During the 1960s, John Brunner published his Zarathustra Refugees Planets series (aka, Zarathustra Trilogy). The books concerned a disastrous nova that forced the millions of residents of Zarathustra to abandon their planet before the nova destroyed it. Over two million escaped Zarathustra in 3000 starships. Many of the ships were lost, but many found livable planets to land on.

The first book in the series, Castaway’s World (aka, Polymath), centers around the survivors of a crashed starship on a hostile planet. The 800 survivors work to secure a food supply and defend themselves from the alien environment. The group is threatened when their water supply is cut off by a second group whose starship crashed on a plateau nearby. The conflict between the two groups amid the dangers of the planet risk everyone’s lives. GRADE: B

The Avengers of Carrig (aka, Secret Agent of Terra), opens with young Maddalena Santos sent to Zarathrustra Refugee Planet #14 to investigate the death of a Galactic agent. Maddalena crashes on the planet when an orbiting space ship attacks the Galactic Patrol cruiser that brought her to ZRP #14. The rest of the novel has Maddalena attempting to stop the group that is looting the planet. GRADE: B+

Repairmen of Cyclops brings Maddalena Santos back to investigate a mystery on the poverty-ridden planet of Cyclops. A former military hero is injured by an alien sea creature and loses part of his leg. The Galactic Patriot base on Cyclops rescues the man, but the doctors determine the leg that was damaged had a mysterious past. Cyclops lacks the technology to regenerate limbs–although the Galactic Patrol does–and Maddalena sets out to determine where that phantom leg came from. The solution triggers a planetary upheaval. GRADE: B

Victims of the Nova brings the expanded stories together in a single volume. Not Brunner’s best work, but entertaining nonetheless!

I think most of you will–like me–be skeptical of the “BEST” in the title of this compilation CD from 2004. I would settle for “good.”

Most of these duets were hits when they first came out. Lionel Richie & Diana Ross’s “Endless Love” became the second-biggest selling single of the year (first was “Bette Davis Eyes” by Kim Carnes) in the United States and reached number one on the Hot 100, where it stayed for nine weeks from August 15 to October 10, 1981. It also topped the Billboard R&B chart and the Adult Contemporary chart, and reached number seven in the United Kingdom. It also became the most successful duet of the rock era, surpassing the Everly Brothers‘ 1957 hit “Wake Up Little Susie“, which spent four weeks at number one. Both songs spent six months on the chart, with “Endless Love” eclipsing the Everlys’ hit by one week. Billboard has named the original version as the greatest song duet of all time.

Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell were a spectacular duet until Tammi’s tragic death. “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” was a classic Motown song. The song was written by Ashford & Simpson, who show up on this CD with another one of their songs, “Solid.”

Linda Ronstadt and Aaron Neville’s “Don’t Know Much” was written by Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil and Tom Snow. Mann was the first to record the song in 1980, gaining a minor chart hit in the US. The song was made famous when it was covered as a duet by Linda Ronstadt and Aaron Neville in 1989. Their version was a worldwide success, topping the Irish Singles Chart and reaching the top 10 in several territories.

Do you remember these duets? Any favorites here? And, what’s up with the dogs? GRADE: B+

TRACK LIST:

Joe Hill (aka, Stephen King’s son) first published 20th Century Ghosts in 2005 with various editions published since then. Given his father’s talent, it shouldn’t be surprising that his son can tell compelling stories, too. In his first book, Hill focuses on ghosts of all sorts.

The best known story in 20th Century Ghosts is “Black Phone” which became a surprise hit movie in 2021. Black Phone 2 is in theaters now and took in $26 million at the Box Office its Opening Weekend. In the original story, a teenage boy is abducted by a serial child killer known as the Grabber. When the boy encounters a mystical black rotary phone in captivity, he uses it to plot his escape by communicating with the ghosts of the Grabber’s slain victims.

In his Introduction, Christopher Golden refers to Joe Hill as “one stealthy bastard” because of his ability to write wistfully supernatural stories and darkly disturbing mainstream fiction. With Halloween just around the corner, 20th Century Ghosts fits right in this stealthy season. GRADE: B+

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

I’ve read a fair amount of Colm Toibin’s novels and essays over the years. Toibin’s latest novel, Long Island, is a sequel to his best selling Brooklyn. I read the book, I enjoyed the movie of the same name in 2015. I read Long Island in order to prepare for this evening of Toibin talking about his work and found I liked Brooklyn better. But Toibin mentioned that negotiations are under way to make a movie based on Long Island.

Of the many Colm Toibin books I’ve read, my favorite is Mad, Bad, Dangerous to Know: The Fathers of Wilde, Yeats and Joyce (2018). Toibin teaches a semester long course on James Joyce at Columbia University each year so he knows quite a bit about Joyce’s work and Life.

It’s easy to discern that Colm Toibin is a clever writer because his books are all very clever. But, what I didn’t realize until I heard Toibin speak was that he is a very funny guy. His “talk” seemed complete unscripted and authentic. Later, in the Q&A session, Toibin turned every audience question into a joke filled answer. If you haven’t read Colm Toibin, you’re missing an excellent writer at the top of his game. GRADE: A

Librarian and book critic Becky Siegel Spratford’s Why I Love Horror arrives in the run-up to Halloween with 19 essays by writers of Horror explaining the attraction the genre holds for them.

I confess, I’m not familiar with most of the horror writers in this book–although their essays are fun to read–so I started by reading what two of the writers I was familiar with had to say: Victor LaValle and Grady Hendrix.

I’ve read THE SOUTHERN BOOK CLUB’S GUIDE TO SLAYING VAMPIRES (you can read my review here) and Paperback from Hell (you can read my review here). Hendrix cites Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto as an influence (“I love horror because it’s the one genre that claims to be true.” (p. 136) He also mentions Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw.

