*A Collection of
Antiquarian Curios & Relics*
"Sometimes,
looking at the many books I have at home, I feel I shall die before I come to
the end of them, yet I
cannot resist the temptation of buying new books. Whenever I walk into a
bookstore and find a book
on one of my hobbies -- for example, Old English or Old Norse poetry -- I say to myself,
"What a pity I can't buy that book, for I already have a copy at home . .
."
--Jorge Luis Borges
WHAT
IF? (9780544272996) 24.00 by Randall Munroe
Indeed.
What if authors were rock
stars? I mentioned in an earlier missive that I was disappointed that
S.C. Gwynne's Rebel Yell (9781451673289) 35.00, was not the long awaited
Billy Idol biography, but instead, it was merely another book on Stonewall
Jackson. 'With a rebel yell, she wanted more, more, more . . .' Unknowingly,
I was not that far off. Billy Idol's autobiography releases October 7 and
it is entitled after his other big hit, Dancing With Myself
(9781451628500) 28.00. His picture on the cover has him with his
trademark spiked peroxide hair and lazy sneer. Ah, the '80s . . .
It was a different time.
In the case of James Patterson,
let's take this conceit one step further. His latest title Burn (9780316211048)
28.00 brought to mind the hit of the same name by Deep Purple, which wasn't by
the classic lineup with lead singer Ian Gillan, but the Glenn Hughes and David
Cloverdale incarnation. That's just not big enough for James
Patterson. I think a better equivalent for him would be Paul McCartney,
not Beatles McCartney, but more like Macca from the Wings and Silly Love
Songs period in his career. 'Some people want to read silly action
and suspense novels. And what's wrong with that? I need to know . .
.'
And then there's
our favourite Prosperity Gospel preacher Joel Osteen, who's new title, You
Can, You Will (9781455575718) 24.00 has already hit the bestseller charts.
You may recall a Christian rock band called Stryper, who had a Grammy nominated
hit song, Honestly. Now all we have to do is to get Joel to dress
up in a black and yellow spandex jumpsuit.
Speaking of Christianity, David
Limbaugh's Jesus on Trial (9781621572558) 27.99 has been selling like
crazy, in fact, we're sold out, as is the publisher. I really had to
wrack my brain on this one. The best I could come up with was David
Limbaugh is to Tom Fogerty, as his brother Rush would be to John Fogerty of
Creedence Clearwater Revival fame. I know it's a bit of a stretch.
Fortunately, for the band Rush, Geddy Lee doesn't
have a brother.
Finally, on a more obscure note,
Jeff VanderMeer and Desirina Boskovich's The Steampunk User's Manual
(9781419708985) 24.95 releases on October 7, too. It's bad enough as an
author that you're stuck in the sci-fi ghetto, but on top of it, you're in a
sub-genre of science fiction. At best, the most apt comparison would be a
local rock band like Lansing's own Hat Madder, but I'll be generous and go with
the Dresden Dolls, which you may have at least heard of since the lead singer
is married to Neil Gaiman. 'I am the girl anachronism . . .'
Odds
& Sods
'Ahhhh, Mac
Attack . . .' Once upon a time, Michigan State University, before it
became a football and a basketball powerhouse, was known as Michigan
Agricultural College. These early days are documented in a sepia coloured
collection of postcards in Stephen Terry's new hardcover book, MAC: Campus
Life 1900-1925 (9781933272443) 19.95. State alumni are everywhere, so make
sure you have this title on tap . . .
Fantasy author
R.A. Salvatore stopped in today to sign copies of his latest Drizzt novel, Rise
of the King (9780786965151) 27.95. I will admit I read a few of his
titles in my misspent youth. They are great
fun!
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