Anti-ebook and audio book snobbery is silly at the best of times. Let’s celebrate all forms of storytelling.
Tag Archives: books
The Pandemic Has Given Me Time to Write Fiction, and Think. How About You?
It’s been a weird year. I don’t know any other year like it. Even 2016 with its celebrity deaths, Brexit vote, and Trump’s shock election doesn’t even come close to the worst Australian wildfires ever, the biggest social justice marches ever, and a pandemic that led to many countries shutting right down.
10 Books with the Best Closing Lines
(UPDATED AND RESCHEDULED POST) The opening line of a book is vitally important for grabbing the reader by the throat and making them not want to let go. But what about the final line? Regardless of whether there is a sequel in the works, the final sentence – although not as important, still requires someContinue reading “10 Books with the Best Closing Lines”
Frankenstein is 200 Years Old: What is it About?
It’s considered the first ever proper modern science fiction novel. 200 years after it was first published, it still manages to wow audiences. It’s been reinvented more times than Madonna but a resurgence a few years ago means we are once again craving the timeless tale. It all began when Danny Boyle adapted it forContinue reading “Frankenstein is 200 Years Old: What is it About?”
Book Review: Notes from a Small Island by Bill Bryson
The TL;DR version of this review: This is the travel guide to Britain you never knew you needed 😀 I’m a Bill Bryson convert. Just as he has adopted the British (genetic?) predisposition for sarcasm and deadpan delivery, I’ve adopted his unique writing style. Like many Americans, Bryson always wanted to visit Britain.
Book Review: Uncanny Valley by Gregory Miller
I’ve gone off short story collections in recent years. I can’t help feeling that modern writers have lost the art of succinctness and good old-fashioned storytelling required of a short piece. Yet Uncanny Valley caught my eye thanks to the unique selling point. It claims to be a collection of short stories sent in toContinue reading “Book Review: Uncanny Valley by Gregory Miller”
Book Review: Aquariums of Pyongyang by Kang Chol-Hwan
It’s around 18 months since I completed another book on North Korea – Nothing to Envy. I bought this around the same time. It’s one of the most famous accounts from anyone who lived inside the country and spent time at one of the many notorious gulags. Kang Chol-Hwan was just a boy when hisContinue reading “Book Review: Aquariums of Pyongyang by Kang Chol-Hwan”
Book Review: Deck Z by Chris Pauls & Matt Solomon
What happened to the “unsinkable” RMS Titanic? Did it strike an iceberg and sink in the early hours of 15th April 1912? Did it actually go down in history as the worst maritime disaster ever? Yes, we know this is the case. But what happened in the hours leading up to that fateful night. SomeContinue reading “Book Review: Deck Z by Chris Pauls & Matt Solomon”
Science Fiction’s Sub-Genres in a Nutshell (Part 1)
To the uninitiated, science fiction is about space battles and exploring planets full of strange and wonderful creatures. Yet science fiction has never “just” been about spaceships and alien planets. That is just one subgenre of our weird and wonderful genre. There are many more and you might be surprised at some books and filmsContinue reading “Science Fiction’s Sub-Genres in a Nutshell (Part 1)”
Book Review: Nothing edited by Jeremy Webb
This is a book about nothing – quite literally. It makes something of nothing, quite literally about that too. You will find nothing in this book, lots and lots of nothing and you will find it quite frankly one of the most interesting books you will ever read. Even though it is about nothing, featuringContinue reading “Book Review: Nothing edited by Jeremy Webb”
