These quizes will go to my head.

Which literature classic are you?

J.R.R. Tolkien: Lord of the Rings. You are entertaining and imaginative, creating whole new worlds around yourself. Well loved, you have a whole league of imitators, none of which is quite as profound as you are. Stories and songs give a spark of joy in the middle of your eternal battle with the forces of evil. Take this quiz! Quizilla | Join | Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code

I’m waiting for the quiz result that says, “You’re a lazy cow.”

Clean?

I must admit, I’m gobsmacked.

I have only the most superficial knowledge of classical music.

But I thought you could at least count on highbrow symphonic ditties to be safe for the kiddies’ ears.

So perhaps one of my erudite friends can explain to me why, when I went to iTunes this morning to download a bit of Shostakovich, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (w/Myung Whun-Chung–not to be confused with an 80s pop act) has the highly-sought-after (if you’re–see above–protecting the kiddies’ ears) CLEAN label.

Does this mean that all the other Shostakovich performances on iTunes are filthy dirty and not fit for innocents?

Does Tipper know?

Hmm. Notes to self: Must pay closer attention to Shostakovich. Avoid Chicago.

Myung Whun-Chung

 

Three Words (and the parody–um, parodies)

Shamelessly stolen from Candace.

I’m a sap, but yes, this inspires and moves me.

And, the parody.

And, another!

Lyrics/text of Obama speech:

It was a creed written into the founding documents that declared the destiny of a nation.

Yes we can.

It was whispered by slaves and abolitionists as they blazed a trail toward freedom.

Yes we can.

It was sung by immigrants as they struck out from distant shores and pioneers who pushed westward against an unforgiving wilderness.

Yes we can.

It was the call of workers who organized; women who reached for the ballots; a President who chose the moon as our new frontier; and a King who took us to the mountaintop and pointed the way to the Promised Land.

Yes we can to justice and equality.

Yes we can to opportunity and prosperity.

Yes we can heal this nation.

Yes we can repair this world.

Yes we can.

We know the battle ahead will be long, but always remember that no matter what obstacles stand in our way, nothing can stand in the way of the power of millions of voices calling for change.

We have been told we cannot do this by a chorus of cynics…they will only grow louder and more dissonant ……….. We’ve been asked to pause for a reality check. We’ve been warned against offering the people of this nation false hope.

But in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope.

Now the hopes of the little girl who goes to a crumbling school in Dillon are the same as the dreams of the boy who learns on the streets of LA; we will remember that there is something happening in America; that we are not as divided as our politics suggests; that we are one people; we are one nation; and together, we will begin the next great chapter in the American story with three words that will ring from coast to coast; from sea to shining sea –

Yes. We. Can.

Celebrities featured include: Scarlett Johansson, Tatyana Ali, John Legend, Herbie Hancock, Kate Walsh, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Adam Rodriquez, Kelly Hu, Adam Rodriquez, Amber Valetta and Nick Cannon

Also for writers–

This great link is courtesy of Toni, who told me about it.

Tricks of the Trade for Writers, by Lisa Gardner

Check it out. Lots of good stuff there.

I also recommend:

The Writer (both the magazine and its website). There’s a reason why it costs more than the other major writing magazine (below) and that’s simply because it doesn’t have all those cheesy “You, too, can get rick quick as a writer,” ads.

But despite those ads, Writer’s Digest also had good articles, advice and a strong website (but I note that just going to the website in order to snag  the URL I had to close a popup ad, ahem).

What writer’s resources–webpages, publications, etc.–do you recommend?

Killer Year: Stories to Die For

If you’re in my class, I’ve told you how important it is to read books by new authors in order to see what New York publishers have purchased from unknowns.

Killer Year is an amazing group of writers who all had their debut novels published in 2007. They include my buds, Toni and Rob (who is also, I’m proud to note, a fellow Nicholl Fellow).

In addition to this group of fabu debut novels, I’d also like to point to their book of short stories, Killer Year: Stories to Die For (which I ordered today and breathlessly await), grandly reviewed in the Chicago Tribune. You have to scroll down to see the review, or, you know, read it right here:

Killer Year: Stories to Die For

Edited by Lee Child

St. Martin’s Minotaur, $23.95

With debut novels from a bumper crop of outstanding new writers last year (including Derek Nikitas, J.T. Ellison, Marc Lecard and Chicago’s own Sakey and Sean Chercover), 2007 was undeniably a killer year for crime fiction. With that in mind, this brilliantly conceived anthology — described as a “sampler” by editor Lee Child — features short stories from 13 of last year’s biggest and brightest newcomers as well as three additional stories from veterans Ken Bruen, Duane Swierczynski and Allison Brennan. This collection has no weak links, but a few stories stand head and shoulders above the rest.

Chercover’s “One Serving of Bad Luck,” which features Chicago private detective Ray Dudgeon (introduced in his debut novel “Big City, Bad Blood”), is a hard-boiled thriller that revolves around a horrific car accident, a multimillion-dollar settlement and a wayward witness. “Runaway,” by Nikitas — a subtly nuanced chronicle of the misadventures of two 15-year-old boys in western New York who meet with a mysterious runaway girl — is equal parts coming-of-age tale and supernatural mystery. “Gravity and Need,” by Sakey, perhaps the collection’s most memorable selection, is a haunting, disturbing story of how misfortune tests the limits of a couple madly in love. Bill Cameron’s “Slice of Pie” is an irony-filled gem about an ill-tempered son protecting his naive mother from a perceived scam artist; and Toni McGee Causey’s uproarious “A Failure to Communicate” revisits Louisiana and the irrepressible Bobbie Faye Sumrall (from her debut “Bobbie Faye’s Very (Very, Very, Very) Bad Day”) as she takes down a group of bumbling thieves with some good old-fashioned sociopathic ingenuity and one well-placed fish hook.

“Killer Year” is not just an exceptional collection of crime fiction short stories but also a savvy promotional tool: Readers will undoubtedly find themselves seeking out any number of debut novels from the featured authors, be it Sakey’s “The Blade Itself,” Lecard’s “Vinnie’s Head,” Nikitas’ “Pyres,” or any number of others.

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Paul Goat Allen has reviewed mysteries and thrillers for BarnesandNoble.com, BookPage magazine and Publishers Weekly.

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Check ‘em all out! And tell ‘em Pooks sent ya!