Word: gift
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...neighbors our annual frenzy of giving and getting. But now the pressure is on to make some kind of Christmas gesture to every Tom, Dick and Harry who happens along. Take the jolly receptionist in our dentist's office, who started showing up Dec. 1 dressed as a living gift to all humankind, with a huge red bow on the top of her head, ornamental-ball earrings and a scrub shirt in an eye-catching teddy-bear-and-wreath print. So what's my Christmas statement going to be? A simple Santa hat and sequined tree-pin combo, or should...
...bumptious codger Barney Panofsky of Barney's Version (Knopf; 368 pages; $25) is more than a familiar Richler hero. He is the author's fullest expression of the type: a pleasure-loving scoundrel with a generous romantic streak and a gift that can turn schmoozing into literature. Barney makes his sizable living producing Canadian-content TV series like McIver of the RCMP ("big on bonking scenes in canoes and igloos"). He calls his company Totally Unnecessary Productions, a name that flaunts his self-loathing but, more important, pre-empts the scorn of his artistic betters...
...only thing more sickening than the media's excessive coverage of the McCaughey septuplets is the all too obvious attempt by publicity-seeking "gift givers." Where are these companies when an underprivileged mother gives birth to her seventh child? Where are they when new parents can't afford to pay for the necessities? DONALD ROBINSON Lawrenceville...
...hope a few more generous folks will give the McCaugheys some very important things: free counseling when they are stressed out and overwhelmed and some weekend-getaway packages for just the two of them, so that they can spend time alone together and stay connected. The best gift for any child is a healthy and strong marriage shared by two loving parents. DIANNE NITZAHN Sherman Oaks, Calif...
Writing mostly for large ensemble, Roberts has an almost cinematic gift for juxtaposition. To those familiar with similar works by Marsalis, passages of New Orleans polyphony and Ellingtonian coloration will not be unexpected; surprises include raucous group improvisations that flirt with free jazz cacophony. But where Marsalis' music sometimes suffers from overthinking--forced passes from an all-pro quarterback--Blues rarely falters in its grooves. Thanks are due to irresistible rhythm sections, some compelling young soloists, and Roberts' compositional wit as he muscles his group through changes in rhythm and genre. This is a heady album, but it doesn...