Book: "Ender's Game," by Orson Scott Card
Perhaps I'm opening myself to a world of derision, but this sci-fi book about a boy genius who helps mankind fight off aliens called "buggers" is frickin' awesome. If you weren't too ashamed to read Harry Potter, digest your Thankgiving turkey over Ender's adventures in battle school kicking insectoid butt. Or buy it for your little brother.
- John Beardsley
Music: "Pastures of Plenty," by Ramblin' Jack Elliott
So Bob Dylan idolized Woody Guthrie and wrote his first song about him, but Jack Elliott actually got to play with him and travel the same roads as he did. Elliott came just before Dylan in the club of Guthrie admirers, laying the foundation for 40 more years of American guitar men. This is Elliott's tributary throwback to the roads his idols walked for so many years. - John Beardsley
Movie: "Idlewild," directed by Bryan Barber (2006)
Andr Benjamin and Big Boi, also known as the hip-pop group OutKast, star in this musical set in the Prohibition South. Using songs from the band's new album, the film focuses on a speakeasy whose manager (Big Boi) is fighting gangsters and whose piano player (Benjamin) must choose between his commitments to his father and to his love. Idlewild is playing at the Hop on Wednesday and is guaranteed to be filled with energy and entertainment.
- Bailey Massey
TV: "Top Chef," BRAVO Wednesday at 9 p.m.
My replacement for Project Runway on Wednesdays is now Top Chef, Runway's culinary equivalent. The challenges are interesting and creative and the contestants are a good mix of fun, bitchy, and downright annoying. Any show where something like too much seasoning can be the difference between a win and an elimination is worth checking out. My only warning: don't watch on an empty stomach.
- Louisa McCarthy
