🍺📚 BOOKS ‘N BEER: ‘WIT’ PLAY SUMMARY (MARGARET EDSON, 1995) 🎭
WIT PLAY SUMMARY (MARGARET EDSON, 1995) 🎭 This week in Books ‘n Beer, we read Wit, a serious and surprisingly funny play by Margaret Edson. 🎭 Here is a quick Wit play summary, just as an FYI. 🍺 The play first appeared on stage in 1995, and it won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in […]
🎬🌹📚 SENSE AND SENSIBILITY (2026) MOVIE: NEW RELEASE IN THEATERS 🍿💕
Sense and Sensibility: A Jane Austen Masterpiece: again! 🔥 The Sense and Sensibility 2026 movie is a new romantic drama based on Jane Austen’s famous 1811 novel. 📖 It opens in U.S. theaters today October 16, 2026. 🎟️ What Is the Sense and Sensibility 2026 Movie About? 💌 The story follows two sisters, Elinor and […]
📚🍻BOOKS ‘n BEER: GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS
🏢 GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS 💼 This week in Books ‘n Beer, we discussed Glengarry Glen Ross, both the play and the 1992 movie. Honestly, it is fantastic! I give it five out of five stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and two thumbs up! 👍👍 What Is Glengarry Glen Ross About? David Mamet wrote Glengarry Glen Ross in 1983. […]
🏹🔥 HUNGER GAMES: 8 ENGLISH IDIOMS FOR TALKING ABOUT IT. ⚔️
These common idioms fit the Hunger Games story perfectly. Learn them, and you will sound more natural in English! 🗣️ 1. Against all odds 🎲Meaning: Succeeding when it seems almost impossible.Example: Against all odds, Katniss survived. 2. Beat the odds 🏆Meaning: Do better than people expect.Example: Nobody thought she would win, but she beat the […]
👻🏚️📚 THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE (1959) 🕯️🌙
It’s October in the USA so its Halloween season! One of my all time favorite horror books is the 1959 classic, ‘The Haunting of Hill House.’ (The Netflix series is inspired by the book and also quite different) Shirley Jackson’s classic ghost story follows Eleanor, a lonely and shy young woman who joins a paranormal […]
🍂📚😉IT’S READING SEASON!
🍂IT’S READING SEASON! It’s getting to be that time of year! The weather is getting cooler and more crisp. Autumn/Fall is on its way! So, find a comfortable chair and maybe a nice fireplace. Grab your favorite ‘comfort clothing’ (a pullover?) ‘comfort drink’ (Latte or a Coffee?) and a favorite book, The HUNGER GAMES? 🏹😉
📚🍻BOOKS ‘n BEER: ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Spoilers)
Okay, so this week’s story started as a play. Edward Albee wrote it in 1962. It was a big deal on Broadway in the USA. Shocking. Raw. People didn’t know what to do with it. Then in 1966, they made it into a movie. Same story. Same brutality. But now you could see their faces […]
🎃👻 TREEHOUSE OF HORROR VII: A SPOOKY SIMPSONS CLASSIC 🦇🕸️
A student and I are watching and analyzing the English and cultural references in, ‘Treehouse of Horror VII’! It’s almost October and Halloween is just around the corner in the USA! A student and I are watching a famous Simpson’s episode. Halloween season means one thing in the Simpsons universe: it’s time for “Treehouse of […]
📚🏁READING SPEED: A RACING ANALOGY from Ford vs Ferrari (2019)🏎️
A reading and racing comparison: ‘Ford Vs. Ferrari’ 2019 🎬 How fast should you go when reading something? THAT is a good question. The answer is, you should read as fast as you can while still understanding what you are reading. So, how do you know exactly how fast is best for YOU? 🤔 Let’s […]
