Biographies “Great Mystery Books and Biographies for Holiday Reading - Hollywood Today.net” plus 4 more

Great Mystery Books and Biographies for Holiday Reading - Hollywood Today.net
Best of 2009: Jazz - Hartford Courant
60-second Review -- Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong - Weblogs.baltimoresun.com
Verizon Foundation Awarded More Than $67.5 million in Community Grants ... - MSN Money
Green Technology -Atos Origin Receives VANOC Sustainability Star ... - TMCnet

Great Mystery Books and Biographies for Holiday Reading - Hollywood Today.net

Posted: 28 Dec 2009 03:36 AM PST

Books to read this holiday season, today's installment is mysteries and biographies, catch tomorrow's installment for historical fiction

by Gabrielle Pantera

Expose by Hannah Dennison, the dangers of snail racing

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Hollywood Today) 12/28/2009 – Book gift cards from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and other booksellers make great holiday gifts. If you're wondering what to get using a gift card you received, or just looking for a good read during the holidays, let's take a look at some great mysteries

Mysteries

Exposé! By Hannah Dennison

Exposé! is the third adventure in the Vicky Hill mysteries. Dennison always introduces an unusual British pastime or profession in her books. This time it's snail racing season in the small town of Gipping-on-Plym. Obituary writer Vicky Hill receives an anonymous tip of the secret funeral of local celebrity Scarlett Fleming, coordinated by her husband Doug. The entire town is baffled by the sudden death and oddly discreet funeral. After all, Scarlett was never one to stay in her shell. Expose! (A Vicki Hill Mystery) Hannah Dennison Paperback, 320 pages Publisher: Berkley (December 1, 2009) Language: English ISBN: 9780425231586

Sheer Folly: A Daisy Dalrymple Mystery by Carola Dunn

Sheer Folly is the latest mystery in the Daisy Dalrymple mystery series. Daisy Dalrymple Fletcher and her friend and avid photographer Lucy visit Appsworth Hall to photograph the best grotto in the country for a book. Daisy and Lucy are not the only guests. There's the boorish Lord Rydal, Rhino to his few friends, Lady Ottaline Wandersley who's having an affair with Rhino. Julia Beaufort who's being pursued by Rhino in marriage, Charles Armitage, a Canadian rival charmed by Julia, there's Mr. Pritchard of Pritchard's Plumbing Products, the current owner of the grotto, and his sister-in law Mrs. Howell who's hostess. The grotto explodes, taking Rhino's life. Who killed him? Hardcover, 288 pages, Publisher: Minotaur Books, September 15, 2009, Language: English, ISBN: 9780312387754 $24.99

The Case of the Missing Servant: A Vish Puri Mystery by Tarquin Hall

The head of Delhi's Most Private Investigators Ltd., Vish Puri, searches for a missing servant and pursues other cases in this first book in the series. Ajay Kasliwal, a lawyer who has a case against corrupt government officials, is suspected of killing his maid who's missing. Kasliwal hires Puri to find her alive. A body is found instead, but Puri thinks something's not right. He must keep digging. Hardcover, 320 pages Publisher: Simon & Schuster Release date: June 2, 2009 ISBN: 9781416583684 $24.00

Royal Flush by Rhys Bowen

Royal Flush is the third book in Rhys Bowen's Royal Spyness Mystery series. Set in 1932, Lady Georgiana is a great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria and 34th in line to the English throne. Georgie is sent home to Scotland in disgrace after putting an advertisement in the paper to be a female escort. Georgie meant dinner and dancing, the gentlemen have something else in mind. At Rannoch Castle, Georgie finds accidents happening to members of the royal family and her brother. Georgie searches for answers. Can she solve this before a relative gets killed? Royal Flush is the third book in Rhys Bowen's Royal Spyness Mystery series. Hardcover, 320 pages Publisher, Berkley Release date: July 7, 2009 ISBN 9780425227886 $24.95

In a Gilded Cage by Rhys Bowen A Molly Murphy Mystery

In a Gilded Cage has Irish-born New York detective Molly Murphy joining the march for women's rights in 1903 with Vassar college women who want the vote. She makes friends with former Vassar girl Emily Boswell who works at a pharmacy. Emily asks Molly to help find out more about her parents who died after she was born. As Molly searches Emily's past, Vassar girls start dying. Why are they dying? What really happened to Emily's parents? Hardcover, 288 pages Publisher: Minotaur Books Release: 1st edition, March 17, 2009 ISBN 9780312385347 $24.95

The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown

The Lost Symbol is the follow-up book to The Da Vinci Code. The Lost Symbol is a deadly race through a real-world labyrinth of codes, secrets, and unseen truths. This book has Brown's most terrifying villain to date. Set within hidden chambers, tunnels, and temples of Washington, D.C.. don't forget to breath when reading this book. Hardcover, 528 pages, On Sale: September 15, 2009, ISBN: 978-0-385-50422-5. Price: $29.95

