October 21st is the date projected for the sale of this graphic novel based on E. C. Tubb’s SF novel, WINDS OF GATH. With the news of the Homeworld cancellation of the omnibus reprint editions of the Dumarest series, this graphic novel is the closest thing to a Dumarest revival. E. C. Tubb’s Dumarest series (33 novels so far) follows a quest by Dumarest to find a mystical planet called Earth. Right now, it looks like DUMAREST L’AVENTURIER DES ÉTOILES T01 : LES VENTS DE GATH is only going to be available from AMAZON.CA. I have my copy on order. And I’m brushing up on my French.

Prepare to be blown away when you look at this compendium of the wildest magazines published between 1925 to 1990. I’ve never seen an issue of JAILBIRD, but this collection has a cover reproduction of it. Earl Kemp provides colorful commentary on the publishing of these magazines. This is a must-own item! My copy just arrived and it’s taken over my life. I can’t put it down! GRADE: A

Philip Jose Farmer, prolific science fiction writer, loved Big Ideas. How about the idea of having all of humanity resurrected on a giant planet: Shakespeare meets Hitler, Madonna meets Caligula. That’s the concept for the “Riverworld” novels. Or how about “pocket universes”–the basis of the “World of Tiers” series. Or how about Sherlock Holmes meets Tarzan (Adventure of the Peerless Peer)? I could go on and on. Philip Jose Farmer used a big canvas for his notions. The Other in the Mirror collects three of Farmer’s unique fictions. Fire and the Night is a mainstream novel that deals with racial relationships. Jesus on Mars explores religious themes but in ways you’ve never imagined. Night of Light is a psychedelic SF novel inspired by Jim Hendrix’s “Purple Haze.” Trust me: you’ll find these novels unique. Subterranean Press should be commended on returning these wild books back to print.

What’s the best time to have sex? When should you ask for a raise? What’s the best month to buy an iPod? What’s the best time of day to be operated on? These and dozens of other timing questions are answered by Mark Di Vincenzo in a breezy style. I love books that can save me time and money. Buy Ketchup in May is loaded with practical advice and witty commentary. Read it and start living smarter. GRADE: A

This new Library of America set collects the best horror stories of the past couple hundred years. VOLUME ONE features Irving, Poe, Hawthorne, Henry James, Edith Wharton, Mary Wilkins Freeman, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and Ambrose Bierce, Stephen Crane, Willa Cather, Conrad Aiken, and F. Scott Fitzgerald. H. P. Lovecraft, Robert E. Howard, Robert Bloch, and other classic contributors to Weird Tales are well represented. In VOLUME 2, Shirley Jackson, Ray Bradbury, Charles Beaumont, Stephen King, Steven Millhauser, and Thomas Ligotti represent the changing of the guard. Classics like Harlan Ellison’s “I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream,” Tim Powers’ “Pat Moore,” John Collier’s “Evening Primrose,” Fritz Leiber’s “Smoke Ghost,” Tennessee Williams’ “The Mysteries of the Joy Rio,” Davis Grubb’s “Where the Woodbine Twineth,” Richard Matheson’s “Prey,” John Cheever’s “Torch Song,” and Shirley Jackson’s unforgettable “The Daemon Lover” are included in this volume’s 42 stories. I don’t think you can go wrong owning these wonderful books! GRADE: A

A Bob Dylan Christmas album. The mind reels! All of Bob Dylan’s U.S. current and future royalties from sales of Christmas In The Heart will be donated in perpetuity to Feeding America (once called Second Harvest), the organization that provides needed supplies to food banks across the country. That’s why I’ll be buying a copy–plus, I’m curious to hear Dylan sing “Here Comes Santa Claus” and “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.” This CD goes on sale October 13.

I suppose I could have waited and used this classic adventure novel for Patti Abbott’s FORGOTTEN BOOKS on Friday, but why wait? There’s a rugged soldier-of-fortune, Eric Nelson, battling the unknown forces. There’s a beautiful woman (featured on the the wonderful EMSH cover) who Nelson has to save from unimaginable dangers. And all of that within 159 pages. Eric Nelson takes on a mysterious assignment deep in the borderlands of Tibet. There, in a legendary valley, Shan Kar, the man who has hired him, tells Nelson that he is humankind’s last ditch defense against the valley’s intelligent animals, who plan to take over the world. If Nelson is successful, his reward is a fabulous treasure in platinum not far from the city of the animals. But after an encounter with a beautiful warrior-maid who fights along side the animals, and an encounter with a telepathic wolf, Nelson wonders if he has been told the whole story. To find out he will has to enter the city of the animals, have his own personality transferred into the body of a wolf and run with the pack. If you’re in the mood for an out-of-body experience and a brief return to a “sense of wonder,” read The Valley of Creation. GRADE: B+

Diane and I attended the “Gala” season opener for the BPO. Their guest stars were Gil Shaham and his lovely wife, Adele Anthony. Shaham started the concert by playing Sarasate’s “Carmen Fantasy” from his latest CD. Then Shaham and his wife played Bach’s “Concerto for Two Violins.” Conductor JoAnn Falletta devoted the second half of the program to that war horse, Beethoven’s “Symphony #9.” Clearly, the attempt to win more subscribers to the BPO dictated the music selections. But Diane and I enjoyed the music and hope to attend more BPO concerts as circumstances allow.

TMC has issued a dozen of these collections: mysteries, romantic comedies, SF, etc. I’m featuring TCM: BATTLEFRONT EUROPE because I don’t believe you can beat the value of this package. It includes Kelly’s Heroes (a personal favorite), Where Eagles Dare, The Dirty Dozen, and Battleground. Four classics for $16.84 at Sam’s Club, or a couple bucks more at AMAZON. These movies bring back a lot of memories, and in these times of fluff and reality TV, projects like these will go the way of the dinosaurs. Buy them while they’re still available!

Fredric Brown wrote wonderful mysteries and wonderful science fiction. Not many writers are that skilled and that adroit. The Mind Thing blends science fiction with mystery. An alien criminal is exiled on Earth, in rural Wisconsin. If he can find a way back to his home planet, the alien will be pardoned. The alien looks like a small turtle, but he has the power to take over the minds of sleeping creatures. He can only be released from his hosts by killing them. Much of the book involves the alien’s attempt to take possession of Doc Staunton, a vacationing MIT professor, who would provide the perfect access to technology that would allow the alien to return to his home planet. But Staunton suspects something is wrong from the rash of animal deaths and human suicides. Fredric Brown creates a cat-and-mouse game that ends with a bang. Don’t miss this one!