some perspective on the series but do not read past “Back Story”. If you go any further there are many details about the plots of all of the books. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Song_of_Ice_and_Fire

This page has full details about the characters but, once again, there is information about their fate http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_characters_in_Game_of_Thrones

This page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Game_of_Thrones contains full details of the plot of the first book. However it does contain some very helpful information about the writing style. I have copied the following from this page. I got to know the “Viewpoint Characters” first and then built my understanding of the other characters from them.

From Wikipedia – Viewpoint Characters –

Each chapter concentrates on the third person limited point of view of a single character; the book presents the perspective of eight main characters. Additionally, a minor character provides the prologue. Chapter headings indicate the perspective.

· Prologue: Will, a man of the Night’s Watch.

· Lord Eddard Stark, Warden of the North and Lord of Winterfell, Hand of the King.

· Lady Catelyn Stark, of House Tully, wife of Eddard Stark.

· Sansa Stark, elder daughter of Eddard and Catelyn Stark.

· Arya Stark, younger daughter of Eddard and Catelyn Stark.

· Bran Stark, eight year old son of Eddard and Catelyn Stark.

· Jon Snow, bastard son of Eddard Stark.

· Tyrion Lannister, a dwarf, brother of Queen Cersei and her twin Jaime, son of Lord Tywin Lannister.

· Princess Daenerys Targaryen, Stormborn, the Princess of Dragonstone and heiress to the Targaryen throne after her older brother Viserys Targaryen.

For once, Australians have a choice of formats:

· The Kindle version is the cheapest at $7-60 (OR the first 4 books in the series for $26)

· The paperback is available everywhere for around $20

· Audible comes in 2 parts at USD$7-49 for each part = USD $14-90.

I got the Audible versions of the first 2 books so that I can listen while doing other things. (They are long books – over 800 pages each.)

I am not going to do any reviews as there are more than enough on line. I will just say that if you like these sort of stories don’t miss either the books or the TV show (The TV show is on the Showtime channel on Austar and Foxtel – they are sure to repeat it). The TV version is excellent and as good as the books. I would buy the DVD but who knows when it will be released on DVD in Australia.

Instead of a review, I will give my opinion of some of the characters. CARE SPOILERS - Don’t read on if you haven’t seen the TV series or read the first book.

Biggest Baddies

Lannisters (except Tyrion) – particularly Queen Cersei and Jaime Lannister and that little mongrel Joffrey. What a pack of evil degenerates.

Varys (The Eunuch) – A creepy scheming troublemaker.

Lord Petyr Baelish (Littlefinger) – A debauched creepy scheming troublemaker

Viserys Targaryen – What a bastard he is to his sister Daenerys Targaryen (Dany)

Other baddies

Robin Arryn – Still being breastfed despite being 9 or 10 years old, and he is a little psychopath who enjoys seeing people killed.

Not So Good

Sansa Stark – She might have come to her senses by the end of the book but no amount of being sorry will undo what has happened. She is an airhead who, as the oldest Stark daughter, should have known better.

Catelyn Stark – She is generally OK but I don’t like her for the way she is cruel to Jon Snow just because he is a bastard. Also she misjudged and falsely accused Tyrion Lannister when even I could see that the other Lannisters were trying to set him up with the attempted murder of Bran Stark.

King Robert – He wants all the trappings of King but puts all of the hard work on Eddard and cannot see what a bitch his wife is let alone what a little mongrel Joffrey is. Also he cannot see that his children (including his “heir” Joffrey) are really the offspring of the incestuous relationship between his wife and her twin brother Jaime Lannister. King Robert might be all “drink and be merry” but he is poison to the Starks.

Septa Mordane – She was always picking on Arya trying to “improve” her. But I suppose she was only doing her job. She ended up with her head on a spike compliments of Joffrey so I forgive her.

Best

The rest of the Starks – Eddard, Robb, Bran and Jon Snow but especially Arya Stark. She is only a young girl but she is honest and brave. Also she immediately saw right through Joffrey when her silly older sister Sansa was swooning over him. I hope she sticks that little mongrel Joffrey with “Needle” (her sword).

Tyrion Lannister – He might be a dwarf and a Lannister who spends most of his time whoring and drinking but you can see that, under the skin, he is a good person. And who would not want to spend their lives whoring and drinking – it is every bloke’s dream.

Sir Jorah Mormont – for the way he looks after Daenerys Targaryen.

Khal Drogo – No particular reason – He is just a “cool dude”. Also he kills Viserys Targaryen by pouring molten gold over his head.