Biographies

The Irregulars by Jennet Conant

Roald Dahl became associated with an interesting assortment of British spies, including James Bond 007 author Ian Fleming, spymaster Bill Stephenson believed to be the inspiration for James Bond, and "The Father of Advertising" David Ogilvy. Dahl came to America after serving as a RAF pilot and ace in the skies of Libya and Greece. With only seven RAF aircraft defending Greece, Dahl and his comrades shot down 22 German aircraft in one battle. Dahl's exploits in the war are detailed in his autobiography. Conant's book details his efforts in Washington to get America to enter the war against Germany. Roald Dahl and the British Spy Ring in Wartime Washington Publisher: Simon & Schuster Price: $16

Paul McCartney A Life

Paul McCartney a Life traces the origin of Paul McCartney's life, how he met John Lennon, and how they became the Beatles. The book looks at his loves, his life with first wife Linda through to her unfortunate death, and his disastrous second marriage with Heather Mills. Hardcover, 384 pages, Publisher: Touchstone, November 3, 2009, Language: English, ISBN: 9781416562092 $26.00

Home: A Memoir of My Early Years by Julie Andrews

Julie Andrews' life was difficult as a child, and it wasn't only her experiences during the London Blitz. She grew up in poverty. The family moved from rural England to London for her parents' career in vaudeville. Julie Andrews helped support her family from a young age. Trade Paperback, 352 pages, Publisher: Hyperion, Reprint edition (April 7, 2009) Language: English, ISBN: 9780786884759 $15.99

Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Best of 2009: Jazz - Hartford Courant

Posted: 27 Dec 2009 08:55 PM PST

Top stories in jazz for 2009 included two outstanding biographies that right historic wrongs; the unearthing of long-buried live recordings by Ella Fitzgerald; top flight recordings by national and Connecticut-grown talents; and Hartford jazz presenters' continuing to reach new heights on the local music scene.

Books: Truth in the packaging of jazz history scored two major triumphs with Terry Teachout's "Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong" (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $30) and Robin D. G. Kelley's " Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of An American Legend" (Free Press, $30). These are enlightening works that should be added to any first-rate American Studies program.

Armstrong has often been maligned by a snooty jazz elite as a pandering Uncle Tom, a sell-out, a vastly overrated, cornpone entertainer. He's even been the victim of one of the most ruthlessly malicious biographies ever inflicted on a jazz figure, James Lincoln Collier's egregiously patronizing and snide "Louis Armstrong: An American Genius."

Similarly, Monk's mocking detractors have disdained everything about him, from his unorthodox piano technique and clashing harmonies to his choice of exotic hats, all the while relentlessly dwelling on his eccentricities and mental problems.

With scholarship, smarts, a sense of justice and common decency, these two fine biographies — without indulging in hagiography — restore these two pioneering figures to their rightful place as innovators and genuine icons in the pantheon of American culture.

Recordings: As the year draws to an end, we have the happy arrival of a long-buried cache of terrific live recordings Ella Fitzgerald made in 1961 and '62 at the Crescendo, a small, intimate club in Los Angeles.

Richard Seidel has produced "Twelve Nights in Hollywood" Verve, $69.98), a four-disc set of remastered tapes from almost a half-century ago. Here are 76 songs sung by Ella, a shy, introverted person, who in this congenial club setting sounds elegant, relaxed and swinging, quite relieved to be far removed from the stultifying, antiseptic ambience of the recording studio.

Also out late this year, guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel's gorgeous, harmonically rich "Standards Trio: Reflections." Tunes by Monk, Wayne Shorter, songbook standards and a Rosenwinkel original all sound new and luminescent.

Local connections: Connecticut's legion of jazz talent once again made its mark on the national recording scene, including new, noteworthy releases by Hartford's Curtis Brothers and West Hartford's Joel Frahm.

The talented young Curtis brothers, Zaccai on keyboards and Luques on bass, released an excellent quartet session, "Blood Spirit Land Water Freedom," on their own Truth Revolution Records. Their swinging sidekicks are the exceptional drummer Richie Barshay, an alumnus of West Hartford's Hall High School, and percussionist Reinaldo De Jesus.

Frahm, yet another Hall alumnus, teams up with Hammond B3 player and keyboardist Bruce Katz in one of the year's most unabashedly soulful, celebratory CDs, "Project A" (Anzic Records). Drenched in a bluesy, rip-roaring, rambunctious spirit, the Project earns an A+ for its irrepressible exuberance.

Hartford Jazz: While you've got to tip your hat to the Hartford Jazz Society, Greater Hartford Festival of Jazz, Artists Collective, Real Art Ways and other local presenters of live jazz for their resilience, a special pat on the back is in order for the industrious Andres Chaparro for single-handedly organizing and running the commendable city-sponsored "Pork Pie Hat Jazz Series."

