Don Pizarro's Manual of the Seven Wudan Tiger Shaolin Monkey Kung-Fu Style o' Death
I make no excuses, except to say that I did have the Andromeda Strain in my lungs for the better part of two weeks during the shortest month of the year.
Anyone have an opinion on the wisdom (or lack thereof) of writing while pursuing a (non-writing) graduate degree?
This past week, I polished off the rest of The Best of Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet in between bouts of the plague. In general, I’d say the last part of the collection just burned! Here’re the off-the-cuff reviews of the fiction…
James Sallis, “Two Stories” – Two nicely written flash pieces, combined. One really worked for me, the other one not so much. 3 out of 5.
Karen Russell, “Help Wanted” – A great series of interrelated vignettes forming a greater whole of story/commentary. 5 out of 5.
Sarah Micklem, “‘Eft’ or ‘Epic'” – Very clever use of a narrative substitute. 4 out of 5.
John Kessel, “The Red Phone” – A textbook example of a good idea, wrapped around with great storytelling. 4 out of 5.
Deborah Roggie, “The Mushroom Duchess” – Started a bit slow for me, and the focus of the story shifted. Once I got over that, it was a really decent tale. 4 out of 5.
Seana Graham, “The Pirate’s True Love” – A quintessential empowerment story! 5 out of 5.
John Brown, “Bright Waters” – A longer piece, but with the most solid storytelling I’ve read in awhile! 5 out of 5.
I never got around to seeing Lars and the Real Girl when it was out. I’ll have to catch the DVD. I heard whisperings about this documentary, shot in the UK, called Guys and Dolls. Apparently, these folks are the real deal…
You’d think my first inclination would be to laugh my ass off, and that my second would be to pity some of these folks. Somehow, I managed to suspend all of that, at least through the first half of the video.
Did I mention the absolutely craptastic haircut I allowed myself to get? That’s what I get for being near-exhaustion by the time I got to the barber’s. I’m only about 98% over whatever particular Andromeda Strain I’ve suffered for the past week. That last 2% is a doozy, let me tell you.
Hm, I think I’ve got the makings of a story, here…
Being sick for a week wasn’t enough? I have to get a rejection first thing on a Saturday morning, too?
*Sigh* okay, next market…
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You Are a Question Mark |
 You seek knowledge and insight in every form possible. You love learning. And while you know a lot, you don’t act like a know it all. You’re open to learning you’re wrong. You ask a lot of questions, collect a lot of data, and always dig deep to find out more. You’re naturally curious and inquisitive. You jump to ask a question when the opportunity arises. Your friends see you as interesting, insightful, and thought provoking. (But they’re not always up for the intense inquisitions that you love!) You excel in: Higher education You get along best with: The Comma |
A Second Earth in Our Solar System (?)
NASA’s Alan Stern said these planets are so far away from the sun that we haven t seen them yet:
Our old view, that the Solar System had nine planets will be supplanted by a view that there are hundreds if not thousands of planets in our Solar System. It could be that there are objects of Earth-mass in the Oort cloud a band of debris surrounding our planetary system but they would be frozen at these distances. They would look like a frozen Earth.
So all we need to do is haul one of those babies into our orbit, defrost it, and start populating. Earth 2, here I come!
I gave the stuff I said in this post a few more seconds thought, and decided that without that bit of accountability, I didn’t feel compelled to read as much. So rather than doing a simple list here, and a review elsewhere, I’m going to compromise.
And, here we go–a list of what I read last week, with a quick, unvarnished impression about each piece.
All the readings, except where otherwise indicated, are from The Best of Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet.
David J. Schwartz, “The Ichthyomancer Writes His Friend With an Account of the Yeti’s Birthday Party” – Cool title. Nice mix of the mythical, the magical, and the real. 4 out of 5.
Veronica Schanoes, “Serpents” – This is the second story I’ve read from the author, the first being “Rats.” “Serpents” isn’t quite as powerful, but just as beautifully written. 4 out of 5.
David Marusek, “Osama Phone Home” – From the December ’07 F&SF. A little something for the mundane sci-fi lovers out there. Some exposition “worthy” of the usual sci-fi, though it probably moved about as quickly as possible. Saw the twist end coming, but from only about a tenth of a mile away. 3.5 out of 5.
Benjamin Rosenbaum & David Ackert, “Stray” – Also from the Dec. ’07 F&SF. A historical fantasy, with time and place deftly defined in a single paragraph–that alone was worth the price of admission! A nice steady pace too, despite a couple of jumps in time. The conceit is sort of close to a story I wrote and have been shopping around, but only if you squint your eyes really hard. 5 out of 5.
Douglas Lain, “Music Lessons” – Brilliant concept and brilliant combination of Mr. Rogers and Whitley Streiber. Too alienating (get it?) to read at the end of a work day, though. 3.5 out of 5.