Is Rachel Ray a Terrorist?

The LA Times reports "It's a slow news day when conservatives attack Rachael Ray for wearing a kaffiyeh-style scarf in a Dunkin' Donuts ad," resulting in Dunkin' pulling their ad. Fox News commentator Michelle Malkin is an idiot for saying: "The kaffiyeh, for the clueless, is the traditional scarf of Arab men that has come to symbolize murderous Palestinian jihad." Way to fan the flames of intolerance there, Ms. Stupid Face. And Dunkin', come on, grow some balls.

Now while Rachel may terrorize the airwaves and bookstores with her brand of happy drunk cooking (I love it when you can tell she's nipped a little too many times at the wine on 30 Minute Meals) what is the real threat here? Her fashion sense? Or could it be that Malken knows that Rachel has a recipe for an Ice Cream Bomb that's set to go off at any moment.

-Slunchie

ps: Ummmmmmmm, what's wrong with this photo?

The Other(s) Literary Event of the Week

Tonight, is the season finale of LOST on ABC (as if you couldn't remember). So why is it also the other literary event of the week? That would be because this most awesome of shows on television since the first season of Twin Peaks is chock full of literary references that give us CLUES such as C.S. Lewis, Wizard of Oz, Watership Down, Wrinkle in Time (oh Sawyer, is there nothing you won't read?), The Third Policeman, Carrie, Of Mice and Men, the list goes on and on. So, go get some wine and a big 'ol tub of Ranch Dressing (Hurley's favorite) and hunker down for your 2 hour fix.

-Slunchtern

So, you're not at BEA either?

This is a wonderful time for us low level peons in the publishing industry. We're not important enough to go to BEA, even though we bust our asses, work through lunches, stay late (but rarely show up early). So, now is our time to SLACK OFF, at least a little while the boss is hob-nobbin' it in LA for the rest of the week.

So lets treat ourselves to an extra smoke break, or, (gasp) a long lunch, surf a couple extra hours on the intertubes, and leave on time (or a little early) for once.

-Slunchie

My Pet President

Former White House press secretary Scott McClellan's memoir has the White House in a tizzy today. My favorite bit of this story is that administration spokeswoman Dana Perino said "the book has been described to the president."

I wonder how that conversation went. I imagine something like this: "Well, you see, it's a book. It's rectangular and inside it are many pages with something called words. These words are linked together to form a sentence. Still with me Gee Dub?"

-Deathtron

Is Emily Gould the New Sloane Crosley?

Let's compare, shall we?

Publishing Experience:

• Emily used to be an associate editor at Hyperion and now blogs for Galleycat.
• Sloane is the associate director of publicity at Vintage/Anchor

Books:

• Emily is the co-author of some YA novel called Hex Education
• Sloane is the author of the New York Times bestselling essay collection, I Was Told There Would Be Cake

Gawker Connection:

• Emily is a former co-editor of the blog. It now mocks her.
• Sloane has never worked for the blog but is still mocked repeatedly.

Freelance writing pieces:

• Emily has had articles published in the New York Times op-ed section, Radar, Bookslut, and the New York Observer.
• Sloane has had pieces published in the New York Times, Village Voice, Maxim, BlackBook Magazine, Playboy, and the New York Observer.

Jimmy Kimmel:

• Emily was torn a new asshole by JK when he guest-hosted on Larry King Live.
• To my knowledge, Sloane has no connection to Jimmy.

Over-exposure:

• Emily's piece has spawned coverage in media outlets such as NPR, Slate, Atlantic, L.A. Times, New York Observer, Huffington Post, Philadelphia Weekly, New York Magazine's CultureVulture, Wired online, countless websites and blogs, and of course, Gawker.
• Sloane's book got her coverage in New York Observer, New York Times, Daily Candy, Radar, San Francisco Chronicle, Publishers Weekly, New York Magazine, Forbes, Newsweek Online, Paste, Salon, Gawker, etc.

Connection to one another:

• Emily interviewed Sloane for Radar

Hair:

• Emily's looks a bit lackluster and even in a little greasy in one of the pics.
• Sloane has been proven to have the shiniest hair in the publishing.

Slunch opinion:

• Emily is a nice girl and a funny blogger, but "Exposed" was the most boring, self-involved piece that I have ever read in the New York Times Magazine. Appropriate for Glamour? Maybe. But the New York Times?? No way. DO NOT WANT.
• Sloane is a nice girl and a good publicist, but the coverage of I Was Told There Would Be Cake was ridiculous. Is Sloane a good writer? Sure. Is she good enough to merit more coverage than all the other authors. Um, no.

So, there you have it. Young, cute ladies with publishing connections trying to make it as writers. Unfortunately for them, while the connections they have made may help them "further" their career, they also might piss off their peers to the point of never-ending mockery and skepticism about their true abilities.

Oh, also, I think Sloane wins the battle. New York Times bestselling books trumps cover story of New York Times Magazine.

--Paige Sexie

See you in Cali!

I know it's Wednesday, and the week is half over, but come on. It's BEA week. We're all swamped. So the literary event of the week is, duh, Book Expo. Come enjoy the California sun and beaches by sitting in a dark convention center during the day and getting wasted on free booze at night. Here's to all of our inevitable hangovers. Oh, yeah, I think there's some panels and stuff too.

Do tell,

The Editor