I Want My MTV: The Uncensored Story Of The Music Video Revolution by Craig Marks and Rob TannenbaumThis is the best book I read all year. It deals with MTV's video years, from the pre-launch to The Real World. Along the way, we're treated to quotes from the people who created MTV, the VJs, and a lot of the musicians back in the day. It's told as a series of quotes and at nearly 600 pages, it's a fascinating look back at the glory days of MTV and there's a lot of information and fun to be found inside.
Perfect For: Anyone who grew up in the '80s
Recommended By: Chris
Stays Crunchy In Milk by Adam P. KnaveAdam P. Knave is a friend of mine, and also one hell of a writer. His mind is all bendy and twisty in ways that make for an amazing story; he has great ability with both language and emotion. He has a good catalog and I'm waiting eagerly for a collection of "stories I'd tell you in a bar" to come out later this month. Since that book isn't out yet, I'm gonna recommend you pick up Stays Crunchy In Milk, because you are sentimental, you believe in loyalty, and you love the pop culture of your childhood, just like me.
Recommended By: Jett Superior
Some Girls Bite (Chicagoland Vampires #1) by Chloe NeillSet in Chicago, the book follows Merit, a grad student attacked by a vampire. She gets turned into a vampire to save her life and now has to deal with all that entails. This is the first in the series and they're entertaining. Merit's a fun character and the series hasn't gotten totally bogged down in melodrama by a heroine with zillions of super powers. *cough*Anita Blake*cough*
Perfect For: Anyone who likes True Blood, Laurell K. Hamilton, ass-kicking grad students
Recommended By: Archphoenix
The Most They Ever Had by Rick BraggIf you've never heard of Rick Bragg, he's a masterful Southern writer who tells a story compellingly, with rich but accessible language and the hard edge of truth. Bragg is deft with emotion and frankness and before you're done with a book he's written you will love what he loves and hate what he hates. Pick up his most recent work, The Most They Ever Had, about a Jacksonville, Alabama textile mill and the way it lives and breathes and twines its way into the lives of the town it both sustains and kills. You'll want to devour the rest of his works.
Recommended By: Jett Superior
The Thirteen Hallows by Michael Scott and Colette FreedmanOut on December 6th, this book by Michael Scott (author of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series) and Colette Freedman (a playwright and author who I really dig) is being touted as a horror urban fantasy. It's actually on my wishlist because it looks pretty fun. I keep hearing things like "the DaVinci Code if it got all dark and Jack the Ripperish." Color me intrigued.
Perfect For: Fans of the TV shows X-Files and Warehouse 13, people who wished that last Harry Potter book got all R-rated
Recommended By: Archphoenix
Somebody To Love?: A Rock-And-Roll Memoir by Grace Slick and Andrea CaganI have a thing for rock (auto)biographies, and very high on my list of recommendations is Somebody To Love? by Jefferson Airplane frontwoman Grace Slick. It focuses on the heady-euphoric sixties and seventies and, while Grace isn't telling too many tales out of school on the many rock contemporaries she made time with, Grace gives up the goods on herself, being pretty straightforward and extremely self-deprecating. She's a funny lady full of sass and cuss and this is a fun read. Her self-penned illustrations (be on the lookout for 'Gunmouth Grace') here and there are a delight.
Recommended By: Jett Superior
Daughters Of Rome by Kate QuinnThe year 69 AD was a pretty messed up time for Rome. It's referred to as the Year of Four Emperors because of the turnover in government and political instability of the time. The story follows four Roman sisters trying to survive the year, and it's a pretty interesting story told about a time that I wasn't terribly familiar with. If you like this, check out Quinn's previous book Mistress Of Rome, because it's pretty great too.
Perfect For: Fans of the TV shows Rome and Spartacus
Recommended By: Archphoenix
Tin House MagazineI absolutely adore Tin House magazine. I picked up an issue for the first time used for a buck, thinking it was just another interesting-looking paperback book. It's actually a quarterly publication stuffed to the gills with amazing content: You'll find interviews, short stories, essays, art, and poetry, and all of it is really good. I've yet to take in an issue that is disappointing in any way; it's that meaty and consistent and artful. At $24.95 for a one-year subscription (four issues, sent quarterly), it's an absolute steal and the perfect something to round out gift giving for your beloved or for those people who are sometimes a little hard to buy for, but love art and words. I gifted three subscriptions last year and have heard about the epic greatness of my presenty genius more than once this year.
Recommended By: Jett Superior
