tuesday august 07
Several years ago, my friend and I went on a weekend bus trip to Graceland, Elvis Presley’s home in Memphis, Tennessee. On the way, I listened to Elvis: 30 #1 Hits and watched his movies Jailhouse Rock and King Creole. By the time we arrived on the front porch of Graceland, I was ready to meet the King.
Ever since that trip, I’ve enjoyed reading about his fascinating life. As the 30th anniversary of his death approaches on August 16th, I decided to read Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley. Considered the definitive biography of Elvis, Peter Guralnick recounts Presley’s early life and music before the rhinestone jumpsuits and peanut butter and banana sandwiches.
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The winners of the career-making Eisner Awards were announced the last weekend in July at Comic-Con 2007 in San Diego. These awards, named for legendary innovator Will Eisner, are determined by a panel of five judges; this year, they included librarian Robin Brenner, creator of the excellent reader’s advisory site No Flying No Tights.
In addition to the winners listed below, check out the nominee list for more great graphic reading.
Best Graphic Album – New: American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang. See my post about this first graphic novel nominated for a National Book Award.
Best Graphic Album – Reprint: Absolute DC: The New Frontier, by Darwyn Cooke. The Library has the original edition.
Best Reality-Based Work: Fun Home by Alison Bechdel. See Jennifer’s post.
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monday august 06
Every day at the library, customers check out the newest titles by authors such as Janet Evanovich and James Patterson. But they aren't just checking out the books. Many seek out these titles in audio book form. I was surprised last week by an article in the New York Times that debated whether listening to a book on cd was equal to reading that same book:
"Dain Frisby-Dart, 40, an avid audio book listener from Trempealeau, Wis., told her book group a few years ago that she was listening to the current selections. One of the members, a man in his 70s, reacted as if she had been reading CliffsNotes."
The article describes how many of the people who listen to audio books do so in private: in the car, at home, or while wearing headphones. But with book clubs growing in popularity, people's reading - and listening - habits are being made public.
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saturday august 04
Summer is here in all of its glory, and we must revel in it as much as possible. It is quite simple really: just sit outside and feast your senses on the birdsong and the fireflies. The best recipe for tomatoes: pick one from the vine and eat it, the drippier the better. For those who prefer more detailed instructions, here are a few books that can tell you how to enjoy summer, and even if you already know how, their beautiful illustrations could easily occupy a long afternoon in the shade.
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friday august 03
As summer begins to wind down, it’s nearly here, the event parents eagerly await and children dread: THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL! Anticipation abounds as children and parents alike are greeted with mounds of immaculate school supplies, teachers to meet, and a host of new routines to master. Inevitably, all that change brings a flutter of nervousness to even the most brave-hearted students. A warm lap and a good book can do wonders to ease the worried mind.
Here to help is the first of two posts filled with great books to ease those first day jitters.
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thursday august 02
Although I'm not really focused on knitting as much during the summer, I just had to blog about Fitted Knits. I like this book! One of the first things that caught my eye was that it uses yarns in a variety of price ranges. What kept me interested were several hip-looking patterns designed to be knit in one piece from the top down. Yay! No sewing seams!
Fitted Knits is a great resource for beginning and intermediate knitters interested in patterns with a little more shaping. One of the great features in the book is that not only are the patterns sized to specific measurements, they're also broken down into separate design parts. This makes adapting the patterns to one's own proportions much easier.
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wednesday august 01
The Discovery Channel is in the midst of their annual Shark Week celebration. From July 29th-August 4th, Discovery is celebrating the 20th anniversary of Shark Week. Tonight's episode, "Perfect Predators", airs at 9 pm. The Newport Aquarium is also getting in on the fun with Shark Fest. Receive free giveaways, pet sharks, and see sharks fed daily. For those of you obsessed with shark attacks (and I know you're out there), check out the International Shark Attack File. It might surprise some of you to learn that Florida, not Australia, leads the world in shark attacks. Since 1990, Florida has seen 365 attacks, compared to Australia's 94.
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