January Preview

This month sees a slew of strong novels coming out, seven of which are debut novels; see the list at the right. It’s a bit hard to choose which ones beckon me most.

I’ve heard good things about George Saunders’ new short-story collection “Tenth of December,” which I likely will pick up.

I’m also a bit drawn to Lara Santoro’s provocative new novel “The Boy,” which has gained high praise according to Amazon from authors such as Anne Lamott, Emma Donoghue and Alice Sebold.

I might also be in the mood for a story set in Africa, in that case “White Dog Fell From the Sky” by Eleanor Morse

could be the one, as I’ve heard good things about it.

In movies, I’m still hoping to see a couple of strong December releases that got by me, notably “The Impossible” and “Zero Dark Thirty.” So far my favorite films of 2012 have been “Lincoln” and “Life of Pi” but I’m still holding out that those two listed above could alter my best of list, but we shall see.

Also in January look for “Broken City,” which could be an enticing film about a political scandal that stars Mark Wahlberg and Russell Crowe.

As for new music, it’s sort of slim pickings in January (see list at bottom right), so instead I will spotlight the new episodes of “Downton Abbey” ( hooray Season 3 starts tonight!) as well as “The Good Wife,” which is my only other TV show, along with “The Walking Dead,” of course, which is on hiatus till February.

The British show’s latest season seems to hinge on what is going to happen at Downton after the estate goes bust, which should throw an interesting wrench into everything. I’m not exactly sure who my favorite character is on the show, but I sort of like Lady Mary because she is sly and crafty and usually gets the guy she wants. (And thankfully he is no longer impotent from his war injury.) Though my yellow Lab pup likes Isis, Lord Grantham’s dog, who she thinks looks just like her. Go figure.

These are just some of my picks. Which January releases are you most looking forward to?