This CD from 2004 (hard to believe it’s 20 years ago!) collects most of the John Mellencamp (aka, “John Cougar”) hits from his career. Discovermusic lists what they think are Mellencamp’s 20 best songs (you can read the entire article by Brett Milano here) but here’s the top eleven songs according to Milano:

“The American Dream” (from Chestnut Street Incident, 1976)

Then known as “Johnny Cougar,” John Mellencamp’s debut album is full of unlikely 60s cover songs and slick, glitter-styled production. At the time, he looked and sounded like he really loved Elvis Presley. The opening track is still a solid rocker, introducing the heartland storytelling that would later make his name. Even the chorus, “Ain’t that the American dream,” would later be adapted in a more famous tune of his.

“Ain’t Even Done With the Night” (from Nothin’ Matters and What If It Did, 1981)

Donning the more serious “John Cougar” name, John Mellencamp set his sights on chart success: This tune was part of a string of singles (including “Hurt So Good” and the Pat Benatar-covered “I Need a Lover”) that established him as a radio presence. “Ain’t Even Done…” was the sweetest of the batch, a song that captures the feel of being young and sexed-up. The lyrics evince both insecurity (“Don’t even know if I’m doing this right”) and endless possibility. Sure, there’s a bit of Springsteen here, but the lead mandolin points at his future direction.

“Jack & Diane” (from American Fool, 1982)

An 80s anthem and a No. 1 hit, “Jack & Diane” puts some ambiguity in John Mellencamp’s storytelling: We don’t know where Jack and Diane will end up, this is just a snapshot that feels gritty and real. Sonically, it was state of the art, with that heavy acoustic guitar, the big chord crashes, and the rousing “Oh let it rock” chorus.

“Pink Houses” (from Uh-Huh, 1983)

Enter “John Cougar Mellencamp,” and the most emblematic song of his career (if not quite the biggest hit). The chorus of “ain’t that America” has been adopted by politicians on both sides of the spectrum, but like “Born in the USA,” this is an easy song to misinterpret. Mellencamp’s song is patriotic but not a flag-waver: It calls out inequality and lost dreams, and says that the peoples’ ability to roll with it is what makes this country great.

“Small Town” (from Scarecrow, 1985)

Another year, another anthem: When you hear the words “heartland rock,” “Small Town” is likely the first song that comes to mind. No double edge on this one, it’s a pure celebration of his roots, and the video includes some of the most rural scenes ever to appear on peak-era MTV.

“Rain On the Scarecrow” (from Scarecrow, 1985)

“Scarecrow” made a forceful case for the economically threatened American farmer. Anticipating Farm Aid and a few stacks of similarly-themed songs, this one went a long way toward putting the plight of farmers on the national radar.

“Paper in Fire,” (from The Lonesome Jubilee, 1987)

Now hitting the peak of his 80s fame, John Mellencamp was blending rock and roots into his own kind of American music. The pairing of accordion and fiddle with Kenny Aronoff’s power drumming made this an especially potent band. Though it still works as a fist-waver, “Paper in Fire” found him writing on a more metaphorical level about how the grandest dreams can turn to ashes.

“Shama Lama Ding Dong” (single, 1987)

For all the deep thoughts in his songs, John Mellencamp could do pure fun with the best. This rarity is a prime example: Originally played by Otis Day & the Knights in the movie Animal House, “Shama Lama Ding Dong” was a nod to the soulful sound of North Carolina beach music. It was a popular live tune in the Lonesome Jubilee era, and a studio version appeared on the B-side of the “Cherry Bomb” single. Still non-LP after all these years, so happy hunting.

“Big Daddy of Them All” (from Big Daddy, 1989)

Big Daddy was a surprise. It was a darker album that largely avoided the usual rockers and anthems and had more of a world-weary tone. The hit single “Pop Singer” is one of John Mellencamp’s crankiest. This sort-of title track opened the album and set its tone, telling of a character who gains power but loses his soul. The sound is likewise stripped-down, with an aggressive lead guitar that appears only in the middle and end.

“I Ain’t Never Satisfied” (from Whenever We Wanted, 1991)

Just when it seemed John Mellencamp had grown away from straight-ahead rock, he picked it back up with a vengeance on this oft-overlooked 1991 album – the first to be credited to “John Mellencamp.” He was confident enough to release half of its ten tracks as singles – but oddly, this standout track wasn’t one of those. With a killer guitar riff and clever lyrics (“I try anything once, but then I do it to death”), this is as stripped-down and punkish as Mellencamp gets. Cheers to the terrific guitarist David Grissom, pinched from Texas rocker Joe Ely’s band.

