Tom Hanks channels Mister Rogers in this story of forgiveness and honesty. Fred Rogers applies kindness and empathy on a cynical magazine writer. The young writer, who has come to profile Fred Rogers, finds a man who can help him heal his angry heart. The world of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, where Fred Rogers crafts meaningful life lessons for kids, also have impacts on troubled adults, too.

The director of A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, Marielle Heller (The Diary of a Teenage Girl, Can You Ever Forgive Me?), captures the essence of Fred Rogers while keeping the story from tumbling into mawkishness. The screenplay by Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster is based on an article by Tom Junod. Junod’s 1998 profile of Fred Rogers ran in Esquire magazine. In A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, the writer–who’s renamed Lloyd Vogel (played by Matthew Rhys)–not only becomes Fred’s friend, but finds himself confronted by the problem at the core of his life. Bring some Kleenex. GRADE: A

John W. Campbell, Jr. wrote one of the classic Science Fiction horror stories, “Who Goes There?”, and it was first published in the August 1938 issue of Astounding Science Fiction. Later, Campbell’s story was adapted three times as a film: the first in 1951 as The Thing from Another World; the second in 1982 as The Thing, directed by John Carpenter; and most recently as a prequel to the Carpenter version, also titled The Thing, released in 2011.

Alec Nevala-Lee, while researching Campbell and Astounding Science Fiction for his best-selling Astounding: John W. Campbell, Isaac Asimov, Robert A. Heinlein, L. Ron Hubbard, and the Golden Age of Science Fiction, Nevalo-Lee found an early draft of “Who Goes There?” at the Houghton Library at Harvard University where John W. Campbell, Jr.’s papers are kept. Nevalo-Lee discovers that the first 20 pages of what would be published as “Who Goes There?” were cut along with additional material. Now, the fully restored story with 45 addition pages has been released by Wideside Press with an INTRODUCTION by Robert Silverberg and a dandy wrap-around cover by Bob Eggleton. If you enjoyed the original story, you’l enjoy this restored edition even more! GRADE: A

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your families! We’ll be enjoying the traditional turkey, stuffing, gravy, massed potatoes, green beans, cranberry jello salad, and green salad (but no romaine!). Desserts: apple pie, pumpkin pie, pecan pie, and lemon cake. What’s on your Thanksgiving table today?

I walked through WAL-MART to pick up some medications when I saw an endcap with You’re In My Heart: Rod Stewart With The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. I immediately bought it and played it on my Rogue’s CD player on the way home. Wonderful! But, then I did some research and discovered that TARGET was offering a “Deluxe Edition” of You’re In My Heart: Rod Stewart With The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. So, I jumped in the Rogue and drove over to TARGET. I inched my way through the crowds of shoppers and found the Deluxe Edition. Seven more songs! This CD sounds great and would be perfect for the Rod Stewart fan on your Holiday Gift List! Do you have a favorite Rod Stewart song? GRADE: A (for both editions)
TRACK LIST:
1. “Maggie May” Rod StewartMartin Quittenton
2. “It Takes Two” William “Mickey” StevensonSylvia Moy
3. “Sailing” Gavin Sutherland
4. “Reason to Believe” Tim Hardin
5. “Handbags and Gladrags” Mike d’Abo
6. “Tonight’s the Night (Gonna Be Alright)” Stewart
7. “I Don’t Want to Talk About It” Danny Whitten
8. “The First Cut Is the Deepest” Cat Stevens
9. “You’re in My Heart (The Final Acclaim)” Stewart
10. “I Was Only Joking” Gary GraingerStewart
11. “Young Turks” StewartCarmine AppiceDuane HitchingsKevin Savigar
12. “Forever Young” Jim CreganSavigarBob DylanStewart
13. “Rhythm of My Heart” Marc T. JordanJohn Capek
14. “Have I Told You Lately” Van Morrison
15. “Stop Loving Her Today”
YOU’RE IN MY HEART (Deluxe Edition)
DISC ONE:
1. “Maggie May” Rod StewartMartin Quittenton
2. “Reason to Believe” Tim Hardin
3. “Handbags and Gladrags” Mike d’Abo
4. “Sailing” Gavin Sutherland
5. “Tonight’s the Night (Gonna Be Alright)” Stewart
6. “The Killing of Georgie (Part I and II)” Stewart
7. “I Don’t Want to Talk About It” Danny Whitten
8. “The First Cut Is the Deepest” Cat Stevens
9. “You’re in My Heart (The Final Acclaim)” Stewart
10. “I Was Only Joking” Gary GraingerStewart
DISC TWO:
1. “It Takes Two” William “Mickey” StevensonSylvia Moy
2. “Stay with Me” StewartRonnie Wood
3. “Young Turks” StewartCarmine AppiceDuane HitchingsKevin Savigar
4. “What Am I Gonna Do (I’m So in Love with You)” StewartJay DavisTony Brock
5. “Every Beat of My Heart” StewartSavigar
6. “Forever Young” Jim CreganSavigarBob DylanStewart
7. “Downtown Train” Tom Waits
8. “Rhythm of My Heart” Marc T. JordanJohn Capek
9. “Have I Told You Lately” Van Morrison
10. “Tom Traubert’s Blues (Waltzing Matilda)” Waits
11. “If We Fall in Love Tonight” Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
12. “Stop Loving Her Today”

Diane and I saw the musical version of Holiday Inn at the 856 seat Festival Theater at Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada. The show was sold out. Diane and I watched Holiday Inn, the movie version (my review is here), so we knew the Shaw Festival crew would have to make changes. And, sure enough, the Black-face number from the movie got jettisoned and several other Irving Berlin songs were included. The singing was good. Of course, none of the dance numbers approached the performances of Fred Astaire but they were fun to watch.

After the performance, Diane and I checked in at The Pillar & Post hotel. They have an outside pool with water set at 90 degrees. Sadly, I did not bring my swim trunks. I paid a visit to STARBUCKS to sample more of that Canadian Blonde blend. We had an excellent meal at the Epicurean restaurant. The mild weather brought out plenty people. When Diane and I visited Niagara-on-the-Lake in November 2017, the weather was freezing and the streets were deserted. GRADE: A-
MUSICAL NUMBERS: (*songs in the original movie)
ACT I
Main Title: Overture*
I’ll Capture Your Heart Singing*
Little Things in Life
Blue Skies
Heat Wave
I’ve Got Plenty to Be Thankful For*
Marching Along With Time*
Nothing More to Say
Shaking the Blues Away
White Christmas*
Happy Holiday*
Let’s Start the New Year Right*
ACT II
Entr’acte
You’re Easy to Dance With*
Let’s Take an Old-Fashioned Walk
Be Careful, It’s My Heart*
Cheek to Cheek
Easter Parade*
Song of Freedom*
Let’s Say It with Firecrackers*
Nothing More to Say (reprise)
White Christmas (reprise)*
Finale

Joel Stein’s snarky In Defense of Elitism: Why I’m Better Than You and You are Better Than Someone Who Didn’t Buy This Book presents a delicate balance between humor and erudition. Stein shows that elites run the world and why we need to understand how the world really works. Yes, people yearn for equality, but sadly we live in an unequal world. The trick is to find out what you’re really good at–something you’re elite at–and improve your skill set. Along with his witty analysis, Stein presents plenty of examples of people who have succeeded by following their passion. What is something you do better than most people? GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
PART I: The populists 1
1. Flippin’ whippy 3
2. Baptist row 14
3. Underthinking 34
4. I was sent here by God 49
5. The table of knowledge 55
6. Canadian key parties 70
7. An unclean spirit 83
8. The 33 party 95
PART II: The elites 103
9. Resistance dinner parties 105
10. The loop 113
11. Puppet pig 132
PART III: The populist elites 145
12. Dilbert 147
13. Care actors 165
14. A meme guy 176
15. Littering on the death star 185
16. Son of Fidel Castro 199
17. The boat elite 204
18. Tucker 216
PART IV: The elite populists 241
19. The time travel mart 243
PART V: Saving the elite 257
20. The meeting of the concerned 259
21. I said, “good day, sir!” 276
22. The love dare 285
Acknowledgements 301

The 7-3 Buffalo Bills take on the 3-7 Denver Broncos today. The weather in Western NY is benign right now: 40s and overcast. No snowstorms in the forecast. Many Bills fans worry that this Bronco game could be a “trap” because the Bills play the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving. The Bills are 4-point favorites. How will your favorite NFL do today?

Ford V Ferrari begins with a dramatic sequence where Carroll Shelby (Matt Damon) wins the 1959 24 Hours of Le Mans race in France. The story then fast-forwards to the mid-1960s when Henry Ford II (Tracy Letts) attempted to buy Ferrari. Lee Iacocca (Jon Bernthal) travels to Italy to make the offer, but Enzo Ferrari (Remo Girone)–whose cars and race team have dominated the race at Le Mans for years–insults Ford and his “crappy cars.” When Ford realizes Ferrari has played him, Ford writes a “blank check” to build a race car and team to beat Ferrari at Le Mans.

Lee Iacocca recruits Carroll Shelby, the best American car designer, to build the race car. But Shelby insists the key factor is the driver. Shelby’s talented but prickly friend, Ken Miles (Christian Bale), reluctantly agrees to drive Shelby’s car. Miles is an English-born World War II veteran who struggles financially because he keeps telling customers the truth. His loyal and long-suffering wife, Mollie (Caitriona Balfe), and his son (Noah Jupe), moderate Miles’s rants. Miles is his own worst enemy as he riles Ford’s Marketing director, Leo Beebe (Josh Lucas), who undermines both Miles and Shelby. I loved the race sequences, the suspense of the machinations of corporate politics, and the marriage of Ken Miles and Mollie. Caitriona Balfe is marvelous! Ford V Ferrari features terrific acting and a compelling true story. Don’t miss it! GRADE: A

The Great SF Stories #16 (1954) includes two of the truly classic Science Fiction stories: Tom Godwin’s chilling “The Cold Equations” and Alfred Bester’s iconic “Fondly Fahrenheit.” In addition to the growing quality of stories published in THE MAGAZINE OF FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION and GALAXY, a new trend began: original story anthologies. STAR SCIENCE FICTION and NINE TALES OF SPACE & TIME opened new markets for SF stories in the mid-1950s in addition to the traditional Science Fiction magazines. The genre was changing and The Great SF Stories #16 (1954) charts the new trends. GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
INTRODUCTION by Martin H. Greenberg 9
“The Test” by Richard Matheson (THE MAGAZINE OF FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION, January 1954) 13
“Anachron” by Damon Knight (WORLDS OF IF, January 1954) 34
“Black Charlie” by Gordon R. Dickson (GALAXY, April 1954) 54
“Down Among the Dead Men” by William Tenn (GALAXY, June 1954) 72
“The Hunting Lodge” by Randall Garrett (ASTOUNDING SCIENCE FICTION, July 1954) 100
“The Lysenko Maze” by “David Grinnell” (aka, Donald A. Wollheim) (THE MAGAZINE OF FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION, July 1954) 138
“Fondly Fahrenheit” by Alfred Bester (THE MAGAZINE OF FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION, August 1954) 151
“The Cold Equations” by Tom Godwin (ASTOUNDING SCIENCE FICTION, August 1954) 174
“Letters from Laura” by Mildred Clingerman (THE MAGAZINE OF FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION, October 1954) 203
“Transformer” by Chad Oliver (THE MAGAZINE OF FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION, November 1954) 211
“The Music Master of Babylon” by Edgar Pangborn (GALAXY, November 1954) 227
“The End of Summer” by Algis Budrys (ASTOUNDING SCIENCE FICTION, November 1954) 258
“The Father-thing” by Philip K. Dick (THE MAGAZINE OF FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION, December 1954) 289
“The Deep Range” by Arthur C. Clarke (STAR SCIENCE FICTION 4) 304
“Balaam” by Anthony Boucher (NINE TALES OF SPACE & TIME) 315
“Man of Parts” by H. L. Gold (NINE TALES OF SPACE & TIME) 332
“Answer” by Fredric Brown (ANGELS AND SPACESHIPS) 349

Mick Herron’s Slow Horses presents a Fun House version of John Le Carre’s world of spies. When spies screw up in Herron’s London, they’re sent to Slough House, a run-down building run by Jackson Lamb–a burned out secret agent. The disgraced spies spend their time at the intelligence dumping ground performing routine tasks and transcribing cell phone conversations.

But when a young man is kidnapped and his captors threaten to televise his beheading in real time online, MI5 decides to include the “slow horses” of Slough House in the manhunt. The band of misfits track the victim and reveal a plot with national repercussions. If you’re in the mood for a twisty spy novel that blends The Spy Who Came In From the Cold and The Dirty Dozen, Slow Horses delivers. I’ll be reading the rest of the series in the months ahead. Do you enjoy spy novels? GRADE: B+
SLOUGH HOUSE SERIES:
Slow Horses (2010)
Dead Lions (2013)
The List (2015 novella)
Real Tigers (2016)
Spook Street (2017)
London Rules (2018)
The Drop (US title: “The Marylebone Drop”) (2018 novella)
Joe Country (2019)