Blogcritics Author: Scott Butki

Interview With A.J. Jacobs, Author of The Year Of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible - Part 3 of 3

Scott Butki — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 19:24:39 EST

"I became far more aware of my actions and their consequences." - AJ Jacobs on how the project changed him
This is the third part of a three-part interview with AJ Jacobs about his book, The Year of Living Biblically.In the first part I talked to Jacobs about his career and earlier book. In the second part we talked about the response he has received from his new book. And now... the final part, where he discusses what he has learned during this...

Interview With A.J. Jacobs, Author of The Year Of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible, Part Two of Three

Scott Butki — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 15:57:38 EST

"I had revelations and epiphanies with alarming frequency. It was like a spiritual quest in fast motion."
This is the second part of a three part interview with A.J. Jacobs. During the first part we talked about his previous book, The Know-It-All, and his new book.For The Year Of Living Biblically, A.J. Jacobs tried to follow, as much as legally possible, all of the rules listed in the Bible. Yes, both the Old Testament and the New Testament. This...

An Interview With Howard Kurtz, Author of Reality Show: Inside the Last Great Television News War, Part Two

Scott Butki — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 06:27:33 EST

"I think Katie Couric made a number of mistakes when she got to CBS and is paying the price."
This is the second part of a two-part interview. In the first part we talked more about the author and for this part I focus more on his book Reality Show: Inside the Last Great Television News War.Howard Kurtz is the media reporter for The Washington Post. In Reality Show he looks at how network news has changed in recent years, partially due to...

Part 2 - An Interview With Writer Kinky Friedman, Author of You Can Lead a Politician to Water, But You Can't Make Him Think: Ten Commandments for Texas Politics

Scott Butki — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 17:57:56 EST

"Texans are big-hearted and they know that killing people is not our job."
This is the second part of a two-part interview with Kinky Friedman. The first part ran last week.I want to begin with an excerpt so you can get a taste for his flavor: There once was a zoo that some folks liked to call Texas politics. In this zoo were hawks and doves, bulls and bears, crocodiles and two-legged snakes, and lots and lots and lots of...

An Interview With Writer Kinky Friedman, Author of You Can Lead a Politician to Water, But You Can't Make Him Think: Ten Commandments for Texas Politics

Scott Butki — Wed, 7 Nov 2007 19:33:02 EST

"I wrote this book for the same reason I ran for governor � to try to make Texas a better place."
This is the first part of a two-part interview Where does one even begin in introducing an interview with someone as… as… eccentric and interesting as Kinky Friedman?As leader of the Kinky Friedman and The Jewboys in the 1970s he sang off-beat songs like “I’m Proud to Be An Asshole From El Paso” and "They...

An Interview With Howard Kurtz, Author of Reality Show: Inside the Last Great Television News War, Part One

Scott Butki — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 20:14:09 EDT

"I get valuable information and insights from bloggers. And if it's a rough neighborhood, so be it."
This is the first part of a two-part interview. I know many who regularly flog Howard Kurtz but while I have my quibbles with some of his pieces he writes as The Washington Post’s media reporter I generally am interested and like what he writes. While the quality of his writing, specifically his choices of subjects and sources, has been much...

Don't Forget About the Memphis Three

Scott Butki — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 14:56:17 EDT

The more I read, see, and learn about this case, the more I am convinced the three did not get a fair trial.
While some have rightfully expressed outrage over what happened in Jena, Louisiana (particularly the racial angle), and how unfair it was that Genarlow Wilson was sentenced to ten years for consensual underage oral sex (he was released last week after serving two years – hooray), there is a case even more deserving of attention and...

Interview Regarding Putumayo Kids Album, Brazilian Playground

Scott Butki — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 07:13:37 EDT

"Our liner notes do explain what genres each song features, as well as where the song is from and its general meaning."
I am a big fan of the Putumayo Kids music label and have done about ten interviews promoting at least ten of their albums. The label’s goal is to educate people – children and families alike – about music of other cultures.When I saw that their next album was going to be about Brazilian music, I immediately thought of my sister,...

Interview With Bill Bryan, Author of Keep It Real Part Two

Scott Butki — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 17:59:39 EDT

"Since reality shows are so much cheaper to produce, they have proliferated like crabs at Woodstock."
This is the second part of a two-part interview with Bill Bryan, author of Keep It Real.In the first part we talked about his career. For this part I focused more on questions related to this book.He also threw me a curve ball near the end which I had to address. Dang TV writers giving me more work to do. Grr...:)The book’s acknowledgement...

An Interview With Wesley Stace AKA John Wesley Harding About His Novel, By George

Scott Butki — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 18:33:13 EDT

"Writing books is more difficult, by far, though ultimately more rewarding. Making music is much more immediate."
This is the first part of a two part interview I’m a fan of the musician John Wesley Harding, which is the name Wesley Stace goes by when doing music. You may recognize the name from one of Bob Dylan’s albums. Harding writes clever, witty songs and he is an eloquent lyricist. In recent years Stace has written two books and I asked to...