Film Review: An Education

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As a former attendant of an all-girls school, this movie struck a particular chord with me. The main character, Jenny (Carey Mulligan), is anxious to leave the confines of her sheltered private school life with an all-too-attentive father who has nightly dreams of her attending the prestigious Oxford University, and break out in order to explore the hustle and bustle of a cultured lifestyle.

For a time, she is blind to the fragility what's been set before her by David (Peter Sarsgaard): nights out to fancy restaurants, race tracks, art auctions, and weekends in Paris. As a teenager rarely exposed to such luxuries, it's hard to resist. As a teenage girl, you daydream of a man whisking you away from the rigidity of competitive schooling and extracurriculars to a carefree life of surprise and romance. An older man has the illusion of wisdom and excitement rolled into one attractive package. Little does a girl know that the adult world is not all it's cracked up to be, and maturity is not defined by age, but the individual themselves.

The story itself is a beautiful one, and watching Jenny navigate her way through the mess she created for herself could inspire any drop-out to kickstart their lives and go for the ivy they've always dreamed of. If you want your teenage daughter to learn a lesson or two, this is a worthwhile short "education" (pun intended). If you're looking for a serious film that doesn't leave you feeling hopeless in the end, then I would say it's a must see. However, there's a sense of realism that is missing from this film. There are so many things that could've gone wrong, but simply didn't. I don't believe that every story should explore all of the horrible things life can throw at one individual, but maybe it should have just a few?


Jackie's rating: 4 stars out of 5

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Book Review: Eating Animals

Jonathan Safron Foer is known for his two eloquent and witty novels, Everything is Illuminated, and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. However, his most recent book is a non-fiction account of his past three years delving into the factory farm industry that has overtaken our family farms. Foer has plunged head first into the animal shit (so to speak) that has begun to flood farms all over the country.

I've teetered between the realms of omnivore and vegetarian for the past few years. In my junior year, a good friend convinced me to live a healthier lifestyle by going vegetarian. She would bring me tofu chicken nuggets from the Asian market and helped me master the art of chopsticks. However, after she left for med school, I didn't have incentive to keep me on the path. This past summer I rode my bike across the country with 26 other cyclists and feared that no meat would equal not enough nourishment.

Maybe I'm just easily pursuaded, but Foer's book was the tipping point for me when it came to meat vs. no meat. His research is thorough and concise, while also dramatically gripping without added drama (it's all real...which is more than I can say for the animal genetics profiled in his book).

I can see omnivores choosing to read this book with a sense of openness and desire to eat better, whether they will stick with meat or not. Self-proclaimed "carnivores," on the other hand, may not even choose to open the book. It is one of those things that reveals the ugly truth, but only if you choose to actually read it. However, maybe you can force your carnivorous friends (or foes?) to read it through creative force...Valentine's Day gift? (Love thy animal?)

Whether or not you're willing to face the facts, this book lays them out in an extremely bold and powerful manner, without leaving behind the beauty of this author's prose. Foer's wit is crafty and clever, but never outshines the disturbing figures that claw through the pages.

DISCLAIMER: "Don't read at the dinner table." I highly recommend you avoid eating any food, particularly meat or fish products, while reading this book. It won't work out very well.

Jackie's review: 5 stars (note: vegetarians may be slightly biased)

Food Review: Salazon Chocolate

One of very few local chocolatiers, the Eldersburg MD-based company creates three delectable flavors: dark chocolate with sea salt, dark chocolate with organic cane sugar, and (my bar of choice) dark chocolate with sea salt and organic cracked black pepper.

As soon as a piece hits your tongue it is a burst of bold, bitter flavor. The salt and pepper provide both spice and sweetness to the dark mouth-puckering chocolate.

Each bar has the wrapper's image imprinted onto the chocolate itself, to make for a deliciously powerful taste that is beautiful too.

The cute shop "Ma Petite Shoe/Oh Said Rose!" in Hampden carries the Salazon line of gourmet chocolate bars, along with numerous other gourmet chocolate brands...enough to keep you watering at the mouth until you can walk out of the store with at least two or three in hand.

(The store also has an adorable assortment of shoes. Walk in and you're surrounded by a woman's dream come true. They sell men's shoes too.)

Jackie's review: 4.5 stars (extremely delicious and unique...but not nearly enough! I want more, please!)