Congratulations, Hokku Kireji! Your entry has won you this week's prize. I particularly enjoyed the invocation of our blog, which wasn't too over the top (see Dave's shameless pandering to the judge). As a bonus, I believe you'll find your haiku printed in the pages of The Sun in tomorrow's Ideas section.

You can now claim one of these tech-related books as your prize:

Leonard Susskind's The Black Hole War: My Battle with Stephen Hawking to Make the World Safe for Quantum Mechanics; Greg Melville's Greasy Rider: Two Dudes, One Fry-oil-powered Car and a Cross-country Search for a Greener Future; Christian Lander's Stuff White People Like; or Fritjof Capra's The Science of Leonardo: Inside the Mind of the Great Genius of the Renaissance. Just e-mail me with your address, and the chosen tome is yours.

Man, book titles are getting long! Anyway, thanks for all of the inspired entries, and to those who weren't so lucky, fear not! Next week, (and hopefully every week hereafter) you could win your very own Read Street prize. No, I'm not above bribing you people to continue paying attention to us.

Posted by Nancy Johnston at 5:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 5:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

A battle is brewing in Great Britain over publishers' plans to label children's books with "appropriate" age ratings, and opponents have been joined by a formidable author, J.K. Rowling. She signed an online petition of the No to Age Banding campaign, according to a story in the Guardian.

The petition argues that imposing such age recommendations is "ill-conceived, damaging to the interests of young readers and highly unlikely to make the slightest difference to sales." But publishers cite research suggesting that most consumers want the recommendations. Beginning this fall, book covers of participating publishers will bear a logo indicating they are suitable for readers aged 5+, 7+, 9+, 11+ and 13+/teen.

Some companies are exempt, and others are seeking guidance from their authors, the article says. Rowling's publisher, Bloomsbury, has no plans to introduce the labels, but has not ruled out the idea. What's next, R and PG-13?  

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 10:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
                    

Don't get the wrong idea ... I'm not claiming ownership of the club. I wasn't even there when it was created by some members of Har Sinai congregation. My wife and I have been members for several years, though, joining friends every six weeks or so for great dinners and conversation about books with a Jewish theme.

Now Reading: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, by John Boyne

Liked a lot: The Fixer, by Bernard Malamud, Sunflower by Simon Wiesenthal, The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, by Michael Chabon

Not so much: Heir to the Glimmering World, by Cynthia Ozick, God Knows, by Joseph Heller

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 2:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

The case of an Indiana teacher who got in trouble for assigning Freedom Writers Diary to her class is getting renewed attention these days. Connie Heermann of Perry Meridian High School bucked the wishes of the school board, which objected to the book's strong language, and was suspended earlier this year. Even though she had overwhelming support from parents of her students, and the book was available in the school library.

Now, thanks to a CNN report and a spirited defense by screemwriter and director Richard LaGravenese, who made the movie adaptation starring Hillary Swank, people are learning about the bureaucratic injustice and the clumsy classroom ban. Seems like school boards always step in it when they confront a controversial book, don't they? 

Freedom Writers photo from Paramount

Continue reading "Teacher suspended over Freedom Writers" »

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 1:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

I'm going to do a Read Street first.

Today, I'm telling you to forget the books, and go see the fireworks.

Starting tonight, there are many activities throughout the area where you can enjoy the patriotic spirit around you, through music, food and of course a little light show. Charm City Moms has a list of family-friendly events, and for a more comprehensive list of all the goings-on, check out our events map.

As for after the Fourth, Ukazoo books holds its monthly Books 'N' Brunch on Saturday, which might be a nice way to unwind after the holiday hullabaloo.

(Yes, I just used the word "hullabaloo." Deal.)

And Wednesday, Lia Purpura, poet in residence at Loyola College, reads from her "King Baby" at the Johns Hopkins University book store in Charles Village.

For more bookish events, visit our Read Street calendar.

(Photo by katman1972 at stock.xchng)

Posted by Nancy Johnston at 12:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
                    

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 10:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

Food writer Betsy Block has some recommendations for folks who appreciate both good food and good writing. At the National Public Radio site, she lists three favorites: An Omelette and a Glass of Wine, by Elizabeth David; The Alice B. Toklas Cookbook, by Alice B. Toklas; and Alice, Let's Eat, by Calvin Trillin.

Haven't read the first two, but I'll swear by Trillin's book.  Though it's been years since I read it, I can recall a clever turn of phrase about eating Smithfield ham -- he said he was still thirsty from the last time he ate it. And when I drove my son from Baltimore to his new home in Denver, we scheduled our entire trip around a stop at a Trillin favorite: Arthur Bryant's barbecue restaurant in Kansas City.

Thinking about other food books, I came up with Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Like Water for Chocolate and Chocolat. Hmmm, do I see a pattern? 

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 3:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)
                    

Kimbooktu blogger Kim Heijdenrijk loves books and all the little gadgets that relate to them, so this week we're going to focus on the technology that makes your reading experience that much better.

"Almost all of the products I write about take my fancy, some of them stand out because of their usability or (unforeseen) message," she says. And so, here is her top five:

Continue reading "Check It Out: Book gadgets" »

Posted by Nancy Johnston at 12:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

My favorite thing about writing for this blog is talking to cool people and finding cool stuff, and calling it research.

Kim Heijdenrijk is one of those cool people, and her blog, Kimbooktu, provided me with hours of fun, er, research. The site bills itself as a place for book gadgets, but you can find your new favorite book shelf, book-based art, books with a political spin and a Web site for your reading pleasure, that makes it look to the rest of the world (read: boss) that you're working hard for the money.

Not that I approve of such things, boss o' mine.

"The blog is a labor of love, even though some people think money has more value." Heijdenrijk says of her site. Instead of littering it with advertisements, she has included one Amazon banner, and when visitors buy something via Kimbooktu, she receives a small percentage. "The little money I make per year allows me to buy a couple of books that I cannot buy here in The Netherlands. This is more than enough for me."

Continue reading "Go, go, gadget Kimbooktu" »

Posted by Nancy Johnston at 10:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)