Texas Pages

New additions to Arts & Letters Live: Julie Powell, Deborah Nadoolman Landis and Sue Monk Kidd and Ann Taylor Kidd

2009-07-01T15:35:11Z

The Dallas Museum of Art's Arts & Letters Live series has added three events for this season:

Julie Powell, author of Julie & Julia, appears 7:30 p.m. July 29 at the museum's Horchow Auditorium. A screening of the Nora Ephron movie is slated for 7:30 p.m. July 27 at the AMC NorthPark, and a "special Julia Child-inspired buffet dinner" is being offered at the museum as well.

Deborah Nadoolman Landis, an Academy Award-nominated costume designer, will discuss Dressed: A Century of Hollywood Costume Design 7 p.m. Aug. 27 at the Horchow Auditorium.

And Sue Monk Kidd and Ann Taylor Kidd will discuss Traveling With Pomegranates: A Mother-Daughter Story 7:30 p.m. Sept. 15 at First Presbyterian Church of Dallas. Sue Monk Kidd is also the author of The Secret Life of Bees and The Mermaid's Chair.

Tickets are $30 for the public; $25 for DMA members, Friends of the Dallas Public Library, seniors, and educators; $15 for students. For Julie & Julia, tickets include the preview screening, but dinner is separate.

Details are available here.

Alice Hoffman lets a critic know what she really thinks

2009-06-30T15:47:03Z

As a critic and a blogger, you know that I am always interested in increasing interaction with my readers.

This, however, is not what I had in mind: Angry author Alice Hoffman has used Twitter to fire off a series of angry messages against a Boston Globe critic who didn't love her book The Story Sisters. Said tweets included questioning the critic's credentials, calling her a "moron," boasting of better writers who had reviewed her work ... and publishing the critic's phone number and encouraging followers to call and complain.

("Now any idiot can be a critic," one suggested. Well, she might have a point there.)

Her Twitter feed no longer exists, but the Los Angeles Times' Jacket Copy blog has a rational look at the episode. And while it agrees that the Globe review was not exactly a model of critical perfection, the public venting does not exactly help Hoffman, "who instead of being wronged by a poor review comes off like an aspiring literary gang leader, dispensing orders 140 characters at a time."

The Times also has Hoffman's official statement on the matter; she offers the classic, "I'm sorry if I offended anyone."

You can still find her outraged tweets by visiting Gawker. (There, you can also read what a gun-toting Richard Ford once thought of Hoffman's criticism -- he's not from Texas, is he?)

Just don't get any ideas.

Michael Jackson, the book lover

2009-06-29T15:35:48Z

You'd think that the books blog would be a safe refuge from Michael Jackson stories. But the Los Angeles Times (via Shelf Awareness) says that store owners knew him as a book lover (not a fighter).

"He loved the poetry section," said Dave Dutton of the famous Dutton's Books in Brentwood. Brother Dirk added that Ralph Waldo Emerson was Jackson's favorite. "I think you would find a great deal of the transcendental, all-accepting philosophy in his lyrics."

His lawyer also noted his wide-ranging tastes:

Largely an autodidact, Jackson was quite well read, according to Jackson's longtime lawyer. "We talked about psychology, Freud and Jung, Hawthorne, sociology, black history and sociology dealing with race issues," Bob Sanger told the LA Weekly after the singer's death. "But he was very well read in the classics of psychology and history and literature . . . Freud and Jung -- go down the street and try and find five people who can talk about Freud and Jung."

For less lofty reading, Examiner.com compiled a list of Michael Jackson-related books.

And lest you worry that we're turning Texas Pages into a celebrity death blog, the closest I can find to a book-related story on Billy Mays is this Tom Dodge review of But Wait ... There's More. The review does not actually mention Mr. Mays, but it's definitely his turf.

