Ravenweb Blog

With Slam , Nick Hornby returns to the male confessional narrative that solidified his literary reputation in High Fidelity . The novel is narrated by Sam, a disarming teenage protagonist who's hero and "imaginary" best friend is skateboarding legend, Tony Hawk. Sam talks to Tony when he has problems and draws from the former's autobiography for insight. So the setup is firmly in place for an amusing young adult confessional novel with a skateboarding hook. Then the plot turns hard -- not unlike a skateboarding wipeout -- when Sam learns that his girlfriend is pregnant and he is to become a teenage father. Hornby treats teenage pregnancy maturely and does not minimize the sweeping life changes facing Sam. Still, the skareboarding arc and Sam's interaction with a fictitious Tony Hawk persona ground the book and distinguish it from other realistic young adult novels. Slam is worth reading, and while it in no way resonates as deeply as the author'...

Well, we knew this was coming. Anyone want to continue to pretend global warming is a fabrication? Write ups are available here (Yahoo! News) and here (CNN).

The trailer for The Incredible Hulk is out, and I'm psyched. If the clip is any indication, it looks like the second film in the new franchise avoids the mistakes of the overly ponderous Ang Lee effort and gets it right, illustrating Bruce Banner's dilemma of being the Hulk but contrasting that struggle with the need for the Hulk against monstrous villains, like the Abomination.

My friend Gary -- now residing in Japan while his wife completes a work assignment overseas -- recently starred in a commercial with Orlando Bloom. You can check out the stills (below) and watch the video on YouTube . In Gary's words, "look for the bald guy in the dark suit (side view and full frontal closeup)". Congratulations to Gary as he continues in his modeling and acting.

Halting State is a near-future police procedural that blends massively multiplayer online role-playing games, insider trading, and global politics. The book is entertaining and fun. I struggled a bit with differentiating the two female narrators, but this didn't detract much from my overall enjoyment of the book. For additional reaction to Halting State , check out this Ranting Nerd post , in which he reviews this book as well as Glasshouse .

I've added some additions to my blogroll and wanted to make note of them here: ASCII Dreams is an interesting blog penned by a game developer and aspiring writer. There's a lot of good stuff on his blog, especially if you enjoy in-depth articles exploring the nuances of gaming. Chronological Snobbery explores " the forgotten crevices of popular culture". Here you will find excessively detailed posts about all manner of media from the past, with a tilt toward 80s and 90s film, TV, and music. I just stumbled upon Locust of Evil a few days ago, but I immediately enjoyed and quickly subscribed to this blog that's dedicated to current political events.

Paul Krugman's The Conscience of a Liberal is a well-researched and masterfully crafted book that examines why the American middle class and relative income equality following the New Deal through the late 1970s have eroded over the past three and a half decades. Krugman begins by demonstrating how the modern American middle class did not evolve but was systematically created through political movements, principally the New Deal reforms that led to the American welfare state. From this premise, Krugman shows how "movement conservatives" organized and came to power and exploited racial and cultural divisions until they were powerful enough to win elections and begin undermining the New Deal's achievements. This has culminated, Krugman argues, in the movement conservative presidency of George Bush, whose disaster in Iraq and policies that favor the wealthy and big business have all exacerbated income inequality and, in effect, laid the groundwork for a new liberalism...

What We Say Goes presents Chomsky's latest thoughts and concerns about Iran, the unreported backdrop to the Israel-Palestine conflict, the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan, and the growing power of the populist left in Latin America. As with many of Chomsky's recent publications, the overarching themes are unchanged and remain focused on state power, propaganda, and social change. What We Say Goes was culled from a series of Chomsky interviews with David Barsamian.

Since our daughter's birth, my wife and I have learned that with parenting comes great responsibility. Naturally, we want to nurture our daughter in every way we can and keep her safe and happy. Unfortunately, at times there seems to be so much to ward against. One of the most devastating and rapidly growing conditions afflicting children today is autism. Autism is a brain development disorder that impairs social interaction and communication, and causes restricted and repetitive behavior, all starting before a child is three years old. We came across this video about one little girl with autism and her parent's fight to raise awareness for better insurance funding for autism treatment, and felt compelled to link to it . Additionally, the band, Five for Fighting , is generously donating $0.40 to Autism Speaks each time the video is viewed.

A Dirty Job is a quirky novel about a meek but ultimately endearing "Beta Male" who becomes a reluctant agent of Death after his wife dies in childbirth. This was my first introduction to Christopher Moore, and the book was a relaxing read, easy to consume and digest but probably lacking in nourishment. Still, not every novel has to be nutritious and make you contemplate being and time.

Caring for a baby doesn't allow much time to see movies, but I saw a few over the holidays. The titles are listed in the order in which I saw the films. Dan in Real Life was the first (and, to date, only) movie my wife and I saw in a movie theater since the birth of our daughter. Because the novelty of an evening out away from the baby loomed so large, it's difficult for me to assess if the movie was really any good or not. I can say I enjoyed Steve Carell's performance and the easy digestion of the movie. I was also happy to see Juliette Binoche again, and may finally forgive her (and all involved) for The English Patient . Bukowski: Born Into This is a documentary about Charles Bukowski, a troubled but gifted Beat poet and novelist who, since his death in 1994, has become increasingly popular and interesting to modern readers. I had heard of and read some Bukowski prior to seeing the film, but I was mostly ignorant about the author's life and work. The documentary ...

