The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett (Discworld 30)

“Yes! I'm me! I am careful and logical, and I look up things I don't understand! When I hear people use the wrong words, I get edgy! I am good with cheese. I read books fast! I think! And I always have a piece of string! That's the kind of person I am!”

The first book about Tiffany Aching, and the thirtieth book in the series, The Wee Free Men sees our young promising witch meet Perspicacia Tick, a witch and teacher, that brings a speaking toad that knows a lot about legal matters. Ms. Tick (and yes, the pun is obvious and intentional) sees the potential in Young Tiffany, and the Nac Mac Feegles, little blue Scottish pictsies (as opposed to pixies) that love to fight, drink, and steal. We’ve met some of them before in earlier books, but they’ve never been as prominent as in this volume.

A Man on the Inside: Season Two Review

Stone in the Wheeler Garden of Wisdom: “By the time you graduate, you should know something about everything and everything about something.”

Charles Nieuwendyk goes undercover to find out who is sabotaging the donation of $400 million to a needy college.

This Week: Zac Efron for No Particular Reason

An Honest Fangirl: What have people been watching/playing/reading lately?

Heated Rivalry still has me in a chokehold, to the point where I'm going to watch Saturday Night Live this week because Connor Storrie is hosting. I think he'll be good at it, so hopefully they'll give him fun stuff to do.

The Pitt: 1:00 P.M.

“Let’s go find the good snacks.”

This was a very heavy episode, albeit in a different way than last week’s. That was heavy because we lost someone. This was heavy because the world and the people in it can be very cruel.

Fallout: The Demon in the Snow

“Rock to spear, and so on.”

I suppose change, and the chaos that goes with it, was the theme of the episode.

Ghislaine Maxwell: Filthy Rich

Sigrid McCawley (lawyer for survivors): “I would say that, in this case, truth is stranger than fiction. And it is so hard for people to understand the vast depth of the trafficking that occurred.”

Documentary description: “From filmmakers of Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich, this film goes beyond the headlines of the Ghislaine Maxwell case to tell the story of Epstein's mystery accomplice, illuminating how her class and privilege concealed her predatory nature.”

Evil: Exorcism Part 2

Andy: "You got more demanding."
Kristen: "You don’t know the half of it."

Evil takes a moment to reckon with some consequences from earlier in the season and introduces my favorite ever supporting character.

The Pitt: 12:00 P.M.

“Just because you know it’s broken doesn't mean you stop trying.”

Well, I cried. Much like I expected to. This was kind of a tough one.

Dr. Who and the Daleks (1965)

“You are different from them and they are afraid of anything different. And what people are afraid of, they try to destroy.”

As with most things Doctor Who, this all leads back to Quatermass.

Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich

Series description: “Survivors reveal the manipulation, abuse and emotional scars suffered at the hands of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Their stories expose a sex trafficking ring of powerful enablers leading up to his 2019 arrest.”

These days it is impossible to ignore the story of Epstein. According to Netflix, “the 2020 four-part docuseries Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich, directed by Lisa Bryant, provides a comprehensive overview of the disgraced financier’s life and crimes.”

Heated Rivalry: Rose

“You like tuna melt?”

This review might have gotten away from me a little bit. Honestly, it’s less a review (excellent, sexy, heartbreaking episode with absolutely insane music choices, oh my God) and more analysis where I tear things apart with my teeth. And maybe go through certain scenes beat by beat.

Oops.

Night Watch by Terry Pratchett (Discworld 29)

"But here's some advice, boy. Don't put your trust in revolutions. They always come around again. That's why they're called revolutions."

Book twenty-nine of Discworld is another book of the Watch and also the History Monks, and Lu-Tze in particular. When Vimes chases the reprehensible Carcer across the library dome of UU, they both end up in Ankh-Morporks’s past, thanks to the mix of powerful storm and ancient magic buried there.