Back in 1972, Playboy published “A Meeting With Medusa,” a novella by Arthur C. Clarke. It’s the story of an exploration mission to Jupiter. Cyborg astronaut, Howard Falcon, discovers alien life on Jupiter in that classic story. Alastair Reynolds, just a youth back in 1972, was electrified by “A Meeting With Medusa” and would later pursue a Ph.D. in astronomy. Years later, Stephen Baxter and Alastair Reynolds exchanged a series of emails where they came up with the idea of exploring the Jupiter that Arthur C. Clarke describes. The result is The Medusa Chronicles. Sadly, I have to report mixed results. Jupiter is still the star of the book, but Baxter and Reynolds brew a Human Vs. Machine plot that wears thin after 400 pages. Sometimes you can’t go home to Jupiter again. GRADE: C+

About a decade ago, I decided to read all the Nero Wolfe series in order. It took me about a year (work got in the way). Rex Stout wrote 33 novels and 39 short stories from 1934 to 1975. Some of the Nero Wolfe books are fabulous. My favorite Nero Wolfe novel is The Golden Spiders. The Golden Spiders was published in 1953 when Rex Stout was at the height of his powers. Wolfe is confronted by three murders and a paucity of clues. But the key clue is a pair of golden spider earrings. And the spider metaphor leads Wolfe and Archie to the killer. But the unraveling of the mystery is cunning and the solution is ingenious. I also enjoyed the Timothy Hutton and Maury Chaykin TV version of The Golden Spiders. I’ve sure other Nero Wolfe fans will have different choices, but if you’re looking for the best Nero Wolfe novel, here it is.

Finally, after a couple months of rumors and innuendo, the College formally announced their Retirement Incentive package. You can read about all the details here. In order to get the Retirement Incentive, senior faculty have to agree to teach the Fall Semester. A letter informing the College that I’m retiring has to be filed by September 30. Once I retire in January 2017, I’ll receive a check for $45,000 (there are also some annuity options I’ll consider so I won’t have to pay any taxes on that amount). In addition, the College will buy my Sick Hours (I have over 3,000). That money will go into an account that will pay for my Blue Cross/Blue Shield health insurance plan for the next decade or so. So I’ll be retiring at the end of the year. Thank you for all of your valuable Good Advice!

Who doesn’t like a good mummy story? Certainly, Jonathan E. Lewis (son of former DAPA-EM member Steve Lewis) does. He writes an informative introduction to the history of mummies and supplies insightful comments before each story explaining why the story was included in this fine collection. I was familiar with Poe’s “Some Words With a Mummy” and Arthur Conan Doyle’s “Lot No. 249” but most of these stories were new to me. I especially liked Frank Belknap Long’s “The Dog-Eared God” and the two Sax Rohmer stories: “The Cat” and “The Whispering Mummy.” If you’re looking for some suspenseful Summer fiction, Ancient Egyptian Supernatural Tales will wrap you up in thrills and chills! GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Introduction by Jonathan E. Lewis
Part I: The Genre’s Origins
Excerpt from The Mummy by Jane Webb Loudon
“Some Words with a Mummy” by Edgar Allan Poe
“Lost in a Pyramid” by Louisa May Alcott
“Lot No. 249” by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Excerpt from Jewel of Seven Stars by Bram Stoker
Part II: The Weird
“The Vengeance of Nitocris” by Tennessee Williams
“Smith and the Pharaohs” by H. Rider Haggard
“The Dog-Eared God” by Frank Belknap Long
“Tarbis of the Lake” by E. Hoffmann Price
“The “Soul of Ra-Moses” by Frank Murray Reynolds
Part III: The Extraordinary and the Exotic
“The Wings of Horus” by Algernon Blackwood
“A Descent Into Egypt” by Algernon Blackwood
“The Lost Elixir” by George Griffith
“The Cat” by Sax Rohmer
“The Whispering Mummy” by Sax Rohmer
Notes for Further Reading

Sophie, an orphan in a shabby orphanage in England, is reading at 3 A.M. when she sees a giant. And, of course, the giant grabs Sophie and takes her to Giant Land. There Sophie learns that there are other giants who delight in eating children. Her giant, the BFG, is a Big Friendly Giant. Roald Dahl’s classic children’s book from 1982 doesn’t quite come to life for Stephen Spielberg in this new movie. Mark Rylance plays the BFG to perfection. Ruby Barnhill portrays the lovable Sophie. The hungry giants are suitably grubby and crude. But Spielberg sanitizes Dahl’s The BFG and takes much of the fun out of it. The script, by Melissa Mathison, doesn’t have the magic of E.T. GRADE: C+

