Carefully compiled over more than three decades by Wood assistant Bhob Stewart, The Life and Legend of Wallace Wood Volume 2 is the sequel to The Life and Legend of Wallace Wood Volume 1 (you can read my review here). Wallace Wood was a remarkable and legendary comics creator. A special tribute gallery includes artwork by Robert Crumb, Dan Clowes, Michael T. Gilbert, Al Feldstein, Dave Sim, Michael Cho, Drew Friedman, and Marie Severin. The Life and Legend of Wallace Wood, Volume 2 features full-color illustrations and artwork on practically every page. If you’re a Wally Wood fan, this book is a must-buy. If you love comic artwork, you should definitely take a look at this wonderful volume! Highly recommended! GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Introduction/Ed Piskor 7
From the Woodwork Out/Clark Diamond 9
Making “My World”/Ben Saunders 17
The Bubblegum Years/Les Brown 25
A Case History of the Disneyland Memorial Orgy Poster/Paul Krassner 37
Blowing Down This Dusty Road/Flo Steinberg 45
Wood Workers/Bhob Stewart & Mike Catron 47
Strange Magic/Tom Sutton 51
About Woody/Trina Robbins 55
Wood at His witzend/Rick Spanier 59
Guitars and Flying Tigers/Larry Hama 67
The Overseas Weekly Discovery/Roger Hill 71
Wood Engravings/Paul Levitz 79
Ghost Story/A.L. Sirois 85
Rapping on Wood/Basford, Cuti, Kirshner, Pearson, Stewart 93
Trajectories/Paul Kishner 125
Second-Story Man/Bill Pearson 137
Wood Screws/Paul Kirshner 151
The Third Man/John Workman 155
The One That Got Away/Mike Moore & Bill Spicer 167
The Woody Papers/Richard Bassford 171
Wood Posts/Wallace Wood 183
The Wizard of Odkin/Feshid Barucha 195
In France/Wallace Wood 199
Cover Story/Roger Hill 207
The Big Blue Pencil/Wallace Wood 213
Self Portrait/Wallace Wood 217
Portrait Gallery/233
Final Curtain/Mike Catron 237
There Are Good Guys and Bad Guys/Bhob Stewart 243
Contributors 263
Selected Bibliography 270
Acknowledgments 271
Hooray for Wally Wood!/Bhob Stewart 272

“Harry Dresden would like Alex Verus tremendously–and be a little nervous around him.” That’s the blurb by Jim Butcher that adorns both Fated and Cursed, two urban fantasy novels by Benedict Jacka. Alex Verus is a mage who lives in contemporary London. He operates a store that sells magic items and trinkets. But Verus has a very specific power: he can see the Future. Given this premise, Jacka builds a couple of interesting novels combining the treachery of other mages (who have different powers) and Alex Verus’s flaws. In Fated, Verus agrees to work with Light mages to crack the puzzle of a powerful magic item called the fateweaver. But, of course, Dark mages appear to battle them. In Cursed, Verus tangles with mages who discover how to drain magic from magical creatures to enhance their powers. I enjoyed the system of magic that Jacka constructs. It’s logical and clever. If you’re in the mood for a trip into urban fantasy, I’d recommend Benedict Jacka’s works. GRADE: B (for both books}

I’m a big fan of Walter Isaacson’s biographies. Steve Jobs and Einstein manage to give the reader a tour of these complicated lives. The same goes for Leonardo Di Vinci. I can’t imagine how much research Isaacson had to do in order to tackle the life of Di Vinci. Isaacson not only gives the reader insight into Leonardo’s painting, but also his turtle-like tanks, human-powered flying machines, and perpetual motion machines. Di Vinci was curious about EVERYTHING! He studied the human body by conducting dozens of dissections. He was fascinated by mirrors. Di Vinci devotes pages and pages of his notebooks to the ways water swirls. Leonardo was as much an engineer as a painter. He wondered why the sky was blue (and then provided an explanation–later Einstein would ask the same question and provide the equations). Diane and I started listening to the 14 CD audio book alone. But, wonderful narrator, actor Alfred Molina, kept referring to illustrations in a PDF. We bought a hardcover edition of Isaacson’s Leonardo Di Vinci just so we could look at the lovely illustrations as we listened. Highly recommended! Do you have a favorite Di Vinci work? GRADE: A (for both the book and the audio book)
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Acknowledgments p. ix
Main Characters p. xi
Currency in Italy in 1500 p. xiii
Note Regarding the Cover p. xiii
Primary Periods of Leonardo’s Life p. xiii
Timeline p. xiv
Introduction I Can Also Paint p. 1
Chapter 1 Childhood p. 11
Chapter 2 Apprentice p. 23
Chapter 3 On His Own p. 68
Chapter 4 Milan p. 91
Chapter 5 Leonardo’s Notebooks p. 105
Chapter 6 Court Entertainer p. 112
Chapter 7 Personal Life p. 129
Chapter 8 Vitruvian Man p. 140
Chapter 9 The Horse Monument p. 160
Chapter 10 Scientist p. 170
Chapter 11 Birds and Flight p. 181
Chapter 12 The Mechanical Arts p. 190
Chapter 13 Math p. 200
Chapter 14 The Nature of Man p. 212
Chapter 15 Virgin of the Rocks p. 223
Chapter 16 The Milan Portraits p. 236
Chapter 17 The Science of Art p. 260
Chapter 18 The Last Supper p. 279
Chapter 19 Personal Turmoil p. 293
Chapter 20 Florence Again p. 299
Chapter 21 Saint Anne p. 315
Chapter 22 Paintings Lost and Found p. 325
Chapter 23 Cesare Borgia p. 335
Chapter 24 Hydraulic Engineer p. 347
Chapter 25 Michelangelo and the Lost Battles p. 355
Chapter 26 Return to Milan p. 380
Chapter 27 Anatomy, Round Two p. 394
Chapter 28 The World and Its Waters p. 425
Chapter 29 Rome p. 444
Chapter 30 Pointing the Way p. 463
Chapter 31 The Nona Lisa p. 475
Chapter 32 France p. 495
Chapter 33 Conclusion p. 517
CODA Describe the tongue of the woodpecker p. 525
Abbreviations of Frequently Cited Sources p. 527
Notes p. 533
Illustration Credits p. 571
Index p. 573

Something Rotten!: The Musical is set in 1595. William Shakespeare dominates the stage with his plays and his rock-star persona. For Nick and Nigel Bottom, two brothers who are struggling to produce a successful play, Shakespeare casts a huge shadow over their efforts. Older brother Nick decides to consult a soothsayer, Thomas Nostradamus, to determine what will become the next “can’t miss” innovation for the stage. Nick learns it’s “the Musical.” Armed with this “knowledge” Nick and Nigel and their band of actors put on a production that spoofs all the musicals you’ve ever seen. There’s plenty of singing and tap dancing and silly antics in Something Rotten!. If you need a laugh or two, Something Rotten! will tickle your Funny Bone. GRADE: B+
SONG LIST:
Act I
“Welcome to the Renaissance” – Minstrel and Company
“God, I Hate Shakespeare” – Nick, Nigel, The Troupe
“Right Hand Man” – Bea, Nick
“God, I Hate Shakespeare (Reprise)” – Nick
“A Musical” – Nostradamus, Nick, Ensemble
“The Black Death” – The Troupe
“I Love the Way” – Portia, Nigel
“Will Power” – Shakespeare, Ensemble
“Bottom’s Gonna Be on Top” – Nick, Company
Act II
“Welcome to the Renaissance (Reprise)” – Minstrel
“Hard to Be the Bard” – Shakespeare and Ensemble
“It’s Eggs!” – Nick, The Troupe
“We See the Light” – Portia, Nigel, Brother Jeremiah, Nick, Ensemble
“To Thine Own Self” – Nigel, Nick, Shakespeare and The Troupe
“Right Hand Man (Reprise)” – Bea
“Something Rotten!” – The Troupe
“Make an Omelette” – Nick and Company
“To Thine Own Self (Reprise)” – Nick
“Finale” – The Company

With all the chaos in the White House and our Government in general stupefying us on a daily basis, I thought we all needed a book that might counteract the anger and anxiety of our Times. Jordan B. Peterson has an approach to deal with uncertainty and confusion in life. Using plenty of practical examples, Peterson shows how we might adjust our thinking and actions to confront the troublesome issues of everyday existence. I found Peterson’s reasonable suggestions useful. He advocates for common sense constructive solutions to problems. He stresses honesty (something that seems to be lacking in Washington, D.C. and elsewhere in the world) and a focus on personal responsibility. I think you would find 12 Rules for Life useful and pragmatic. GRADE: B+
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Foreword Norman Doidge vii
Overture xxv
Rule 1 Stand up straight with your shoulders back 1
Rule 2 Treat yourself like someone you are responsible for helping 31
Rule 3 Make friends with people who want the best for you 67
Rule 4 Compare yourself to who you were yesterday, not to who someone else is today 85
Rule 5 Do not let your children do anything that makes you dislike them 113
Rule 6 Set your house in perfect order before you criticize the world 147
Rule 7 Pursue what is meaningful (not what is expedient) 161
Rule 8 Tell the truth-or, at least, don’t lie 203
Rule 9 Assume that the person you are listening to might know something you don’t 233
Rule 10 Be precise in your speech 259
Rule 11 Do not bother children when they are skateboarding 285
Rule 12 Pet a cat when you encounter one on the street 335
Coda 355
Acknowledgements 369
Endnotes 371
Index 390

Most people know about BLUE APRON, the company that sends out the ingrediants for meals that you can whip up in minutes. BLUE APRON has competitors in the mail-order meal space and PLATED is one of the best. Katie gave Diane a coupon for two FREE PLATED meals. Diane picked “Saucy Meatball Sliders” (see above photo) for me and “Pan Roasted Chicken with Tomato Butter, Sweet Potato, and Quinoa” (see photo below) for herself. These pre-fab meals feature convenience and variety. If you check out the MENUS at PLATED.COM you’ll see plenty of food for every taste.

Of course, the convenience and variety come at a price. But, if you’re willing to try something new, different, and delicious without leaving your house, I recommend PLATED as a smart dinner option. GRADE: B+

I was a big fan of Season One of Jessica Jones so I was really looking forward to Season Two. I’m only a couple of episodes in to this new season and I can recommend it. Krysten Ritter stars as Jessica Jones–a private eye with attitude and some super powers. Rachael Taylor, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Eka Darville return from the First Season. The key to these series is the anger of Jessica Jones and her impulses to set things right. I think Krysten Ritter hits all the right notes in her performances. Ritter has to walk a fine line between controlled anger and uncontrolled rage. I think Netflix is doing a great job with these MARVEL series. GRADE: B+ (so far)

If you’re a fan of lists, The Armchair Detective Book of Lists is pure gold. The Armchair Detective Book of Lists was first published in 1989. I have the “REVISED SECOND EDITION” published in 1995. My favorite entries “The Ten Best First Mystery Novels” by Marv Lachman, “Famous Authors Pick Their Favorite Mystery Writers and Novels,” and “The Most Fiedishly Ingenious Locked-Room and Impossible-Crime Novels of All Time” by Douglas G. Greene. This book is a browser’s delight! GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Contents And the Winner Is . . . 1
1. The Mystery Writers of America Awards 3
The Grand Master Awards 4 The Edgar Allan Poe Awards 5
Best Novel 5
Best First Novel by an American Author 13
Best Paperback Original 22
Best Short Story 26
Best Fact Crime 38
Best Critical/Biographical Work 46
Best Young Adult Mystery 51
Best Juvenile Mystery 52
Best Episode in a Television Series 59
Best Television Feature or Miniseries 66
Best Motion Picture 71
Best Foreign Film 79
Best Play 80
Best Radio Drama 81
Outstanding Mystery Criticism 82
Special Edgars 84
The Ellery Queen Awards 88
The Robert L. Fish Memorial Awards 88
The Raven Awards 90
2. The Crime Writersâ Association of Great Britain Awards 97
3. Crime Writers of Canada’s Arthur Ellis Awards 106
4. Independent Mystery Booksellers Association’s Dilys Winn Awards 109
5. International Association of Crime Writers’ Hammett Awards 111
6. The Wolfe Pack’s Nero Wolfe Awards 112
7. The Bouchercon World Mystery Convention Anthony Awards 113
8. Private Eye Writers of America Shamus Awards 116
9. Mystery Readers International’s Macavity Awards 119
10. The Malice Domestic Agatha Awards 122
The Critics Have Their Say 125
11. The Haycraft-Queen Definitive Library of Detective-Crime-Mystery Fiction 127
12. Queen’s Quorum: The 125 Most Important Books of Detective-Crime-Mystery Short Stories, Selected by Ellery Queen 137
13. Otto Penzler’s Top 100 Sherlock Holmes Books 142
14. Robin W. Winks’s Personal Mystery Favorites 153
15. The Armchair Detective Readers’ Survey 164
16. The Drood Review’s Editors’ Choice Lists 167
17. The Sunday Times 100 Best Crime Stories, Selected by Julian Symons in 1957–58 170
18. The Hard-Boiled Dick: A Personal Checklist by James Sandoe 175
19. H. R. F. Keating’s 100 Best Crime and Mystery Books 181
20. Most Frequently Taught Crime and Mystery Writers 186
21. The Ten Best Mystery Reference Works, Selected by Jon L. Breen 188
22. The Ten Best First Mystery Novels, Selected by Marvin Lachman 190
23. James Corbett’s Ten Greatest Lines, Retrieved by William F. Deeck 192
24. The Most Fiendishly Ingenious Locked-Room and Impossible-Crime Novels of All Time, Selected by Douglas G. Greene 194
25. Firsts Magazine’s List of 25 Rapidly Appreciating Mystery Books 196
26. The Top Ten Mystery Movies of All Time, Selected by Ric Meyers 198
27. The Top Ten Mystery TV Series of All Time, Selected by Ric Meyers 201
Some Famous Authors Pick Their Favorite Mysteries 205
28. Famous Authors Pick Their Favorite Mystery Writers and Novels 207
29. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Favorite Sherlock Holmes Stories 220
Mystery Booksellers Make Their Recommendations 221
30. Mystery Booksellers’ Favorite Mystery Books/Authors 223
Mystery Organizations, Conventions, and Publications 239
31. Organizations 241
32. Author Fan Clubs and Newsletters 245
33. Mystery Fan Conventions 255
34. Mystery Periodicals 259

Elysium Fire is a mashup of a police procedural and a space opera. The Glitter Band is a collection of ten thousand habitats circling the planet of Yellowstone in Deep Space where independent thinkers reside in a nearly perfect democracy. They can pretty much do anything they want…and they do. But, humans being human, some people get out of hand and that’s where the Prefects of Panoply come into play. They police the Glitter Band when things get out of control. And things are out of control as a series of residents are being murdered by having their brains explode.

Prefect Dreyfus, hero of 2007’s The Prefect (aka, Aurora Rising), races against time as the body count rises. The clues to these murders lurk in a twisted past where a secret group produces tampered memories and unleash a power that could destroy the millions who live in the Glitter Band. On top of all this, Alastair Reynolds weaves in a critique of democracy and the role of police power. There’s a lot going on in this book! Highly recommended! GRADE: A

When White House Communications Director Hope Hicks resigned last Wednesday, she was only the the latest of a series of high-profile departures from President Donald Trump’s administration. Top Economic Advisor Gary Cohn just announced he’s leaving because of Trump’s crazy Tariff plan!

Hope Hicks is also the fourth person to vacate the White House Communications Director position in a little more than a year, following Anthony Scaramucci, Sean Spicer, and Mike Dubke. It’s not unusual to have some turnover after a president’s first year in office, but this White House’s revolving door shows how chaotic the White House has become since Trump moved in.

