Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Podcast – Brett Battles interview
014 Reading and Writing podcast – Brett Battles interview: "Welcome to the fourteenth episode of the Reading and Writing podcast featuring an interview with Brett Battles, suspense and thriller writer, and author of Shadow of Betrayal, The Deceived, and The Cleaner."
Bouchercon Bound
I haven't mentioned Bouchercon because we weren't at all sure we'd get to go. It was going to be a game-day decision. Well, today is game day, and we've decided to go. We'll leave tomorrow morning, bright and early. Or maybe not so bright since we'll probably have to be out and about before sunrise. We're staying in the Westin, not the convention hotel, but we hope it won't be too far away. I won't be using Twitter to report, but I might send in something for the blog. Even if I don't, there should be plenty of posts for you to read, including some book and movie reviews. If I get a chance I'll check the comments now and then to be sure the spammers haven't taken over.
We've never been to Indianapolis, but I doubt that we'll see much of the city since the weather forecast isn't exactly favorable. We've flying back to Houston on the 19th, assuming all goes well.
We've never been to Indianapolis, but I doubt that we'll see much of the city since the weather forecast isn't exactly favorable. We've flying back to Houston on the 19th, assuming all goes well.
I Knew It!
Beware the Drain-Dwelling Alligators! - Tonic: "Remember those urban legends about people flushing pet baby alligators down toilets, creating giant, sewer-dwelling gators? Well, turns out those myths have a teensy bit of truth to them.
According to a WPLG story, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue recently pulled an unexpected critter out of a storm drain: A seven-foot-long, 150-pound alligator! To see some pics of the giant reptile, click here."
According to a WPLG story, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue recently pulled an unexpected critter out of a storm drain: A seven-foot-long, 150-pound alligator! To see some pics of the giant reptile, click here."
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
CRIME Blog | The Dallas Morning News: "On Saturday, Oct. 10, a Texas Highway Patrol trooper stopped a school bus marked to resemble a United Independent School District bus on U.S. 59 north of Laredo, which contained 5,408 pounds of marijuana with an estimated worth of more than $1.7 million.
The driver fled on foot from the scene. DPS is pursuing several leads in connection with this investigation.
One would think this is rare. Think again. In February comes this south Texas discovery: Nearly $4 million in pot inside another similar bus."
The driver fled on foot from the scene. DPS is pursuing several leads in connection with this investigation.
One would think this is rare. Think again. In February comes this south Texas discovery: Nearly $4 million in pot inside another similar bus."
Monday, October 12, 2009
Just What the World Needs
FT.com / Technology - Dyson launches the bladeless electric fan: "First there was the bagless vacuum cleaner, then the towel-less hand dryer: Now James Dyson, the British inventor, has developed a bladeless electric fan which goes on sale on Tuesday in the US and Australia."
10 Worst Baseball Movies Ever
10 Worst Baseball Movies Ever - FOXNews.com - Slide 1 of 10
I've seen two of these, Major League and The Babe Ruth Story. I laughed during Major League, and I saw the other one so long ago that I remember almost nothing about it.
I've seen two of these, Major League and The Babe Ruth Story. I laughed during Major League, and I saw the other one so long ago that I remember almost nothing about it.
10 Awesomely Terrible 90’s One-Hit Wonders
Karaoke Lounge 10 Awesomely Terrible 90’s One-Hit Wonders
I pretty much missed out on '90s music, but I've heard three of these.
I pretty much missed out on '90s music, but I've heard three of these.
Get a Rope!
It’s a Fork, It’s a Spoon, It’s a ... Weapon? - NYTimes.com: "NEWARK, Del. — Finding character witnesses when you are 6 years old is not easy. But there was Zachary Christie last week at a school disciplinary committee hearing with his karate instructor and his mother’s fiancé by his side to vouch for him.
Zachary’s offense? Taking a camping utensil that can serve as a knife, fork and spoon to school. He was so excited about recently joining the Cub Scouts that he wanted to use it at lunch. School officials concluded that he had violated their zero-tolerance policy on weapons, and Zachary now faces 45 days in the district’s reform school."
Zachary’s offense? Taking a camping utensil that can serve as a knife, fork and spoon to school. He was so excited about recently joining the Cub Scouts that he wanted to use it at lunch. School officials concluded that he had violated their zero-tolerance policy on weapons, and Zachary now faces 45 days in the district’s reform school."
