Daybreakers

Daybreakers

Just finished watching this on Netflix.  I remember wanting to see this when it was up in theaters, but just never was able to find the time.

Writing a review for a film already on video, or in this case widely available through a service like Netflix, makes it much easier.  When a film is still in the theater your advice, in essence, cost people money if they use it as their reasoning behind seeing something.  When something is on video or on television etc., sure they still could pay for the film, but more than likely it's something they can just as easily turn off at no cost.

This film starring Willem Dafoe and Ethan Hawke is definitely worth sitting through.  In fact, it's probably worth a few viewings, which is what I will eventually wind up doing.

The film takes place in the future.  An outbreak, yes I understand, so overdone, turns everyone into vampires.  Well mostly everyone.  The struggle in the film is that the "vampire" race is running out of blood and the governments and private corporations are working towards creating a synthetic replacement. Hawke's character is the head of Hematology for one of these companies, but is not having much luck at all.

As my readers know I do not enjoy ruining or spoiling films, and even in a case for a film such as this, out on video etc, I'm sticking with that philosophy.

What I'd like to bring up are some of those things that will make me go back and rewatch Daybreakers.

1.  The moral dilemma of Hawke's character, "I won't drink human blood".  This concept has been hashed out in a variety of films over the years, however it's interesting and although not overblown in this film, it was handled nicely

2.  Even in a civilization of Vampires, there are clear class structures.  You have your Government/Military Types, The Businessmen and Women, The Average person trying to scrape by, desparate with needs and then there is the "mutant" element of Subsiders, as they called them, a section of vampires who either are so far gone they are a threat or demented fiends living in the sewers. 

This idea is very interesting in how it dealt with these Subsiders.  Many factors can cause a normal vampire into a subsider, but it seems as if the drinking of your own blood is high on the list of no-nos

3.  The idea of choice.  Do you choose to live in a world of power, as a power player or do you allow the old world, humanity, a chance at a return, but in the process, more than likely reverting yourself back to the person you were before turning

4. The idea of an incredibly small group fighting against the world.  But it is not the world they fight.  It is this possessed world and the humans in the vampiric shells, who they really are fighting for.

Anyhow, the film had a bit of horror element, as far as gruesome vampire/human death but not much more in that sense.  It had action, chases, firefights etc.. It contained a subtle romantic element. And it had a small but powerful evaluation of familial importance, from multiple viewpoints.

Again I'd check it out a few times, but certainly once, either on Netflix, or catch on cable.  The DVD is inexpensive to purchase, so that too is another option you may want to explore, esp. for fans of the Vampire genre.

NHL Playoff Commercial

Commercial #1 Laundromat

Int. Laundromat-Day

Door chime sounds, man with laundry baskets walks in.

Looks around & Sees:

Three men, with stubbled beards, reading magazines  to the left

The backside of a woman, bent over, loading clothes into dryer on the right

First man in chair:  Hey, buddy

Guy looks around, realizes he's being addressed

Man:  Yeah

First Man in chair:  Where's your beard?

Man:  My beard?

2nd Man in chair:  Yeah, your beard

Man:  Umm, I don't have one

Third Guy in chair: (addressing 1st & 2nd guys in chair)  Must be a leaf's fan

Guys laugh

Man:  I don't get it

1st guy in chair:  Playoff Beard, you know, don't shave until your teams done

Man:  Oh, that, I see.  Not really a hockey fan

2nd Man in chair:  Oh, your one of those   

                                                                             And then:

Guy is loading the washer and realizes he forgot the soap, notices the woman has a bottle with her things.  Walks over to her

Man:  Ma'am, I was wondering if I could borrow your soap

Woman turns around, has a full beard

Man:  Oh, my

Woman:  (Soap in Hand)  Did you need this

Man:  Yeah, thanks..

Takes soap

Man(cont)  Playoff Beard right?

Woman punches man in the face 

Scream 4

Scream 4 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)


Fourth installment in "Horror" franchise, starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox and David Arquette. 


More details, trailers, showtimes and other information can be found at IMDB.

I'll start off by saying I am not a fan of the Horror genre.  When I spend my time watching a movie, I don't want eerie or disturbing imagery adding stress, albeit fictional, to my day.  I believe film should either entertain, make you think, question systems of belief or educate(which should exist in every case, to some extent).

