Books and Movies Tag

So I came up with a tag a few weeks ago and thought it would be fun to put it up for others to answer. For those who aren't familiar with tags online, it's basically a questionnaire that people answer and they tag a number of people to also answer them as well. For my tags, I will try to vary my answers without making them up and ask that everyone else try to do the same. Feel free to answer the questions here in the comments below ;) Let's start with my books and movies tag!

1. What is your favorite book genre? movie?
For books, I like action/ adventure and comedy for movies.

2. What is your favorite book series? movie series? individual book? individual movie?
My favorite book series is Fablehaven; movie series, Harry Potter; individual book, The Eighth Scroll; individual movie, Cars.

3. Worst book? movie?
Worst book for me would be The Fire Within by Chris d'Lacey (I plan to finish the series though since I have the first 3 books) and Rango for movie.

4. One book you would recommend to everyone? movie?
I would recommend the book Reclaim Your Heart by Yasmin Mogahed to everyone (see my book review @ http://sfwritinginwonderland.blogspot.com/2013/01/reclaim-your-heart-by-yasmin-mogahed.html) and the movie would be Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole.

5. Do you like movies based off of books? Why or why not?
I actually do b/c I like visuals, to remember and to see how the movie images compare to my visions when reading.

6. Any likes/dislikes of book to movies?
Likes include Matilda, The Spiderwick Chronicles, A Series of Unfortunate Events, The Chronicles of Narnia, and of course Harry Potter.   

7. Who is your favorite character from a book? movie?
My favorite book character is Dumbledore and Hermione for movie.

8. Who is your favorite movie actor? actress?
My favorite actor is Robin Williams (from Jumanji and Mrs. Doubtfire) and Mara Wilson (from Matilda and Mrs. Doubtfire).

9. How many books have you read so far? movies watched?
According to goodreads.com, I've read 133 books and I've watched about 150 movies in the past 3-4 years! (I've been working on 2 movie pages for my scrapbook and I do have a way that I keep track of what movies and how many I saw.)

10. How many books/ movies do you own in your personal collection?
I have 76+ books in my @ home library collection, but no movies b/c I borrow them for FREE from my public library!

Bonus!!! Books and Movies: Past, Present, and Future

1. What was the last book you read? movie watched?
The last book I read was Dragon Spear by Jessica Day George and last watched the movie Bedtime Stories.

2. What are you currently reading? watching?
I am currently not reading any "fun" books b/c I have a lot of reading for my 5 English classes @ uni. and I don't plan on watching any movies for a while for the same reason, (I have a lot of uni. work...)But, I do entertain myself with YouTube and fairy tales ;)

3. What book do you plan to read next? watch next?
I want to read Monster Madness by Dean Lorey next and watch Brave.

4. Do you know about goodreads.com? Want to share your link?
I do thanks to a friend ;) (thank you so much for telling me about it!) Check me out @ http://www.goodreads.com/sabrinafatima

If you liked this tag and want to answer more questions, check back soon for another fun tag I made and know you will like! Feel free to tag others who haven't been tagged yet :)

Ode to a Good Book in Bed

I just wrote this a few days ago for my Intro. to Creative Writing class. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated! Enjoy ;)

To my dear friend book,
Over 10 years you have been a companion of mine,
Your many subjects reel in bookworms like a hook,
Hundreds of topics and genres to choose from throughout time,
Where should we start to take a look?

Your crisp, new pages waiting to be read,

Or maybe yellowing pages shown much love instead,
You fill bookshelves with your family and friends,
In public and private libraries, some in hearts till the end.

But who doesn't like a good book in bed?

After a hard days work and face turned red,
Come under a warm, cozy blanket on a cold winter night,
Lay down and give thanks for your soft pillow so light,
Thank God for books and beds, rest well and sleep tight! 

Reclaim Your Heart by Yasmin Mogahed 5/5

 

I’m very excited to share today's post with you all, my first book review here on my blog as mentioned in Future Posts IdeasI wanted to bring attention to my most recent favorite book, Reclaim Your Heart by Yasmin Mogahed. Like I mentioned in my Barnes and Noble Book Haul (4), I ordered from B&N mostly for Yasmin's book. I recently started to hear her videos on YouTube and I liked a lot of what she said. Then I found out on her website that she came out with her first book this past August. While on YouTube, I came across a video about Yasmin's book and shortly after that, a book trailer for Reclaim Your Heart. I'm always on the hunt for good "non-traditional" books and with all the constant attention on this specific book, I decided to get a copy for myself. Bottom line, I'm really glad I did!

