Morning Coffee (7/29/16)

It's Friday AND the start of my birthday weekend, so it's time for some happy distracting links!

My friend James Moran (you may know him as a writer for Doctor Who and Torchwood) is making a webseries based on Dracula and it looks nifty. Here's a teaser.

Oprah will be in the A Wrinkle in Time movie and I remain cautiously optimistic about this whole endeavor.

Netflix is getting a bunch of stuff from the slow TV movement in August, including knitting and train rides!

The Cambridges are officially headed to Canada. Will they take the kids with them so they can be adorable with Justin Trudeau???

Speaking of: Prince George Has an Extremely Adorable Way of Ordering Cake

Whoa: WW2 silk escape map dress sold in Harrogate

Important investigative journalism: That 'S' Thing Everyone Drew in School, WHAT IS IT?

Ooh: Vatican library digitises 1,600-year-old edition of Virgil

How the Key to the Bastille Ended Up in George Washington’s Possession

When ‘Arrow’ sings ‘Hamilton,’ we all win

Morning Coffee (1/21/16)

ICYMI: Yesterday's Oscar Project post was on Brooklyn, which I liked quite a lot.

Wait: The Grand Jury in the Tamir Rice Case Did Not Take a Vote on Charges (Reading the various updates since I first saw this story yesterday, it's unclear what actually happened, but I think it's important to be aware of anyway.)

My friend Chris is in a new comedy web series called Ride With Me and as of this writing I have not had a chance to watch it yet but Chris is great and YOU should watch it.

And my friend Jack went to the lesser-known candidates' forum this week and it was apparently quite something.

On to real candidates: "Look, let’s get this out there once and for all: It’s not that I don’t think Bernie can win, it’s that I don’t want him to."

Why Bernie Sanders is fighting with Planned Parenthood and the Human Rights Campaign

Is the Bernie Sanders Surge Real?

What a time to be alive: Rand Paul calls Donald Trump 'Gollum'

Whoa, look at this: Prehistoric Massacre Hints at War Among Hunter-Gatherers

New planet?!?! (I still miss Pluto.)

This is amazing: The Illegitimacy of Aragorn’s Claim to the Throne (Note: I have read Lord of the Rings but am not enough of a buff to know if everything in that piece is accurate; I just loved the writing.)

Morning Coffee (9/11/15)

(It is, of course, September 11th; I have nothing particularly original to say about that, so I'm going to continue with usual happy Friday links, with the assumption that today of all days making some cheerful distractions available is not a terrible thing.)

Ahaha: When Cookie Met Sally. (With the "I'll have what she's having" bit, and this is why Sesame Street is the best.)

A bunch of my friends are in a fun webseries called Social Medium and they have a nifty new trailer!

My friend Carrie wrote a great piece about The Young and the Restless and soaps in general that made me want to go watch my soap of choice (Coronation Street).

The best possible response to that Victorian piece: I Love 2012. So I Decided To Live In It.

The Martin Luther figurine was Playmobil's most successful new product ever, and I find that fascinating.

One of the main characters in the Captain Underpants books came out in such a refreshing, matter-of-fact way.

Heeee: Taylor Swift: A Socratic Dialogue

Tumblr of the day: Nihilisa Frank

All you wanted to know about Sherlock Holmes in 17 vintage charts

Morning Coffee (6/11/15)

Martin Sheen is going to be Matthew Cuthbert in the new Anne of Green Gables movie, and I started crying just reading that headline, so obviously I'll handle this well.

X-Files is really happening, you guys.

Dawson's Creek and Buffy reruns are coming to ABC Family!

Oh hey, did I tell you Classic Alice is back? Classic Alice is back.

I don't agree with everything in this, but it's worth a read: What the ATX Festival should renew for next year—and what it should cancel

Apparently this is basically the one law New Hampshire has decided it needs. Okay then.

The story behind that mistaken tweet that the Queen had died is pretty wacky.

A Musician Names Things

Morning Coffee (3/3/15)

Classic Alice announced that if they make it to 50k, a generous donor has promised to push it to their goal of 60k. Only 10k to go. Can you help just a little?

Standard Responses to Online Stupidity

Are you worried about the UN taking over the Alamo? So is this Texas state senator.

Whoa: A Map of the Literary Genres

Whoa again: Stories of the Past and Future

Interesting: Slate's Panoply platform is serious about podcasts

Don't Think, Just Hot Take

The Time Everyone "Corrected" the World's Smartest Woman

Pretty: Pinup Girl Vintage Collection honors Disney artist Mary Blair

Morning Coffee (3/2/15)

Classic Alice's funding campaign ends FRIDAY. If we get to $50k, something MAGICAL will happen. That's under $14k to go. Can you help? Just a little? Please?