This film, and it's like, is categorized as a Horror film, however I don't classify this type of film in such a manner.  Films like the Scream, I Know What You Did..., Nightmare on Elm Streets Franchises, fall more into the mindless entertainment category.  I don't think anyone, outside the very young viewers, could possibly see this or any of the films in this classifaction as scary, not at all.

The Scream franchise, and what I like most about their films, is their ability to poke fun, in an intellectual, almost classroom manner.  They analzye the genre and make a mockery, to a certain degree, of the rules that came before them, before pulling the rug out from under the viewer for theier finale in Act III

Scream 4 opened up in a very entertaining fashion.  It took this subtle jabbing a bit further, with a series of 'screen shots" from their own, make believe franchise, Stab.

The layout of the remainder of the film worked in the formulaic manner it had set up in each of the previous versions.  Sydney Prescott arrives and murders take place.  Certain characters are set up as the likely villains, only to unmask the "unexpected" Ghostface at the films ending.

This film went above its own formula however.  It added the interesting tie in of Social Media and the internet.  I have to say it did a pretty good job.  We see news leaking out via the internet, before the police had even made any sort of announcement.  We witness live video blogging, one of the characters hosted a weblog called Hall Pass, showing daily High School life, and the murders were then tied into this medium as the film progressed.

Lots of young hollywood cameos/supporting roles in this chapter.  Hayden Panettiere from Heroes, Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars, Heroes etc.), and Anna Pacquin (True Blood, The Piano etc). This approach has been a staple in this franchise and its always fun to watch the unexpected demise of someone who, in any other role, would stay to the end.

One final point I'd like to make is the interesting questions the film poses to its viewers. How far, and what would someone be willing to do, to gain accolade and fame?;  What point is too far, or distasteful to use as a springboard to celebrity, or to ride to promotion?

One has to wonder, how does someone move forward from tragedy, when tragic things seem to follow you every place you go?; How a feeling of, "It never will happen to me", can in fact invite or grow problems, providing a breeding ground for its damaging ways?

If you liked the other Screams, or are a fan of this style of "Horror", you probably will enjoy this film 
In fact, I think you'll probably wind up ranking this chapter, right behind the the first, bypassing Scream 2 & 3 in the process.

Hanna

Hanna

Opened yesterday. 4/8/11
Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Cate Blanchett and Eric Bana
Directed:  Joe Wright
Screenplay: Seth Lochead and David Farr

Premise:  Young girl raised, by father, to be the ultimate killing machine, leaves her life of isolation and heads out into the world. 

Over the years I've assembled a pretty decent sense about how I'm going to feel about a movie before seeing it.  Sometimes I get fooled, but not very often.  I guess it really doesn't make much difference though, seeing I even go to the ones I don't think I'll enjoy.  This film does not fall into that category, not even a little.  I love movies but due to the various pay per month outlets, like netflix and so forth, that have popped up these past several years, I rarely buy Blu-Rays anymore.  But this film will be one of the few discs I do pick up.  Just so you can see the kinds of films I buy, the last five I've bought were Let Me In (I do like the original, but I can catch that on Netflix, and most the people I know can't put up with subtitles), Inception, Kick-Ass and Avatar.  This will be the next one.

I thought it would be a straight-up revenge film, but twisted up a little.  It wasn't at all.  Hanna turned out to be a coming of age story with definite questions on display.

The first and last scenes of the film show how a sheltered life, in the purest sense, can lead to an obscure view of the world.  Animals and humans aren't really different in the eyes of someone trained to hunt for survival.  

This theme of sheltered vs "civilized" is played out throughout the entire film.  One scene shows Hanna drop some, freshly cut, meat on a table of the family she was tagging along with.  She states "I brought breakfast".  The young girl said something to the effect of gross.  As an observer we find humor in the situation.  Parents of the family must feel awkwardness, the girl must be thinking "what a freak" and Hanna must be confused.  This idea translates from culture to culture, and can be seen anytime someone from one culture visits anothers, not fully knowing the differences between them.  Another has Hanna, alone with a boy.  She asks the boy if they should kiss.  He goes in to kiss her, and she flips him over to the ground, almost out some raw, animal-like instinct.