The Great Game begins with the death of Mycroft Holmes. Lavie Tidhar wrote this odd steam-punk novel back in 2012. England is ruled by alien lizards. Intelligent machines are on the rise. Humans battle the forces of darkness. Set in the early 20th Century in some weird alternate reality, a retired spy named Smith is reactivated to find out who murdered Mycroft Holmes. Two female agents join Smith in his investigation. But despite the battle scenes and the addition of Harry Houdini to the mix, I found The Great Game an overstuffed sausage. In this case, less would have been more. GRADE: C+

“What is wrong with you?” asked Lawrence O’Donnell of MSNBC when Anthony Weiner showed up for an interview. Weiner follows the disgraced former New York congressman as Weiner tries to resuscitate his political career by running for the Mayor of New York City. Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg were given unprecedented access to the candidate. And, trust me, there are dozens of cringe-worthy moments in this documentary. Weiner begins with optimism and hope. Anthony Weiner’s beautiful, intelligent wife–Huma Abedin (an aide to Hillary Clinton)–supports her husband’s bid. But, we all know the Titanic is heading for the iceberg. Weiner’s previous sexting with women on the Internet (while his wife was pregnant) is suddenly eclipsed by new revelations of Weiner sending photos of his “private parts” to women like Sidney Leathers. The Weiner campaign goes into crisis mode.

Why did Weiner send photos of his penis to women on the Internet. Why did Weiner call himself “Carlos Danger”? Why did Huma Abedin stay with Weiner? Weiner doesn’t answer these questions. But watching this a slow-motion political train-wreck on an epic scale took my breath away. GRADE: A

I’ve been a fan of Alastair Reynolds’s work for years. Reynolds writes intelligent Space Opera with compelling characters and inventive plots. Subterranean Press, one of my favorite small press publishers, has just published Beyond the Aquila Rift: The Best of Alastair Reynolds in a mammoth, 768-page tome. If you haven’t read any of Alastair Reynolds 14 novels of Galactic adventure, you’re missing out on a lot of fun. If you want to sample some of Reynolds’s work, this is a great place to start. I highly recommend this wonderful collection!
Table of Contents:
◦ Great Wall of Mars
◦ Weather
◦ Beyond the Aquila Rift
◦ Minla’s Flowers
◦ Zima Blue
◦ Fury
◦ The Star Surgeon’s Apprentice
◦ The Sledge-Maker’s Daughter
◦ Diamond Dogs
◦ Thousandth Night
◦ Troika
◦ Sleepover
◦ Vainglory
◦ Trauma Pod
◦ The Last Log of the Lachrymosa
◦ The Water Thief
◦ The Old Man and the Martian Sea
◦ In Babelsberg
◦ Story Notes

