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I still own a copy of Thomas Hardy's Jude the Obscure . I didn't burn mine--unlike a number of Victorian readers who vehemently disapproved of it back in 1896. Jude still incites controversy, as proven by today's Round Rock New Neighbors book...
To borrow from "Casey at the Bat", the outlook wasn't brilliant for last week's adult book club. We all liked W. P. Kinsella's Shoeless Joe- -not an ideal situation. Book group veterans will tell you that an occasional "hated...
We can't ask Mr. Starbuck; he's a fictional character. But I suspect that other folks bearing popular brand surnames--the Heinzes, Bayers, Disneys, Wrigleys, Ferraris, etc.--would report favorably on that situation. It's not just the money...
Driving to work yesterday, I caught an NPR review of Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief. When a respected film critic disapproves as that one did, I can proceed in one of two ways: relegate the selection to "Netflix but not big...
I'm living on the edge these days. And I'm not referring to the 2009 Toyota that awaits me in the library parking lot. The book bag on the front seat bulging with selections from five different reading discussions--that's what triggers my...
My colleague had the new display of cookery books and food writing well under way this morning. At some point, two different labels suggested themselves: "Just Desserts" or "Getting Your Just desserts". I concurred that "Just...
If you immediately added "...and the agony of defeat", you're dating yourself. You're in good company, however. Olympic Games spectatorship has evolved from grainy black-and-white to glorious panoramic digital color, but no one has encapsulated...
We knew it couldn't last. A library and its community-wide reading choice eventually have to part ways. Isaac's Storm: a Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History is a thing of the past. I'm on the Round Rock Reads! committee and...
Super Bowl XLIV doesn't happen until February this year, but it already registers on the household radar screen. My husband, an old school Cowboys fan, entertains the dare-I-hope possibility that this really might be Dallas' year. My thoughts...
Describing Romeo and Juliet's attraction as "star-crossed" sounds romantic, but Shakespeare was just calling the situation as he saw it. If you check the origins of the word "disaster", you'll find that it amounts to something...
Leila Meacham's well-publicized new novel comes out later this week. If you've already heard that it's primarily set on an East Texas cotton plantation, the title may surprise you-- Roses. Explained early on, the flowers symbolize a unique...
Not everyone arranges their spices in alphabetical order, I'm told. I do, but not owing to OCD or having too much time on my hands. Quite the contrary. When you're in the throes of cooking, knowing exactly where to reach for that ingredient saves...
It's not the ultimate movie--no car chases or dialogue about playing a song again or wearing badges (stinking or otherwise). However, when I saw Me and Orson Welles this week, I thought it came close. The film offers a stellar ensemble cast, evocative...
I shouldn't be telling you this. Now there'll be more of you with whom to share. But it's only fair to alert you that Booklist recently published its list of Top 10 First Novels: 2009 . When rankings like this appear in the journals, I scurry...
You may have stowed your shopping bags in the car before entering the library, but we know where you've been. The signs are evident: posture wilted from hauling around your purchases, eyes glazed by an overabundance of merchandise. And your countenance...
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