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lifestyle January 29, 2012 3:38 AM
The Silent Girl: A Rizzoli & Isles Novel by Tess Gerritsen
Buffalo & Erie County Public Library Staff Review by Patricia Covley:
Don't confuse the books in this series with the TNT television show.  The books are much darker and the characters are better developed.  In The Silent Girl, Rizzoli and Isles are called to a crime scene in Boston's Chinatown when a young boy discovers a severed hand.  Jane Rizzoli, her partner Barry Frost and medical examiner Maura Isles are called to the scene.  A woman's body matching the hand is discovered on a nearby rooftop, decapacitated.  Isles discovers that the weapon used to kill the woman was a sword.
The detectives discover a tie-in between the current homicide and an infamous Chinatown multiple murder from twenty years earlier.  The reader is kept guessing as the detectives use every tool from Chinese folklore to modern forensic science to solve the mystery.  The plot kept me guessing
lifestyle January 29, 2012 1:19 AM
Second Chance Sundays: Baby Spike
Buffalo loves its animals. Did you know that by 2014 Erie County will have adopted a no-kill system? Second Chance Sheltering Network, Inc. is an all-volunteer, not-for-profit animal rescue group serving the Western New York area.  Their goal is to help place homeless animals while simultaneously helping interested individuals find a new furry companion.  Every Sunday, we run a homeless pet spotlight to help these animals find a good home with a loving family. Please consider
lifestyle January 27, 2012 4:10 PM
The FVC’s 3rd Annual Open Audition Winter Casting Call Event
By J Garrett Vorreuter:
Did you ever want to be a movie star? Or a television personality? Well what are you waiting for? Join us this Saturday, January 28th from 12pm - 6pm at DBGB's (253 Allen Street) when the organizers behind the Film Video Collective (www.thefvc.com) and the Buffalo 48 Hour Film Project, host The FVC's 3rd Annual Open Audition Winter Casting Call Event, where many of the region's most active filmmakers, producers and commercial production companies will be there in attendance. 
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lifestyle January 19, 2012 1:03 PM
Brother Keep Makes Their Buffalo Debut with Patchwork Walls
By Kayla Clark:
It was at track three ("Pulse") that I knew Patchwork Walls was going to be an album I'd be forced to leave on repeat for quite a while.  Singer/guitarist Nick Sessanna's strong delivery and singer/keyboardist Chrissy Krolewicz's lilting background presence meld together to create a rather desirable male/female vocal dynamic.  Patchwork Walls combines the band's established influences like Brand New and Arcade Fire with their own Western New York inspirations to create a unique, indie rock sound all their own.  Songs
lifestyle January 19, 2012 7:58 AM
VIGILANT VARLETS
Brazen Faced Varlets presents WORDS OF CHOICE. 
"The price of freedom is eternal vigilance." - Thomas Jefferson. 
Brazen-Faced Varlets, a Buffalo-based feminist thespian troupe which promotes artistic growth, announced the receipt of a Pro-Choice Foundation grant to produce and present WORDS OF CHOICE!
WORDS OF CHOICE, arranged by Cindy Cooper, includes excerpts from the works of many advocates of reproductive freedom. The production has been showcased all around the country, creating a venue
Recent Photos[ BR Flickr ]
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lifestyle January 18, 2012 4:55 PM
Inspired by Nature
By Jessica Edwards:
The ASID (American Society of Interior Design) Student Chapter at Buffalo State College will be hosting an art installation this Saturday (8:00pm to 11:00pm), at the Big Orbit Gallery on Essex Street. 