Garrison Keillor on bookstore delights

2009-06-26T15:30:25Z

Garrison Keillor is about to mark 35 years of A Prairie Home Companion. And in this interview, he gives a perfectly Keilloresque shout-out to the glory of bookstores:

"I love bookstores. I love to hold books in my hand. And to give that up is painful. It's like if Minnesota passed a law against fishing, it wouldn't affect the food supply that much. You know, if we passed a law against guys going out in a boat with a rod and a reel and bait and fishing for sunfish and crappies, people would still eat, nobody would go hungry who hadn't before. But it'd be painful. It's a part of our culture."

He also notes that his own bookstore, Common Good Books in St. Paul, is "sort of slowly making its way. I don't know. It's not making money. Nobody makes money with bookstores."

(Spotted on Shelf Awareness.)

Chris Anderson on taking from Wikipedia: "This is entirely my own screwup, and will be corrected"

2009-06-25T16:05:09Z

NEW YORK (AP) -- The author of a new book about the wisdom of free products on the Web has acknowledged taking some liberties in his own work.
Chris Anderson, known for the influential business book "The Long Tail," said he was mistaken for using passages -- without attribution -- that closely resembled material from Wikipedia and other sources included in his latest release, "Free: The Future of a Radical Price."
"This is entirely my own screwup, and will be corrected," Anderson, editor-in-chief of Wired Magazine, wrote on his blog Wednesday.
Anderson's book, coming out next month from Hyperion, includes information about the phrase "there's no such thing as a free lunch," about the meaning of a learning curve and about other subjects for which he depended on Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia of user-contributed articles. The similarities were first reported by the Virginia Quarterly Review.
Hyperion issued a statement Wednesday: "We are completely satisfied with Chris Anderson's response. It was an unfortunate mistake, and we are working with the author to correct these errors both in the electronic edition before it posts, and in all future editions of the book."
The book has first printing of 80,000 copies, which already have been shipped.

]]> The controversy already has been noted on Anderson's Wikipedia page.
Anderson explained on his blog that he had intended to include the URLs for the Wikipedia material, but that his publisher "was uncomfortable with the changing nature of Wikipedia," and asked that Anderson note the date he viewed the page, a system the author found "clumsy and archaic."
In the "rush" to finish the text, credit to Wikipedia was omitted. The passages in question "were mostly on the margins of the book's focus, mostly on historical asides," Anderson said, "but that's no excuse."
Anderson, asked by The Associated Press why he had used Wikipedia, which has often been questioned for its reliability, Anderson said that "on many subjects Wikipedia is one of the best, and best researched, sources, but you have to use other sources to confirm that.
"In the case of the 'free lunch' example, which I have read a lot about, I thought the Wikipedia entry was excellent and perhaps the best summary out there."

Join Points' 'Big Rich' book club for summer

2009-06-24T23:07:23Z

Our friends over in the Points section of The Dallas Morning News will launch the third annual Points Summer Book Club this month, and you're invited. They've picked a doozy of a book this year, with loads of local relevance and intrigue: The Big Rich: The Rise and Fall of the Greatest Texas Oil Fortunes, by former Wall Street Journal reporter Bryan Burrough. It's about the four "Big Four" oil barons who shaped much of what Texas is today. Extra credit: Can you name the Big Four? Find the answer at the bottom of this post.

]]> You've got plenty of time to read the book to get ready for the blog discussion, which will start on July 27, and will be lead by Points Editor Nicole Stockdale, author Burrough and several others. Burrough will also come to Dallas for a special meet-up and book club wrap-up; time and place will be announced later.

Ready, set, start reading! And here's the answer to the question above:
The Big Four: Roy Cullen of Houston, H.L. Hunt of Dallas, Clint Murchison of Dallas and Sid Richardson of Fort Worth

Books by MLK Jr. to be republished

2009-06-24T23:01:19Z

The Associated Press reported this week that four long-out-of-print books by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. will be published again under a deal with Beach Press that was brokered with King's youngest son.

Dexter King called it a historic partnership that will bring his father's words to a global audience. Beacon, a department of the Unitarian Universalist Association, publishes books on social justice, human rights and racial equality.

The Boston-based publisher will release new editions of Stride Toward Freedom, Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community?, Trumpet of Conscience and Strength to Love in 2010. Under the agreement, Beacon will also compile King's writings, sermons, lectures and prayers into new editions with introductions by leading scholars.

