Reading material for 06/18/12:

Some reading material from around the internet:

New domain names are coming!

15 dad facts for Father’s Day.

How to make science fun.

The 50 year battle to entomb our toxic waste.

Revealed: the dirtiest things in a hotel room.

Betty White and Sarah Michelle Gellar handle a giant snake.

Twitter’s new office has skee ball.

The pictures in this post are by Guy Laramee. As you can see, he carves gorgeous landscape sculptures into old books, turning them from one form of art into another. His work is currently on display at the Expression museum in Saint-Hyacinthe, Canada, from now until August 12.

Pictures from here and here.

The many, many things that Ray Bradbury predicted.

Sadly, we missed Bloomsday, but here’s 25 writers, artists, and critics talking about James Joyce.

10 facts about James Joyce.

Neal Stephenson’s Snow Crash to be adapted into a film by the writer/director of Attack Of The Block.

10 books that were taboo for their time.

5 favorite fictional fathers.

Famous novelists talk about symbolism in their work.

The color palettes of Wes Anderson films.

20 set photos that will change the way you see these films.

An interview with Emma Stone.

Steven Spielberg was all set to direct an episode of Twin Peaks, but David Lynch wanted it for himself.

David Foster Wallace talks about David Lynch’s Dune.

Is Lionsgate already planning to remake/reboot the Twilight movies?

The best grins, grimaces, and reaction shots from this past season of Mad Men.

Take a look at this: a Bill Murray coloring book.

The Necronomicon made in pizza.

Why are traffic lights red and green?

How to tempt China’s shoppers.

June is an important month for the North American bird breeding survey.

5 misconceptions about extraterrestrial life.

The nerd weddings of Facebook’s big shots.

Seven decades of San Quentin state prison in photos.

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Previous online reading material:

06/11/12.

06/04/12.

04/30/12.

04/23/12.

04/16/12.

04/09/12.

New and Featured DVDs for 02/07/12:

Come and check out these and some of the other new DVDs and materials (or at least new to us) added to our library collection…

FICTION:

The Orphanage

Fish Tank

Lord Of War

Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves

Attack Of The Block

2011, directed by Joe Cornish. This British science fiction action film about a group of urban youths taking on an alien invasion is already a cult classic. Roger Ebert gave the film 3 stars and one of our patrons assured me the other day that this movie is a lot of fun.

Premonition

Brief Encounter

1945, directed by David Lean. Based on the play by Noël Coward, the film stars Trevor Howard and Cecilia Johnson and challenged the traditional ideas of British suburban life when a bored housewife finds real, passionate love outside of her marriage and has to deal with the powerful emotions that come with such a revelation.

The Man Who Would Be King

O Brother, Where Art Though?

The Shining

1980, directed by Stanley Kubrick. Stars Jack Nicholson and loosely adapts Stephen King’s novel. Jack Nicholson, a family trapped in a hotel isolated by a snowstorm, the dangerous of alcoholism, psychic kids, and some very, very malevolent ghosts.  Stanely Kubrick was at the top of his game here and this is not just a horror/thriller classic, but one of the scariest movies ever.

Braveheart

The Eiger Sanction

Speed Racer

NON-FICTION:

Freakonomics

2010. The classic and bestselling book by economist Steven D. Levitt and journalist Stephen J. Dubner gets a very interesting documentary adaptation, featuring six different directors – including Super Size Me‘s Morgan Spurlock and Jesus Camp‘s Rachel Grady – bringing its various segments to life, all featuring a look at human behavior  and why we do the things we do through an interesting bit of research that combines economics and sociology. This is a fun and interesting movie. And you should all check out the Freakonomics blog.

Ultimate Factories: Coca-Cola

Hitler’s Museum: The Secret History Of Art Theft During World War II

Freedom Riders

Ghost Ships

Crazy Love

2007, directed by Dan Klores and Fisher Stevens. A morbidly fascinating story that proves that not only is the truth stranger than fiction, but that you really do only hurt the one you love. You can read reviews for the documentary in The San Francisco Chronicle and Peter Traver’s review in The Rolling Stone, and check out the trailer below:

Hoop Dreams

Howard Hughes: The Real Aviator

Waiting For “Superman”

2010, directed by Davis Guggenheim. This powerful, passionate documentary deals with the failures of the American education system and focuses on several children hoping to get a better education via participating in a lottery to gain admission to high performing charter schools. Some reviews point out that the film could be a strong point in a revolution to reform our education system while others point out that the documentary is highly critical and not entirely representative of teacher’s unions. But it definitely makes for compelling viewing.

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Please note that DVDs could be checked out between the time they end up on the blog and when you come to check them out. If you don’t see the items you’re looking for then please come up to the front desk and we’ll put your name on the reserve list for when the item returns.

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Previous New/Featured DVDs:

12/30/11.

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Previous New/Featured books:

02/02/12.

01/27/12.

12/27/11.

12/23/11.

12/19/11.

12/17/11.