As an artist, Dennis Hopper, who died today at age 74,  was best known in the movie world. His long list of credits is amazing -- and includes a holy trinity of outsider classics such as "Rebel Without a Cause," "Cool Hand Luke" and "Easy Rider."

But he had a broader love of art, and though he's not the most famous Hopper in the art world, his prints and photographs have sold for tens of thousands of dollars. The Los Angeles County Museum of Art has one of his photos, as does Harvard University.

His work is chronicled in a number of books, including "Dennis Hopper: Photographs 1961-1967," a limited edition (autographed by Hopper) published by Taschen. Hopper's subjects ranged from Tina Turner and Andy Warhol (who turned the tables in the painting shown here) to Martin Luther King Jr.

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Laura Lippman fans may be getting a double dose of good news.

Her latest book, "I'd Know You Anywhere," is headed to reviewers in preparation for an August 17 release. If you're "downy oshun" you can catch Laura at a reading that day at the South Coastal Library in Bethany Beach. On the 21st, she'll do a reading at Mystery Loves Company in Oxford. (Yes, the same folks who once had a store in Fells Point as well.)

Laura's work may also be headed for the big screen. Baltimore Sun movie Critic Mike Sragow notes on his blog that director Nicole Holofcener is adapting Lippman's 2003 novel "Every Secret Thing." In an interview with Film Independent, Holofcener said, "It's a thriller. ... it's got murder and mystery and bad people."

Here's how the tale is described on Laura's website: On a July afternoon two little girls, banished from a birthday party, take a wrong turn onto an unfamiliar Baltimore street -- and encounter an abandoned stroller with a baby inside it. Dutiful Alice Manning and unpredictable Ronnie Fuller only want to be helpful, to be good. People like children who are good, Alice thinks. But whatever the girls' real intentions, things go horribly awry and three families are destroyed. (You can read an excerpt here.)

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Happy almost-Memorial-Day weekend, everyone! I hope you have a great holiday planned to kick off summer right.

I plan to enjoy the fourth installment in Michael Scott's Nicholas Flamel series, "The Necromancer." Believe it or not, even with the gruesome title, it's a YA novel, with a fun twist on world history. Characters include Flamel himself, Joan of Arc, the goddess Hekate and the Witch of Endor.

And Jessica, you'll have Candace Bushnell's "The Carrie Diaries" to look forward to! Congratuations!

Next up: "Spice Dreams: Flavored Ice Creams and Other Frozen Treats," by Baltimore's own Sara Engram and Katie Lubar. Because what's more appropriate in 90-degree weather than an ice cream cookbook? Ice cream sandwiches, sorbets, banana splits -- a little something for every ice cream lover.

So let us know what you're reading, and it could be yours!

Posted by Nancy Knight at 12:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Freebie Friday
        

Great stuff for a movie, no? And who better than 50 Cent to introduce a new generation to Achebe, whose most recent book is a collection of essays called "The Education of a British Protected Child."

Well, don't get your hopes up. The movie is about a football player who is diagnosed with cancer. And though the 50 Cent may still win an Oscar, I won't get the movie I had hoped for.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 12:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

I'm on vacation this week, trying to get my yard and flower gardens in shape. I've been in a running battle with the mint plants and vines, which keep popping up around the flowers, no matter how deep I dig for the roots. Still, the gardens are taking shape, after a few anxious years -- there are few things more satisfying than to see the rewards. Now if this heat wave would just relent.

When I came in from gardening today, I noticed this NPR report about a New York Botanical Garden exhibition called Emily Dickinson's Garden: The Poetry of Flowers. Botanical garden president Gregory Long told NPR that Dickinson would tuck short poems into bouquets of flowers that she gave to neighbors and relatives. "The people of Amherst ... knew her as a poet because of these. Because nothing was really published in her life, or very, very little. So they found the poems, of course, very eccentric."

Garden designer Todd Forrest told NPR that it is filled with foxgloves, daffodils, zinnias and other flowers Dickinson might have planted around her home. "I know for a fact that this is the first time we've grown dandelions for a flower show. But dandelions were very important to her. In fact, she referred to herself more as a dandelion. She felt more comfortable and more natural in the fields with the dandelions than she would in the drawing rooms with the fancy folks around Amherst."

The exhibition, which includes many of Dickinson's poems, runs through June 13. You can read many of her poems at the Poetry Foundation, a great website.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 11:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Michael Oher of the Baltimore Ravens is a heckuva football player, but he has really become famous through "The Blind Side", a movie that recounts his rise from a childhood of homelessness. The movie is a dramatization of Michael Lewis' book, which includes an analysis of pro football's financial impact and Oher's crucial role as quarterback protector at the tackle position.

It's nice to see Oher helping out kids in similar circumstances, as he did Monday at the Arrow Child and Family Ministries in Parkville, where he met about 70 children. He was accompanied by Leigh Anne Tuohy, his adoptive mother who was portrayed in the film by Sandra Bullock. According to The Sun's report, Oher acknowledged that he was at a loss for words when asked to speak to the students at a microphone. "Years ago I never dreamed of coming to a place like this, seeing jerseys with my number on the wall," he said. "I know you guys are going through some of the same things. … Keep fighting, keep overcoming adversity."

I expect him to deliver the same message -- more powerfully -- in the memoir that he's now writing with Don Yaeger. "I Beat the Odds: My Amazing Journey from Foster Care to the NFL and Beyond," is scheduled for a February release by Gotham Books. Yaeger has had a hand in books about UCLA coaching legend John Wooden, N.Y. Mets pitcher Tug McGraw and Chicago Bears running back Walter Payton.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 11:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Sorry that I've been on a blogging blackout over the past few days, but here's the reason. That's my daughter, Anne, pictured at Wesleyan University's commencement. Congratulations again, Anne! The photo was shot by Rick Hartford for the Hartford Courant.

While traveling back and forth along the Jersey Turnpike, I've been reading "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest," the latest in Stieg Larsson's Swedish crime trilogy. I'm jumping into the trilogy on the last book, which can be risky. But after some summing up in the first 50 pages or so, the plot has gathered steam, and I'm enjoying it. If you're a Larsson fan, you'll be interested in this New York Times magazine article about his life -- and untimely death at age 50.

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It's May 25th, and Douglas Adams fans know what that means: Don't leave home without your towel!

Towel Day, which has been celebrated in memory of Adams since his death in 2001, references a passage from "The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy" wherein a traveler's mettle is judged by his possession of a towel.

