Reading anything?

[JaseSF]

Read the second short story "The Machine Man of Ardathia" by Francis Flagg. Pretty weird little story about a meeting between a machine man of the future unrecognizable as a descendant of the example of 1930s man to whom he pays a visit in his time machine. Liked it almost as much as "The Coming of the Ice" although it lacks a bit of the emotional punch that story had.

[JaseSF]

The next story selected was "Out of the Sub-Universe" by R. F. Starzl. It's a short little tale about a journey into a microscic world with an unexpected twist at the end. It rather reminded me of an old EC Comics Weird Science or Weird Fantasy story. Nowhere near as good as the previous two stories in terms of getting across the real human loss involved but a fun little time waster nonetheless.

[BoyScoutKevin]

Yes. Weiss' and Hickman's "Bones of the Dragon."

The first in their six-book series "Dragonship."

Heroic Vikings, villainous Romans, and dragons, druids, fairies, gods and goddesses, orges, werewolves, etc.

Not the best thing they've ever done, but not their worst neither.

There are two unique things about it.

(1st) Normally, you can tell who is telling the truth and who is not telling the truth, but the characters are so complex and what they say is so contradictory, you can't tell who is telling the truth or who is not telling the truth.

(2nd) I've seen books where some of the villains were just as "good" as some of the heroes. I've seen books where the heroes and villains were so intertwined, you couldn't tell one from the other, but this is the first time I've seen where some of the villains were actually "better" than some of the heroes.

This one was published last year. The next one, "Secret of the Dragon," will be published in March, 2010. At that rate, the final book will be published in 2014.

And I do hope this does not turn into their "Deathgate Cycle" series. The first two or three books in that series was some of their best writing, but they tried to stretch too thin of a story over too many books, and by the end of the series, the books were almost unreadable.

Next time: "The James Bond Omnibus: vol. 001"

[JaseSF]

"The Eternal Man" by D.D. Sharp which first appeared in the magazine Science Wonder Stories in 1929 (the August issue). I really enjoyed this somewhat dark, twisted short story that warns one to be careful when it comes to eternal life, you just might get what you wished and the results might not be at all as you hope. Gets to the heart of what science fiction is all about, warning against the consequences of blindly committing to scientific advancement. This story is almost as good as "The Coming of the Ice" but not quite. Still recommended.

[AndyC]

"The Eternal Man" by D.D. Sharp which first appeared in the magazine Science Wonder Stories in 1929 (the August issue). I really enjoyed this somewhat dark, twisted short story that warns one to be careful when it comes to eternal life, you just might get what you wished and the results might not be at all as you hope. Gets to the heart of what science fiction is all about, warning against the consequences of blindly committing to scientific advancement. This story is almost as good as "The Coming of the Ice" but not quite. Still recommended.

Made me think of "Cautionary Tales" by Larry Niven, probably my favourite short story on the quest for physical immortality. Really puts things in perspective.

[Joe the Destroyer]

Finished Offspring yesterday.  Started Wolfsbane.

[RCMerchant]

Re-reading BURY MY HEART AT WOUNDED KNEE by Dee Brown.



Everyone should read this. It's a real heartbreaker.

"The white man made us many promises-but kept only one. They promised to take our land-and they took it."

Red Cloud



Black Elk




Young Man Afraid of His Horses





Big Foot in death

[JaseSF]

"The Eternal Man" by D.D. Sharp which first appeared in the magazine Science Wonder Stories in 1929 (the August issue). I really enjoyed this somewhat dark, twisted short story that warns one to be careful when it comes to eternal life, you just might get what you wished and the results might not be at all as you hope. Gets to the heart of what science fiction is all about, warning against the consequences of blindly committing to scientific advancement. This story is almost as good as "The Coming of the Ice" but not quite. Still recommended.

Made me think of "Cautionary Tales" by Larry Niven, probably my favourite short story on the quest for physical immortality. Really puts things in perspective.

I'll have to try and keep an eye for that. Sounds interesting.

[Allhallowsday]

Re-reading BURY MY HEART AT WOUNDED KNEE by Dee Brown.

Everyone should read this. It's a real heartbreaker.

Agreed.  I lost my own copy many years ago, for I'd surely be re-reading every year or so. 

[The Burgomaster]

Last night I started reading LAST OF THE MOHICANS.

[JaseSF]

Just finished "The Power and the Glory" by Charles Willard Diffin (First appeared in ASTOUNDING STORIES July 1930 issue). I was a little disappointed with it overall although it moved well enough and was easy to read and deserves a bit of credit for a slightly unpredictable ending. Still it paled next to the previous stories I've read in this collection.

[Fausto]

Putting off reading "The Demon Redcoat"  for the time being. Instead, I'm starting on Oishinbo a la Carte: The Joy of Rice. It sounds like a cook book, but its actually a set of manga volumes collected and translated from a 1983 series (its as old as I am). It centers on a food critic and his attempts to come up with the perfect japanese meal. No giant robots, no magical girls, no shinto spirits, just food and culture. There's also other volumes besides Joy of Rice, including Sake, Vegetables, and Fish (the title reflecting the type of food the main character will work with, apparently). The english translation has gotten great reviews, even from gourmet food sites that otherwise have nothing to do with manga or comics.

[InformationGeek]

Putting off reading "The Demon Redcoat"  for the time being. Instead, I'm starting on Oishinbo a la Carte: The Joy of Rice. It sounds like a cook book, but its actually a set of manga volumes collected and translated from a 1983 series (its as old as I am). It centers on a food critic and his attempts to come up with the perfect japanese meal. No giant robots, no magical girls, no shinto spirits, just food and culture. There's also other volumes besides Joy of Rice, including Sake, Vegetables, and Fish (the title reflecting the type of food the main character will work with, apparently). The english translation has gotten great reviews, even from gourmet food sites that otherwise have nothing to do with manga or comics.

I know that series.  I own all the current volumes, except the last one, Pub Food.  It's a pretty good series, but I do wish they would go beyond just making 7 collection volumes.

[SPazzo]

I'm about to start The Razors Edge by Somerset Maugham.  Also, Linus Torvald's autobiography.

[Fausto]

I know that series.  I own all the current volumes, except the last one, Pub Food.  It's a pretty good series, but I do wish they would go beyond just making 7 collection volumes.

Yeah, in Japan there's like 100 different volumes, not to mention an anime series. No export for us, I guess.