(B) Candide (Voltaire, 1759) Grade: A

The recently released Chris Ware edition of the classic satire prompted me to reread Candide, and I am glad I did. Although somewhat basic in plot--Candide journeys to find his beloved Cunegonde--the overarching themes touch upon suffering and whether such misery and misfortune occur for the greater good. If so, does this merit unquestionable optimism that all works out in the end? How can everything be for the greater good without the existence of evil? Voltaire was a vocal critic of philosophical optimism, and satires such as this have rarely been written so well. Ware provides some added humor with his illustrated cover, which features a quote from the 18th century writer: They must have lost their mind if they think that I wrote this trash. Ha.

(G) British Sea Power (Cornwall Caverns, England, Nov. 27) Grade: A-

An opportunity to see BSP in Cornwall? Fantastic. In a cave? Even better. The venue itself is tucked away up a mountain and kept at 10 degrees Celsius, but it wasn’t as cold as I feared. (I even took my coat off.) Strangely enough, BSP opened the night with a 30-minute set of their B-sides. The actual opening band performed next, but most of their songs sounded like covers of other vaguely familiar songs. Pretty unremarkable. BSP ended the night with a majority of A-sides from Decline of--a strong album all the way through. Noble and Yan both engaged in some stage diving action as well as sitting on each others’ heads. Ace. The band also recognized a girl who has been to 100 BSP gigs. That’s pretty remarkable considering BSP hasn’t existed for very long. Lots of energy and enthusiasm made for a sweaty crowd so being greeted by snow outside was a welcome relief.