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Miss Emily’s JukeJoint 5/21/12: New CDs and A Benefit for Furry Friends
Greetings all-
This coming Saturday May 26th, Dan’s Silverleaf will host a benefit entitled “The Big One-Five: A Benefit for The Denton Animal Shelter Foundation” starting at 9pm and costing $8.00. Chris Flemmons of The Baptist Generals dog Brunswick is the birthday boy. Entertainment/jamz will be provided by The Heelers, The Holler Time and Kelly Upshaw. Please see the event’s Facebook page and the poster posted right below. We will be getting Holler Time and Heelers CDs at the DPL in the very near future. I beseech thee to support this event: its what little d iz all about!
The Big One
New titles at the Emily Fower Library are as follows:
The Muppets – A Green and Red Christmas
Bowerbirds – The Clearing
Men – Open Your Hearts
Sent By Ravens – Mean What You Say
Black Bananas – Rad Times xpress IV
Dinnerstein, Simone – Something Almost Being Said
Now Thats What I Call Music 42
Dr. John – Locked Down
Williams, John – A Tribute To
Jones, Norah – Little Broken Hearts
Underwood, Carrie – Blown Away
Cappa, Adam – The RescueThe Jakeys – No Second Spring
Jesse and Joy- A Con Quien Se Queda ElMany Hands
New DVDs
12. Wrath of the Titans
War of 1812
Smithsonian (www.si.edu)
On June 18, 1812, President James Madison signed a declaration of war against Britain that began what is often called America’s Second War of Independence. This summer marks the 200th anniversary of that event. We’re all familiar with Old Ironside, The Star-spangled Banner, and the Battle of New Orleans. But what else do we know about this two-and-a-half-year war? What different points of view did the participants in the war have? Who were some of the famous people who fought in the war? If you want to learn more about the War of 1812, check out some of the books available at the Denton Public Library.
The War of 1812: a Guide to Battlefields and Historic Sites by John Grant and Ray Jones (2011) is a companion to the PBS documentary The War of 1812. The book includes a lengthy introduction which is a good overview of the war. Each chapter covers a theater of the war, with listings of historic sites. Each listing includes a description of the site’s significance at the time and what you can see there today.
Union 1812: the Americans who Fought the Second War of Independence by A. J. Langguth (2006) Lannguth tells the history of the war with a focus on the leaders who fought and shaped it. Some saw their fortunes rise; others saw their hard-won reputations ruined. For a few, the war would set them on a path to the Presidency. The war also had disasterous consequences for Native Americans.
Constitution vs Guerriere: Frigates during the War of 1812 by Mark Lardas (2009) This book is part of Osprey’s Duel series. Osprey is well-known for publishing detailed and technical books about battles and military equipment and vehicles. This one is about the frigate duels during the War of 1812, specifically the one in the title. There are ship specifications, histories of the ships, specifications about the crews and details of the frigate engagements; and charts and maps. The navy played a very important role in this conflict.
Perilous Fight: America’s Intrepid War with Britain on the High Seas, 1812-1815 by Stephen Budansky (2010) is another book about the naval war, including the battles around the Chesapeake Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. Many scholars have seen the war as inconclusive, but Budansky demonstrates that the War of 1812 legitamized America’s standing in the world.
Six Frigates: the Epic History of the Founding of the U. S. Navy by Ian W. Toll (2006) recounts the history of the U. S. navy from its beginning through the War of 1812. Many of the circumstances that led the United States to declare war, and the war itself, are major parts of this history. By the time war came, the American navy, although small, was a formidable force.
The War of 1812 in the Age of Napoleon by Jeremy Black (2009) Jeremy Black is a British historian who writes about the war from a British perspective and in the context of Britain’s war against France during that period. He shows that the British saw their conduct towards the U. S. before the war (which many Americans found intolerable) as necessary and justified for fighting the wars against Napoleon. For the British, the War of 1812 was a mere distraction that few remember today.
1812: War with America by Jon Latimer was also a British historian who wrote about the war from a British persective, and put it in the context of the Napoleonic Wars. He also emphasized a British view that the war was a failed attempt on the part of the United States to annex Canada. He thought the war was inconclusive for the U. S. and Britain, but points out that it united Canadians and set them on the road to confederation and national status.
What We’re Reading
Leslie
I am reading the Devil’s Paintbox by Victoria McKernan. The stark beauty of the cover art caught my eye at first, then the story itself, which I was immediately drawn into after the first couple of pages. It begins with two siblings, a brother and sister, fifteen and sixteen (respectively), eating mud in a ditch. They have are the only surviving family members on a drought-stricken Kansas farm in 1866. There is nothing to eat and they have been slowly starving to death on a diet of mud, cornmeal, and grasshoppers. They get a bit of a reprieve when they are picked up by a wagon train on its way to Seattle, but that’s still a long way off. They still have to survive the journey.
Megan
I am reading The Flight of Gemma Hardy by Margot Livesey I just started it but so far its really good. Its a lot like Jane Eyre with the main character being an orphaned governess and I am pretty sure she’s going to fall for the Father. I am also reading Kabul Beauty School by Deborah Rodriguez for the chick lit Book club. Its a non fiction story of an American women who goes to the middle east and opens a beauty shop. It goes in to great detail indo the rituals that a bride has to go through to get married. I would consider it an extremely eye opening book for Americans to read.