I’m a fan of Victor LaValle’s The Ballad of Black Tom. LaValle cites Shirley Jackson, Clive barker, Peter Straub, Stephen King, Robert McCammon, John Saul, and Brian Lumley as influences on his horror writing.

I got a kick out of Hailey Piper’s “The Giant Footprint of Horror” as she explains how she got into Horror at a young age: “The obsession began in probably the best way I could’ve asked for–with Godzilla.” (p. 25). She goes on to explain that Godzilla was “kind of a gateway creature” that led her into her writing profession.

If you’re a fan of books where writers share their secrets and influences, Why I Love Horror will delight you! GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

The 4-2 Buffalo Bills are on a Bye after the disasterous 24-14 loss to the Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night Football. Hopefully, this time off will help the injured players recover and the coaches can right the ship after two straight losses.

How will your favorite NFL team perform today?

I’ve never read a Nicholas Sparks novel–King of the Tear Jerkers–but his best selling The Notebook has made the transition to a movie and now a musical.

“The Notebook is a 2004 American romantic drama film directed by Nick Cassavetes, from a screenplay by Jeremy Leven and Jan Sardi, and based on the 1996 novel of the same title by Nicholas Sparks. The film stars Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams as a young couple who fall in love in the 1940s. Their story is read from a notebook in the modern day by an elderly man, telling the tale to a fellow nursing home resident… The film was a sleeper hit at the box office, grossing $117 million against its $29 million budget… The MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss  went to Gosling and McAdams at the 2005 MTV Movie Awards.”

The musical follows the novel while featuring a number of flashbacks of the young couple. Then the musical returns to the Present where the now aged couple live in a nursing home. I found the music unremarkable. The three sets of characters–Younger, Middle, and Older–performed well with the predictable storyline.

The Notebook treats of problems of aging with some sensitivity. But, it’s not my cup of tea. GRADE: C

Musical numbers:

In his brilliant Introduction, John Fowles praises Tom Adams’ artwork that graced the covers of Agatha Christie mysteries. Most impressive were the wrap-around covers Adams did from 1971 to 1974. Many of them have become collectable.

One of the attractions of Agatha Christie, The Art of Her Crimes is Julian Symons and his insightful commentaries on both Tom Adams’ artwork and Christie’s mysteries.

Tom Adams painted approximately 150 covers for Agatha Christie mysteries, including around 71 different titles for Fontana in the UK and 26 unique covers for Pocket Books in the US. For many books, he created multiple designs, with some novels having as many as two or three different cover versions.

If you’re an Agatha Christie fan, you’ll remember (or possibly own) many of the volumes with Tom Adams covers. This wonderful collection of artwork can be found online at reasonable prices. GRADE: A

Here are two new albums by two Pop Superstars. I’m not a prude but I found both albums disturbing.

Let’s start with Sabrina Carpenter’s cover on Man’s Best Friend. If the cover doesn’t make you shake your head in disbelief, how about the song “Never Getting Laid.”

Taylor Swift’s 12th album, The Life of a Showgirl, is breaking records on Spotify. And the album has a provocative cover, too. The song that rattled my brain is “Wood,” a tribute to Travis Kelce’s penis.

Fortunately, Patrick and Katie are adults and can handle this kind of lurid marketing. But what about those young kids who worship Taylor Swift and Sabrina Carpenter. What are they taking away from these two albums? What do you think? GRADE: X

Man’s Best Friend TRACK LIST:

The Life of a Showgirl TRACK LIST:

I’ve been reading the work of Joe R. Lansdale for over thirty years. But Lansdale’s prolific career has generated so many novels and stories, I’ve only been able to keep up with a fraction of his output. With Halloween just around the corner, The Essential Horror of Joe R. Lansdale arrives at just the right time to provide some spooky vibes for the darkening season.

The Essential Horror of Joe R. Lansdale collects what Lansdale considers the best of his work in horror (of course, Lansdale has written Science Fiction, Fantasy, crime novels, and weird westerns, too). Joe Hill (aka, Stephen King’s son) tries hard to explain Lansdale in his Introduction and…admits he comes up short.

Here’s some reasons why Joe Hill struggled with categorizing Joe R. Lansdale. Take “Hoodoo Man and the Midnight Train.” There’s magic–the Dark kind–enchanted weapons, a spooky Train, and a girl to be rescued. Or what about “The Folding Man” with a limousine filled with nuns–the real Bad kind–and a chase filled with menace and danger. A malevolent spirit powers “God of the Razor” which–as an aside–identifies Jack the Ripper. And what the zombies in “On the Far Side of the Cadillac Desert with Dead Folk.”

So many unique ideas, so many quirky characters, so much horror!

The Essential Horror of Joe R. Lansdale is one of those books just brimming with stories that will rattle around in your mind for a long time. Highly recommended! GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction by Joe Hill — 7

Introduction by Joe R. Lansdale — 13
“The Folding Man” — 15
“Hoodoo Man and the Midnight Train” — 33
“God of the Razor” — 59
“My Dead Dog Bobby” — 71
“Tight Little Stitches in a Deadman’s Back” — 75
“By Bizarre Hands” — 93
On the Far Side of the Cadillac Desert with Dead Folk — 109
“Love Doll: A Fable” — 151
“Mister Weed-Eater” — 157
“The Bleeding Shadow” — 183
“Not From Detroit” — 213
“The Hungry Snow” — 225
“Dog, Cat, and Baby” — 257
Bubba Ho-tep — 261
“Fish Night” — 299
“Night They Missed the Horror Show” — 309