“Wild Night” (from Dance Naked, 1994)

Cover tunes are an enduring part of John Mellencamp’s catalogue, he even devoted a full compilation album to Other Peoples’ Stuff in 2018. “Wild Night” makes our list, partly because it was a big hit and because it gives one of Van Morrison’s most beloved tunes a run for its money. Mellencamp doesn’t change the feel of the song much, though he does replace Morrison’s horns with a wall of guitars. But the vocal tradeoffs with Me’Shell Ndegeocello are the real kicker.

How many of these 35 John Mellencamp songs do you remember? Any favorites here? GRADE: B+

TRACK LIST:

1-1		Walk Tall	3:45
1-2		Pink Houses	4:46
1-3		Lonely Ol’ Night	3:46
1-4		Jackie Brown	4:04
1-5		Rain On The Scarecrow	3:46
1-6		Love And Happiness	3:55
1-7		Check It Out	4:21
1-8		Peaceful World	4:07
1-9		Paper In Fire Written-By – Don Gehman, John Mellencamp*	3:52
1-10		Your Life Is Now Written-By – George Green (4), John Mellencamp*	4:00
1-11		Human WheelsWritten-By – George Green (4), John Mellencamp*	5:37
1-12		When Jesus Left Birmingham	5:17
1-13		Authority Song	3:50
1-14		What If I Came Knocking	5:06
1-15		Crumblin’ Down Written-By – George Green (4), John Mellencamp*	3:36
1-16		Small Town	3:43
1-17		R.O.C.K. In The U.S.A.	2:56
1-18		Cherry Bomb	4:50
1-19		Pop Singer	2:46
2-1		Thank You	3:38
2-2		Martha Say	3:43
2-3		Key West Intermezzo (I Saw You First) Written-By – George Green (4), John Mellencamp	4:54
2-4		Hand To Hold On To	3:25
2-5		I Need A Lover	5:36
2-6		Hurts So Good Written-By – George Green (4), John Mellencamp*Written-By – George Green (4), John Mellencamp*	3:41
2-7		Get A Leg Up	3:47
2-8		Wild Night Written-By – Van Morrison	3:28
2-9		Dance Naked	3:01
2-10		Teardrops Will Fall Written-By – Dicky Doo, Marion Smith	4:20
2-11		Ain’t Even Done With The Night	4:38
2-12		Just Another Day	3:31
2-13		Jack & Diane	4:17
2-14		Rumble Seat	2:59
2-15		I’m Not Running Anymore	3:27
2-16		Again Tonight	3:18
2-17		This Time	4:20
2-18		Now More Than Ever

Margaret Atwood is best known for The Handmaid’s Tale and her other 40 books. But, I stumbled across this child’s book by Atwood and immediately read it. I also enjoyed the illustrations by Dusan Petricic. Each story features alliterative sentences and characters. The first story, “Rude Ramsay and the Roaring Radishes” goes heavy on “R.” “Bashful Bob and Doleful Dorinda” emphasize “B” and “D.” The last story, “Wander Wenda,” focuses on “W.”

The characters in the stories confront problems. Ramsay runs away from his revolting relatives. Bob is raised by dogs. Dorinda specializes in housework. Wenda and her woodchuck friend have to find a way to outwit the evil Widow Wallop.

If I was a kid just learning to read, I would love A Trio of Tolerable Tales! GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Rude Ramsay and the Roaring Radishes — 9

Bashful Bob and Doleful Dorinda — 27

Wandering Wenda — 43

Harry Potter for adults. That’s how I’d describe The Portable Door (2023) that’s available for free for AMAZON Prime Video subscribers. Adapted from Tom Holt’s 2003 fantasy novel, this film is co-produced by the Jim Henson Company with Christoph Waltz and Sam Neill playing dual roles.

The Portable Door is a door that will take you anywhere you want. It is hiding somewhere in the venerable London magic establishment of JW Wells & Company. JW Wells uses magic to engineer daily incidents of coincidence and serendipity that happen in urban life…for a fee, of course.

Paul Carpenter (Patrick Gibson), desperate for a job, signs up for a position at JW Wells. Carpenter struggles to figure out what he should be doing, unlike his fellow new hire, Sophie (Sophie Wilde), whose ability as a Seer is soon put to magical use. Carpenter is relieved when CEO Humphrey Wells (Waltz) assigns him with the bewildering task of finding the magic door that is hiding somewhere in the maze-like grottos of the creepy premises.

