MY MORNING JACKET

I saw this last night and thought it was awesome. Maybe you've heard of My Morning Jacket before, but I hadn't. Apparently they once played a four hour set at a festival in Tennessee, featuring special guest star Kirk Hammett from Metallica. Remarkably, their set also included a cover of Kool and the Gang's Get Down on It. Obviously another reason I'm keen is their beautiful song The Librarian.

ISABELLA ROSSELLINI ASKS SOME ANIMALS TO SEDUCE HER

Last night a very charming ballerina recommended this strange series written and directed by Isabella Rossellini for the Sundance Channel. Seduce Me, as it's called, is a celebration of animals and their delicate existence by focusing on some of their weirder seduction and mating rituals. This video become a viral hit last year when New York suffered a bed bug epidemic.

FOR FLAPPERS TO PHILOSOPHERS

One book cover designer you'll be seeing everywhere at the moment is Coralie Bickford-Smith who designs all of Penguin's classic editions. I think they're mixed, but the Scott Fitzgerald collection of six novels and short stories is absolutely beautiful. They also make great presents - a treat for anyone who hasn't read them or a glorious edition for anyone who has.

POSTCARDS FROM THE PAST

"But dear, are you sure they let same sex couples adopt?"

"Did someone just fart?"

"Nobody knows, but I just peed my pants a little bit."

Terry Castle shares her brilliant collection of vintage postcards. She is uploading one a day for a year and  you can take a look at them on her blog.

THE TERRIBLE ENDS OF THE GASHLYCRUMB TINIES

Many of you will know him already, but I'm continually thrilled to see Edward Gorey books in the best bookshops. Born in Chicago to parents who were divorced and then remarried 16 years later, he has illustrated or written countless books all recognisable for their strange, macabre and Edwardian feel. Think Tim Burton crossed with Hilaire Belloc.

My favourite of all is his creepy alphabet book about the terrible ends of the Gashlycrumb Tinies.

HOW ABOUT A BOWL OF CORNFLAKES DEAR?

It's official, I'm a bit of a prude. I thought the Museum of Sex, here in New York, might be rather interesting but in fact it's mostly porn, life size sex mannequins and photographs of a duck's penis. I spent my entire trip studiously reading the wall notes, too sheepish to look at the exhibits themselves and desperately trying to avoid eye contact with fellow voyeurs. The strangest thing of all is that they have an aphrodisiac cafe in the basement, a dark, grubby, pervert's dungeon slap bang in the middle of 5th Avenue, which seems both an unsanitary and awkward place to get frisky. Far from being a wasted trip, however, it led me to a discovery ...

In the 18th century Samuel-Auguste Tissot wrote a paper on the dangers of onanism (masturbation to you or I), a paper that became so successful it's as if Allen Carr wrote The Easy Way to Stop W*nking. A young doctor and Seventh Day Adventist named John Harvey Kellogg was inspired by the paper which suggested that chronic onanism could lead to severe illness and even death. Kellogg wrote his own response, apparently while on his honeymoon, which suggested a variety of cures including chastity contraptions, yoghurt enemas and even circumcision. His real interest however, was the diet. He believed a healthy diet avoiding red meat was the best way to control sexual urges. With this in mind, him and his brother developed an equivalent to the fried breakfast which became known as Kellogg's Cornflakes.

Puts rather a different slant on the 'regular size' doesn't it?

FOR THE BOOK COVER LOVER

In honour of my dear friend the Book Cover Lover, I thought I might do some features on beautiful book covers and their designers.  The master of contemporary book design is undoubtedly the marvellous Chip Kidd. I've picked two of my favourites here, but you would recognise many of them, for example the covers of Jurassic Park and The Essential Tales of Chekhov were designed by him. If you fancy a bigger fix then his collection, Book One, is irresistible.