"America's Got Talent" runner-up and Sturgeon Bay native Eli Mattson closed 2008 by performing three straight nights at Madison's intimate Ivory Room Piano Bar, where his singing and playing sent the packed crowd into a frenzy.

Mattson, performing as a personal favor to the Ivory Room's owners, played the 80-person capacity club, 116 W. Mifflin St., around the corner from Overture Hall.

How much did the popular NBC summertime show do for Mattson's career? Fans came to Madison from several states and lined up two hours before the club opened to see him. Tickets cost $30 each to the performance, which served as Mattson's last headline appearances before heading to Los Angeles to make an album for Epic Records.

Mattson, who has lived in Chicago for the last three years, lost in the TV show's final voting by less than one-half percent to tenor Neal E. Boyd. Go to YouTube and use the search words "Eli Mattson" and "Madison" to see various songs from Mattson's Ivory Room gigs.

Henkes' bold 'Bear'

Four months after its release, Kevin Henkes' picture book "Old Bear" received a glowing review in The New York Times. It is Henkes' 37th book (combining his fabulous work for pre-'tweens as well as his acclaimed youth novels), and the paper takes note of the Madison resident's extraordinary career.

Henkes, writes Times freelance critic Sarah Ellis, "is that rarest of birds, a writer and illustrator who finds success early yet keeps experimenting, devising new ways of telling stories and surprising his readers."

"Old Bear" is a delight and aimed at youngsters ages 2 to 7. The Times compares the colorful "Old Bear" favorably to Henkes' 2005 black-and-white book "Kitten's First Full Moon," which won the Caldecott Medal.

Henkes turned 48 in late November, but he's long been an author and illustrator whose work is found in countless bookstores and libraries.

'Lovely Bones' movie

Madison native Alice Sebold's stirring 2002 novel, the bestseller "The Lovely Bones," will be released as movie during the hoopla of the 2009 holiday season with its Dec. 11 release. The film, directed by "Lord of the Rings" kingpin Peter Jackson, had been scheduled to be in theaters on March 13.

"Lovely Bones" stars Susan Sarandon, Mark Wahlberg and Rachel Weisz in the tale of a young teen girl who tells her tragic story from heaven.

Madison author thrives

The first pick on NPR's "Best Books of 2008: Books Beneath the Radar" was Madison author Sam Savage's novel "Firmin." Originally published in 2006, "Firmin" received many raves, but — like NPR notes — it never burst through the crowded field.

On Tuesday, "Firmin" will be released as a paperback, giving it a much-deserved second life. "Firmin," Savage's first novel, follows a bookstore-born rat who describes his Boston neighborhood tales.

Summerfest headliner

Milwaukee's Summerfest officials announced that George Strait will headline the Marcus Amphitheater on June 29. Tickets won't go on sale for months, so why did Summerfest make the announcement? Wisconsin fills up on major country festivals each summer and Strait is scheduled to headline Country Fest in Cadott, near Eau Claire, on June 28.

Contact Tom Alesia at talesia@madison.com.