Posted by Tanya Jones at 11:52 PM
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It's not for nothing that The Two Ronnies are regarded as one of Britain's greatest double acts, although they were never a double act in the conventional way, due to Barker being first and foremost an actor, rather than a comedian. Both the Ronnies have had autobiographies and biographies released (several, in Barker's case), but I must admit that an autobiography of the partnership itself is an interesting idea.
Continue reading "And It's Goodnight From Him... The Autobiography of The Two Ronnies" »
Posted by Phil Reed at 11:53 AM
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About the only thing I have that comes even close to a Christmas tradition is reading The Catcher in the Rye at some point during the season. It's not anything I make sure to do...it's just that this time of year always makes me want to revisit it.
Evidently some folks like to revisit the story a whole other way: physically. And cnn.com has this interesting feature today: a guide to The Catcher in the Rye's New York locations.
I think I'm going to print this out and save it for my mid-life crisis.
Posted by Phil Reed at 4:08 PM
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Posted by Phil Reed at 6:34 PM
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Audiences are fascinated by people who peak too early in life. Salinger's Glass family stories are a good example. So is just about every Wes Anderson protagonist. Even in the real world, the world of non-fiction, the broken lives of childhood stars are interesting to us. There's a morbid attentiveness to the fact that someone's life can stretch on so far beyond their initial triumph.
Joe Meno applies this morbid attentiveness to his own creation, Billy Argo, in the sweet, brutal, razor-sharp
The Boy Detective Fails. And, perhaps, he sheds more light on the phenomenon than he might have even realized.
Continue reading "Review: The Boy Detective Fails" »
Posted by Austin Ross at 6:55 PM
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The 2007 Hugo Awards were announced today. The 2007 Nebula Awards were announced back in May, but I didn't mention them because...well, because I am lazy. Anyway - find the winners herein!
Continue reading "Doctor Who in Surprise Shock Hugo Win" »
Posted by Phil Reed at 1:33 AM
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Dear Stephen King,
You are a turd.
That is all.
Actually, wait...that's not all...
Continue reading "An open letter to Stephen King" »
Posted by Phil Reed at 6:21 PM
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Let's play a game: you're banished to a remote island tomorrow. Among a few survival supplies, you are allowed to bring five books. What are they?
I can answer with very little hesitation:
Gravity's Rainbow, Ulysses, Pale Fire, Tristram Shandy and, perhaps less-predictably, Ford Madox Ford's masterpiece of English comic prose,
The Good Soldier.It's a commonly-ignored novel that's been sitting very quietly in your local library, trying not to disturb anyone passing by...but if you've had the good fortune to pick it up and give it a read, it will have shown you things you never knew a novel could do. At least, not so humorously...
Continue reading "Booktext, July 07--The Good Soldier" »
Posted by Seb Patrick at 1:28 PM
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We're a little behind on our Doctor Who series three reviews at the moment - although rest assured, we do intend to catch up in due course - so it'll be a little while before we get round to raving about how utterly fantastic Paul Cornell's "Human Nature" two-parter was (although he might as well clear a space on his shelf right now for the 2008 Hugo). In the meantime, though, it's worth noting that for those of you who enjoyed the episodes and want to read Cornell's original novel, the BBC have helpfully put their eBook of it back online, complete with some extra notes on the adaptation by Cornell, and all the lovely painted artwork and whatnot. Newcomers to the New Adventures series should note that they're set inbetween the end of the original series in 1989 and the 1996 TV movie, and feature Sylvester McCoy's Seventh Doctor (albeit one that evolved and changed quite a lot from his TV version).
And when you're done with Human Nature, go and read the excellent The Dying Days and Lungbarrow, as well - after all, you never know, with novels out there by Cornell, RTD, Gatiss, Roberts and Jones, Human Nature might not be the last of the NAs to get adapted for the screen...
Posted by Phil Reed at 3:06 PM
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Let's talk about murder, bicycles, Hell and omnium. Let's talk about philosophical commentary, the human soul, capital punishment and men with only one leg. Let's talk about some of the most chilling comedy to be published in the last century. But, perhaps most importantly, let's talk about how close this novel came to never being a novel at all.
Continue reading "Booktext, June 07--The Third Policeman" »
Posted by Phil Reed at 7:58 PM
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There's really only one negative thing about the worldwide success of the Borat film, and that's that Sacha Baron Cohen is probably never going to get away with anything like it again. But that doesn't mean the impact of the film will be limited to that singular release...
Continue reading "In the wake of Borat" »
