Magazine Review: High Adventure #193: Underworld Detective

Magazine Review: High Adventure #193: Underworld Detective edited by John P. Gunnison This issue of pulp reprints draws from Underworld Detective, which also published as The Underworld and The Underworld Magazine between 1927 and 1935. It focused on crime action stories, and it appears all the stories reprinted here are from the October 1933 issue.… Continue reading Magazine Review: High Adventure #193: Underworld Detective

Movie Review: Fiddler on the Roof

Tevye will never see his home again.

Movie Review: Fiddler on the Roof (1971) directed by Norman Jewison Anatevka at the turn of the Twentieth Century is a small village in the Russian Empire, what is now Ukraine. It is home to a community of Jews, as well as Orthodox Christians. Our protagonist is Tevye (Chaim Topol), an impoverished milkman who has been… Continue reading Movie Review: Fiddler on the Roof

Book Review: Cooked to Death

Book Review: Cooked to Death edited by Rhonda Gilliland and Michael Allan Mallory Let’s return to the world of themed anthologies, a quick way to get a sample of various authors writing on a particular topic. In this case, it’s primarily Minnesota and other Midwestern writers doing crime and mystery short stories around the topic… Continue reading Book Review: Cooked to Death

Magazine Review: Analog Science Fiction & Fact January/February 2024

Cover art by Julie Dillon

Magazine Review: Analog Science Fiction & Fact January/February 2024 edited by Trevor Quachri Let’s look at a recent issue of this long-running science fiction (and fact) magazine. The opening editorial by Howard V. Hendrix, “Machines Passing for People Passing for Machines”, which among other things discusses the Turing Test, where a simulated person tries to… Continue reading Magazine Review: Analog Science Fiction & Fact January/February 2024

The Continental Literary Magazine: Beast (2023)

mockups-design.com

The Continental Literary Magazine: Beast (2023) edited by Sándor Jászberényi The Continental is a Hungarian literary magazine dedicated to widening recognition of Central European authors in the English-speaking world. It comes out quarterly, and I happened to notice a copy at the bookstore. The theme of this issue is “Beast”, both actual animals and the… Continue reading The Continental Literary Magazine: Beast (2023)

Comic Book Review: Jack Kirby

Comic Book Review: Jack Kirby by Tom Scioli Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway for the purpose of writing this review. No other compensation was offered or requested. Jack Kirby (1917-1994) was one of the most prolific and influential American comic book creators of the Twentieth Century. With other… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Jack Kirby

Book Review: New Tales of Space and Time

Cover by Charles Frank

Book Review: New Tales of Space and Time edited by Raymond J. Healy This 1951 anthology opens with an introduction by Anthony Boucher. In it he notes the proliferation of science fiction anthologies at the time, most of which were reprints of magazine stories. Often the same stories, over and over–not bad because they are… Continue reading Book Review: New Tales of Space and Time

Book Review: World’s Best Science Fiction: Third Series

Book Review: World’s Best Science Fiction: Third Series edited by Donald A. Wollheim and Terry Carr (also printed as “World’s Best Science Fiction 1967”) The introduction to this volume of science fiction stories from 1966 mentions that there was a tendency to longer stories in the field, perhaps because many of the ideas required more… Continue reading Book Review: World’s Best Science Fiction: Third Series

Book Review: Farthing

Book Review: Farthing by Jo Walton England didn’t win World War Two. In fairness, they didn’t lose either. Thanks to a coalition of wealthy nobles and businessmen, Rudolph Hess’ mission was a success, and the Axis were able to negotiate a peace settlement with Great Britain. This is generally considered a great saving of British… Continue reading Book Review: Farthing

Book Review: Artful

Book Review: Artful by Peter David As long time readers will recall, some years ago I read and reviewed the classic Charles Dickens novel, Oliver Twist. Towards the end, the last we see of Oliver’s friend acquaintance the Artful Dodger is in court, where he’s sentenced to be transported to Australia for thievery. (A crime… Continue reading Book Review: Artful