{
sOMEthING OLd . . . sOMEthING NEw
}
wrIttEN by EMILy MAyEr
wAtCh rEAd LIstEN
thE AwfuL truth / 1937 CECELIA, Or MEMOIrs Of AN hEIrEss / CANCIONEs dE MI pAdrE / LINdA
In The Awful Truth, a classic 1937 screwball frANCEs burNEy / 1782 rONstAdt / 1987
comedy, the wit flies fast and thick between
If you love Jane Austen’s biting social A plaintive Spanish wail on “Por Un Amor” (“For
a soon-to-be-divorced New York couple. The
commentary found in works like Pride and a Love”) and a robust mariachi band backing
sumptuous period fashions are as outlandish
Prejudice, pull Cecelia, or Memoirs of an Heiress up the drinking song “Y Andale” (“Get On with
as they are ravishing, as are the dazzling
by Frances Burney off the library shelves for a It”) color Linda Ronstadt’s popular album with
stars: a wry Irene Dunne and a charming
romp through the ballrooms and opera houses romance and tradition. These tunes, collected
Cary Grant play the sophisticated high-rise
dwellers. Separated and close to divorce, this
of 18th-century England. Burney was regarded from all over Mexico, were sung by Ronstadt
sexy, elegant couple smolders together despite
as one of Austen’s inspirations, and within with her family during her youth (thus the title,
various entanglements with other lovers. The
the pages of Cecelia there can be no doubt. Songs of My Father), and they have the power
film dangles dangerously close to impropriety
Filled with twists and characters of soap-opera to transport you south of the border this winter.
at every turn, rendering it the perfect escapist proportions, Burney’s entire 914-page novel Even if you don’t understand Spanish, this
frolic to allay people’s worries during the Great
can entertain you without spinning off track. collection will bring to mind a torch-lit fiesta in
Depression. Rent it online at Amazon.com.
Available from Oxford World’s Classics. Old Mexico. Available at Amazon.com.
buENA vIstA sOCIAL CLub At CArNEGIE
thE brOthErs bLOOM / 2009 NELLA LAst’s wAr / EdItEd by rIChArd hALL / buENA vIstA sOCIAL CLub / 2008
A con movie involving “one last job” may sound brOAd ANd suZIE fLEMING / 2009 The release of this landmark musical event
like a shopworn idea, but director Rian Johnson If the pressures of hard times are getting you arrives long after Buena Vista Social Club’s
infuses The Brothers Bloom with a good dose down this winter, try keeping a stiff upper lip by 1997 performance in New York, but such
of goofy romance, extreme eccentricity, and reading Nella Last’s War, the second volume of signature Cuban songs as “Chan Chan,” plus
high-adventure suspense while setting the an English housewife’s diary during World War candid reminiscences of the musicians, feel
action in exotic locales. Adrien Brody and Mark II. This true account documents the struggles of timeless. This high-quality group of musicians
Ruffalo are an endearing duo, and Rachel a family and the strength of an ordinary woman performs music from Cuba’s musical golden
Weisz, playing a madcap heiress, runs away with during a time of crisis. Nella’s accounts of the age in the 1940s, when crowds gathered
the picture. A sense of happy energy and high budding post-war women’s movement are to dance at the original Buena Vista Social
spirits brightens the film, giving us a whimsical equally as fascinating as her personal life. The Club in Havana. The experience can never be
modern-day picture for an escape during these first volume was published in 1981; at long last replicated, but it still has the power to sweep
bleak times. Opens in wide release on January readers can revisit the era with a complete set. you away to the heart of balmy, forbidden Cuba.
16, 2009. Released January 1, 2009 by Profile Books. Available for MP3 download at Amazon.com.
ELIZA / 40 ELIZA / 41
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