Chuck
I’m reading “Passage of Power” by Robert Caro. It’s the fourth in his “The Years of Lyndon Johnson” series. So far, I like it as it is written in Caro’s classic style where he makes history read like literature. This book covers the period from 1958, thru his Vice-Presidency to Johnson’s early presidency. His past volumes have won numerous awards including the Pulitzer, so it’ll be interesting to see what if any awards this one garners.
Kerol
Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables: Here’s one from a time when local color was all the rage and long asides from the narrative were a sign of literary prowess (think Melville’s endless discussion of whales in Moby Dick). You’ll learn more than you ever wanted to know about things like the Battle of Waterloo and the history of convents. With that said, I’m loving the way Hugo works with dramatic irony and develops his characters with a slow simmer. The overall bleakness and lack of color (except for the aforementioned local color) in the description reminds me of Russian literature from that time period, more Dostoyevsky than Tolstoy. I’ve read several other books as I’ve been making my way through Hugo’s 19th century France. I spent the last couple of days re-reading Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut, mostly so I can brush up on my Bokononism and avoid all the granfalloons out there (you know who you are).
Terri
Elizabeth the Queen : inside the life of a modern monarch
Just finished listening to this on 17 (!) CDs and it was awesome. This year marks the 60th year of Elizabeth II’s reign. Couple that with the upcoming Olympics and the London is the place to be this year.
The book used a systematic linear approach to chronicling the life of Elizabeth from girlhood until today, including her extended family and especially the heirs to the throne. It’s packed with details about the monarchy as well as a good overview of 20th C history. I am fascinated how an accident of birth can create world leaders for good or ill. A must for current Anglophiles. Warning: it is unabashedly pro-Queen, and somewhat critical of Diana. I am not a Diana worshipper, but many are, so they may be put off by her portrayal.
Stacey
Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin
When the king of the Seven Kingdoms comes to Winterfell to ask Lord Stark to be his right-hand man, Lord Stark and his family are plunged into court intrigues as war looms on the horizon. But winter is coming, and the signs are it will be worse than anything seen in generations. When an accident sends the kingdom into chaos, the Stark family members are put to the test as they face their darkest hour.
This extremely well-written saga of the Stark family and the struggles of the kingdom of Westeros will keep you guessing to the end. This book mixes adventure, politics, love, loss, medieval warfare, and magic. I love way the author changes perspective as he goes from one part of the story to the other. Characters I loved at the beginning of the story are not my favorites and some that I did not like have grown on me. Just remember, don’t fall in love with anyone because when there is war, people die. To quote the book, “When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground.”
New Graphic Novels
The death-ray by Daniel Clowes
Everything vol. 1 by Lynda Barry
Miss Emily’s JukeJoint 5/8/12: Pops
As many of you have already heard, Denton’s long-time blues emissary and character, Pops Carter passed away a couple weeks back at age 93. Much has been written about him over the years and it doesn’t take long to find some of it so I won’t recount his life here. You might want to check out his Facebook page and communicate with them, perhaps. I do, however, want to tell a couple personal stories and share some of Alec Williams’ pictures from the Fry Street book he and we published last year.
One of my first live music experiences in Denton was in the Fall of 1987 when my then-roommate in Bruce Hall, John Rylander, got a gig for a night playing bass with Pop’s band at the Char Hut (later the site of Jackson’s Pizza and Texas Jive- now demolished). I went to hear them and wished I could’ve been playing with them but what I remember most is how wiped out John was when he got back to our dorm room. He wasn’t a regular gigging musician at the time and was concentrating on his music composition studies, so playing several hours was a workout. Never let anyone tell you that playing blues is “easy”.
Pops at The Depot, 1983
Pops also sat in with my band on at least two occaisons- there may have been more but that was a while back. I bet most if not all musicians around here who had Pops sit in would to a man or woman tell you how his presence lit up the joint. And, if your gig was dying, as some of mine surely did, he made you feel good about what you played and could make the people like you for at least as long as he was onstage. Well, that was my experience, at least. Thanks, Pops.
New DVD Releases
Click on the title to go to the catalog and place a hold.
1. John Carter
2. Joyful Noise
In The Weeds 4/22/12: Postcards From The Hedge
We have some ancient postcards here in the Special Collections Department that you might enjoy seeing. Two of the buildings depicted are gone, the others are still in existence, albeit altered physically or their names have been changed perhaps. You’ll notice that some of the postcards have names on them, but no addresses. I’ll let you figure out which one’s are gone and where and what the others are. Some are easy, a couple-not so much. Click on the picture for full view and write your guesses/answers in the “reply” box at the end of this blog post. Ready, Set….Go!
DVD New Releases
1. Act of Valor
2. Big Miracle
3. Chronicle
5. Ghost Rider Spirit of Vengeance
6. The Grey
8. Red Tails
9. Safe House
10. The Secret World of Arrietty
11. This Means War
12. The Vow
13. Wanderlust
The Mill has been repurposed (once again)
The fountain in front of the Emily Fowler Central Library has been converted into a planter, with the purpose of saving water. It was completed this week by the wonderful staff the Denton Parks Department.
The Mill was constructed by Arnold Austad in 1980 from, “a junk pile, which was behind Harpool Seed’s grain elevator and was donated by Tom Harpool, the fountain contains parts from the old Kimbell Flour Mill, Trinity Industries and Harpool’s Seed Cleaning plant.” Gibson, Elise. (1980, July 18) Self-taught designer: art speak for itself. Denton Record-Chronicle. Which makes the “pieces and parts” of the fountain over 130 years old.
Photograph of the construction, 1981. Photo courtesy of the Courthouse Museum, Denton Record-Chronicle photograph collection.
The Mill as of this morning:
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