"A towel, it says, is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have. Partly it has great practical value -- you can wrap it around you for warmth as you bound across the cold moons of Jaglan Beta; you can lie on it on the brilliant marble sanded beaches of Santraginus V, inhaling the heady sea vapours; you can sleep under it beneath the stars which shine so redly on the desert world of Kakrafoon; use it to sail a mini raft down the slow heavy river Moth; wet it for use in hand-tohand-combat; wrap it round your head to ward off noxious fumes or to avoid the gaze of the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal (a mindboggingly stupid animal, it assumes that if you can't see it, it can't see you -- daft as a bush, but very ravenous); you can wave your towel in emergencies as a distress signal, and of course dry yourself off with it if it still seems to be clean enough.

"More importantly, a towel has immense psychological value. For some reason, if a strag (strag: non-hitchhiker) discovers that a hitchhiker has his towel with him, he will automatically assume that he is also in possession of a toothbrush, face flannel, soap, tin of biscuits, flask, compass, map, ball of string, gnat spray, wet weather gear, space suit etc., etc. ... What the strag will think is that any man who can hitch the length and breadth of the galaxy, rough it, slum it, struggle against terrible odds, win through, and still knows where his towel is is clearly a man to be reckoned with."

Towelday.org is your best reference to events, activities and freebies throughout the world, so head on over there and revel in all things Adams. (And make sure to check out the photos and videos of Towel Day celebrants, because who doesn't need a good chuckle?)

Posted by Nancy Knight at 10:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

As a regular, if not entirely devoted, viewer of 'Lost' since Season One, last night was bittersweet. And while I was -- overall -- pleased with the finale, there were a few disappointments. One of them came up before the finale even began.

The creators of the hit ABC drama made it clear that they never wanted to talk down to their viewers, their goal was to make people think and that this season was all about answers. And being the book nerd that I am, I paid special attention to the books. When Ben was reading "Ulysses" on the plane, I thought it was a clue to the story playing on my screen. Juliet clutching a Stephen King novel pointed to her supernatural death, perhaps? The fact that Sawyer discussed the oh-so-sad ending in "Of Mice and Men" with Locke in the woods was clearly foreshadowing one of them getting shot in the head by an ally. Right? RIGHT?

Well, it turns out that the books featured in "Lost" -- such as "Alice in Wonderland," "The Turn of the Screw" -- were simply books that the creators really enjoyed, they explained in the two-hour recap that aired before the finale. Which is cool, I guess. If I had a world-renowned television show, I'd probably push a few of my favorite things onto the audience as well. (In fact, without this show, I would never have heard of Walker Percy.) But that's the last time I over-think a TV show, man. 

Regardless, Oprah's website featured a slideshow of a few of Sawyer's favorite books throughout the season. And they're all worth a read, even if they don't explain what the heck that four-toed statue meant.

(AP photo)

Posted by Nancy Knight at 10:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

This week in The Sun, movie critic Mike Sragow talks to Baltimore filmmaker John Waters about his new book, "Role Models." It's a look at some unlikely models, including Leslie Van Houten, one of Charles Manson's murderous clan. On the jump is an excerpt from the book.

Waters says in the article, “I want people to like what I’ve written about them, and so far everyone I’ve given the book to has liked it. The Leslie Van Houten part was very hard for her to read. Fourteen thousand words about the worst night of her life. But I didn’t write about anybody I didn’t like. If you are interested in these stories, you can learn from them; you can learn from what happened to Leslie and not have your own life screwed up.”

Most of all, says the article, Waters wants readers “to like some of my friends, even when there are some issues. Even when their issues make their experiences so out of the norm, I’m always fascinated by how they deal with that.”

(Keep reading for Waters' words.)

Baltimore Sun photo by Jed Kirschbaum

From "Role Models": I wish I were Johnny Mathis. So mainstream. So popular. So unironic, yet perfect. Effortlessly boyish at over seventy years old, with a voice that still makes all of America want to make out. Heavenly, warm. Yes, I’ll say it out loud—wonderful, wonderful. I saw Johnny Mathis in real life once, but he didn’t see me—the best way to glimpse a role model. I had just pulled into the parking lot of Tower Video, off Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood, with my good friend the photographer Greg Gorman. “Oh my God,” said Greg, who is never impressed with celebrities, having shot them for billboards, movie posters, and album covers for thirty years, “don’t look up, but Johnny Mathis just pulled in next to us.” And there he was. In a sports car with the top down and a cashmere sweater tied around his shoulders. Good Lord. Johnny Mathis himself. The legend you never hear about, never see on the red carpet, never read about in gossip columns. Highly successful but nearly invisible.

Smooth for ever and ever. As my favorite girl group of the sixties, the Shangri-Las, might have said about how I felt that day, “That’s called impressed.” I never got over seeing Johnny Mathis in the parking lot. I’d secretly think about those thirty seconds at odd moments, like when the Acela train between Baltimore and New York would have to stop so inspectors could examine the corpses of suicide victims who threw themselves on the tracks. Or waiting in line at the Department of Motor Vehicles to renew my driver’s license.

Or sometimes right when I woke up—bam!—for no apparent reason, there he’d be: Johnny Mathis in that car with that sweater. Is it because Johnny Mathis is the polar opposite of me? A man whose Greatest Hits album was on the Billboard charts for 490 consecutive weeks. Versus me, a cult fi lmmaker whose core audience, no matter how much I’ve crossed over, consists of minorities who can’t even fi t in with their own minorities.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 1:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Marylandia
        

Happy Friday, everybody! It's a beautiful day, and I'm in the middle of a beautiful book: "The Demon's Covenant," by Sarah Rees Brennan. It's the second of a planned trilogy, which began with The Demon's Lexicon, another book that I loved.

This one is told primarily through the eyes of the book's heroine, Mae. Mae is spunky, adventurous and loyal to a fault, and I'm very excited to revisit her and the other personalities in Brennan's world.

It's refeshing to witness the action through her eyes, since the last book was told by the emotionally stunted (and that's being generous) Nick. Of course, his outlook is completely justified, and the different style Brennan uses for Mae further displays the mastery she has of her characters, as well as the story. So if you're a fan of modern magic, pick these books up.

Meanwhile, you're all waiting to hear who won John Waters' "Role Models." Congratulations, Dahlink! We hope you enjoy it.

Next up: Candace Bushnell ventures into young adult fiction with a prequel to "Sex and the City." In "The Carrie Diaries," Carrie Bradshaw is still in high school, determined to make it big as a writer in Manhattan -- and she even meets a familiar (to us) face for the first time while she's there.

