Literature LIVE! presents Why Cowboys Sing in Texas

This is such a hard question for me to answer because I have mixed feelings about books that are turned into movies. Sometimes I love the book so much I am almost offended they’d try to tackle condensing it into cinema form. Then there are times that the images the author evokes peak my curiosity about how it would look on film. The best example of the latter is Water for Elephants which after reading it had me saying to people, “I think this might be a good film” and after it went celluloid exclaiming, “that was a very nice interpretation, I’m glad I read it and saw it.” I will admit that on occasion I am so unimpressed by a book I can’t see why anyone would bother making it into a movie. I feel fairly certain there is a large part of the well-read population who understands these conflicting opinions. Perhaps you are one of them. Also, you may be one who favors the argument that art, from fashion to storytelling, is recycled or reinvented in some way anyway. Like me, you may find that there are a few reasons one might not mind the prolific trend to turn the written art into a more readily available visual medium. The first being that it gets people to read. The second is that it inspires dialogue on various subjects. I doubt one could find an educator alive that would say there is not value in people participating in those two activities. There is a plethora of evidence that engaging the brain like this is beneficial. I’d argue that it has social benefits, as well. When An Inconvenient Truth went from a book to a movie it made global warming issues more accessible to mainstream America and changed the way we, as a society, viewed our impact on the environment. That being said, I encourage filmmakers to continue this tradition so that we are continually inspired to pick up a book and have a conversation because of the movie.

So this brings us back to the initial question posed in the title of my blog, Film V. Books:  Which do you like better? I welcome conversation and opinions because I am sure there are some points I have not addressed. Also check out the screening of the film based on a book, Life of Pi on May 16, 2013. 

When:
Monday, May 13
6:30-8:30
Where:
Ruiz Branch Library
1600 Grove Blvd.
512-974-7500
Who:
Adults interested in crafting
What:
Bunting

Back by popular demand we are going to revisit our bunting class! We've got an array of oilcloth, laminated cotton, and regular cotton cloth that you can use to create a one-of-a-kind bunting that will make your backyard the best (and most festive) place to be this summer.  

As always, all supplies are provided. Hope to see you there!