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Index of LJ Book/Movie/TV/Con Posts

"Never judge a book by its movie."--J.W. Eagan

I post reader reports of books, manga, and TV shows at my LiveJournal, Verba Vita Est. Because the "favourites" system is clunky for indexing, I provide links to those reports here, organized by genre and alphabetically by author. Said reports are far more informal than recommendation-reports elsewhere on this site, impressionistic in nature, and sometimes spoilery. I want this around for my own reference, so I figured it'd do no harm to post it in case anyone else wanted an index, too.

Categories so far include Fiction (books), Nonfiction (books), Poetry (magazines, books, chapbooks), Animé/Manga (such as Fullmetal Alchemist and Princess Tutu), TV Shows (such as Angel, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Bones, Supernatural, or Veronica Mars). Writing thoughts appear on the appropriate page. And of course's there is now Bookmockery. Mostly affectionate.

Vid commentaries [e^y] live elsewhere, as does vidding meta [Verba Vita Est, LJ memories].

Partial inventory of books owned, part I (mostly history and linguistics/languages).

Fiction

Bookmockery

Miscellaneous

John Aegard

"The Golden Age of Fire Escapes." Short story in Rabid Transit's chapbook #3, Petting Zoo.

Lloyd Alexander

Westmark. Examination of the opening. WESTMARK TRILOGY, #1. Ruritanian fantasy.

Barth Anderson

"Psalm of Big Galahad" in Rabid Transit's chapbook #1, New fiction by the Ratbastards. Sf short story.

Kevin J. Anderson & Rebecca Moesta

"Rough Drafts." Analog Jan./Feb. 2005. Sf. Comparisons to Jack McDevitt's "Fort Moxie Branch," in the collection Standard Candles.

M.T. Anderson

The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Vol. I: The Pox Party. Some discussion in comments. And some analysis.

Catherine Asaro

Primary Inversion. SAGA OF THE SKOLIAN EMPIRE #1. Space opera/romance(?).

Asimov, Greenberg, & Waugh, eds.

Thirteen Crimes of Science Fiction. Sf mystery anthology. Partial thoughts.

Paolo Bacigalupi

"The Calorie Man." F&SF Oct./Nov. 2005. Sf.

"The People of Slag and Sand." F&SF Feb. 2004. Sf.

Nick Bantock

Sabine's Notebook; The Golden Mean. Surreal art epistolary?

Pat Barker

Regeneration. Fiction: WWI, partly historical: Dr. Rivers, Siegfried Sassoon.

John Barnes

One for the Morning Glory, first 50 pages. Comic fantasy.

Steven Barnes

"Endurance Vile." Asimov's Aug. 1980. Sf.

Stephen Barr

"I Am a Nucleus" in The Fourth Galaxy Reader, ed. H.L. Gold. Sf.

Christopher Barzak

"The Blue Egg" in Rabid Transit's chapbook #1, New fiction by the Ratbastards. Fantasy/horror/surreal?

Stephen Baxter

"Between Worlds." In Between Worlds, ed. Robert Silverberg. Sf.

John Bellairs

The Face in the Frost. Initial reaction. Fantasy.

Alfred Bester

"Disappearing Act." Sf.

Holly Black

Tithe. Valiant. YA urban fantasy.

Holly Black & Tony DiTerlizzi

SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES #1. Also #2 and #3. #4 The Ironwood Tree. #5 The Wrath of Mulgarath. Children's fantasy series.

Michael Blumlein

"The Roberts" in F&SF July 2008. Sf.

Leah Bobet

Building a Taller Chair [Fortean Bureau]. Surreal/alternate history/sf.

Ben Bova

"The Supersonic Zeppelin." Analog Jan./Feb. 2005. Sf humor.

Hannah Wolf Bowen

"Under the Bridge" [ChiZine]. Fantasy.

Marion Zimmer Bradley

The Falcons of Narabedla. Science fantasy.

DARKOVER: The Shattered Chain and Thendara House.

Gillian Bradshaw

Alchemy of Fire. Historical fiction: Byzantium.

Kenneth Brady

"Baby on Board." Analog Dec. 2004. Sf.

Marie Brennan

Midnight Never Come. First in a series? Historical fantasy about faerie and Queen Elizabeth.

Patricia Briggs

Moon Called. Blood Bound. Urban fantasy/paranormal romance, I think.

David Brin

"Mars Opposition." Analog Jan./Feb. 2005. Sf.

The Postman. Post-apocalyptic sf.

Emma Bull

War for the Oaks and comparison to Holly Black's Tithe. Urban fantasy.

Michael A. Burstein

"Seventy-Five Years." Analog Jan./Feb. 2005. Sf.

Octavia Butler

Personal experiences with her works.

Italo Calvino

Cosmicomics. Science fantasy?

James L. Cambias

"Ocean of the Blind." F&SF Apr. 2004. Alien sf.

Orson Scott Card, ed.

Masterpieces of Science Fiction initial impressions. More on Masterpieces of Science Fiction. And again. Sf anthology.

Cecil Castellucci

Boy Proof. YA.

Jack L. Chalker

Dancers in the Afterglow. Sf.

The Identity Matrix. Sf.

Raymond Chandler

The Big Sleep. Noir.

Loretta Chase

Mr. Impossible, first two chapters. Historical romance.

C.J. Cherryh

A partial overview of her oeuvre.

Destroyer. FOREIGNER #7 (technically #1 of the third trilogy). Alien sf.

Ted Chiang

"Division by Zero." Sf.

"Story of Your Life" from Stories of Your Life and Others (collection). Alien/linguistics sf.

Tom Clancy

The Hunt for Red October, brief initial reaction. A few later notes (page down). Political thriller. And submarines!

David Coe

Children of Amarid. #1 of LON-TOBYN CHRONCILES. Fantasy.

Tim Colley

"Worth of Man." Asimov's Aug. 1980. Sf short-short humor.

Tina Connolly

"On the Eyeball Floor" [Strange Horizons]. Brief note. Sf story.

Liza Conrad

#1 High School Bites. LUCY CHRONICLES. YA with vampires.

Glen Cook

The Black Company. Examination of the opening. BLACK COMPANY (first) trilogy, #1. Military fantasy.

A snippet from Shadowline. Summation. Military sf.

Louise Cooper

INDIGO #1-2 Nemesis and Inferno. #3 Infanta. #4 and #5, Nocturne and Troika. #6-7 Avatar and Revenant. #8 Aisling and comparison to Geraldine Harris's SEVEN CITADELS. And some last complaints. Fantasy octet.

Jim Cowan

"Spade of Reason." Sf by way of math.

Albert E. Cowdrey

"Danny's Inferno." F&SF Dec. 2003. Cthulhu/sff.

"Poison Victory" in F&SF July 2008.

"Rapper." Fantasy humor. F&SF Feb. 2004.

"Silent Echoes." F&SF Apr. 2004. Sf/f humor. Kind of.

Jennifer Crusie

Crazy for You. Women's fiction.

Faking It. Women's fiction.

Fast Women. Women's fiction.

Tell Me Lies. Women's fiction.

Scott Dalrymple

"Enfant Terrible" in F&SF July 2008. Sf humor/horror.

Avram Davidson

"Or All the Seas with Oysters." Sf.

Pamela Dean

The Hidden Land. #2 of the SECRET COUNTRY trilogy. YA fantasy.

