A few weeks ago, it finally registered that Costco had discontinued Gillette Sensor cartridges (I’ve been going through razors a bit faster over the last several months than I had in the last several years). I was frustrated by this, since the replacements (Mach 3 and (especially) Fusion) are roughly 3x the price (and, really, […]
Second Fiddle to a Steel Guitar. Does what it says on the tin. There are absolutely no surprises in this collection of Nashville performers with a monofilament of plot wrapped around them.
Cheap: The High Cost of Discount Culture, Shell. Non-fiction. As interested as I would like to have been in the history and effects of America’s quest for cheap, I was unable to finish this book. Shell is a correspondent for The Atlantic, and maybe her skills are better suited for shorter pieces. This work was […]
The difference between the blurbs and the blurb words in context for the book Jack Tumor. Blurb: “Lots of laughs.” —Kirkus Reviews Context: “Lots of laughs but little else.” Blurb: “The love-hate relationship between Hector and his alter ego is engaging.” —School Library Journal Context: “The love-hate relationship between Hector and his alter ego is […]
Manna from Heaven, Zelazny. Yes. I don’t know how I missed this publication. I didn’t let Zelazny’s death prevent me from examining the appropriate section of the book store on every visit, but I nevertheless was unaware of this 2003 collection. Given the ongoing publication of The Collected Zelazny, it is of somewhat less interest, […]
We finished with The Starlost last night, and I think the best part of the four discs was the seven-minute pitch reel included as an extra on the final disc. It was clearly made before shooting had started, as evidenced by the different name for Keir Dullea’s character and substantially different pilot plot described. They […]
Alfresco. Tolerable. Put together the amazing talents of Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie, Emma Thompson, Ben Elton, and Robbie Coltrane (and Siobhan Redmond, whom you’ve likely not heard of) in 1983, and what do you get? A sketch comedy show that, in 2009, is rather disappointing. I’ll get the second series, but mostly out of contractual […]
Best last line to a local news story in a while, and again it should be in the headline: “The sheriff’s office is looking into whether the group actually exists.”