Your Summer Entertainment...............while waiting out temps over 100

My son says people in the United States never believe him when he tell them how hot the weather can be in Canada. And today, neither could I. We topped in at 117 with the humidex factor.... so baby, it is hot outside, sizzling hot, too hot to walk the dog (even at 9:30 pm at 99 degrees still!), too hot to blog on the screened veranda, too hot to wear makeup, too hot to swim even, pools are like bathwater right now .........well you know, everyone just about everywhere is hot, hot. Weather girl I am not, but I think we might be dealing with this heat and humidity all summer long. You are going to need some entertainment while waiting out the heat in air-conditioned comfort.

People also say they think Facebook is just a waste of time, but without my FB friends who recommend great books, movies, and TV shows I would have had nothing to do but lay and bed and wait out this heat spell which has lasted weeks. I am at that delicate stage where my heat-tolerance is very low if you know what I mean and actually it's not the heat, it's the blasted humidity that causes me to have meltdowns. As it turned out today I was perfectly content in my cool house with our new energy-efficient air conditioner reading and watching some of the best entertainment I have enjoyed in some time. I had seen and bypassed Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter when it was released a few weeks ago. But when my Paris friend and author Carla Coulson raved about it on her Facebook and Blog page, I thought I would give it a go. Come on............this is one of the best reads this summer! As I told someone today "it's one of those stories that you start reading on a transatlantic flight and are sorry the 8 hr. flight is over because you aren't finished the book yet". Take me on to Melbourne then, I am only halfway through my book! You can read better reviews than I can write here and here, but take my word (and Carla's) that Beautiful Ruins is definitely this summer's hot book to read.

You can purchase Beautiful Ruins here

Author Jess Walker's website here

It was another Facebook friend (cannot remember who) that recommended Any Human Art, the Masterpiece Classic that ran in the UK last year and on PBS. The four-part series is perfect for hot and muggy summer nights and I was in from the get-go on this story. Based on the bestselling novel Any Human Heart, The Intimate Journals of Logan Mountstuart by Scottish author William Boyd, it follows an aspiring novelist as he makes his way through the defining events of the 20th century, loving and learning as he goes. From 1920's in Paris to the 1950's in New York, the 1980's in London and finally the south of France, you will see some fabulous acting by Jim Broadbent as the older Mountstuart and Kim Cattrall at her saucy and live-loving best. Be prepared for some tears......the ending, but they could have also been because the viewing was over.

itunes download here

Purchase DVD here

photos from google