Don’t Know

Daenerys Targaryen (Dany) – She is good and brave now but with 3 dragons and a horde of Dothraki horsemen under her command, (plus the little matter of the crown being stolen from her family) – watch out Kings Landing.

The Thing I most want to know

Did the sword master hired by Eddard to teach Arya how to use “Needle” escape or was he killed. He had killed or maimed all but of one of the guards who came to capture Arya and we only hear the fight still going on while Arya makes good her escape.

OK I gave in and looked it up on Wikipedia – The author has so far left this hanging. (Apparently a whole lot of people want an answer to this.)

Conclusion

I give both the first book and the TV series 10 out of 10.

With the Australian dollar currently worth more than the US dollar, now is the time to buy stuff from the U.S.

I have had an Amazon account for some time and have always been interested in their eBook reader, the Kindle, so I bought one.

The process is simple. First set up an Amazon Account. You need to give them a credit card number but Amazon is a reputable major US company and giving them your Credit Card details is as safe as these things can be. Far safer than handing your card over to say a waiter at a restaurant which is something we do regularly without thinking too much about it.

Amazon also owns Audible and the UK government is currently considering the proposed acquisition by Amazon of “The Book Depository”. Amazon and Audible have my Credit card details but I use PayPal for “The Book Depository”.

After the account is set up, log in and you can then buy a Kindle direct from Amazon if you wish. CARE!!! – If you want a wall charger make sure to get both on the same order to save on postage.

I selected the Wi-Fi only model without ads for $139. There is a cheaper option at $114 that has adds on the screen saver. A model is also available with 3G Wireless Internet access if you want to be able to buy books anywhere at any time. However, I have a Wi-Fi network at home and a Telstra Prepaid Mobile Wi-Fi router so I don’t need to pay extra for 3G. If you have an iPhone with Telstra (and other carriers I assume) you can set it up as a Wi-Fi router and connect your Kindle to the internet via iPhone.

After I ordered it, I was astounded when it turned up just a few days later. I don’t know how they did it but the package said that it was posted from 1850 Mercer Road, Lexington KY USA.

It is ready to go when you get it. Apart from charging it and inputting the WPA password to get on your home Wi-Fi network, there is nothing else to do as it is already registered to the Amazon Account from which it was ordered. You have full control over the device via your Amazon Account so you can change registration and account details if necessary.

It comes with a USB cable to charge from a computer but you do not need a computer to operate it. I purchased the wall charger (optional extra) so mine has never been hooked up to a computer.

Buying books could not be simpler. Providing you are on the internet via any 3G or Wi-Fi network, you go to the Kindle Store link on the Kindle, browse and select a book and click on buy and within seconds it downloads and you can start reading.

Alternatively, can also log into the Amazon site on a computer and buy Kindle books there and they will automatically download onto your Kindle. However, I have never used this option but I do sometimes browse on the computer but, after I have made a selection, I go back to the Kindle to buy it.

There are two important matters that need to be addressed.

FIRST – THE BAD NEWS – This is the lack of available books to Australian Account Holders. As is the case with Audible, there are thousands upon thousands of books available both old and new in the Kindle format until, that is, you log in with your Australian Account. This is not the fault of Amazon or Audible. It is however the fault of Australian Publishers. Yes, the exact same bright sparks who moan and groan and complain about falling sales and closing book shops apparently don’t seem to realise they have a growing number of people with money in their hands wanting to buy their product. But for reasons known only to them, they have decided that they don’t like the colour of our money or something. It beats me but because of this I have no sympathy at all for them. If my money is not good enough they can go to hell. I will now only buy from Audible and Kindle and, if not available from these sources, I will buy paper books from The Book Depository in the UK (or Amazon in the US but The Book Depository is cheaper and they only take about 2 to 3 weeks to get here).

SECOND – THE GOOD NEWS – In general you can have up to 6 devices (Kindle, iPad, iPod Touch, iPhone etc.) connected to one Amazon Account. (Sometimes it is less depending on individual publications. In this case you are told of the limit). This means that you only need to buy a book once for up to six devices to be able to share it.

This is always the first question I get asked about the Kindle. Most families buy one book and share it around various family members. The following is copied from the Amazon Web Site http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_kip_faq_num?nodeId=200298470&#howmany

How many Kindles can I use to access titles in my library?

Most books and other non-subscription items you purchase from the Kindle store may be simultaneously accessed for your personal use on up to six Kindles (or Kindle compatible devices, such as Kindle for iPhone) registered to your Amazon.com account. If the limit is less than six kindles for a specific title, you’ll see the message "Simultaneous Device usage: Up to X simultaneous devices, per publisher limits" on the detail page.