Books on Mara Salvatrucha gang and North Texas links hits stands

2009-06-24T21:40:00Z

Two books are now out that examine the lives of the violent gang known as the Mara Salvatrucha, or the MS-13. Both devote substantial space to the incredible and sad tale of Brenda Paz, a 15-year-old who lived in Carrollton for a short time and was recruited into the MS-13 during her Texas stay.

She was a witness to one of the most gruesome deaths in recent history--the slaying of Javier Calzada near Bluebonnet Lakes in Grand Prairie in December 2001.

Both writers deploy their considerable investigative skills to their mission.

]]>
No Boundaries: Transnational Latino Gangs and American Law Enforcement by Tom Diaz explores the inner workers of the MS-13, the 18th Street Gang and the Latin Kings. Diaz views the problem as much more than a law-and-order issue and one that entangles immigration policy, racial tensions and Central American conflict.

Diaz is a lawyer and a senior analyst at the Violence Policy Center in D.C. He most recently has worked on issues involving the vast U. S. gun market. He testified on Capitol Hill about the runaway gun market--just as President Obama was off to meet President Calderon of Mexico to discuss that very issue. (Did I mention that Diaz is a former journalist who knows something about news cycles?)

He notes that when Brenda Paz decided to become an informant, law enforcement agents quickly realized they'd found the "Rain Man" of a witness.

Samuel Logan is the scribe behind This is for the Mara Salvatrucha: Inside the MS-13, America's Most Violent Gang.

His whole book peers into the MS-13 gang through the single lens of Brenda Paz, whose brains were so prized by her gangsta novio that he considered her mind and memory a video camera.

So interesting reading both these crime books side by side. Both the FBI and law enforcement agents would prize Brenda, too. Perhaps, not enough, though. Brenda, known as "Smiley" by the homies, was dead by 17. She was found nearly decapitated near the Shenandoah River in Virginia.

Here's what we wrote about the horrid murder-case of Javier Calzada and how it linked back to Brenda Paz. And here's what we wrote about the transnational gun market at the time of the Obama's first presidential visit to Mexico City.

The blogger returns, and A.J. Baime goes like hell

2009-06-24T15:36:19Z

Loyal blog readers will notice that things have been a bit slow around here of late. Thanks for sticking with us; your humble books editor has been unable to blog, as he has been driving a minivan across large, squarish states in the middle of the country.

It is the exact opposite of the type of driving you can read about in A.J. Baime's Go Like Hell: Ford, Ferarri, and their Battle for Speed and Glory at Le Mans, which I reviewed here. The book has fast cars, crazed titans of industry and a folksy Texas genius to the rescue -- so what's not to like?

Baime recently spoke about the book on the public radio program Marketplace. You can listen to it here.

Harry Potter publisher fights plagiarism claim

2009-06-16T18:40:16Z

LONDON (AP) -- The publisher of the wildly popular and very profitable "Harry Potter" books says it intends to fight a lawsuit alleging that author J.K. Rowling stole the idea for the series about the boy wizard.
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC is being taken to court in London by the estate of the late author Adrian Jacobs for copyright infringement, statements released Tuesday by the publishing house and legal representatives of the estate said.
"The estate ... claims that the book 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,' reproduces substantial parts of the works of Adrian Jacobs, 'The Adventures of Willy the Wizard,' without consent, and that in selling the books, Bloomsbury has infringed and continues to infringe copyright," said a statement on the Web site of London lawyers DMH Stallard, the firm representing the estate.

]]> Jacobs died in London in 1997. His book "The Adventures of Willy the Wizard -- No. 1 Livid Land," was published in 1987, according to a statement released by the estate's representatives, who are based in Australia.
"Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" is the fourth book in Rowling's series and was published in July 2000.
Bloomsbury said Tuesday that the allegation that Rowling lifted from Jacobs' work is "unfounded, unsubstantiated and untrue."
Jacobs' estate first approached Bloomsbury in 2004, but was "unable to identify any text in the Harry Potter books which was said to copy 'Willy the Wizard," the company said.
Rowling made no comment on the suit. Bloomsbury said the claim is baseless and the books "will be defended vigorously."
"J.K. Rowling had never heard of Adrian Jacobs nor seen, read, or heard of his book 'Willy the Wizard' until this claim was first made in 2004,"' the statement said.

Interview with David Eagleman, author of "Sum"

2009-06-16T14:55:12Z

Today on the books page, Joy Tipping chats with David Eagleman, author of Sum: Forty Views of the Afterlives, ahead of his appearance at the Dallas Museum of Art on Friday. (He's also scheduled to appear at Legacy Books on July 15.)

You can also read her review of Sum here.

And you can peruse the book here.

Story-telling thrives at SMU's School of Education and Human Development

2009-06-15T19:53:30Z

Why is it in the twilight of newspapers
that story-telling is ascendant?

The SMU's Newcomers Institute, by the School of Education and Human Development, continued Saturday, and two of the most gripping presentations
were by those who told their stories, one as a former homeless
student and the other through song.

They were skilled at their craft.
Their stories had a strategy.
To inspire others to action.

]]> Among the story-tellers was Raúl Magdaleno, an immigrant from Mexico City who graduated from SMU a few years ago.

He spoke of being homeless, but not hopeless.

He had 10 years stuffed of hardluck stories--his father died in prison, a sister was born with disabilities, other siblings never graduated from high school. So, he made a choice centered on one question: "Will I let things in my past make me a bitter person or a better person?"

He worked his mental muscles. It was his ticket to flee poverty. Eventually, he was accepted into Harvard, Princeton and Yale. He shucked the Ivies in favor of SMU.

"They said, 'Raúl, we will pay you a stipend to come to this school.' "

Here's a little sampler of Raul where he talks about winning a gold medal from the U.S. Congress.

One Potato, Two Potato tops this week's list for Dallas kids' fave books

2009-06-15T16:58:34Z

Want to know what the kids are reading this summer? Lilia Goldin at the Dallas Public Library, who helped distribute 10,000 book logs among the Dallas Public Library Branches, is kind enough to share the most popular titles from the book lists that kids are redeeming for prizes as part of the Mayor's Summer Reading Program.

Here they are:
One Potato, Two Potato by Cynthia DeFelice and Andrea U'Ren, which Lilia reports was the first choice for all elementary school kids
Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look and LeUyen Pham
The Great Pig Search by Eileen Christelow
Surprises According to Humphrey by Betty G. Birney

Have your kids read any of these? Would love to hear their reviews!

Dear Sir/Madam: Will you finish this novel for me?

2009-06-15T16:36:40Z

This just arrived in my e-mail. I'm wondering -- should I contact the author and try to become his agent? Because frankly, if you overlook punctuation problems, and the spelling problems, and the predictable plot twist that leads to a request for access to my bank account, this has all the makings of a great novel. Just read the opening paragraph:

I am Mr. Anthony M----a, a rich cocoa merchant from Abidjan. my wife Naomi died when our only child Alfreda was only six month old due to illments related to cancer.Due to the love i have for my late wife i decided not to marry again and take the care of my only child as a single parent.I did everything to give my child the best education and training. Alfreda was sent to Havard University in U.S.A to study medicine but as fate will have it she died last two yrs on the september 15th 2007 in a ghastly motor accident as she went for shopping with his friend and that was the genesis of my problems.

But wait, there's more.

Since then i have been suferring from frequent heart faluires which has resulted from me been paralysed. I have taken every medical treatment to see if i can regain my health but the worst happened last month when the doctor revealed to me that there is no other medical means in which i can regain my health and the rate in which my health was detoriating that i will soon leave the mother earth.

Hold on a moment ... that "mother earth" reference makes me just a little verklempt. It's so lyrical and poetic ...

OK, I'm back. So where do you think it should go from here? Is it a novel about a wealthy man trying to do one final act of good to justify his shattered life? Maybe an unknown scion walks onto the scene, and the rich cocoa merchant has to decide whether it's legitimate? Perhaps Willy Wonka emerges as the manipulative force that has been undermining his entire life?