All Forms of Art

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First Crush – Sweet and Realistic Growing-up Book

After loving The New Girl and watching my daughter read it at least a dozen times, I hoped First Crush would live up to it. Good news: it did! Cassandra Calin 's second graphic novel about Lia is just as sweet, funny, and relatable as the first one. If anything, I enjoyed this one just as much—perhaps because Lia is now moving into another stage of growing up, and the problems she faces feel so familiar. First Crush follows Lia as she continues adjusting to life in Canada while navigating friendships, her first crush, her relationship with her parents, and all the physical and emotional changes that come with growing up. The story is officially aimed at middle-grade readers, and I think that is one of its greatest strengths. It Feels Like Real Teen Life One of the things I appreciate most about this series is how genuinely young its characters feel. Sometimes books aimed at children or young teenagers make their characters behave like much older teenag...

Sinners – A Strange Night of Music, Vampires and Freedom

I went into Sinners knowing surprisingly little. I knew it had Michael B. Jordan, I knew people were talking about it, and that was pretty much it. So when the vampires showed up, I was genuinely surprised. Sinners doesn't begin like a vampire movie. It begins with music, family, racism, violence, and the dream of freedom. Set in Mississippi in 1932, the film gives us a very clear picture of how racial separation affected everyday life. It isn't presented as some distant historical concept. It is simply part of how the community functions. And then the vampires arrive. It sounds like a ridiculous combination when you put it that way. Somehow, it works. Music as an escape The thing I liked most about Sinners is its relationship with music. Music is an escape for these characters, both physically and metaphorically. It gives them somewhere to go when the world around them offers few choices. And the movie doesn't just tell us that music is powerful. It makes us feel ...

Alexandria Riley: From Welsh Theatre to Silo

Alexandria Riley is a Welsh actress and writer whose career has moved comfortably between comedy, crime, drama and science fiction. While she has been working in British television for several years, her international profile grew considerably with her role as Camille Sims in Apple TV+'s Silo . Riley has played a tremendous variety of characters. She has appeared in everything from the dark comedy The End of the F **ing World* to the crime drama The Pembrokeshire Murders , Netflix's Baby Reindeer , and the dystopian world of Silo . Her career shows an actress capable of moving between very different tones without becoming associated with only one type of role. Early Career and Training Riley was born and raised in Newport, Wales. She studied Applied Drama at the University of Wales, Newport before continuing her training at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama, where she completed an MA in Acting for Stage, Screen and Radio in 2022. Her early career included work ...

Silo Season 3 - The Power of Memories

Season 3 of Silo starts with a moment of supposed peace. Juliette ( Rebecca Ferguson ) is back. She is now something of an icon for the people inside the silo—the one who went out and came back. But the peace is fake, and before long, it becomes clear that Juliette’s return has changed everything. The Real Power Juliette is now Mayor, elected by the people out of love and admiration. There is a Council now, where the Heads of each department talk, share ideas, and solve problems together. It all looks very democratic. But we know better. Inside the Silo, the real power still belongs to the Head of IT—and that's Camille ( Alexandria Riley ). Camille was directly chosen by the supposed computer to be Head of IT. At first, I assumed it was because there was something special about her. The real reason was much scarier: she was ruthless. She obeys, and she isn't afraid of doing terrible things if she believes they are for the greater good. The Power of Stories Stories were al...

Pedro Alonso: Charismatic Even in Madness

Some actors become famous because of one character, but a small percentage can make it almost impossible for audiences to separate the character from their identity. For many viewers worldwide, Pedro Alonso is Berlín. The Spanish actor became internationally famous for playing Andrés de Fonollosa, better known as Berlín, in Money Heist ( La Casa de Papel ). The character was arrogant, sophisticated, unpredictable, and often deeply unpleasant — yet somehow impossible to look away from. Alonso gave him enough charm and vulnerability to become one of the most memorable characters in the series. But there is much more to Pedro Alonso than Berlín. From Vigo to the Stage Pedro González Alonso was born on June 21, 1971, in Vigo, Galicia, Spain. He developed an interest in acting at a young age and eventually moved to Madrid, where he studied at the prestigious Real Escuela Superior de Arte Dramático (RESAD) and graduated in 1992. He also studied at Teatro de la Danza. His professio...

Jeff Kinney: The Author Behind Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Jeff Kinney is the American author and illustrator best known for creating Diary of a Wimpy Kid , one of the most successful children's book series of the 21st century. Born in Maryland in 1971, Kinney originally dreamed of becoming a newspaper cartoonist rather than a children's author. While studying at the University of Maryland, he created a comic strip called Igdoof for the university newspaper. After college, however, he struggled to get his work syndicated. Instead of giving up on his ideas, Kinney eventually found another way to use them. From Cartoonist to Children's Author Kinney began developing the ideas that would become Diary of a Wimpy Kid in the late 1990s. He worked on the project for several years before publishing it online on Funbrain in daily installments in 2004. The response was enormous. After attracting millions of views online, the project was eventually turned into a print book. Diary of a Wimpy Kid was published in 2007 and quickly becam...