The best nook for books

Sometimes simple is better.

Of course, Amazon has computer algorithms analyzing your preferences to give you personalized recommendations. Sure, Borders and Barnes & Noble have shelves with the, "<--If you love this, you should try these-->" signs. But despite the advanced technology and the expert book critics, the best place to check out new books that you probably have never heard of before is the local little bookstore.

For me, that place is the Bulls Head Bookshop in the Student Store on UNC-Chapel Hill's campus (their webpage doesn't do it any justice). For the first three years of my undergraduate career, this bookstore was the ideal hideout between classes. Creaky floors, odd chairs, wooden bookshelves and an instore coffee shop made Bulls Head feel like an eccentric old professor's personal library. The selection of books included big-name bestsellers as well as a smattering of oddities— I don't think Border has ever featured a table full of banned books. Bulls Head had the knack for highlighting both strange and thought-provoking material. It was almost as if an eccentric old professor really was sneaking into the shop afterhours to pick the worthy books.

While the entire Student Store underwent major facelift in 2007, the bookshop within retains its quirky personality. The area is brighter, the floors no longer creak and the bookshelves still smell new, but to my great relief, its soul has stayed the same. The picture above shows the staff recommendations bookcase, which is one of my favorite parts. At the risk of sounding high and mighty, I think every booklover should find herself an offbeat shop where she can burrow away from time to time.

In case you do not have such a sanctuary yet, here's what caught my eye during my most recent trip.

Bulls Head's Latest and Greatest

1. The Once and Future King by T.H. White — I'm a sucker for Camelot stories; anything from Tennyson's Idylls of the King to First Knight to NBC's new miniseries "Merlin," piques my interest.
2. Vintage Fabric from the States — A Bulls Head staffer described this photo book as "fabric porn," and I have to agree. The patterns are pretty and fun to look at, which might assuage the design chasm I've been in since Domino magazine shut down.
   
3. The Pesthouse by Jim Crace — Nothing makes you appreciate our world (messy as it is) more than a post-apocalyptic novel. The story focuses on the regression of America to a preindustrial state complete with plagues, slavery and religious cults.
   
4. The Guide to Getting It On by Paul Joannides — Okay, I don't really have any intention of buying this, but the title and cover art are cool enough to warrant a second look.
5. Changing Planes by Ursula K. LeGuin — Changing reality planes while waiting to change airplanes...brilliant! This sounds like my kind of sci-fi fare.

My own series of unfortunate events

Besides some crumby movies (see previous post), the last couple of weeks have been less than stellar for me: broken cell phone, broken car, subsequent pricey repairs and now no more part-time job. Rather than bore you with the details of my own unfortunate events, check out the movie posters for Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events and the upcoming A Christmas Carol. Jim Carrey's Scrooge looks a bit like Count Olaf, no?


In addition to the greedy miser, Carrey will play all three ghosts. The CG film costars Gary Oldman as Bob Cratchit, Marley and Tiny Tim (yeah, that's unexpected), Colin Firth as Fred and Bob Hoskins as Mr. Fezziwig. Princess Bride alums Cary Elwes and Robin Wright Penn also reunite in this family flick, which will premiere in early November. In the meantime, check out the teaser.

"My Life in Night at the Museum" or "Battle of the Smithsonian Ruins"?

Greetings m'dear Jaders,

I must apologize for the gap in posts, but the blog fodder has been as scarce as ice on hot asphalt. Not to mention, yours truly has succumbed to a small bout of summer sloth. Time to get back in the Shade and cool down!

And so after a fun romp of May premieres, the box office has slowed down without a single film reaching $50 million for opening weekend this entire month. Another big-budget action flick, Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen might salvage some of June's dignity with its midweek premiere last night. In the meantime...

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian and My Life in Ruins were both blah— not good enough to have me raving but not horrible enough to warrant a warning. Like its predecessor, Night at the Museum 2 relied on slapstick humor and colorful characters to keep the story going. But as movie critic Dan Lybarger points out, our protagonist (Ben Stiller), is basically buried by the flamboyant personalities that run amok in this film. Lisping pharaoh Kahmunrah (Hank Azaria), blaring General Custer (Bill Hader), nosy Abe Lincoln (again Azaria) and too-spunky Amelia Earhart (Amy Adams) caused a sensory overload— too many people acting ridiculously muddles plot and dampens the humor. Despite a troupe of comedic geniuses and acting pros, I was most impressed by the bobble-head Einsteins (voiced by the fabulous Eugene Levy) and the boy-band Cupids (yes, they're voiced by the Jonas Brothers). Still, many critics gave the movie favorable reviews; one even claimed it was better than the original (really?). Check out Rotten Tomatoes to see the full scope of opinions.

My Life in Ruins was not as bad as I'd expected. After watching this trailer, the bar was set so low that I couldn't be disappointed. In Nia Vardalos' second meditation on Greece and Greeks, the comedy falls short but the eye candy— both her love interest and the gorgeous sites— does make some amends. The Greek characters in Ruins are not endearing and hilarious as they were in My Big Fat Greek Wedding, but the tourists, including Richard Dreyfuss, Rachel Dratch and Harland Williams are entertaining enough. Also, an interesting tidbit before you watch the film: Vardalos' real-life hubby Ian Gomez makes a cameo as a greasy motel owner (he also appeared in Greek Wedding as John Corbett's character's best friend). Gomez is in a scene involving an envelope and a proposition that is priceless— how did Vardalos keep a straight face?

Despite shortfalls in the past ("My Big Fat Greek Life," Connie and Carla, Ruins), Vardalos is still irresistably spunky despite her characters' straight-laced demeanors. Perhaps that's why I'll give her another go with I Hate Valentine's Day, in which she reunites with John Corbett (see the trailer). No movie ticket this time, but I'll certainly add it to my Netflix queue.

Coming into the Shade...
-Better movies to review!
-My music: the first edition!
-The blog's new mascot!
-A new twist to J&S;stay tuned for deets!

Bookmarked: 'New Moon' Madness

Let me begin this post by saying that I am a slow reader. I often reread sentences and paragraphs to make sure I've absorbed everything the author has shown me. As a writer, it helps me to notice the details, the descriptions, the diction and the voice. Despite my sluggishness and a prevalent rumor that the second book in the Twilight series is slow, I finished New Moon within a week— just in time for the movie trailer to grace the Web waves.

I can finally say that I "get" the whole teen-vampire mania that's been spreading like wildfire. While Twilight was a fun, fast read, it didn't hook me the way its sequel has. Perhaps it's because New Moon has more monsters and less mush. Sure, reading about how much Bella and Edward love each other is sweet, but isn't it more interesting to see how well our heroine does flying (hem hem: jumping) solo? Also, Jacob Black has a larger role in the second book. No longer a little freshman, he has grown up in many ways, but his affection for Bella has only deepened. Hello, love triangle.

The story opens at the beginning of Bella and Edward's senior year of high school. The two have shared a blissful— yet glossed over— summer together, and all seems fine and dandy. Without giving too much away, I'll divulge that certain events prompt Edward to leave Forks (oh no, the town's Web site has a Twilight map of love). Although Bella has a serious bout with depression, her recovery is an interesting and sometimes humorous process. Her loveless new life revolves around extreme sports (motorcycling/crashing) and buddy time with Jacob. But don't let these ordinary details bore you— there are more supernatural forces at work in Forks than Middle-earth. As with its predecessor, New Moon progresses at a steady pace, following a basic plot until the last third of the book. Call it Stephanie Meyer's signature move: the woman loves doing plot jack-knives once she's two-thirds through the novel. Don't plan on eating, sleeping, socializing, etc., during the last six chapters as you might find yourself in a zombie-like stupor.

In case you haven't seen the film trailer, check it out here. Just be forewarned: the preview has some spoilers. New Moon will open November 20, and in the meantime you can drool over the poster.

Next on my reading list is The Namesake by Jhumpi Lahiri. I'm about 100 pages in— time to add the film version starring Kal Penn (aka Kumar, Kutner, White House public liaison) to my Netflix queue.

Disney/Pixar keeps 'Up' the legacy

Last week I watched the 10th Disney/Pixar collaborative film, Up, which features the vocal talents of Ed Asner and Christopher Plummer. And while the idea of a grouchy old man with a cane starring in an animated movie for kids might seem risky, the gamble has paid off. Up opened two weekends ago to earn a whopping $68 million and place as number one at the box office. The Hangover snatched the top spot this previous weekend, but only beat Up by a small $800,000.

Echoing my favorite Pixar film (Finding Nemo), Up begins its story on a sad note. But don't worry; you won't be sniffling for long. Carl Fredricksen (Ed Asner), a grouchy old widower, is determined to do two things: to fulfill a lifelong dream of traveling to South America; and to save his house from demolition. Bright, multicolored balloons provide a dazzling escape from the real-estate-hungry businessmen while launching Carl into a grand adventure. Along the way he is joined by an exuberant wilderness scout named Russell, a talking dog called Dug and a 12-foot bird that looks like a cross between a Dodo and a Velociraptor. Plummer lends his voice as a nefarious explorer whom Carl idolized as a child but must contend with now. Funny, heartwarming and visually stunning, Up is your usual cup of Disney/Pixar tea, which is not to suggest that it's not remarkable. It's just that extraordinary is the norm for these films. Look out competitors, the bar has just been set a little higher. Again.