So let us know what you're reading, and it could be yours!

Posted by Nancy Knight at 11:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

Wimpy Kid fans (and parents of Wimpy Kid fans), rejoice! The latest installment of the hugely popular series by University of Maryland grad Jeff Kinney is scheduled for a November 1 release. There aren't many details known about book number five -- except that the cover will be purple.

Kinney, who was a cartoonist for the university newspaper, has based his Diary of a Wimpy Kid series on the trials of middle schooler Greg Heffley. The books also have spawned a movie, further spreading the franchise (can an amusement park be far behind?). How popular are Kinney's books? The last one, which was published in October 2009, had an initial press run of four million copies.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 10:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Walter Skold, who has been on a personal quest to honor America's literary greats, is bringing his Dead Poets tour to Edgar Allan Poe's grave in Baltimore. I spoke to Skold today and he was very excited about the visit, which will feature readings of Poe's work by local poets. It's scheduled for Friday night at midnight, at Westminster Hall, on the corner of Fayette and Greene streets.

When we spoke, Skold was headed from Lexington, Va., the resting place of Margaret Junkin Preston, to the Poe Museum in Richmond. Friday includes a stop in Washington before his white van, known as Dedgar the Poemobile, heads to Baltimore. It's all part of a 20-stop tour that Skold, a poet and former teacher from Maine, is filming for a documentary called "Finding Frost: Graves of American Poets."

Poets and the general public are invited to the midnight reading. (I won't be able to attend, so let me know how it goes.) Skold promises: "It won't be a midnight dreary."

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Well, apparently, he did. And today's news gives new meaning to his book's title. If I had shelled out $24.95 for the book, I'd be calling Simon & Schuster to demand my money back.

I hope the scandal doesn't reach Armstrong, who wrote about his battle with cancer and return to cycling in the compelling book, "It's Not About the Bike." Others have accused the seven-time Tour de France winner of the blood doping that has become all too common among world-class cyclists. But Armstrong has continually denied the charges, and his blood tests have been clean. For those of us who are cycling fans, it would be sad to see another champion dethroned.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 2:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

We're well into graduation season, and many of you may be wondering about that perfect gift for your graduate. The one that tells them how proud you are, how hopeful you are, and how the entire world is before them to explore and even conquer.

And one great book can do all those things and more.

At my high school graduation, Dr. Seuss' "Oh the Places You'll Go," was heavily referenced in the valedictorian's speech.

For me, reading John F. Kennedy's "Profiles in Courage" was the inspiration I needed to face the world and a challenging job market after graduating from the University of Maryland.

For Justin Bieber, it appears to be Richard Bach's "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" that keeps his songs at the top of the charts. Me, I prefered "Illusions," but whatever.

So what book would you steer your favorite graduate to today?

(Photo by hhsara on stock.xchng)

Posted by Nancy Knight at 10:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Ah, the wonders of pop culture. Leave it to a teen heartthrob barely past puberty to revive interest in a book that captivated the masses in 1970. It all started with reports that singer Justin Bieber was tattooed with a stylized seagull to mark his 16th birthday this spring. (If you don't know him, just ask your kids or grand-kids.) The gull (check it out) was said to be an inky reference to the novel "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" by Richard Bach.

The book is about a seagull that is ostracized by his flock, but finds a higher (literally) meaning in free-flying non-comformity. It was a perfect novel for those heady days when American kids were rebelling -- and looking for spiritual inspiration -- and society's norms were being challenged. And I do recall enjoying the book as a quick summer read. (With "Animal Farm" and "Life of Pi," it's also one of the most well-known animal-oriented allegories.)

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 4:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (18)
        

Who ya gonna call? Improve Everywhere!

This group's stated mission is to cause "scenes of chaos and joy in public places." They've accomplished this at more than 100 places, with tens of thousands of "agents." Watch, and enjoy.

In this case, according to the website, New York Public Library officials approached Improv Everywhere: "The library is facing serious budget cuts, and they thought having us do something awesome there might serve to remind people of how great the NYPL is. We couldn’t say no to the opportunity to do something in their gorgeous, 100 year-old Rose Main Reading Room."

Come on over to Baltimore, guys! I'd love to see scores of Poes or Menckens hanging out in the stacks at Enoch Pratt.

Posted by Nancy Knight at 10:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Foodies and fans of Anthony Bourdain's tell-all book "Kitchen Confidential" will want to catch him this weekend, when he appears at the Hippodrome with Le Bernardin chef Eric Ripert. My wife is a huge fan of the book, and refused to eat in a restaurant for years after reading about tales of the naughty chefs -- "cocaine in the kitchen, mid-service sex" as Bourdain describes it.

The Sun's Rob Kasper interviewed Bourdain and Ripert about their views, including criticism that has been leveled at the former for doing a TV show about Baltimore, and featuring Lake Trout and pit beef. Some folks thought it made us look like a chump town filled with folks who can't pronounce foie gras. Just think about the outrage if he had sampled hard fried crab!

Here's an excerpt from Kasper's article: Bourdain acknowledged that he has had an unhappy relationship with Baltimore, pointing to a short stint he had as a drug-addled cook in a Harborplace restaurant in the 1980s. But lately, he said, he has become a fan of the town. "I have been back a few times, and in my own quiet way have come to really like the town," he said. "I don't know if the feelings have been reciprocated, especially after the show."

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 9:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Marylandia
        

Wes Moore, the Johns Hopkins grad and Rhodes scholar, has received a lot of attention for "The Other Wes Moore." The book compares two lives: his own and that of a Baltimore doppelganger who is imprisoned for life. If you want to hear Moore discuss his book, he'll be at the Enoch Pratt on Tuesday, May 18, at 6:30 p.m. Meanwhile, here's our review.

Synopsis: Moore explores the many factors that influence the direction of our lives. Just like the "other" Wes Moore, the author got into trouble as a kid, and left a prestigious private school that his mother had found to shelter him from the streets of the Bronx. But several influences, including mentors and family support, steadied him. Meanwhile, the "other" Moore was adrift, without meaningful support from parents and teachers. He fell into the spiral of drugs and violence that has claimed so many kids in this city.

Review: Give Moore credit for sensitively exploring the issues that separate success and failure -- or survival and death -- in cities such as Baltimore. He does it without being preachy or over-dramatic. And he's honest enough to admit that there is no clear answer -- a life's path is often   set by the unmeasurable depth of an individual's strength -- or by dumb luck. (I did wonder whether he pulled some punches about his own life, and was overly guarded about other conflicts he faced.) But he notes that the difference between good and bad can start as a razor-thin margin, growing wider and wider through the years. He's also serious about changing lives -- the book includes a lengthy list of organizations working to help kids and improve cities.

