Happy Friday, everybody!

I'm pretty excited about the weekend, because I hope to be going back to my bookworm ways after a few exciting weeks. I'm itching to finish both King's "Under the Dome" and Westerfeld's "Leviathan." For those who are unfamiliar with Scott Westerfeld's YA best-sellers, "Leviathan" is a great way to get started. It follows the action of the start of World War I, but in a world where "Darwinists" have created genetically enhanced warbeasts and "Clankers" have highly advanced -- for their time -- technology.

On to the winner of John Grisham's Ford County: Julie P.! Congratulations, and I hope you enjoy your new book!

In less than one week, we'll all be in a turkey-induced stupor, so I thought it would be entirely appropriate to give away a book about food. "Julie and Julia" author Julie Powell's latest, "Cleaving: A Story of Marriage, Meat and Obsession," to be precise.

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

Anyone who has read comments on Read Street posts about Meyer is familiar with this phenomenon. Women in their 20s, 30s and beyond have rushed to her defense when others criticized her novels. So if you see "New Moon," expect a crowd of women of all ages -- and not just those who are chaperoning their kids. (By the way, here's a review of "New Moon," photo galleries and much more about the movie.) And here's some first-hand, womanly testimony from Read Street comments:

"I am 26 years old ... a doctor ... [and ] I found Stephenie Meyer's novels utterly captivating, because, unlike pretty much every other fantasy/sci-fi book in existence, they are subtle and enjoyable, with a nice dose of romance. -- Nette

"I'm ... a 37 year old mother to an 11 year old daughter and my husband and I had to fight her for the Twilight books ,,, I think it was the romance, being reminded of those intense, passionate feelings of first love -- Amy

Photo by David Stone

Clancy lives in rural Maryland, and will keep a residence there, but has long had ties to the city -- even helping Peter Angelos buy the Baltimore Orioles in 1993. Photos of Clancy's new home aren't available, but here's a gallery of the Ritz-Carlton project.

Durn. Why didn't I take that course "Writing techno-thrillers 101" in college?

AP photo from 2004

Exactly how many Bush administration tell-alls will it take before everything's been told?

Following in the footsteps of former press secretary Scott McClellan, Vice President Dick Cheney, first lady Laura Bush and President George W. Bush himself, top White House aide Karl Rove has written a book about his experiences in the West Wing, titled "Courage and Consequence."

Publisher Threshold Editions, which is also publishing Cheney's book, says the memoir "frankly responds to critics, passionately articulates his political philosophy and openly explains the reasons behind his decisions in campaigns and the White House."

I wonder if he's finally going to tell us what he REALLY thinks about being called "Turd Blossom."

(AP photo)

I spent many hours in front of the TV watching them and other characters on the show: Boris Badenov and Natasha Fatale, Dudley Do-Right, Peabody and Sherman, and Aesop and Son. (I got a good laugh years later, when my Russian history book referred to Boris Godunov.)

But in case you think all that TV time was wasted, I'd argue that my early fascination with Aesop's Fables was fueled by the cartoon Aesop and Son. So some good came out of it.

Artwork courtesy of Classic Media

As you may have already figured out, I'm a huge fan of web comics. From Hark! A Vagrant to xkcd, they're just fun, short bursts of intelligent humor (which can then pull you deeper into the site until you realize you've just wasted half the day).

So between that and my beloved Kindle, I'm still always taken aback when people get all hostile about reading from a screen. I mean, you do it all day at work. You follow link after link that friends send you via e-mail, Facebook and Twitter. But somehow when you get home, it's a taboo medium.

So leave it to another web comic to eloquently communicate my pain: Downloading Optimism.*

The author, Lucy Knisley, is no stranger to the printed word -- she has her own memoir, the drawing journal "French Milk," and has even worked at a magazine, according to her Web site.

Just further proof that a loving both books and computers is possible. Which is good for us, since Read Street wouldn't exist otherwise.

*And as an aside, happy birthday to Margaret Atwood! Let's see if you write so well when you're 70!

(Photo by ralaenin on stockxchng)

Or, even better: "John McCain unfriended Sarah Palin after reading 'Going Rogue.' "

On the Oxford University Press blog, senior lexicographer Christine Lindberg said of unfriend, “It has both currency and potential longevity. ... Most “un-” prefixed words are adjectives (unacceptable, unpleasant), and there are certainly some familiar “un-” verbs (uncap, unpack), but “unfriend” is different from the norm. It assumes a verb sense of “friend” that is really not used (at least not since maybe the 17th century!). Unfriend has real lex-appeal.”

I think it's actually an elaborate joke by the Brits, honoring such an ungainly word for the American dictionary. I bet the British word of the year is much more chic, like "refoulement." (Then again, maybe not, considering the OED has updated its entry for "ape" by adding the subentries "apeshit" and "to go ape-shit.")

Why couldn't the WOTY be one of the others on the short list? I'd prefer "intexticated" -- distracted while texting and driving. Or "tramp stamp" – a tattoo on the lower back, usually on a woman.

For those who've waited for a more interactive e-book to surface, here it is: Vook. The company, founded in 2008, has created a new platform, blending stories with video and social media to create what they bill as a new reading experience.

 It looks pretty cool.

 So far, Vook has partnered with publisher such as Simon & Schuster and HarperStudio to provide cookbooks, exercise guides, self-help and even a romance novella by best-seller Jude Devereaux. They all incorporate the text of a traditional book, with video interwoven, much as photos are used in a traditional bound book. Even better, you can connect with the author and other readers using either the same Web browser, if you're reading on your computer; or the same application, if you're using your iPhone or iPod Touch.