Director Jeffrey Walker keeps the story moving with magical happenings at this corporate Hogwarts. If you’re in the mood for a mildly entertaining comic adventure with some romance mixed in, I recommend The Portable Door. GRADE: B

Key Changes gives the reader a comprehensive,  thoroughly researched, and engaging history of the the technologies that changed and modified the music industry for more than a 100 years.

From vinyl cylinders to 78 rpm vinyl albums, to 33 1/3 vinyl albums, to 45 rmp vinyl singles, to 8-track tapes, to cassette tapes, to digital Compact Disks, to Internet downloads, to streaming services like Spotify and Pandora, Howie Singer and Bill Rosenblatt show how these technologies were developed and then rolled out commercially.

One of the many surprises in Key Changes is Thomas Edison’s belief that his new device was initially restricted: “Edison said later that he was never so taken aback in his life. He foresaw a wide range of uses for the phonograph, including recording speeches and music as well as enabling talking clocks and toys. However, he viewed the feature of making recordings as essential to fulfill its primary mission as a business dictation machine.” (p. 18). Edison was a little off in that prediction.

From cylinders and discs played on early phonographs; then moving through radio, LPs, tapes, CDs, television, digital downloads, streaming, and streaming video, Key Changes explores all the major changes in the music industry with incisive analysis. If you’re a music fan, there’s a lot of wonderful stories of music history in  Key Changes! Highly recommended! GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS — ix

1. Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On (Jerry Lee Lewis) — Introduction — 1
   2. You Spin Me Round [Like a Record] (Dead or Alive) — Phonograph — 17
   3. I Can’t Live Without My Radio (LLCool J) — Radio — 59
   4. Spin the Black Circle (Pearl Jam) — Vinyl LPs and 45s — 97
   5. Rhymin’ and Stealin’ (The Beastie Boys) — 8-Track & Cassette Tapes — 138
   6. Television Rules the Nation (Daft Punk) — Television & Music — 156
   7. Zero-Sum (Nine Inch Nails) — The Compact Disc — 189
   8. Don’t Download This Song (“Weird Al” Yankovic) — Downloads — 215
   9. Bridge Over Troubled Water (Simon & Garfunkel) — Streaming — 255
   10. Throw Away Your Television (Red Hot Chili Peppers) — Streaming Video — 293
   11. You Took the Words Right Out of my Mouth (Meatloaf) — Voice Interfaces & Artificial Intelligence — 326
   12. Time After Time (Cyndi Lauper) — Coda — 353
   13. Unchained Melody (Righteous Brothers) — Afterword: Blockchain Technologies — 383

• Notes — 395
• References — 413
• Bibliography — 449
• Index — 479

I’ve read some of Cassandra Khaw’s horror fiction (you can read about it here) and I’ve read some of Richard Kadray’s Sandman Slim series. So a novel like The Dead Take the A Train, where extra-dimensional entities are plotting to take over the Earth, would be an ideal project for these two writers.

The Dead Take the A Train is the first book in the Carrion City duology. Julie Crews, whose limited skill set includes exorcising demons, dealing in Dark Magic, and casting spells from Forbidden Books, tries to help her friend, Sarah. Unbeknownst by Julie and Sarah is the plot of the supernatural entries who control the Wall Street institution Thorne & Dirk to invade this dimension. Julie’s ex-boyfriend, cunning Tyler Banks, who becomes involved in the schemes of The Mother Who Eats at Thorne & Dirk, conspires to seize a position in Upper Management by assisting in gruesome, loathsome acts to open The Door to the extra-dimensional invaders.

The Dead Take the A Train takes you into the depths of slimy Magic where Death lurks constantly. If you’re in the mood for a horror novel full of Dark Magic and intrigue, The Dead Take the A Train might be just what you’re looking for. The sequel to The Dead Take the A Train should be published next year. GRADE: Incomplete (but trend towards a B-)

Diane and I used to watch Monk, a hour-long police procedural, that aired from 2002 until 2009 on the USA Network. Each episode presented a different murder to solve. What differentiated Monk from the other whodunit TV shows at the time was the fun the screenplays had with the quirky brilliance of its lead investigator, Adrian Monk (played by Tony Shalhoub), who epitomized obsessive-compulsive disorder. Now, after almost 15 years, Shalhoub and most of his original castmates are back, in a new movie on the Peacock streaming service, titled Mr. Monk’s Last Case.