If you reach the device limit and wish to replace one of your current devices with a new one, you must first deregister and delete the content from the device you wish to replace before you can access the content in question from your new device. For device registration instructions, please see the Help page for the device you wish to register/deregister on the Kindle Support pages. There is no limit on the number of times a title can be downloaded to a registered device.

Subscription content can only be downloaded to one Kindle at a time and cannot be accessed from Kindle for iPhone.

Therefore if you want to share books, you have the option to buy more than one Kindle or if you have an iPad, iPhone, iPod touch etc. you can register these devices.

However you may want to seriously consider the multiple Kindle option as it is the perfect device on which to read books. The Kindle basically does one thing but it does that one thing faultlessly.

Here is a summary of my review:

· The Kindle behaves a lot like a paper book. You turn pages with back / forward buttons and use bookmarks. It is not backlit. Consequently, you need a light to read by, but by the same token this means that there is no trouble using it in bright sunlight – just like a book.

· Because of the technology it uses (no back light for the screen), the battery lasts for weeks if not months. You are given plenty of warning when the battery is getting low. To re-charge, either plug into a computer or the wall socket (with the optional extra cord). I have had mine for 2 months and I have only fully depleted the battery once but, even then, I ran an Audio Book through the speakers for days to run it down.

· Mine has 3 GB of memory so that it will hold thousands of books (depending on size). When (and if) you fill up your Kindle, you can delete content but it always remains available on your Amazon Account Archive to be downloaded again at any time (much like Audible).

· The Kindle weighs less than a book and you don’t have to hold it open like you do with a book.

· The prices of individual books vary but all are significantly less that paper books. To give you some idea, here a couple of examples – More Recent Books – Harry Bosch (Michael Connelly) novels – The Overlook (published 2007) $7.59 – – 9 Dragons Published 2009 $8.42 — Jack Reacher (Lee Child) “Worth Dying For” Published 2010 $9.12– Dan Brown “The Lost Symbol” $8.63

      Older books can be really cheap but my 2 most recent purchases were:

• Zero Day (Mark Russinovich) $11.99
• The End of the Wasp Season (Denise Mina) $9-99

· Dictionary – There are any number of very handy features that the Kindle provides but one of the best is the Dictionary function. If you come across a word you don’t know, you just put the cursor before it and a definition appears at the bottom. In the book “The End of the Wasp Season” which is about a Scottish detective, the word “oxter” came up. I had no idea what it meant but with the Kindle Dictionary function I just scrolled the cursor down to the beginning of this word and the following definition appeared at the bottom of the page - “oxter” – Scottish – N English – A person’s Armpit”

· Find Function – When I wanted to find “oxter” in the book to write this blog, I used the Find / Search function and found it immediately. Try doing that with a paper book!

· One feature that I have found that I need is “Bookmarks.” Just like a paper book you can turn down the top corner of a page as a “bookmark” and you find this place again from the Menu / View Notes and Marks. When you leave your Kindle it remembers the last page that you were on but I have found that with my clumsy hands I frequently accidentally press the page back / forward buttons thus losing my place. So I have trained myself to add a bookmark (as I would have to do with a paper book).

· Print / page Size. It is fully adjustable and you can make the print bigger or smaller with plenty of settings that will satisfy all tastes including type size, words per line and whether you want it to be vertical or horizontal. There is also a “Text to Speech” function that I have not yet tried. (I tried it just now – It is typical Computer type speech – I’ll stick with Audible).

· The Kindle store has publications other than books. Newspapers, magazines etc. are available and every time I look the list grows longer. Magazines and Newspapers might be better on an iPad but at least this is an option. I have heard that in the U.S., text books are now being made available on Kindle and this seems to me to be a great idea. Not only should this make text books much cheaper, but it would also reduce the bulk of printed books that students need to carry around these days.

· There are plenty of other functions that I won’t go into here but, after you make a couple of purchases, Kindle makes suggestions for similar books you might like and you can download your Audible Audio Books and listen to them via the Kindle’s speakers (or headphones).

· Each Kindle comes with a private Kindle Email address that you can use to download your own content onto it via an attachment to an Email (that you send to your Kindle Email). Many formats are acceptable including Word Documents, PDF and JPG pictures and more. See http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200505520&#email

COMPLAINTS

I am genuine when I say this but I can’t think of anything to complain about (apart from the content issue for Australians but this is not the fault of Amazon / Kindle).

