Recently in pop goes the culture Category

Okay folks, it's pretty clear I've dropped the ball on Radvent. But is anyone surprised? I'm great on inspiration, weak on follow-through. Always have been, always will be.

Nevertheless, I've at least THOUGHT about how I would answer each prompt, and yesterday as Adelle and I were jamming to some MGMT on the iPod, I remembered the Rocking Out post from December 5. I love hearing about what other people are listening to, as well as sharing my own playlists. So here are my top tracks from 2010.

Jonsi - Go Do. Can't embed this one due to copyright restrictions, but it's worth clicking the link to see the beautiful video and hear the ethereal voice of the lead singer of Sigur Ros. This is the first music Adelle ever heard outside the womb, on the drive home from the Birth Center. I love having such a precise sense-memory of the joy and awe I felt on that day.

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros - Home. Exuberant. Lovely. "Home is wherever I'm with you."

Florence + the Machine - Dog Days. A few years ago, I started getting way more into upbeat, fully orchestrated pop music than the mopey, depressing singer-songwriter crap I enjoyed in college. Florence is great at doing artsy with sparkle and pep. Adore the crazy-ass video.

Bright Lights Bigger City :: Cee-lo. Oh, how I love Cee-Lo. Don't bother watching the video, which is pretty sexist and stupid-gangsta. But it's such an awesome jam.

Janelle Monae - Tightrope. Nothing makes me happier than this song. Don't dance to it. No, don't. Seriously, try really hard. Don't you dare dance. Stop it!

MGMT - Kids. These dudes are so weird. I hate this video. Don't watch it unless you want to be traumatized. Just click play and navigate to another screen.

Mumford & Sons - Little Lion Man. Warning to sensitive ears, liberal (but, I think, powerful and justified) use of the f-bomb. Love these guys and their driving banjoes. I know you're with me, Lis!

Laura Marling - Rambling Man. What's with all these messed-up freaky videos, man? Oh well. I love Laura and her beyond-her-years voice.

Willow Smith - Whip My Hair. Aaaaaand finally. My guilty pleasure. What, you thought the rest of these were guilty pleasures? Oh no. You ain't seen nothin' yet. I absolutely love this sassy number by the 10-year-old daughter of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett. Haters gon' hate, so just whip your hair.

Okay, there's more, but Adelle's up from her nap. (I think she overheard me whipping my hair.) Tell me, what did you rock out to in 2010? And what was your guiltiest pleasure?

Over the past few years, the Harry Potter phenomenon has made it kosher for responsible adults to carry around literature intended for kids. And not only to be seen reading children’s books in public—to obsess over them. Grown people don’t hesitate to discuss the finer points of quidditch on electronic discussion boards, compose songs about wizardry as an intelligent career move, or dress up as teenaged sorcerers in anticipation of each new book’s release.

All this is quite a relief to me, personally. Although I read a lot of fiction intended for adults, I have failed to abandon—and, in fact, often prefer—the types of books I read in high school. These days I have a bonafide professional reason for it: I’m four credits away from becoming a public librarian, and public librarians need to know What The Kids Are Into. But that aside, I don’t think I could give up the world of young adult fiction anyway. It’s too fun, too morbidly humiliating and exhilarating, too emotionally complex—and, these days, too well-written...

>> Read more about my Top Ten Young Adult Books for Grown-Ups at catapult magazine.

>> Revisit your favorite teen lit of yore - including the witch-tastic Summer of Fear by Lois Duncan - at Jezebel's Fine Lines reviews.

Okay, so I know reference questions don't belong on catalog cards. But I couldn't resist the combination of blyberg.net's Catalog Card Generator and the wonderful, crazy things people call the library to ask.

Did you know, by the way, that people still call the library to find out random bits of information? I encourage you to do the same. Google works just fine for run-of-the-mill telephone listing inquiries, but I recommend librarians for the real ephemera. It gives us something interesting and useful to do in between transferring phone lines and pointing the way to the restroom and income tax forms. More significantly, it delights and amuses us to no end.