Pop-up books: a superficial, 2D look
Entertainment Weekly recently did an article (sadly, the online version does not include pictures - kind of a must with pop-up books, don’t you think?) on some note-worthy entrants to this field of pro-paper manipulation. Picks include a pop-up take on a children’s classic (eh, what else is new? but it is the mag’s personal favorite), but also much-more-awesome-sounding pop-ups that depict topics like the moon landing
However, for some truly stunning pop-up books, check out this very cool post. And, fortunately, it does come complete with lots of pictures, and even videos! Really, you won’t know what pop-up books are capable of until you’ve seen the images shown there. Best-seller Robert Sabuda’s books, as depicted in the post, are especially view worthy. Sabuda’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling
Well, when I said I wasn’t going to talk about it, I lied. I admit it, I bought the collector’s edition
So before we get to the pictures… what gives with the collector’s edition’s
Nevertheless, do I think it was worth the money? Heck, yes! Plus, all proceeds go to charity.
Here’s what this megalith consists of, in a comprehensive photo gallery (special thanks to my photographer!):
Harry Potter, for adults’ eyes only
For those of you living in the US (like me), you may not have seen all of the numerous editions of the books that are available (and really, numerous is not an exaggeration). HP’s original publisher, Bloomsbury, alone publishes multiple editions in the United Kingdom, including a children’s edition, adult edition, and special edition, among others. My personal favorites are the adult versions, shown above and below.
One of the awesomest Hollywood memorabilia auctions EVER
Recession, shmecession: on December 11th, some of the coolest Hollywood TV and movie items go on sale, and if you can afford it, you may want to seriously think about joining in on the rampant spending.
Indiana Jones’s fedora? Check. Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber? Check. Clark Kent suit worn by Christopher Reeve? Check. Magic wand from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and Joker card used in The Dark Knight? Check and check. And for the most part, it’s all stuff that was actually worn or used on set.
Even if you can’t buy any of it (sigh, like me), looking through what’s available is just plain fun. The Telegraph has a nice slideshow of a few of the items available, but if you really want to see what’s there, go to the auction’s official site to browse through the 400 or so items up for bidding.
For example, here is some of the stuff not mentioned in the slideshow:
Twilight - yes, we need another post on it
Or rather, you’re probably not - it’s just yet another High School Musical-esque tween clinical obsession, right? There’s one of those, like, every four minutes. Who cares? I mean, why is this any different than Miley Cyrus, Jonas Brothers, Tamagotchi, Beanie Babies, or other similar, manufactured phenomena?
In a few words, it’s not. But that shouldn’t turn you off to it; yes, I know it’s common to not want to read or engage in something just because it’s everywhere, and everyone’s telling you that you should know about it. Don’t let that stop you. After all, there’s often a reason things are so popular.
Death on the Nile
I feel the same way about media. Batman, vampire books
My mystery brand of choice? I love Arthur Conan Doyle, but in times like these I usually turn to Agatha Christie.
Legend of the Seeker = Terry Goodkind (Who knew?)
I’m sure right now some of you are saying: “You’re an idiot. I knew that like months ago, at least since Comic Con.” And yes, I may be slow, but how exciting is this?? If you can’t already tell, I’m a huge fan of Goodkind’s epic series. Wizard‘s First Rule, the first book in the series, is one of my all-time fantasy favorites, and I’m a big fantasy reader.
It’s the story of a young man, Richard, who discovers his true destiny (to be awesome) and his true love on a quest to prevent the dark Lord of D’Hara from… Well, okay. It’s not a new story, sure, but when was it ever original? The Epic of Gilgamesh?
The Mysteries of Harris Burdick
That can all definitely be cool, sure, and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t, but what about something a bit more old-fashioned? I loved interactive books growing up, and went through a long obsession with one in particular, The Jolly Postman
But in any case, I always kept coming back to The Mysteries of Harris Burdick by Chris Van Allsburg. It was one of the first books I bought with my own money. If Van Allsburg’s name doesn’t sound ring a bell at once, that could be because his books have taken on such a life of their own. His most famous works, Jumanji
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string theories
What line of work you in, Bob?
- Ryan the Temp to "Bob Vance, Vance Refrigeration" at The Office's Christmas party
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featured brown paper packaging
What is it with accessories and DVD sets these days? Are knick knack companies going through some rough times? Or are studios just really desperate to sell DVDs? (Probably the latter.) First there was A Christmas Story (Ultimate Collector's Edition), with its cookie cutters, recipe book, apron, commemorative Christmas tin... (Whoa, I know.)
And now there's The Notebook (Limited Edition Gift Set), which comes with a scrapbook album (with stickers!), notecards, envelopes, and "themed" bookmarks. But... wait for it... no new DVD extras or features! So totally worth it. Check out Entertainment Weekly for the lackluster DVD set review (a grade of D - harsh). Or, even better, Amazon's video montage of the contents, set to the soothing, Jane Austen movie-esque sounds of The Notebook's theme music. Hey, they know their audience.
