(Words)
Books
When Music and Books Collide: Jonathan Lethem on Talking Heads
This ain't no party/ This ain't no disco/ This ain't no foolin' around. No, this is music criticism, and in the right hands it's serious business. The latest installment in the addictive 33 1/3 line of music books—each of which pairs an author with an iconic pop album—finds novelist Jonathan Lethem in deep consultation with his 15-year-old self over the secret messages hidden all over Talking Heads' third album, Fear of Music.
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Words
The Yes List: Adam Wilson's Laugh-Out-Loud Literary Debut
Adam Wilson's first novel, Flatscreen, from Harper Perennial $15), follows Eli Schwartz, an Apatow-style man-child who lives with his mom, smokes pot, pines for the Hispanic girl who parks cars at his synagogue, and dreams of hosting a show on the Food Network. When he meets Seymour J. Kahn, a wheelchair-bound ex–TV actor (he specialized in "crappy shows viewed by idiots"), hilarity ensues. Out February 21. Also on Details.com: Weird Book Excerpt: Letter from a Teen Boy to His Serial Killer Pen Pal Three Novels to Read Now The 5 Books That Made Christopher Bollen Want to Be a Writer
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Food + Drinks
How to Drink Punch (with Recipe) by Charles Dickens
Today marks the 200th anniversary of Charles Dickens' birth. While the English novelist is best known for the invention of such memorable (and memorably named) characters such as Ebenezer Scrooge, Oliver Twist, and Miss Havisham, the literary giant was almost as famous in his day for another creative talent: punch making. He served punch at the countless parties he hosted, taught guests proper punch concoction technique, and frequently invoked the punch bowl in his books. With punch in vogue today, and popping up on the menus of pedigreed cocktail bars across the country, we're honoring the memory of Dickens
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Words
Editors' Pick: Celebrity Photos Book by Mark Abrahams
The acclaimed fashion and celebrity photographer is renowned for candid, intimate portraiture of our most prominent cultural icons. This handsome, linen-bound volume collects his arresting images of stars as diverse as Justin Timberlake, Dennis Hopper, Mike Tyson, and the Olsen sisters. $70, artbook.com Also on Details.com: Preppy, by Jeffrey Banks and Doria de La Chapelle 10 Beautiful Fashion Books for Stylish Inspiration Exclusive Preview: Icons of Men's Style, the Visual Encyclopedia of Fashion Essentials
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Words
Weird Book Excerpt: Letter from a Teen Boy to His Serial Killer Pen Pal
Pete Earley's The Serial Killer Whisperer (Touchstone, $25) is a gripping real-life account of a 15-year-old boy who, after a personality-altering accident, became pen pals with a number of notorious murderers, drawing confessions from several. Here's a note he sent Florida death-row inmate David Alan Gore: Dear David, Wow, that was quite a letter! Thank you for sharing those details with me. You got in trouble for six murders but just from you writing to me and filling me in on some of your stories, I would have to say there is a lot more murders you did. I
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Tech
A New Book Reveals How Apple Redesigned the World
A classic Braun calculator and Apple's tribute to it. Walter Isaacson's biography of Steve Jobs isn't the only noteworthy new book to explore the cult of Mac. Don't miss Apple Design (Hatje Cantz, $60), a sumptuous coffee-table book that provides a comprehensive visual history of the iconic brand. Of particular note: a section detailing the influence of Dieter Rams, the great German visionary behind Braun, on Apple's resident design wizard, Jonathan Ive. Also on Details.com: The World's Sexiest iPad Accessory The Best Take-It-Anywhere Tech The Laptop of the Future Is Here
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Words
A Brief History of Voguing
Before Madonna invited us all to strike a pose, black and Latino dancers pioneered the art of voguing at competitions throughout Harlem—a scene introduced to mainstream America by the 1990 documentary Paris Is Burning. French photographer Chantal Regnault was there, and now, more than two decades later, she brings us Voguing and the Gay Balls of New York (Soul Jazz Books, $40), an arresting visual record of one of the most exciting subcultures ever to emerge from New York City. Out November 30. Also on Details.com: Q&A With Photographer Michael Dweck on the Secret Life of Cuba Artist Edward
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Words
Inside the Making of a Classic Graphic Novel
Art Spiegelman's masterpiece gets a "pre"-boot. Twenty-five years after Maus, Art Spiegelman's graphic Holocaust biography, comes MetaMaus (Pantheon; $35), a collection of illustrated interviews with the author (plus a DVD packed with fascinating source material) that answer such questions as why he depicted Jews as mice. Also on Details.com: Bloody Good Reads Three More Novels to Read Now 6 Online Sources for LPs and Books
Words
The Real Houses of Beverly Hills
Know why Beverly Hills was founded? So that a group of oil tycoons could live free of both nonwhites and the Hollywood nouveau riche. That's just one of the juicy cocktail-party anecdotes that fill Unreal Estate (Crown, $28), a social history of Los Angeles' super-wealthy told through profiles of 16 of its most lavish estates. Journalist Michael Gross (known for such dirt-dishing tomes as Model, Rogues' Gallery, and 740 Park) tells tales of adultery, prostitution, embezzlement, Mafia schemes, and the dauntless efforts of millionaires to keep the riffraff out of the exclusive enclaves of Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Holmby
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Art
Best of the Week: New Restaurant Rows, the London Design Festival, and Jeffrey Eugenides' Cultural Diet
Best New Restaurant Rows—Whether it's drinks or dinner, these eateries are the best the country has to offer. The 8 Luxury Cars You Should Rent—When Price Is No Object—With a fleet of the hottest rides—and full amenities—these high-end agencies put the national chains to shame. Seasoning Secrets of the Elite Chefs—Spice up your kitchen with the flavors preferred by America's culinary masters. Novelist Jeffrey Eugenides' Cultural Diet—The Pulitzer Prize winner shares his omnivorous tastes. The New "It" Sparkling Wine—Toast to crémant with one of these bottles of bubbly. An Insider's Guide to the Best of the London Design Festival—Omer
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The Daily Details Continues