Normally, I wouldn't mention the texture of a book, but this one is different. Reclaim Your Heart feels soft like velvet/felt, not the typical papery feeling. What's the big deal about the texture? Well, being someone who tries to cover my new books with clear contact paper, before I got the chance to cover this book, water dripped onto the cover. Books usually get "wrinkly/ bumpy" when they get wet, but the material to this book prevented that from happening to my delight. Fortunately, I was able to cover (Decora Clear Contact Paper 3 Yd.)my book before any real damage could be done to the covers and spine. To me, the book deserves at least 1 star for the cover material alone! 

Now about the content. Many of the articles/stories in Reclaim Your Heart were extremely well written. Overall, this book has great reminders for everyone and covers topics that will help individuals. While I was reading Yasmin's book, I thought of family members, friends, acquaintances, etc. that I thought this book would be helpful to. Thus, I came to the conclusion that this book would make a good gift to others as well, even non-Muslims! I truly believe there is something for everyone in Reclaim Your Heart. Through Yasmin's writing, readers can tell that she reflects on everyday experiences such as news, interactions, etc. to learn from them and share that knowledge, which we can all use.

The book is broken into seven chapters which includes: Attachments, Love, Hardships, Relationship with the Creator, Women's Status, Ummah, and Poetry. Within these seven chapters are 38 articles plus poems. I personally had a number of favorites from this book. Two little excepts includes "This world cannot break you- unless you give it permission. And it cannot own you unless you hand it the keys- unless you give it your heart..." (Mogahed, 43) and "No matter what a man does he will never be able to have the status of a mother" (Mogahed, 127). I liked many articles entirely, and after some looking around, I found out that some of Yasmin's book material are also found on her site. I don't think this is bad because I never read anything from her site before reading her book. Plus, I will be able to link some of my favorite writings for you all ;) So, to get a taste of some of what to expect from Yasmin's book, here are some of my favorites in no particular order.

A Successful Marriage: The Missing Link
Seeing Your Home in Jennah: On Seeking Divine Help
The Dream of Life
Salah: Life's Forgotten Purpose
A Sacred Conversation
Facebook: The Hidden Danger
Empowerment of Women
Today’s Opening of the Red Sea: Lessons from Egypt

Overall, I think this is a great book for ones personal library and to give as a gift to others. There is much to be gained from Yasmin's Reclaim Your Heart. If you would like to purchase Reclaim Your Heart, then check out
Reclaim Your Heart
Barnes and Noble
Yasmin Mogahed's site

Feminist/Gender Criticism on Mrs. Doubtfire

Paper I wrote for my Methods of Literary Analysis class.

Feminist criticism looks at the status of females, thus focusing on how women have written and how women have been written, either like an angelic mother (Mary) or evil seductress (Eve) (Lynn, 226-27). Gender criticism is similar to feminist criticism but compares and contrasts males and females. Gender refers to the cultural aspects of sexuality, such as the biological, psychological, and social factors (Lynn, 251). Some of the important information gender critics look for in literature includes: stereotypes, roles, and noticing any references to the body, all three of either males or females. In doing either of these criticisms, critics try to break down prejudices of readers.

Chris Columbus's Mrs. Doubtfire is about the problems of the Hillard family. Daniel Hillard gets fired from work. Loving his three children, they are surprised at first when their dad comes to pick them up after school. Since it is his son's birthday, Daniel decides to throw him a party, even though his wife said Chris couldn't have a party because of his bad report card. Thinking he could clean up before Miranda gets home from work, Daniel hires a mobile petting zoo. Daniel's neighbor dislikes the animals being on her property and the loud music so she calls his wife at work. Miranda Hillard is an interior designer who gets asked to do a project by former acquaintance Stuart Denmeyer, when she receives a complaint and goes home to deal with her husband.   

Daniel and Miranda argue while cleaning up. She says he makes her look like the monster and she gets the leftovers from all the fun. He says she chose the career and she replies back that she had no choice. Saying "it's over"; Miranda has had enough of her husband's behavior and wants a divorce. They go to court and since Daniel has no income or place to live, his wife gets primary custody of their children. But, the judge says it is just as important for children to have a loving father (Mrs. Doubtfire), so Daniel gets visitation rights every Saturday and has three months to get a job and keep it, and create a suitable home for their children.

A stereotype in the movie so far is the man being irresponsible and immature, while the female is the opposite. Daniel is out of work, which his older daughter figures out when he comes to pick them up. This might be an indication that this is common with Daniel. Also, he throws his son a big party behind Miranda's back. Daniel is caught dancing to music with his son on top of the table, to his wife's disgust. Miranda on the other hand, is hardworking and independent. She is an interior designer and doesn’t stay home to do all the housework. Viewers can see that Miranda doesn’t play the typical, traditional role as housewife.