Quarry in the Middle -- Max Allan Collins
Disclaimer: Yes, Mr. FTC Guy, it's true. This was a free book. It wasn't a review copy, however. I won it in a Twitter drawing. Not that it matters. I subscribe to the Hard Case Crime line, so each new book that comes out is charged to my credit card and mailed right to my home. That's right. Even though I got this one for free, I'll be receiving my paid-for copy in a short time. Besides, I've been a fan of the Quarry series right from the start, and I still have my four Berkley editions of those early novels to prove it. Not only that, I know Max Allan Collins. I've met and talked to him at numerous conventions over the years, and one of my Quarry novels, the one dedicated to Mickey Spillane, is signed by both Collins and Spillane.Geez. After all that, my review might be shorter than the disclaimer.
Faithful readers of this blog, as I'm sure all of you are, will recall that Collins has done two earlier books in this series for Hard Case, The First Quarry and The Last Quarry (I thought I'd reviewed that one, but I guess not). So it's only natural that this one is Quarry in the Middle, though that's also a kind of joke, considering the plot.
The time is the 1980s. Quarry's not working for the Broker but is free-lancing by using the Broker's list. He's warning potential victims that they're about to be erased and offering to erase the eraser. For a fee, of course. That's how he winds up in Haydee's Port, Illinois, and gets involved with a casino owner named Richard Cornell, who's the target of a hit. Soon enough, Quarry finds himself the target of another casino owner, and you're thinking Yojimbo, which is just fine, because that's what Collins was thinking, too (see this interview for confirmation). Things don't work out exactly according to plan, but Quarry's a hard man to kill.
There's sex, violence, humor, and plenty of little twists before you get to the end of Quarry in the Middle, and the end comes very quickly because, as usual in this series, you've got a real page-turner. You'll probably read it in one or two sittings.
Max Allan Collins has had a lot of success. He's written books, graphic novels, screenplays, music, and who knows what else. And it's all good. The Quarry novels, however, remain my favorite reading of all his work, and I hope he can be tempted to do another one.
Happy Columbus Day!
Columbus Day - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "Many countries in the New World and elsewhere celebrate the anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas, which occurred on October 12, 1492 in the Julian calendar and October 21, 1492 in the modern Gregorian calendar, as an official holiday. The day is celebrated as Columbus Day in the United States, as D�a de la Raza (Day of the (Hispanic) race) in many countries in America, as DÃa de las Culturas (Day of the Cultures) in Costa Rica, as Discovery Day in The Bahamas, as DÃa de la Hispanidad and Fiesta Nacional in Spain, as DÃa de las Américas (Day of the Americas) in Uruguay and as DÃa de la Resistencia IndÃgena (Day of Indigenous Resistance) in Venezuela. These holidays have been celebrated unofficially since the late 18th century, and officially in various countries since the early 20th century."
Sunday, October 11, 2009
The Top 10 Actresses Past Their Expiration Date
The Top 10 Actresses Past Their Expiration Date | SPIKE
And the response from lemondrop is here.
Thanks to Jeff Meyerson for the links.
And the response from lemondrop is here.
Thanks to Jeff Meyerson for the links.
To Have and Have Not
The Writer's Almanac with Garrison Keillor | If I Gave Up by Kelly-Anne Riess: "The film To Have and Have Not had its premiere on this day in 1944. It was based on the novel To Have and Have Not by Ernest Hemingway, which was a hard novel for Hemingway to write, and took him about four years. He had been accused of being politically apathetic, so in this novel he tried to engage with the politics of Cuba and Key West, but the result was generally panned by critics. Philip Rahv of the Partisan Review summed it up: “In transcending his political indifference, he has not, however, at the same time transcended his political ignorance.” Hemingway published the novel in 1937, and in 1939, he sold the film, radio, and television rights for $10,000."Good stuff about Faulkner and the screenplay at the link.
Happy Birthday, Elmore Leonard!
Elmore Leonard - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "Elmore John Leonard, Jr. (born October 11, 1925) is an American novelist and screenwriter.
His earliest published novels in the 1950s were westerns, and Leonard went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, several of which have been adapted into successful motion pictures or TV movies."
His earliest published novels in the 1950s were westerns, and Leonard went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, several of which have been adapted into successful motion pictures or TV movies."
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