Thus far: meh.
The French trailer is out for the upcoming film version of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's famous novella The Little Prince, and it appears to be 90% Pixar; 10% Dave McKean...
And speaking of Takahashi...
...there's going to be an anime version of Rin-ne! Not that I really had any doubt (almost all of Takahashi's work has been animated, and most of it has been wildly successful), but I hadn't heard any details until recently...
Ranma ½, by Rumiko Takahashi
I have spent the past few days wondering how to describe Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½ without making it sound like a 36-volume-long fever dream, and I've finally decided it's an impossible task. Just... bear with me, okay?
Weekly Book Giveaway: Ranma 1/2: The 2-in-1 Edition, by Rumiko Takahashi
This week's Book Giveaway is Viz Media's 2-in-1 edition of the first two volumes of Rumiko Takahashi's classic manga Ranma 1/2. We recently featured this series as part of our 2014 Holiday Gift Guide, and trust me: winning a free copy would make an even better holiday gift for yourself...
Editing a sacred cow
There's an interesting article in The New York Times about a decision by the Swedish national broadcaster to edit out two scenes in a newly-restored DVD version of the 1969 TV series Pippi Longstocking...
So... many... links... (The 2014 Holiday Gift Guide)
Behold, our 2014 Holiday Gift Guide! Prices range from $118 to $7.95, and links are provided below
1. Marquee Lights - Ampersand...
Lost and found
According to NPR, the long-lost Neal Cassady letter that inspired Jack Kerouac's stream-of-consciousness novel On the Road has been found, and will be auctioned off next month...
Also, doesn't he have enough money?
Obviously hoping to milk a little more money from the Game of Thrones cash cow, George R.R. Martin has released a new edition of his 1980 children's novella The Ice Dragon, now featuring illustrations by Spanish artist Luis Royo. The story is set in the same world as Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire books, it's apparently targeted at readers aged 12 to 17, and costs $14.99...
Now That You're Here, by Amy K. Nichols
Now That You're Here, the debut novel from Amy K. Nichols, has an absolutely gorgeous cover and an intriguing premise. Sadly, the story never quite lives up to the promise of either cover or premise, but it's only the first installment of a two-book series, and I think things might improve...
Weekly Book Giveaway: Now That You're Here, by Amy K. Nichols
This week's Book Giveaway is a copy of Amy K. Nichols's debut novel Now That You're Here, despite the fact that it involves parallel universes and will almost certainly lead to a lot of grousing from Nathan about iffy science. (To which I say: at least it's not time travel.) The book won't be released until next week, so...
Congratulations, mom!
My mother is prone to long, ongoing obsessions with totally random subjects, where she reads everything she can on the issue and accumulates an encyclopedic knowledge of details of no interest to anyone but herself. Her latest fixation is on Scientology's ongoing legal disputes, so...
Daughter of Xanadu, by Dori Jones Yang
When I picked up Dori Jones Yang's novel Daughter of Xanadu, I was hoping to find a fictionalized version of the story of Khutulun, the most famous Mongolian girl of the era. My expectations were totally off* (they usually are), but Yang's novel has charms of its own...
Weekly Book Giveaway: Daughter of Xanadu, by Doris Jones Yang
This week's Book Giveaway is Daughter of Xanadu, by Doris Jones Yang. Judging by the somber cover art, the story won't be a rollicking good time, but I notice the main character shares several characteristics (and a birth year) with Khutulun*, so there might be a happy ending in store...
Surrealism, food, and sex: a recipe guide
The Huffington Post recently featured a fascinating description of Les Diners de Gala, Salvador Dali's 1973 "erotic cookbook". I can think of few artists whose vision I find less erotic than Dali's, but maybe food was his one true medium? I sincerely love the cover, although...
Computers are hard.
When I first read this vitriolic plot summary of the book Barbie: I Can Be... A Computer Engineer, I honestly thought it was a joke. I mean, no one, not even Mattel, could be that tone-deaf, right? Turns out I was wrong: according to NPR, Mattel...
Mortal Heart, by Robin LaFevers
The first two novels in Robin LaFevers's His Fair Assassin trilogy are intelligent, atmospheric, and jam-packed with historical detail, and the final installment, Mortal Heart, is no different. None of the books have been perfect, but this is still one of the most interesting and ambitious teen series to come out in years...
Not exactly giving it away, but not bad.
If you too have always coveted one of Kate Spade's Book of the Month clutches, ModCloth is offering a more affordable alternative: this Elusive Edition Bag is a comparatively cheap $59.99...
Pricey!
I rolled my eyes over this headline (describing an estate as "Mr. Darcy's IRL House" is both weird—seeing as he's not, y'know, a real person, and therefore does not actually own anything—and irritatingly cutesy), but if you've got a spare £7 million lying around, you can apparently use it to buy Wentworth Woodhouse...
Gated, by Amy Christine Parker
Amy Christine Parker's debut novel Gated occasionally strains credulity, but teen suspense fans are going to absolutely love it. It's engrossing, fast-paced, and about as real-world creepy as YA literature gets...
Weekly Book Giveaway: Gated, by Amy Christine Parker
This week's Book Giveaway is the YA suspense novel Gated, by Amy Christine Parker, which appears to be a novel about a girl growing up in a doomsday cult. (Picking random novels off our to-be-read shelf always leaves me reading the world's cheeriest stuff.) Our review should be up later today...
A literary battle
According to NPR, a lawsuit has been filed in an ongoing fight over the late Maurice Sendak's personal library. The Rosenbach Museum and Library in Philadelphia has accused the executors of Sendak's estate...
I hope he gets LOADS of wine.
The internet was recently blessed with a great single-page comic titled "Hero in Action: Bottle of Wine", written and illustrated by artist Russ Heath...
And Then There Were None, by Agatha Christie
The 75th anniversary edition of Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None opens with a smug quote from Christie's autobiography. In it, she describes the book's premise as “perfectly reasonable”, mentions that it was well received by critics, and announces that she was the person who was most pleased with it, as she alone knew how difficult writing it had been. Having now re-read And Then There Were None for...
Weekly Book Giveaway: And Then There Were None, by Agatha Christie
This week's Book Giveaway is the 75th anniversary edition of Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None. I hadn't read this novel since I was a child, and I have to say: if it is truly one of Christie's best books, I am now really bewildered by the comparative lack of interest in Georgette Heyer's mysteries...
Maybe a B+?
Word and Film recently posted a generally positive review of BBC One's adaptation of P. D. James's Death Comes to Pemberley. I wasn't impressed by the reviewer's argument that Pride and Prejudice is constructed around the "central question" of Darcy's feelings...
There's a demand for this?
Yesterday THR reported that Netflix is planning to adapt Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events into a TV show. I'm a little taken aback, seeing as the 2004 movie adaptation of this series didn't make enough money to justify a franchise...
Killer Instinct, by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Before I launch into the body of my review, I'd like to commend my local chain bookstore for not displaying Jennifer Lynn Barnes's Killer Instinct in the children's section. That's where they originally stocked the first book in the series—last year's The Naturals—and it was a staggeringly inappropriate choice...
TIGERS!
According to ComingSoon.net, Shekhar Kapur has signed on to direct a film adaptation of Tiger's Curse, based on Colleen Houck's New York Times-bestselling series of the same name. I've never read these books (I'm sorry, but that cover art totally reads "Updated Lisa Frank" to me), but...