The movie continues with Miranda coming to Daniel's apartment on Saturday to pick up their children. She mentions to Daniel that she is putting an ad in the newspaper for a housekeeper. To spend more time with his kids, Daniel offers to take care of the kids after school, but Miranda says she will think about it. Changing the number on the ad without Miranda noticing, he calls her to get the job. With the help of his makeup artist brother and Daniel's talent in doing voices, Daniel transforms into Mrs. Euphegenia Doubtfire. Daniel in disguise is hired by Miranda and they get along well. She doesn't know it is her husband she hired and confides in; saying her husband never appreciated her organized cubbies. 

Mrs. Doubtfire tries to learn to cook but has an accident in the kitchen so "she" orders out and puts the food on the table for dinner. Miranda comes home from work and is impressed with Mrs. Doubtfire's "dinner". While Mrs. Doubtfire heads out to the bus stand, Daniel's older daughter Lydia comes to apologize for her behavior and thanks "Mrs. Doubtfire" for making her mom happy, which she can’t remember when the last time was. As the days pass, Daniel is able to spend time with his children as "Mrs. Doubtfire" while also working at a TV studio. Mrs. Doubtfire plays soccer with Chris, reads to Natalie, rides bikes with the children, and even vacuums the house.

Daniel finds out Stuart Denmeyer is fond of his wife but thinks Daniel is a loser. Mrs. Doubtfire gives Miranda advice after Miranda says she and Stuart will go out for a drink and talk about their business project. Mrs. Doubtfire says Stuart has other intentions and for Miranda to "wake up and smell the coffee" (Mrs. Doubtfire). Miranda later confides in Mrs. Doubtfire saying she liked Daniel at first, but after she was always working and he was in between jobs, she didn’t get to see their children and would have to clean the house. Eventually, Daniel is caught by Chris and tells him and Lydia that it is their dad dressed as Mrs. Doubtfire. They are happy and promise to not tell their mom or younger sister.

When Miranda comes to pick up Lydia, Chris, and Natalie, Daniel's house is messy. This is again a stereotype of men being messy, while women are neat and organized, as seen from Miranda's labeled kitchen cabinets versus Daniel's "refugee motif" apartment. Daniel learns to cook and clean, and spends a lot of time with his children. Men usually don’t do simple housework such as these, and in today's society, many fathers aren't really involved in their children's life if any at all. Miranda's comment about going out with Stu for work being "harmless" is an example of women being naïve. Many females in similar situations think it is "innocent" but things do go wrong. Daniel admits through Stu that men generally have other intentions in the mentioned situation.    

When Miranda comes again to Daniel's place for the kids, she is impressed when Daniel says he learned to cook, bake, and sew, and his house is clean and organized. Miranda asks Mrs. Doubtfire for her advice on what she should wear to her birthday dinner with Stu and the family. Mrs. Doubtfire says that one dress is too short and the other "screams harlot" (Mrs. Doubtfire). Daniel has a dinner meeting with the CEOfrom his work to share his ideas and Mrs. Doubtfire promises to go to Miranda's dinner party, both at the same restaurant at the same time! When they arrive at the restaurant, Mrs. Doubtfire asks if Miranda will cover her shoulders. Stu gifts Miranda with a "real" bracelet and Mrs. Doubtfire makes a comment to Stu saying he wants more from her.

By the end of the movie, Daniel gets caught when his mask comes off in the restaurant "helping" Stu when he chokes. Miranda is outraged she has been tricked and says she has to go home. After two months, Daniel managed to do what the judge says, but the judge gives full custody to Miranda and supervised visits every Saturday to Daniel because of his peculiar behavior fooling people into thinking he was a woman. Seeing that their kids really miss their dad and Mrs. Doubtfire, Miranda takes care of all the legal stuff and Daniel is allowed unlimited access to their children.  

Mrs. Doubtfire's suggestion to Miranda to wear a dress she had worn to a funeral and to cover her shoulders shows that Daniel is protective. He doesn’t want Miranda to show a lot of skin and to cover herself properly so Stu won't "feast his eyes on her". Good men usually care for women like this by protecting them. Overall, this movie's portrayal of a family going through divorce is realistic. Many times because of the parent's decisions, children end up suffering in one way or another. The relationship between Daniel and Miranda, Miranda and Stuart, and the family and Mrs. Doubtfire, are also similar to interactions between males and females in reality.  

Works Cited

Lynn, Steven. "Gendering the Text." Texts and Contexts: Writing About Literature with Critical      Theory. 6th ed. Glenview: Pearson, 2011. 221+. Print.

Mrs. Doubtfire. Dir. Chris Columbus. Perf. Robin Williams, Sally Field, Mara Wilson, Etc. 20th Century Fox, 1993. DVD.