📘 🏹WHY THE HUNGER GAMES IS LEVEL B2
The Hunger Games is rated B2 on the CEFR scale. This means it is suitable for upper-intermediate English learners. Here is why. 1. 📚 VOCABULARY The book uses everyday language for most of the story. Words like “hunger,” “survive,” “district,” and “tribute” are repeated often, which helps learners remember them. However, the book also uses some difficult words that are not common in […]
📚🍻BOOKS ‘n BEER: A LONG DAYS JOURNEY INTO NIGHT (2026)
We read and watched an old school play this week, ‘A Long Days Journey Into Night. I absolutely loved it! It is extremely rare for me, but I knew this one was a 5/5 star when I was only half finished! It is an amazing one day journey into human relationships, behavior and emotions. And, […]
🎬🍿 GLADIATOR (2000) MOVIE QUOTE
🎬🍿 GLADIATOR MOVIE QUOTE TODAY: Today, we did a quote from a favorite scene of mine from Gladiator. Emperor Commodus is entering Rome for the first time as Emperor. After riding into the city to the cheers of the crowd, he meets Senator Falco on the steps: FALCO: “Rome greets her new emperor. Your loyal […]
🤴🎬STUDENT GETS HOOKED ON ‘THE TUDORS’ ON NETFLIX🍿
A student recently got hooked on the Netflix series, ‘The Tudors.’ Watching series in English or with subtitles is a fun way to learn some English. Discussing it in class is a great way to practice and internalize the language! The Tudors is a historical drama series on Netflix that tells the story of King Henry […]
📚🏹STUDENT FINISHES ‘THE HUNGER GAMES’ IN 11 DAYS. ⚔️
Well, the Hunger Games Book Challenge continues — and yesterday, we had our first finisher! She managed to complete the book in just eleven days. (She is level B2/C1.) Since most students started the book at different times, we don’t know yet who will finish the quickest overall, but eleven days will be hard to […]
1.🎬🎥🍿MOVIE LINE- THE HUNGER GAMES- PRESIDENT SNOW
Part of this month’s game in the Whatsapp group: Recite President Snow’s welcome to the Hunger Games! Give it a try!: Be sure to speak loudly, like you are presenting to a crowd. Also don’t forget your pauses “…” for effect and drama! AND: May the odds be ever in YOUR favor! : President Snow: […]
📚😴 READING BEFORE BED VS. SCROLLING BEFORE BED: What’s Better for Sleep?
‘The Hunger Games’ can help you sleep, believe it or not! 🛌 Right now, 10 of my students are reading The Hunger Games — some of them right before bed! And this made me think about something important: what we do before sleep really changes how well we sleep. 🌙 When you read a book […]
📚🍻BOOKS ‘n BEER: HUNGER GAMES DISCUSSION 2
Had another discussion at the bar for ‘The Hunger Games’ this weekend. It was a good time AND: of course, my rating of 5/5 Stars still stands! Typically, the more I talk about a book, the more I like it. The Hunger Games is no exception. I am looking forward to further discussion with my […]
📚🍻BOOKS ‘n BEER: 🏹🔥🍞THE HUNGER GAMES
🍞 May the Odds Be Ever in Your Favor 🍞 The Hunger Games… I had been meaning to read it for years. I just finished it for the first time. I do like a good dystopia. The book was interesting, action packed and the it is well written. But, how good was it? I have […]
🏹🏅8 STUDENTS READING ‘THE HUNGER GAMES’!
I am happy to report that eight of my students are reading ‘The Hunger Games’ this month. I say ‘this month’ but there is no time limit. Or is there??😉 Perhaps this will turn into a ‘Hunger Games’ kind of competition to finish reading, ‘The Hunger Games.’ I recently finished the book and it is […]
🔥🏹 THE HUNGER GAMES BOOK 1: TOP 20 VOCABULARY CHALLENGE! 🌲🎯
For this month’s ‘Hunger Games’ readers! : 🔥🏹 THE HUNGER GAMES BOOK 1: TOP 20 ULTIMATE VOCABULARY🌲🎯 Apothecary (uh-PAH-thuh-kair-ee) 🌿💊 Definition: An old-fashioned term for a pharmacist or a shop where medicines are made and sold. Insurmountable (in-sur-MOUN-tuh-bul) 🏔️🚫 Definition: Impossible to overcome or defeat. Entrails (EN-traylz) 🥩🩸 Definition: The inner organs or guts of […]
🏹THE HUNGER GAMES START TOMORROW: AND THE BOOK! 🎯🏹📔
This month’s ESL ENGLISH CHALLENGE, ‘The Hunger Games’ starts tomorrow, September 7th on Whatsapp! The competition will last until the end of the month of September. In September, we will also be reading the book! This is optional, of course and you DO NOT need to read the book or watch the movie to compete […]
🎬🍿📚WUTHERING HEIGHTS (2026) (Prime Video, Apple TV, MAX)
🎬I finally watched ‘Wuthering Heights,’ the 2026 version this past weekend. I had been holding off until now because of its ratings. IMDB gave it a 6.1, Rotten Tomatoes 57%, etc. Those ratings are not great, they are mediocre…So, overall the film has been a disappointment for most viewers. But, given the situation, I have […]
📚🍻BOOKS ‘n BEER: SHAKESPEARE’S ‘MACBETH’
For Books ‘n Beer, we did ‘Macbeth’ this week. It was good to do some Shakespeare. Just good. ‘Macbeth’ is one of Shakespeare’s shortest plays. That’s one of the reason’s we read it. 😉 I do not love Shakespeare and this is the first time I have reread Macbeth in over 30 years. But, it’s […]
📚🍻BOOKS ‘n BEER: SHAKESPEARE’S ‘MACBETH’
We are doing ‘Macbeth’ this week, a classic Shakespeare play… I am not in love with Shakespeare. I have read only three works by him in the past three years. We’ll see how it goes in the discussion this weekend. 😧 (Macbeth is not recommended for ESL learners but perhaps your native language? Maybe not. […]
📺WATCHING OUR 7th SIMPSONS EPISODE
A student and I watched our seventh Simpson’s episode together in two years: ‘Homer’s Enemy’, a classic from 1997! Watching the Simpsons is a creative and fun way to learn English AND classic American culture. I watched this episode live back then and I can’t believe it is now 29 years old! In this famous […]
📚STUDENT READING: ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST🪺🤯🪺
(Story English) A student is reading the classic novel, ‘One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest.’ Why? Well, he found it for 70% off at a book store so he figured it was his destiny to read it in English! Crazy? Maybe! 😜 Either way, he is in for an amazing read! And: the book and […]
📚🍻BOOKS ‘n BEER: ‘THE FALL’ by Camus
Our last discussion was, ‘The Fall’ by Nobel Prize winner Albert Camus. It is a crazy, fun and at times disturbing look into Camus mind. Some even say it is a kind of confession about his own life. 5/5 Stars. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Fall is a small (120 ish pages) philosophical novel published in 1956. It is […]
🎥🍿THE HANDMAID’S TALE (Series and book)
(Story English) A student just finished seasons one and two of, ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’. I personally loved the book and give it 5/5 stars and season 1 as well. The series is rated 8.3/10 on IMDB and can be seen on Hulu, Prime video and Netflix where available. 📺 THE HANDMAID’S TALE – NO SPOILERS […]
🎬🍿🎥HOW TO WATCH MOVIES AND LEARN ENGLISH!
How to Watch Movies in English and Actually Learn Most people watch movies in English and wonder why their English isn’t improving. The problem isn’t the movie. It’s the method. Here’s how to actually learn from movies in English — the Pete’s Lab way. Step 1 — Choose the right movieDon’t start with Shakespeare or […]
📘📚THIS WEEK’S SHORT AUDIO BOOK IS AVAILABLE🤓
“Eveline” is a short story by James Joyce about a young woman torn between staying in her hard, familiar life in Dublin or running away to a new life with a man she loves. It is a quiet, powerful look at the fear of change and the weight of family duty.