The original Monk  series played like a comedy. Monk creator Andy Breckman submitted the show for Emmy consideration in the comedy categories, and Shalhoub competed against sitcom stars to win the award for lead actor three times. And, until The Walking Dead came along, the finale of Monk held the record as the most-viewed scripted drama on cable television.

In Mr. Monk’s Last Case things are not going well for Mr. Monk. After working on his memoirs for 10 years, Monk’s publisher rejects his massive manuscript–pages and pages praising Monk’s stove–which spends too few pages on the 140 murders he solved. The publisher demands Monk return the advance they paid him a decade ago. Monk has promised to pay for his step-daughter, Molly’s, wedding and now confronts another failure.

But Fate steps in just as Monk is on the brink of despair and proves him a murder to solve: Molly’s fiancé dies in a freak bungee-cord jump and Molly is convinced he was murdered. After a short resistance to entering the investigative world again, Monk goes all in.

Although the title of this TV movie is Mr. Monk’s Last Case, I’m hoping for more of Mr. Monk. Were you a Monk fan? GRADE: B+

Sadie Hartmann’s new 101 Horror Books to Read Before You’re Murdered puts its emphasis on more recent horror novels, mostly those published in the past 15 years. A few classics are included like Joe Lansdale’s The Bottoms from 2000 and The Ballad of Black Tom (2016) by Victor LaValle but the majority of the books recommended are new to me. Check out the Book List and Table of Contents below.

Each book receives a page with information about the author, a picture of the cover artwork, and a summary of the plot with emphasis on why you should read it. I’ve read Christopher Buehlman’s (p. 20-21) The Blacktongue Thief (2021) and Buehlman is featured in an interview here where he mentions books that affected him and his writing career: Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House, Last Days by Adam Nevill, and William Peter Blatty’s The Exorcist audiobook where the author is the narrator.

Many of you might be familiar with Stephen Jones and Kim Newman’s Horror: The 100 Best Books (1993) and Horror: Another 100 Best Books (2005). 101 Horror Books to Read Before You’re Murdered updates those two volumes and will cause you to order more books in this genre. GRADE: A

