Someone Comes to Town, Someone Leaves Town by Cory Doctorow
reviewed by Matthew Cheney
The author deserves a lot of credit for writing a book like this one,
because he could have written an easier book, a tamer book, a book that wasn't so goofy or passionate or so every which
way, so loose. He could have written a book that held together better, that followed its premises a bit farther, that
was shorter and sharper and shockier, but that book would be a less charming book, a more ordinary one.
Fifty Degrees Below by Kim Stanley Robinson
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
It's the near future, and chaos is in the air and water; chaos in the form of tipping points, changes in the giant system
that determines the Earth's weather that could lead to sudden, severe climate change. One of those tipping points lies in
the interaction of cold water from the polar ice cap with the warm water of the Gulf Stream. Too much of the polar water,
which is also less salty, and the Gulf Stream could be displaced to the south, removing the flow of water that currently
warms England and Northern Europe.
Babylon 5.1
TV reviews by Rick Norwood
Now that Aaron Sorkin has been kicked out of television for being too liberal (and too stoned) the best dramatic television
writers all work, or have worked, in the science fiction or fantasy genres: Ronald D. Moore, currently writing
for Battlestar Galactica, Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy and J. Michael Straczinski, creator of Babylon 5.
Two of the three are writing for comic books.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
a movie review by Alec Worley
Based on the strongest book in the series, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire suffers
yet another patchwork adaptation by screenwriter Steve Kloves. But Mike Newell manages to get out of it something truly heartfelt,
less mechanical than Prisoner of Azkaban, less of a pantomime than parts one and two, The Sorcerer's Stone
and The Chamber of Secrets. What gives this movie its edge is the feeling that the gloves have now come
off, the forces of evil have finally revealed themselves with the waning of Harry's childhood, and the boy wizard must now
take his lumps like a man.
20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill
reviewed by Mario Guslandi
According to Mario, this is, without any doubt, one of the finest short story collections he has ever read, so much so as it comes
from the pen of a newcomer, whose short fiction has appeared so far only in a bunch of genre magazines.
Although the stories date back no farther than
four years or so, it was high time to put them together in a single volume.
Tesseracts 9 edited by Nalo Hopkinson and Geoff Ryman
reviewed by Donna McMahon
This is the first in the Tesseracts anthology series that Donna has read in its
entirety. The previous ones she looked at felt overburdened
with ponderous, somber work that seemed to have been picked for literary 'respectability' rather than story-telling.
Here, the vast majority of stories are strongly emotional
narratives, rather than aloof exercises of the intellect.
Heroic Intentions: an interview with David Gemmell
conducted by Sandy Auden
"When I was young, I was arrested several times and once sent for reports.
The psychologist said I was a psychopath. I found this mildly alarming. He pointed out that it didn't have to be a bad thing.
I can be utterly single minded and screen out everything in order to complete a task. That's why I've never missed a
deadline."
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Olympos by Dan Simmons
reviewed by Nathan Brazil
The opening finds the opposing armies of the Trojan war, united. Their common foe, none other than the mighty Zeus
and the other angry gods familiar to students of Greek mythology. The plot covers three worlds; an Earth that is now
sparsely populated, the terraformed Mars, and another Earth, in a galaxy where Homer's epic heroes and
stories -- Iliad and Odyssey -- actually happened. Although, there are several enormous differences.
Swarmthief's Dance by Deborah J. Miller
reviewed by Victoria Strauss
Long ago, in punishment for the crime of offering immortality to a human, Aria, one of the six spirits known as
the Nulefi, was banished to the underworld -- the realm of the god Rann, whose passionate advances Aria once
spurned. But before Rann could do more than gloat, Aria's sisters did the unthinkable, and rose up to defend
her. In wrath, the gods' leader, Herrukal, dispersed their spirits into the ether. But gods are eternal and
indestructible. Even scattered, the substance of the Nulefi survived.
New Arrivals
compiled by Neil Walsh
This month the new arrivals at the SF Site make a fairly small stack, but there are some much-anticipated goodies, including the latest from George R.R. Martin, Jonathan Carroll, Walter Jon Williams, Alan Dean Foster, Jon Courtenay Grimwood, R.A. Salvatore, and others.
Fantasy Theme Park: an interview with Robert Holdstock
conducted by Sandy Auden
"I believe that hundreds, if not thousands, of individual tales of survival, encounter, heroism and betrayal
lie behind the legends as we have them. But time, death, and wastage of all kinds would have filtered those
individual tales down into a tight stream that might, just might, have been picked up by a natural storyteller."
Across the Wall by Garth Nix
reviewed by Adam Volk
The genre of young adult fantasy literature seems alive and well these days, thanks in part to everyone's favorite pre-pubescent
boy wizard. Indeed, his adventures have not only drawn in millions of readers of all ages, but has created legions
of fantasy junkies now looking for a fix to tide them over until the next volume hits the shelves. And yet, what is
perhaps most surprising is the number of adult readers who are also now wandering the young adult book section of their local
bookstores.
The Onts by Dan Greenburg
reviewed by Jonathan Fesmire
Wally and Cheyenne Shufflemuffin are fraternal twins living at the Jolly Days Orphanage, a place that makes the Municipal
Orphanage of Annie seem like a day spa. Wally's feet stink and Cheyenne is constantly sneezing, so no one wants to
adopt them, until a pair of gaunt women, Dagmar and Hedy, come to the orphanage looking to adopt. Stinky feet and dripping
noses are just what they want in children.
A Conversation With John Saul
An interview with Lisa DuMond
On teenage characters:
"That's the great thing about teenagers as characters: people tend not to take them as seriously as they ought to, so
it's possible for a situation which would be easily controlled if discovered early enough spin completely out of
control simply because one person prefers not to believe what another one is saying. What made Lindsay work so well
was that she had the pressure of the impending move on her; she didn't want to move; and she'd made her antipathy
to the move very clear to everyone; ergo, even when she vanishes, it's easy for people to believe she may simply
have taken off, despite what her mother says."
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