For the past few Forgotten Music posts, I’ve featured songwriting duos: Groffin & King,, Mann and Weil , Greenwich and Barry, and Bacharach and David. Doc Pomus and Mort Schuman wrote some of my favorite songs from my youth: “Teenager in Love” by Deon and the Belmonts, the classics by The Drifters–“Sweets for My Sweet,” “This Magic Moment,” “Save the Last Dance for Me”–and hits like (Marie’s the Name of) His Latest Flame.” Do you have a favorite Pomus & Schuman song?
TRACK LIST:
Disc: 1
1. Sweets for My Sweet – the Drifters – the Drifters
2. Little Sister – Elvis Presley – Elvis Presley
3. A Teenager in Love – Dion & the Belmonts – Dion and the Belmonts
4. School of Heartbreakers – Ral Donner – Ral Donner
5. Don’t You Dare Let Me Down – Conway Twitty – Conway Twitty
6. Turn Me Loose – Fabian – Fabian
7. Pajama Party – Bobby Pedrick Jr. – Bobby Pedrick JR
8. Angel Face – Billy Fury – Billy Fury
9. You’re Teasing Me – Lavern Baker – Lavern Baker
10. Teenage Heartache – Ray Peterson – Ray Peterson
11. Foxy Little Mama – Little Tony and His Brothers – Little Tony and His Brothers
12. (You’ve Got) the Magic Touch – the Platters – the Platters
13. Seven Day Weekend – Gary U.S. Bonds – Gary U.S. Bonds
14. Souvenir of Mexico – Ben E. King – Ben E. King
15. Comes the Day – Rusty Lane & the Mystics – Rusty Lane & the Mystics
16. Sorrow Tomorrow – Bobby Darin – Bobby Darin
17. Boogie Woogie Country Girl – Big Joe Turner – Big Joe Turner
18. I Ain’t Sharin’ – Sharon Jimmy Darren – Sharon Jimmy Darren
19. Two Fools – Frankie Avalon – Frankie Avalon
20. Misery’s Child – Richard Hayes – Richard Hayes
21. The Snake and the Bookworm – Cliff Richard – Cliff Richard
22. Sun Glasses – the Shades – the Shades
23. You Be My Baby – Ray Charles – Ray Charles
24. Spanish Lace – Gene McDaniels – Gene McDaniels
25. You Never Talked About Me – Del Shannon – Del Shannon
Disc: 2
1. Surrender – Elvis Presley – Elvis Presley
2. The Tiger and the Mouse – Connie Francis – Connie Francis
3. Don’t Fly Away – Jan & Dean – Jan & Dean
4. Go, Jimmy, Go – Jimmy Clanton – Jimmy Clanton
5. If You Need Me – Dave Sampson – Dave Sampson
6. I Count the Tears – the Drifters – the Drifters
7. (Since You’re Gone) I Can’t Go on – Bobby Darin – Bobby Darin
8. Carryin’ That Load – Ray Charles – Ray Charles
9. Stampede – Danny Valentino – Danny Valentino
10. Kiss and Make Up – the Crowns – the Crowns
11. Teenage Tears – James Darren – James Darren
12. I Need a Girl – Big Joe Turner – Big Joe Turner
13. Your Other Love – the Flamingos – the Flamingos
14. Would You Stand By Me? – Billy Fury – Billy Fury
15. Hey Memphis – Lavern Baker – Lavern Baker
16. Ginny in the Mirror – Del Shannon – Del Shannon
17. A Texan and a Girl from Mexico – Anita Bryant – Anita Bryant
18. This Magic Moment – the Drifters – the Drifters
19. Havin’ Fun – Dion – Dion
20. Once Upon a Time – Ricky Valance – Ricky Valance
21. Footsteps – the Skyliners – the Skyliners
22. People Gotta Talk – Ersel Hickey – Ersel Hickey
23. Hushabye – the Mystics – the Mystics
24. I’m on Fire – Tommy Bruce & the Bruisers – Tommy Bruce & the Bruisers
25. I Dig Girls – Bobby Rydell – Bobby Rydell
Disc: 3
1. Hound Dog Man – Fabian – Fabian
2. Too Hot to Handle – Jimmy Simmons – Jimmy Simmons
3. Little Ship – the Delicates – the Delicates
4. (Marie’s the Name of) His Latest Flame – Del Shannon – Del Shannon
5. Doin’ the Best I Can – Elvis Presley – Elvis Presley
6. Rag Doll – Jess Conrad – Jess Conrad
7. Lonely Avenue – Ray Charles – Ray Charles
8. Sweet Talk – Bobby Comstock & the Counts – Bobby Comstock & the Counts
9. I’m a Man – Adam Faith – Adam Faith
10. So Close to Heaven – Ral Donner – Ral Donner
11. Say the Word – Mickey & Sylvia – Mickey & Sylvia
12. It’s Been Nice – Marty Wilde – Marty Wilde
13. Too Good – Little Tony & His Brothers – Little Tony and His Brothers
14. Love Roller Coaster – Joe Turner – Joe Turner
15. Senor Big and Fine – Lavern Baker – Lavern Baker
16. Wait – Jimmy Clanton – Jimmy Clanton
17. Happy Time – the Skyliners – the Skyliners
18. My Island of Dreams – Clyde McPhatter – Clyde McPhatter
19. Mess of Blues – Elvis Presley – Elvis Presley
20. It’s Not True – Ricky Valance – Ricky Valance
21. (Wake Up) Miss Rip Van Winkle – the Tibbs Brothers – the Tibbs Brothers
22. Music Man – Danny Valentino – Danny Valentino
23. Plain Jane – Bobby Darin – Bobby Darin
24. I’ve Cried Before – Dion & the Belmonts – Dion and the Belmonts
25. Save the Last Dance for Me – the Drifters – the Drifters