Alan DeNiro

"A Number of Hooves" in Rabid Transit's chapbook #1, New fiction by the Ratbastards. Science fantasy story/poem.

Bradley Denton

"Sergeant Chip" in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction Sept. 2004. Sf.

Sarah Dessen

Dreamland. Comparison with Kathe Koja's The Blue Mirror. YA fiction; abusive relationship.

Charles V. De Vet & Katherine MacLean

"Second Game" in Thirteen Crimes of Science Fiction. Sf.

Catherine Dexter

Alien Game. YA supernatural/sf, first fifteen pages.

Peter Dickinson

Eva. Initial impressions. YA sf.

Gordon R. Dickson

CHILDE CYCLE: #1 Tactics of Mistake. And that again. And more initial Tactics impressions. #2 Necromancer. #3 Soldier, Ask Not. #4 Dorsai! Sf series.

Naked to the Stars. Sf.

Anne Downer

Hatching Magic. Children's fantasy.

Debra Doyle & James Macdonald.

MAGEWORLDS: #2 Starpilot's Grave. #3 By Honor Betray'd. Note that #2 and #3 really function as a duology. #4 The Gathering Flame, chronologically a prequel to #1 (but the series should be read in publication order). #5 The Long Hunt, which takes place chronologically after #3. #6 The Stars Asunder: notes from halfway through. This takes place before everything, and starts a pre-prequel sequence. Space opera with Mages and Adepts (and much more).

Diane Duane (with Peter Morwood)

The Romulan Way (in Rihannsu: The Bloodwing Voyages: #2), a brief linguistic complaint.

Lois Duncan

Daughters of Eve. Women in the novel. Men in the novel, and the endgame. YA.

Don't Look Behind You. YA suspense.

Down a Dark Hall. YA suspense.

Gallows Hill. YA suspense.

A Gift of Magic, initial thoughts. Final thoughts. YA paranormal.

I Know What You Did Last Summer. YA suspense.

I Walk at Night. Children's picture book, illustrated by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher.

Killing Mr. Griffin. YA suspense.

Lost in Time. YA suspense.

Summer of Fear and preliminary thoughts on xenophobia in Duncan's oeuvre. YA susepnse.

The Third Eye. YA suspense.

The Twisted Window. YA suspense.

Clare Dunkle

The Hollow Kingdom. YA fantasy.

Suzette Haden Elgin

Native Tongue, initial reaction. Final report. Sf: linguistics, sex/gender divides.

Harlan Ellison

"Jefty Is Five." Sf.

Jane Emerson

City of Diamond. Note: First in a projected trilogy that was never finished. Emerson is the pen-name of Doris Egan, who moved on to writing for TV.

Michael Ende

Momo. Children's fantasy.

Sylvia Engdahl

Enchantress from the Stars. YA sf.

Sam Enthoven

The Black Tattoo. YA fantasy.

Steve Erikson

A snippet from #1 Gardens of the Moon. Halfway-point report. #2 Deadhouse Gates. Examination of the opening. #3 Memories of Ice. #4 House of Chains. MALAZAN BOOK OF THE FALLEN. Gritty fantasy saga.

Laura Esquivel

Like Water for Chocolate. Magical realism.

Jennifer Fallon

Medalon. HYTRHUN CHRONICLES #1, first 25 pages. Fantasy series.

Sharon N. Farber

"Trans Dimensional Imports." Asimov's Aug. 1980. Sf.

Charles Coleman Finlay

"Pervert." F&SF March 2004. Sf.

Sally Fisher

The Tale of the Shining Princess. Illustrated fairytale adaptation based on a translation by Donald Keene.

Lynn Flewelling

The Hidden Warrior. #2 of a trilogy of which #1 was The Bone Doll's Twin. Fantasy.

John M. Ford

The Final Reflection. Sf. Star Trek tie-in.

How Much for Just the Planet? Sf humor/musical parody. A Star Trek (original series) tie-in novel, in fact.

Carl Frederick

"The Fruitcake Genome" (page down a bit). Analog Dec. 2004. Sf.

C.S. Friedman

In Conquest Born. Space opera. (With linguistics!) And its sequel, The Wilding, with comparisons to the former.

Neil Gaiman

SANDMAN: Endless Nights. Graphic novel story collection?

Smoke and Mirrors. Short story collection, mostly fantasy or horror.

Alan Garner

Red Shift initial reaction. More extensive notes and readings. Fantasy--slipstream, even? Tam Lin (also Thomas the Rhymer?) retelling.

David Gerrold

"Dancer in the Dark." F&SF Apr. 2004. Sf/f.

Colleen Gleason

The Rest Falls Away. Rises the Night. GARDELLA CHRONICLES #1-2. Paranormal regency romance, sort of?

Rumer Godden

In This House of Brede. Fiction.

Lisa Goldstein

"Reader's Guide" in F&SF July 2008. Fantasy/metafiction.

Steven Gould

Jumper. YA sf.

Wildside. Sf.

Simon R. Green

A brief Green primer for the curious.

Blue Moon Rising. Fantasy.

Deathstalker Return. And Deathstalker Legacy. Deathstalker Coda, the very last one. #6-8. in the DEATHSTALKER series. Space opera.

#1 Something from the Nightside, with comparisons to a number of Green's previous novels. #3 Agents of Light and Darkness (page down a bit). #4 Hex and the City. #5 Paths Not Taken. A favorite passage from same. #6 Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth. #7 Hell to Pay. Fantasy/mystery noir.

Swords of Haven. Examination of the opening. HAWK AND FISHER #1. Fantasy mystery/adventure.

Daryl Gregory

"Free, and Clear." F&SF Feb. 2004. Fantasy.

Jessie Haas

Working Trot. YA fiction: horses.

Elad Haber

"Ophelia and Beast" in Rabid Transit's chapbook #3, Petting Zoo. Fantasy.

Barbara Hambly

Bride of the Rat God. Fantasy set in 1920s Los Angeles/Hollywood.

Die Upon a Kiss. #? in the BENJAMIN JANUARY series of historical mysteries.

Jim Harmon

"Name Your Symptom." Sf.

Geraldine Harris

SEVEN CITADELS quartet: Prince of the Godborn; The Children of the Wind; The Dead Kingdom; The Seventh Gate. Examination of the opening of Prince of the Godborn. Examination of Kerish-lo-Taan and Forollkin's evolving relationship in the series. Examination of Kerish-lo-Taan, and Gidjabolgo as shadow. YA fantasy.

Merrie Haskell

"Huntswoman" [Strange Horizons]. Revisionist fairytale (page down a bit).

Justina Chen Headley

Nothing But the Truth (and a few white lies). Brief excerpt. YA with biracial (white/Asian) protagonist.

C.J. Henderson

A Baby's First Mythos. Illus. Erica Henderson. Lovecraftian abecedary.

P.C. Hodgell

#1 Examination of the opening of God Stalk. #4 To Ride a Rathorn. KENCYRATH CYCLE. Gothic fantasy series, still in progress.

James P. Hogan

The Genesis Machine, p.99 verdict. Cold War-era hard sf.

Matthew Hughes

"Fullbrim's Finding" in F&SF July 2008. Science fantasy.

Steve Jackson

SORCERY! quartet: The Shamutanti Hills; Kharé--Cityport of Traps; The Seven Serpents; Crown of Kings. Fantasy gamebooks. Brief notes on other gamebooks.

N.K. Jessimin

Red Riding Hood's Child [Fishnet]. Fairytale/fantasy erotica.

