I’m sure most of your have seen the classic film directed, produced and co-written by Billy Wilder, starring Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon, with George Raft, Pat O’Brien, Joe E. Brown, Joan Shawlee and Nehemiah Persoff. This musical version “modifies” the original screenplay and does some gender bending.

The main plot remains the same: two Chicago musicians disguise themselves by dressing as women to escape from gangsters when they witness them committing multiple murders. The two musicians join an all-woman jazz band that is touring the U.S. and will finally end up in San Diego. But, the gangsters–who plan to eliminate the witnesses–aren’t far behind.

While I found the music just okay–jazz from the 1930s–the choreography is just great! If you like tap dancing, this is the musical for you! Terrific energy and agility! I also enjoyed the many comedy moments in this production. GRADE: B

“Neil Gaiman won both the British Carnegie Medal and the American Newbery Medal recognizing the year’s best children’s books, the first time both named the same work. The Graveyard Book also won the annual Hugo Award for Best Novel from the World Science Fiction Convention and Locus Award for Best Young Adult Book selected by Locus subscribers.” —Wikipedia

This 2014 graphic novel version of The Graveyard Book traces the story of the boy named Nobody “Bod” Owens, who is adopted and reared by the supernatural occupants of a graveyard after his family is brutally murdered. Bod grows up learning about the dead and their lives after death. He makes attempts to learn about the world outside the graveyard and those efforts have mixed results.

While Bod is “protected” in the graveyard, the killer of his mother, father, and older sister still lurks nearby waiting to kill Bod to complete his murderous assignment. When The Graveyard Book won the Newbery Medal for Best Children’s Book in 2008, I was a bit surprised. No previous Newbery Medal winner had this degree of noir. If you haven’t read The Graveyard Book you’re in for a fascinating experience. GRADE: A (for both graphic volumes)

I’ve been listening to Women & Songs and Back to Back Hits: Blondie and Pat Benatar. Clearly, Women & Songs provides more variety with more artists. I haven’t heard Nelly Furtado’s “I’m Like a Bird” in a while. I have heard Alan’s Morissette’s “Thank U” when we saw the musical version of Jagged Little Pill a few months ago. Our local Oldies rock radio station plays Cher’s “Believe” and “Kind & Generous” by Natalie Merchant on a regular basis.

From time to time I like to listen to Blondie and Pat Benatar’s songs from a kinder, gentler age. I can’t forget hearing Debbie Harry belt out “The Tide is High” for the first time decades ago. And Pat Benatar’s “Love is a Battlefield” got heavy air play back in 1983!

Do you remember these songs? Any favorites here? GRADE: B (for both)

TRACK LIST:

TRACK LIST:

Murder Most Postal: Homicidal Tales that Deliver a Message (2001) is part of Martin H. Greenberg’s “Murder Most…” series. I’ll be reviewing a couple more anthologies in this series in the weeks ahead. You can read my review of Murder Most Medieval here.

The most chilling story in Murder Most Postal is Lawrence Block’s “Like a Bone in the Throat” which deals with a serial killer and the brother of one of his victims. Greenberg includes the classic Poe mystery, “The Purloined Letter,” and August Derleth puts a slight spin on it with Solar Pons investigating “The Adventure of the Penny Magenta.”

I also enjoyed the Evan Hunter (aka, Ed McBain) Christmas story, “Deadlier Than the Mail,” about the thefts of mailed checks in New York City. When is the last time you’ve written a letter? GRADE: B+

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction / John Helfers — vii

Like a bone in the throat / Lawrence Block — 1

The purloined letter / Edgar Allan Poe — 27

An act of violence / William F. Nolan — 45

The Corbett correspondence / “Agent No. 5 and Agent No. 6” — 53

Agony column / Barry N. Malzberg — 67

Graduation / Richard Christian Matheson — 77

Someone who understands me / Matthew Costello — 93

Letter to the editor / Morris Hershman — 101

The coveted correspondence / Ralph McInerny — 107

A nice cup of tea / Kate Kingsbury — 131

Letter to his son / Simon Brett — 143

The poisoned pen / Arthur B. Reeve — 161

A literary death / Martin H. Greenberg — 181

The adventure of Penny Magenta / August Derleth — 185

Letter from a very worried man / Henry Slesar — 199

Pure Rotten / John Lutz — 203

Computers don’t argue / Gordon R. Dickson — 209

A letter to Amy / Joyce Harrington — 225

The adventure of the one-penny black / Ellery Queen — 243

Make yoursleves at home / Joan Hess — 263

Deadlier than the mail / Evan Hunter — 279

Contributors — 297

Copyrights and Permissions — 305

According to the latest poll, only about one-quarter of voters have a favorable opinion of Vance, while the rest are undecided. By contrast, Walz enjoys a stronger position, with around 40% of voters viewing him positively–a 15-point lead.

