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WilliamWood's Profile
| Display Name: | WilliamWood |
| WilliamWood's Comments |
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 The science fiction century
Excellent anthology. The first story, James Tiptree, Jr.'s, "Beam Us Home" is model sf. posted Jun 13, 2007 at 7:56AM
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 Wire in the blood. The complete first season [DVD] by Leach, Phil. Yikes...this is not like the PBS Mystery of old. Very graphic and disturbing...good, but "adults only" for sure. posted Jun 11, 2007 at 6:25PM
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 Streets on fire : a Jack Liffey mystery by Shannon, John, 1943- Author John Shannon expresses strong, thoughtful views on race throughout all his Jack Liffey mysteries. While I often don't agree with his perspective, I always find it worth serious consideration. And the mysteries themselves...strong characters, unbeatable settings, strong (although sometimes unevenly paced) plotting...Shannon is worthy of the critic's comment naming him the heir to Chandler's title.
Be sure to check out www.JackLiffey.com for all kinds of extra goodies about Jack Liffey and LA. And don't miss the John Shannon interview here: http://www.januarymagazine.com/profiles/jshannon.html posted Jun 10, 2007 at 7:17AM
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 Terminal Island : a Jack Liffey mystery by Shannon, John, 1943- Shannon grew up in San Pedro, CA -- the primary setting for this story (Terminal Island is a small, man-made island in the port of Los Angeles connected to San Pedro by the Vincent Thomas Bridge pictured on the front cover). I met Shannon at the San Pedro library shortly before this novel came out, and lived in San Pedro myself for a number of years. posted Jun 10, 2007 at 7:06AM
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 Starship troopers.by Heinlein, Robert A. 1907-1988 Though the movie has its merits for what it is, the book is a far more serious take on war. One of Heinlein's best. "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" and "Stranger in a Strange Land" are also excellent. posted Jun 9, 2007 at 2:54AM
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 Cosmos by Sagan, Carl, 1934-1996 Still one of the best introductions to science around. (How can you have Cosmos without the music from the series, though???) posted Jun 9, 2007 at 2:52AM
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 The sirens of Titan.by Vonnegut, Kurt Like "Hitchhiker's Guide"? Vonnegut does it even better. Try "Hocus Pocus" and other Vonngegut, too! posted Jun 7, 2007 at 8:56PM
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 Sixty days and counting by Robinson, Kim Stanley. Robinson gets my vote for best, most literary sf author writing today. His climate change trilogy has characters of extraordinary depth, an astonishly detailed and believable depiction of science as it plays out in Washington, and (a bonus for ex-Californians) some of the most loving descriptions of the California coasts and Sierra-Nevada back-country you’re likely to find anywhere. There is a good audio interview of Robinson on the Planetary Society website at www.planetary.org (in the Planetary Radio section). posted Jun 7, 2007 at 8:54PM
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 Entangled minds : extrasensory experiences in a quantum reality by Radin, Dean I. Remarkable evidence for esp aside, this book is one of the best discussions of the proper role of skepticism in science you'll find. posted Jun 7, 2007 at 8:50PM
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 Timescape by Benford, Gregory, 1941- Best time-bender story I've read so far, although I hear Stephen Baxter's "Manifold: Time" is also excellent. posted Jun 7, 2007 at 8:50PM
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| WilliamWood's Book Lists | |
| Beyond the whodunnit... (4 titles)
While I like whodunnit's for their own sake (I'm a big Sherlock Holmes and Poirot fan), the mystery genre can be used very effectively as a vehicle for social commentary, too...my list includes only titles that take the genre beyond the whodunnit and say something about who we are... | |
| Worth a look... (9 titles)
Wish I could add M.P. Shiel's "The Purple Cloud," but the title is not available in the library yet. |
