Words Seem Out Of Place

In which our narrator tries to read his way through the endless stacks of books that are slowly overtaking both his bookshelves and his life. Recently, I had the great fortunate to spend some time hanging out in an actual, honest-to-goodness bookstore. Now, I used to do that all the time, but not so much in recent years. Again, I blame my kids—are you sensing a theme around here? It was delightful, lazily browsing, from aisle to aisle. Letting the wanderlust of a book lover's soul guide me from one end of the store and back, over and over again. And, of course, I walked out with a new book. I had to! A quick note on the header image: When Harry Met Sally opened twenty-nine years ago this month. In the summer of 1989, right before my freshman year of high school, a friend scored preview tickets, and invited me along. I've seen it countless times since, and it's as lovely and funny and touching now as it was then. And Billy Crystal creeping in the self-h...

In which our narrator tries to read his way through the endless stacks of books that are slowly overtaking both his bookshelves and his life. There she is again, the unofficial patron saint of this column. Who am I kidding with "unofficial"? It's official: she's the patron saint of this column. While I've long been fascinated with Marilyn Monroe's celebrity, it's really how that celebrity negatively affected her sense of self that interests me most. She was always the mythical unicorn, the long-gone starlet from decades past whose impact has only grown in popular culture since her death in 1962. When Madonna went platinum blonde in the 1980s even adolescent me could feel Marilyn's influence, or at least a commentary on her influence, at play. Yet, until recently, and beyond various magazine articles, I hadn't read many sustained works about her. Then serendipity struck and, within a few short months, I found myself the owner...

In which our narrator tries to read his way through the endless stacks of books that are slowly overtaking both his bookshelves and his life. Between the winter blues, the kids keeping me busy, and work just kicking my arse lately, I've had very little time—or attention span—to read as much as I'd like. Still, somehow, I've managed to read several books in the last few months, but I've spent more of my (rare) downtime watching movies. My book nerdery is only equaled by my film nerdery—and both are nearly equaled by my art and music nerdery. In other words, I have more than enough nerdery to spare, at all times. Anyway, I recently rewatched one of my favorite comfort food films, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang . When I'm tired, or down, or just in need of some cinema therapy, this film never fails to deliver. It also happens to be one of my very favorite Christmas films . Robert Downey Jr., and Val Kilmer, and Michelle Monaghan are simply magnificent together in Shan...

In which our narrator tries to read his way through the endless stacks of books that are slowly overtaking both his bookshelves and his life. Earlier this year, I noted the preponderance of pictures of Marilyn Monroe reading. They probably have their own subreddit devoted to them. She loved books, and photographers loved to shoot her reading them. And if you're writing a regular column about the books you're reading, then slapping a photo of Marilyn up top certainly can't hurt. In fact, like a carefully curated home library, Marilyn reading will always help class up the joint. True fact. This got me thinking: what's the best Marilyn book out there? I'd like to read one, but a good one, which means avoiding anything sordid or trashy. I want a thoughtful overview of her life and career. I'm not even that interested in a straight bio, but instead want a book by a writer who can place her within her appropriate cultural context, offering insights into what...

In which our narrator tries to read his way through the endless stacks of books that are slowly overtaking both his bookshelves and his life. This time of year brings several things to mind: leaves changing color, chilly yet comfortable autumn air, pumpkin ales and pumpkin spice everything, candy corn, and of course Halloween. As a horror fan, this month is almost overwhelming—the desire to watch and read all the horror, all month long, is all-consuming. Of course that's not possible, but I am trying. I've been working my way through rewatching all of the Halloween franchise films; just watched the sagging sixth film ( Curse of Michael Myers )—which is always a big letdown after watching Tina and her neon heart in the previous film ( Revenge of Michael Myers )—so only four more to go, counting the two Rob Zombie flicks. Then the eerie and haunting  Mindhunter appeared out of nowhere and, six episodes in, I'm completely hooked. I've also been reading some ho...