101 Horror Books To Read Before You’re Murdered – List

1		The Grip of It by Jac Jemc (Goodreads Author)  3.19 avg rating — 12,414 ratingsscore: 100, and 1 person voted
2		The Book of Accidents by Chuck Wendig (Goodreads Author)  3.74 avg rating — 22,058 ratingsscore: 99, and 1 person voted
3		Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey (Goodreads Author)  3.37 avg rating — 26,144 ratingsscore: 98, and 1 person voted
4		Kill Creek by Scott Thomas  3.77 avg rating — 19,542 ratingsscore: 97, and 1 person voted
5		The Ancestor by Danielle Trussoni (Goodreads Author)  3.37 avg rating — 4,340 ratingsscore: 96, and 1 person voted
6		The Switch House by Tim Meyer (Goodreads Author)  3.57 avg rating — 652 ratingsscore: 95, and 1 person voted
7		Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill (Goodreads Author)  3.85 avg rating — 135,383 ratingsscore: 94, and 1 person voted
8		NOS4A2 by Joe Hill (Goodreads Author)  4.08 avg rating — 127,717 ratingsscore: 93, and 1 person voted
9		Jurassic Park (Jurassic Park, #1) by Michael Crichton  4.10 avg rating — 950,489 ratingsscore: 92, and 1 person voted
10		Pet Sematary by Stephen King (Goodreads Author)  4.06 avg rating — 583,302 ratingsscore: 91, and 1 person voted
11		Hell Hound by Ken Greenhall  3.93 avg rating — 1,293 ratingsscore: 90, and 1 person voted
12		Jurassic Park (Jurassic Park, #1) by Michael Crichton  4.10 avg rating — 950,489 ratingsscore: 89, and 1 person voted
13		Hearts Strange and Dreadful by Tim McGregor (Goodreads Author)  4.27 avg rating — 189 ratingsscore: 88, and 1 person voted
14		The Return by Rachel Harrison  3.36 avg rating — 14,803 ratingsscore: 87, and 1 person voted
15		Between Two Fires by Christopher Buehlman (Goodreads Author)  4.27 avg rating — 17,553 ratingsscore: 86, and 1 person voted
16		The Lesser Dead by Christopher Buehlman (Goodreads Author)  4.05 avg rating — 5,752 ratingsscore: 85, and 1 person voted
17		Those Across the River by Christopher Buehlman (Goodreads Author)  3.71 avg rating — 12,133 ratingsscore: 84, and 1 person voted
18		The Suicide Motor Club by Christopher Buehlman (Goodreads Author)  3.93 avg rating — 1,725 ratingsscore: 83, and 1 person voted
19		The Necromancer’s House by Christopher Buehlman (Goodreads Author)  3.75 avg rating — 3,022 ratingsscore: 82, and 1 person voted
20		The Blacktongue Thief (Blacktongue, #1) by Christopher Buehlman (Goodreads Author)  4.23 avg rating — 20,178 ratingsscore: 81, and 1 person voted
21		White Horse by Erika T. Wurth (Goodreads Author)  3.52 avg rating — 10,742 ratingsscore: 80, and 1 person voted
22		When the Reckoning Comes by LaTanya McQueen  3.72 avg rating — 6,627 ratingsscore: 79, and 1 person voted
23		The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas (Goodreads Author)  3.84 avg rating — 39,688 ratingsscore: 78, and 1 person voted
24		The Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories by Tara Moore (Editor)  3.79 avg rating — 717 ratingsscore: 77, and 1 person voted
25		The Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories: Volume Two by Allen Grove (Editor)  4.01 avg rating — 210 ratingsscore: 76, and 1 person voted
26		The Valancourt Book of ​Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories: Volume Three by Simon Stern (Editor)  3.97 avg rating — 128 ratingsscore: 75, and 1 person voted
27		The Valancourt Book of ​Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories: Volume Four by Christopher Philippo (Goodreads Author) (Editor)  3.85 avg rating — 93 ratingsscore: 74, and 1 person voted
28		The Valancourt Book of ​Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories: Volume Five by Christopher Philippo (Goodreads Author) (Editor)  3.79 avg rating — 86 ratingsscore: 73, and 1 person voted
29		The Shrieking Skull & Other Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories by James Skipp Borlase  3.68 avg rating — 50 ratingsscore: 72, and 1 person voted
30		Hark! the Herald Angels Scream by Christopher Golden (Goodreads Author) (editor)  3.70 avg rating — 1,727 ratingsscore: 71, and 1 person voted
31		Season’s Creepings: Tales of Holiday Horror by Ronald Kelly (Goodreads Author)  4.09 avg rating — 342 ratingsscore: 70, and 1 person voted