Kij Johnson

Fudoki. An excerpted lovely paragraph. Historical fantasy (Heian Japan), linked to The Fox Woman.

Maureen Johnson

Devilish. YA fantasy.

Gwyneth Jones

"Red Sonja and Lessingham in Dreamland" in The Year's Best Science Fiction 14, ed. Gardner Dozois.

Vylar Kaftan

"Sharksheep Suit" (page down a bit). Magical realism?

Janet Kagan

Uhura's Song. Sf: Star Trek tie-in.

Minsoo Kang

Of Tales and Enigmas. Fantasy short story collection (plus one historical essay).

Daniel Kaysen

"The Jenna Set" [Strange Horizons]. Science fiction humor geekery.

Paul Kearney

Hawkwood's Journey. MONARCHIES OF GOD #1. Fantasy saga.

Helen Keeble

"In Stone" [Strange Horizons]. Fantasy. On "In Ashes" [Strange Horizons].

James Patrick Kelly

"The Wreck of the Godspeed." In Between Worlds, ed. Robert Silverberg. Sf.

Kay Kenyon

Braided World initial impressions. Final thoughts on Braided World. Anthropological sf.

M.E. Kerr

Little Little, first third. YA.

Stephen King

"The End of the Whole Mess" in Wastelands, ed. John Joseph Adams. Apocalyptic sf.

David Barr Kirtley

"Black Bird" in New Voices in Science Fiction. Surrealism?

Annette Curtis Klause

Blood and Chocolate. YA fiction with werewolves and romance.

The Silver Kiss. YA fiction with vampires.

Kathe Koja

The Blue Mirror. Also discussion of Sarah Dessen's Dreamland.

Jeffrey D. Kooistra

"Nova Terra." Analog Jan./Feb. 2005. Sf.

Nancy Kress

"Shiva in Shadow." In Between Worlds, ed. Robert Silverberg. Sf.

Ellen Kushner

Swordspoint. Fantasy of manners.

Henry Kuttner

The Dark World. Science fantasy. Also mentioned in a discussion of Marion Zimmer Bradley's Falcons of Narabedla.

Jay Lake

"The Angel's Daughter." Realms of Fantasy Aug. 2004. Lyrical fantasy.

Jane Langton

The Diamond in the Window. YA fantasy.

Tanith Lee

On Forests of the Night. Specifically on "La Reine Blanche." Yet more. Sf/f collection.

Ursula K. Le Guin

"Kore 87" in Terry's Universe, ed. Beth Meacham. Retelling of Persephone/Kore and Demeter.

Fritz Leiber

"Slack Lankhmar Afternoon Featuring Hisvet" in Terry's Universe, ed. Beth Meacham. Fantasy.

Madeleine L'Engle

The Other Side of the Sun. Initial reaction. Fiction.

Robert Joseph Levy

The Suicide King. Buffy the Vampire Slayer STAKE YOUR DESTINY tie-in novel.

Marissa K. Lingen

"Another Hollywood Miracle" [Fortean Bureau] reaction (page down a bit).

"Take Back the Night." Contemporary fantasy.

Kelly Link

Magic for Beginners. Fantasy/slipstream/horror short story collection.

Kristin Livdahl

"Even a Worm Will Turn" in Rabid Transit's chapbook #1, New fiction by the Ratbastards. Fantasy?

David Lomax

"How to Write an Epic Fantasy" in Rabid Transit's chapbook #3, Petting Zoo. Metafantasy.

Laurie J. Marks

ELEMENTAL LOGIC: #1 Fire Logic. #2 Earth Logic. #3 Water Logic (page down a bit). Fantasy. Projected quartet.

The Watcher's Mask. Fantasy. Brief comparisons with ELEMENTAL LOGIC #1 and #2.

John Marsden

The Dead of Night. YA fiction.

George R.R. Martin

"The Second Kind of Loneliness," "A Song for Lya," and "The Pear-Shaped Man" from Dreamsongs (short story collection). Sf, sf, and horror, respectively.

A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE: A Feast for Crows. Gritty epic fantasy.

Nightflyers. Sf/horror.

Bruce McAllister

"His Wife" in Fantasy Spring 2007 (print).

Geraldine McCaughrean

"Thoughts of a Drought Dragon." Cricket Jan. 2004. Historical fantasy.

Ellen Kindt Mckenzie

The King, the Princess, and the Tinker. Children's fantasy. Illustrated.

J.T. McIntosh

"You Were Right, Joe." Sf.

Patricia A. McKillip

Alphabet of Thorn. Lyrical fantasy.

The House on Parchment Street. YA fantasy (ghosts).

Something Rich and Strange. Fantasy, illustrated by Brian Froud.

Robin McKinley

The Hero and the Crown. Examination of the opening. Fantasy novel of DAMAR.

Sunshine. Alternate world vampire fantasy.

Andy Miller

"Natives Hung from a Branch of the Amazon" (page down a bit). Flash fantasy.

Jonathan Milos

"The End Papers." Asimov's Aug. 1992. Sf short-short.

Anchee Min

Wild Ginger. Historical fiction: China's Cultural Revolution.

L.E. Modesitt, Jr.

The Magic of Recluce. Examination of the opening. RECLUCE SAGA. Open-ended fantasy series.

David Moles

"Five Irrational Histories" in Rabid Transit's chapbook #3, Petting Zoo. Counterfactual sf/f with some Cthulhu mythos for good measure.

Elizabeth Moon

Once a Hero. Military sf. Midway through a series, but apparently with this book it switches to another character, and I had no trouble gleaning the necessary background to understand what was going on.

#1 Trading in Danger. #2 Marque and Reprisal. Military sf. VATTA'S WAR.

Michael Moorcock

The War Hound and the World's Pain. Fantasy.

C.L. Moore

"Black Thirst." Sf in the NORTHWEST SMITH series of stories.

"Bright Illusion." Sf.

"Daemon" (scroll down a bit). Sf.

"Dust of Gods." Sf in the NORTHWEST SMITH series of stories.

"Fruit of Knowledge" (scroll down a bit). Fantasy.

"Greater Than Gods" (scroll down a bit). Sf.

Jirel of Joiry. Fantasy omnibus: sword and sorcery.

"Julhi" (scroll down). Sf in the NORTHWEST SMITH series of stories.

"Lost Paradise." Sf in the NORTHWEST SMITH series of stories.

"Scarlet Dream." Sf in the NORTHWEST SMITH series of stories.

"Shambleau." Sf.

"The Tree of Life." Sf in the NORTHWEST SMITH series of stories.

"Tryst in Time." Sf.

"Vintage Season." Sf.

Daniel Keys Moran

TALES OF THE CONTINUING TIME. #1 Emerald Eyes. Sf.

Mike Moscoe

"The Strange Redemption of Sister Mary Ann" (page down a bit). Analog Nov. 2004. Mainstream, as far as I can tell; I'm not convinced it's speculative.

Yvonne Navarro

Tempted Champions. Buffy tie-in novel.

Kathryn Neville

The Eight. Adventure/conspiracy/chess.

Andre Norton

The Crystal Gryphon. YA science fantasy.

Naomi Novik

TEMERAIRE: #1 His Majesty's Dragon (Temeraire in the UK). #2 Throne of Jade. Comparisons to Anne McCaffrey's PERN series and Jane Yolen's PIT DRAGON trilogy. #3 Black Powder War and favorite line. #4 Empire of Ivory, partial report. Alternate history fantasy.

