Book Review

by Haruki Murakami & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & H & lt;/span & aruki Murakami is the world's greatest living novelist. That's my opinion, but I get the impression that other critics think the same thing. The back of his latest nove

Opening Films

When two daughters (Natasha Richardson and Toni Collette) return home for what will likely be the final days of their ailing mom (Vanessa Redgrave), they become her audience, and are told very surprising stories of what ha

Recently Reviewed

The faux-stone walls and Palladian windows of the Davenport Tower evoke a sense of utilitarian formality while the safari theme offers an understated, whimsical counterpoint. If you love barbecue, the Safari Room c

Alley Oops

by JOEL SMITH & r & & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & I & lt;/span & n the first few years of the 1900s, when developers set to work on the homes around Corbin Park on the north side of Spokane, they deliberately put the business ends of the houses on the alleys behind t

Hoopfest Playbook 2007

by INLANDER STAFF & r & & r & hoopfest info & r & & r & The 18th Spokane Hoopfest spills onto nearly 400 downtown courts on Saturday-Sunday, June 30-July 1, from 8 am-6 pm. It's free for spectators; team registration has closed. On Saturday at 12:30 pm, check out t

That Rat Can Cook

by ED SYMKUS & r & & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & T & lt;/span & here's a simple recipe for enjoying the newest computer-animated offering from the folks at Disney-Pixar: You've got to love food, you have to be able to put up with the French, and you need to have an aff

Sick o' Politics

by TED S. McGREGOR JR. & r & & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & "T & lt;/span & his could hurt a little" is the tagline to Michael Moore's new documentary, Sicko, which opens this week. On the poster, there's Moore with that impish grin, pulling on a rubber glove. The Ameri

Now Playing

The sad story of what happened when Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl (Dan Futterman) was kidnapped by jihadists while on assignment in Pakistan with his pregnant wife Mariane (Angelina Jolie) makes for a ri

Fresh & amp;amp; Tasty

Late one evening a couple of months ago, I fielded a phone call from a friend who was looking for someplace to go out for dinner after 10 pm. Sadly, his options were rather limited. But if

Heartbreak Express

by MICHAEL BOWEN & r & & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & W & lt;/span & hen the dialogue in a country music show like Honky-Tonk Laundry is mostly just a setup for the next song -- I'm so lonesome, my husband done me wrong, that sort of thing -- the audience's focus is natur

Take Two

by LUKE BAUMGARTEN & r & & r & Evan Almighty & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & S & lt;/span & o you went and did it. You went and made a sequel to Bruce Almighty without Jim Carrey or Jennifer Aniston. Ballsy, and instead of casting some look-alike or making it about young

Letters to the Editor

Toss the Bums Out I recently [came] upon some serious investigation that the Madison Apartments, the Otis [Hotel] and the Community Building were all being turned into condos. Which gives me mixed feelings. I was first enr

DVD Review

by KELLY McCRILLIS & r & & r & Bridge to Terabithia & r & & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & T & lt;/span & he trailer for Bridge to Terabithia gives the impression that viewers are in for a wild ride of computer-animated adventures coupled with fairytale monsters and other

Cattle Ranch 2.2

by PAUL K. HAEDER & r & & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & O & lt;/span & n the surface, the Lazy R Ranch is a typical cow-calf operation located just beyond Cheney in western Spokane County: Angus heifers munch on natural grasses, and calves bound amongst the lupine and

Buzz Bin

If you were fortunate enough to catch a performance of Spokane Civic Theatre's Assassins, you saw this season's second-best community theater production in the nation. That's according to the adjudicators at last wee

Remote Possibilites

(Tuesdays 8 pm, Fox) & r & & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & O & lt;/span & n the Lot, which promises to give one no-name film director a million-dollar deal with Dreamworks, began with two incredibly compelling episodes. The dire

Bluffs Calling

It's Friday noon and retired physician Bob Dickson parks his SUV along the side of the road where Bernard and High Drive meet on Spokane's South Hill.

Borowitz Report

By Andy Borowitz & r & & r & Memory Loss Sweeps U.S. Politicians & r & & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & A & lt;/span & n "unprecedented epidemic of memory loss" is afflicting America's politicians, making it virtually impossible for them to remember key phone conversations,

Speaking Objects

by CARRIE SCOZZARO & r & & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & "T & lt;/span & he Voice of Things" is the first show at the Northwest Museum of Arts & amp; Culture to cull collaboratively from all the museum's disciplines: American Indian, regional history, archives and visual ar

The Player

by Marty Demarest & r & & r & Call of Juarez & r & & r & Rated Mature; Xbox 360, Windows & r & & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & T & lt;/span & he loading screens in the Old West shooter Call of Juarez -- those interludes that fill the television while the videogame loads into th

Future Ex Mr. Jones

by JOEL HARTSE & r & & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & J & lt;/span & une 13 was a beautiful summer day, and Amos Lee was watching his hometown Philadelphia Phillies. They were losing 3-2 to the Chicago White Sox, but they'd finish strong, winning 8-4. It was something

CD Reviews

Icky Thump 3 Stars Jack and Meg White make solid albums full of studio experimentation unleashed by the characteristic wildness of live performances. Icky Thump is no exception with respect to its musical quality:

Working the Other End

by TIM BROSS and DOUG NADVORNICK & r & & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & W & lt;/span & hile the on-the-ground work of building the North Spokane Corridor is confined to the north end of the project, state transportation officials are now starting the process of securing

Sound Advice

Thursday, 6/28 Big Easy, John Cowan, Great American Taxi, Vince Herman Big Foot, Cary Fly Bluz At The Bend, Cary Fly The Blvd., DJ Bruski Brooklyn Nights, Groove Patro

Bomb Garden

& lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & P & lt;/span & erformance is a challenge best faced head on. Any band will tell you, you can't plan stage presence or practice it. You've just gotta get up onstage and play. Likewise, you can't really p

Ray of Hope?

Quick Hits

by INLANDER & r & & r & & lt;span class= & quot;dropcap & quot; & M & lt;/span & ost big cities have one. Portland has Everclear, Sacramento has Cake, New Orleans has Better Than Ezra, and Phoenix has the GIN BLOSSOMS. Back in the day when alternative rock wasn't all about tight pants a

Final Exam

After a first round that knocked 44 candidates out of the mix, the three

Red, White and Willie

If you love American music, it hurts to hear, but imagin