32		Wraith by Joe Hill (Goodreads Author)  4.12 avg rating — 4,347 ratingsscore: 69, and 1 person voted
33		Krampus: The Yule Lord by Brom (Goodreads Author)  4.11 avg rating — 10,734 ratingsscore: 68, and 1 person voted
34		Secret Santa by Andrew Shaffer (Goodreads Author)  3.46 avg rating — 4,358 ratingsscore: 67, and 1 person voted
35		The Visitor by Sergio Gomez (Goodreads Author)  3.35 avg rating — 3,954 ratingsscore: 66, and 1 person voted
36		Dead of Winter by Kealan Patrick Burke  3.95 avg rating — 925 ratingsscore: 65, and 1 person voted
37		Halldark Holidays by Gabino Iglesias (Goodreads Author) (Editor)  4.28 avg rating — 79 ratingsscore: 64, and 1 person voted
38		Where the Dead Go to Die by Aaron Dries (Goodreads Author)  4.01 avg rating — 517 ratingsscore: 63, and 1 person voted
39		Ghost Summer by Tananarive Due (Goodreads Author)  4.21 avg rating — 1,984 ratingsscore: 62, and 1 person voted
40		The Good House by Tananarive Due (Goodreads Author)  3.99 avg rating — 7,688 ratingsscore: 61, and 1 person voted
41		The Between by Tananarive Due (Goodreads Author)  4.06 avg rating — 3,756 ratingsscore: 60, and 1 person voted
42		My Soul to Keep (African Immortals, #1) by Tananarive Due (Goodreads Author)  4.15 avg rating — 6,293 ratingsscore: 59, and 1 person voted
43		The Living Blood (African Immortals, #2) by Tananarive Due (Goodreads Author)  4.35 avg rating — 2,620 ratingsscore: 58, and 1 person voted
44		Blood Colony (African Immortals, #3) by Tananarive Due (Goodreads Author)  4.13 avg rating — 1,648 ratingsscore: 57, and 1 person voted
45		My Soul to Take (African Immortals, #4) by Tananarive Due (Goodreads Author)  4.15 avg rating — 1,102 ratingsscore: 56, and 1 person voted
46		Ghoul by Brian Keene (Goodreads Author)  3.86 avg rating — 4,536 ratingsscore: 55, and 1 person voted
47		The Birds and Other Stories by Daphne du Maurier  4.05 avg rating — 11,989 ratingsscore: 54, and 1 person voted
48		The Cormorant by Stephen Gregory (Goodreads Author)  3.52 avg rating — 904 ratingsscore: 53, and 1 person voted
49		The United States of Cryptids: A Tour of American Myths and Monsters by J.W. Ocker (Goodreads Author)  3.91 avg rating — 1,386 ratingsscore: 52, and 1 person voted
50		In the Valley of the Sun by Andy Davidson (Goodreads Author)  3.86 avg rating — 2,006 ratingsscore: 51, and 1 person voted
51		The Children on the Hill by Jennifer McMahon (Goodreads Author)  3.86 avg rating — 28,003 ratingsscore: 50, and 1 person voted
52		Hairspray and Switchblades by V. Castro (Goodreads Author)  3.76 avg rating — 309 ratingsscore: 49, and 1 person voted
53		Goddess of Filth by V. Castro (Goodreads Author)  3.67 avg rating — 5,409 ratingsscore: 48, and 1 person voted
54		The Queen of the Cicadas by V. Castro (Goodreads Author)  3.76 avg rating — 1,374 ratingsscore: 47, and 1 person voted
55		Mestiza Blood by V. Castro (Goodreads Author)  3.91 avg rating — 304 ratingsscore: 46, and 1 person voted
56		The Haunting of Alejandra by V. Castro (Goodreads Author)  3.66 avg rating — 4,845 ratingsscore: 45, and 1 person voted
57		Aliens: Vasquez by V. Castro (Goodreads Author)  3.38 avg rating — 359 ratingsscore: 44, and 1 person voted
58		Boys in the Valley by Philip Fracassi (Goodreads Author)  4.23 avg rating — 4,363 ratingsscore: 43, and 1 person voted
59		The Demonologist by Andrew Pyper (Goodreads Author)  3.32 avg rating — 9,755 ratingsscore: 42, and 1 person voted
60		The Wicked by James Newman (Goodreads Author)  3.85 avg rating — 732 ratingsscore: 41, and 1 person voted
61		Come Closer by Sara Gran (Goodreads Author)  3.65 avg rating — 27,801 ratingsscore: 40, and 1 person voted
62		My Best Friend’s Exorcism by Grady Hendrix (Goodreads Author)  3.94 avg rating — 106,611 ratingsscore: 39, and 1 person voted
63		We Sold Our Souls by Grady Hendrix (Goodreads Author)  3.74 avg rating — 23,110 ratingsscore: 38, and 1 person voted
64		Paperbacks from Hell: The Twisted History of ’70s and ’80s Horror Fiction by Grady Hendrix (Goodreads Author)  4.27 avg rating — 9,798 ratingsscore: 37, and 1 person voted
65		The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix (Goodreads Author)  3.81 avg rating — 210,690 ratingsscore: 36, and 1 person voted
