Pia Guerra reports on her blog, "While doing a little Wiki surfing this evening not only do I learn that one of my favourite graphic novels, Bryan Talbot’s Adventures of Luther Arkwright, has been adapted into a full cast audio production available on CD but that it also stars [current Dr. Who star] David Tennant!" The triple CD is a couple years old but still available from Big Finish. The price is a bit dearer for those out of the UK, and with the exchange rate American fans might think about waiting even a little longer to purchase this gem.

In addition, Mike Netzer passes along the announcement from the Lewis Carroll Society of North America that Talbot will be speaking at their spring 2007 meeting, on April 14 at Columbia University, about his new graphic novel Alice in Sunderland. A Saturday in April in NYC? You can bet ComicMix will be there!

Jessa at Bookslut notes that the Poetry Foundation "has invited some of today’s most vital graphic novelists to interpret a poem of their choice from the more than 4,500 poems in our archive, reaching from Beowulf to the present." The link also takes you to the first entry, the first two stanzas of Diane Wakoski‘s 1966 poem "Belly Dancer" as interpreted by David Heatley, best known for his meticulous renderings of his dreams.

In last Monday’s New York Times, ComicMix contributor Dave Marsh sounds off on the democracy craze. Not the one in the Middle East, but the one sweeping the media, on shows like AMERICAN IDOL and DANCING WITH THE STARS. "What it really represents is an ever more cleverly manipulated pop culture," said Dave Marsh, a longtime rock critic and host of a Sirius satellite radio show. "Empowerment becomes a commodity."

In criticizing the contests, Mr. Marsh said the mass market spots talent well enough: "The mob chose Elvis Presley, the mob chose James Brown, the mob chose the Beatles." With executives filtering the process, he said, the result is "disposable" performers "who are selected because they stay away from anything that’s personal or controversial." Instead, we get the music Paula Abdul thinks we want.

The Tenth Carnival of Feminist Science Fiction and Fantasy has been posted at Reb’s blog Adventures in Lame. Lots of great comics-related links regarding bloggers’ thoughts on Batgirl, Supergirl, female characters in Spider-Man, and Mary Sue fiction. Comprehensive — and worth reading!

The latest edition of actor/writer/blogger Wil Wheaton’s Geek in Review column at Suicide Girls (caution, some portions of the website are Not Safe For Work, a.k.a. exploitive of women’s bodies) talks about all the graphic novels he’s been catching up on reading now that he doesn’t buy comics as often as he used to.