literaturelife

Episode 38, we think

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Baby Got Book (Sir mix-a-lot for readers)

A friend sent me this and it was too good not to share... for those of you who remember Baby Got Back, this is Baby Got Book:

Baby Got Book (based on the original by Sir Mix-A-Lot)

Spoken: "Oh. Mai. Gyawd, Becky, look at her book bag...she must be one
of those, like, Barnes & Noble's guys' girlfriends...it's so heavy...and
bulging...she's just so...SMART!"

I like big books and I cannot lie
You other brothers can't deny
That when a girl walks in with a fat Tolkien
And Cervantes in original tongue
You get sprung
Wanna read the spine
'Cuz you noticed that book was stuffed
Deep in the bag she's carrying
I'm hooked and I can't stop staring
Oh, baby, I wanna get wit' ya
And read your volumes
My homeboys tried to warn me
But with that book you got
Makes me so horny
Ooh, leather slipcase
You say you wanna get in my den
Well use it, use it, 'cuz you ain't that average reader

I've seen her readin',
It looks like Friedan,
She's smart,
Well-read, got it goin' with a great big head

I'm tired of magazines
Sayin' thin books are the thing
Take the average nerd guy and ask him that
She gotta pack much book

So fellas (yeah), fellas (yeah)
Has your girlfriend got the book? (Hell yeah!)
Tell her read it, read it, read it, read it, read it, read that hefty book
Baby got book

I like 'em hard and fat
And when I'm stockin' my flat
I just can't help myself
It's like Alexandria
Now here's my scandal

I wanna get you home
And uh, double up uh, uh
I ain't talkin' 'bout Pocket
'Cuz paperback books are made for boys
I wan' 'em real thick and verbose
So find that volume double
Boy am I in trouble
Beggin' for a piece of that Dickens
So I'm lookin' at Russian littin'
Fashion mag bimbos readin' like kids
You can have them bimbos
I'll keep my women like Oprah
A word 'bout the Bronte sistas
I wanna get wit' ya
I wanna English Lit ya
But I gotta be straight when I say I wanna read
'Til the break of dawn

Baby got it goin' on
A lot of men won't like this song
'Cuz them punks like to illiterate it
But I'd rather hear you read
'Cuz I'm smart and I'm strong
And I'm down to get the fiction on

So ladies (yeah), ladies (yeah)
If you wanna read in my library (yeah)
Then lift it up
Stick it out
Even plain boys got to shout
Baby got book

Yeah baby
When it comes to females
Cosmo ain't got nothin' to do with my selection
Palahniuk, Fielding, Pynchon, too
And maybe a little Sartre

So your girlfriend drives a Rolls Royce
Playin' books on tape from James Joyce
But hearin' ain't like readin' in the back of her limo
My anaconda don't want none unless you got books, hon
You can read Cosmo or comics, but please don't lose that book
Some brothers wanna play that hard role
And tell you that the book ain't gold
So they toss it and leave it
And I pull up quick to retrieve it
So Cosmo says you're haughty
Well I ain't down with that
'Cuz you got Kierkegaard and your Nietzsche's kickin'
And I'm thinkin' bout stickin'

To the unread dames with the magazines
You ain't missin' a thing
Give me a sista I can't resist her
William Shakespeare didn't miss her
Some knucklehead tried to dis
'Cuz his girls were on my list
He had game but he chose to skip 'em
And I pull up quick to get with 'em
So ladies if the book is thick
And you wanna triple X throw down
Dial 1-900-mixalot, bring them Henry Miller thoughts
Baby got book

Episode 38

A new month, but we're still reading the same books for Episode 38. Caroline is about to crack the 1000 page beast by Jilly Cooper, and Milda is eeking her way to "pray" in Eat, Pray, Love and reveals where the books are in Portland, Oregon. Script Frenzy is upon us again, and there are high hopes for a RomCom and an adaptation. We'll keep you posted. Once again, we can't get through the episode without Jane Austen and Oskar knocking something over while trying to steal baked goods. Spring is here- help us celebrate with a good book!

It's not you, it's your books: the New York Times weighs in on dating and reading

The New York Times has exposed us: yes, we heavy readers have sometimes written people off because of what they like to read. Ever since I encountered a woman in Book Soup months ago who felt the need to whisper the titles of several self help selections she wanted to order, it has been clear: what you read- or what you tell people you read- matters.

