No, really, we have no idea what was slipped into our wine glass. All we know is that we’re suddenly feeling funky. Hmm, maybe it’s possible we like sunshine more than we’d ever admit in public (or maybe it’s that we could drive today without fear of someone rearending us…Los Angeles drivers never take yellow lights seriously). Whatever it is, it has us veering so far from our original topic, we’ve forgotten what it was. We’ll be right back. Ah, right. Genre fiction writers. Mad Max interviews the author currently known as Lynn Viehl (yes, one beauty of genre fiction […]

And, there’s another one. This time it’s a library banning a book. Nudity. Specifically, nude Supreme Court justices. On one hand, the lack of muscle tone and physical fitness (and, frankly, lack of endowment) is pretty obscene. If we’re going to be subjected to naked men, we want them to look good. On the other hand…it’s a joke. A parody. An example of humor. Presumably the justices themselves figured that one out. Now, we get the idea of protecting children, but they’ve seen naked bodies. At least we assume all children bathe — though some may avoid the task as

We have to admit, we chuckled when we read this: Mr. [John] Logan’s handlers at the Creative Artists Agency also enhanced his status before he began writing “The Aviator” by building into his deal an unusual provision guaranteeing him sole screenplay credit, Charles Evans Jr., one of the film’s producers, said in an interview. The guarantee blocked the producers, who included the normally hands-on filmmaker Michael Mann, and even Mr. Scorsese from hiring writers to revise Mr. Logan’s work or from professing any part in the screenplay’s authorship, whatever they may have contributed. Asked whether he had such protection, Mr.

Thanks to Booksquare’s top Secret Agent, we bring to your attention yet another case of parents and book banning. That the book is about free will and making choices seems to be lost on this small band of parents who feel the subject matter is inappropriate for their children. And, that, we agree is their right. However, for other kids, the book sends a clear message: “It [The Giver by Lois Lowry] is a powerful book,” said Dawn Vaughn, president of the American Association of School Librarians. “It is important for young adults who are at a point in their

We do not believe books are going away — though, the more we think on the topic, it’s not so much the books as the stories our species craves. We love our stories. That many of them are contained in books is a major boon to natural readers. In a way, other methods of delivering stories, television for example, are just expansions of sitting our the campfire. Only the husbands are fatter and the wives clearly married down. Libraries haven’t been just about books since, well, the inception of libraries. They serve many purposes in their communities, and the fact

We know — a lot of you are anti-Amazon. We understand your reasoning, but at Chez Booksquare, Amazon has been a major lifeline. While we do not meet the traditional definition of shut-ins, the occupants of our household, especially male, have a strong aversion to shopping, crowds, and shopping in crowds. Online shopping has made the entire buying-something-wonderful-for-the-wife experience a pleasure. Also, it has strengthened our relationship with our UPS driver. While Amazon runs the risk of becoming the Evil Overlord of Online Shopping, it does so much good around here, we are turning a blind eye to the potential.