However I will mention a couple of things that you should be aware of:

1. Impulse buying – If ever there was a device designed to encourage impulse buying it is the Kindle. It is just so easy, quick and cheap to buy books. One of the books mentioned above (The End of the Wasp Season) was an impulse buy. I was listening to our local talk radio (4BC Brisbane) and every Friday they have a lady who reviews books. She highly recommended this one and I went to my Kindle and before I knew it I had clicked “Buy”. (Yes – It was a good book and I enjoyed it but I will have to exercise a bit of self-control in future).

2. Bookmarks – As mentioned above, I have had to train myself to always add a book mark to my last page as I have a terrible habit of accidently clicking the Forward / Back buttons when I put it down after I finish reading. I am trained now but when I first got it, I had to leaf back to find my place on many an occasion (just like when you lose your place on a regular book).

SUMMARY

I know a lot of people will baulk at paying for a Kindle but with the average cost of a Kindle book at about half of the retail price of a paperback book at the large chain stores like Big W or K Mart it would not take all that long to recover the purchase price.

The issue of available content for Australians cannot be overlooked but one would hope that Australian publishers will eventually wake up to the fact that they have a growing number of eBook readers with money to spend. Also remember that Big W and K Mart do have some limitations on the range they carry and if you are forced to go to a book store to find what you want then prices are higher again.

On the other hand a Kindle is better than a book. It is light and easy to use with heaps of handy functions. Buying books at any time day or night is cheap and simple (as long as you have an internet connection). Moreover, you can carry around thousands of books on a small light device.

For me it is a “no brainer”

Now I must get back to reading “Zero Day” (by Mark Russinovich). Although I am not sure that I ever should have started reading it. This is from the Amazon Description:-

The horror of cyberterrorism explodes on the page in Russinovich’s first novel. A plane over the Atlantic suddenly needs to reboot its computer to stay in the air, and the pilots barely avert disaster. A hospital network mixes up patient information, resulting in the death of several people. A law firm, which has lost all of its clients’ data and can’t get its system running again…,

“So what” – I hear you say – “It is just another work of fiction”.

Maybe – but look at who the author is – See Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Russinovich

If ever there was a bloke who knew what he was talking about it is him! I think I will sell all my computers and anything using a computer to operate (there goes my new car), stop flying in planes, going to hospitals and even shopping at Woolworths (their systems are fully computerised – my milk might get mixed up with the rat poison) and go and live in a tent in the bush somewhere.

I am writing this for people who have seen the movie and have questions about the plot but have not been able to obtain the book.

I could not find this book in any local bookshop so I had to purchase a copy from The Book Depository in the UK. It is on Audible until, that is, you log in with your Australian log in details. I can only conclude that this is yet another book that Australian publishers hold the rights to but are withholding from sale.

No doubt I am not the only person who has seen the movie but was a little puzzled by some aspects of the story.

As stated in the previous post, I consider Winter’s Bone to be one of the best movies I have seen so I was keen to read the book.

It is also an excellent book and, as is usually the case, the book provides considerably more background information.

Before I begin I have to say that the movie follows the book very closely, almost word for word, although there a few differences.

The three most noticeable differences are:-

1. The book is much colder – there is snow and ice everywhere. Even though the movie conveys that the weather is cold, it was nowhere as cold as in the book;

2. The movie does not depict nearly as clearly the distances that Ree has to walk in her quest to find her missing father. She walks for miles and miles until her friend Gail is able to get hold of a vehicle; and

3. The youngest sibling is a boy in the book as opposed to a girl in the movie.

The movie adds the “Cattle Sale” and “Army Recruitment Interview” scenes and the book has extra things not in the movie but overall both are very close to each other.

The biggest misunderstanding that I made with the movie was with names. I thought “Milton” was a surname. It is not. Blond Milton, Thump Milton etc. are all Dollys with the common Christian name of Milton. The book reveals that it has been a long standing multi-generational clan custom to use a small number of Christian names to confuse law enforcement. The individuals are identified by the nicknames – e.g. “Blond” Milton etc. (Pages 61 & 62 of my book)

The Ree of the book is cruder and less attractive that the Ree portrayed in the movie. For example “Book” Ree uses (and teaches her brothers to use) a disgusting method of nose blowing without the use of a handkerchief.

Moreover, she smokes marijuana more regularly. She and Gail are both high on dope while Gail drives around with her and baby Ned in the vehicle.

Nevertheless, just as in the movie, her underlying good character still shines through in the book , possibly more so given that “Book Ree” is even more “disadvantaged”. She is still opposed to all things involving Meth Amphetamine as she clearly sees the devastation that this is causing in her community and family.

