They say that you can’t, or shouldn’t, judge a book by its cover (a theory I don’t entirely agree with), and I suppose the same can be said for the title, but you’ve got to go by something! Anyway I found this title immediately compelling, for some reason…….

The Secret World of Doing Nothing by Billy Ehn and Orvar Löfgren

University of California Press, 2010

University of California Press, 2010

This book seeks to explore and explain what is going on when we’re not actually doing anything, whether it’s waiting for public transport, looking into space in the doctor’s office, or daydreaming on the way to work; or at work! Is it a game, is it creative, do we “wait” differently in different situations? You’ll just have to read the book to find out, if you can be bothered. And just remember, the next time you describe something as a “non-event”, it might actually have been one! Huh?

Patrick Procktor : art and life by Ian Massey

Unicorn Press, 2010

Unicorn Press, 2010

Just why some figures reach giddy heights of fame while others fly closer to the ground remains, at times, a mystery.  Patrick Procktor was a bit of a wunderkind in the heady days of the sixties, along with his friend and artistic colleague David Hockney, but whereas Hockney went on to become one of the most recognisable artists in the world Procktor’s name receded into semi-obscurity. Which is why we must thank Ian Massey for this lovely book detailing an extraordinary life and packed full of Procktor’s beautiful prints, watercolours and paintings; many of which are surprisingly familiar!

 Comic-con : 40 years of artists, writers, fans & friends

Chronicle Books, 2009

Chronicle Books, 2009

 

A book detailing the history of a convention? Ordinarily not the type of thing to excite the punters, but Comic-Con in San Diego isn’t your normal convention, and this explosively colourful book isn’t your normal history! Founded in 1970 by a group of comic book and science-fiction fans, Comic-Con in San Diego has become one of the biggest comic book/popular culture gatherings in the world; the 2010 convention attracted over 130,000 visitors! Makes the last Library convention I attended seem somewhat niche…..

Include me out : my life from Goldwyn to Broadway by Farley Granger with Robert Calhoun

St. Martin's Press, 2007

St. Martin's Press, 2007

Yet more stars in heaven. Farley Granger had one of the more interesting, if low-key, Hollywood careers. Best remembered for his appearance in two notable Hitchcock films, the wildly perverse Rope and equally off-centre Strangers on a Train, he brought a sophisticated intensity to his screen roles and an engagingly open and candid honesty to his off-screen life, as detailed in this extremely readable memoir. He passed away on March 27.

  

 

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