In which our narrator tries to read his way through the endless stacks of books that are slowly overtaking both his bookshelves and his life. Do they still make those "READ" posters? Several years ago—maybe ten, or fifteen?—I used to see them everywhere, in libraries, at the office (I work in publishing, after all), in various stores and on various public transportation systems. The fact that I'm feeling strangely nostalgic for them now is probably one more sign pointing towards my ongoing slide into old age. I've also been curious to find 1980s Choose Your Own Adventure books and a Rubik's Cube lately, too. Sigh. It's pointless to resist, nostalgia wins every time. And, sadly, this Britney poster made me feel old back when it was plastered everywhere, and now thinking about how long ago that was only makes me feel even older. #smh Recently read Out of Sight , by Elmore Leonard. Here is an author who's been on my to-read list forever, yet who...

In which our narrator tries to read his way through the endless stacks of books that are slowly overtaking both his bookshelves and his life. Did you know that Christy Turlington is not your average supermodel? She has run marathons, is an avid practitioner of yoga, and used to be a vegetarian? Well, that's what Wikipedia tells me , at least. Good for her. For a split second, when I first saw this photo on a random Pinterest board, I remembered her as the supermodel trapped in an ATM vestibule with Chandler Bing in that memorable early episode of Friends , but then Chandler's line instantly popped into my head, "I'm trapped in an ATM vestibule with Jill Goodacre!! " Silly me, confusing my '90s supermodels. I bet Goodacre doesn't hunt down rare books with the same sort of dogged determination as Turlington. Plus, Turlington was in George Michaels' "Freedom '90" video, so she straight up wins for that reason alone. How did this tur...

In which our narrator tries to read his way through the endless stacks of books that are slowly overtaking both his bookshelves and his life. That image above is from the occult bookstore scene in Joe Dante's 1981 werewolf masterpiece The Howling . I can hear you snickering at my belief in the existence of a "werewolf masterpiece." In response, I'd like to urge you to see more movies and to change your damn attitude. The Howling resides in my personal top ten horror films list, sometimes even inching into the top five. It's a horror movie for fans who know their horror. Scary, smart, sly, funny, terrifying. It's got it all. Speaking of movies with bookstores in them, let's talk about some books, shall we? Currently reading Opening Wednesday at a Drive-In or Theater Near You, by Charles Taylor. The Howling isn't covered in this book, falling just outside its parameters of films from the 1970s. I'm guessing though that it's the...

In which our narrator tries to read his way through the endless stacks of books that are slowly overtaking both his bookshelves and his life. If you think it's been a while since the last post in this series, you're correct. During that stretch, I finished Stephen King's  It . I'm a longtime King lover, so I'm an easy mark for this one, yet so far I'm not ranking it in my top five King books. I'm fine with the excessive length (1,100 pages) if it's warranted, but at times it felt like needless meandering. Still, a terrific book, at times also terrifying and at others heartbreaking. And, um, that ending? I finished the book several weeks ago and I'm still not sure how to discuss it. You can read about the scene I'm referring to here . To say it yanked me right out of the book is an understatement. I'm no prude, but even I was disturbed by it. It's not only distasteful but also feels like a narrative leap that comes out of nowhere. ...

In which our narrator tries to read his way through the endless stacks of books that are slowly overtaking both his bookshelves and his life. Writing about books and working in publishing both make it far too easy—you might say even dangerously easy—to acquire more books than I can read at any given time. That's the reason for the name of this recurring series. Guess what? It's happened again: I've recently received several review copies and became the proud owner of a mammoth set of books that I've wanted for awhile now. The shelves are filling up fast. Recently acquired Love and Rockets , by Los Bros Hernandez. My editor at Sequart has been unloading some of his collection, so I was able to snag these for a song. This is quite a windfall: five thick paperback collections and the Fantagraphics reprint of the very first issue of the series. I'm most excited to read Jaime Hernandez's "Locas" trilogy of books, all of which I know own. I...