The main theme, for me, in this film was the coming of age story.  They did a good job showing Bana's character teacher Hanna.  But then it was very obvious that there was only so much "teaching" can do.  Eventually you must experience.  From the first time she sees a family interact to her infatuation with song and dance.  Music was repeated numerous times throughout the film, each time tying in nicely to this coming of age idea.  There was numerous times where Hanna was oblivious to simple things we all take for granted, such as coffee pots, the flicking on and off of lights and just the way people interact with one another.  Naivety on Hanna's part was another thread in this theme, thinking that a man she met was one of the brothers grimm, of who she read stories by.  But through the story you can tell and see that she was growing up and becoming more and more acclimated, and would continue on this path long after the credits roll.

Adapt or die is listed on the poster and is another theme weaved throughout the film.  I feel going into detail on this idea could spoil the film for some, and therefore I leave it at that.  But I will say this concept of adaptation is integral to not only her survival, but also her adjustment and growth as she comes of age.

For some more detailed reviews of Hanna, please check out Rottentomatoes.com, Hollywoodreporter.com and Criticapproved.com to name a few.  Additional information and trailers can be found at these sites as well as imdb.com. 

Let me know what you think about this movie or any other you've seen lately. 
   

A Closer Look at a Few K-CUP Flavors

Here are five of my favorite K-Cup varieties:

1.  Donut Shop by Coffee People.
             This blend is your typical get up on a weekday moring, toss your suit on quickly and realize you didn't set the coffee maker the night before, so you skip breakfast and hit the drive through at your local donut shop.  There's nothing really flashy or exotic up this one, just some plain old joe to start your day.

2.  Golden French Toast by Green Mountain Coffee

             I have to admit I had no intention of purchasing this flavor initially.  Yet two things combined, providing reason for addition to the cart.  First, I was some ten or so dollars away from free shipping and second, I thought it said golden French Roast.  But I'm so glad I bought it.  This flavor is easily my favorite coffee Keurig has on the market.  Subtle notes of cinnamon and maple syrup to go along with a smooth medium roast.  Only bad thing about this flavor is that it'll be gone soon.  I really wish they would do the Limited Editions.

 3.    Paul Newmans Special Blend

If you like extremely amped up coffee, this is for you.  If you like to be edgy and wired all day, this one is for you.  If you like a punch in the chest to wake up in the morning, yep, this one's for you.  My father loves this flavor.  Personally I don't like it very much at all.  I had two cups, on different occasions, and each time I felt shaky and my entire body was unsettled for hours after consumption.  It's weird because I used to guzzle down Latte's at Starbucks all the time and never had any trouble. But for some reason this and Black Magic (not reviewed) produced the same edgy, uneasy feeling each cup.

4.    Chocolate Raspberry Truffle by Van Houtte

This one's a hit in this house.  Everyone that comes over tries it and loves it.  I had to buy a few boxes the last order, just to make sure I had some around.  It's basically like having your cake and drinking it too.  The aroma as it's brewing is intoxicating as it overtakes the whole house.  There isn't any need for sugar or sweetener as this one's pretty sweet on it's own.  I froth myself some milk and pour it over the coffee and then dip biscotti into it, and yummy.  The coffee has a nice full bodied Chocolate taste with just the right proportionate notes of raspberry flavor to make for a very nice after dinner cup of coffee.

5.  Wild Mountain Blueberry by Green Mountain Coffee (Not Pictured)

I'm the only one in the house that likes this one.  The others who had a cup thought it repeated on them too much.  While I do agree there is an aftertaste with this one, I don't mind it very much.  Again we have a brew that doubles as a air freshener, as it fills the house with a nice blueberry scent.  I find the blueberry flavor refreshing and tasty.  My mother feels it has too much the artificial taste.  But I guess to each their own.  I bought the sample pack first and then went and bought a full pack. 

I'll add more K-Cup reviews as I try them.  If you have any you'd like to share please drop it off as a comment and I'll review it and add it to the reviews.

Enjoy.

Butter Toffee K-Cup by Gloria Jean's and Keurig Milk Frother

BonJour Frother, Manual Caffe Froth Maximus, Brushed Stainless SteelGloria Jeans Butter Toffee K-Cup, for the Keurig brewing systems offers a pleasantly tasty aroma that fills the kitchen upon brewing.  The taste is good, but not as Heathbar-like as I would prefer.  It has that toffee flavoring to it but I've found to really enhance the satisfication with this flavor go and froth yourself some milk and pour butterscotch syrup all over it.  Yummy.

Keurig offers a stainless steel frother, which does a very good job and cleanup is simple too.   Link above review.