Read this if: You like a compelling story about the challenges of America's cities -- and a very personal look at the way a life can disintegrate.

Avoid this if: You're annoyed by fact-checking mistakes, such as the one that put Perry Hall High in West Baltimore, or that claimed Baltimore was the birthplace of Edgar Allan Poe. (Just remember, the author didn't grow up here.)

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 6:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

If fact is stranger than fiction, than fictional fact is even stranger. Just consider Adam Wheeler, the kid accused of lying and forging documents to gain entry into Harvard -- and duping the school out of $45,000 in financial aid. Wheeler, 23, of Milton, Del., was ordered held on $5,000 bail Tuesday after pleading not guilty to 20 counts of larceny, identity fraud and other charges, the Associated Press reported.

So how long will it be before a book by or about Wheeler hits the stores? Faking SAT scores isn't very exotic. But who wouldn't want to read about a kid who had the chutzpah to claim he prepped at Andover and attended MIT, when he actually graduated from Caesar Rodney High Kent County, Del., and attended Bowdoin College. I bet a couple of dozen agents and ghost writers are lining up right now for a piece of the action. Far-fetched? Remember, it worked for Stephen Glass, the young New Republic reporter who was discovered to have fabricated stories; he turned his tale into a book and movie.

Wait! Forget the Wheeler book -- let's start talking about a screenplay. I'm thinking an academic version of "To Catch a Thief." And maybe we get Ryan O'Neal to do a cameo as an outraged alum named Oliver Barrett IV. So who plays Wheeler on the big screen?

Now that would be stranger than fiction.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 6:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

Terry McMillan, who gave voice to the angst of African-American women (and all women) in novels such as "Waiting to Exhale" and "How Stella Got Her Groove Back," is coming back soon with a new novel. “Getting to Happy,” will be released in the fall, and Essence magazine is running excerpts to help mark its 40th anniversary.

Pages from the new book -- a sequel to "Waiting to Exhale" -- will appear in the next four issues of Essence, starting with the June edition, which came out this week, the Associated Press reported. Essence noted that McMillan's ties to the magazine date back to the 1970s, when she was in college and won an Essence writing contest.

“They're like family, and Essence readers have been a large part of my audience,” McMillan (shown here in 2008) said, according to the AP.

Here's a video of McMillan reading from her new novel at Lenoir-Rhyne University's Visiting Writers Series. 

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 4:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Disclosure forms released by President Obama this week shed a little more light on the financial benefits of being an author -- if your address happens to be 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. In addition to book royalties, Obama's form for 2009 listed a $225,000 advance for a YA version of "Dreams from My Father."

Obama had previously released his 2009 income tax return, which showed that royalties from "Dreams from My Father" totaled about $3.3 million, and those from "The Audacity of Hope" totaled $2.3 million. By comparison, his salary as president was $400,000.

One other tidbit from the disclosure forms: Bo, the Portuguese Water Dog that the Obamas received as a gift from the late Sen. Edward Kennedy and his wife, was valued at $1,600. But how can you put a price on cute?

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 10:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Congratulations to Hailey Reissman, the Washington College grad who walked away from Sunday's commencement $64,243 richer, as the winner of the school's Sophie Kerr Prize. Reissman, 22, won the nation's most lucrative undergraduate literary award for a portfolio that included a very personal work called "I Have Cerebral Palsy and David Mamet Reveals What I Imagine The Friends Of The Guy I Am Dating Will Say When He Tells Them About Me, In Three Brief Monologues."

Childs Walker, who wrote about the event for The Sun, noted that professors were struck by the wit and inventiveness of Reissman, an English major from Wilmington, Del. After receiving the award, Reissman said, "Who doesn't want to win thousands of dollars? It's not something you have to shy people away from when they're English majors." She also said of her cerebral palsy: "It's just something that I live with. It's part of you, but I don't claim to write well about disability. It's so hard. I'm not writing to the experience of everyone with a disability."

Nice to see a young writer rewarded for all the hours of struggle. Many thanks to Kerr, an American writer in the early 20th Century, for having the foresight and thoughtfulness to set it up. For an excerpt of Reissman's work, Family Dinner #14, go to the jump.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 1:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Alabama is celebrating the 50th anniversary of one America's great books: "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Harper Lee. She is, unfortunately, among the most famous one-hit wonders, along with Margaret Mitchell. Lee was, at times, reportedly working on a novel or non-fiction book. But nothing has materialized

I'm hoping that she has a surprise waiting for us, and someday will unveil a new book. It's not too late! For those who haven't read To Kill a Mockingbird in a while, it's worth another look. It has all the ingredients for a great read: interesting characters, moral questions and a compelling story line. All wrapped in spare but powerful prose. Somehow, it was never assigned in my English classes, so I didn't come to the book until I was an adult. But the story seemed fresh after all these years.

Though Lee has not been a major presence in the anniversary celebrations, she did contribute three autographed copies for a benefit auction. You can read more about the festivities at the Alabama Humanities Foundation and the Montgomery Advertiser.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 11:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

In addition to "Robin Hood," another bookish movie is out this week: "Letters to Juliet," (trailer here) starring Amanda Seyfried. It describes Il Club di Giulietta, dedicated volunteers who for decades have answered the poignant letters left for or sent to Juliet in Verona -- a fascinating concept. Of course, we need more drama (and young love) for a movie, and this treatment seems like a cross between the book by Ceil and Lise Friedman, and "Eat Pray Love." Here are excerpts from movie reviews:

Los Angeles Times -- "Letters to Juliet" is an ode to romance of the most starry-eyed sort, a sugary paean to quixotic clichés and a film destined to be a guilty pleasure for some (me included, sigh) and the painful price of a relationship for others (so steel yourselves).

Chicago Tribune -- The key to the film's success is its lack of strain. As written by Jose Rivera and Tim Sullivan, this isn't one of those pushy slapstick affairs; it's more romantic than comic, and despite the corn there are no villains (not even the nattering fiance is demonized).

Time magazine -- I'd take any woman in my life, ages 10 to 100, to Letters to Juliet and my guess is we'd both leave with a little Italian glow.

Entertainment Weekly -- Director Gary Winick and cinematographer Marco Pontecorvo fit together the fate-tossed stuff of mass-appeal love stories and the seductive imagery of travelogue vacation movies so smoothly that the sequel to "Letters to Juliet" might well be "Letters to Orbitz:" Find me a flight to Verona!

