It is hard to believe that I stayed up all night with a teen novel, a vampire one at that. Twilight (film rights to MTV) took hold almost immediately and I was furiously turning pages (498 of them) – riveted, spooked and delightedly hooked. The basic storyline is one of a pair of 17 year-old star-crossed lovers, except for one fabulous twist – Bella is a potential meal for Edward, who is a vampire.
I don’t want to give too much away here but you could read up on the reviews. When you have the book in hand, plan on an all-nighter. And don’t go looking for other novels by Stephanie Meyer, this is her first! Let's hope she is working on the next one.

November is upon us and that can only mean that Hollywood will soon be rolling out its holiday lineup. Personally, I'm looking forward to the live-action version of Aeon Flux. Originally a series of animated short films created for MTV's Liquid Television, Aeon Flux tells the story of an extremely acrobatic female secret agent from a futuristic universe. Charlize Theron will play the title character in the film to be released in early December. We'll see if she can do justice to her animated counterpart. Meanwhile, if you want to take a look at other works by the original series creator, Korean American animator Peter Chung, check out Reign: The Conqueror and "Matriculated" in The Animatrix.

AADL-GT: Ann Arbor District Library Game Tournaments

Round 3 is behind us, and with Round 4 fast approaching, at long last, here are the full results from the October tournament.

Round 3 began with Super Smash Brothers Single-player melee, with 80 competitors registered. With 3 qualifying matches per player, and our systems running smoothly, we had time for seeded 1v1 eliminations, which worked out quite well. In the semifinals, Round 1 Melee Champion [gtplayer:136] was bested by [gtplayer:355], season leader [gtplayer:143] was beaten by [gtplayer:427], [gtplayer:357] fell to emerging force [gtplayer:326], and [gtplayer:396] was beaten by his own big brother, the right honourable [gtplayer:325]. The final match was a vicious 4-player melee, with [gtplayer:325] again proving his Melee Mastery, [gtplayer:326] taking second, [gtplayer:427] taking third, and [gtplayer:355] finishing fourth.

More after the jump...

Today on Talk of the Nation guests discussed Wal-Mart's recent efforts to improve its public image in the wake of criticism over treatment of workers and an apparently scathing new documentary titled Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price (on order). While you're waiting for the new DVD, you may want to try the 2004 PBS Frontline title Is Wal-mart Good for America?, left.

Also coming soon, another adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, this time starring Keira Knightley. Surprisingly, this is only the second big screen version of the novel by Jane Austen (the first being the 1940 Hollywood classic starring Greer Garson and Laurence Olivier), but the Library owns both the 1985 BBC version and the wildly popular 1995 BBC miniseries, left, starring Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth. P&P was also the source for the 2004 Bollywood musical Bride and Prejudice.

According to Variety, Jarhead, Hollywood's take on the United States' initial offensive against the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein doesn't come close to David O. Russell's Three Kings. The book, however, written by Anthony Swofford in 2003, is "a witty, profane, down-in-the-sand account of the war" and "a worthy addition to the battlefield memoir genre." (Publisher's Weekly).

Graphic Novel fans, mark your calendars for November 6th, to hear Kurt Hassler talk about GRAPHIC NOVELS. Who is Kurt Hassler? He the major selector of graphic novels for Borders bookstores across the country. Kurt will share his new top pics and also classic authors, artists, and titles that shouldn't be missed. Come ready to talk about your faves! Sunday, November 6th, 2:00-3:30 pm @MC, Grades 6-12.

Here are just a few of the high points in the history of cinematic horror...

1920: The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari: This German expressionist classic would go on to influence horror, science fiction, and film noir.

1922: Nosferatu: Actor Max Schrek, who took his role perhaps a little too seriously, is the creepiest vampire in film history. (Schrek's performance is memorably rendered by Willem Dafoe in Shadow of the Vampire.)

1925: Phantom of the Opera: Lon Chaney becomes the first major horror film star.

Out with the old thread, in with the new..

News: Play Mario Kart at McDonalds?!

Fun stuff: Watch the .gif version of Star Wars Ep. IV.

The AADL Rock Paper Scissors tournament will be happening in the Multipurpose Room, Downtown Library this Saturday from 2 to 4 p.m. Chris and his wife, Christina, our local RPS heroes and referees of this weekend's tournament, didn't place in last weekend's World Championships in Toronto but will have plenty of stories about their adventures. Snacks provided. Prizes for the top three finishers.