10 Novels That We Dare You to Finish

10 Novels That We Dare You to Finish:

Peter Nadas’s novel Parallel Stories, which will be released this November, clocks in at well over 1,000 pages. In an interview with New York, the Hungarian author queried, “Why wouldn’t ­Musil, Mann, or Broch be my contemporaries?” In honor of his ambition, we’ve compiled a list of 10 novels that could also function as doorstops if you decide to give up on them. Maybe you’ve tried to impress your friends by casually mentioning that you’re finally reading Proust, or you’re the annoying person on the train with the weighty tome in both hands, jostling into your fellow passengers because you can’t spare a free hand — whatever the reason, we salute you, foolhardy readers. Have any of you finished the following novels with ease? If so, let us know in the comments section.

Parallel Stories by Peter Nadas

Page count: 1152

Year released: 2011

Time it took to write the damn thing: 18 years

Story: This novel will be released in the late fall, and New York calls it “an ungodly book — about capitalism and the Church, about communism and no Church; Hungarian nationalists and ­Jewish lumber merchants; gay intelligence officers in Budapest bathhouse bacchanals and Gypsy Gastarbeiters. All of Magyardom seems to be in it, along with wide demographic swaths of Italy, France, Austria, and, especially, Germany.”

DIY: Air-Dried Porcelain

DIY: Air-Dried Porcelain:

Stay with us on this one. The post, the photos, the name is really cutesy, we recognize that. But, we think this crafty project has some serious potential for really affordable, modern accessories for your home. Ready? Okay, so this is a recipe for air-dried porcelain made from homemade ingredients. Probably concocted for summer projects for kids to make things to give their parents or something. But, look beyond the small animal figurines to think about how you could use these ingredients, which when dry will become air-dried porcelain, to make really organic, abstract, natural-feeling accessories. Maybe they could be soft lumps that just have a neat shape. Maybe you make some spheres. Maybe you make a loose representation of a bird or some other modern motif. Maybe even a crude, really rough vessel. The idea is that you could make a vignette of homemade air-dried porcelain accessory figurines that would look like something expensive you bought from Etsy, and all with easy, store-bought ingredients and just a little time. Heck, even get the kids involved, if you want! Get the recipe here.

Okay what do you think? Are we stretching it a bit? Do you think you would ever want to attempt to make something modern-looking with this DIY recipe? Let us know!

Image: Etsy user clamlab

How Walter Potter Made Dead Bunnies Look Like School Children [Video]

How Walter Potter Made Dead Bunnies Look Like School Children [Video]:

Calling Walter Potter obsessed with taxidermy would be a bit of an understatement. Potter, who lived from 1835 to 1918, created incredible anthropomorphic scenes of squirrels playing cards, kittens playing croquet, bunnies attending elementary school, and even bird funerals (not kidding), and eight-legged kittens with two tails. More »

Back to School Sale with Free Shipping in the Maker Shed

Back to School Sale with Free Shipping in the Maker Shed:

Had your eye on something (or several things) in the Maker Shed lately? Now’s your chance! For the first time ever, the Maker Shed is offering free USA shipping on all orders over $5! Just add your items to the cart, use the coupon code SHIPIT and select the free shipping option. This is the opportunity you’ve been waiting for to get an Arduino, TV-B-Gone, Saga Guitar Kit, Jameco Grab Bag, or anything else we carry. You should hurry, this offer expires August 31st 2011 at 11:59PM Pacific time.

Build your name in Lego

Build your name in Lego:

Eli Carter (retracile) from TexLUG launched a business to make custom Lego nameplates. Simply enter the text and select a color scheme and you’re on your way to getting a kit that includes instructions and all the bricks to make the nameplate. The nameplate below with 10 characters will run $120, but keep in mind that a lot of time goes into assembling each order and the bricks themselves aren’t cheap. Check out BrickBuiltNamePlates.com to see what your name looks like in Lego.

Build your name in Lego

Build your name in Lego:

Eli Carter (retracile) from TexLUG launched a business to make custom Lego nameplates. Simply enter the text and select a color scheme and you’re on your way to getting a kit that includes instructions and all the bricks to make the nameplate. The nameplate below with 10 characters will run $120, but keep in mind that a lot of time goes into assembling each order and the bricks themselves aren’t cheap. Check out BrickBuiltNamePlates.com to see what your name looks like in Lego.