If I'm going to speculate about who I want to play me in a movie , I might as well continue the fiction and provide the soundtrack. Here, then, in no particular order, is My Soundtrack: all the songs listed below were very important to me at some point in my life. I narrowed the list as much as I could, and had to drop many good candidates. Losing My Religion - R.E.M. 1979 - Smashing Pumpkins Somewhere Over the Rainbow - Israel Kamakawiwo'ole Thunder Road - Bruce Springsteen Home for a Rest - Spirit of the West What's My Age Again? - Blink 18 Message in a Bottle - The Police Closer to Fine - Indigo Girls Bad - U2 The Old Apartment - Barenaked Ladies Solsbury Hill - Peter Gabriel Black - Pearl Jam Let's Get It On - Marvin Gaye Welcome to the Jungle - Guns N Roses Lauryn Hill - Can't Take My Eyes Of You Hey, You - Pink Floyd London Calling - The Clash No Woman, No Cry - Bob Marley Jesus of Suburbia - Green Day What's the Matter Here? - 10,000 Maniacs Suedehead - M...

This is one of those entirely self-indulgent and nonsensical posts, but I was wondering who I would want to play me in a movie. Instead of focusing on actors who look like me or maybe have similar mannerisms, I picked actors who I enjoy, are close to me in age, and who I think in various ways represent my personality. The candidates to play me are: Zach Braff Why? He can likely portray my nerdiness while still being funny. Plus, his star is on the rise, so he would be a big box office draw. John Cusack Why? With The Sure Thing , Better Off Dead , and the classic Say Anything , John Cusack has already played me, or played a version of myself, just as he's no doubt played versions of countless other men who grew up in the 80s. And this was before he did High Fidelity , and anyone who was the lead in that movie would definitely nail the part of me. Joaquin Phoenix Why? The sleeper pick of the bunch, Phoenix brings intangibles and an intensity to his craft that few other actors can mat...

Heart-Shaped Box is a horror novel about an aging rock star who buys a ghost on the Internet. I don't read that much horror or dark fantasy, but, I have to say, I was struck by how fresh and inventive Heart-Shaped Box felt. The book was fast-paced and combined a creepy realism with just the right amount of traditional absurd horror tropes. Gothic elements and strong themes of redemption and the road further helped lift the book from set genre trappings. Highly recommended.

I've posted very little to this blog in the past six months. This has not been due to a lack of ideas, but a failure on my part of follow through. That said, while I haven't and likely won't post anything about any of these topics, I want to at least post about what I would have written about , had I more time, ambition, talent, and will. So, in the spirit of almost posts and ungestated threads, here is my "Unposted" list for 2007: Darwin Martin House - I had planned to write something about a visit my wife and I made earlier in the year to the (Frank Lloyd Wright) Darwin Martin House, currently under restoration in Buffalo, NY. Since I didn't, you can learn more about this major renovation effort here . Paring Down - I have too many books and was going to post about the frightening prospect and process of paring down. Though I wasn't successful in writing about this, I have made progress in paring down my books, mostly through donations and ebay sales. ...

Just wanted to take a little time out today to acknowledge how very thankful I am for everything that's happened this year. It's been a year of huge change, with a new house and baby, and I'm really thankful we've had the means to purchase and remodel a house and the good fortune of a healthy pregnancy and baby. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Ten Little Indians presents ten stories that explore a range of contemporary Indian characters. Though each story stands on its own, the collection as a whole is unified by common themes and tropes -- the romanticizing of Indians in American culture and deconstruction of these sentimentalized attributes, the importance of ceremony, and confessional narratives. Well-crafted and thought provoking, I recommend Ten Little Indians and am eager to read other texts by Sherman Alexie.

Hooray! We finally get Scrubs back. Sadly, tonight's episode also marks the countdown to the end of the show, as this is the seventh and final season. I guess we can enjoy it while it lasts. On the topic, I stumbled across a link to a Scrubs production blog . Lots of production videos here.

It's been a unique fall viewing season for me this year in that there's a lot of time now where I'm restricted in my movements because of the baby. However, this has unexpectedly given me much more time to watch TV and try out new shows. Below is a list of the new shows I've watched and my initial reactions. Mondays Chuck is an entertaining but flawed spy / nerdboy mashup about a computer tech who ends up with a database of government secrets downloaded into his brain. I like the casting and setup and am interested in watching at least through mid-season, but I have a problem with the show's uneven tone. At times, it tips toward campiness and humor (which is fine given the implausible storyline), but then at others it steers back toward dramatic realism, with faraway looks, contemplation, and musical scores. It's a tough line to walk, and I wonder if Chuck can pull it off for an extended run. Tuesdays I initially thought CW's Reaper was the most promising ...

In The Assault on Reason , Al Gore examines the recent trend in U.S. politics -- especially in the current Bush administration -- of ignoring facts and analysis when making policy decisions. Impassioned and fiercely critical of Bush and the state of public discourse in America, this is the Al Gore I wish we saw more of in 2000.