66		How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix (Goodreads Author)  3.71 avg rating — 89,847 ratingsscore: 35, and 1 person voted
67		The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix (Goodreads Author)  3.53 avg rating — 130,578 ratingsscore: 34, and 1 person voted
68		Horrorstör by Grady Hendrix (Goodreads Author)  3.66 avg rating — 89,109 ratingsscore: 33, and 1 person voted
69		The Year of the Witching (Bethel, #1) by Alexis Henderson (Goodreads Author)  3.81 avg rating — 36,557 ratingsscore: 32, and 1 person voted
70		Hex by Thomas Olde Heuvelt (Goodreads Author)  3.73 avg rating — 36,368 ratingsscore: 31, and 1 person voted
71		Clown in a Cornfield (Clown in a Cornfield, #1) by Adam Cesare (Goodreads Author)  3.74 avg rating — 23,734 ratingsscore: 30, and 1 person voted
72		The Nightmare Girl by Jonathan Janz (Goodreads Author)  3.98 avg rating — 541 ratingsscore: 29, and 1 person voted
73		Brother by Ania Ahlborn (Goodreads Author)  3.94 avg rating — 38,342 ratingsscore: 28, and 1 person voted
74		The Devil Crept In by Ania Ahlborn (Goodreads Author)  3.66 avg rating — 8,712 ratingsscore: 27, and 1 person voted
75		Seed by Ania Ahlborn (Goodreads Author)  3.79 avg rating — 22,528 ratingsscore: 26, and 1 person voted
76		The Bird Eater by Ania Ahlborn (Goodreads Author)  3.53 avg rating — 10,314 ratingsscore: 25, and 1 person voted
77		Within These Walls by Ania Ahlborn (Goodreads Author)  3.63 avg rating — 6,343 ratingsscore: 24, and 1 person voted
78		Dark Across the Bay by Ania Ahlborn (Goodreads Author)  3.55 avg rating — 3,400 ratingsscore: 23, and 1 person voted
79		Apart in the Dark: Novellas by Ania Ahlborn (Goodreads Author)  3.86 avg rating — 413 ratingsscore: 22, and 1 person voted
80		If You See Her by Ania Ahlborn (Goodreads Author)  3.65 avg rating — 2,430 ratingsscore: 21, and 1 person voted
81		The Neighbors by Ania Ahlborn (Goodreads Author)  3.29 avg rating — 7,408 ratingsscore: 20, and 1 person voted
82		The Shuddering by Ania Ahlborn (Goodreads Author)  3.68 avg rating — 11,840 ratingsscore: 19, and 1 person voted
83		The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle  3.86 avg rating — 27,695 ratingsscore: 18, and 1 person voted
84		The Worm and His Kings (The Worm and His Kings, #1) by Hailey Piper (Goodreads Author)  3.79 avg rating — 1,700 ratingsscore: 17, and 1 person voted
85		The Fisherman by John Langan  3.93 avg rating — 24,710 ratingsscore: 16, and 1 person voted
86		A Lush and Seething Hell: Two Tales of Cosmic Horror by John Hornor Jacobs (Goodreads Author)  3.82 avg rating — 2,574 ratingsscore: 15, and 1 person voted
87		Walk The Darkness Down by John Boden (Goodreads Author)  4.14 avg rating — 147 ratingsscore: 14, and 1 person voted
88		Knock Knock (The Skillute Cycle #1) by S.P. Miskowski (Goodreads Author)  3.83 avg rating — 477 ratingsscore: 13, and 1 person voted
89		The Bottoms by Joe R Lansdale (2010-12-07) by Joe R. Lansdale (Goodreads Author)  4.18 avg rating — 8,492 ratingsscore: 12, and 1 person voted
90		December Park by Ronald Malfi (Goodreads Author)  4.26 avg rating — 2,324 ratingsscore: 11, and 1 person voted
91		Penpal by Dathan Auerbach (Goodreads Author)  3.86 avg rating — 36,185 ratingsscore: 10, and 1 person voted
92		Of Foster Homes and Flies by Chad Lutzke (Goodreads Author)  4.34 avg rating — 1,230 ratingsscore: 9, and 1 person voted
93		The Ghost Tree by Christina Henry (Goodreads Author)  3.83 avg rating — 6,461 ratingsscore: 8, and 1 person voted
94		The Deer Kings by Wendy N. Wagner (Goodreads Author)  4.36 avg rating — 47 ratingsscore: 7, and 1 person voted
95		The Bone Weaver’s Orchard by Sarah Read (Goodreads Author)  3.77 avg rating — 602 ratingsscore: 6, and 1 person voted
96		The Listener by Robert McCammon  4.05 avg rating — 2,475 ratingsscore: 5, and 1 person voted
97		Bird Box (Bird Box, #1) by Josh Malerman (Goodreads Author)  4.04 avg rating — 187,128 ratingsscore: 4, and 1 person voted
98		Pearl by Josh Malerman (Goodreads Author)  3.41 avg rating — 4,012 ratingsscore: 3, and 1 person voted
99		Malorie (Bird Box, #2) by Josh Malerman (Goodreads Author)  3.81 avg rating — 22,675 ratingsscore: 2, and 1 person voted
100		A House at the Bottom of a Lake by Josh Malerman (Goodreads Author)  3.20 avg rating — 16,308 ratings

