Artist: Rob Lane. Album: John Adams (Music from the HBO Miniseries).
Artist: Angela McCluskey. Album: Dream - Single.
Artist: Orba Squara. Album: Sunshyness.
Artist: The Tacticians. Album: Some Kind of Urban Fulfillment.
Artist: Throw Me the Statue. Album: Moonbeams.
Artist: The Apples In Stereo. Album: New Magnetic Wonder.
Ann Patchett's latest novel, set against the backdrop of a particularly snowy and eventful winter day in Boston, is par for the author's course, examining issues of class, race and gender, among other topicalities, with expected elegance and generosity. If the novel finally fails to scale the operatic heights of lyricism set forth in Patchett's previous novel, 2001's magic-realist fable Bel Canto, and the coda feels ever so slightly forced and artificially sweetened, it's only because the subject matter this time around, and the thoughtful characters Patchett has created, seem a bit too sensible for the gentle excess of idealism that concludes the tale.
Artist: Joe Purdy. Album: You Can Tell Georgia.
Efficient, unpretentious filmmaking with some surprisingly graphic twists and an unexpectedly poignant finish. Cool and fun. Jason Statham is an elegant thug. Grade: B