Eric Nylund

#1 Signal to Noise, brief excerpt. Review. #2 A Signal Shattered, brief excerpt. Half a line from the back-cover copy. Sf.

Jerry Pallotta, illus. Ralpha Asiello

The Skull Alphabet Book. Children's biology/alphabet book.

K.J. Parker

ENGINEER TRILOGY: #1 Devices and Desires. A lovely passage. Another passage. #2 Evil for Evil, plus a brief note. #3 The Escapement. Fantasy.

Katherine Paterson

Bridge to Terabithia. Children's fiction.

Elizabeth Marie Pope

The Perilous Gard. Examination of the opening. YA fantasy romance/historical/ballad reimagination.

Tim Pratt

"Life in Stone" reaction (page down a bit). Fantasy.

Ellen Raskin

The Tattooed Potato and Other Clues. Children's mystery.

Robert Reed

"Designing with Souls" in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction Sept. 2004.

Douglas Rees

Vampire High. YA fantasy/occult.

Philip Reeve

HUNGRY CITY CHRONICLES. #1 Mortal Engines. YA sf.

Mary Renault

The King Must Die, initial impressions. Final report, also on the sequel, The Bull from the Sea. Historical/mythological fiction: Theseus.

Mike Resnick

"Keepsakes." In Between Worlds, ed. Robert Silverberg. Sf.

M. Rickert

"Art Is Not a Violent Subject" in Rabid Transit's chapbook Petting Zoo. Horror.

"Bread and Bombs" in Wastelands, ed. John Joseph Adams. Apocalyptic sf.

"Many Voices" F&SF March 2004. Dark fantasy.

John Ridley

Those Who Walk in Darkness. Near-future paranormal sf thriller. #1 in a series.

Kate Riedel

"Words and Music." Realms of Fantasy Aug. 2004. Used-bookstore fantasy.

Lane Robins

"World in Words" [Fortean Bureau] reaction (page down a bit). Fantasy.

Kim Stanley Robinson

The Years of Rice and Salt, initial impressions. Lengthy analysis upon finishing the book. Alternate history.

Grey Rollins

"The Bambi Factor" (page down a bit). Analog Dec. 2004. Sf humor.

Margaret Ronald

"Bonefields" [Ideomancer]. Fantasy short story.

Christopher Rowe

"The Voluntary State" [Scifiction]. Favourite passage. Sf.

Rudy Rucker

A complaint about Mathematicians in Love. Sf.

Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Extremes. RETRIEVAL ARTIST #2. Hard sf mystery.

"The Paparazzi of Dreams" (page down a bit). Analog Nov. 2004. Sf.

Louis Sachars

Sideways Stories from Wayside School. Wayside School Is Falling Down. Children's fiction.

Michelle Sagara

Cast in Shadow. Fantasy.

Margaret St. Clair

Change the Sky and Other Stories. Sf/horror collection: "Change the Sky," "Beaulieu," "Marriage Manual," "Age of Prophecy," "Then Fly Our Greetings," "An Old-Fashioned Bird Christmas," "Stawdust," "Thirsty God," "The Altruists," "Shore Leave," "The Wines of Earth," "Asking," "Graveyard Shift," "Fort Iron," "The Goddess on the Street Corner," "An Egg a Month from All Over," "The Death of Each Day," andd "Lazarus."

The Dancers of Noyo. Sf.

The Dolphins of Altair. Sf.

"Horrer Howce." Sf/horror.

The Shadow People, initial reaction. And more. Science fantasy.

"The Sorrows of Witches." Fantasy.

Jessica Amanda Salmonson, ed.

Amazons! Fantasy anthology.

Brett Alexander Savory

"The Bottom Drawer" [Vestal Review]. Fantasy flash.

Darrell Schweitzer

Mask of the Sorcerer. Fantasy.

Thomas N. Scortia

"The Bomb in the Bathtub." Sf surrealism.

Michael Shaara

"Man of Distinction." Sf.

Darren Shan

CIRQUE DU FREAK. #1-2 Cirque Du Freak and The Vampire's Apprentice. #3 Tunnels of Blood. YA suspense/supernatural/horror.

Bob Shaw

"Light of Other Days." Examination of the opening. No spoilers. Sf.

Neal Shusterman

The Schwa Was Here. YA.

Robert Silverberg

"Calintane Explains." Asimov's Feb. 1992. Sf, set in Majipoor (Lord Valentine's Castle et alia).

"The Colonel Returns to the Stars." In Between Worlds, ed. Robert Silverberg (yup). Sf.

Dan Simmons

Hyperion. A question about Fall of Hyperion. Space opera.

William Sleator

The Boxes. YA sf.

The Boy Who Couldn't Die. YA horror.

Interstellar Pig. YA sf.

The Last Universe. YA sf gothic.

L.J. Smith

Secret Vampire. Daughters of Darkness and initial snark. THE NIGHT WORLD. YA paranormal romance.

VAMPIRE DIARIES. #1 The Awakening. #2 The Struggle. #4 Dark Reunion. YA paranormal romance quartet. Note: multiple Buffy and Angel series spoilers in commentary.

William L. Smith

"Wind Chimes." Cricket Jan. 2004. Children's historical fiction.

Allen Steele

Coyote Sf.

Charles Stross

The Atrocity Archives. Science fantasy: really, spy technothriller meets Lovecraft and comp sci.

Tricia Sullivan

Lethe. Sf.

Han Suyin

The Enchantress. Historical fiction.

Ursula Synge

Swan's Wing, with analysis and comparisons to Robin McKinley's Hero and the Crown, Peter S. Beagle's The Last Unicorn, and Michael Moorcock's The War Hound and the World's Pain. Fantasy: fairytale retelling.

Rob Thomas

Slave Day. YA fiction.

James Thurber

The Thirteen Clocks. Fantasy. Brief comparison with Peter S. Beagle's The Last Unicorn.

Mark W. Tiedemann

"Rain from Another Country" in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction Sept. 2004.

Peter Valentine Timlett

The Power of the Serpent: excerpt from the back-cover copy. Fantasy/occult.

James Tiptree, Jr.

"And I Awoke and Found Me Here on the Cold Hill's Side." Alien sf.

"And I Have Come Upon This Place By Lost Ways." Sf.

"The Girl Who Was Plugged In." Sf.

"The Last Flight of Doctor Ain." Sf.

"Love Is the Plan, the Plan Is Death." Alien sf.

"The Man Who Walked Home." Sf.

"A Momentary Taste of Being." Sf.

"On the Last Afternoon." Sf.

"The Screwfly Solution" (written as Raccoona Sheldon). Sf.

"We Who Stole the Dream."

"With Delicate Mad Hands." Sf.

"Your Faces, O My Sisters! Your Faces Filled of Light!" Sf.

Julian Todd

"Mine the Primes" [story online] in The Elastic Book of Numbers, ed. Allen Ashley.

Megan Whalen Turner

The Thief. Fantasy.

Catherynne Valente

The Labyrinth. Literary fantasy.

"Milk and Apples." Retold fairytale.

THE ORPHAN'S TALES. #1 In the Night Garden. A brief complaint.

Vivian Vande Velde

Companions of the Night. YA supernatural fiction (vampires).

Amber van Dyk

"Storyville." Short story in Petting Zoo.

John Varley

"Air Raid." Sf.

"The Manhattan Phone Book (Abridged)" [online]. Post-apocalyptic sf.

"The Pusher." Sf.

"The Phantom of Kansas." Sf.

"Retrograde Summer." Sf.

Cynthia Voigt

Jackaroo (page down). YA fantasy.

Jo Walton

Farthing. Alternate history, post-WWII.

The King's Peace. The King's Name. Arthurian fantasy.

Stanley G. Weinbaum

"A Martian Odyssey." Sf.

Carl West & Katherine MacLean

Dark Wing. YA sf.

Scott Westerfeld

The Risen Empire. Space opera.

The Secret Hour. MIDNIGHTERS #1. YA supernatural series.

Jessica Paige Wick

"Three Girls for the Sea: A Triptych" (page down a bit). Fantasy.

Y. Wilce

"Metal More Attractive." F&SF Feb. 2004. Fantasy.

Kate Wilhelm

"Isosceles" in Terry's Universe, ed. Beth Meacham. Slipstream?

Liz Williams

Nine Layers of Sky, the first 50 pages (page down a bit). Science fantasy.

"Tiger, Tiger." Fantasy.

Walter Jon Williams

"Investments." In Between Worlds, ed. Robert Silverberg. Part of the Praxis series.

Chet Williamson

"The Pebbles of Sai-no-Kawara." F&SF Feb. 2004. Horror.

Jack Williamson

"The Stonehenge Gate." Part 1 of a sf serial. Analog Jan./Feb. 2005.

Connie Willis

General rundown of her sf, including Passage, To Say Nothing of the Dog, Doomsday Book, Bellwether, "Fire Watch," and assorted ot hers.

Justine Wilson

"The Story of You" [Vestal Review]. Flash fiction.

Brenda A. Witmer

"Raindove." Cricket Jan. 2004. Historical children's fiction (China).

Gene Wolfe.

The Knight. And again. Fantasy.

J.L. Wong

"Bird's Nest Soup." Cricket Jan. 2004. Children's fiction (China).

Janny Wurts

Peril's Gate. #4? in the WARS OF LIGHT AND SHADOW. Fantasy.

Jim Young

"Ultraviolet Night." F&SF March 2004. Sf.

Nonfiction

Carol & Nabuo Akiyama

Barron's Japanese Grammar, 2nd ed. Nonfiction: Japanese grammar.

James M. Ault, Jr.

Spirit and Flesh: Life in a Fundamentalist Baptist Church. Nonfiction: sociology, religion.

Auslander & Hill

The Winged Horse on Milton, on Keats and on Poe. Literature: (mostly English) poetry history survey.

Babcock & Laschever

Women Don't Ask, interim thoughts. Women Don't Ask on imposter syndrome. And an outline.

Julian Baggini

The Pig That Wants to Be Eaten. Philosophy: ethics.

Lotte Bailyn

Breaking the Mold: Redesigning Work for Productive and Satisfying Lives, 2nd ed. Nonfiction: management.

Jeanne Bamberger

Developing Musical Intuitions. Report on 1.2. Nonfiction: music, composition.

Wayne Barlowe

Barlowe's Guide to Fantasy. Nonfiction: fantasy, art.

Rosalind Barnett & Caryl Rivers

Same Difference: How Gender Myths Are Hurting Our Relationships, Our Children, and Our Jobs. Nonfiction: psychology.

R. De Rohan Barondes

China: Lore, Legend and Lyrics. And a bit of apparent racism. Nonfiction: Chinese folklore (with extremely dodgy speculations on, among other things, the Lost Tribes of Israel).

Jes Battis

Blood Relations: Chosen Families in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. Initial impressions of Chapter Five: "Demonic Maternities, Complex Motherhoods: Cordelia, Fred, and the Puzzle of Illyria."

David Bayles & Ted Orland

Art and Fear: Observations on the Perils (and Rewards) of Artmaking. Nonfiction: art (syntactics?).

Rob Beattie

Digital Movie Making. Nonfiction: digital movie editing, Windows Movie Maker.

Greg Behrman

The Invisible People: How the U.S. Has Slept through the Global AIDS Pandemic, the Greatest Humanitarian Catastrophe of Our Time. Nonfiction: epidemiology, policy.

Gregory Benford

"Why Is There So Little Science in Literature?" Asimov's Feb. 1992. Nonfiction: essay on science and literature, including Jorge Luis Borges. As you guessed.

Jerome Blum

The European Peasantry from the Fifteenth to the Nineteenth Century. Nonfiction: history pamphlet.

Rachel Manija Brown

All the Fishes Come Home to Roost. Nonfiction: memoir.

Ivan Brunetti, ed.

An Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons, True Stories.

Paul Campos

The Obesity Myth: Why America's Obsession with Weight Is Hazardous to Your Health. Nonfiction: health, media.

W.Y. Carman

A History of Firearms from Earliest Times to 1914 (scroll down). Military history.

J. Scott Carter

A passage from How Surfaces Intersect in Space: An Introduction to Topology. Nonfiction: math.

David Chelsea

Perspective! For Comic Book Artists. Nonfiction: art.

G.K. Chesterton

In The Man Who Was Chesterton: "Cheese". And "The Appetite of Earth." And "On Detective Novels." And "The Real Journalist." And general irritation with more essays. Nonfiction: essays.

Winston Churchill

Never Give In! The Best of Winston Churchill's Speeches, selected by his grandson Winston S. Churchill. A quoted paragraph. And another quoted paragraph. And quoting again. Nonfiction: oratory.

Barbara Lovett Cline

Men Who Made a New Physics. Nonfiction: physics, biography.

Charles T. Clotfelter

After Brown: The Rise and Retreat of School Segregation. Nonfiction: education, sociology.

John M. Collins

Military Geography for Professionals and the Public. Partial table of contents. Nonfiction: military geography.

Perry R. Cook, ed.

Music, Cognition, and Computerized Sound: An Introduction to Psychoacoustics. Nonfiction: psychoacoustics.

Aaron Copland

Music and Imagination. On decisions in composing. On "The Gifted Listener." Nonfiction: music and composition, lectures.

Ben Cormack

Cartoon Clinic. Art: cartooning.

Lisa Couturier

The Hopes of Snakes and Other Tales from the Urban Landscape. Nonfiction: urban wildlife, essays.

Gordon A. Craig

Germany: 1866-1945. Nonfiction: history.

Bruce Cumings

North Korea: Another Country. Nonfiction: history/politics.

Richard Cytowic

The Man Who Tasted Shapes. Nonfiction: synesthesia.

Linda Darling-Hammond

The Right to Learn: A Blueprint for Creating Schools That Work, chapter 1. Nonfiction: education reform.

Kenneth C. Davis

Don't Know Much About the Civil War: Everything You Need to Know About America's Greatest Conflict But Never Learned. Nonfiction: American Civil War.

Richard Davis

The Complete Guide to Film Scoring: The Art and Business of Writing Music for Movies and TV. Nonfiction: music, media.

L. Sprague de Camp

The Ancient Engineers. De Camp is extremely wrongheaded about the Chinese language. And a wrong sentence. Nonfiction: history of engineering.

Norman Del Mar

A snippet on bagpipes from The Anchor Companion to the Orchestra. On bumpers and cellos. Music: instrumentation, theory, history.

Jerry Dennis

It's Raining Frogs and Fishes: Four Seasons of Natural Phenomena and Oddities of the Sky. Nonfiction: natural history, ethology, meteorology, astronomy.

