Literary Quarterly: The Last Spin
From records to CDs, the music biz got fat--Bill Flanagan's new novel, 'A&R,' explains why the good times are finally over.

Fool's Paradise: Two new books try--and fail--to analyze the new bohemians.

Numbers Game: Characters add up in Aimee Bender's 'An Invisible Sign of My Own.'

Socialist Superstar: A new biography looks back at the life of one of America's great political activists.

Walk on The Wild Side: With enough stamina and ability to improvise, anybody can walk the whole of our coastline.

French Tickler: David Sedaris finds humor at home and abroad in 'Me Talk Pretty One Day.'

News: System Enabling
Controversy blankets a new California proposition to get drug offenders out of jails and save taxpayers a bundle.

Metropolis News Extras

• Cupertino: Worker shortage at local restaurants grows as cost of living continues to skyrocket.
  
• Campbell: CUSD kicks off exchange program for teachers from Spain.
  
• Willow Glen: Former Willow Glen resident comes to the rescue on Hawaiian ocean.

Making the Cut: Who needs the three R's when we can learn important stuff at Scissors Clinic?

Public Eye: Jury bursts Pandori's pipe dream. Mayor Ron opens his own Ex-files. 'Tiano the Terrible' behind bars.

Work: Icons from another dimension.

Tributes and Terminitus: Following a charming 'Lost in the Stars,' Marin Alsop leads the Cabrillo Music Festival orchestra in a big-bang finale.

Taking Poison: The Power to the People tour at Shoreline rekindles one critic's unabashed teenaged love for Poison.

Aural Fixation: Bay Area bands line up to rock the X Games in San Francisco.

Audiofile: Reviews of new CDs by Robyn Hitchcock and Kindness.

Storm the Box Offices: In John Waters' 'Cecil B. DeMented,' radical film-lovers strike a blow against the homogenous hegemony of Hollywood.

Right on Target: Patrice Lecontes' 'Girl on the Bridge' balances the loss and luck of love.

Running on Empty: The Abbie Hoffman story, sanitized for popular consumption.

Bad Omen: Holier-than-thou supernatural thriller 'Bless the Child' doesn't have a prayer.

Court Jesters: Four comedians earn their crowns as 'The Original Kings of Comedy.'

Something Fishy: Photographer Michiko Kon reinvents still lifes at her SJ Museum of Art show.

Late Bloomer: Palo Alto's version of Hong Kong Flower Garden has some growing up to do before catching up with its culinary counterpart.

A La Carte: Hot time, summer in the city.

Please don't forget to write! Metro welcomes letters. Like any great work of art, they should be originals -- not copies of letters sent elsewhere. Include address and daytime phone (for verification purposes only). Letters may be edited for length and clarity or to correct factual inaccuracies known to us. Postal: Metro Letters, 550 S. First. St., San Jose, CA 95111. Fax: 408/298-0602.

JavaScript must be enabled to display this email address.