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 12:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Books to Movies
        

Oh, happy day -- "Android Karenina" has finally found its way into my hands! There will be ROBOTS in 19th-century Russia. Steampunk for all, I say!

So I don't suggest you bother me this weekend. I'll be reading Ben H. Winters' 538-page "enhanced edition" of Tolstoy's classic.

Meanwhile, Dakota will be enjoying Peter Carey's "Parrot and Olivier in America." Congratulations, Dakota!

And now for something completely different: John Waters fans have been waiting for his new book, "Role Models," for a while now, and it's finally here! For anyone who's ever been interested in what adventures created the man that is John Waters, you have to read this book. He discusses influences ranging from Tennessee Williams to Little Richard to Manson girl Leslie Van Houton, and all with the Baltimore charm we've come to expect from this cult classic filmmaker.

So let us know what you're reading, and you could win "Role Models" for yourself.

Posted by Nancy Knight at 11:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (12)
        

Movie directors often have reinterpreted the story of Robin Hood, which originated in ancient ballads and was set down in print as early as the 16th Century in A Gest of Robyn Hode. In early chracterizations, old RH was "a violent yeoman who steals from the dishonest and helps those whom he pleases," according to a study by the University of Rochester. Only later did he become more of a folk hero for the oppressed. Not having a definitive text allows a lot of artistic license when it comes to movies, and today we get another look at the charismatic guy who takes from the rich and gives to the poor. Here are excerpts from reviews of "Robin Hood," a Russell Crowe/Cate Blanchett prequel that is dividing critics: (More movie adaptations are here.)p>

Los Angeles Times -- Simultaneously simplistic and over-plotted, revisionist and predictable, this "Robin Hood" has trouble getting untracked and, once it does, proves an awkward mix of international geopolitics, repressed memory, old-fashioned villainy, human rights advocacy, the Magna Carta and pigeons that send secret messages.

Chicago Tribune -- I liked it. It's on a par with [director Ridley] Scott's "American Gangster": No revelations, but a satisfying, large-scale genre movie, toned up by its cast.

Philadelphia Inquirer -- Shot in glorious widescreen ... Robin Hood boasts graphic battle scenes and ingenious intrigue, a sense of history that may not be accurate but feels authentic, and a love story that smartly plays with gender and Hollywood stereotypes.

Wall Street Journal -- It's an ersatz epic about men in fights—grim fights, grinding battles, clanking combats that are repetitive and, in a movie that runs 140 minutes, all but endless.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 9:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Books to Movies
        

Looking for some unique real estate? Want to be the envy of all your guy friends? The Iowa owners of the “Field of Dreams” movie site -- and the iconic diamond -- have put the property up for sale, according to an AP report. Don and Becky Lansing say they love the land, but think its time to give it up.

The movie was based on the novel “Shoeless Joe” by W.P. Kinsella, in which a farm family makes a mythic connection to the baseball gods. It's a novel that belongs on your shelf of baseball books, with others such as Bernard Malamud's "The Natural," Philip Roth's "The Great American Novel" and Robert Coover's "The Universal Baseball Association, Inc., J. Henry Waugh, Prop."

"Field of Dreams" made the Lansings' land a popular tourist destination. For sale is a baseball diamond, a two bedroom house, six outbuildings, and a 193-acre parcel of land; the Lansings haven't listed a sale price, AP said.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 1:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Books to Movies
        

HBO Films announced today that it has acquired the rights to "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks," a popular book that examines the extraordinary -- and controversial -- scientific contribution made by a young, black Baltimore County woman more than a half-century ago. As we noted on Read Street, while Lacks was being treated for cancer at Johns Hopkins, a researcher was able to keep some of her cells alive outside her body -- a remarkable breakthrough for medical research.

Author Rebecca Skloot describes how "HeLa cells," spread around the world, helped to develop the polio vaccine and forge advances in such areas as chemotherapy, cloning, gene mapping and in vitro fertilization. Yet Lacks' role was not acknowledged for years, and her family reaped no financial gain, leaving them understandably bitter.

Among the executive producers for the HBO Films project is Oprah Winfrey, who got her start as a TV talk show host in Baltimore with WJZ.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 5:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Just as I was getting ready to plunge into the world of e-books, by buying an Apple iPad (don't tell my wife!), wouldn't you know that somebody comes along to make my decision more complicated. Verizon and Google are teaming up to create a tablet computer that will compete with the iPad, according to a Wall Street Journal report. "We're working on tablets together, for example. We're looking at all the things Google has in its archives that we could put on a tablet to make it a great experience," Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam (shown here in 2009) told the Journal.

So add another potential e-reader to the long list that includes the Amazon Kindle, Sony Reader, Apple iPad, Barnes & Noble nook and Borders Kobo, which is due out June 17. I know the iPad has shortcomings, but I don't think I have the patience to wait for the tablet from Goorizon, Vergle or whatever the partnership is called. McAdam did not provide any release date, and the companies aren't going beyond his statement. But the longer it takes, the more time Apple has to capture the market.

Meanwhile, PC World welcomed the news with a wish list of features for a Google/Verizon tablet, including a camera, Flash capability and a low price.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 1:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

If you doubt the value of a good story, look no further than the art auction held last night New York, where works in the collection of the late Michael Crichton were sold off. One work, Jasper Johns' iconic "Flag", sold for $28.6 million, according to the New York Times.

Crichton, who died in 2008, made his fortune with thrillers such as "Jurassic Park," "The Terminal Man," and "The Lost World." So moms and dads, tell your kids to start scribbling!

And just imagine what JK Rowling and Stephenie Meyer can afford to buy. Maybe the Mona Lisa would look good hanging over the fireplace?

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 11:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Let's give a hand to billionaire investor David Rubenstein, a Baltimore native, for supporting reading. The co-founder and manging director of Washington-based Carlyle Group private equity fund recently announced a $5 million gift to the Library of Congress to support the annual National Book Festival.

Rubenstein, 60, said he still is an avid reader: “I am never more happy than when I am alone with my books … it’s one of the joys of my life." But he's alarmed by the number of Americans who can't read -- or don't read enough. "A country of our wealth should be No. 1 in literacy."

The Washington festival always attracts an all-star roster of authors. Last year, big names on the schedule included James Patterson, George Pelecanos and Marilynne Robinson. This year's festival will be held Saturday, Sept. 25. That will be a big weekend for book lovers, because the Baltimore Book Festival is scheduled for Sept. 24-26. So mark you calendars.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 12:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Marylandia
        

And now for something completely different ...

