Book Review: Mary Poppins Comes Back by P.L. Travers It has been some time since Mary Poppins left the Banks family to fend for themselves. This hasn’t gone at all well. Nothing seems to work out right without Mary Poppins to ensure the correct outcome. After a particularly difficult morning, Mrs. Banks sends the children… Continue reading Book Review: Mary Poppins Comes Back
Month: August 2019
Magazine Review: Analog June 1967
Magazine Review: Analog June 1967 edited by John W. Campbell Let’s take a look at another issue of this venerable science fiction magazine. It’s towards the end of Mr. Campbell’s editorial run (he died in 1971.) The opening editorial is about interstellar communication, and points out that while we Earthlings have not yet received any… Continue reading Magazine Review: Analog June 1967
Movie Review: Electric Dragon 80,000 V
Movie Review: Electric Dragon 80,000 V (2001) dir. Gakuryu Ishii Dragons exist, at least in the hearts of men. The man called Dragon Eye Morrison was struck by lightning while climbing a power tower as a child. This caused damage to his “reptile brain”, which controls violent impulses. The doctors tried electroshock therapy, but this just… Continue reading Movie Review: Electric Dragon 80,000 V
Manga Review: Rin-Ne Volumes 27 & 28
Manga Review: Rin-Ne Volumes 27 & 28 by Rumiko Takahashi Quick recap: Rinne Rokudo is a part-human shinigami (death spirit) who works as a psychopomp, escorting lost spirits to the afterlife. Due to his deadbeat father sticking him with the responsibilities for that father’s debts, Rinne’s weak powers requiring him to use expensive tools to… Continue reading Manga Review: Rin-Ne Volumes 27 & 28
Book Review: Wilderness Nurse
Book Review: Wilderness Nurse by Marguerite Moders Marshall Denise Burke is a nurse, and a good one. Despite her relative youth, Denise is skilled enough to be given assignments as a “special nurse” who provides round the clock care for patients who need the extra attention and can pay. However, one too many special assignments… Continue reading Book Review: Wilderness Nurse
Magazine Review: Mike Shayne Mystery Magazine December 1978
Magazine Review: Mike Shayne Mystery Magazine December 1978 edited by Sam Merwin Jr. Private eye Michael “Mike” Shayne was created in 1939 by David Dresser, writing under the name “Brett Halliday”. The books were long-running and popular, and in 1956 Dresser licensed the character to a puiblishing company to be the headliner of a digest-sized… Continue reading Magazine Review: Mike Shayne Mystery Magazine December 1978
Movie Review: Excalibur
Movie Review: Excalibur (1981) directed by John Boorman It is the Dimly-Lit Ages, and nearly indistinguishable armored warriors clash in the night. A man stands apart and calls quietly, yet is heard clearly. It is Merlin, and the warlord to whom he speaks is Uther Pendragon. Merlin is guiding Uther’s rise to power over the land,… Continue reading Movie Review: Excalibur
Book Review: New Stories for Men
Book Review: New Stories for Men edited by Charles Grayson This 1941 anthology’s title is a trifle misleading, as some of the stories were up to twenty years old at the time of publication. It turns out it’s a sequel to Stories for Men by the same editor a year or two earlier, which became… Continue reading Book Review: New Stories for Men
Book Review: The Leavenworth Case
Book Review: The Leavenworth Case by Anna K. Green Everett Raymond is alone in his law office because the senior partners are elsewhere when a man comes in and tells him that their client, wealthy importer Horatio Leavenworth, is dead. Murdered! In the absence of Mr. Leavenworth’s usual attorney, Mr. Veeley, Mr. Raymond is deputed… Continue reading Book Review: The Leavenworth Case
Movie Review: Twice-Told Tales
Movie Review: Twice-Told Tales (1963) dir. Sidney Salkow The book version of Twice-Told Tales by Nathaniel Hawthorne was full of ghosts and supernatural occurrences, so it’s not surprising that a star vehicle for noted horror actor Vincent Price would dip into that well. It’s not a very deep dip, though, with only one story from that anthology, one… Continue reading Movie Review: Twice-Told Tales