Link-Mad Columbus Day Monday: Hauntings
Just a couple of light links today -- it's a beautiful fall holiday morning, and I can't confine myself to the computer screen for long.
* The ever-restless mind of the ALP has launched a new project: And Now The Screaming Starts, a blog devoted to the horror genre so dear to my man's heart. (CRwM is another acronym adopted by the ALP - long story.) His book and movie reviews are actually pretty darned insightful, and mixed in with appreciations of the new Halloween marshmallow Peeps. How can you resist?
* Speaking of Halloween-ishness, a sharp-eyed friend (thanks, Lauren!) sent along this article about a couple of fantasy & horror niche bookstores that are making good. I'm not sure they took the ABA's quotes entirely in context -- studies indicate that indie bookstore shares are actually increasing in market share, though times are still tough -- but it's a cool piece about another kind of community of booklovers.
* And another kind of haunting: I just this morning finished Richard Powers' new book THE ECHO MAKER. I'm not quite ready to review it yet; need to sit with it and mull. But there are some reviews of it floating around in Entertainment Weekly, The Boston Globe, The Nation, and the Wall Street Journal (try www.bugmenot.com if you're asked for a password). Some are harsh, some are worshipful, some are middling -- you'll probably have to, you know, read the book to figure out what's really going on. Thanks to the good offices of Ed Champion and the LBC, I'll be fortunate enough to take part in a roundtable discussion of the novel with Powers later this month, which will probably add some more perspectives. I'll keep you posted.
Okay, get out there and enjoy the holiday weather -- even if you're at work today, take a long lunch break. See you Wednesday!
* The ever-restless mind of the ALP has launched a new project: And Now The Screaming Starts, a blog devoted to the horror genre so dear to my man's heart. (CRwM is another acronym adopted by the ALP - long story.) His book and movie reviews are actually pretty darned insightful, and mixed in with appreciations of the new Halloween marshmallow Peeps. How can you resist?
* Speaking of Halloween-ishness, a sharp-eyed friend (thanks, Lauren!) sent along this article about a couple of fantasy & horror niche bookstores that are making good. I'm not sure they took the ABA's quotes entirely in context -- studies indicate that indie bookstore shares are actually increasing in market share, though times are still tough -- but it's a cool piece about another kind of community of booklovers.
* And another kind of haunting: I just this morning finished Richard Powers' new book THE ECHO MAKER. I'm not quite ready to review it yet; need to sit with it and mull. But there are some reviews of it floating around in Entertainment Weekly, The Boston Globe, The Nation, and the Wall Street Journal (try www.bugmenot.com if you're asked for a password). Some are harsh, some are worshipful, some are middling -- you'll probably have to, you know, read the book to figure out what's really going on. Thanks to the good offices of Ed Champion and the LBC, I'll be fortunate enough to take part in a roundtable discussion of the novel with Powers later this month, which will probably add some more perspectives. I'll keep you posted.
Okay, get out there and enjoy the holiday weather -- even if you're at work today, take a long lunch break. See you Wednesday!
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