Horses

Lerner, Sharon, Susan Jeffers, and Anna Sewell. Black Beauty. New York: Random House, 2009.

Thanks to my husband, I have a new hobby--horseback riding! Marc wisely figured that since I care so much about the horse rescue organizations Animal Recovery Mission (ARM) and the South Florida SPCA, I would probably enjoy actually spending time with the animals. He was right.


My teacher Missy Johnson is the best. She is patient and kind which is important because I have absolutely no natural talent for the sport. I've been going for lessons a couple of nights a week, and since I'm the last lesson of the day, I get to hang out and chat while she feeds and puts out the horses. It's weird, but I really love the smell of the barn.

In honor of my new hobby, here are some classic children's books about horses:

Sewell, Anna. Black Beauty. London: Jarrold and Sons, 1877.

Farley, Walter, and Keith Ward. The Black Stallion. New York: Random House, 1941.

Goble, Paul, and Robert L. Egolf. The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses. Scarsdale, N.Y: Bradbury Press, 1978.

Henry, Marguerite, and Wesley Dennis. Misty of Chincoteague. Chicago: Rand McNally, 1947

Cracker Cinderella

Cracker (Musical group). Gentleman's blues. Beverly Hills, CA: Virgin, 1998.

I just recently discovered one of the hidden tracks on the Cracker album Gentleman's Blues. It's called Cinderella and it features lead vocals by a female guest artist named L.P. She is simply amazing. If you like Patti Smith, Janis Joplin, Lisa Kekaula, and Joan Osborne, you should give her a listen.

And speaking of Cinderella . . .

Here are some alternatives to the Disney version of the story:

DePaola, Tomie. Adelita: A Mexican Cinderella Story. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2002.

San Souci, Robert D., J. Brian Pinkney, and Charles Perrault. Cendrillon: A Caribbean Cinderella. New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1998.

Meddaugh, Susan. Cinderella's Rat. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1997.

Climo, Shirley, and Ruth Heller. The Egyptian Cinderella. New York: Crowell, 1989.

Climo, Shirley, and Robert Florczak. The Persian Cinderella. [New York]: HarperCollins, 1999.

Louie, Ai-Ling, and Ed Young. Yeh-Shen: A Cinderella Story from China. New York: Philomel Books, 1982.

Boys Keep Swinging

It took me about halfway through to figure it out, but this week's Friday book pick is also about a young man who cross-dresses.

Brothers, Meagan. Debbie Harry Sings in French. New York: Henry Holt, 2008.

Isn't Debbie Harry Sings in French a great title? It's the story of a teenage Blondie fan named Johnny who moves to the Deep South where he is often beat up and accused of being gay. Remarkably, Johnny does not let the bullying break his spirit. He falls for a music-loving cool chick who turns him on to Patti Smith and helps him find his inner diva.

Blondie (Musical group). Greatest Hits [Sound & Vision]. Hollywood, CA: Capitol Records, 2006.

In the acknowledgment section at the end of the book, the author thanks:

" . . . all of the artists mentioned in this book (and many who aren't) for all the verses, riffs, fashion sense, and menacing poses struck on stages and album covers alike that helped me and many other gawky kids in the far reaches of suburbia survive our hapless solitary teenagedoms."

me, circa 1982

Although my "teenagedom" was actually quite enjoyable, I did like to strike poses and try to sing like my idols Debbie Harry, Chrissie Hynde, Tracey Ullman, and Patti Smith.

ps. While we're on the topic, do you remember this great David Bowie video?

Patti Smith and Christina Aguilera

I adore Patti Smith. Her writing is amazing and I love her gritty, rock and roll voice. I read in Spin Magazine that she is a Christina Aguilera fan, and I think that's kind of cool.

And speaking of Patti Smith . . .

Here's my rendition of Because the Night by Patti Smith and Bruce Springsteen.



I know it's kind of lame to spend time crooning into my laptop, but the opportunity to sing with a live band seldom arises anymore now that I'm a librarian.

Jazz in the library, circa 1999

The Shermanettes only sing a capella.

Shermanettes Summer, 2008

Shermanettes Halloween, 2007

BTW, I made sure that the artists receive royalties from Singsnap.com.


Also, you can buy Patti Smith's music here and Christina Aguilera's music here. Check out the official Patti Smith website: pattismith.net. She's an Obama fan, too. Man, that woman has impeccable taste.

Top 5 Albums

Top 5 Albums is one of my favorite Myspace pages. It's an interactive site where viewers can list their top 5 albums. It's interesting to see how many people have the exact same taste.

Here are my picks:

Music for Easter

I love this Death of Me album cover because it helps me remember the reason for the Easter season.

And since we're talking about Easter music . . .

Check out my rendition of the Patti Smith Group's hit, Because the Night. It's from the album, Easter.

Full and happy

I'm in a much better mood now. Marc and I just got back from seeing Juno at Muvico. Not only did I get my carb fix, but the movie was AWESOME. The main character is a Patti Smith fan, and there's even a reference to children's librarians! Who could ask for a more perfect flick?

Hi, Grandma!

I just got off the phone with my grandma. I love her so much! She said she's going to visit my blog, so here's a song just for her. It's got its flaws . . . I think I need to get a mic to plug into the computer. And maybe a few voice lessons. I sound better on this song by Patti Smith and Bruce Springsteen.



ANYWAY, as you can probably guess, I have a little too much time on my hands. This problem will soon be resolved, though, because I just got accepted to grad school! Since I work full time and commute 2 hours a day, I'm just going to take one or two classes each semester. Wish me luck!

"This ain't no Mud Club"

Congratulations to Miss New Orleans for correctly answering this week's music trivia question! The initials "CBGB OMFUG" stand for "Country Blue Grass Blues and Other Music For Uplifting Gormandizers." Miss New Orleans found the answer in this Wikipedia article about the legendary punk rock venue, CBGB's.

CBGB's was famous for premiering great rock musicians such as Patti Smith, Blondie, the Ramones, and the Talking Heads. To learn more about the American Punk Rock Movement, visit CBGB Online which is "the official website to the historic cradle of underground music in New York's Lower East Side." The site includes this first-person narrative by the late Hilly Kristal who founded the club in 1973.

I'm afraid I don't have any interesting personal stories to tell you about CBGB's. I went there a couple of times when I was in my twenties, but I don't remember much.

Stay tuned for next week's trivia question. Who knows? You might find yourself in the winners' circle with Miss New Orleans, Honest Abe, Thursday, and Rockin' Rob!

Brucings: more thoughts about Springsteen

Smith, P. (1988). Horses.

One thing that's really cool about Bruce Springsteen is that he cowrote one of the best songs of all time, Because the Night. He wrote it with and for the great Patti Smith who is not to be confused with Scandal lead singer, Patty Smyth. (In my opinion, Patti Smith has one of the greatest rock voices ever. Patty Smyth is just a pop tart and it's unfortunate that the two are often confused.) Years later, Because the Night was covered by Natalie Merchant of the 10,000 Maniacs, who actually did it a lot of justice.

Here's my version:

Patti Smith and Bruce Springsteen were friends with the legendary and controversial photographer Robert Mapplethorpe who shot the cover of Smith's album, Horses.

Want to learn more about Bruce Springsteen, Patti Smith, and Robert Mapplethorpe? Check out these books which are available at our library:
Tougher than the rest: 100 best Bruce Springsteen songs by June Skinner Sawyers; Patt Smith: an unauthorized biography by Victor Bockris and Roberta Bayley, and Playing with the edge: the photographic achievement of Robert Mapplethorpe by Arthur C. Danto.