I’m guessing this Vice Presidential Debate will be another circus with Vance making stories up and Walz being folksy. Are you going to watch the Vice Presidential Debate? You know Trump will be watching!

“Within Republican circles at least, the message of McCarthy’s pilgrimage (to Mar-a-Lago) was loud and clear. Donald Trump’s status as the party’s leader was restored. His time in the political wilderness lasted eight days.” (p. 48) 

Jonathan Karl tracks the GOP and Trump from January 6th to the present. Karl includes all the craziness of the Trump circle of “advisors.” Steve Bannon said that Ivanka Trump was “Dumb as a brick” and referred to Donald Trump, Jr. as “a dimwit.” (p. 54) Then Bannon was fired. But he’s back in the fringes of Trumpworld.

But the scary part of Tired of Winning (2023) is Karl laying out the fashioning of the next Trump Administration: firing most of the Justice Department and replacing them with political stooges. Rounding up immigrants and sending them to interment camps. Prosecuting political enemies. Utilizing the Military to “Restore Order.” The list is extensive…and frightening. Already, Trump minions are recruiting staff for the next Trump administration where loyalty is the prime attribute for inclusion.

Make no mistake: Karl records Trump ranting about the Retribution he is going to bring to the country when he regains power. Tired of Winning shows the entire Trump playbook for plans to Make America Great Again. GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction1 

Chapter 1 “Come Retribution” — 13 

Chapter 2 Dark Days at Mar-a-Lago — 37 

The Grim Reaper — 51 

Chapter 3 The Choker — 57 

Chapter 4 The Crazy Factor — 81 

Chapter 5 Team of Sycophants — 97 

“Only One” — 111 

Chapter 6 Trump’s Essential Man — 115 

Martial Law — 131 

Chapter 7 “Fix It Now!” — 135 

Lying to the Vatican — 153 

Chapter 8 Razing Arizona — 157 

The Club Champ — 175 

Chapter 9 The Biggest Loser — 181 

Chapter 10 Speaker Trump — 203 

“Now It’s the Tallest” — 221 

Chapter 11 The Beginning of the End — 225 

Chapter 12 Defendant #1,090 — 251 

Conclusion — 271 

Acknowledgments — 289 

Notes — 295 

Index — 311 

For some inexplicable reason, Vegas has the 3-0 Buffalo Bills 3-point underdogs to the 1-2 Baltimore Ravens. Yes, Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry are potent runners. Yes, the game is being played in rainy Baltimore. Yes, the “experts” didn’t expect the Bills to be undefeated three games into the 2024 season.

I expect the Bills vs. Ravens game to be a close game. Weather conditions may affect the game with slipping and sliding and fumbling a wet football. How will your favorite NFL do today?

I was hoping for some cool alchemy and magic in the Infinity Alchemist. Instead, Kacen Callender delivers more of a romp into the angst of young people, difficulties with parents, gender-switching, romantic entanglements, and a lust for Power.

Ashen Woods is a poor young man working as a Groundkeeper’s assistant at the Lancaster College of Alchemic Science. Secretly, Ash has been teaching himself alchemy with varying results. When Ash is confronted by one of Lancaster College’s faculty members, Ramsay Thorne, he becomes part of a search for the legendary Book of Source. An alchemist possessing the Book of Source would commend infinite Power.

Of course, Ramsay Thorne isn’t the only alchemist searching for the Book of Source. Ash’s father, Gresham Hair, is willing to murder anyone standing in his way of finding Book of Source. While Ramsay and Ash pursue their own leads on the location of Book of Source, complications ensue. Ramsay changes gender every day. Sometimes male, sometimes female. While Ramsay knows more about alchemy than Ash does, Ash has untapped Power.

I found the romantic shenanigans tiresome and the search drawn out. Skip this one. GRADE: C