She fights against this all the way including objecting to the use of one of the common Christian names for her brothers. She figures that following this custom is the first step into a life “outside square law”. She does not get her way with the older boy “Sonny” whose real name is Jessup (one of the common names) but wins with the youngest who is called Harold. (Page 62)

Her basic decency is summarised by her motive behind staying with her family and bringing up her brothers: “Ree’s grand hope was that these boys would not be dead to wonder by age twelve, dulled to life, empty of kindness ….” (page 8 )

In the movie I constantly wondered why everyone was so mean to Ree. The Book clarifies that she is being shunned by the clan as the daughter of snitch. Everyone (except Ree that is) either knows or strongly suspects what has happened to her father Jessup and the reason why.

Another significant revelation in the book is that the Mother “Mom” (nee Bromont) has been promiscuous during the lengthy periods that Ree’s father has spent in jail over the years.

The reader finds out that Blond Milton is the father of Sonny (Page 43) and it seems that the youngest brother has also not been fathered by Ree’s father. Although it is not made clear who Harold’s father is. Sonny is “seed from a brute” but Harold is much softer suggesting that he is not a Dolly. (Pages 7&8)

This then clears up the reason for the “She / He don’t shine for them” comment when discussing with Gail possible placements for the children if the house is lost. Blond Milton and his wife Sonya will take Sonny because he is Blond Milton’s son but they don’t want the other sibling who may not even be a Dolly.

In the movie Ree adopts a very antagonistic attitude towards Little Arthur. The book explains why. He drugged and raped her when she was younger. (Page 55)

There is also background on why she is so distrustful of the Sherriff. The book reveals that he has a much closer association with her extended family than indicated in the movie.

The relationship with Gail is fleshed out more fully and we learn why Gail seems to be around a lot in the movie. She leaves her unfaithful husband and lives with Ree for a period of time.

Gail is in fact a real friend and she cleans up Ree after the bashing by Merab and her sisters which is far more brutal in the book. Ree literally gets the “crap” bashed out of her and it is Gail who washes her and disposes of the “soiled” clothes while the other women do little or nothing to help.

The book also gives insight into why Ree is so motivated to keep the house. Not only does she find the idea of the criminal Dollys gaining custody of the younger children repulsive, but the property, including old growth timber, has been in her mother’s family for generations. The Bromont family has suffered many hardships to hold on to it and I got the impression that Ree does not want to be the one who oversees its loss.

There is one final part in the book that I wish would have been included in the movie. As in the movie, when Ree is un-expectedly given the money by the Bail Bondsman, he conveys his admiration for her bravery and fortitude. However in the book he also offers her a job. This is not only because she did the impossible in resolving the matter with her father’s bail, but also because her knowledge of members of the Dolly clan (clearly some of his best customers) would be invaluable for his business. ‘You’d be like gold to me” he says. (page 192)

This is an excellent book and appreciation of the movie is greatly enhanced by reading it.

I hope author writes more about Ree Dolly.

Just to let everyone know – I ordered the book from The Book Depository in the UK on 20^th May 2011. The cost was AUD$13 which was in line with the recommended retail price (The recommended retail price is USD $14 which is currently about AUD$13.)

Yes that is right $13 – well actually it was AUD$12.89 including standard shipping and it arrived 21 days (3 weeks) later on 9th June. If I had opted to pay more for shipping it could have been received much faster.

On previous occasions when I have ordered books from overseas through a local book shop there has been a substantial mark up over the recommended price and with delivery times of 5 to 6 weeks.

I am gradually working my way through them. The King’s Speech is very good but would not have been my pick for Best Picture. Black Swan was excellent, although the story was a bit weird. I had to check it on Wikipedia to see that I had understood the plot. I had. The scenes where she tears at her fingernail quicks made my blood run cold.

Inception was good and I really liked The Social Network.

I will hire The Fighter next. It looks good.

However my clear favourite is Winter’s Bone.

What a great movie, but be warned, if you are into over the top action, car chases or soppy sentimentality it is not for you. However if you like good acting and a compelling story delivered in a realistic if somewhat understated way, then it might be what you are looking for.

There are plenty of full reviews on line so I won’t go into any details but essentially it is the “coming of age” story of a teenage girl. Despite being at the lower end of society, surrounded and overwhelmed by an extended family involved in the illegal manufacture of Methamphetamine, she overcomes significant obstacles to keep her family together.