We may be questioning the role of men in today's publishing world, but back in Victorian England, there was no doubt that men ruled the school -- hence Charlotte, Emily and Anne renaming themselves Currer, Ellis and Acton.

I REALLY REALLY want these action figures. Especially Brontesaurus.

Posted by Nancy Knight at 11:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

News comes today of the death of Frank Frazetta, an artist who became famous for his striking fantasy images of voluptuous women, square-jawed heroes and blood-curdling monsters. His prolific career spanned the era of Buck Rogers and Conan, and he illustrated books about Tarzan and other characters by such authors as Edgar Rice Burroughs. (Not to mention the poster for the movie "What's New, Pussycat?" and some heavy metal albums.)

Frazetta inspired a whole generation of illustrators. Baltimore native Bernie Wrightson, who helped created Swamp Thing, was among the comic book artists who sought to be the next Frazetta -- or to outdo him.

A couple of years ago, the Baltimore Sun asked Wrightson how he got his start, and here's what he said: "I had gone to this convention in New York City, the World Science Fiction Convention, because I wanted to meet Frazetta. And there were some guys from DC Comics there. DC was interested in starting a sword-and sorcery comic book - and that was the stuff I was drawing, because that's what Frazetta did. And so they just met this kid at a show who was doing sword and sorcery stuff. And they were like, "It doesn't matter if it's good or not, this is what he does."

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 4:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

When Apple introduced the iPad, a tablet that combines the functions of an e-reader and a full-color laptop, you would have been excused for thinking that was the last entrant in the E-Reader Derby. But, no. Borders has begun taking orders for yet another e-reader, the Kobo, which will be released June 17 and will cost only $149.99.

The Kobo can be seen as a low-cost version of Amazon's Kindle -- retailing at about half the price. It mimics the Kindle's design and feel -- its white case is about 5x7 inches and weighs less than eight ounces -- and Wired went so far as to wonder whether it would be the real Kindle-killer. I can see a future where the iPad dominates the high-end of the e-reader market, with a large, full-color screen for reading graphic novels, comics and art-heavy books. Kobo, which will be sold at Walmart among other places, could siphon off consumers looking for a cheap e-reader. Still, it has a long way to go to knock out the dominant Kindle.

Kobo also has a fall-back position: It's based on an open system philosophy, so its e-publications can be read on many devices, including laptops, the BlackBerry and iPhone. So even if the e-reader hardware doesn't catch on, Kobo may be around in another form. But even here, Kobo faces an imposing competitor in Google Editions, which will launch this summer and allow users to read books via a web browser from a broad range of websites.

By the way, now that Barnes & Noble and Borders have e-readers, how long will it be until independent stores such as The Ivy Bookshop, Ukazoo or Daedalus introduces their own?

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 12:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (13)
        

Last month, best-selling author Jason Pinter blamed the lack of male readers on a publishing industry run amok with women. According to his Huffington Post piece, men will continue to eschew books as long as women who run publishing houses fail to produce reads that men are interested in.

In the article, he mentions a proposed book deal with pro-wrestler Chris Jericho, which he was convinced would be a phenomenal success, but his bosses weren't exactly convinced:

"One of our senior editors had a 15-year old nephew who was a wrestling fan. I was instructed to have a conference call with the editor's nephew, where I would ask him what he thought about Jericho. If the nephew agreed that Jericho was popular and the book had potential, I would be permitted to make an offer. If the kid disagreed, no dice. Naturally I was dumbstruck, infuriated, since I was essentially being told that a random 15-year with no publishing experience and questionable judgment was trusted more than I was."

 Jericho's book was published, and became a New York Times best-seller, but Pinter is convinced that many more male-friendly books are killed than are green-lit in today's publishing world -- because too many women hold positions of power, and don't understand what men want to read.

Last week, Quill and Quire expanded on this theme, discussing the possibility that not only is there a feminine bias, but it exists because only women are willing to work the long hours with much less compensation than men are willing to accept in their careers. As their piece asks, "Does publishing attract a disproportionate number of women because women make up the bulk of readers, or is it simply the case that more women are willing to accept the profession’s spiritually – but not materially – rewarding career prospects?"

This is an interesting argument for me, because the oft-repeated joke in the newsroom is that no one gets into journalism for the money. You work nights, weekends and 14-hour days for years, if not decades, for a much lower salary than your friends who pursued medicine, law or finance.

And yet, we don't seem to have any shortage of men in the profession. In fact, journalism has long been a male-dominated industry, and that doesn't seem to be changing.

So I don't think I'm convinced with the money argument. Both men and women decide to pursue careers based on their passions, not just their wallets, and I don't feel publishing should be any different. Of course, that does leave us with the original query: Do men read less because they're not being catered to, or are they not marketed to because men simply don't like to read?

(Photo by mmagallan on stock.xchng)

Posted by Nancy Knight at 11:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

Nancy doesn't have a vote in the U.S. Senate, but if she did, I'm sure she'd support Elena Kagan, president Obama's nominee for the Supreme Court.

Why? Look no further than this description from a profile in today's New York Times: "She was the razor-sharp newspaper editor and history major at Princeton who examined American socialism, and the Supreme Court clerk for a legal giant, Thurgood Marshall, who nicknamed her ‘Shorty.’ She was the reformed teenage smoker who confessed to the occasional cigar as she fought Big Tobacco for the Clinton administration, and the literature lover who reread Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice every year."

Yes, Nancy's vote would turn on the P&P reference (and maybe on the bit about being a newspaper editor). No word on whether Kagan is a fan of the more recent zombie version, which would further endear her to Nancy. As for me, I was intrigued to see Kagan's clerkship for Supreme Court Justice and Baltimore native Thurgood Marshall, whom she has called "the best lawyer of the 20th century." Still, I'm not saying how I would vote.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 9:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

Authorities are trying to piece together the motivation and psyche of the alleged Times Square bomber, to determine what turned Faisal Shahzad from ordinary guy to bomb-toting radical. Today's Washington Post quotes a senior U.S. intelligence official as saying that the process was gradual, and took years.

That statement brought me back to "The Attack," a novel that my book club read recently. It's a tale of an Arab doctor who lives in Israel, and finds that his wife -- outwardly a model citizen in all respects -- is a suspect in a suicide bombing. The accusation leads the doctor on a quest to find the truth, and on the way, he must confront the conflicting political philosophies that have embroiled the Middle East for decades. I'm not sure there are any real answers in the book, but the characters' dialogue is riveting.

