Coming in The Sun
In this Sunday's Sun, check out a review of two new books about Barrry Goldwater.
Flying High, a highly enjoyable read by the late William F. Buckley Jr., focuses on Goldwater's role in the 1950s and 1960s in taking over the moderate Republican Party. It also tells of Buckley and his cadre of young conservatives, who were trying to create the right wing's own version of Camelot.
For a closer look at Goldwater's career in the 1970s and 1980s, try Pure Goldwater, edited by Barry Goldwater Jr., a former congressman, and John W. Dean III, the White House counsel who testified against Richard M. Nixon in the Watergate hearings. They selected the senator's words, often explaining the times and context, and his journal entries, letters and speeches.
Aldso, get a roundup of crime fiction, including The Dirty Secrets Club by Meg Gardiner, who has drawn high praise from Stephen King. Gardiner, a talented writer making a name for herself in Britain for her Evan Delaney novels, has created an appealing, entertaining thriller about a series of bizarre murder/suicides in San Francisco.
Sunday on Read Street, a look at the week's new releases.
Gotta hand it to Scott McClellan. He's managed to create a political firestorm with What Happened, 323 pages of mostly tepid insider tales. We learn that Washington is filled with dissemblers. And the Bush White House, like previous White Houses, shaded the truth to serve its political needs. 
If all this talk of superdelegates, caucuses and revotes has your head spinning, try focusing on the larger world next week with an expert on international relations. 
The club, which meets at the Abingdon branch of the Harford County library, is geared to time-starved working women and mothers of young children. "We try to read books with something worth discussing, but with humor in them," says librarian and moderator Julia Mepham. Humor is a dicey theme: some members might find a book hysterical while others don't get it. But divergent views can spark lively discussions. 
Here's This scrawly text is from a Harry Potter prequel written by J.K. Rowling and headed for a charity auction, Waterstone's Booksellers announced this morning. The story, written in the past month and just 800 words long, comes almost a year after the last book in the series was released. The prequel will not be published but is to be auctioned at Waterstone's London flagship store on June 10.
Dan Rodricks interviews Bill Bishop, author of The Big Sort. Bishop says that America's once-Great Melting Pot has devolved into a series of homogeneous communities where we are surrounded by the like-minded. This clustering is tearing us apart, he says. At 1 on WYPR, 88.1 FM.
If you really want to understand Charm City and the charming people in it, you've got to get your hands on a copy of 
Sure didn't take long for the storm to begin over the upcoming book by former White House spokesman Scott McClellan. What do you expect when you take on the prez, and accuse him and his advisors of confusing propaganda with facts. 
OK, so Nancy tried a little cheesecake today: a guy's naked, tattooed leg. Well, two can play at that game.
Tattoos aren't just for bikers anymore -- now bookworms are getting in on the ink action. 
News from Publishers Weekly: Three new Dune novels by Brian Herbert (son of Frank) and Kevin J. Anderson are on the way, backed by a seven-figure advance The titles are Jessica of Dune, Irulan of Dune and Leto of Dune.
This book club has met for about a year and a half at the library in Randallstown, and selections have ranged from westerns to classics, short stories to inspirational books. About 30 people, mostly women, participate in the club, which meets at 7 p.m. on the second Wednesday of the month. Librarian Jelynn Ward says discussions often spark personal reflections: "A lot of people come out to share their personal journey." 
This week, my family tearfully said goodbye to Poppy, our 12-year-old standard poodle. Surely not the most devastating event in the world -- not after tens of thousands have died from a cyclone and earthquake. But for us, as for any pet owner, it's a time of great, great sorrow. We recall an utterly devoted companion who was playful and graceful, cautious and gentle. 
Barnes & Noble is considering a bid for Borders, a move that (anti-trust considerations aside) would create a book-selling behemoth with a third of the retail market, the Wall Street Journal reported today. Since Borders put itself on the market in March, more than 30 people have expressed interest in the company, the Journal said.
Jonathan Oleisky, the new associate publisher for 
It's a great time to be a Civil War buff. In a "Web exclusive," Newsweek takes notice of our country's latest obsession: 
In preparation of 
This past week, I got a look at the future of writing. Sunday, Emma Sovich of Towson won Washington College's monster Sophie Kerr writing prize — $67,000. She's a writer and poet who has straddled two eras — working with an antique press and a 
This book club started under the auspices of the Greater Baltimore Technology Council. When the GBTC folded its club about two years ago, members Dave Provine and Jeff Schraeder decided to keep it going on their own. So far, everybody who has come is a GBTC member, but others are welcome. It's all business or technology business books; no romance novels. (And yes, it’s really a book club. If you look closely at the photo, there’s a book nestled among the beer bottles.) 
On my way to Chipotle a couple of days ago (it's my addiction), I spotted a poster for the upcoming 
Cam Northouse of Clayton Fine Books offered these largely Chicano authors to those who enjoyed Rudolfo Anaya's Bless Me Ultima: 
Glad to see you. We started this blog for the social-ness of reading. Somewhere along the way, reading stopped being a solitary affair and became just the starting point for clubs, cocktail discussions and Oprah-esque media extravagance. There's a lot going on in the Baltimore area (The City That Reads, remember?) from book clubs to author appearances to poetry readings. We want to capture the enthusiasm for reading and writing found at last month's CityLit's Festival -- when authors, poets, publishers and readers jammed the Pratt's main lobby. Here's what you'll find each week on Read Street:
