Pretty close, huh? Fillion’s got the rugged good looks and debonair charm to fill the Drake role. Not that Mark Wahlberg would have been bad. Marky Mark knows how to do action, but look at Mr. Fillion! We’ve got a winner folks!

However, here is a real bone of contention I’m currently having with Hollywood: Tom Cruise playing Lee Child’s Jack Reacher!

Are you serious, Casting Director?! They don’t look anything alike! Jack Reacher is something like 250 pounds, muscles beyond muscles, 6′ 5″, and blond hair! Tom Cruise is short! He is like 5’7″ on a good day! And the hair…

Now, if they were actually looking for an actor that could really stand up (haha) to the Jack Reacher legacy, let’s try out Alexander Skarsgard of True Blood: 6’4″, 250lbs, and best of all, blond hair. How about Mr. Skarsgard as Jack Reacher?

Perfect! He’s got the muscles, the hair, and the olive drab t-shirt! He’s perfect for the part! This is Jack Reacher right here!

Where can we vote for Mr. Skarsgard and get Tom Cruise off the One Shot island?

Unbroken is the latest offering by Laura Hillenbrand, the woman who wrote Seabiscuit. Several of my friends and family have read this moving story, so I figured I’d give it a shot.

Now you have to understand, I am not a big fan of non-fiction, especially tragic non-fiction. I have spent a good part of my life trying to escape reality, so usually it is wild, crazy fiction for me. Zombies, robots, unrealistic action and adventure. This is where I live. Unbroken on the other hand, is pure unadulterated life and life at its worst. This book was hard to read at times, but oh so worth it.

Unbroken is the story of former Olympic runner, Louis Zamperini. After competing in the 1936 Olympics, Louie finds himself drafted into World War II as a bombardier on a “Flying Coffin”, otherwise known as a B-24 bomber. Throughout the course of the book, Zamperini finds himself shipwrecked, lost at sea, and then eventually a Japanese Prisoner of War. Hillenbrand is a meticulous researcher and she spares us none of the gruesome details of Louie’s time as a POW. However, as bad as his experiences are, his story really exemplifies the character qualities that are mentioned in the title. Throughout all the good and bad things that happened to Louis Zamperini during the course of his life and in particular his imprisonment, he survives beyond all odds, bounces back despite his circumstances, and finds redemption not only with his captors, but with all the others that share in his life. Redemption in this book also refers to the fact that Loius accepts Christ at a Billy Graham Crusade. The ultimate redemption: being brought back in to relations with his loving Heavenly father through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.

My father-in-law both share the same view of the latter events. We wished Hillenbrand had delved more into Zamperini’s life after accepting Christ and his work with Billy Graham, however, the book was about his WWII experiences and his time with Christ and Graham certainly take place after WWII. She stuck to the time period faithfully, dedicating only a few chapters to Loius’ post-war experiences.

Hillenbrand has a great writing style that is informative, you not boring. I personally could have lived without all the grueling details of Louis’ detainment, but she writes about them in detail, and in doing so really drives home how much misery and woe one person can take and not give up. Resilience exemplified.

I highly recommend this as an essential read for anyone. Great book!

Up next: The Help by Kathryn Stockett

The two things that swayed me to the Nook were these: the battery life is two months (versus Kindle’s one) and that it has as touch screen. I can advance pages with a touch of the screen, but can also use the bumpers if I desire. Overall it is lighter, smaller,  and just slicker all the way around. When you need to use a keyboard, a digital one appears on the screen.

I’ve also heard that the Nook Simple Touch runs on the popular Android software. Here is a little known fact: you can use the search feature on the Nook when connected to Internet and you have a simple web browser at your disposal. Good for viewing, but the Nook software does not let you type when pulling up Gmail or Facebook. Maybe this feature will come in a future software update.

Overall, I have been very satisfied with the Nook. I was looking for an ereader, not a tablet. The iPad 2 would win that battle, even though the Nook Color is a pretty slick little tablet coming in at a mere $249. I have read several books on the Nook so far and am very happy with it. I just downloaded a NKJV bible for it, and that has been cool so far as well.

A New York real estate tycoon plunges to his death on a Manhattan sidewalk. A trophy wife with a past survives a narrow escape from a brazen attack. Mobsters and moguls with no shortage of reasons to kill trot out their alibis. And then, in the suffocating grip of a record heat wave, comes another shocking murder and a sharp turn in a tense journey into the dirty little secrets of the wealthy. Secrets that prove to be fatal. Secrets that lay hidden in the dark until one NYPD detective shines a light.

