'The Rough Guide Book of Playlists'

What's this?

David Honigmann's "Brain Waves" column in today's Financial Times recounted the many happy hours he'd spent this past summer listening to his old CDs along with a review copy of "The Rough Guide Book of Playlists," just out in the U.K.

It won't be published in the U.S. until November 21.

He wrote, "The book contains 500 lists, divided by artist, by genre, by subject: songs about rivers, songs about birds, songs about the colour blue."

He continued, "Suitably for such a trainspotterish exercise, Nick Hornby, the patron saint of listmaking after 'High Fidelity' and '31 Songs,' himself picks '10 great songs you might not know.'"

That's when I stopped reading and headed for the computer to purchase a copy of the Rough Guide from amazon uk.

I am so eager to learn what those ten songs are and then listen to them.

I love Nick Hornby's taste and consider him an "Experts' Expert" in terms of pop music.

Constant readers will know that I have long considered it one of the seven wonders of the modern world that with the advent of the internet and amazon uk I can now, from my breezy patio here in Charlottesville, Virginia, while the leaves turn colors and fall all around me, sit comfortably, completely unwired, with my PowerBook and with one click order a book from amazon uk and have it arrive in a couple days, as quickly as if it had come from amazon here in the States.

Truly amazing.

Oh, but it's a glorious day here — it just can't get any better than this.