Ezra Brooks
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ezbrooks.bsky.social
Ezra Brooks
@ezbrooks.bsky.social
1.5K followers 1.8K following 1.3K posts
I love music, movies, mystery stories, and food from around the world.
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ezbrooks.bsky.social
Another recommendation for mystery lovers: Seicho Matsumoto's 1958 novel "Tokyo Express" (also published as "Points and Lines").

This police procedural is a tightly plotted tale of murder and corruption. You can read it in less time than it takes Inspector Mihara to travel from Fukuoka to Sapporo.
A paperback book lying on a wooden shelf. The cover text reads "Tokyo Express" in bold white letters. The background has wavy bands of black, red, and green. There is an abstract illustration of a purple train engine on white tracks.
November 23, 2025 at 4:27 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
This has been my favorite cartoon for 30 years, and I can't explain why.
A single panel comic by Charles Barsotti, published in the New Yorker in 1994. It shows an anthropomorphic rigatoni noodle talking on the phone. The rigatoni says "Fusilli, you crazy bastard! How are you?"
November 22, 2025 at 8:20 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
HT to @rozmilner.bsky.social for hipping me to Donald E. Westlake. I found this one at the library, and I'm exciting to dive in.
A copy of "Somebody Owes Me Money" by Donald E. Westlake. The cover is a white background with text in black, pink, and green.
November 15, 2025 at 6:03 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
My first election as a Georgian!
A sticker from the Georgia polls depicting an orange and red peach with a stem and green leaves on a white background. On top of the peach black letters read "I'm a Georgia voter" and underneath the peach it says "I secured my vote!"
November 4, 2025 at 9:45 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
"Listen to me now, don't listen to me later." #GetItTogether
A pile of "Now & Later" candies. Each candy is square shaped. The wrappers are red, purple, and yellow.
October 31, 2025 at 9:59 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
Sports!
Tituss Burgess as Titus Andromedon in "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt". He is wearing a jersey modeled after the New York Rangers jersey, but instead of the team name, it just says "SPORTS". The jersey is blue with white and red stripes at the bottom. The lettering is bold and reads at an angle from the upper left to the bottom right of the jersey.
October 16, 2025 at 11:42 AM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
Not only the best 12th album by an artist, but one of the best albums period.
The cover of Herbie Hancock's 12th album "Head Hunters".
October 4, 2025 at 9:46 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
Wodehouse is one of the few authors who genuinely makes me laugh out loud while reading.
A hardcover book. The background is purple. In bold white letters it says "Wodehouse on crime" and underneath in orange letters "A dozen tales of fiendish cunning. By P.G. Wodehouse." Below the text there is an illustration depicting an English mansion, a car, and three people: two men and a woman, all dressed in the fashionable styles of the interwar era.
September 24, 2025 at 3:45 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
Sarah Gordon's "Ominous Reassurances Frog"
A black coffee mug with a white handle. There is a cartoon image of a frog. The frog has a speech bubble which reads "You are not alone in this abyssal darkness. I am here and we shall face the chasm as brothers."
September 19, 2025 at 11:55 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
Quite simple. A complete vegetable diet, twelve hours sleep a night, and lots and lots of makeup.
Truman Capote playing Lionel Twain in the movie "Murder By Death" (Neil Simon, 1976)
September 13, 2025 at 12:38 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
Northwoods Improvisers "Fog and Fire"
A work of abstract art. There are sections of red and yellow surrounding a black center.
September 2, 2025 at 12:28 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
iucundis
The picture shows a book sitting on a countertop. The book is titled "69 A.D. The Year of Four Emperors" by Gwyn Morgan. The book cover depicts four engravings, each a profile of a man's face. The word "iucundus" is a Latin approximation of the English word "nice".
August 19, 2025 at 10:50 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
Ok, but what flavor gummy bear?
A shelf stacked with cans of "G.O.A.T. Fuel" energy drink. The can in the center is aquamarine and says "gummy bear flavored".
August 17, 2025 at 11:25 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
Annie Bonneau would no doubt recommend this cheese.
A basket of cheese wedges at the grocery. In the foreground is a label reading "Saint Angel" with a description of the cheese.
August 14, 2025 at 9:49 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
Yeah, I guess you could say I'm a Doors fan.
A stack of doors leaning against a wall. Some are solid wood. Some are glass.
August 7, 2025 at 1:29 AM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
Only this and nothing more.
A parking lot. The tires of some cars can be seen in the background. In the foreground a crow is standing in an empty parking spot, next to a red metal pole. The crow is about to take flight.
July 9, 2025 at 12:10 AM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
I picked up this book on a whim at the library, and it is excellent. De Hamel has a great voice for history: the narrative is engaging, and the people and places really come alive.

Bonus points for including stunning images of illuminated manuscripts.
The Manuscripts Club: The People Behind a Thousand Years of Medieval Manuscripts by Christopher De Hamel
July 4, 2025 at 4:24 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
This thing must be ringing continuously.
An alarm with a red warning light mounted on a wall. The sign underneath reads: "CO2 Sensor!"
June 28, 2025 at 2:26 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
I'm looking at this 1937 map of Istanbul, and there appears to be a spot labelled "Funkstation" in the top row, column B.

I have no idea what this place is; I can't find any other record of it. Is it a typo? Is it George Clinton's secret birthplace? We may never know.
A German map of Istanbul, Turkey from 1937. The image is zoomed in on central Istanbul, and the Golden Horn.
June 19, 2025 at 6:41 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
"People From My Neighborhood" (2016) is strange and beautiful, surreal and heartwarming. It's everything I expect from Hiromi Kawakami, who is easily one of my favorite contemporary authors.
A book sitting on a table. The cover background is a dull pink. The title and author name are in bold red letters. The cover depicts two houses, a person walking, and a person on a bicycle. There is a yellow bookmark sticking out of the book.
May 28, 2025 at 6:02 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
Sometimes curling up with a new Keigo Higashino mystery is all you need at the end of a long day.
A book sits on the arm of a sofa. It is "The Final Curtain" by Keigo Higashino. The cover shows a man standing inside a dark structure, facing away from the viewer. He is staring at a city skyline in the distance. The title is written in bold white lettering.
May 15, 2025 at 1:21 AM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
The Marx Brothers had a great sight gag of Harpo "smoking rope" in Love Happy (1949). It's absolutely a hemp reference.
April 22, 2025 at 12:57 AM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
Thrilled to discover this at my local library. It contains 32 essays written Brautigan's friends, fellow writers, critics, and others who knew him personally or were influenced by his writing. Should be interesting!
A book sits on a table. The cover background is green. There is a sketch of a man's face. The text is white, and reads: Richard Brautigan, Essays on the Writings and Life, Edited by John F. Barber
March 29, 2025 at 4:06 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
Is this anything?
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles logo, but the text is 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover.
March 27, 2025 at 3:08 PM
ezbrooks.bsky.social
I love that their slogan scans well both in English and in French. Someone in the marketing department clearly has a background in poetry. Shades of Dylan Thomas and Paul Valéry.
The label from a bottle of La Mer du Sud brand fish sauce. The background is a field of white on top and orange below. The brand text is in bold red letters over the white part, and the slogan text is in white letters on a red background over the orange part. The slogan in English reads: "Made with a lifetime of love for the sea." The slogan in French reads: "Fabriqué au travers d'une vie d'amour pour la mer."
March 25, 2025 at 4:34 PM