Category Archives: Journalism

Name the best science fiction titles

You should never judge a book by its cover, but should you judge a story by its title? If the recent success of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is anything to go by, then for many readers today the answer is yes. Seth Grahame-Smith’s bestselling mash-up of Jane Austen and George A Romero became oneContinue reading “Name the best science fiction titles”

Best SF of the Noughties

Sarah Crown over at The Guardian book blog today asks readers for their top books of the noughties. Unsurprisingly my picks are quite speculative in nature, and there are so many that I eventually gave up trying to list them all. It was also complicated by the fact that many of my favourite books readContinue reading “Best SF of the Noughties”

Listening to – The Bible: A Biography

Recently I’ve discovered the non-fiction author Karen Armstrong, via her short book A Brief History of Myth. I found the book fascinating and brilliantly well written. Armstrong is currently in the news for her book The Case for God, which has been vying for position in the bestseller lists with Richard Dawkins The God DelusionContinue reading “Listening to – The Bible: A Biography”

In and Out

On my last trip to San Francisco I discovered In’n’Out burgers. If you don’t live in California, In’n’Out might need some explanation. Imagine the greasiest possible burger, accompanied with the worlds most artificial cheese, wrapped in a bun that almost resembles bread and chips that no one believes are even related to a potato. AndContinue reading “In and Out”

Machen is the forgotten father of weird fiction

When first encountered, the publications of Tartarus Press seem almost as numinous as the supernatural tales they contain. The simple elegance of their presentation, hand-stitched hardback bindings jacketed in uniform cream covers with only minimal decoration, recall an earlier age when books were as rare and treasured as jewels. Read more on the Guardian bookContinue reading “Machen is the forgotten father of weird fiction”

The myth-making genius of Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman has just won this year’s Hugo award for best novel, for The Graveyard Book – and I can’t be the only one who isn’t surprised by the news. I knew Gaiman was more than just a great writer when I read the comic mini-series Death: The High Cost of Living in 1993. I’dContinue reading “The myth-making genius of Neil Gaiman”