The interactive exhibit is based on the concept of sustainable design. The artwork being showcased is created from all recycled materials. The students selected their materials from various places... estate sale purchases, garbage picked objects, items from their homes, and even old art pieces were used to create new
lifestyle January 10, 2012 10:16 AM
BLACK TIE
THE BASICS: This long one act by Buffalo native A. R. Gurney is making its WNY debut this month at the Kavinoky Theatre. Directed by Chris Kelly, and starring Peter Palmisano and Saul Elkin, BLACK TIE runs weekends through January 29th. It runs approximately 90 minutes.
SIDEBAR: "Pete" Gurney is a naturalist of sorts. He has spent the lion's share of his creative life studying the life cycle, preferences and habits of a single species: the Great Dinner-Dressed (read: Tuxedoed), Silver Spooned WASP. Here, as in THE DINING ROOM and many others, Gurney
lifestyle January 8, 2012 9:53 AM
Give a girl an inch: Hedwig and the Angry Inch opens at ALT Theatre
HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH, is a rock musical written by John Cameron Mitchell, with music and lyrics by Stephen Trask. The musical premiered in 1998 off Broadway, where it ran for a couple years and racked up both Obie and Outer Circle Critics awards. It has since been performed all over and has finally come to Buffalo in this excellent ALT production. 
Mr. Mitchell starred in the 2001 film version of HEDWIG, which I recall as a somewhat muddled and confused affair, a result which could well be derived from the sometimes confusing material. The stage version
lifestyle January 8, 2012 8:34 AM
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
Buffalo & Erie County Public Library Staff Review by Michelle Snyder:
The first line of Daughter of Smoke and Bone grabs you and doesn't let go: "Once upon a time an angel and a devil fell in love. It did not end well."  
Laini Taylor has an imagination that knows no bounds and the world she created is rich and beautiful. Daughter of Smoke and Bone opens in the mysterious and beautiful city of Prague, following the life of Karou, an art student with natural blue hair, unexplained eye tattoos on her
lifestyle January 8, 2012 6:21 AM
Two Furry Friends For The New Year
It's 2012 and and with the new year comes a couple of homeless cats that we are featuring who would make great companions for anyone who's feeling down with the blues. There's nothing like a feline pick-me-up when you're feeling a little lonely. Also, when the snow is falling, and there's a chill in the air, you always know that there's a warm furry friend waiting for you when you return home. 
Ms. Haley is a 6 year old, DECLAWED, bundle of love who is a bi-product of a move to a new apartment where they can't have pets (see lead photo).  Wouldn't you think
lifestyle January 2, 2012 3:39 PM
Sugar City - The Return of Trailer Trash
If you're like me and you enjoy a really, really bad movie, then you need to attend the next installment of Sugar City's upcoming Free Classic Films Series - The Return of Trailer Trash: Trailers from the Golden Age of Grindhouse*. You've seen the best... now it's time to see (trailers) from the rest. If you've ever watched a Something Weird video, then no doubt you've seen the hilarious trailer that screens before the title feature starts? Well, if you're a fan of that sort of trailer than just wait to see what your schlock-loving friends at Sugar City have compiled.
On
lifestyle December 27, 2011 12:20 AM
Cornell University Glee Club Performing at St. Louis R.C. Church on January 15

