CONTAGION * THE ALL OF IT

Contagion - HBO has paid for itself this month with the movie offerings. I'm happy not to have rented or otherwise paid to see Contagion, but it was fun to spot Peter's grade school in the movie, and to know that the snow on the ground in many of the scenes was fake. The concept of the movie is good. What if a contagious disease that causes death in a matter of days and that hadn't yet been identified, tore through our lives? The movie follows Matt Damon, whose wife is one of the first to die, as well as workers at the Center for Disease Control as they realize the seriousness of the disease then work to combat it. It's good, just slow moving at times, with some story lines that fritter out, and many aspects that are only dealt with visually and with slow music. Maybe the idea was to convey how even though the disease kills quickly, the aftermath lingers.

The All of It by Jeannette Haien - This short novel is told in a lovely Irish brogue, and It's the story of Father Declan de Loughry of the town of Roonatellin, and his parishioners, Enda and Kevin. It's got a bit of foul weather fishing in it and the story of a secret kept for many years. It's filled with emotion and love, and there's something musical about way it's written that makes it just charming.