Latest DVDs, CDs, books: Aug. 21

A look at some of the DVDs, CDs and books hitting stores this week:

DVDs

"The Dictator: Banned and Unrated Version" - Sacha Baron Cohen drops the mockumentary format of "Borat" and "Bruno" for this scripted comedy, portraying the despotic, exiled leader of the (thankfully) fictional North African dictatorship of Wadiya.

Elsewhere, a soft-spoken assistant funeral director (Jack Black) forges a relationship with a miserly widow (Shirley MacLaine) in "Bernie" (PG-13), a fact-based dark comedy from director Richard Linklater. The Disneynature documentary "Chimpanzee" (G) follows Oscar, a young chimp in the African rainforest. And "A Separation" (PG-13), the Oscar winner for best foreign-language film, explores both a troubled marriage and the class struggle in Iran.

Topping today's TV transfers: "Revenge: The Complete First Season," "House, M.D.: Season Eight," "The Closer: The Complete Seventh Season," "NCIS: The Complete Ninth Season," "NCIS: Los Angeles - The Third Season," "Mike & Molly: The Complete Second Season" and "Perry Mason: The Seventh Season, Volume One."

CDs

The Darkness, "Hot Cakes"

The Darkness have returned to shed light on hard rock's nether regions once again.
These hot-and-bothered Brits are back with their first disc in seven years, packed with plenty of falsetto fireworks and tongue-wagging guitar solos.

One of the album's singles is "Everybody Have a Good Time," which is less a song than a directive.

Also in stores: Bloc Party, "Four;" Ry Cooder, "Election Special;" The Heavy, "The Glorious Dead;" Lynyrd Skynyrd, "Last of a Dyin' Breed;" Owl City, "The Midsummer Station;" Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti, "Mature Themes;" Trey Songz, "Chapter V;" Yeasayer, "Fragrant World."

BOOKS

"Wards of Faerie: The Dark Legacy of Shannara" by Terry Brooks: The epic-fantasy writer returns with the first in his latest Shannara trilogy, which features a young Elven Druid who must gather her allies and find the magical Elfstones before darker forces take over the Four Lands.

On the nonfiction front, sportswriter Joe Posnanski, who was with Joe Paterno and his family as the Penn State scandal unfolded, tells of the coach's character and career in "Paterno."

Also hitting shelves: "The Bartender's Tale" by Ivan Doig; "The Empty City" by Erin Hunter; "Freedom Manifesto: Why Free Markets Are Moral and Big Government Isn't" by Steve Forbes and Elizabeth Ames; "Hostage" by Elie Wiesel; "The Key" by Michael Grant; "The Lincoln Letter" by William Martin; "Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend" by Matthew Dicks; "The Rise of Nine" by Pittacus Lore; "Two or Three Things I Forgot to Tell You" by Joyce Carol Oates; and "Winter Journal" by Paul Auster.

LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL