November 8, 2012 marks the 165th anniversary of Bram Stoker’s birth.  This Irish author, best known for the novel Dracula, is being celebrated with a Google doodle today.

If you would like to know more about Stoker’s life and his role in creating the modern vampire myth, the Christian Science Monitor has a good article about him.  Also, you may want to check out the website for the Bram Stoker Estate.  It is contains information about Stoker’s life, as well as the legacy of Dracula.

Interested in reading Dracula or any of Stoker’s other writings?  His works are freely available in a number of places online.

Bram Stoker at Project Gutenberg – Project Gutenberg has several of Stoker’s works available, both in audio and e-book formats.

Have a Kindle or a mobile device with a Kindle app?  Several of Stoker’s works are available for free through Kindle:

• Dracula
• Lair of the White Worm
• The Man
• Dracula’s Guest
• The Jewel of the Seven Stars
• The Lady of the Shroud

Dracula is also available for check-out at the CPCC Libraries. Copies are available at Central Campus and Harper Campus.

September 18, 2012 marks the 42nd anniversary of the death of musician Jimi Hendrix.  Hendrix, noted for his ground-breaking use of the electric guitar, was only 27 years old.  In the years since his death, Hendrix has received numerous awards and recognitions for his music, including receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1991, having his album Are You Experienced added to the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry and being named by Rolling Stone as the greatest guitarist of all time.

If you’d like to find out more about this legendary artist, check out the following resources:

For a full-length biography of Hendrix, check out Biography Resource Center.

To view a copy of the obituary for Hendrix, click here.

Check out a recording of one of Hendrix’s last performances below:

You can also find out more information about Hendrix at the Official Jimi Hendrix Site.