How To Make Lego Head Beads

How To Make Lego Head Beads: You will need, - Lego heads - Lego hats - Super Glue
- Drill - Drillbit Find the Right Hat for Your Bead once you
have found the right hat for the right head, move onto step 2 Drill
Holes using a drill bit the same size as the hole in the head
underneath, drill up with the drill th...
By: ol'abbee

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Reader’s Guide to the New DC Universe: Superman

Reader’s Guide to the New DC Universe: Superman:

Each weekday, Tim will take a look at what we know about each of the upcoming 52 new comics from the September DC relaunch, one series at a time. Today: SUPERMAN!

The Concept and Characters: Superman. He’s kind of a big deal.

The thing about Superman, though, is that not only is he the first super-powered, costumed character in comic book history, the one that kicked off this whole genre, but he’s also a character who remains somewhat of a cipher. Or, if not a cipher, then a character who acts as a mirror, reflecting the hopes and dreams of whatever generation is currently shepherding him through his adventures. To some, he’s a working class hero, a farm boy making his way in a world of secret cabals and duplicitous corporate fat cats. To others, he’s a sci-fi adventurer, a man from the stars, both a stranger in a strange land and a Flash Gordon with super strength and ray guns built into his eyes. Some might see him as a boring icon of grandpa’s status quo. Others see him as a Christ-like savior. Yet others imbue him with their own sense of right and wrong, and watch as he tries to do the impossible.

He’s both an outdated relic of the past and a vision of the future.

Superman’s a tricky character to get a handle on, and that’s part of the power of his myth.

[Read more]

Read the full article

Reader’s Guide to the New DC Universe: Supergirl

Reader’s Guide to the New DC Universe: Supergirl:

Each weekday, Tim will take a look at what we know about each of the upcoming 52 new comics from the September DC relaunch, one series at a time. Today: SUPERGIRL!

The Concept and Characters: “All teenagers are aliens in some way or another.” That’s the unofficial tagline for this Supergirl relaunch, written by Michael Green and Mike Johnson, a pair of writers with plenty of experience with aliens, superheroes, and characters trying to find their place in the world.

Though many of us may still have memories of the terrible Helen Slater movie to clog up our nostalgia for the character, Supergirl has been a strong property for DC Comics for a long time. A young girl with the powers of Superman. His Kyptonian cousin. It’s a simple concept, with strong visual appeal. She’s arguably second only to Wonder Woman as the most recognizable female superhero in history. Yet, her inherent wide-eyed innocence has given writers trouble since the end of the Silver Age. She is such an embodiment of that sci-fi, silly, enthusiastic age of bygone superheroes that attempts to rebrand the character for a modern audience have led to variations and reboots, revamps and reimaginings.

[Read more]

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Vampire-killing kit

Vampire-killing kit:




A BB reader spotted this antique vampire-killing kit at an antiques show this weekend. You may purchase it from Best of France Antiques in Buckingham, Pennsylvanie. Included are a pistol, a stake, garlic, holy water, mirror, bible, silver bullets, and crucifixes. It's $9,000, which is quite a bargain if you are in need of such a kit.

• Vampire-slaying kit from 19th c. Romania – Boing Boing



• Vampire killing kits from the 19th Century – Boing Boing



• Quack 19th cen. vamp-hunting kits for sale – Boing Boing



• Vampire-hunting technologies of yore – Boing Boing

Mark Kelso faces down the Eye of Chaos

Mark Kelso faces down the Eye of Chaos:

We don’t normally feature works-in-progress here on TBB, but Mark Kelso has been working on his next massive SHIP, and this photo captures the inevitable frustration of designing and building a large-scale LEGO model that we have to share. It’s also nice to see the LEGO workspace of one of our favorite builders.

Mark says, “After the first wing section slipped off the SHIP and crashed to the ground for a second time, I realized another solution was going to be necessarry.”

Don’t worry — Mark didn’t actually smash his next masterpiece, so we’ll look forward to featuring the finished model here when it’s done.