Delivereads: Curating content for the Kindle

I've been  enjoying a new Kindle-only service called Delivereads that delivers four to five good reads to my e-reader once a week. 

The mix usually includes a few long stories plus several shorter takes. Delivereads curator Dave Pell pulls the content from a variety of sources, like New York Times, The Atlantic, New York Magazine and Deadspin. Subscribers are able to suggest stories for inclusion in each week's mix. 

Delivereads is free, for now. I'm not sure what the business model is, other than owner Dave Pell wants to build a list of like-minded people and somehow help to promote his blog at TweetageW@steland. 

There are similar services, such as Byliner, that tap stories new and old. But Byliner is a desktop-only source and the curation is pretty loose, with a half-dozen top-level topic categories and lots of stories for you to pick, rather than the other way around with Delivereads. 

Getting long stories delivered to a device made for long-form reading is a big differentiator. Meshing a sense of surprise and delight with the perfect platform is a tough combination to beat. 

Dinklage is well deserving of Emmy nomination

Tyrion Lannister Character Feature

I usually don't get too excited when the Emmy nominations are announced. But, outside of a few glaring exceptions, I felt like the nominating panel did its homework this year, particularly when it came to highlighting Peter Dinklage. 

Dinklage was nominated as best supporting actor in a drama for his role as Tyrion Lannister in HBO's "Game of Thrones." Dinklage is a short person who refuses to play roles that denigrate his height, and anyone who watches Dinklage for five minutes sees an actor at the top of his game. In fact, after about a half hour, I told myself Dinklage would get an Emmy at some point for this role. 

His nomination is especially noteworty when you think about the terrific "Game of Thrones" cast around him. As I noted last month, by all means give this series a look. 

On the downside of the Emmy nominations, it's sickening that "Treme" didn't earn a single nomination. When you factor in that producer David Simon's "The Wire" earned just one nomination over five seasons, you begin to wonder whether the business can't handle series with predominantly black casts. I'd like to think otherwise but you have to wonder. 

Update on Sunday, September 18, 2011 at 9:25 PM by Logan Molen

I usually don't have much success predicting major awards but I hit on this one: Dinklage picked up the Emmy tonight for best supporting actor in a drama.

Well deserved. 

'Treme' hitting its stride

Ep. 21 – Preview

HBO's "Treme" ended its second season in fine form this week, capping an eventful season that saw the series hit its stride as complex storylines came into focus.

With "Treme," producer David Simon has returned to the heights that made his HBO series "The Wire" one of the best TV shows ever.

Like "The Wire," the acting is superb (in fact, at least four "Wire" actors have either starring or supporting roles in "Treme"). And while Season 1 star John Goodman appeared only briefly in Season 2, his now-dead character remained in the forefront. 

The series has been renewed for a third season, and I can't wait. I encourage "Treme" rookies to dive in while the show is still in rotation on HBO or wait and pop for the inevitable box set. I can't recommend this kind of smart TV enough.