Sheds interesting new light on some familiar authors.
Two British academics explore the interplay of science and science fiction.
Brake (Science Communication/Univ. of Glamorgan) and Hook (Science Fiction/Univ. of Glamorgan) begin with the late Renaissance, “the age of discovery” and probably the first period in history when the term science fiction meant anything useful. Johannes Kepler’s Somnium, which smuggled a heretical Copernican viewpoint into the story of a lunar voyage, may be the first scientifically informed piece of fiction. The authors follow the genre through several eras of science, looking in each chapter at a handful of works that reveal the period’s common themes. For example, Mary Shelley was “the first great skeptic” of “the mechanical age,” warning in Frankenstein that science can overreach, while the works of Jules Verne, “its chief positivist,” exemplify the period’s faith in the truths of science. H.G. Wells, a student of Darwin’s champion T.H. Huxley, brings evolutionary themes to such books as The War of the Worlds. Some of the authors’ choices are provocative: French, German and Russian writers and filmmakers are the primary focus of their chapters on “the astounding age,” the first half of the 20th century. American fans may find this focus odd, but it recognizes the genre’s international scope. More surprising is the omission, in the discussion of “the atomic age” (1945–60), of some of its most popular writers: Ray Bradbury, Robert Heinlein and Isaac Asimov. On the other hand, the titles Brake and Hook choose to characterize the era—1984, Cat’s Cradle, A Canticle for Leibowitz and Earth Abides—are all first-rate and worthy of the attention they receive. The book is at its best in the last two chapters, which examine the works of William Gibson, Vernor Vinge and China Miéville, plus films like Blade Runner and Terminator 2, as illustrations of the unease aroused by computers and genetic engineering.
Sheds interesting new light on some familiar authors.Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-230-01980-5
Page Count: 250
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2007
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s...
Music journalist and musician Wald (Talking 'Bout Your Mama: The Dozens, Snaps, and the Deep Roots of Rap, 2014, etc.) focuses on one evening in music history to explain the evolution of contemporary music, especially folk, blues, and rock.
The date of that evening is July 25, 1965, at the Newport Folk Festival, where there was an unbelievably unexpected occurrence: singer/songwriter Bob Dylan, already a living legend in his early 20s, overriding the acoustic music that made him famous in favor of electronically based music, causing reactions ranging from adoration to intense resentment among other musicians, DJs, and record buyers. Dylan has told his own stories (those stories vary because that’s Dylan’s character), and plenty of other music journalists have explored the Dylan phenomenon. What sets Wald's book apart is his laser focus on that one date. The detailed recounting of what did and did not occur on stage and in the audience that night contains contradictory evidence sorted skillfully by the author. He offers a wealth of context; in fact, his account of Dylan's stage appearance does not arrive until 250 pages in. The author cites dozens of sources, well-known and otherwise, but the key storylines, other than Dylan, involve acoustic folk music guru Pete Seeger and the rich history of the Newport festival, a history that had created expectations smashed by Dylan. Furthermore, the appearances on the pages by other musicians—e.g., Joan Baez, the Weaver, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Dave Van Ronk, and Gordon Lightfoot—give the book enough of an expansive feel. Wald's personal knowledge seems encyclopedic, and his endnotes show how he ranged far beyond personal knowledge to produce the book.
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s personal feelings about Dylan's music or persona.Pub Date: July 25, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-236668-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
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