Because it is such a positive portrayal of a teenage girl, I thought that my friend Narelle might like it (See Narelle’s Blog http://narelle60.wordpress.com/ ). She has two teenage girls the same age as the main character, Ree Dolly.

Well I was mistaken. According to Narelle, it was boring.

I don’t think so but who am I to dare to argue.

Granted, it does not have some sexy back woods Elly-May, in short shorts involved in high speed car chases and over the top gun fights while outrunning slow witted cops to deliver her daddy’s “moonshine” to some Brad Pitt type. There is no soppy sentimentality. It does not end with Oprah flying to the rescue by helicopter and putting her on TV and giving her a new house and car.

At the end of the film, she does have some wins but life goes on.

It is all very matter of fact and realistic but it does require some degree of empathy for Ree.

On the other hand she is no Disney fairy princess. She is far from perfect. Whilst she has no tolerance for the devastation that illegal drug manufacturing has brought upon her extended family, she will not break the code of silence that protects this activity. Then again she would not be around long if she did. She also has a distrust of local law enforcement.

On top of that, like most teenagers she has a bit of a smart mouth and, unwisely, lets her temper get the better of her on occasions.

If you do decide to rent the DVD, I suggest that you turn on the English sub titles. This way you will not miss some of the dialogue, which is delivered quickly and quietly in the local dialect.

For example – Her Uncle Teardrop telling his wife to shut up:

I said shut up once already with my mouth.

The inference clearly being that any subsequent warnings won’t be delivered verbally.

Ree also lets her mouth run away unwisely. Even though she loathes the illegal pursuits of her extended family and does everything to protect her younger brother and sister from them, in an act of bravado she boasts to the Bail Bondsman that:

I’m a Dolly, bred’n buttered

Then after her respectful request to ask the family patriarch about the whereabouts of her father is denied by his wife she loses her temper and blurts out:

So, I guess come the nut-cutting, blood don’t really mean shit to the big man. Am I understanding that right?

“Nut cutting” means exactly what you think but translates roughly to – “when push comes to shove the much vaunted family solidarity means nothing to your husband ….. especially if there is any small risk at all to the meth trade and even if I lose my house”.

Needless to say Ree ends up paying dearly for this little outburst.

There are a couple of other things that I like about the film. First up it has a very reasonable approach to firearms. As a gun owner I am more than tired of the misrepresentation of this subject in the main stream media. Ree is shown responsibly teaching her 10 year old brother and 6/7 year old sister how to use firearms with particular and stern warnings about safety.

The second is the portrayal of the army recruiter. Up to this point in the film, he is the only male character to show her any sympathy and in fact gives her some sound advice. Too often military recruiters are shown as modern day press gangs.

But all of this clearly does not make any impression on Narelle’s unsympathetic and hard heart. I thought it was anything but boring but what do I know?

On the other hand, I now know one thing for sure. I will have to be careful if I ever visit Narelle in the future. Say if I fell down her back stairs and broke my leg I can’t count on any sympathy or help. She would probably just set the dog on to me.

This came about when Big M finally decided to buy a new laptop for his missus (PM). I do not know whether his decision came about because he was overwhelmed by love and affection for his good wife, or if it was because PM issued a directive. Either way, it is not a matter on which I feel I should comment. (Although, I have a fair idea what the answer would be).

On the other hand, PM has been asking for a long time for a laptop. So one thing I can confidently state is that the current very low prices for laptops would definitely have been more than a minor factor in bringing to a conclusion BigM’s lengthy, if not tardy, decision making process in this matter.

As I seem to have become the “computer expert” for some of my acquaintances, I went along to act as advisor. In this case, being an “expert” simply means that I know a bit more than nothing about computers.

Before this, I had been thinking about buying one of the new iPads but every time I asked at a retailer, the answer has been that they are “temporarily out of stock”. Since I was at an electronics shop, I decided to ask if they had any of the new iPads – expecting the usual out of stock response.

When BigM had finished beating the unfortunate salesman into the ground over price, I thought I would add to his misery by indicating, in a somewhat condescending manner, that I would buy an iPad if only they had the model I wanted.

I nearly fell over when he replied with a bright smile that yes, they did have one last 32 GB Wi-Fi model “out the back”. As I had painted myself into a corner, I could not back out and, as a result, became the proud owner of a new black iPad 2.

I have had it for a few days now and during that time it has been well and truly put through its paces. Since Apple seems to always get very good reviews from most sections of the mainstream media, I thought that, now that I have used it for a few days, I would write a review and give my honest opinion of it.

So here is my honest opinion.

First up I will get this out of the way – like all Apple products it is attractive and well-made if a little on the expensive side. (It cost about the same as PM’s new Core i5 laptop.)

Also I decided to get the Wi-Fi only model as I already own a Prepaid Mobile Wi-Fi router from Telstra and I did not want to pay the ongoing monthly cost of a data plan for the models with 3G. This way I only pay for 3G data access as and when I need it. Also the Telstra Pre-paid Mobile Wi-Fi router can be used to attach up to 5 devices to the internet and the price for the standard model has recently been reduced to AUD $99 including 5GB of data for 90 days . I find that Wi-Fi is available most of the time and, on the occasions when it is not (when I am travelling), the Telstra Prepaid Mobile Wi-Fi router is perfect for my needs as I can connect my laptop, iPod Touch and now my iPad.

I went for the 32GB model as I have the same capacity iPod Touch and this has been adequate for me. If you think that you might want to store a lot of movies and a huge music collection, the 64GB model may be required. However for most of the people I know (all “old farts”) the 32GB model or even the 16GB model will be enough.

SET UP

It is easy to set up. Like all iPods, it needs iTunes on a computer and you just attach to iTunes via your computer and follow the instructions.

Here I should state that if you are not familiar with iTunes and more importantly, how an iPhone, iPod Touch or an iPad work, there is some learning to do. Older people in particular will need help. You could ask a family member or, better still, go to the Apple site and download the manual. Also Google “how to use an iPad” and watch a few of the many YouTube videos (some are quite good).

Remember, with these devices the golden rule is – “If in doubt tap the screen” if you are stuck.

It comes with a USB lead and a wall power charger but no ear buds. At first I thought that this was a bit poor. However, I have since found that it has speakers and I have not used ear buds with it yet. So this is no problem.

WEIGHT

One thing that was immediately apparent (and still is) is that it is heavier than I expected. It is much heavier than a book and you cannot hold it for more than a short time before looking for something to rest it on. When I read with it in bed at night I have to rest it on my ample stomach (or a pillow).

MISSING ICONS

A couple of the permanent icons that are on the iPod Touch are not on the iPad. I like and use the Clock and Stocks icons on the iPod Touch and I miss them on the iPad. I found a free Bloomberg App as a substitute for the Stocks (Shares) icon but it is not as good. I am still looking for a free “clock” one.

GENERAL OPERATIONS

It is fast and responsive and better than my iPod Touch. Because it has a large screen it is great for reading and sending emails and surfing the web. In this regard I am very impressed with how it operates.

I bought the iPad app for my local newspaper and it is very good for this type of thing (magazines and newspapers). The best part is that the newspaper comes in automatically over the net and is updated throughout the day. There is nothing better than waking in the morning and being able to read the paper without having to get out of bed and go outside to retrieve it from the wet grass, or go to the newsagent to buy one.

USE IN SUNLIGHT

One of the reasons that I did not buy the first iPad was that every review I read said that it was unusable outside in bright sunlight. This IS NOT THE CASE. I have just had it outside in bright sunlight and I had no problems using it and reading my local newspaper app. I was able to see the screen well enough to surf the net without any difficulty. Granted, it was not ideal and all of the finger prints on the screen are very noticeable, but it can be used in sunlight. You could lie in the sun and read a book on it. It is far better that my MacBook which is all but unusable in bright sunlight.

PRINTING

There is an App to print documents but it only works with some HP printers. My Canon printer will not work. But there is an App to print photos on my Canon Printer.

I should have said at the outset that it is not meant to be a computer and this is one of the differences.

I explain how to print things later on under “File System”.

VIRTUAL KEYBOARD

I have had no trouble at all with the virtual keyboard even with my big clumsy fingers. If you keep an open mind about it, you will quickly get used to it. Ask a younger person if you can’t find that ampersand.

FILE SYSTEM

It is not a computer and does not have a folder/file system – i.e. no My Documents etc.

Like any iPod, iTunes is used to control what is on it.

I have purchased the “Pages” App for $`12 (Pages is the Apple version of MS Word). Pages keeps a copy of any document you make on the iPad. You can then choose to send it to your computer via iTunes and/ or forward it via Email to print it or save it in the normal way.

BANKING

Banking is great on it – BUT you can’t print out statements or BPay receipts etc..

EMAILS

I have set it up for my Email accounts from Bigpond, Gmail, Yahoo and Hotmail as well as my own domain and it is great to use it to read and reply to Emails. By default it leaves the POP Emails on the provider’s server so they also download on your computer when you open Outlook (or whatever Email program you use).