I'm not sure if this platform would suit every book -- for instance, I'd prefer to imagine my own characters and settings in my fictional favorites -- but in the case of cookbooks, biographies and historical texts, actual footage used to enhance the text is a great idea.

Can you imagine how much more exciting learning about World War II or the Berlin Wall coming down would be for high-schoolers if they could watch the events as they occurred? Or mix in some Bill Nye-type to explain why physics really isn't as boring as every student thinks it is.

 Sometimes, technology really is exciting.

She says she "is a little burned out on vampires right now" -- a statement that will make millions of her fans feel faint. "I might go spend some time with my aliens, I might do something completely different. I've got to cleanse the palate," Meyer said recently in an Oprah interview. She hinted that she might try her hand at a pure fantasy novel, a la J.K. Rowling -- you know, one with a map in the front.

At least her Twilight devotees have something else to look forward to: Friday's release of the "New Moon" movie.

Maybe King has psyched Meyer out with his statement that she "can’t write worth a darn. She’s not very good." Or maybe she's worried that King will drop a copy of his new hardback -- more than 1,000 pages worth -- on her if she fights back. 

Here's a clip of Palin explaining to Oprah why she didn't go gentle into that good (and loooong Alaskan) night.

If you miss the Oprah interview, don't worry, Palin will be all over TV this week, touting her sure-fire bestseller. And for more on Palin as literary inspiration, here's a photo gallery of some of the books that feature her.

A high school librarian in Phoenix says a former student at the school returned two overdue books checked out 51 years ago along with a $1,000 money order to cover the fines. The Audubon Society books were checked out from Camelback High in 1959, and a letter returned with them says the borrower's family moved to another state and the books were mistakenly packed.

By the way, if you're ever in Phoenix, the hike to the top of Camelback Mountain is a great way to spend a few hours. Last time I did it, I had to dodge hordes of tourists wearing flip-flops and holding little poodles on leashes -- not recommended climbing techniques -- but the view from the top was great. 

Palin confirms reports of tension between her aides and those of the 2008 Republican presidential candidate, Sen. John McCain. The vice presidential candidate confirms that she had wanted to speak on election night, but was denied the chance and says she was kept "bottled up" from reporters during the campaign.

Palin also writes harshly of CBS anchor Katie Couric, whom she describes as "badgering" and biased. Palin's series of interviews with Couric were widely regarded as disastrous, leaving the impression of an ill-informed candidate who was unsuited for the job. ...

Palin shares behind-the-scene moments when the nation learned her teen daughter Bristol was pregnant, how she rewrote the statement prepared on her behalf by the McCain campaign — only to watch in horror as a TV news anchor read the original McCain camp statement, which, in Palin's view, glarmorized and endorsed her daughter's situation.

To approach King, fans had to traverse 10 alleys cordoned off by ropes. Three Walmart employees handled each book before it was placed in front of the author for his autograph. The first employee greeted the customer and took his or her previously purchased copy. The second flipped the book open to the title page, and the third shoved it down the table and in front of the novelist. Six seconds, tops, and it was on to the next customer.

A female fan kissed King's hand. A man asked him for a hug, while children routinely received high-fives. But only Sylvia Sikora, 42, of Baltimore was invited behind the table to pose for a photo with her arm around King's shoulders.

"I have every one of your books in English and in German," she told King. Sikora, who came to the U.S. in 1990 from her native land, first read the German-language version of "Firestarter" shortly after it was published in the early 1980s. "I absolutely loved it, and I've been hooked ever since," she said.

For those who turn up their noses at sparkly vampires and CGI wolves, it may seem like your night at the movies is doomed. Fear not! There are plenty of great movies -- based on books, don't you know -- to choose from in the next couple of months.

"The Road," based on Cormac McCarthy's dystopian book of the same name, stars Viggo Mortensen, Charlize Theron, Robert Duvall and Guy Pearce. It's McCarthy, of "No Country for Old Men" fame, so it's rough. But it's sure to be powerful. (Released November 25.)

"Precious" is already earning accolades from Oprah Winfrey, Tyler Perry and critics just about everywhere. Based on Sapphire's novel "Push," the film follows an overweight New York City teen and mother who has been negelcted and abused but hasn't lost her hope. (With Paula Patton, Mo'Nique and introducing Gabourey Sidibe.)

"The Blind Side" is about football, family and making me cry. Sure, you could turn your nose up at ANOTHER Sandra Bullock tearjerker, but as a Ravens fan, I clearly can't miss this flick, based on a book by Michael Lewis that chronicles the history of the left tackle position and Michael Oher's improbable rise to the NFL. It also stars Tim McGraw , Kathy Bates and newcomer Quinton Aaron. (Released November 20.)

Who doesn't know "Sherlock Holmes"? Add in names like Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law (whom I'm not convinced will be a great Watson, but we'll see...) and Rachel McAdams, and I'm clearly spending Christmas Day at the movies. Besides, we haven't heard Downey with a British accent for a while, and I'm really looking forward to it.

I still believe nothing will top my beloved "Muppet Christmas Carol," but I'm willing to give Jim Carrey's "A Christmas Carol" a shot. The special effects look to be amazing, at least, and they've finally figured out how to make people's faces move properly in the performance capture medium. (Released November 4.)

I'm sure there are more. Hollywood loves nothing more than to adapt our favorite books, and hopefully do it well. Are there any others you're looking forward to? And "New Moon" is an acceptable answer, I guess.