DAVID SHAPIRO
When I heard that Bob Dylan had released a CD of old Christmas chestnuts, I could only think of the immortal word of Charlie Brown: "Blech!!!"
But it got me thinking about what holiday music I do like, and I offer a few suggestions:
If you prefer the classics, nobody goes down smoother than Nat King Cole. His CD "The Christmas Song" has 20 selections and gets a lot of play on my iPod this time of year.
If your taste runs to the classical, YoYo Ma gathered some interesting and talented friends like Diana Krall, James Taylor, Alison Krauss, Dave Brubeck and Chris Botti for for "Songs of Joy & Peace."
Sadly, Mary Travers passed away this year but her soaring voice on Peter, Paul and Mary's "A Holiday Celebration" is a fitting way to give lift to the season.
And a freebie that has nothing to do with Christmas ... check out this chicken-skin Mary Travers moment in a 1970 performance at the Sydney Opera House: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9C5WncqIv98.
DIDI WOOD
That Old Cape Magic by Richard Russo.
Comical and poignant, Russo's latest novel — about a middle-aged man struggling to save his future from a past he thought he'd rejected — may be his best since Straight Man.My Very First Mother Goose. We read this book over and over to our boys when they were small, and we love giving it to friends with new babies. The cheery illustrations by Rosemary Wells will help lift the spirits of even the most sleep-deprived parent.
Pirate Radio (aka The Boat That Rocked) soundtrack. The movie is a hoot (but hey, I'd watch a film of Bill Nighy sleeping and think it brilliant), and the music functions as one of the main characters.
Up. Pixar does it again — need I say more?
"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince". This might be my favorite of the Harry Potter movies. I was so engaged while watching that &mdsh; for once — I didn't sit there cataloguing what was missing.
SARAH BLACK
I recently took a trip up to Stanley, in the beautiful Sawtooth Wilderness in central Idaho, and got a copy of John Rember's Trapline: Coming Home to Sawtooth Valley. A gorgeous memoir, written by a Mountain Man of Letters. I have been a fan of John Rember's since I found a copy of Limberlost Press's stories with the cool woodcuts called Coyote in the Mountains. I'm saving my loose change for a cabin!
Traplines: Coming Home to Sawtooth Valley by John Rember
Coyote in the Mountains and Other Stories by John Rember
DEBI ORTON
I'm a sucker for a well-written synopsis, as my groaning library bookshelves will attest. When I first read the tease for The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi, it sounded a lot like a short story I'd written for one of flashquake's contests several years back. But as I began reading, I realized that this novel is a completely realized universe, a world in which global warming, genetic manipulation, and inattention to the environment have ravaged the planet. Genetically engineered elephants called Megadonts provide the power to run factories, nations risk wars over seed stock, and "white shirts" (environmental police) terrorize the populace of Thailand, where the novel takes place. It's a grim world, but a compelling read.
Guy Pearce is one of my favorite actors, and A Slipping Down Life is one of my favorite Guy Pearce movies. Guy wrote and performed all the songs in the movie, and the soundtrack gets a lot of play on my iPod. Some other favorite Guy Pearce films: L.A. Confidential; Memento; The Time Machine; Ravenous; and Till Human Voices Wake Us. I can't think of a better way to spend a cold winter night than curled up with a cup of hot chocolate and a DVD player full ot Guy Pearce movies.
I don't know what it is about the oncoming winter season (my personal favorite), but there's a certain type of music that takes over my iPod. Here are a few of my current favorites: In a Safe Place by The Album Leaf, delicate music suitable for contemplation or just watching the snow fall; Ágætis Byrjun by Sigur Ros, an Icelandic group (who, incidentally, collaborated on "In a Safe Place"); Hospice by The Antlers, a hauntingly beautiful and atmospheric collection of songs; and King Britt Presents: Sister Gertrude Morgan, a remix album of original Sister Gertrude Morgan recordings. Sister Gertrude was a self-proclaimed "bride of Christ" and was known in New Orleans for her folk art and the orphanages she established. You can also hear Sister Gertrude's original voice-and-tambourine recordings of many of the same songs King Britt remixed on Let's Make a Record.