Blog Ritemail: 2011-07-17

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Summer 2011 Issue of Goblin Fruit

The latest issue of Goblin Fruit (Summer 2011) is now online for your reading pleasure. Of particular interest to readers here will be Post-Modern Cinderella by Seanan McGuire, who has become quite popular as the author of the October Daye series.

Also, for Little Mermaid enthusiasts, don't miss The Sea Witch Talks Show Business by Elizabeth R. McClellan.

Then there's A Shining Spindle Can Still Be Poisoned by Amanda C. Davis for those who like Sleeping Beauty.

And just to entice you even more, here is the table of contents for the issue:

Note from the Editors

A Silver Splendour, a Flame: Act I by Catherynne M. Valente

Where Is Apollo? by Liz Bourke

Said the Satyr to the Wood Nymph by Shawna Lenore Kastin

Coyote's Blues by Tala Eirsdottir

Cleaving by Brock Marie Moore

Eurydice Variations (2) by Kathryn Hinds

A Shining Spindle Can Still Be Poisoned by Amanda C. Davis

The Domestic Sundial by Nin Harris

Post-Modern Cinderella by Seanan McGuire

The Sea Witch Talks Show Business by Elizabeth R. McClellan

Pandora: An Afterthought by Kayleigh Ayn Bohémier

Eurydice Variations (4) by Kathryn Hinds

Love Song by Rosalind Casey

Freyja by Nina Pelaez

World's End by Becca de la Rosa

Friday, July 22, 2011

World’s Top 10 Countries With Fastest Trains

10. Russia

Train: Siemens Velaro RUS
Top Speed: 175 mph
Capacity: 600 passengers

Russia’s fastest high-speed train runs on the Moscow-St. Petersburg line, and made its debut in December 2009. The German-built Velaro RUS trains, also known as the Sapsan, have cut the travel time for the 401-mile route from eight hours to three hours and 45 minutes. The 10-car passenger trains operate at a maximum speed of 155 mph, but hit a speed record of 175 mph during trials in 2009. The eight high-speed trains are worth nearly $1 billion. Russia is eager to expand its high-speed rail network ahead of hosting the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The country has invited foreign investors to bid on development contracts for new lines that will link its cities.

Here we compiled a list of the countries with world’s fastest trains based on the maximum speed measured in miles per hour (mph). We’ve included record speeds hit during trial runs on electric and magnetic levitation (Maglev) trains, as well as those of experimental models. The numbers are based on a series of publicly available reports, as well as information from organizations such as the Railway Gazette International and the Center for Asia Pacific Aviation. More after the break...

Guess Who ?

Guess the indian Politician...

Skateboard Fail Stunt — Video

Skateboard Fail Stunt....Video after the break.

Emma Watson to Headline Beauty and the Beast

Two years ago there were rumors of a Cinderella film with Emma Watson that never came to fruition. No surprise. That's Hollywood. Now with all of the end of the saga Harry Potter buzz, the news mill is announcing that Emma is slated not to play Cinderella but Beauty/Belle in Beauty and the Beast.

From Emma Watson to Headline Beauty and the Beast at ComingSoon.net:

The eternally-busy Guillermo del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth) may have already lined-up another upcoming project. Crazy, Stupid, Love producer Denise Di Novi told ComingSoon.net at that film's New York junket today that she's developing an adaptation of Beauty and the Beast alongside del Toro and that Emma Watson is lined up to star.

I'm just happy it's not another Snow White. Snow White is everywhere in the next year. And, well, I prefer Emma over Kirsten Stewart and I also prefer Beauty and the Beast, so this one appeals that way, too.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

ABC's Once Upon a Time Movie Posters

Just in time for the preview of the pilot and a cast panel at Comic-Con this Saturday, ABC has released five posters to promote the upcoming Once Upon a Time series.

From San Diego Comic-Con 2011: First Look At Five Once Upon A Time Posters by Masked Slasher:

Those of you at Comic-Con looking for the "Once Upon a Time" events, we've got 'em right here: Saturday, July 23rd from 3:15 to 4:15 pm PT, check out the pilot episode in Room 6DE (airing October 23). Stick around afterward for a panel discussion featuring series co-creators Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz and cast members Jennifer Morrison, Ginnifer Goodwin, Robert Carlyle, Lana Parrilla and Josh Dallas. The festivities are to be moderated by Damon Lindelof, which will be followed by an autograph session in Room 28C.

The buzz for this one is excellent and ABC is giving it a much bigger seal of approval with a Sunday night air date unlike NBC which has put Grimm on Friday nights. Alas, the show doesn't premiere for the rest of us until October 23rd, but it looks like it may be worth the wait. I will post more feedback from the Comic-Con viewers.

Sean Bean cast as Snow White's father

From Sean Bean cast as Snow White's father in Julia Roberts fairy tale by Anthony Breznican:

Sean Bean is in talks to join the as-yet-untitled fairy-tale adventure starring Julia Roberts as the Evil Queen, according to sources close to the production. The English actor’s deal is nearly finished, and he will join the production already underway in Montreal. Lily Collins plays the title character in the movie (due March 16), while The Social Network‘s Armie Hammer co-stars as the prince caught between them as the innocent Snow White is manipulated and menaced by her wicked stepmother.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Mythopoeic Awards: 2011 Winners Announced

The Victorian Press and the Fairy Tale (Palgrave Studies in Nineteenth-Century Writing and Culture)

Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C. S. Lewis

The Mythopoeic Awards 2011 Winners were announced this week and a fairy tale title received the nonfiction honor. I am happy for that win--and no, I haven't read the book--and thrilled that Megan Whalen Turner also won for The Queen's Thief series. It is one of my favorites and she is always on auto buy for me.

Myth & Fantasy Studies

The Victorian Press and the Fairy Tale (Palgrave Studies in Nineteenth-Century Writing and Culture) by Caroline E. Sumpter

Children’s Literature

The Queen of Attolia (The Queen's Thief, Book 2)

The Thief (The Queen's Thief, Book 1)
The Queen of Attolia (The Queen's Thief, Book 2)
The King of Attolia
A Conspiracy of Kings (Thief of Eddis)

Adult Literature

Redemption in Indigo: a novel by Karen Lord

Inklings Studies

Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C. S. Lewis by Michael Ward

The Big Deal on EBooks

Amazon has a discounted ebooks promotion running through July 27th called The Big Deal with over 950 titles. The books range from $.99 to $3.99. I picked up a few that I owned in paper since I am addicted to ereader reading these days, especially big books. A month ago I accidentally killed my Kindle with a freak accident on a Friday night and was at Target buying a Kindle Special Offers to survive the weekend despite guilt over the price. (My husband, bless him, didn't blink because he KNOWS.) I also ended up getting my two existing Kindles replaced with refurbished ones by a very helpful Amazon staff, but I couldn't wait for shipping over the weekend. Now we own three and the special offers Kindle has almost paid for itself with the deals I've received on it in less than six weeks, so guilt be gone. The special offers Kindle is also now available in the 3G edition, meaning you don't need wifi to use it. I prefer the 3G for traveling because I have downloaded a few books in unusual places and thus preserved my sanity.

I work with books all day long. I will always love them. Reading is almost equivalent to breathing for me. But when I am relaxing, I prefer the little device with the simple bookmarking and highlighting. It is light weight and one fisted or even hands free reading with adjustable text size. The book/device disappears and I am a happy, happy reader. And I admit I enjoy reading the shared highlights of other readers, too. It adds a shared reading experience that I never anticipated.

And now for some titles, most fantasy that might appeal here although pretty much all genres and interests are represented in the sale. Some are repeats from previous sales, some are not: