Yes I’m back!
Sorry for having been so silent over the last few weeks, I’ve been busy like hell with my work, argh!
(Wow, is “argh” a French or an English onomatopoeia? I use it so often that I can’t tell anymore!)

Well, promises are made to be kept, right?!
So, even if I’m quite late, I did care about telling you my opinion concerning the movie adaptation of Millenium’s first tome!
Maybe you had a chance to watch it by now, although I don’t think it has been released in the US yet, has it?

Anyway, what I can tell you about it is that it’s really true to the book. Of course, some minor elements have been changed (for example, Mickaël Blomqvist’s relationship with journalist Erika is barely suggested and his short romance with Cecilia Wanger has been deleted, the life and characters in Millenium’s offices too), but mostly you watch exactly what you’ve been reading, which is both nice and a little frustrating (for the surprise effect kinda disappears).
The violent and somewhat disturbing scenes have also been kept, which is a good thing since they are part of the story and make it what it is.
And it’s quite amazing to discover that some landscapes you’ve just imagined from the book really match the ones they show in the movie!
Nevertheless I remember that some things were maybe a bit too obvious in the movie compared with the book (the friend I saw it with had not read the book and yet guessed what had happened to Harriet in the end).
The casting is great, especially the two main parts, Mickaël played by Michael Nyqvist and Lisbeth played by Noomi Rapace. The latter really delivers a great performance!
The fact that the movie has been made with a Scandinavian team surely contributes to make it an interesting one, very true to the original universe. I’m sure it would have been much more classic, dull and middle of the road if the project had been carried out in the US.
Well, that’s all for now!
Have I deserved my tatoos?!

Who won? It was me, right?

The best one I read (so far) was Battle Royale by Koushun Takami. It’s insane! It’s going to be re-released this November!

I have three favorite books not originally published in English:
1. THE LITTLE PRINCE (French) by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry; also listed by Shelley P, above
2. THE INFORMERS (Spanish) – the newly published title from Juan Gabriel Vasquez
3. BLINDNESS (Portugese) by Jose Saramago.

Thanks!

I’ve never heard of Galvada and had to look her up. Her books sound juicy and I’ll have to check them out! Thanks for telling me about her.

Have a wonderful week in Bretagne (you don’t have to send me a postcard saying it; I already wish I were there). I can’t wait to hear your thoughts about TTTW and the Millenium movie when you get back!

It is a pity, but the truth is I can’t afford the international shipping (I make no money on this blog) and do feel very bad about excluding international participants, some of whom are my most supportive readers. I have family overseas and know only too well how expensive international rates are. You are certainly welcome to participate by sharing your favorite Spanish titles; you just wouldn’t be eligible to win the prizes.

This isn’t just my policy. Even when I host a giveaway for publishers and they ship out prizes directly to the winner(s), they will only ship to U.S. and Canada residents. I’ve written to some publishers asking them to allow international entrants but so far, this is usually the way it is. I can only say I’m very sorry and this policy absolutely does not imply that I think books written in Spanish aren’t good. (The opposite is true; see my remarks above about Zafon’s La Sombra del Viento). I hope I’ll be able to change this soon.

I do have occasional giveaways where I give out movie scripts. Anyone anywhere can participate in those because e-mailing scripts is free!

I don’t have much time right now (I’m leaving for a week in Bretagne in a few hours and I’m still packing!), but I will definitely come back to you soon to tell you about:
a) [i]“The time traveler’s wife”[/i] that I finished reading last night (excellent!), and
b) the movie based on [i]Millenium[/i] first tome that I finally had a chance to go and see a few weeks ago!

Hasta la vista, baby!

Lisa A., welcome and thanks for following! I’ve heard of Mankell but have never read him. Did you know his translator is the same as Stieg Larsson’s?