Keurig K-Cups

Like many of you, I'm a big coffee drinker.  I kept hearing people talk about how great the Keurig system was, so this past Christmas I bought one, and overall I'm very pleased with the ease of use and the variety of flavors the system offers.  What I'd like to get down in this posting is some quick takes on positives and negatives I've experienced so far using the Keurig system.

Positives:

How easy it is to use, really can't be grasped until you make your first cup.  Literally ten minutes after my dad opened it on Christmas day, (yes I gave it as a gift), we were all enjoying our first k-cup.  The version we have has 3 settings, depending on the size cup you want to fill.  One thing to keep in mind though is the lower the setting, the stronger the brew.  Of course the opposite holds true as well.  Making yourself a cup is as easy as filling the water area, popping in the k-cup, waiting a few minutes for the lights to flash, and then brew.  It really is that easy.

The variety of flavors offered is expansive.  Whatever your taste preference is, you can probably find
a cup to go along with it.  They carry everything from a normal cup of coffee, to an extra, extra bold cup.  They have a decent variety of tea flavors for the tea drinkers out there.  And then they have every flavor from Cinnamon to Peach to Wild Blueberry available.  The system also boasts a nice variety of vendors, green mountain being the largest, which would be expected seeing they are the parent company of Keurig.  That said they don't lack for big name's either, having coffees from Paul Newman to Emeril to Wolfgang Puck.

For the most part the flavors all pretty much taste good too. I've had a few "don't think I can finish this one" moments, as well as a few "meh" experiences, but overall pretty good quality as far as taste goes.

Availability for the staple coffees in their java arsenal can be found everywhere from grocery stores to convenience stores to online vendors.

Negatives:

Cost is the biggest negative on the list.  In my area, at the grocery stores, you can typically find a 12 pack for around $9.00 to &10.00 dollars.  Occasionally you can find them on sale at retail outlets such as Macy's and Bonton for around $11.00 for 18 packs, which is a better value.  Although when not on sale they run around $16.00 dollars for 18 packs.  So the cost is a little pricy considering you're paying between .45 and .65 cents per cup, which is much higher than buying the grounds and making them in a traditional brewer.  However when you are buying a large coffee from a donut shop for roughly $2.00 a cup it does save you substantially in this respect.

Another negative is that not all the flavors are available everywhere.  Some you just have to order online from Keurig.com  or from Amazon.com, but the positive spin from ordering online is you'll get more for less.  Only real drawback is waiting the 3-10 days for delivery.  I've shopped both locales and have had pretty good luck getting them within a few days from the order, and by spending over specified amounts you get free shipping in some cases.

The final drawback is, well, a subjective one.  I was drinking roughly 2-3 cups a day before getting the Keurig and now I'm drinking between 5-7 a day.  It's just so easy to make them, and most of the coffee is so good, the temptation just stares at you from it's counter perch.  Not for those with low or weak will power.

Keep an eye out for a follow up post I'll be writing a little later on featuring many of the individual K-cups I've tried so far.

Source Code

Source Code

The new technology based time-travelling thriller starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Monaghan and Vera Farmiga.  Opened April 1st, 2011.

Seeing this is the first film I'll be reviewing for Sqwerm I'd like to detail my process up front, to avoid any "huh", "what" moments.

The way I see movie reviews in general is a very subjective medium that everyone and their brothers and sisters, and sister-girlfriends sister's put together.  The reason for this mass interest in movie reviews is that it's not as hard as those who do it professionally would like to convince you otherwise. 

For this reason you can find everything from blurbs on fandango.com/, to in-depth reviews on numerous other source-sites.  Since the user can easily do a google search, and find the review for whichever film they're considering laying down the forty or fifty dollars that the cinema will likely extract from them after all is said and done; I'd like to just get my take down, on record, a little differently than the others.

While I certainly, on most occasions, will not be as detailed or thorough as the long review, I will put a little more into then the blurbs and five word reviews found in cyberland.  This all stated, lets get into the Source Code.

Before heading down to the local Regal, a few blocks from my home, I often try to get myself into the mood of whichever film I'll be seeing that afternoon.  This time was no different.  I thought the previews did a pretty good job explaining the gist of the premise, without giving away the interesting details.  I knew this would be a film about a soldier who would be travelling back into the body of another man for the last eight minutes of that man's life, all in an attempt to curtail or stop domestic terrorist activity.  I knew there would be a bit of romance between Gyllenhaal and Monaghan's characters.  And I knew something would be some bit of conflict going on between Gyllenhaal and Vera Farmiga's characters.  All this worked out, except what they didn't tell you was that there really was a lot more going on thematically in this film.  You can find a trailer at enterthesourcecode.com.

