Link roundup

1. GQ has a lengthy excerpt from a new book about ESPN. The excerpt is all about what a talented jerk Keith Olbermann was:

Suzy Kolber
SportsNight co-anchor

The night before we went on the air, they were still making major, major changes. We were all in this giant room while they were doing it, and I vaguely remember Keith sitting on the floor in the corner. I just felt that Keith was an unhappy person. He made a lot of people unhappy around him. I'm sure he made me unhappy.

Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN is half off at Amazon.

2. From an interview with NBA Jam creator Mark Turmell:

Yeah. I was really a pyromaniac. My buddy Elmer and I would walk through autumn, and we had matches. We’d flick matches into the leaves and then walk away for a certain amount of time before we’d turn around. Then we’d have to run back and put it out. We’d do this in the middle of the night, and we were always starting fires.

3. How to make a Tardis Murphy bed. Relatedly, this video shows how CalTech students put a Tardis on a building at MIT.

Link roundup

1. Top 50 scifi and fantasy novels. (Not sure why I Am Legend is classified as fantasy.)

2. Supposedly, criminals in Turkey are knocking on doors, dressed as doctors, giving people "medicine" that turns out to be sedatives, and then ransacking their homes while they sleep. Via.

3. Washed up celebrity chefs trying to make a comeback. David Rosengarten "recently produced a YouTube pilot for a show called Hava Lasagna!" Via.

Updated Greek Myths

Updated versions of Argus, Medusa and more star in Varitan's Illustrated Greek Myths, which is on sale at Amazon. You can read more about the book here, and there's going to be a reading as described here:



Via.

Link roundup

1. From an extended discussion of Brink at RPS:

I was looking at the screenshots I’ve taken vs the screenshots we were sent for previews and things. And it’s just heartbreaking. A mess of text and cramped spaces, not these fantastic looking, exaggerated muscleguys in apple-crisp locales.

2. From Bill Simmons's portrait of Phil Jackson:

When I think of Phil Jackson, two guys come to mind: Young Phil and Old Phil. Young Phil was skinny with dark hair and a goofy mustache; he looked like he came from another era, like someone Larry Dallas would bring over to the Regal Beagle to meet Jack Tripper. Old Phil didn't look anything like Young Phil: white hair, a clean-shaven face, a heavier frame, and a body that was scattered in nine different directions. Still, Young Phil and Old Phil had one thing in common: They kept their cool at all times.

3. Vic Armstrong's World's Greatest Stuntman sounds great. i09 has an extended excerpt about the filming of Total Recall. For example:

Sharon Stone was funny. We all thought that Rachel Ticotin was going to be the big star, she was a fabulous actress, looked gorgeous and yet she went nowhere. Sharon Stone you couldn't drag into the gym, she just didn't want to train, didn't want to do anything, yet she became a superstar in Basic Instinct. Wendy was doubling Rachel and Donna Evans doubled Sharon and did all the kicks and everything else really, we mainly shot Sharon for close-ups. Though I must say she looked dynamite in those close-ups!

Gizmodo has an excerpt about Temple of Doom. The book is 34% off at Amazon.

American Gods

American Gods by Nicholas Delort, who has various illustrations on sale here. (Probably the Gaiman book I liked least. I think I've forgotten enough to give it another try.)

Link roundup

1. Bill James (who is an excellent writer, and who revolutionized the use of statistics in sports) has a new book about serial killers and crimefighting.

2. Check out how much muscle top NFL draft pick Von Miller put on while at Texas A&M (and remember, this was no pipsqueak in high school, he was recruited by a solid football school).

3. Kind of strange - - Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four are joining the Dark Horse Deluxe line of collectible statuettes.

New illustrated covers for John le Carre's novels

New illustrated covers by Matt Taylor for John le Carre's novels:









Looks like it's finally time to try Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. (The only le Carre book I've read was The Tailor of Panama, and I wasn't crazy about it.) Some of the books are available at Amazon, and Matt has various prints on sale here. Via.

Book review roundup

1. Day of the Locust by Nathanael West: My book club read this right after Water for Elephants (which all of the women in my club loved), and it was startling how similar it was - - both books follow a depression-era love triangle that can only be solved with violence. And a dwarf features prominently in both. I wouldn't say I liked Day of the Locust, because the characters and situations they found themselves in were so morally bankrupt, but unlike Water for Elephants, the characters crackle with vitality and behave in a sensible, if unpleasant way. I was also struck by how much the book reminded me of Hemmingway's novels, including the impotent protagonist, and fetishization of latin culture, with cockfighting being described in far more detail than the lovemaking. Amazon link.

2. The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova: I read this for my book club, too, and it's another book I wouldn't really recommend. It's sort of like The Mummy, crossed with an Agatha Christie novel. Tedious, chaste, but also comforting. At 700 pages, it's probably twice as long as it needs to be, and it's far more interesting as a travelogue and history of the muslim conquest of Eastern Europe than a story about vampire hunting. Amazon link.

3. Woken Furies by Richard Morgan: I absolutely loved Morgan's first two Takeshi Kovacs cyberpunk thrillers, but this one was far too aimless and meandering. The universe Morgan has created is intriguing enough that I still enjoyed the book in the same way that I enjoyed Revenge of the Sith. Amazon link.

4. The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin: The first 50-100 pages are as good as any I've read. I was instantly absorbed in the world of gods kept like fearsome, untrustworthy housepets. But the book really slows down after that, and I eventually realized that it's not much more than a romance novel with fantasy trappings. And worst of all, and this is a significant spoiler, by the end of the book, she removes the most interesting aspect of the world - - the gods are released from their servitude. I'm in no rush to read the sequels. Amazon link.

Link roundup

1. There's still time to enter this month's art contest and win a $100 Threadless credit.

2. Yuri Gagarin paper toy. Via.

3. Free Samples of 2011 Hugo Award Nominees.

*Buy cosmonaut collectibles at eBay.

Modesty Blaise

Modesty Blaise in Sabre-Tooth on sale at eBay. Via.

Procession of the Dead

Procession of the Dead book cover by Catherine Casalino:

Popular YA author Darren Shan's first adult novel is a combination of horror and near-future thriller set in “The City,” which is the center of Capac Raimi's world. Moving into the city to work with his small-time gangster uncle, Capac soon finds himself at the service of the Cardinal, the leader of all the criminal gangs and the ruler of the city. Capac enjoys his new life except for a few small details, including the enigmatic blind and mute monks who have a way of appearing at significant moments in Capac's life, and the fact that he can't really remember any of his life before he came to the City. Then he meets and immediately falls in love with a young woman who is determined to dig out the Cardinal's secrets. Fast-paced and exciting, Procession of the Dead is a gritty, creepy, and completely successful story with an ending that leaves openings for future series entries. Suggest to readers who enjoyed Miéville's The City and the City (2009) for its slightly fantastical setting combined with a thrilling story.

$10 at Amazon.

Link roundup

1. Hugo Awards 2011 nominees. Via.

2. Classy collection of animated gifs.

3. Chris Battle is auctioning off two Quorra prints at eBay to benefit Japan.

Cover and illustration from Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children

Cover and photo-illustration from Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children:

A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. And a strange collection of very curious photographs.

It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children who once lived here—one of whom was his own grandfather— were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a desolate island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.

A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

Preorder for $12 at Amazon.

Link roundup

1. From an article about Donald Trump's unusual manner of commenting on blog posts:

One of my favourite passages in Nicole LaPorte’s DreamWorks biopic, The Men Who Would Be King, describes how Jeffrey Katzenberg had an intern carry out Internet searches on his behalf, videotaping the results so he could watch them later.

2. Trash talk in the NBA:

The Lakers aren't as good at it, but the defending champs have an edge over most other teams because Kobe can talk with the best of them while he lights you up and Ron Artest is just weird. One reason he's a great defender is he'll get way too close and whisper in your ear.

3. Interesting observation from a long article about the government's action against poker sites:

Another concern is that poker coverage on television could significantly decrease, since it relies heavily on advertisements placed by companies like PokerStars — in some cases being tantamount to infomercials. ESPN, which has been responsible for much of the coverage but tends to be very cautious about how it applies its brand, has pulled PokerStars advertisements from its Web site, and is reviewing whether to continue poker programming at all, although there are indications that they will continue to broadcast the World Series of Poker. Some smaller tournaments have already been cancelled.

New kid's book by Christoph Niemann

A few delightful pages from Christoph Niemann's new book That's How!, which is 32% off at Amazon. Via.

Book cover for the UK edition of The Magician King

Book cover for the UK version of Lev Grossman's The Magician King.

*Previously: The American cover.

Cover for Lev Grossman's The Magician King

I've probably read two dozen books in the last year, and Lev Grossman's The Magicians was my favorite. (Indeed, the next time I have the opportunity to commission art, I might ask for a drawing of the book's villain.) Here's the cover to the sequel, The Magician King, which is available for preorder at Amazon.

The image is actually a photograph of a model by Didier Massard. You can read an interview with him here.

New book for the wishlist... Amsterdam: Made By Hand

I came across this gorgeous looking book on the weekend, Amsterdam: Made by Hand by stylist Pia Jane Bijkerk thanks to Jillian Leiboff. It is now on my Book Depository wish list.



Next time I get to Europe I will be taking a different kind of trip... involving visits to places like those featured in Pia's book, plenty of vintage stores, sourcing gorgeous pieces for my hair accessories! How wonderful would it be to go and do a class or two as well - I would choose some sort of millinery course!



I loved my time in Holland back in 2000, such fond memories of Stroopwaffles, bike riding, fresh flower markets, krentenbollens and my best friend Mirjam's amazing family who took me in and treated me as one of their own - ahhhh..... anyway, itching to get a better look at this book.

The Blowtorch's Big Book of Basketball Facts

The book is done and it is a free download. Please download and enjoy some laughs at this book full of nonsensical jokes. Way full. Chock full, even.

Donate if you want, but I really just want this to be read. It's been on my computer for a year, and that's just silly because jokey-jokes have no timestamp.

So please, enjoy it. Read me at The Basketball Jones and follow me on Twitter and let me know if you like it.

This has been The Blowtorch.

Anna Walker - I love my Mum

How adorable is this!! I love Anna Walker books, so gorgeous - I have often bought them as baby gifts. This limited addition print is from her book, "I Love My Mum" it's called Butterflies. For more details on where to purchase or go to Magnolia Square market this weekend in Sydney.... be sure to visit Posie Patchwork stall if you do and tell Jen I sent you!