Interestingly, the issue arises as media reports recall the campus uprisings of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Young Americans were radicalized by the wars in Asia and violent including affluent, white kids -- took a more desperate approach, bombing campus buildings and police stations. It seems almost incongruous in today's America, doesn't it? But  it's happening in other places around the world, and Shahzad may be another example of the deadly process of radicalization.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Happy Friday!

I started the weekend off a little early, by taking today off, so I'm going to go enjoy "Iron Man 2" today. After the tepid response from the critics, I'm a little worried for my little comic book movie, but I know I will at least be entertained.

Meanwhile, I'm reading "Newsonomics: Twelve New Trends That Will Shape the News You Get," by Ken Doctor, of Content Bridges. It focuses on the changes in the news industry and what journalists and citizens can expect in the future. I'm really looking forward to Chapter 7: Reporters Become Bloggers, to see what Doctor's take is on the blurring of the media lines. (Also, I'm imagining how weird it is to call him Mr. Doctor. Huh.)

Anyway, we've got a winner today! Congratulations, Kathy, you've won "The Other Wes Moore." I knew if we just kept saying "Wes Moore" enough, you'd bite. And don't forget to come back and tell us how Nora Roberts' place is, Joann!

Next up: Peter Carey's "Parrot and Olivier in America." The book, which received a starred review from Publishers Weekly, centers around Olivier-Jean-Baptist de Clarel de Barfleur, a character based on the very real Alexis de Tocqueville. Olivier's parents send him to America to stay out of trouble, with Parrot as his companion (and Olivier's mother's spy). Dickensian adventures and comraderie ensue!

So if you'd like to win the book, let us know what you're reading!

Posted by Nancy Knight at 9:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)
        

This week's bookish movie is -- what else? -- a acomic book adaptation: "Iron Man 2." It follows other small-panel-to-big-screen works such as "Kick-Ass" and "The Losers." I'm not a regular reader of the Marvel's Iron Man strip, but I did like the first movie, which had a nice mix of comedy and action. (I wasn't alone; the movie took in more than a half-billion dollars.) So I'll probably give the second one a shot, too. Here are exceprts of reviews from the new release:

Los Angeles Times -- Given the non-organic way "Iron Man 2's" plot came into the world — hatched by the producers in a series of meetings before a screenwriter was brought on — it's surprising that the film has any pluses at all. What makes the difference, at least for a while, is the sense of humor of screenwriter Justin Theroux ...

New York Times -- It’s not that the action sequences are badly executed; they just aren’t very interesting. The suits and explosions and C.G.I. flight simulations may have cost a lot of money, but more imagination has been invested in the film’s sleek and shiny look and, above all, in its jittery, loquacious and eccentric population of geniuses, frauds, playboys and bad guys.

Roger Ebert -- The superhero genre doesn't necessarily require good acting, but when it's there (as in "Iron Man" and "The Dark Knight"), that takes it up a level.

Washington Post -- A terrific villain is a terrible thing to waste -- namely Mickey Rourke, who like most of the supporting players in "Iron Man 2" is given much too little to do with his gifts.

Entertainment Weekly -- Are returning director Jon Favreau and the Marvel Studios producing team buckling under pressure to give the people more of what they think the people want, and make it bigger, too? That's the only reason I can think of for the time and money devoted to loud, long, escalating battle scenes ... that stall long stretches of the story and threaten to stomp out the quotient of fun.

Associated Press -- And Robert Downey Jr., so irresistibly verbal and quick on his feet in the first film (and in pretty much every film he's ever made), seems to be on autopilot. Sure, he's got a way with a one-liner, and his comic timing is indisputable, but he's done this song-and-dance routine before and seems rather bored with it.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 8:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Books to Movies
        

When it comes to e-readers, most of the media attention has focused on the iPad, Kindle and nook.

But lest we forget the Sony Reader versions, the company annouced today that more than 10 million books have now been downloaded from the Reader Store. The 10 millionth book was “Digital Fortress,” by Dan Brown, the company said.

The 10 best sellers from Sony's digital bookstore mirror pop culture favorites. Dan Brown's "The Lost Symbol" is #1, and Stepenie Meyer has four of the spots. Read on for the complete list.

2. “I, Alex Cross,” by James Patterson

3. “Breaking Dawn,” by Stephenie Meyer

4. “Eclipse,” by Stephenie Meyer

5. “The Help,” by Katherine Stockett

6. “Twilight,” by Stephenie Meyer

7. "New Moon,” by Stephenie Meyer

8. “The Lovely Bones,” by Alice Sebold 

9. “The Girl with the Dragon,” Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

10. “The Last Song,” by Nicholas Sparks

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 5:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

If you're not a regular reader of the Baltimore Sun's Diing@Large blog, you visit to check out the winners of the First Annual Scrapple Poetry Contest. Realizing that scrapple poetry abounds, blogger Laua Vozzella made the contest tougher by awarding extra points for including the words "offal," "apple" and "shrapnel." Here's the first verse of the winning poem, "The Emperor of Scrapple" by Voodoo Pork (After Wallace Stevens's The Emperor of Ice-Cream, with apologies):

Call the wrangler of big porkers,

The crepuscular one, and bid him whip

I abattoir vats offalescent orts.

Let the sows dawdle in such pens

As they are used to dwell, and let the boars

Bring apples as porcine gift victuals.

Let be be finale of eat.

The only emperor is the emperor of scrapple.

You can read the rest of the poem and the second place finisher on this blog post. The rest of the entry scraps can be found as comments here.

Baltimore Sun photo by Kim Hairston

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 11:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Marylandia
        

My friend and co-worker is taking a roadtrip to Ohio soon -- alone -- and she asked me for advice on audiobooks she could listen to during the trip. I'm no audio book expert, so I thought I'd throw it out to you guys.

Do you have a few stand-out audiobooks that you would suggest to another traveler? She didn't state a preference on fiction, nonfiction, mystery, adventure or romance -- so lay it on us!

Posted by Nancy Knight at 9:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

Now here's a catchy title being offered on Amazon: Untitled on Obama Administration. The author? Bob Woodward, whose previous books have chronicled presidents and Supreme Court judges.

A Simon & Schuster spokeswoman told AP that the book will be released in September, but declined further comment today. The book does not yet have a title or announced print run.

But it does have a page count, 416, and a price, $30. On Amazon, the discounted price is $19.79.