The Cornell University Glee Club will be performing at St. Louis Roman Catholic Church (Main @ Edward) on Sunday, January 15th at 4:30 PM as part of their 2012 Midwest Tour. The concert will feature selections relating to this year's theme of "conflict and reconciliation," including Lee Hoiby's "Last Letter Home" , the title piece of their latest CD release.  While on tour, the Glee Club will also be premiering their commissioned work: "Sonnet 73", by University of Chicago composer Shulamit Ran. 

Tickets for this concert are now

lifestyle December 23, 2011 12:01 AM
Ice Ball to Ring in 2012 and Celebrate Statler Work

The Ice Ball promises to be one of the year's signature events.  It will also allow thousands to see the work that Mark Croce has completed since buying the shuttered landmark just nine months ago.  New Year's Eve revelers will have access to nine different venues in the Statler that will feature five different bands, two DJs, a five hour long buffet by Buffalo Chophouse and five hours of premium open bar starting at 9 PM.  Over 3,000 guests are expected.

For months, work crews have been focusing on the Statler's public areas and banquet rooms to allow weddings, meetings

lifestyle December 22, 2011 6:46 PM
Cutieville by Ogre
There's an artist out there for everyone. Some people like artwork that features frilly flowers, while others are drawn to works of art that portrays the more surreal and bizarre. In-between there are countless creations that lead us to discovering painted worlds the likes that only artists can conceptualize and deliver. 
Whether you're visiting an exhibit at the Burchfield-Penney or standing in front of a mural in Black Rock, artists manage to find a way to deliver messages to us in a way that is both intended and unintended. That's because art is subjective.
lifestyle December 21, 2011 2:03 PM
Fashion Maniac: The Dos and Don’ts of Holiday 2011
Fashion Maniac: Keeping tabs on Buffalo's fashion industry, including models, catwalks, retailers, designers, stylists, visual merchandisers and jewelers. 
The Dos and Don'ts of Holiday 2011 - Dressing by Phillip D. Johnson: 
If you are a society dame or a Junior League socialite, dressing for the upcoming holiday parties is a no-brainer. You are simply wearing more of the same clothing you wore to the Fire & Ice Ball in November, the three cancer benefits you attended in October, the Metropolitan Opera's Grand Opening
lifestyle December 11, 2011 10:02 AM
Boyd’s Blues
By Joseph M. Verrastro:
Blues that have been cooking in the mind of Boyd Lee Dunlop for seventy plus years were uncorked to a packed house at Asbury Church last evening.  Boyd is a musician discovered by chance by photographer Brendan Bannon at the Western New York nursing home where Boyd resides. The chain of events that followed that encounter resulted in Boyd's life long dream to record an album and lead a band in a performance of his work. Lucky for us!
A frail but raring Boyd was introduced and immediately got down to the
lifestyle December 11, 2011 9:26 AM
Divergent by Veronica Roth
Buffalo & Erie County Public Library Staff Review by Peggy Errington:
Teen novel Divergent takes place in a dystopian future version of Chicago.  Here children are born into one of five factions, each of which is dedicated to a certain attribute - and each is equally certain that its opposite is the root of the breakdown of civilization:  Abnegation (service), Candor (truth), Dauntless (fearlessness), Amity (peacemaker) or Erudite (intellect).  Each resident is administered an aptitude test at the age of 16 identifying the
lifestyle December 11, 2011 12:07 AM
Purrrfect for the Holidays!
We all know how lonely the holidays can be lonely for some people. Fortunately there are friends right around the corner - furry friends who are in need of homes and good families to take care of them. Your care will come back in the form of purrs!
This beautiful 5 year old, orange tiger male is a real sweetheart.  He was a by product of another home foreclosure where his owners took all their property and left him behind to fend for himself.  A kind neighbor saw him sitting on the steps, waiting for his owners to come back and let him in, unfortunately they
lifestyle December 10, 2011 9:55 AM
The Robot Holiday Tradition Continues
Everyone needs to take a relaxing Robot Holiday at least once a year. The stress of human life can be oh so taxing. This Sunday consider retiring to the Sportsmens Tavern on Amherst Street to take in the clicks, buzzes and zaps of Robot Holiday music as performed by Buffalo's most eccentric and nostalgic musicians. Not only will you get to experience the incredible transformation of The Sportsmen Tavern into a genuine roadhouse venue (see photos), you will also be able to sing along to electro-synth
lifestyle December 7, 2011 11:59 AM
THE ADDAMS FAMILY
THE BASICS: The National Tour of this new musical, based upon celebrated creations of cartoonist Charles Addams, plays nightly at the Shea's Buffalo through December 11th. The book, by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elise, and songs by Andrew Lippa have both seen extensive revision. Jerry Zaks is now supervising the operation. THE ADDAMS FAMILY runs approximately 2 ½ hours with its one intermission.
THUMBNAIL SKETCH: NYC, present day. All seems to be well with the Biggle Apple's weirdest nuclear family until daughter Wednesday, now grown up, falls for the

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