In this day and age where we seem to have profiles detailing ourselves as a list of statistics and commentary on what we like, these lists have become shorthand not only for preferences, but for the kind of person we are. When putting down titles for facebook or myspace profiles, I did find myself wondering what kind of person I would seem to be if I put down E.M. Forster versus Anais Nin versus some professional book I really like to give to coaching clients. I doubt anyone wants to hang out with or sign up for sessions with someone whose favorite book is "Never Good Enough," no matter how useful its suggestions are. When I put a Buddhist title up on GoodReads recently on my to-read shelf- it is called "Quiet Your Mind," I received a panicked comment from a co-worker who chastised me for wanting to give up negativity and that sadly, this selection had made him love me just a little bit less.

How amazing that these choices, once totally private outside of discussions about books or visible to those who enter our homes and look over our bookshelves- always a bit of a nerve-wracking experience, are now on display and may damage our chances of connecting with others. Who knew that the stakes had gotten so high?

Perhaps reading is still important after all. This is both heartening and sad, in the way it has played out. Everyone had better run out and get their copy of "How to Talk about Books You Haven't Read" right away.

Here's the New York Times' original article.

So. We're not the only ones talking about it.

Looks like we're not the only ones taking a peek at the onld fake memoir situation. The lovely Julia, of Book Soup, and my fellow Bay Area worshipper, had a few things to say on the matter over at the Book Soup blog.... check it out.

Episode 37

We are on Episode 37 of the podcast and the countdown to 40 begins! Discussions on how to finance a life of reading ensue. Milda's thinking pet-sitting service and Caroline has great ideas for the website! And, Caroline has an overstacked reading queue, but a really organized bookshelf. Find out why you should lie in your memoir and how many pages it takes to get to smut in Jilly Cooper's, Wicked. Keep tuning in to find out when we have a live show and until then, happy reading and don't forget to start getting ready for Script Frenzy!

And, keep a lookout for these books: Another Thing to Fall by Laura Lipman (March 2008), The Darcy Connection by Elizabeth Aston (2008), The Girl with No Shadow by Joanne Harris (May 2008).

Episode 35

We're back with Episode 35. We talk tea, British reading treats, Milda's latest screenwriting explorations, and why British TV is better (and their chocolate, mochas, butter and chips, too!) Listen up to learn what smut we plan to read this month for Valentine's Day excitement.

Gone With the Wind...Carol Burnett Style

There's nothing as fun and exciting as seeing your favorite book come to life visually, whether on television or in the movies. That is, as long as the adaptation is done well.

I came across a version of Margaret Mitchell's Gone With The Wind on youtube today, after reading an article from NPR about an African American woman who had read Gone With The Wind as a child and found herself enthralled by Scarlett O'Hara, despite the fact that Scarlett was a slave owner. Check that article by Karen Grigsby Bates out here.

That article had a link at the bottom to an old Carol Burnett skit, which is actually in two parts, but I'll lure you in with Part 1. It's done as only Carol Burnett could have done it:

Episode 34

Episode 34 is up! We are back to our favorite author, Jane Austen, once again with talk about a faux memoir by Syrie James as well as the PBS adaptations on Masterpiece Theater this spring (here's a review from the New York Times). Milda promises to read all remaining novels this year. For other challenges, we talk about 52 Books, 52 Weeks and the possibility of new spreadsheets and NanoWriMo's Big Scary Fun Challenge- sign up and enjoy.

Also- L.A. residents: from now until Feb 1, Story Corps is in town! Grab a friend and record an interview- you get to keep one copy and the other is housed in the Smithsonian archive- you might even get to hear your interview played on NPR. They also have a blog!

Ok, faithful listeners, we are going on hiatus for a bit as  Caroline is off to England for 2 weeks. We'll regroup after Feb 11th- perhaps a special Valentine's day edition? We'll have finished Syrie James by then and, if you're lucky, we'll give a reading of our favorite harlequin romance for you...

Get ready for Jane Austen tomorrow night!

Milda found this article on CNN.com and we thought those of you who are excited for the next installment of Jane Austen adaptations on masterpiece theater would enjoy it.

Here is the article about the process of adapting Jane for the screen. We'll discuss Syrie James' book as well as our thoughts on Jane adaptations in general on the podcast tomorrow night. Have a wonderful weekend. We hope you are spending it reading!