Category Archives: Books

Neil Gaiman’s A Screenplay

Once upon a time, a young author by the name of Neil Gaiman — known only for his writing on the Sandman series — co-wrote a novel quite comic in nature with Terry Pratchett, legendary author of the nearly infinite … Continue reading

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Alan Garner’s The Weirdstone of Brisingamen, and The Moon of Gomrath

On the surface, these two books, known collectively as The Alderley Tales, are the adventures of two children who spend a summer in the country and encounter a magical world of elves, wizards, evil witches, and magic. The stories employ … Continue reading

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Alan Garner’s Elidor

Rebecca Swain wrote this for Folk Tales, our precursor. I started reading this book with the idea of skimming it for information to give when offering it to Folk Tales reviewers. Before I knew it I had finished it. I … Continue reading

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Cathy Fenner & Arnie Fenner’s Spectrum 15: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art

Sometimes the best way to approach Spectrum or any of the other “art directors’ annuals” is to wander through and see what strikes one’s fancy. So, wander we will. One thing that gratified me about this year’s selections in Spectrum … Continue reading

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Cathy Fenner & Arnie Fenner’s Spectrum 13: The Best In Contemporary Fantastic Art

At first glance, this year’s edition of Spectrum, the thirteenth in the series, looked a little flat. I didn’t see any of the knock-me-down standouts that grabbed me last year. Let this be an object lesson in jumping to conclusions. … Continue reading

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Brad Meltzer, Rags Morales, and Michael Bair’s Identity Crisis

Every year on my dad’s birthday, I include in his gift a complete comic mini-series, in graphic novel form, of some old favourite of his from either the DC or Marvel universes. Like me (and most men who were once … Continue reading

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Cathy Fenner & Arnie Fenner’s Spectrum 12: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art

I learned early in my career as an art reviewer to avoid group exhibitions, especially those with very large themes. I find many of the same problems in discussing the newest Spectrum: disparate visions, a wide range of approaches, and, … Continue reading

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Book Review: Four titles by folklorist Dr. Jeana Jorgensen

Dr. Jeana Jorgensen has been writing about folklore, fairy tales, and sex for ten years. Often these topics intersect in her work. Recently she has assembled that decade’s worth of academic papers and blog posts about this material and released … Continue reading

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Sam Cutler’s You Can’t Always Get What You Want: My Life with the Rolling Stones, the Grateful Dead and Other Wonderful Reprobates

Oh, and a storm is threatening my very life today … Once upon a time, back when Marin County, California, was still the home of the Grateful Dead, I helped manage a bookstore, Mandrake Books, in San Rafael. It was … Continue reading

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Jackie Kessler and Caitlin Kittredge’s Shades of Gray

The superhuman revolution has begun. With the disruption of the system that was secretly brainwashing the extrahumans of Corp-Co and turning them into obedient superheroes, the superhumans who once protected the Americas of the future have turned to terrorizing it. … Continue reading

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