Book hunt to come & Other things

Death Troopers

Halloween is just around the corner and my costume isn't completed yet. Jyg and I are doing a theme again. Last year was gothic Wizard of Oz, so this year we decided to darken up another childhood favorite - Little Red Riding Hood. Before you ask, I'm not going to be the big bad wolf. Instead, I'm the woodsman post wolf-slaying. 

My mind is off somewhere else. Right now I'm browsing the bookstore, even though I'm sitting at desk. James Franco's collection of short stories, Palo Alto, was released earlier this month while the rather dark Star Wars novel, Death Troopers, was released in mass market paperback just yesterday. I actually went looking for Death Troopers yesterday while I was at work. The HEB Plus - a local chain of grocery stores - housed a rather large (compared to other HEBs in the area) book section. Sadly, the book wasn't on the shelves. 

I'll probably put off purchasing Pablo Alto - which is getting quite a few bad reviews on Amazon - until it hits the discount table at Barnes & Noble, or a used copy appears at a reasonable price online. And unless I'm planning to find a hardcover version, I'll just buy Death Troopers at Barnes later this week (whenever I get some me time).

At another HEB Plus - this one in San Juan - I saw a young girl wearing a black The Hunger Games shirt. It was the first time outside of Twilight and Harry Potter that I've seen someone wear a shirt inspired by a book. Sad thing is, the latter two are usually on people closer to my age than that of the intended audience. And like most fans of the trilogy, I'm waiting patiently for the film release. As you may all know (unless you don't read anything online) Lionsgate - you know, the studio that's brought you such classics as the Saw flicks - has acquired the rights to the film. And that's about all the news there is. Several female stars have show interest in the screenplay - also written by Suzanne Collins - including Skins star Kaya Scodelario and Kick Ass and Let Me In (an adaptation of the novel Let the Right One In, which is also the basis of the Swedish film of the same title) starlet, Chloe Moretz.

And if you're a fan of the first book, maybe you should check out Hunger Games (the unofficial score).

And finally, one last thing before I go. Atriad Press is looking for nonfiction submissions of books about Texas. If you're a Texan writer of nonfiction, maybe you should think about this press. Who knows. I might just pick it up and whore it out here. Well, if it's good.

Until next time, keep on huntin'.

Required Reading: "Just Before the Black" by James Franco

It's rare these days that a talented actor can be found in Hollywood - save for those of old. Enter James Franco: At first, I think nothing of him. He's just the pretty boy cast to play Peter Parker's best friend in Spider-Man. Like any nerd, this deeply insults me.

Still there's something alluring about James Franco that I can't quite point out - at least, not during the first movie. Two Spider-Man sequels later, I watch a little film called Pineapple Express where Franco plays drug dealer/best friend to the main character played by that fat guy whose name I hardly remember. Then it hits me: James Franco has talent. Fuck that - he's brimming with talent. He's a guy who's not using the term actor loosely in this world of Robert Pattinsons. 

Then an explosion of sorts happens when I discover the April 2010 issue of Esquire in my mailbox one afternoon. Not only is the ever sexy Tina Fey on the cover, but within its pages also lies a short story by one James Franco. Surely this cannot be the James Franco who has won our hearts over the years. No man can have that much talent, right? 

I turned to page 20 only to find out that yes, it is that James Franco. I also learned that he's coming out with a book called Palo Alto this coming October, published by Scribner.  It's a collection of short stories and I'm guessing that "Just Before the Black" is one of its features. Steady now - we all know that actors want to be more than just actors and usually fail at doing their moonlighting jobs. Could James Franco be a great writer? 

I wasn't even done with the piece when I called El Senor and told him he had to go out and buy a copy of Esquire only to read the story. Hell, I'd lend him mine if he didn't want to pay for it. Because James Franco is a great writer, or at least he has promise of being a great writer. 

In this short story, James writes about life right before death. Only someone with great talent can pull this off. I tip my hat to you, James. Well played, hombre.