How Designers Recreated Alan Turing's Top-Secret, Code-Cracking World In "The Imitation Game"

I desperately wanted this story to be about a lawsuit about an actual typo made by Ryan Seacrest.

I'm excited about Rebecca Onion's new history stuff at Slate.

Hee: Martha Stewart CANNOT With These "Fifty Shades of Grey" Questions

The Evolution of Julie Plec

Learn How Agent Carter‘s Costume Designer Made All Of Peggy’s Outfits Battle Ready

Veronica Mars meets Gillian Flynn? Yes please.

Fun: Pick the U.S. Presidents (Without Missing One)

Morning Coffee (2/27/15)

Happy Friday! There's a LOT GOING ON so these links may be less strictly happy than is usual for Fridays. Sorry.

Because first, this is really important: No Boys Allowed: School visits as a woman writer

And the Internet went generally insane yesterday, but this is the big one, yay: The FCC just approved the strongest net neutrality rules yet

The Science of Why No One Agrees on the Color of This Dress

Apparently I don't have a link about the llamas. You remember the llamas.

HOWEVER, there’s a giant owl terrorizing a small Dutch town.

Maybe the world is going crazy because music is going to start coming out on Fridays. What?!?!

Classic Alice has ONE WEEK LEFT. If you could give $5 or even $2 it would be really helpful, I swear.

Jay Carney is going to work for Amazon. Does that mean they'll start commenting on things??

I hope they find Lupita's dress.

Okay, something fun. Lego food!

Morning Coffee (2/26/15)

If you've wondered why I care so much about Classic Alice, this is why.

Bertrice Small has died. I haven't read her - I should rectify that! - but she was so, so important to the romance genre and women in publishing. Two great quotes from that obituary: "I do not write weak women" and "If you're going to undress a heroine, you'd better damn well know what she's got on underneath."

Aaaaah, I'm VERY EXCITED about this Brian Wilson biopic.

Perfect: Boston Is a YA Dystopian Novel

The Punisher: Jeb Bush and the Schiavos

Ooh, they're rebooting DuckTales.

This is much funnier than it sounds: A mysterious tunnel was discovered in a Toronto park. We have many, many questions.

"Edward’s taste tends to run to jewel-encrusted goblets, mahogany armchairs, and tapestries of King Harold being gouged in the eye."

Morning Coffee (2/19/15)

Happy Lunar New Year! The Google doodle is very cute. (Sheep-related, of course!)

Classic Alice creator Kate Hackett wrote an interesting financial breakdown of what exactly goes into making the show. Even if you don't watch this specific show, behind-the-scenes stuff like this is enlightening.

Obviously nothing about ISIS is funny, but . . . this is funny. CNN Uncovers ISIS’s Dastardly Scheme to Lure Western Women With Kittens and Nutella

Amazing: Pinterest deleted Rand Paul's fake Hillary Clinton page for a terms of service violation

New England's ridiculous winter, in 6 photos

Hillary Clinton's uncontested nomination is dangerous for her and her party

Apparently Nora Ephron hated blue. I guess everyone has to have some flaw.

17 Things From Target No Human Can Resist Buying

The Onion: Area Woman Not Good Enough Artist To Justify Eccentricities

Morning Coffee (2/17/15)

My dad, cousin, and aunt are going to be on Genealogy Roadshow tonight learning about our family! Tune in!

Classic Alice is tantalizingly close to 50% funded. Please chip in.

Sad news: Lesley Gore has died.

Jonathan Franzen Is a Parody of Jonathan Franzen

"I’ve heard about people who arrange their books by colour. These people are clearly ill and need help."

Ooh, Game of Thrones Monopoly!

And an Iron Throne MADE OF ICE.

I don't agree with 100% of this, but it makes some important points: We're Talking About Young Adult Fiction All Wrong

How One Stupid Tweet Blew Up Justine Sacco’s Life

The Onion: Man Under Mistaken Impression He His Own Harshest Critic

Morning Coffee (2/16/15)

Me elsewhere: TV news!

Did you see that the Classic Alice funding campaign was extended? There's an adorable video with puppets.

Former poet laureate Philip Levine has died.

Frick Collection masterpieces on show at the Mauritshuis in The Hague I saw this exhibition's mirror - when pieces from the Mauritshuis were at the Frick - and it was great.