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

FORWARD By Josh Malerman — 4

INTRODUCTION By Sadie Hartmann — 7

Paranormal. Haunted houses — 11

Ghosts — 22

I grew up with ghosts / by Cassandra Khaw — 38

Creatures & cryptids — 30

Supernatural. Demons & possession — 41

The occult & witchcraft — 50

Cosmic horror — 56

Make horror gay AF / by Hailey Piper — 62

Human monsters — 65

Coming-of-age — 66

Grief, loss & death — 78

Cults — 88

Slashers & serial killers — 98

Body horror — 105

Creepy kids — 110

Crime & investigation — 116

A secret language only we can speak: the comfort of queer horror / by Eric LaRocca — 122

Natural order horror — 125

Apocalyptic, dystopian & sci-fi — 126

Eco horror — 136

From out of the dark came blackness / by RJ Joseph – 142

Short story collections — 145

The Sharpest stake / by Daniel Kraus — 158

You’re a Horror Junkie! Now What? — 160

Book Checklist — 162

Acknowledgements — 164

About the Author — 164

Index — 165

Deb mentioned Sade in her comment last week so I found my copies of The Best of Sade (1994) and Sade Lovers Live (2004) and listened to them again. “Sade is a Nigerian-born British singer, known as the lead vocalist of her band Sade. The band released the album Diamond Life, which became one of the era’s best-selling albums and the best-selling debut by a British female vocalist. The band released their third album (Stronger Than Pride) in 1988, and a fourth album (Love Deluxe) in 1992. The band went on hiatus in 1996 after the birth of Sade’s child.

After eight years without an album, the band reunited in 1999 and released Lovers Rock in 2000. The album departed from the jazz-inspired inflections of their previous work, featuring mellower sounds and pop compositions. The band produced no more music until the release of Soldier of Love, ten years later. Since then, they have released two songs, “Flower of the Universe” for the soundtrack of Disney‘s A Wrinkle in Time, and “The Big Unknown“, part of the soundtrack of Steve McQueen‘s film Widows.”

I played “Smooth Operator” constantly when I first heard it. The same with “The Sweetest Taboo,” and “Hang On To Your Love.” Great music by a great artist. Are you a Sade fan? Do you have a favorite song? GRADE: A (for both)

TRACK LIST:

Your Love Is King	3:41
		Hang On To Your Love	4:29
		Smooth Operator	4:16
		Jezebel	5:23
		The Sweetest Taboo	4:25
		Is It A Crime	6:16
		Never As Good As The First Time	3:58
		Love Is Stronger Than Pride	4:17
		Paradise	3:36
		Nothing Can Come Between Us	3:52
		No Ordinary Love	7:19
		Like A Tattoo	3:36
		Kiss Of Life	4:10
		Please Send Me Someone To Love	3:40
		Cherish The Day	6:17
		Pearls	4:35

TRACK LIST:

A1		Cherish The Day
A2		Somebody Already Broke My Heart
A3		Smooth Operator
A4		Jezebel
A5		Kiss of Life
A6		Slave Song
A7		The Sweetest Gift
B1		The Sweetest Taboo
B2		Paradise
B3		No Ordinary Love
B4		By Your Side
B5		Flow
B6		Is It A Crime

I’m taking Diane to her favorite local restaurant for a Valentine’s Day dinner with friends. Hope your Valentine’s Day plans are just as sweet!

Diane and I drove to the Sheas’s Performing Arts Theatre at 5:00 P.M. and joined 2000+ Jim Gaffigan fans for Gaffigan’s Barely Alive Tour. Gaffigan had five performances in Buffalo–including an 8:00 P.M. show after our 5:00 P.M. show–and all of them sold out. Clearly, Western NY is Jim Gaffigan Country.

For those of you who watched Gaffigan’s 2023 Dark Pale comedy “Special” on AMAZON Prime Video (you can read my review here), some of those routines were recycled on the Barely Alive Tour stand-up comedy.

Gaffigan repeated his jokes about Pat Sajak of Wheel of Fortune and told the story of his family getting a dog…despite his wife’s allergies to dogs. Gaffigan also explained his weight loss. He’s on Mounjaro (“Way better than Ozempic!”). However, people come up to Gaffigan’s wife asking, “Does Jim have cancer? He’s lost so much weight!”

Ted Alexandro, a comic who told us that he’s been doing stand-up for 30 years, 6 of those as the opening act for Jim Gaffigan, had the audience laughing for about 25 minutes. Most of his jokes concerned the life-style of being a 60 year-old comic married to woman who does psychic readings. They also have two toddlers.

Alexandro, followed by Gaffigan, delivered about 90 minutes of humor to an appreciative audience. Are you a Jim Gaffigan fan? GRADE: B