This is a list of archived entries published in the Books category.
Yesterday I blasted through Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows to finally put an end to the constant shushing I’ve had to do to people who’ve already finished it. (Ed has already written on the phenomenon of HP speed-reading, and I posted my thoughts over there.)
I read the first three Harry Potter books back in [...]
Since the millennial fever leading up to the year 2000, there have been many catastrophic scenarios played out in the media, from movies about alien invasions and meteorite impacts to novels that sensationalize the Rapture and documentaries about global warming. There’s a lot of talk about a clash of civilizations, avian flu, dwindling natural resources, [...]
I finally got around to reading McSweeney’s Enchanted Chamber of Astonishing Stories last week. I’d read the first volume, McSweeney’s Mammoth Treasure of Thrilling Tales. Both books begin with a well-written defense of genre fiction by Michael Chabon (of Kavalier & Clay fame). Chabon argues that the “revelatory short story” and literary fiction as a [...]
Finished reading The Da Vinci Code this morning. It’s one of those books you read faster the closer you get to the end, until you’re skimming whole paragraphs just to get the important points of each chapter (which, by the end, were coming on the last line of each chapter like clockwork). The book felt [...]
Yes, susurrus was Dictionary.com’s word of the day a few days ago–and yes, I pull more than a few of these entry from that website–but this one is particularly apt, as autumn has arrived here in New England.
I love autumn in New England. It’s not just beautiful, it’s sublime. The cold, crisp air; the multicolored [...]
Okay, so I didn’t exactly turn around and get another update up right away, as I’d planned to do. I’ll try harder next time.
Before we begin, a brief plug: I’ve got two pieces in this month’s ToyFare magazine (#100). The first is an interview with the design group The Four Horsemen, and then there’s my [...]
Vampires. I’ve never been that fascinated by vampires. They’re just one sort of monster among many. In terms of physical appearance, your traditional vampire isn’t even interesting: a human with fangs and a pale complexion. Now, with a werewolf, or a lake monster, or a living corpse made from stitched-together body parts–now that’s a physically [...]
I just finished William Hope Hodgson’s The Boats of Glen Carrig, a bizarre novella about the ill-fated adventures of a group of sailors stuck in a boat after their ship sinks. They come across a huge portion of ocean covered in seaweed, and eventually, to their relief, they discover a small island. But there are [...]
I saw Batman Begins over the weekend–my official review will appear on Fungible Convictions in a day or two, but in three words: I liked it.
Be sure to check out FC founder Andy Whitacre’s essay on modern lit magazines–it’s a good read.
More progress made on The Shiver of the Gate this weekend. I also started [...]
Robert Sheckley, one of science fiction’s most beloved elders, is very ill in Russia, and is having problems with medical insurance. Friends and fans have set up a Paypal donation drive at:
http://www.multiverse.org/postp40822.html#40822
It just goes to show, no matter how great and respected a writer becomes, wealth is never a sure bet (Stephen King notwithstanding).