Thursday 27 September 2012

Nora Ephron and some serious Julie & Julia love

I love food. I love cooking, and I really love books about food and cooking. There's been a lot of talk about Nora Ephron of late, and my association with her is very flimsy - I pretty much knew her name from repeated watching of You've Got Mail (although I somehow still don't actually own the film!), and then when she died last year people started mentioning how her writing was hilarious and I hadn't even realised that she wrote...

Around the time that Julie & Julia came out I was in Bath rescuing a friend from an awkward situation and I had a spare couple of hours which I (obviously) killed in their awesome Waterstone's and came across Julie & Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously by Julie Powell, on which the movie is based. I read it, loved it, and shortly after bought the movie for about £3 ex-rental in Blockbuster. I watched it, I fell in love, and that's where I've stayed ever since. 

This evening I bullied my sister into watching it, as she has no appreciation for Meryl Streep and I was trying to encourage her (it kind of vaguely worked). Also I had a bit of what turned out to be a themed impromtu trip to the library today because I knew they had I feel bad about my neck by Ephron and I wanted to grab it and give it a go to see if it was as happily hilariously awesome as her movies are, and then while  we were there I succumbed to this horrible weakness that I have for books with the word 'Club' in the title. The Friday Night Knitting Club sparked an obsessive reading of all of Kate Jacobs' novels; The Jane Austen Book Club pushed me to finally get on with reading Emma and Persuasion, The Chocolate Lovers Club inspired me to eat a lot of chocolate... You see where this is going? So if the library are going to stick a copy of The Meryl Streep Movie Club on the stand right next to the door, I am going to borrow it. It's just inevitable. And yes, I know I have far too many half started library books at the moment (library books I've started to read which are lying around the house include: The Sisters Brothers, The Pirates in an Adventure with Moby Dick, and Let's Pretend this Never Happened. Plus Let the Great World Spin is staring reproachfully at me from a chair and I really want to get to it because it sounds much better than I thought it would be...), but it will probably only take me about a day to read and that will be motivating because of my whole not having finished any books in recent memory thing. Anyway! The point of this post wasn't really to ramble about the library. I think (although the inception of the post now feels so far in the past it's difficult to remember) that was I was really talking about was Nora Ephron and how late I am to the party of her awesomeness. So. 

Awkward confessions which will probably make Ephron lovers throw stuff at me a lot: 
1) I have never read any of Nora Ephron's writing
2) I have only seen When Harry met Sally once. And that was almost ten years ago.
3) I really dislike Meg Ryan. Except in You've Got Mail. I also really dislike Tom Hanks. Except in You've Got Mail which 
4) I still don't own.

And so I've decided to do my own mini Nora Ephron project, because if my very limited previous experience is anything to go by it will be fairly easy to focus on in my imminent (1.5 weeks!!) post baby life, and because Julie & Julia makes me feel eternally happy. And hungry, but you know. Also because Amy Adams is just so cute and I want to put her in my pocket. Which is totally a legitimate reaction to have to Amy Adams. So yes. According to Wikipedia I have these things to get through:

Films

  • Silkwood
  • Heartburn
  • When Harry met Sally (rewatch, because it's been toooooo long!)
  • Cookie
  • My Blue Heaven
  • This is My Life
  • Sleepless in Seattle (which I actually own but have never watched because it was on when I was on a train from Melbourne to Adelaide for 10 hours but I had been sleeping in a train seat all night, so I wasn't very awake)
  • Mixed Nuts
  • Michael
  • All I Wanna Do
  • You've Got Mail (I've seen it at least four times, but I still plan to actually buy a copy)
  • Hanging Up
  • Lucky Numbers
  • Bewitched 
Books
  • Wallflower at the Orgy
  • Crazy Salad: Some Things about Women
  • Scribble Scribble: Notes on the Media
  • I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman (I have this from the library so hopefully it will get me off to a resoundingly successful start!)
  • I Remember Nothing: And Other Reflections
I also have a copy of the book of Heartburn, but Wikipedia doesn't seem to think that's a thing.... :-/ So yes, library books and Sleepless in Seattle up first. I have duly added all the films (except Cookie and Lucky Numbers which they don't seem to have) to my Lovefilm list, and the books to my wishlist. We shall see how we go. 

I know there's a lot of Ephron love out there at the moment, so please tell me your favourites and where I should start!

6 comments:

  1. Love love love love love love... ohhhh, I want to do this too! Right, where do I start...

    1) As of tomorrow, you own a copy of You've Got Mail. Sorry, but it's one of my favourite films EVER and Kathleen Kelly helped make me the bookseller I am today so... I can't let you NOT have it in your life, forever and always. :)

    2) I still haven't watched my copy of Julie and Julia. I didn't even know until recently that it was a Nora Ephron film! First I need to read the book, which is on my shelf too, so I shall remedy this asap.

    3) I do that with 'club' books too! The Jane Austen Book Club works even better as a movie, FYI, and is one of my go-to bookish movies on a rainy day.

    4) Read those chuffing library books, woman! You've got so many great titles there!

    5) Watch When Harry Met Sally, right now. Seriously. I maintain that Harry's dialogue is the cleverest of any movie, ever. DON'T MAKE ME START A QUOTE WAR! I ALWAYS WIN! Just ask Laura... ;)

    6) Okay, I sort of agree about Meg Ryan, but HOW CAN YOU NOT LIKE TOM HANKS? I would marry the dude, like, TOMORROW. Also, he is super cute in Splash. :)

    7) Yeah, I have to admit that I haven't read any Nora Ephron yet either. Though I have, like, four of her books on my wishlist, so the intention is there. I just need some spare shelf space because I don't reckon I'm going to be letting go of 'em once they're in my life!

    8) WHY ARE YOU STILL READING THIS COMMENT? You could have read, like, half a book by now! *shakes head and pushes Bex gently in the direction of her new cosy chair*

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  2. *lols at Ellie's comment a lot* DITTO ON TOM HANKS! Seriously, he's so loveable! I thought I didn't like Meg Ryan, but I do sooort of adore 3 films she's in, so... I guess I do like her!

    I majorly support your Ephron project though. And cause she writes essays, you can read one in between sleepings and feedings, and... whatever else you do with a baby!

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  3. This seems like a fun project! I haven't read Ephron either but I've watched You've Got Mail and Sleepless in Seattle a million billion times each! Maybe I need to put in a library request for one of her books ...

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  4. I adore Meg and Tom, especially together. Their movies are ones we rewatch often at our house, most often being You've Got Mail. I haven't read Ephron either but am a big fan of her films. And Julie & Julia is a wonderful film. Isn't Meryl Streep amazing in it? She is certainly one of the most talented actresses working today and her inhabiting of this character was such a pleasure to watch. And she and Stanley Tucci have such great chemistry in this film. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

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    1. I have major love for Stanley Tucci, the guy's a legend! :)

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