The major reason, I believe, for not blogging is also a lack of focus or a reason to write. When I started this blog, it was very politically motivated. It was the 2004 election and as a good conservative, I was waging the word war to “convince” people that George Bush and the Republican Party was the way to go. While we know how that turned out, I have become less political since then. Not that I don’t espouse what I believe, but I’ve given up trying to sway people to my view of things. If they share my views great, if not, that is great too. I can only go with my conscience. My conscience can’t dictate what you believe, even though sometimes I wish it could…

Consequently, the World of Tomorrow has not really had a voice since then. I’ve tried to tackle pop culture, which is great, but it’s pretty much fluff. How much stuff can I write about comic books and video games? I do like to watch movies and read, so that will have a place here. It is good to share interests with others. I do like to write, but I lack focus. It is time to try and find my voice again.

From here on out, at least for a couple weeks (that’s my guess), I’m going to try and write again and talk about “the world of tomorrow”. A recent event in the world threatens to impact my life negatively. I need to give a voice to that. More on that to come in a different post. It deserves its own space and focus.

Also, if you didn’t know, I believe in the essential and saving power of Jesus Christ. My relationship with God was broken, and Jesus came to restore that relationship with Him. He gave his life and shed His blood as a sacrifice for me. But not only for me, but for everyone in the world. We all have the need for a relationship with Jesus, whether we know it or not. Maybe this is where the voice of this blog needs to be heard. Our actions today can definitely influence our world tomorrow, whether it be half way across the world or the person next door.

Wish me luck as I endeavor to breathe life back into the “World of Tomorrow”!

As Jess has been bringing home books, I’ve dutifully said, “Oh, I’ll read them” and when I’ve put aside my myriad of distractions, I actually start. I love to read, so tackling some adoption books sounded like no big deal. I started reading several of these books and then my male brain noticed something: these books are all written by women!

While all the women out there are saying, “So?”, all of us men should be saying, “Where are all the books written by the guys for the guys?!?!” While these books were great, I wasn’t connecting because, well, I’m a man! And I repeated this mantra many times when asked, “Are you reading any of the adoption books?”

Well, my wonderful wife listened to my plaintive cries and found me a couple of books for my birthday that are from, finally, the male perspective.

The first book is by a sports writer (how manly…) by the name of Ted Kluck and is called Hello, I Love You: Adventures In Adoptive Fatherhood. He and his wife adopted two boys from the Ukraine. This book is an absolute riot! He starts by talking about his interactions with the Ukrainian Special Police. Their alarm on the rented flat didn’t quite work the way it was supposed to. I’ve laughed and cried as a fellow man writes about his experiences in adoptive fatherhood. Great read so far!

The other book Jess got me was by John Newton. It’s called Letters And Reflections To My Adopted Daughters. John Newton, as many of you know, is the guy who penned the classic hymn “Amazing Grace”. While this one is old school, I’ve looking forward to reading it. I’m sure fatherly advice and love hasn’t changed over the last couple hundred years…

Adoptive dads-to-be, here are some books for you! Enjoy and embrace your manliness!!!

Our beloved Agent Pendergast returns to action in New York when two of his friends are attacked by what appears to be, wait for it, a zombie. Craziness then ensues as Pendergast and D’Agnosta run around the city investigating a cult that lives in an old abandoned castle in the middle of New York City and a ghastly murder or two. I’m hopefully not going to spoil it for you, but long-time readers be prepared for some surprises.

What can I say about this book that long time reader’s don’t already know? As I said before, this is a return to form for Preston/Child. This story is fast-paced and full of surprises, action, and adventure. Their style is very easy to read and the story unfolds quickly before you  so you want to keep reading to see what happens.

If you haven’t read a Pendergast novel or any Preston/Child collaboration, this is a great time to start. This book stands alone, but I’ll guarantee you’ll go back and read them all from the beginning.

Up next: This is kind of like a choose your own adventure. Either it will be The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger or Impact by Douglas Preston. It just depends on which one I get done reading first.

So, that quip aside, let’s actually talk about who should play the iconic American hero. According to Parellel Universe, the list is somewhat short. Her are the leaders for the role: John Krasinski (The Office), Channing Tatum, Ryan Phillipe, Dane Cook (huh?), and Chris Evans. The list is longer, but who really cares? From this list, there is only one clear choice for me, and that would be Chris Evans.

Evans is best known for his previous role as The Human Torch, aka, Johnny Storm in the Fantastic Four movie. He also starred int the movie Push, which I thought was a really good Sci-Fi film.

Anyway, my choice from the short list is Evans. He’s got the look and could probably pull off the straight-laced Steve Rogers, the super-soldier from WWII that becomes trapped under the ice and is revived decades later to once again become an American icon and champion.

Putting aside that Captain America was never a fave of mine, why do we need a CA movie? If someone is making an Avengers movie, by all means, Cap should be at the forefront. But in this stand alone feature keep this in mind: this is a character that Marvel killed off in spectacular fashion not that long ago.

Some good news for the movie is that Hugo Weaving (The Matrix) has supposedly been cast as Cap’s nemesis, Red Skull.

There are other issues that the article also brings up that I’m not going to tackle here, but if you want to, check out the link above.