So I knew there would be a sort of Groundhog Day thing going on, and wondered if they'd do a good job with the repeating scenarios or if it would simply make for an overly repetitive experience. 

To the film itself.  For starters I'll say the repetition was well done.  Bits of new information would appear as Colter Stevens travelled his way back into Sean Frentiss in each eight minute interval.  There were elements that they had to keep each time, but they put them in there in a neat way.  An example, A woman would walk by and spill coffee on Steven's shoe.  Later in the film, Stevens would give the lady a head's up, and watch her step.  Also pay close attention to the flashbacks that repeat each time Gyllenhaal gets transported back to the present day.  I'm not going to spoil it for you, but there is something in the flashback that is off and you'll later find out as the movie finishes up. 

The main themes in this film I saw were, The ability to Play God, What's good for the Goose..., Remorse and Repent, and Simply doing the right thing.

The ability to play God is not stated, however anytime something significant about going back and changing events in time, the idea must pop into your head.  A perfect way I find analyzing such impossible questions with no correct answer is to look at it as what would happen if no one tried, what then would or could happen.?  And what are we really supposed to do?  Is there a reason for this ability or tactic as being conceived, or is it all a test?  Anyhow, I may get a bit more thought provoked than the average viewer, but I think it's an important notion to mention.

Another unstated element to this film regards Business vs Employees so to speak.  Is the right for the worker outweighed by the future for the organization.  It's very subtle, and I'm towing a fine line without spoiling anything but after you see the film, just think for a minute, what reason could the head research scientist have for some of the decisions he makes on Steven's behalf, despite a repeated favoring towards a very different direction by the Capt.


Remorse is shown through Steven's own family shortcomings, and his drive towards helping those people on the train really reflect his need to atone for what he felt as a major dissapoint in his own life.

Doing the right thing falls squarely on the shoulders of Vera Farmiga's character, Goodwin.  She is posed with doing her job, obeying direct orders or doing what is right for another human being(s).

Altogether it played out well.  Could they have done things a bit differently and perhaps added a little more oomph at times?  Sure, but the same can be said about a lot of other films, and should not detract for the quality of what was made.

I'd reccomend this film for anyone who enjoys films with suspenseful overtones amongst a mystery, or for those who enjoy science fiction without out too much of what is typically included in its genre.

The next film I'm looking to see is Hanna, which opens pretty soon.  For more information and traditional styled reviews for Source Code or others, you can visit rottentomatoes.com, variety.com, and also imdb.com, a personal favorite for all things film.

Surtur Rising by Amon Amarth

Surtur Rising

Amon Amarth got their start nearly 20 years ago.  They hail from Sweden and actually released their first album, well demo really, Thor Arise in 1993, around the same time as the Swedish Death Metal scene really took off.  It had been around for a little while before this but by 1992 Entombed had really separated themselves from the other bands in this genre.. 

With Amon Amarth, things were a bit different.  While their early offerings were every bit as raw and "garage-like" as the other bands in this scene, what differentiated them was the lyrics they chose to use combined with the presence they imposed upon a crowd.  Virtually all of Amon Amarth's recordings pay homage to Norse Mythology and their regions rich tradition regarding Viking lore. 

While much of their earlier recordings were an assault upon the listener, it was the Mythogical and Viking narrative, told through guttural and almost supernatural vocality, that drew the attention they had.  While remaining true to their roots, each of their recordings began to show a bit more from the band, in terms of the variance and rhythmic blending they chose to employ.  Today's Amon Amarth, one could say, is a purely evolved version of the band, that once roared through  Black Sabbath's namesake classic, claiming it as their own.

Surtur Rising, the newest offering by the band contains 11 tracks, each building upon the one that came before.  The record opens with "War of the Gods", a melodic tribute to the roots I've touched upon.  Johan Hegg's trademark vocals alongside the power of his band mates help set the tone for Surtur.  The band even incorporated a bit of choral qualities at points throughout the song.  They continue with the very lyrically rhythmic tale "Tock's Taunt-Loke's Treachery Pt. 2".

The Third, "Destroyer of the Universe" and Fourth, "Slaves of Fear" are about as commercial as these guys get.  Very good lyrics wrapped nicely amongst perfected instrumentation. "Live without Regrets", also has its fair share of catchy hooks neatly transitioning into the heart of the album. 

