Star Donovan's Favorite Stuff

Favorite Books

  • Anything by Enid Blyton, the prolific British children’s author.  I cried when she died.
  • Books by James Herriott because he lives and works in glorious British countryside, and I love farms and cows, sheep, horses, lambs, and chickens
  • The Harry Potter books, especially the first one because it’s about how Harry first found out he was a wizard
  • The Lightning Thief series by Rick Riordan. Gappy thinks Percy Jackson is like him 
  • Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Dracula is Gappy’s great-great-great-great-great-something uncle
  • The Narnia books by C.S. Lewis
  • The Five Children and It and The Story of the Amulet by E. Nesbit
  • The Little Vampire series by Angela Sommer-Bodenburg, about a young boy who makes friends with a vampire
  • The Golden Compass books by Philip Pullman
  • Winter of Enchantment by Victoria Walker
  • The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings by J.R. Tolkein
  • The Weirdstone of Brisingamen and The Moon of Gomarth by Alan Garner
  • The Belgariad series by David Eddings
  • The Goosebumps series, recommended by a FaceBook fan
  • The Dark Tower series by Stephen King.  On his advice I haven't read the spoiler on the last page
  • It, The Stand, Salem’s Lot, Thinner, and The Langoliers by Stephen King
  • The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub. Thay make you believe it could be possible to travel to a parallel world.
  • Michael Lewis books about stockbrokers and the stockmarket - I know, right? Contrast.
  • David Baldacci, John Grisham, Michael Crichton, Robin Cook, Desmond Bagley, Duncan Kyle, Georgette Heyer, Victoria Holt, Alistair Maclean. I've just discovered Maeve Binchey, Jilly Cooper, and Nora Roberts.
  • My ultimate favorite author of adult books is Dick Francis. and now his son, Felix Francis, is carrying on the great tradition.
  • A Secret Garden and The Wolves of Willoughby Chase​

Favorite TV and Netflix Shows

  • Walking Dead!!! Fear the Walking Dead, The 100, The Last Ship, Survivors and other plague or end-of-the-world shows.
  • Dark Shadows – I cried when they took it off, but that’s what usually happens to shows I like.
  • Prison Break - I never wanted the episodes to end but it looks like it's coming back!
  • 24 - the ultimate in suspense. So glad it's back.
  • Some reality TV shows, especially Amazing Race and Hell's Kitchen. I used to be a big Survivor fan too ‘cause I’d love to spend time on a desert island. Knowing my luck, however, I’d probably get voted off the first week! 
  • Downton Abbey, Poldark and similar British TV shows
  • Seinfeld
  • Glee and Smash
  • Seinfeld and The Big Bang Theory - great fun
  • Once Upon a Time
  • Desperate Housewives
  • Fawlty Towers
  • 60 Minutes - they always have such great stories
  • Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul
  • Madmen
  • House of Cards - The U.S. version, especially season 1. I like the British version too.
  • Orange is the New Black
  • Bachelor/Bachelorette - yes, I know.  My husband watches too, but don't tell anyone

Favorite Movies

  • Towering Inferno
  • Halloween
  • Nightmare on Elm Street
  • The Final Destination movies
  • Jurassic Park movies
  • Juno
  • Foreign and British films. 
  • Movies about the stock market
  • Documentaries on the state of America's public schools and the healthcare system
  • Secret Garden (TV movie)
  • Welcome to the Dollhouse
  • Napoleon Bonaparte
  • Blue Jasmine
  • Most Woody Allen movies, e.g. Midnight in Paris
  • Lost in Translation - don't know why but it really got to me