Record Books

 Imagine if your favorite album was also a novel.  Graphic designer Christophe Gowans re-imagined several classic (or cult classic) albums as books.  He even includes fictional synopsizes of the books.  The albums converted into books include everything from the Pixies (Surfer Rosa) to Bruce Springtsteen (Born To Run) to Alanis Morissette (Jagged Little Pill).  Two of my favorites include Prince's Purple Rain, which is turned into a pulpy Sci-Fi novel, and Boston's self-titled album, which is a phone book.  Check out all of the books on Gowans's website. 

New York Public Library's "Mad Men" Reading List

If you are a dedicated fan of AMC's Mad Men (and I'm just going to assume that you are), you know that the characters frequently reference books and films specific to the show's 1960s milieu. One of the more notable examples would be Don Draper's  moving voice-over recitation of a poem by Frank O'Hara in the second season. But even the more casual glimpses of what books the characters are interested in can be revealing. Don's daughter, Sally, reads age-appropriate Nancy Drew mysteries. Bert Cooper, not surprisingly, extols the virtues of Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand's 1100-page love letter to the free market. The ladies of the secretarial pool whisper about Lady Chatterley's Lover, the genuinely racy D.H. Lawrence novel that was the subject of an influential obscenity trial in 1959. These are just a few of the many literary works that have been spotted on Mad Men. And, for that reason, we can thank the fine librarians at the New York Public Library for compiling a fairly extensive list of the books cited throughout the show's run. Needless to say, you can search our catalog for any of the titles that interest you.

The 'Mad Men' Reading List - New York Public Library

Well, whadda you know!

Spotted this fabulous library ad on Boing Boing, originally published courtesy of the National Social Welfare Assembly. Ed is kind of a know-it-all, but he's got the right idea.

Geek Chic: Vintage robots and tin toys

 Robots are a geeky obsession of mine.  Perhaps it's the result of watching too many episodes of the Jetsons as a kid, but robots have a fun retro appeal to me.  I have a small collection of robot tin toy reproductions, which started when I spotted the super cool Schyllling reproduction of Robot Lilliput at a toy store.  Many of the original toy robots were manufactured in Japan before World War II.  Below are photos from my robot and tin toy collection: 

This Robot Lilliput who is thought to be first ever robot toy in existence.  The original was manufactured in the mid-to-late 1930s.