On a more technological note, Up is the first Disney/Pixar movie to offer 3-D screenings; it's also the first time I've seen a feature film in 3-D. While the sight of thousands of balloons towing a house through the air was certainly enhanced by my 3-D glasses, I'm still not sold on the whole three-dimensional movement. It seemed that in the process of making images pop out, backgrounds became smaller and colors less vivid. But then again, I'm no 3-D engineer, so take my assessment with a grain of salt.

There's more Shade to come so tune in (type in?) again!

Audio Reboot— The best $20 I've ever spent

Taking a break from the usual entertainment fare, I'm going to indulge a post to share my recent musical woes. As many of you know, my good ol' Pontiac Grand Prix (I love that the linked site calls it a "cheap fast car") has had its share of issues, including the heartbreaking demise of its CD player a couple of years ago. Since then I've relied on the radio, which is annoyingly repetitive but still tolerable. Last week the final nail in the coffin came when the radio broke. Riding in silence is an ugly thing.

Enter Philips mini speakers. Twenty dollars at Walmart has saved more than $200 to install a new in-dash deck. Of course, they're are some drawbacks — the tiny speakers can only get so loud, and it's a bit tricky to make song/volume adjustments while driving — but the sound quality and portability are worth more than I paid.

Best part? It's a toss up between the two speakers that fit cozily in my cup holders and the ability to finally listen to my iPod music in my car. Once parked, my ghetto-fabulous audio system can be compacted into a little ball that looks a lot like a hedgehog. In honor of the speakers' maiden voyage, I created two new playlists with each featuring a quirky mix of rock, R&B, alternative, pop and even some country— something you would never hear on the radio.

But enough of my audio gushing! I've got a long list of upcoming posts including a roundup of May's most popular flicks, two movie reviews and another edition of Bookmarked. Stay tuned.

Back in the Cone-Zone

Last night, Conan O'Brien made his debut as host of "The Tonight Show"— giving hardcore fans some overdue time with the zany redhead and introducing him to a new demographic of viewers. While I can't speak for the latter, longtime viewers were thrilled to have O'Brien back on television after he had handed the "Late Night" torch over to Jimmy Fallon in March.

As one of my friends put it, "This is what I have been missing for the last three months of my life— my life is complete now that Conan's back on." Amen, sister. I got chills when the gravity-defying loop of hair peeked onto the stage followed by O'Brien himself. The number of viewers who tuned in last night has yet to be reported, but if the Nielsen ratings are to be believed, "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" blew the competition out of the water.

Watching O'Brien dance around the stage and banter with his first-ever guest, Will Ferrell (sorry, no Leprechaun striptease) felt tenderly familiar and eased my worry that LA and the earlier time-slot would change the tenor of the show. But while some details have remained unaltered, others have changed. Here's a shorthand list of what's new and what's the same:

1. Classic: Max Weinberg, LaBamba and the rest of the gang have followed O'Brien to California.
New: They're no longer called the Max Weinberg 7, but The Tonight Show Band.

2. Classic: The opening music is the same little ditty.
New: The montage features images of LA instead of NYC (well, duh)

3. Classic: O'Brien still films hilarious little shorts, like taking his '92 Ford Taurus for a spin and hosting a Universal Studios trolley tour (sorry no links for either of those; NBC.com is slow uploading videos).
New: It's unlikely that any of these shorts will feature the more colorful recurring characters from "Late Night"— is the Masturbating Bear still on the lam with Carrie Fisher?

4. Classic: O'Brien still bounces parts of his monologue off a costar.
New: With Andy Richter back as the announcer, we might see fewer exchanges with Max Weinberg whose chill demeanor and blank stares enhanced O'Brien's exuberant humor.

5. Classic: O'Brien still does his invisible string dance despite Stephen Colbert's attempt to steal them back in February (the two are now in competing time slots, boo).
New: No sizzling nipple caresses...at least not yet.

Still want more Conan? Check out these surprising facts that a friend e-mailed me— the superhero stint is hilarious. The second episode of "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" airs tonight at 11:35 p.m. with guests Tom Hanks and Green Day.