No, thank you
In honor of Halloween, I've been reading several article about The Haunting of Hill House, Netflix's miniseries adaptation of Shirley Jackson's novel. I'm way too much of a chicken to actually watch the series (even still shots give me the heebie-jeebies), but...
Carbs and environmental disasters!
I was interested in this crowd-sourced list of the 100 "Must-Read" nonfiction books of the year. Their subjects are limited (and please note that the list includes several titles that haven't been released in the US yet), but I found at least three books I really want to read...
Looking forward to it
We're cruising towards the launch of my most-anticipated K-drama of 2018: Clean With Passion For Now, and trailers are beginning to appear. This is based on a popular webcomic, and I'm a little nervous about...
Never Dare a Wicked Earl, by Renee Ann Miller
I am always on the lookout for promising new historical romance novelists, so I was delighted to encounter Renee Ann Miller's Never Dare a Wicked Earl. Sure, I've read more compelling romance and more ambitious historical fiction, but this was a thoroughly respectable, entertaining combination of the two—and that's harder to find than you'd think...
Weekly Book Giveaway: Never Dare a Wicked Earl, by Renee Ann Miller
This week's Book Giveaway is Never Dare a Wicked Earl, by Renee Ann Miller. It appears to be her first book, but I'm not at all surprised she was already signed for a series—this is a really solid debut. A full review will...
Clock's ticking
And speaking of Cadillac Desert (as well as David Owen's Where the Water Goes), I see that the federal government recently announced an end-of-year deadline to resolve water rights issues surrounding the Colorado River...
Even more required reading
I've said it before and I'll say it again: every resident of the American West should read Cadillac Desert. This article (part of a series tellingly titled "PARCHED") in...
I WANT THEM.
Okay, these Oliver Jeffers-designed Veja sneakers are so adorable it hurts. Jeffers is an author and illustrator best known for his children's books, and Veja is a French shoe company that produces fair trade, environmentally-friendly sneakers...
I have questions
CrimeReads has begun assembling a list of the 15 Most Adapted Female Crime Writers. Heading the list is obviously Agatha Christie, but I was taken aback by how many of the authors were new to me—I had never even heard of six of them. Also, I have questions about their methodology: I know not everywhere in the world has a thriving film industry, but...
Mid-level tech
This isn't the most elegant book stand (although I like the way it looks with a book in it), but I approve of the functionality of it, as well as its $12 price tag...
An Easy Death, by Charlaine Harris
Charlaine Harris knows what works for her. All of her books feature working-class protagonists, vividly imagined worlds, and a bizarre notion of romantic chemistry. Her latest effort, An Easy Death, takes those familiar elements in unexpected directions, but her basic formula is still present...
Weekly Book Giveaway: An Easy Death, by Charlaine Harris
This week's Book Giveaway is Charlaine Harris's An Easy Death. I was really into her recent Midnight, Texas series, so I'm excited about this. A full review will follow shortly, and this giveaway will run through 10/26/18...
Of course, they were adaptations to begin with, but still.
There's a fascinating article at The AV Club about an important fact that may be fueling Disney's current passion for live-action remakes of their classic animated films: Disney owns the scripts for those movies wholesale, so...
I've always wanted a comma between "there" and "God"
Apparently, Judy Blume recently announced that she was considering opening up more of her books to potential film adaptations, and someone has just snagged her most famous novel. According to Deadline, producer James L. Brooks and writer Kelly Fremon Craig...
Messy but still interesting!
Jezebel just posted an essay by Kelly Faircloth called "Something Is Wrong in This House: How Bluebeard Became the Definitive Fairy Tale of Our Era". I found Faircloth's arguments a bit difficult to follow...
Hi-def is an unkind medium
And speaking of book-to-screen adaptations, I see the trailer is out for the second season of Midnight, Texas. I liked the first season more than I expected, so I'm stoked about this, although it's clear even...
Bit of a letdown
I can't believe I missed this: next week, PBS is going to start airing a BBC One adaptation of Wilkie Collins's The Woman in White. (You can see a brief trailer here.) My parents' copy...
Stupid Love Comedy, by Shushushu Sakurai
Shushushu Sakurai's Stupid Love Comedy is an odd duck—it's packaged like a conventional romance manga, but most of the story is devoted to meta jokes and background information about manga publishing. The plot centers around Suzu Sakura, a manga artist who is disorganized, inconsiderate, and perpetually late. When her original editor changes jobs, Suzu is assigned to Hasegawa, the editing department's devastatingly handsome new recruit...
Weekly Book Giveaway: Stupid Love Comedy, by Shushushu Sakurai
This week's Book Giveaway is Stupid Love Comedy, a lengthy one-shot manga by Shushushu Sakurai. A full review will follow shortly, but please note: due to a bunch of overdue postings, this giveaway will run through 10/26/18...
Maybe two boxes
I finally saw a trailer for If Beale Street Could Talk, the upcoming movie directed by Moonlight's Berry Jenkins and based on the novel of the same name by James Baldwin. The movie looks amazing, but also...
Planning ahead
Electric Lit just posted an interesting article called "Why Buying Books Will Not Save Our Beloved Bookstores". This particular essay felt rather large-city-specific, but some of the issues it discusses (local businesses versus chains, low profit margins, inequitable taxation, etc.) are...
If money were no object
If you're a rich book nerd (or you have loving and indulgent relatives), check out the latest Harry Potter-themed items at Pottery Barn. They range from kitschy-yet-expensive items like a Golden Snitch-inspired beanbag chair to...
Fingers crossed
And in other comic book adaptation news, the full trailer is out for Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, the Riverdale spin-off (kind of?) that will be released on Netflix on October 26th. It looks dreamy, all rich colors and vintage clothes, so...
The hairspray budget is going to be astronomical
The trailer is out for Deadly Class, the Russo brothers' TV adaptation of Rick Remender's comic book of the same name. The plot has been done before (many times), but I was excited to see...
Priest of Bones, by Peter McLean
Peter McLean's new novel Priest of Bones centers around someone competently handling an unusual job (one of my favorite things to read about!), but features loads of sexual violence (one of my least favorite things to read about!). Your enjoyment of this book will hinge upon your interest in the former, and your tolerance for the latter...
Weekly Book Giveaway: Priest of Bones, by Peter McLean
This week's Book Giveaway is Peter McLean's Priest of Bones, the first installment in his War for the Rose Throne series. A full review will follow shortly, but please note: due to a bunch of overdue postings, this giveaway will run through 10/19/18...
Again: meh.
And in other comic adaptation news, the And in other comic adaptation news, the trailer for the second season of Runaways is out. The dinosaur might look a little less hokey, but they still seem to have blown most of their budget...
Could (and has) been worse
The trailer for Dark Phoenix is out. I thought they already covered this ground in The Last Stand, but apparently not to the filmmakers' satisfaction...? Anyway, I'm glad to see...
So, so, so very overdue
Well, we've been following stories about Cornell University food behavior scientist Brian Wansink for more than a year now, but it seems this saga has finally come to an end: after a boatload (more collective nouns!) of scandals, Cornell has decided it's time to...