Vermont Ex-Janitor Bequeaths Secret Millions to Library, Hospital

A Matchmaker and a Festival Keep an Irish Tradition Alive

Coffee chains in America, in one map

23 Problems Only Vampire Diaries Fans Understand

The Onion: Receipt Brazenly Placed In Bag Without Permission

Turns Out I Have No Idea What “Breaking On The Wheel” Means

Morning Coffee (2/13/15)

Sad news: David Carr has died.

On to your regularly scheduled happy Friday:

Chris Evans, with a beard, in plaid, talking about Transcendentalists. You're welcome.

My bookseller friend Jonny with an important message: Why books are the only Valentine’s Day present worth giving

16 Hilarious Literary Valentine's Day Cards

Speaking of, want some adorable Classic Alice valentines? Any donation gets you EIGHT.

Which "Shameless" Guy Should Be Your Valentine This Year? (I got JimmySteve, which . . . could be worse. Obviously the correct answer is Lip, but obviously I'd never get him because his quiz answers are all about sex and I want Lip for his BRAIN.)

This Is What A Cup Of Tea Looks Like In 22 Different Countries

A walk through the old pastry shops of downtown Tehran

How to Tell If You Are in a Logic Puzzle

Morning Coffee (2/12/15)

Donations to Classic Alice this week get you adorable valentines, on top of all the regular perks!

Important: I'm Brianna Wu, And I'm Risking My Life Standing Up To Gamergate

Local folks, this Hippo event app looks great.

These all sound good: 4 Small Press Books to Read in February

The amazing diversity of languages around the world, in one map

Why Americans Don't Read Foreign Fiction

Proposal for a Theme Park Draws From Crimea’s Distant Past

The Onion: Literary Study Finds All Modern Narratives Derived From Classic ‘Alien Vs. Predator’ Conflict

Two Medieval Monks Invent Dinner Parties

Morning Coffee (2/11/15)

Three Muslim college students were killed in North Carolina, and this is getting a shocking lack of coverage on major news sites.

Jon Stewart is leaving the Daily Show, and the end of Todd VanDerWerff's piece about it almost made me cry.

Check out my cousin's fundraiser for St. Baldrick's.

Fantasy readers, donating to Classic Alice in the next week gets you entered to win a signed, personalized book by the awesome Lev Grossman.

The Wheel of Time pilot story is crazy. Read Charlie Jane Anders and Todd VanDerWerff to understand.

Romance Gone Awry: Two Bad Breakups and One Ugly Accusation at Nicholas Sparks’s Christian Prep School

"There’s not a television show in the world casting actors in the hopes nobody will have any chemistry."

What Harper Lee's publisher owes her

Jane Austen family letters offer ‘deeply personal’ insight into author’s world

Morning Coffee (2/9/15)

Me elsewhere: Weekly TV news and an interview with Kate Hackett of Classic Alice.

Speaking of which, we're getting down to the wire. Please help Save Alice.

Don't miss Obama: The Vox Conversation.

The Grammy voting process is completely insane

Interesting: The year of outrage

It's a miracle that I haven't yet given in and subscribed to Acorn.

Proofreading is important!

Pride and Prejudice, explained in two charts

My friend did a lookbook shoot for Pyknic and now I want a whole bunch of their shirts.

Lines From Tina Brown’s The Diana Chronicles That Made Me Lose My Entire Jaw

Morning Coffee (2/3/15)

More Women Than Ever in Congress, but With Less Power Than Before

Headline of the day: German neo-Nazi party cancels protest after boarding wrong train

The Psychopaths of GamerGate Are All That's Left, and They're Terrifying

Here are yesterday's ALA Youth Media Award winners!

Curious about this Classic Alice thing I keep talking about? They have a shiny new trailer for the show, so that's a good place to start!

These videos have me very excited for the Casual Vacancy miniseries.

Life-changing: Here’s How to Turn on Chrome’s Mute Button for Obnoxious Audio Tabs

Lip Smackers are no more. Nooooo.

My friend Daye did some of the voices for new game Life Is Strange, and it looks really neat!

18 Reasons to Support Classic Alice

I've been tweeting and talking and Facebooking a lot about Classic Alice recently, and I figured it was past time to stop and explain why, and why I think this show deserves your support. I wrote a more formal review over at Read the Screen, but here's a more personal list of reasons why the show is important to me.

1. In the first episode, main character Alice says she "failed" an assignment when she in fact got a B-, and this is the moment at which I knew I'd LOVE HER FOREVER.

