Page 6 November 24, 2016 EL SEGUNDO HERALD Reviewed by Katrena Woodson, Teen and Young Reader Librarian, El Segundo Public Library Cinder by Marissa Meyer is the first book in a young adult series called The Lunar Chronicles. This book offers a fresh futuristic twist on the beloved classic fairytale Cinderella. Cinder, the protagonist, is a 16-year-old cyborg (part human, part robot) living in New Beijing. Due to her cyborg nature, she is treated like a second-class citizen and a burde--especially by her stepmother. However she forges on, trying to make the best of her situation. She works as a mechanic and is known to be one of the best, which gains her a visit from his royal highness, Prince Kai. Part love story, part sci-fi adventure, USA Today described Cinder as a combination of “a classic folk tale with hints of The Terminator and Star Wars.” Meyer adds layer after layer to the classic boy meets girl, falls in love, oses her and then finds her again story of Cinderella. For instance, the earth is dealing with a Entertainment major epidemic--a sickness called letumosis that is deadly and extremely contagious. Not to mention there are constant threats of war from the evil lunar Queen, who wishes to take over and rule the earth. Meyer pulls you in from the first page, dropping you into this futuristic world full of a cast of relatable characters so realistic you could swear they were real. She demonstrates her excellent ability to convey emotions that will have you feeling what the characters do: their joy, sorrow, fear and excitement. The story is thrilling and I would highly recommend this book as well as the rest of this series to anyone aged 12 and up looking for an entertaining book that will be hard to put down. The ending will leaving you rushing back to the library to pick up book number two. The El Segundo Public Library offers access to its collection of titles in a variety of formats, including traditional hardback, e-books and books on CD. To check out Cinder by Marissa Meyer or any other title on your to-read list, please visit the library to apply for your library card, or contact the reference staff for further assistance. • Check It Out Cinder by Marissa Meyer. Like Us on Facebook Film Review In Bleed For This, Teller and Eckhart Go the Full 12 Rounds By Ryan Rojas for Cinemacy.com There’s a fire that burns in Bleed For This, the latest boxing-story-to-screen movie about boxer Vinny Pazienza, the former world champ who suffered what should’ve been not only a career-ending but life-ending car accident--and his against-all-odds decision to train to get back in the ring. Vinny’s insane perseverance and dedication to the sport he loved so much also inspired the creative talents in this movie to give their very best, as Miles Teller, Aaron Eckhart, and director Ben Younger show they are all heart in this inspirational drama that proves it’s more than just another formulaic sports movie. Rhode Island-proud Pazienza (Teller), is seen as the showboat type, as fast on his feet as he is with his mouth. After a few early match successes which Teller embodies with true fighter stamina, he decides to go for his weight class belt, enlisting the help of trainer Kevin Rooney (Eckhart) and shortly thereafter becoming world champ. As he continues to train for the next competition, Pazienza is struck by his biggest blow yet – a head-on car collision that puts him in critical condition. When he stabilizes, he is given the options of having his spine fused--also the safest measure to ensure walking--or having Halo surgery to literally screw a cage around his head attached to the shoulders, which would allow his spine to fix naturally. Despite the doctor’s concerns and simply human reason, Vinny is convinced that the second option gives him a better chance of returning to boxing. So he decides to move forward with the risk of Halo surgery. This underdog training tale could have been enough to focus on, but Younger extends the scope of Bleed For This even further to show more of Vinny’s world. The film lives congruent to the world that David O. Russell built with The Fighter, similarly giving multiple people close to the boxing champ their onscreen moments to craft more of a familial drama rather than a personal one. Younger opens up the story to include the relationships between Vinny’s father Angelo (Ciarán Hinds) and mother Louise (Katey Sagal), but the strongest connection comes from Rooney (Eckhart). Eckhart transforms into a character we’ve never seen, adding weight and a snarling accent to make him nearly unrecognizable. Whereas the connection between boxer and trainer should be perhaps the most intimate in a film like this, other relationships (as with the parents) seem to crowd this space. Although the actors provide fantastic performances, this lessens the effect of Vinny’s personal struggle. Bleed For This has a ferocious dedication to these relationships and the actual true-life events. Younger’s desire to make this more than just a boxing movie and to extract these character relationships gives the film a bit more to play with and creates more connection for the audience. Although like the success of the seminal boxing movie Rocky one has to wonder what this movie could have been if this was developed as a “Miles Teller vehicle,” perhaps focusing a little more on the grittiness of Vinny’s rehabilitation and his head-on fight with mortality (coincidentally, Teller has both a personal history of car accident injuries, which also showed up in a previous film Whiplash). However, Bleed For This makes its case for being more than just another boxing movie with its whole team’s dedication and heart. 116 min. Bleed For This is rated R for language, sexuality/nudity, and some accident images. Now playing in select cities. • Miles Teller as Vinny Pazienza and Aaron Eckhart as Kevin Rooney in Bleed For This. Courtesy of Open Road Films. Cinder By Marissa Meyer Katrena Woodson. “It was expected that all five El Segundo high school teams that participated including girl’s and boys’ soccer, girls’ and boys’ basketball and girls’ water polo would advance to the post season.” Visit us online: www.heraldpublications.com
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