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Popular Culture January 2020
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Broadway : a history of New York City in thirteen miles
by Fran Leadon
A mile-by-mile history of Manhattan as reflected by its most celebrated street traces its origins as a muddy cow path in a 17th-century Dutch colony and its eventual transformation into a commercial and cultural thoroughfare of businesses, hotels and theaters reflecting the contributions of such figures as P. T. Barnum, Alexander Hamilton and Edgar Allan Poe.
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| Jay-Z: Made in America by Michael Eric Dyson; foreword by PharrellWhat it's about: Written to coincide with rapper Jay-Z's 50th birthday, this concise primer celebrates his artistry and cultural impact.
Is it for you? Longtime Jay-Z fans may not find much new info here, though curious newbies and lovers of cultural critique will appreciate Michael Eric Dyson's incisive study.
Try this next: Fans of Jay-Z's equally famous wife will want to pick up Queen Bey, a thought-provoking study of Beyoncé's artistry and activism, edited by Veronica Chambers. |
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| A Marvelous Life: The Amazing Story of Stan Lee by Danny FingerothWhat it is: an engaging and evenhanded biography of Marvel Comics editor Stan Lee that addresses his career triumphs and controversies.
Topics include: Lee's fight against comics censorship in the 1950s; legal battles with artists Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko; his cameos in Marvel films; his lasting influence on nerd culture.
Reviewers say: "This is a sure hit for comics fans of all camps" (Publishers Weekly). |
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| The World Only Spins Forward: The Ascent of Angels in America by Isaac Butler and Dan KoisWhat it is: a moving oral history of Angels in America, published to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning play's Broadway premiere.
Read it for: humorous anecdotes about the play's inauspicious early days of production; insights from actors like Meryl Streep, who remarks that Angels in America was "the Hamilton of its time."
Book buzz: The World Only Spins Forward was an NPR Best Book of 2018. |
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| Anatomy of a Song: The Oral History of 45 Iconic Hits That Changed Rock, R&B and Pop by Marc MyersWhat it is: a toe-tapping, genre-spanning, five-decade retrospective of 45 popular songs, full of insights from the artists who created them.
Featuring: "Please Mr. Postman;" "Stand by Your Man;" "Walk This Way;" "Heart of Glass;" "London Calling."
Don't miss: Mick Jagger setting the record straight about the drug-laden subtext of "Moonlight Mile." |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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