Friday, March 26, 2010

2 Novels, 2 DVDs, 7 CDs with Neil Finn and AC/DC

Music on CD

The Sun Came Out by 7 Worlds Collide. Neil Finn did a group concert a few years ago and called the resulting CD 7 Worlds Collide (I have it at home if you want to borrow it). So, Finn put together most of the same people again as a benefit CD for Oxfam. Included are Jeff Tweedy, Johnny Marr, KT Tunstall, assorted Finns, etc.

A Friend of A Friend by Dave Rawlings Machine. Why did I buy this? Must be because Gillian Welch is in the band. Kind of like I bought The Mighty Celt because Gillian Anderson is in that.

Michael Buble Meets Madison Square Garden by Michael Buble and a band. Buble has a nice voice but I have heard few of his songs. Hey! Did I mention that Chris Isaak has another show on TV? I caught it by chance the other day and Buble was on.

Some guy who stinks - STINKS - of stale cigarettes just came into the library.

Pictures by The Len Price 3. Great stuff.



Keeps Gettin' Better: a decade of hits by Christina Aguilera. Stuff.

Powerage by AC/DC. My quest for the full AC/DC catalog continues.

'74 Jailbreak by AC/DC. See? What did I tell you? This is just a five song EP from '84 when early, unreleased tracks were packaged for the U.S.

DVD

Ghostbusters 1 & 2 starring ][the cast]. I think a previous copy was mangled. Includes a fancy booklet.

Gigante starring [Uruguayans]. Shy security guard in Montevideo falls for the night time cleaning lady. Romantic comedy with stalking.



Fiction

Known to Evil by Walter Mosley. "A Leonic McGill Mystery". Mosley has written some great novels.

She Walks in Beauty by Siri Mitchell. Romance.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Harlan Coben is Bald, More Indian Mounds, Underwear Girl on Cover

Fiction

Bite Me: a love story by Christopher Moore. Comedic novel with vampires in San Francisco.

212 by Alafair Burke. No relation to Alafair Robicheaux.

Red Cat by Peter Spiegelman. PI in NYY tries to track down the blackmailing girlfriend of his married brother. The woman, who works an internet porn and black mailing operation, ends up dead and evidence leads to the PI's brother. The cover has a gal dressed in underwear and stockings.

Caught by Harlan Coben. Seventeen year old girl goes missing. Lady tv reporter who hosts a fictionalized version of Catch a Predator gets involved.

The Mapping of Love and Death by Jacqueline Winspear. I always enjoy the artwork on these Winspear covers. I cannot name the painting style but it has that 1920s-1930s, Hopper-like, WPA feel. I've still never read one of these books though.

Brightly Woven by Alexandra Bracken. This looks like a YA novel and has a lousy cover.

Sheen on the Silk by Anne Perry. Woman travels to Constantinople in 1273 to prove her brother's innocence in conspiring to kill a nobleman. Good for her.

Shattered by Karen Robards. Sha-dooby. Shattered. Shattered.

NonFiction

Spirits of Earth: the effigy mound landscape Madison and the Four Lakes by Robert A. Birmingham. Birmingham used to be State Archeologist and has writen several books on mounds including the one about the mounds in Aztalan State Park.

Kids Book

Tollins by Conn Iggulden. I list this because it was in the same pile as the other books in this post. Tollins was the Rotary gift book from this week. The Rotary Club of Lake Mills donates a book in the name of the weekly program. This means I have to find a new book each week and I sometimes run around trying to scare one up.
The program this week was a tour at Ephraim Faience Pottery by one of the owners. Ephraim just moved downtown about a year ago and make Arts and Crafts style pottery. They have a neat operation and the tour covered all the steps of the process. Tours are not often given though, so don't just expect one if you suddenly show up.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Leftovers and Donations

Justified

I was watching this during lunch and started talking in a fake drawl.



Fiction

Hearts Awakening by Delia Parr. Christian/inspirational fiction.

These novels are all donations. Someone left these and other books in some plastic bags next to our outdoor book drop. Good thing the bags didn't have dog dirt or a bomb instead of books.

Somebody Owes Me Money by Donald E. Westlake. A Hard Case Crime reprint.

The Cutie by Donald E. Westlake. Another Hard Case Crime reprint. You remember Hard Case don't you? After that tattoo you received?

Dead as a Doornail by Charlaine Harris.

Cry Wolf by Tami Hoag.

I am Not a Cop by Richard Belzer and Michael Black. Belzer plays himself as an actor called upon to be the character he plays on television.

Large Print

Fantasy in Death by J.D. Robb.

Split Image by Robert B. Parker.

Retreads: Ringo, Sade, Johnny Cash, The A-Team

DVD

A-Team: Season Two starring those three guys and Mr. T. Our first copy of this lost some discs, or was mangled, or something. Remember how the characters would fire thousands of rounds, use flamethrowers, conk people on the head, or get in massive car crashes but no one was ever shown injured?



Storm starring [Germans]. Prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague has a key witness commit suicide. She travels to Yugoslavia for the witness's funeral and meets the man's sister who knows the same information. The prosecutor and new witness have to make it back to Holland alive.



Boondock Saints II starring Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus. The first movie has a strong following so I bought this sequel. A quote on the front of the box says, "The sequel improves on everything that made the first film great." That is a difficult proposition considering the first movie is, in reality, a pile of crap.



Where do all these movie characters get suppressors for their guns? If I want one I have to pay $200 up front just on the federal tax stamp.

Precious starring Gabourey Sidibe and other people. You should know the story by now.

The Informant! starring Scott Bakula and Matt Damon. Comedy with an informant working with the FBI over a price fixing scheme on food additives.

Up in the Air starring George Clooney. You should know this story as well.

Music CDs

Songs From the Heart by Celtic Woman. These CDs and DVDs are really popular. The band's name is a misnomer since there seem to be five gals involved. Judging from the liner notes I say that Lynn and Mairead are the best looking. Because, let's face it, looks are as important as talent for the kind of show they run.



American VI: aint't no grave by Johnny Cash. Another album of covers by Cash.

Y Not by Ringo Starr. Ten new tunes by Starkey.



Charlie Hood is happy.

Soldier of Love by Sade. Older people tend to dig this album. Or so the newspaper said.

Ultra Dance 11 by DJ Enferno. DJ Enferno needs to buy a dictionary. The model in the liner notes is probably the only good thing about these two discs.

Monday, March 22, 2010

Another Gischler and Max Allan Collins

Fiction

You Can't Stop Me by Max Allan Collins and Matthew Clemens. Former sheriff J.C. Harrow had a red letter day. He caught a Presidential assassin and his wife and son were murdered. Now the host of Crime Seen! he tracks down crooks with the help of viewer's tips and has a chance to catch the killer of his family.

Collins has a neat blog that I referred to before. He seems like a good dude. We also just received a DVD movie based on one of his Quarry stories, The Last Lullaby.

Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova. Artist slashes a famed painting hanging in a museum. Psychiatrist tries to figure out why.

Wedding Season by Kate Fforde. With a title like this how could it be anything but a chick book?

Think Twice by Lisa Scottoline. I think I read a short story by Scottoline. If she is the one I am thinking of the story was dang good.

Secrets of Eden by Chris Bohjalian. Cover has a lady taking a swim in a lake.

Welcome to the Bayou by Victor Gischler. Comic book novel by the famed novelist. Famed? Oh, that was funny. Funny, funny, funny.

Wild Ride by Jennifer Crusie and Bob Mayer. Supernatural romance at an amusement park. I think.