The rest of the album is dominating.  In each of the remaining songs effectiveness, each offering a new element to the palette.  "The Last Stand of Frej", is perhaps the most moving track on Surtur, where interwoven rhythmic tendencies stand united with softer, and at times ethereal rhythms.  "For Victory of Death", is a straight up call to arms, combining inspiration and pride into a finely tuned Battle Hymn. 

For me,"Wrath of the Norsemen" is without a doubt the most powerful song on the album.  For me, it has all the qualities I find so magnetizing in "Under the Northern Star", from their 2006 album, "With Odin on our Side.", in my opinion, one of the greatest songs ever written, for any genre.  This song is a guttural narrative encapsulating a beautiful plea for help, "Somebody Wake me/From this horrible dream/Somebody save me/From this terror I feel"  Then as the song concludes, a somber realization dawns "No one can save me/From this horrible dream/No one can hear me/Over heartbreak and screams"

"A Beast am I", is the unfortunate victim of location.  It is sandwiched between,what I feel to be, the two most powerful songs on the entire album.  It does not deserve such a fate.  It is a very solid effort, where Hegg is almost chanting his reflections; a song that begins with Fredrick Andersson, laying down some heavy beats. Combine this with haunting additions like, abbreviated howling and low level guttural inflection, and you get "A Beast am I".

"Doom over Dead Men", Is another track which is very effective and extremely powerful in both function and form.  The skill sets of Johan Soderburg, Olavi Mikkonen and Ted Lundstrom on guitars and bass, really come alive.  The hook in this song is very effective in its usage of anaphora, on display throughout the chorus.

The album concludes with a cover of "System of a Down's", "Aerials".  Amon Amarth stays pretty close to the original in overall replication.  The difference being a heavier arrangement along with Hegg' vocals. The result, a remastering of a very good song.

I have a somewhat biased ear for this particular type of metal, and this band specifically, but if the album was not how I described it to be, then I would have attacked each failing nuance, with the ferocity of a dragon.  Clearly, this album is a must own for any fans of the band or its genre.  Viking Metal at its best.

Poetry Dictionary

Poetry DictionaryOn another site I publish a poetry blog.  Although my particular poetical style is one of spontaneity and stream of consciousness, I thought it would be a good idea to check out a variety of poetic references.  One such reference I picked up is The Poetry Dictionary by John Drury. 

For a reference tool, this dictionary is quite readable.  It's arranged in alphabetized chapters and is jam packed with useful information for anyone interested in poetry.  The author is very comprehensive in the breadth of what he includes.  Where applicable he not only provides pronunciation but also where the term originated to go along with any historical significance for the majority of the listings.

But what I found of particular value, as a practicing poet myself, was all the various forms he included.  He not only includes the common forms such as Ballads, Sonnets, Free and Narrative Verse, but also includes forms specific to various countries such as the Blason, Canzone, Limerick, Haiku,  Sestina, Tanka, and Villanelle.  Also included are fun forms like the Abecadarium, Acrostic, Chance Poetry, City Poem, Echo Verse, and the Palinode.

In my opinion, Mr. Drury does a nice job going through and defining the various devices a poet may use such as Alliteration, Catalexis, End Stop, Enjambment, Metaphor and Simile.  He does the poet a great service, which from where I sit, is worth the price of admission alone, by breaking down individual forms to their appropriate, traditional and at times varying rhyme schemes.  The reader will learn about meters, feet, stanzas and composition along with a variety of item specific nuances the student will find.  He discusses Prosody which is useful to the poet but indespensible for the songwriter.

I have to admit I did briefly research the pages before making the purchase, but for under ten dollars, I didn't put all that much research into in prior to checkout.  That said I was expecting a good base line for the terms a poet and scholar of poetry may come across, and then if a particular term needed further research than I could also do that.  But as I've mentioned in this review, Mr. Drury is comprehensive as he can be in such a wide scaled reference tool.  Are there opportunities to find material elsewhere to elaborate on individual terms, of course, but as is normally the case with references.  In conclusion I can safely say the book itself, for all it is, far exceded any preconception I had prior to receipt.  This is the type of reference anyone interested in the art of poetry should have on his/her shelf, right next to a high quality thesaurus, such as The Synonym Finder, and any good rhyming dictionary, which there are a few available.