Woodward has been given remarkable access to the White House for previous books such as "Plan of Attack" (Bush)and "The Agenda" (Clinton). His latest will be no different, he told Politico earlier this year.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 2:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

In the jungle of digital books, where Kindles, nooks and iPads battle for primacy, there will soon be a new rival: Google. The search engine giant provided an outline yesterday for Google Editions, a new e-book service that is not based on proprietary hardware that has driven the e-book strategy of Amazon, Apple and Barnes & Noble.

At a publishing conference in New York, the Wall Street Journal reported, a company exec said the service would be launched in June or July, and would allow users to read books via a web browser from a broad range of websites. Call it the ultimate playing field leveler.

Google will also allow book retailers to sell Google Editions on their own sites, giving partners the bulk of the revenue, PCWorld noted. The company would have copies on its servers, and is still deciding whether it will follow the model where publishers set the retail price or whether Google sets the price.

I'm curious to see the pricing model. Apple, Amazon and others can make money from selling pricey e-readers, so they're not crippled by low prices on the e-books themselves. It will be interesting to see how a purely digitized sales model plays out. If publishers hold the reins, prices are likely to be higher than if Google has control. So the low prices that were common on Amazon -- but took a backwards step with the iPad -- may be headed lower again.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 9:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Despite my Francophile leanings, I'll be downing tamales, enchiladas or a big-fat Chipotle burrito today to mark the Cinco de Mayo holiday. Some folks think May 5th marks Mexico's Independence Day, but it actually celebrates the Battala de Puebla in 1862, when Mexican forces defeated the French. Napoleon III's troops had invaded  because the Mexican government was delaying debt payments, and though his army eventually was victorious, the battle at Puebla became a symbol of Mexico's stand agains foreign imperialism.

If you're curious (like me) about what's on the best-seller list in Mexico, you might be surprised to find Dan Brown's "El simbolo perdido" (The Lost Symbol), Bernhard Schlink's "El lector" (The Reader) and Orhan Pamuk's "El museo de la inocencia" (The Museum of Innocence). But #1 in fiction is Francisco Martin Moreno's "Arrebatos carnales," which is alternately translated as Fleshly Outbursts by Google and Sexual Fits by Yahoo! Sounds intriguing.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 12:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

The wacky "Colbert Report" intro has triggered new interest in Rube Goldberg, whose cartoon inventions delighted an earlier generation. Lucky for us, Goldberg (1883-1970) left a job as a engineer working on San Francisco's sewers to create a syndicated cartoon about complex machinery used to perform the simplest daily tasks -- the self-operating napkin, for example.

I was a little too young to read the newspaper cartoons, but I caught up to him thanks to my father's memories, the Mousetrap game and the book pictured here. Goldberg's inventions involved boots, balls, matches and various household pets; they also had a certain quaintness, including bowler hats. (I get a flashback to Rube when I think about the proposals to plug the Gulf coast oil leak.)

Consider his contraption that keeps you from forgetting to mail your wife's letter: As you walk past cobbler shop, hook (A) strikes suspended boot (B), causing it to kick football (C) through goal posts (D). Football drops into basket (E) and string (F) tilts sprinkling can, (G) causing water to soak coat tails (H). As coat shrinks, cord (I) opens door (J) of cage, allowing bird (K) to walk out on perch (L) and grab worm (M) which is attached to string (N). This pulls down window shade (O) on which is written, "YOU SAP, MAIL THAT LETTER."

Just think what Rube could have done today, with a video camera and YouTube. Here are a couple of modern examples, including Honda's The Cog and a toy-filled stunt that reminds me of the hilarious opening scenes from Pee-Wee's Big Adventure.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 11:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

In Hamilton, we have a fairly flourishing restaurant scene. And one of my favorite spots is Hamilton Tavern, where the burgers are great, the meatloaf is delicious and the Resurrection on tap makes everyone a little happier.

But my favorite part is the bathroom. What, that's weird?

But on the bathroom walls, instead of juvenile grafitti, ads for drink specials or STD public service announcements, the good people at Hamilton Tavern have papered the walls with the pages of classic reads.

We've got Shakespeare, Austen, the Brontes ... and those were just the ones I was able to spot in my brief time visiting the restroom.

And now I have a great idea for all of those tattered, well-loved books I have on my shelves, held together with rubber bands. I can't read them again, for fear of completely destroying them -- and clearly they're in no shape to be given away to someone else. What exactly do you do with paperbacks that have seen much better days, and aren't serving much of a purpose for anyone?

Well, the next time I need to redecorate, I can just surround myself with my favorite words.

Posted by Nancy Knight at 10:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

At one point in time, I'm sure all of us thought we could enhance our favorite books with a few artful pictures. For instance, 7-year-old Nancy believed she could do a much better job illustrating osmosis in her Charlie Brown 'Cyclopedias, and also that Sally needed a little bit of color on her cheeks.

But I very quickly learned that books should be respected and cherished, and the thought of writing, coloring or in any way marring a book became a little horrifying to me. Which makes the Folger Shakespeare Library's current exhibit, The Art of Extra-Illustration, really fascinating for me.

According to the Folger Magazine, "grangerizing" books (so-called for James Granger's Biographical History of England from Egbert the Great to the Revolution, which started the 18th-century practice) gained popularity because it allowed people to personalize their books, and make them completely unique works of art. It's also an amazing window into the minds of the readers, who showed not only their understanding of the text, but their own interpretations of scenes, scientific theories and how exactly Hamlet's Polonius should look.

I really wish I had thought to say that when I got caught with my doodled-in 'Cyclopedias.

Shakespeare's publications soon became popular with grangerizers, and their literary works of art are on display until May 25th. So go check it out! In today's DIY culture, I wouldn't be surprised if this inspired a whole new generation of grangerizers. I just hope they have better art skills than me.

(Photo by ba1969 on stock.xchng)

Posted by Nancy Knight at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

In the Facebook world, today is Harry Potter Status Day, commemorating the defeat of Lord Voldemort, and users are supposed to post HP quotes as status updates. If you don't have a favorite, there are websites to help:

Listfied offers dozens, including Dumbledore's “Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light,” and Harry's “I don’t go looking for trouble. Trouble usually finds me.”

You can find many more at Mugglenet ("You know your mother, Malfoy? The expression on her face - like she's got dung under her nose? Is she like that all the time or just because you were with her?" -- Harry) and The Quote Garden ("Never trust anything that can think for itself if you can't see where it keeps its brain." -- Arthur Weasley)

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 9:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)