Here’s a partial round-up of those who’ve left ― either gracefully or with an escort ― since Trump took office:

Michael Flynn ― National Security Adviser
Trump’s former National Security Adviser, Michael Flynn, resigned last February following revelations about conversations he had with then-Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak. Flynn has since been cooperating with Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s ongoing investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election. In December, he pled guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with the Russian government.

Mike Dubke ― Communications Director
Mike Dubke served as Trump’s communications director for three months between February and May, 2017 before his resignation. He wasn’t an especially public figure, rarely appearing on television or talking to reporters on the record.

Sean Spicer ― White House Press Secretary and Communications Director
Spicer became one of the most ridiculed members of the Trump White House during his tenure as press secretary, including several notable spoofs on Saturday Night Live that made his lectern antics household knowledge. He abruptly resigned last July.

Reince Priebus ― Chief of Staff
Reince Priebus, the former chairman of the Republican National Committee, spent a little more than six months as White House chief of staff before he quietly submitted his resignation. Priebus continually butted heads with other powerful voices in the West Wing, including then-Chief Strategist Steve Bannon and the short-lived communications director Anthony Scaramucc. Then-Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, a retired Marine Corps general, took over the role in July.

Anthony Scaramucci ― Communications Director
Scaramucci served in the White House for a mere 10 days after joining the administration. His tenure was heaped in controversy, including a profanity-laced interview with New Yorker reporter Ryan Lizza. As the gregarious Long Island native’s departure was announced, Trump sent out a tweet reading “No WH chaos!”

Steve Bannon ― Chief Strategist
Former Breitbart News chairman Steve Bannon, once considered an untouchable confidant of the president, left the White House last August after spending the first half of the year helping shape Trump’s “America First” agenda. While the administration wished him the best at the time, he quickly became a political pariah after a very public feud with the president centering around quotes in a book where he declared actions by Donald Trump Jr. as “treasonous.”

Tom Price ― Health and Human Services Secretary
Price resigned following a firestorm over his extravagant use of private and military planes for official travel. A series of flights cost American taxpayers more than $1 million, according to Politico, and despite his attempts to quash the controversy, he resigned the post a week after the expenses were first disclosed.

Omarosa Manigault Newman ― Director of Communications, Office of Public Liaison
Newman, a former reality television star who first rose to fame on “The Apprentice,” resigned from her role in December “to pursue other opportunities.” Her sudden departure was followed by reports that she was escorted from the property, although she has maintained that she resigned and was not fired. She went on to criticize the Trump administration during an appearance on “Celebrity Big Brother” and even said she wouldn’t vote for the president again “in a million years.”

Sebastian Gorka ―Deputy Assistant
Gorka was an early addition to the administration after having served as an adviser during Trump’s presidential campaign. He quickly became one of the most vocal defenders of Trump’s policies, including the controversial travel ban. Gorka, a U.K. native with alleged ties to an anti-Semitic Hungarian group, left his White House job in August. He claimed he resigned from the role, but an unnamed administration official suggested in a statement to multiple media outlets that he was either fired or forced out.

Rob Porter ― Staff Secretary
Porter left the White House under a cloud of controversy after two of his ex-wives said that he had physically and emotionally abused them. The former staff secretary was able to serve in the White House for months with an interim security clearance that allowed him to view some of the nation’s most sensitive secrets, even though the claims of abuse had stalled his FBI background check. The revelations have prompted Chief of Staff John Kelly to revamp security clearance procedures, and 30 top aides were recently stripped of their own interim clearances, including the president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner.

Hope Hicks ― Communications Director
Hicks’ resignation marks the departure of one of Trump’s most trusted advisors. The enigmatic 29-year-old has worked for the president for years, despite having no previous political experience. She recently spoke with Mueller as part of his ongoing probe, and reportedly said she sometimes tells “white lies” for the president. CNN reported on Wednesday that comments made by Hicks in 2016, just days after Trump was elected, have been the subject of questions by the special counsel.

Who’s next? Stay tuned! I’m guessing Jeff Sessions is toast.