I’m a fan of “Smooth Jazz.” Boney James has produced a consistent, professional set of CDs filled with mellow, soulful music. This is perfect background music. I own all of Boney James’ CDs and he never disappoints. His just released “Send One Your Love” would make a dandy Valentine’s gift.
Willie Brown, former Mayor of San Francisco and long-time leader of the California legislature, is a colorful figure. His memoir, Basic Brown: My Life and Our Times isn’t going to supersede Machiavelli but is a breezy account of a career in politics like no one else’s. Brown comes from a poor Texas town. “I didn’t live in a log cabin, I lived under a log cabin.” Relatives help Brown move to San Francisco and encourage him to get an education. Brown thrives in an academic environment and ends up going to law school. Almost through chance, he gets involved in politics and the rest is history. There are plenty of political lessons to be learned from Brown: don’t lie, reward your friends (but not too much), punish your enemies (but not too much), build coalitions, don’t get greedy, stay true to your beliefs, and have fun. I had fun reading about Brown’s life. You will, too. GRADE: B+.
1. Jane Austen
2. Jack Vance
3. Raymond Chandler
4. Dashiell Hammett
5. John Barth
6. Thomas Pynchon
7. Fritz Leiber
8. John O’Hara
9. Agatha Christie
10. Anthony Trollope
11. Norman Mailer
12. Samuel Johnson
13. Joseph Epstein
14. Henry James
15. Joan Didion
16. Gabriel Garcia Marquez
17. Andre Norton
18. Robert Heinlein
19. Isaac Asimov
20. Leigh Brackett
21. H. P. Lovecraft
22. Robert Bloch
23. Donald Westlake
24. John Brunner
25. Clifford Simak
Maybe it’s too much Botox or cosmetic surgery gone wrong, but Renee Zellweger’s face looks pinched and paralyzed in this run-of-the-mill romantic comedy. Renee plays a “fish-out-of-water” corporate executive from Miami sent to downsize a factory in rural Minnesota. You know the drill: Renee coping with frigid temperatures in her designer suits, Renee almost hitting a cow and driving into a snow-filled ditch, Renee getting outsmarted by the clever locals. But New in Town, predictable as a Die Hard battery, has an above average cast with Harry Connick Jr. as the hunky union rep, Siobhan Fallon as Renee’s plucky secretary, and J. K. Simmons (the police commissioner on The Closer) as the wily factory Foreman. With all this talent, New in Town could have been a whole lot better. GRADE: C+.
Fletcher Pratt’s The Well of the Unicorn will remind some readers of a Bernard Cornwell novel. There’s plenty of fighting, politics, and chasing women. Young Airar Alvarson evolves from a country bumpkin into a leader of men. Along the way, he practices some magic arts and learns how to be a warrior. Airar falls in love, as young men will, and Pratt creates some very enticing women to tempt him. This is sword and sorcery in the old style of storytelling. Fletcher Pratt is better known as L. Sprague de Camp’s partner in producing classics like The Incompleat Enchanter and Wall of Serpents. But this solo effort is well worth reading. It can be had at a bargain price from Daedalus Books at www.salebooks.com.
If you put SEINFELD and MONTY PYTHON in a blender, you’d come up with something like Flight of the Conchords. A pair of dense, out-of-work, musicians from New Zealand wander around New York City finding mostly absurdity. This is comedy in a completely unique style. If you’re looking for something original, give this a try.