However you cannot view .wmv movie attachments in Emails and I had to buy the “WMV Player” App for this. The cost was $3-00 which is not much I suppose except that it expands the video up to the size of the screen which makes the videos a bit fuzzy. I will keep looking for something better.

WINDOWS LIVE SKY DRIVE

This is a great free service from Microsoft that provides 25GB of storage. I use it all of the time. You can sign in to SkyDrive / Microsoft Word Web App via the Safari Web Browser on the iPad or via the free Windows Live Messenger iPad App and download and view documents saved in SkyDrive / Microsoft Word Web App. After the document is downloaded, tap the screen and choose “open with Pages”. You can then edit /change the document and get it back to SkyDrive by Emailing it back to yourself (as a Word Document). There is no way to upload directly to SkyDrive that I can see.

This is one of the reasons that I paid for the Pages iPad application.

DROP BOX

Drop Box is an online sync and storage program that is free for 2GB. Drop Box has an App that works on the iPad. You can view and download your documents in your Drop Box. As with SkyDrive, it is also possible to open them with Pages, edit and make changes then Email the document out of the iPad to a computer. This is another reason that I paid for the Pages iPad application.

Note – I will also buy “Numbers” (which is Apple’s Excel equivalent) if I find a need to do this with Excel spread sheets – It is the same price – $12 – as Pages.

MOBILE ME

If you subscribe to Apple’s Mobile Me I assume it would also work for storing documents ( although I can’t test it as I cancelled my subscription to Mobile Me as it is too expensive).

BATTERY

Apple says that the battery will last for 10 hours of constant use and by what I have experienced so far this is correct. I have been using it fairly constantly throughout each day and the battery lasts all day with plenty of charge left over when I place it on the charger each night. As long as you remember to put it on the charger each night the battery is excellent. It is far better than a laptop computer.

RE-BOOTING

Just like any computer you might have to reboot it if it gets a bit slow. Hold the top button until “Slide to Power Off” comes up on the screen. Slide it to turn it off. Then wait a few seconds and turn it back on by holding down the top button again until the Apple logo appears – release the button and wait about 30 seconds for it to re-boot. All will be well again. (You don’t have to do this very often.)

ATTACHMENTS

You can purchase a variety of attachments for the iPad. The only one I bought was the camera connection kit for about $40. This contains 2 “dongles”. One is a USB connector for the camera and the other an SD card reader. In hindsight I think I should have probably bought the magnetic cover because you can fold it back to form a stand.

CONCLUSION

A few questions:

1. Am I sorry I bought it? – NO – Even though I was being half smart when I asked.

2. Am I happy with it? – Yes – My few complaints so far are only minor ( Missing icons, printing and weight)

3. Is it a necessity? – No – but it is an excellent “nice to have”.

4. Does it replace a computer? – No – For a start you have to use it with iTunes on a computer and I have mentioned some of the other things that it will not do.

5. Did I write this blog on it? – No – I use an excellent free program from Microsoft called Windows Live Writer to write my blogs. Also I would not like to write a long document like this with the “virtual keyboard” on the iPad. Although you could use Pages as it is a full word processor with spell check (Australian English too) plus all of the bells and whistles.

6. Has it replaced another computer? – Yes -It has replaced one computer. I have a small computer underneath my TV that I had been using for things like surfing the net and watching video podcasts on my large screen and I have not turned it on since I got my iPad.

So my conclusion is, if you want one go for it.

PS Up until now I thought that my iPod Touch was the “coolest” thing I had ever owned. Now I think my iPad is.

My mate Greg of the Brisbane suburb of Sherwood did not escape unscathed and he let me have the following photos. He considers himself lucky that water stayed below his top floor. However, he still had a big mess to clean up not to mention the extensive repairs now needed to his ground floor.

Greg’s caption for this photo is – “Houseboat”. At least he still has his sense of humour.

Another view near the time of maximum height.   There is a pool there somewhere.

Inspecting the neighbourhood by canoe.   As can be seen, the water is receding.

Downstairs with the high water mark visible on the walls.

Flood destroyed items dumped on the footpath for collection by the Brisbane City Council (BCC)

The street starting to look a bit better after rubbish was removed by BCC.

Greg insisted that this photo of his downstairs toilet be included but with a note that –

“NO – the family did not have a bad curry the night before!” - YUK!!

(P.S. Yes I admit – made me laugh.)

AND FINALLY Greg must have a new job with LJ Hooker and invites offers on this “Handyman’s Special”

Thanks for sharing these photos Greg.