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The 10 Best Literary Songs for a Bookish Dance Party

(Image via latimesblog.latimes.com)

Long has the world believed that the kids at the rock shows could never be the same ones devouring books in their free time. Of course, "the world" is wrong about a lot of stuff, but they definitely missed the mark when it comes to smarts and songs. We've collected ten great pop and rock classics for your partying pleasure. Rock on and read on!

Posted by Margarita Montimore

Worst-Case Wednesday: How To Keep Beverages Cool In The Desert

Every Wednesday, we offer advice and strategies to survive all of the most dire and urgent circumstances, as well as some of the more common scenarios we all deal with.

This week we've got an excerpt from The Worst-Case Scenario Almanac: Great Outdoors. Mad Max and Imperator Furiosa may live in a waterless desert, but that's no excuse for letting their beer get tepid! If only they had known these tricks for keeping beverages cool, maybe they could have just tipped back a few cold ones with Immortan Joe and talked out their issues. Well, probably not. At least you can beat that summer heat if you ever find yourself in the Sahara with a six-pack!

Posted by Hannah Frank

Pop Sonnets Summer Jams: LFO’s Summer Girls

For the next few weeks, Pop Sonnets author Erik Didriksen will debut a weekly Shakespearean sonnet inspired by a classic summer jam. To kick the series off, we're taking it back to the '90s, when "New Kids on the Block had a bunch of hits…"  

 

Posted by Erik Didriksen

From Page to Pez: Literary Characters that are also Candy

image via jayorama.com

June is National Candy Month, and sure you could read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory or some other candy-coated book, maybe even indulge in a chick lit novel with Necco hearts on the cover—and while those are both fine, bookish ways to mark the holiday, why not step it up this year and eat your favorite literary character?

Pez has been making candy in Austria since 1927. Its famous dispensers have been around since 1948, with Santa and Mickey making their monumental debuts in the 1950s. But these days, if you can name that cartoon character, you can find its Pez dispenser—from Tom and Jerry to Batman to Mulan to Monsters, Inc.

Some of those lovable candy-popping heads started as books. So below we honor those that have gone from the page to the Pez.

Posted by Diana R. Wallach

EXCLUSIVE William Shakespeare’s Star Wars Sonnet: “Hark! With this tale, encounter Jango Fett”

Episode II in the William Shakespeare's Star Wars series, The Clone Army Attacketh, goes on sale on July 7th! To celebrate, author Ian Doescher will be releasing exclusive sonnets each week, dedicated to the new characters you'll encounter in this latest tale set in a clash-strewn galaxy far, far away.

Posted by Ian Doescher

Your Best (Bookish) Week in NYC: June 22nd – 26th

Summer is officially here, but don’t let the heat get you down. There are still plenty of cool ways for you to have the best bookish day in New York City.  Whether you check out the historic sites of Dorothy Parker’s childhood on the Upper West Side, or visit the lions at the New York Public Library, make sure to tweet at us to let us know where you went.

Posted by Jennifer Morell