Author Archives: davetcourt

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab At the heart of this book is an existential concern for what is a very human question, at least one that I have long asked and wrestled with in my own life. It’s a question that I think anyone who has faced feelings of lonliness andContinue reading “The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue: Exploring The Most Human Question About Life, God, Suffering and Love”

Questions to ask yourself about your reading life:1. What books have made the most impact on your reading life in the last year, or five years, or twenty years? 2. Are you should-ing yourself to death?3. Are you a planner or not?4. When is the best time for you to read?5. What is the best wayContinue reading “For The Love of Books:10 Questions to Ask Yourself About Your Reading Life”

“How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” For Jews do not share things in common with the Samaritans” (or “Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans”)  – John 4:9 “Our ancestors worshipped on this mountain (Mt. Gerizim), but you say Jerusalem is the place whereContinue reading “The Samaritan-Jewish Conflict: A Profile of a Divided Faith”

For those who follow the film industry at large here in North America, what’s abundantly clear right now is that things are a long ways from what they were in pre-pandemic times. Not that things weren’t heading in this direction before the pandemic hit, but Covid has certainly fast tracked the industry’s evolution exponentionally, creatingContinue reading “Wonder Woman 1984 and the Enduring Cost of our World’s Salvation”

Here were the top 40 albums that filled my 2020 soundtrack. There are lost of singles that I could have included, but I stuck with albums, save for my honorable mention of a collobration between The Choir and Leigh Nash and Father John Misty’s two track album. 40. Father John Misty- To S./To R. 39-Continue reading “2020 Retrospective: My Favorite Albums”

A few years ago I began a New Years Resolution Plan called Rosebud. I heard about it on one of the travel podcasts that I follow. The process essentially looks like this: Step 1: List Three Roses- This is the stuff that I would consider the greatest strengths, successes or accomplishments of the past year,Continue reading “2020 Retrospective: Rosebud, An Ongoing Resolution Process”

And at last we come to my top films of the year. For me personally, I also like to highlight documentaries and special releases as there are more than enough dramatic films to fill multiple lists. My favorite special release of 2020: Black is King This stunning “visual” album by Beyonce is an imaginative takeContinue reading “2020 Retrospective: My Year in Film (Top Films of the Year)”

Back in December of 2019, I came up with the idea of travelling the world through film in 2020 and tagged it filmtravels2020. This would include compiling and watching films from that Country where available, researching that Country’s film history, and doing a reflection on what I learned where time allowed. To be honest, whenContinue reading “2020 Retrospective: My Year In Film (Film Travels 2020)”

It’s that time of year when many of us spend time looking back on the year that was. For us cinephiles that means making lists, checking them twice and trying to decide which films were deserving and which films were not. In Part 1 of my 2020 retrospective on film, I look here at myContinue reading “2020 Retrospective: My Year in Film (Stats, First Time Watches, and Outliers)”