Monday

UK woman protests sewage dumping. Photo from Google Images:

When Audrey Hepburn’s Neck by Alan Brown was returned to the floating book shop, I could not resist giving it a try. Published in 1996, it is a non-linear story of a Japanese male in his early 20’s, a talented cartoonist, who has been fascinated by the world-famous actress since the age of nine, when his mom took him to a movie. Having moved to Tokyo from the small town of his birth, he has dated only American girls. His latest is a handful, apparently deranged. I’m glad the narrative doesn’t go the way I’d dreaded. Instead it focuses on cultural differences, the western influences that have seeped into Japan. The best aspect is the smooth writing, although there are far too many run-on sentences for my taste. The most interesting character is the mother, who suffers melancholy funks. The revelation of her past is riveting. This is the author’s only book. Brown lived in Tokyo seven years, writing for magazines and newspapers and reporting on culture for BBC Radio. Born in 1950, he currently lives in NYC. To no surprise, given the subject matter of his novel, he turned to filmmaking. There are nine titles under his name at IMDb, one forthcoming. I am unfamiliar with any, although a few have garnered praise. Audrey Hepburn’s Neck has been translated into eight languages and won the Pacific Rim Book Prize. 36 users at Amazon have rated it, forging to a consensus of 3.9 on a scale of five. I’ll go with three. The book is geared to those who prefer a slice of life. The protagonist’s best friend is gay. There is much talk about sex but no explicit scenes. Facts also from Wiki, photo from GI:

Although I doubt anyone will be held accountable, as the mainstream media ignores the huge story, it seems John Durham did a thorough, excellent job in exposing the abuses of the upper echelons of the FBI and DOJ. Kudos, Sir.

The NAACP’s travel advisory for Florida has probably made bigots hopeful that folks will strictly adhere to it.

RIP actor Ray Stevenson, 58. Born in Northern Ireland, his career began in 1993 at 25. He was prolific, the 62 titles under his name at IMDb not indicative of his constant presence on the big or small screen. He appeared in at least nine episodes of nine series, nine of Dexter, 22 of Rome, 21 of The Theory of Flight. He was the lead in an adaptation of Thomas Hardy’s The Return of the Native (1994) and played Porthos in the 2011 adaptation of The Three Musketeers. He was a dad of three. Gone way too soon. Photo from GI:

I love this foxnews.com headline because it will rankle environmental zealots: “Ford sees growth in gas-powered vehicles amid EV shift.”

Not much action at the floating book shop on this gorgeous day. My thanks to the gentleman who purchased a carrying bag, and to the woman who bought a purse; and to the woman who did a swap of Russian titles; and to our stellar Super Luis, who gave me a large plastic bag filled with DVDs.

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