2. Alice isn't only a reader, but she reads classics.

3. So, yes, part of the point of the show is to encourage teens and young adults to read, and to read classics, and to think about what they're reading.

4. The fact that it deals with multiple books means the plot is much less predictable than on many book-related web series.

5. It's made by a young independent female creator/writer, and given the state of Hollywood, that's really important.

6. As she explains in the pitch video, showrunner/creator Kate Hackett is trying to actually pay her people fairly for their work, which is rarer than it should be in the world of online video.

7. There's a lot of plaid. I love plaid.

8. There's LGBT representation, including a coming out story presented in a way I haven't seen very often in media, and an awesome character who happens to be gay without that being their only important character trait.

9. There aren't just videos and tweets from the characters - there are PODCASTS too.

10. Also, could I interest you in an episode acted out by cats?

11. It understands the truly important thing about dresses.

12. Anyone for a Game of Thrones sock puppet show?

13. Alice loves lists and graphs and plans.

14. It's feminist.

15. Alice's career aspirations and development are an important part of the story.

16. It's not all about a boy.

17. But trust me, shippers, there's PLENTY of slow-burn swoony romance here. PLENTY. No, really.

18. And yet! THIS IS IMPORTANT:

@TheClassicAlice I'll probably to a reflect-y tumblr post but this is crazy important to me: RELATIONSHIPS SHOULD NOT BE THE END OF A STORY.
— Kate Hackett (@HackettKate) January 20, 2015

So please. Don't let this be the end of the story. Give it a look, and if any of these factors I've described are important to YOU, support the show. Every dollar helps.

Morning Coffee (1/12/15)

I'll have A WHOLE POST about this for you soon, because I feel very strongly, but Classic Alice is a web series that deserves your attention and any spare change you could throw its way.

Wondering what you need to know from the Golden Globes? Vox has you covered.

Have you seen the new Brain Soup Goes Gilmore book club, run by Emma Approved actress Dayeanne Hutton? This month's book is Emma!

WHAT. All Girls' High School Retouches Photos to Make Students Look Thinner

Ha. Hacked L.A. Traffic Sign Wants You To “Read A F*cking Book”

What's the first piece of recorded music you ever purchased? (Midori's Encore, I think.)

Classic literature gets a facelift in Russian bookstores

The New York Times Accidentally Invented a New Country, and the Internet's in Love

The Comments Section For Every Video Where Someone Does A Pushup

Web Series Recommendation: Classic Alice

I'm a late convert to web series, mostly because a) I am old and the world of YouTube confuses me and b) I've found it weirdly hard to remember to incorporate them into my media consumption routine. But! I've found a few I really like, and thought I'd start sharing, in case you too wish to enter the world of web series.

Classic Alice is an easy show to get started with because it's fairly early in its run, so you can catch up quickly without too much of a time investment. (Though trust me, it's worth the time.) The premise: Alice is a college student/bookworm who gets a bad grade on a paper because the professor doesn't think she's connecting with what she's reading. The grade? "He gave me a B-. I flunked. I failed." And that's the moment I knew I'd love Alice, because that kind of reaction is exactly me. Anyway. To deal with this and show that she can indeed connect to literature on an emotional level, she and her film student friend Andrew decide to make a documentary series in which she lives her life according to various works of literature, starting with Crime and Punishment. When I describe it that way, I worry it sounds a little boring, but trust me, it's not. The writing is a great mix of hilarious and earnest, and I became invested in Alice and Andrew (and Alice-and-Andrew) almost immediately. To watch all the videos in the proper order, just follow this playlist. And if you'd like to get more immersed in the world, the characters are on Twitter, Tumblr, and other social media as well, and you can read summaries of all that here. I also recommend this great interview with the creator and cast.

If you try Classic Alice, let me know what you think!

Morning Coffee (9/8/14)

The Duchess of Cambridge is expecting another baby! Eeeee!

And The Lizzie Bennet Diaries won Best Drama at the Streamy Awards! Eeeeeeee!

An Icy Answer to the Mystery of the Moving Death Valley Stones

Heads up, locals: Woman Discovers 'Rape Room' in Comic Book Store; Is Promptly Fired

Go ModCloth!

Apparently Adam Levine tried to teach Gwen Stefani to pronounce "Colbert." Well. Valiant attempt, Adam.

Tumblr of the Day: A Taxonomy of Mansplainers

Perfect: All The Comments on Every Recipe Blog