Thanks to Chaparro's diligence and belief in the significant role that jazz, the people's art, should play in the local community, the series brought high-quality talent to town at discount prices, particularly for Hartford residents and students.

Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

60-second Review -- Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong - Weblogs.baltimoresun.com

Posted: 28 Dec 2009 06:13 AM PST

pops by terry teachout Hope everyone is having a great holiday season. I received a couple of books as gifts, "How the Body Works" (from my wife, who is always shocked by how little I know about how the body works) and a novel by humorist Dave Barry. I also got a chance to finish reading "Pops."

Synopsis: A biography of jazz great Louis Armstrong by Terry Teachout, who has also written a bio of Baltimore's own H.L. Mencken

Review: Teachout lays out the magic and genius of Armstrong, a trumpeter who changed jazz. It's a great rags-to-riches story, from impoverished childhood in New Orleans to world tours. I'm partial to jazz piano and not very familiar with early jazz; this really helped me appreciate the significance of Armstrong, a pure entertainer. The book doesn't shy from more serious issues, including a lifetime of philandering that ruined marriages, marijuana use and charges of Uncle Tomming.

Read this if you like: Jazz, African-American history and/or well-written biographies.

Avoid this if: You don't have access to Armstrong's recordings. I was flummoxed by the detailed descriptions of his revolutionary music technique. Teachout is a trained musician, but most readers aren't, and the technical terms lost me. Having access to online recording was helpful, but a CD would have been great to break down the music.

Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Verizon Foundation Awarded More Than $67.5 million in Community Grants ... - MSN Money

Posted: 28 Dec 2009 04:55 AM PST

Majority of Giving Supported Organizations Working to Advance Education, Literacy and Domestic Violence Prevention

BASKING RIDGE, N.J., Dec. 28 /PRNewswire/ --The Verizon Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon Communications, has awarded more than $67.5 million this year to more than 17,000 nonprofit organizations throughout the U.S. The majority of giving went to organizations that support education, literacy, domestic violence prevention and Internet safety.

This year's grants bring to more than $345 million the total funds the Verizon Foundation has awarded since 2005 to support nonprofit organizations.

"Corporate foundations have an important role to play in supporting the valuable nonprofit organizations that make a tremendous difference in the communities where we work and live," said Verizon Foundation President Patrick Gaston. "Verizon and its employees are proud to partner with thousands of nonprofit organizations throughout the nation to bring about positive change in the areas of education, domestic violence prevention and Internet safety."

Among the programs and organizations supported by the Verizon Foundation in 2009 are:

WGBH Educational Foundation - $1 million to fund the creation of a PBS FRONTLINE documentary examining the impact of the Web and digital media on life in the 21st century. The year-long project, Digital Nation: Life on the Virtual Frontier includes a series of online video reports and user-submitted stories that will culminate in a national television broadcast.
University of Massachusetts Amherst - $200,000 to digitize an estimated 100,000 writings of W.E.B. Du Bois. Previously available only to scholars, these works include more than 4,000 articles, essays and books, as well as correspondence with such historical figures as Booker T. Washington, Albert Einstein and Mohandas Gandhi. Once digitized, these treasures will be accessible on the Web sites of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Library and Verizon Thinkfinity.
Jobs for America's Graduates (JAG) - $250,000 to fund the creation of JAG programs within three school districts (Forrest City, Earle and Lee County) in the Delta region of Arkansas. JAG is a national program designed to keep at-risk students in school and provide work-based learning experiences that will lead to career-advancement opportunities or enrollment in post-secondary education. The grant will also fund a JAG state Executive Leadership Training Program for students.

The Verizon Foundation, supports the advancement of literacy and K-12 education through its free educational Web site, Thinkfinity.org, and fosters awareness and prevention of domestic violence. In 2009, the Verizon Foundation awarded more than $67.5 million in grants to nonprofit agencies in the U.S. and abroad. It also matched the charitable donations of Verizon employees and retirees, resulting in an additional $24.4 million in combined contributions to nonprofits. Through Verizon Volunteers, one of the nation's largest employee volunteer programs, Verizon employees and retirees have volunteered more than 5 million hours of community service since 2000. For more information on the foundation, visit www.verizonfoundation.org.

Verizon Communications Inc. VZ, headquartered in New York, is a global leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications services to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers. Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, serving more than 89 million customers nationwide. Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over America's most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers innovative, seamless business solutions to customers around the world. A Dow 30 company, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of more than 230,000 and last year generated consolidated revenues of more than $97 billion. For more information, visit www.verizon.com.

VERIZON'S ONLINE NEWS CENTER: Verizon news releases, executive speeches and biographies, media contacts, high-quality video and images, and other information are available at Verizon's News Center on the World Wide Web at www.verizon.com/news. To receive news releases by e-mail, visit the News Center and register for customized automatic delivery of Verizon news releases.

SOURCE The Verizon Foundation

Back to News Home