** NPR has a story about the films and books that got a helluva lot of attention in 2011.

** Wow, this guy really doesn't like LeBron James. Here he talks about his book The Whore of Akron. Be warned - some naughty words.

** Writers for City Pages in the Twin Cities offer their top music picks from 2011. These guys are too cool for a nerdy blog like this, but I try to rock the place once in a while.