Jose M. de Olivares

Bring Them Back Home: Helping Teens Get Out and Stay Out of Trouble. Nonfiction: policy, sociology?

Keith Devlin

The Math Gene. Nonfiction: mathematics/psychology.

Kenneth J. DeWoskin

A Song for One or Two: Music and the Concept of Art in Early China, brief excerpt. Nonfiction: aesthetics, music theory, Chinese music.

Michael Dickreiter

Score-Reading: A Key to the Musical Experience. Nonfiction: music theory/appreciation. (Translated from German.)

Michael Dirda

An Open Book quoted passage. Plus a summation and brief comparison with Readings. Nonfiction: memoir.

Readings. Nonfiction collection: book reviews/essays.

John W. Dower

War without Mercy: Race and Power in the Pacific War. History: WWII (Pacific), propaganda.

Colette Dowling

The Frailty Myth: Women Approaching Physical Equality (page up a bit). Nonfiction: biology, feminism.

Tamara Draut

Strapped: Why America's 20- and 30-Somethings Can't Get Ahead. Nonfiction: economics, sociology.

Christopher Duffy

The Military Experience in the Age of Reason. Nonfiction: military history, Enlightenment.

Dianne Dugaw

Warrior Women and Popular Balladry, 1650-1850. Nonfiction: sociology, music, women's studies.

Gerard Durrell

The Drunken Forest. Nonfiction: travel (Argentina, Paraguay), ethology.

Carel J. Du Ry

Art of the Ancient Near and Middle East. Nonfiction: art, archaeology, Mesopotamia.

Patricia Buckley Ebrey

The Cambridge Illustrated History of China. An excerpt on language. Nonfiction: Chinese history.

Edwin Emerson, Jr.

A History of the Nineteenth Century, vol. 1 on Byron vs. Wordsworth. And a few musings on the siege of Saragossa, 1808, and Augustina Saragossa. Overall verdict. Nonfiction: (Western) history.

Masaru Emoto

The Hidden Messages in Water. Nonfiction: pseudoscience/photography/inspirational. Very pseudoscience.

Anne Fadiman

Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader, initial impressions. Full report.

Niall Ferguson

Empire: The Rise and Demise of the British World Order and the Lessons for Global Power. Also on "Amazing Grace" and the slave trade. Nonfiction: history of the British Empire.

Ronald R. Fieve, M.D.

Bipolar II: Enhance Your Highs, Boost Your Creativity, and Escape the Cycles of Recurrent Depression: The Essential Guide to Recognize and Treat the Mood Swings of This Increasingly Common Disorder. Nonfiction: psychology.

Vernon Fox

Introduction to Criminology. A complaint. Nonfiction: criminology.

Paulo Freire

Pedagogy of the Oppressed, chapter 2. Nonfiction: education.

Kanazumi Fumiko

"Problematizing Reproductive Technologies," brief excerpt. Nonfiction: bioethics, essay.

James Galway

Flute. Nonfiction: music.

Dona Gilliam & Mizzay McCaskill

The Whistler's Pocket Companion. How-to/music instruction: pennywhistle.

Malcolm Gladwell

Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking. Nonfiction: psychology.

Laurence Gonzales

Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why. Nonfiction: ???

Andrew Greeley

A Piece of My Mind...on Just About Everything (page down a bit). Nonfiction: religion, essays.

Victor David Hanson

Carnage and Culture: Landmark Battles in the Rise of Western Power, initial reactions. Final thoughts. Nonfiction: warfare.

David Harp

Music Theory Made Easy. Nonfiction: music theory.

Brayton Harris, and Walter J. Boyne, ed.

The Navy Times Book of Submarines: A Political, Social, and Military History, first impressions. And final report. Nonfiction: submarine warfare/development.

Joseph E. Harris

Africans and Their History, partial report. Nonfiction: history.

Samuel Hawley

The Imjin War. An excerpt. And a bit on Silla. Nonfiction: history (Korea, Japan, China).

Tom Hayden

Street Wars: The Future of Violence. Nonfiction: gangs/activism.

Maggie Helwig

Apocalypse Jazz. Nonfiction: essay collection (apocalypse, critical analysis: popular music, ballet, literature, historical events).

Gravity Lets You Down. Nonfiction: essay collection (religion, food, city life, Indonesia's invasion of East Timor).

Real Bodies. Nonfiction: essay collection (religion, popular music, feminism, humanitarian work, science fiction, books, TV).

C.G. Hempel

"On the Nature of Mathematical Truth." Nonfiction: mathematics and philosophy.

Donald Hill

A History of Engineering in Classical and Ancient Times. Nonfiction: engineering history.

E.D. Hirsch, Jr.

On an excerpt from Cultural Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know. Nonfiction: pedagogy.

Lewis Hyde

The Gift: Imagination and the Erotic Life of Property. Nonfiction: anthropology, art, economics/value.

Bruce A. Jacobs

Race Manners: Navigating the Minefield Between Black and White Americans. Nonfiction: sociology.

Kay Redfield Jamison

An Unquiet Mind. Nonfiction: psychology (manic-depression), memoir.

Touched with Fire: Manic-Depressive Illness and the Artistic Temperament [f'locked]. Nonfiction: psychology (manic-depression, creativity).

Paul Johnson

A History of the American People. And on Emily Dickinson and the "universality" of poetry. And more.

Peter Jones

Learn Ancient Greek. An encouraging passage. Nonfiction: language-learning.

Robert Jourdain

Music, the Brain, and Ecstasy: How Music Captures Our Imagination. Nonfiction: musicology, neuropsychology, psychoacoustics.

Robert Kaplan & Ellen Kaplan

Out of the Labyrinth: Setting Mathematics Free. Nonfiction: mathematics, pedagogy.

Anthony E. Kemp

The Musical Temperament: Psychology & Personality of Musicians. Musician psychoanalysis example. Nonfiction: psychoanalysis, musicians and musicianship.

? King

Gospel of Mary of Magdala. Nonfiction: Christian theology.

? Kocher

Master of Middle-Earth. Nonfiction: literary criticism/essays (Tolkien).

Sonny Kompanek

From Score to Screen: Sequencers, Scores, & Second Thoughts: The New Film Scoring Process. Nonfiction: film, music composition.

Bart Kosko

Fuzzy Future. Nonfiction: popular math (fuzzy sets, multivalent logic, and applications).

Jonathan Kozol

A quote from The Night Is Dark and I Am Far from Home. Nonfiction: education? sociology? (From a course reader, so I don't have the full text.)

Savage Inequalities: Children in America's Schools. An excerpt. Nonfiction: education.

Marianne Krawczyk & Jeannie Kovak

Game Story & Character Development. Nonfiction: games, writing.

Anne Lamott

Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life. Nonfiction: writing.

Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son's First Year. Nonfiction: memoir, parenting.

Hye-Ku Lee

Essays on Korean Traditional Music. From "Notation Systems." Nonfiction: ethnomusicology, Korea.

Jeffrey Lee

Catch a Fish, Throw a Ball, Fly a Kite: 21 Timeless Skills Every Child Should Know (And Any Parent Can Master!). Nonfiction: games, recreation.

Ursula K. Le Guin

"The Fisherwoman's Daughter" [f'locked]. Essay: writing.

George Leibman

"A Nonstandard Proof of the Fundamental Theorem of Algebra." The American Mathematical Monthly, Oct. 2005.

Daniel Levitin

This Is Your Brain on Music. Nonfiction: music, cognitive psychology, evolutionary psychology.

Audre Lorde

Sister Outsider. Essay collection: poetry, feminism.

Sidney Lumet

Making Movies. Nonfiction: movie production.

Liping Ma

Knowing and Teaching Elementary Mathematics. On the introduction. Prereading for chapter 1. On chapters 1-2. Prereading for chapter 3. On chapter 3. More prereading. Nonfiction: math pedagogy.

Donald Stone Macdonald

The Koreans. Traditional Korean marriage. And a brief summation (page down a bit). Nonfiction: Korean history, culture, and politics.

Joseph Machlis

The Enjoyment of Music: An Introduction to Perceptive Listening. Nonfiction: classical music.

Guido Majno

The Healing Hand: Man and Wound in the Ancient World. Nonfiction: medical history.

Emily Martin

Bipolar Expeditions: Mania and Depression in American Culture, an anecdote. Nonfiction: psychology, anthropology.

Carla Mason Mathis & Helen Villa Connor

The Triumph of Individual Style: A Guide to Dressing Your Body, Your Beauty, Your Self. Nonfiction: fashion, art.

Susan McCarthy

Becoming a Tiger: How Baby Animals Learn to Live in the Wild, snippet-quote. Nonfiction: biology, animal behavior and learning.

Scott McCloud

Making Comics. Nonfiction: cartooning, sequential art.

Shannon McCune

Korea: Land of Broken Calm. Nonfiction: history/geopolitics, anthropology.

C.C. MacDuffee

"What is a Matrix?" Nonfiction: mathematics.

Robert McKee

Story, partial report. Nonfiction: screenwriting.

Archibald MacLeish

J.B. Play.

Marc "Animal" MacYoung

Knives, Knife-Fighting, and Related Hassles: How to Survive a REAL Knife Fight. Nonfiction: knife-fighting, street-fighting.

Raymond J. Martinez

Marie Laveau, Mysterious Voodoo Queen. Something tenuously resembling nonfiction: folklore.

Jack Markow

The Art of Cartooning. Nonfiction: cartooning, art.

Raymond Mears

The Outdoor Survival Handbook: A Guide to the Resources and Materials Available in the Wild and How to Use Them for Food, Shelter, Warmth, and Navigation. Nonfiction: camping, survival.

Judith Miller, Stephen Engelberg, & William Broad

Germs: Biological Weapons and America's Secret War. Nonfiction: biological warfare, terrorism, politics.

Michael Miller

On the beginning of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Arranging and Orchestration. Nonfiction: music theory and composition.

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Music Composition. Trials and tribulations. Chapter 15 exercises. Nonfiction: music theory and composition.

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Music Theory. Nonfiction: music theory and composition.

Nick Montfort

Twisty Little Passages: An Approach to Interactive Fiction. Nonfiction: literary theory, interactive fiction, games.

David S. Moore

The Dependent Gene: The Fallacy of "Nature vs. Nurture." Plus an excerpt on prenatal ducklings. Nonfiction: biology/development.

David Morgan

Knowing the Score: Film Composers Talk About the Art, Craft, Blood, Sweat, and Tears of Writing for Cinema. A snippet on temp tracks. Nonfiction: film, music.

Desmond Morris

Babywatching. Nonfiction: babies (child development).

Dave Morris & Leo Martas

Strategy Games. Nonfiction: computer game development.

R.O. Morris

The Oxford Harmony. An excerpt. Nonfiction: music theory, harmony (three- and four-part voice-leading).

Sean Morrison

Armor. Nonfiction (juvenile): history of armor.

Carol Moss

Science in Ancient Mesopotamia. Juvenile nonfiction: Assyriology, history of science.

Gary Paul Nabhan

Why Some Like It Hot: Food, Genes, and Cultural Diversity. Nonfiction: foodways, anthropology, biology.

Donna Jackson Nakazawa

Does Anybody Else Look Like Me?. And again. Brief reaction to a particular quoted person [locked]. Nonfiction: multiracial family childrearing.

Marion Nestle

Food Politics. Nonfiction: food industry, politics of food and nutrition.

Dava Newman

Interactive Aerospace Engineering and Design, a Eurocentric passage. Nonfiction: engineering.

Katherine S. Newman et al.

Rampage: The Social Roots of School Shootings. Nonfiction: sociology.

Katherine S. Newman & Victor Tan Chen

The Missing Class: Portraits of the Near Poor in America. Nonfiction: sociology.

Teresa Nielsen Hayden

Making Book. Nonfiction: assorted essays (including a great one on copyediting).

Richard E. Nisbett

The Geography of Thought: How Asians and Westerners Think Differently...and Why. Nonfiction: cultural psychology.

Danielle Ofri

Incidental Findings: Lessons from My Patients in the Art of Medicine. Nonfiction: memoir, medicine.

Seung-Eun Oh

Korean Made Easy for Beginners, first 54 pages. Nonfiction: Korean, language learning.

Iona & Peter Opie

The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren. Nonfiction: anthropology, folklore, literature.

? Osgood

Koreans and Their Culture. Initial visceral reaction. Nonfiction: anthropology.

Ruby K. Payne, Ph.D.

Crossing the Tracks for Love: What to Do When You and Your Partner Grew Up in Different Worlds. Nonfiction: sociology, self-help.

Richard D. Pepperman

The Eye Is Quicker. Nonfiction: film editing.

Mary Pipher

Letters to a Young Therapist. Nonfiction: psychology/therapy.

William Pleeth

Cello. Nonfiction: music.

William Poundstone

Prisoner's Dilemma: John von Neumann, Game Theory, and the Puzzle of the Bomb. Nonfiction: game theory, nuclear warfare, mathematics.

The Recursive Universe on GUTs. Overview and table of contents. Nonfiction: mathematics, computer science, information/complexity theory, physics.

Marc Lee Raphael

Judaism in America. Nonfiction: religion.

Sir Martin Rees

Just Six Numbers: The Deep Forces That Shape the Universe. Nonfiction: popular physics (cosmology).

Adrienne Rich

Of Woman Born: Motherhood As Experience and Institution. Nonfiction: feminist theory, sociology.

Mary Roach

Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers. Nonfiction: medicine/anatomy.

Mike Rose

Lives on the Boundary. Part 2; part 3. Nonfiction: education, literacy.

William Russo

Composing Music: A New Approach. Chapter 3: Transformations. Nonfiction: music theory/composition.

Derek Sayer

The Coasts of Bohemia: A Czech History. Nonfiction: history, nationalism.

? Schlosser

Fast Food Nation. Nonfiction: food industry.

Paul Schmeling

Berklee Music Theory, Book 2. Nonfiction: music theory.

Alan Schoenfeld

"When Good Teaching Leads to Bad Results: The Disasters of 'Well-Taught' Mathematics Courses." Nonfiction: mathematics, education.

Nisi Shawl & Cynthia Ward

Writing the Other: A Practical Approach. Nonfiction: writing.

Arthur Shea & Richard L. Currier

City Planning in Ancient Times. Nonfiction: archaeology, urban planning.

Suzanne Strempek Shea

Shelf Life: Romance, Mystery, Drama, and Other Page-Turning Adventures from a Year in a Bookstore. Nonfiction: memoir.

Steve Slavin

Economics: A Self-Teaching Guide, 2nd ed. Nonfiction: economics.

Alexander McCall Smith

The Girl Who Married a Lion and Other Tales from Africa. Nonfiction: folktale retellings.

Martin J. Smith and Patrick J. Kiger

Poplorica: A Popular History of the Fads, Mavericks, Invention, and Lore That Shaped Modern America. Nonfiction: popular culture.

Andrew Solomon

The Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression. Nonfiction: psychology.

Roy Sorensen

A Brief History of the Paradox. Nonfiction: philosophy.

James B. South, ed.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Philosophy: Fear and Trembling in Sunnydale. Nonfiction: media, philosophy.

E.R. Stabler

"Boolean Algebra as an Introduction to Postulational Method." Nonfiction: math pedagogy.

Sherman K. Stein

Mathematics: The Man-Made Universe. Thoughts on ch. 1's problem set. Mathematics: varied topics, a gentle treatment.

Leonard Steinhorn & Barbara Diggs-Brown

By the Color of Our Skin. Earlier notes. Nonfiction: sociology.

Jon Stewart et al., eds.

America (The Book): Democracy Inaction. That last word is not a typo. Nonfiction: US history/political science, parody.

Steven Strogatz

Sync: The Emerging Science of Spontaneous Order. Nonfiction: applied mathematics/science/complexity theory.

Susan Stryker

Transgender History (at end of post). Nonfiction: transgender history in the U.S.

Christina Hoff Summers & Sally Satel, M.D.

One Nation Under Therapy: How the Helping Culture Is Eroding Self-Reliance. More. Nonfiction: psychology, politics.

Sun Ying-Hsing

Chinese Technology in the Seventeenth Century (T'ien-Kung K'ai-Wu), trans./annotated by E-tu Zen Sun and Shiou-Chuan Sun. A few choice snippets. Nonfiction: history of science and technology, China.

Ursula Synge

The Giant at the Ford and Other Legends of the Saints. Nonfiction: legend, hagiography.

Timothy Taylor

The Buried Soul: How Humans Invented Death. Nonfiction: archaeology.

Tracy Thompson

The Beast: A Journey through Depression: Nonfiction: memoir, depression/mental health.

Time-Life Books

Mesopotamia: the Mighty Kings. Juvenile nonfiction: archaeology, Assyriology.

Steve Tompkins

"Deeper into the Nightmare of Power: Steven Erikson's Malazan Book of the Fallen." In Studies in Fantasy Literature #2. Nonfiction: literary criticism.

Keith Topping

Slayer: The Revised and Updated Guide to Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Nonfiction: TV series guide and analysis.

U.S. Naval Institute

Service Etiquette (1959). Nonfiction: military etiquette.

Debra Van Ausdale & Joe R. Feagin

The First R: How Children Learn Race and Racism. More. Nonfiction: child development, sociology.

Ursula Vernon

It Made Sense at the Time: Selected Sketches. Nonfiction: art.

Jeremy Vineyard

Setting Up Your Shots: Great Camera Moves Every Filmmaker Should Know. Illustrated by Jose Cruz. Nonfiction: film.

Martha Ward

Voodoo Queen: The Spirited Lives of Marie Laveau. Nonfiction: biography.

Gary E. Weird & Walter J. Boyne

Rising Tide: The Untold Story of the Submarines That Fought the Cold War. Nonfiction: naval history.

Grant Wiggins

"The Futility of Trying to Teach Everything of Importance." Nonfiction: pedagogy, cultural literacy.

Rhonda Wilcox

Why Buffy Matters: The Art of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. A maddening digression. An excerpt. Nonfiction: media.

R.L. Wilder

"On the Nature of Mathematical Truth." Nonfiction: mathematics and philosophy.

Marie C. Wilson

Closing the Leadership Gap: Why Women Can and Must Help Run the World. Nonfiction: feminism/social activism.

Michael Wohl

Editing Techniques with Final Cut Pro, 2nd ed. Nonfiction: computer software, video editing.

Evan Wolfson

Why Marriage Matters: America, Equality, and Gay People's Right to Marry. Nonfiction: marriage, law, politics.

Jean Ann Wright

Animation Writing and Development: From Script Development to Pitch. Nonfiction: script writing.

Glenn Yeffeth, ed.

Five Seasons of Angel: Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Discuss Their Favorite Vampire. Nonfiction: essays on Angel (TV show).

Kano Yoshinori 9-dan

Graded Go Problems for Beginners, Vol. One: Introductory Problems. Nonfiction: games (go).

Ari Zweig

Zingerman's Guide to Good Eating. Nonfiction: food/recipes.

9/11 Commission

9/11 Commission Report (scroll down), initial reaction.

Poetry

Bruce Boston

The failure of genre poetry [Fortean Bureau]. Essay.

bottle rockets

Haiku, senryu, tanka, and short or linked verse magazine, side-stapled, ed. Stanford Forrester.

Seamus Heaney

Beowulf: A New Verse Translation. Bilingual edition.

The Magazine of Speculative Poetry

Speculative poetry, side-stapled, ed. Roger Dutcher.

Poetry

Mythic Delirium

Star*Line

The SFPA journal.

Danny Adams

"Sprawled Across the Solar System's Windowsill."

Mike Allen

Defacing the Moon. Poetry collection.

Petting the Time Shark, partial review. Another partial. Poetry collection.

Chris Ambrose

"night crawler."

Robert Atwan (selecter of the poems)

A Dream of Summer: Poems for the Sensuous Season, also quoting (in full) Wallace Stevens's "The House Was Quiet and the World Was Calm." Poetry anthology.

Mary Barnard (trans.)

Sappho: A New Translation. Poetry collection.

Elizabeth Barrette

"What the Aliens Did."

Greg Beatty

"Prayer Causes Stars" [Abyss & Apex]. Brief notes. Scifaiku.

Rupert Brooke

The Collected Poems of Rupert Brooke.

Gary William Crawford

"Death Studies."

Jennifer Crow

"Summoning Stones" [Strange Horizons]. Brief notes.

Suzette Haden Elgin

The Science Fiction Poetry Handbook.

Timons Esaias

The Influence of Pigeons on Architecture. Poetry chapbook.

Michael Fessler

the sweet potato sutra. Haiku collection from bottle rockets press.

Stanford M. Forrester

buddha's fingerprint. Haiku chapbook from bottle rockets press.

handful of sand and toy submarine. Haiku chapbooks from bottle rockets press.

Tom Galusha

"Two Haiku."

Tim Jamieson

"Untitled scifaiku" [Abyss and Apex]. A brief note.

David C. Kopaska-Merkel

The Ruined City. Speculative/horror poetry chapbook.

Naomi Shihab Nye

19 Varieties of Gazelle. Poetry collection.

Mary Oliver

Blue Iris. Poetry/essay collection.

Why I Wake Early (page down a bit). Poetry collection.

Tom Painting

piano practice. Haiku chapbook from bottle rockets press.

Karen A. Romanko

Raven's Runes. Poetry collection, illustrated.

Ann K. Schwader

"Blood Rosetta."

JoSelle Vanderhooft

"Witches' Sabbath."

Christopher Vera

"The Wizard and the Sorceress" [Abyss & Apex]. Brief notes. Fantasy poem.

Animé/Comics

Angel (Dark Horse)

Autumnal. Graphic novel. Occult. Tie-in to Angel (TV series) taking place during S1 or S2.

Long Night's Journey. Graphic novel. Occult. Tie-in to Angel (TV series) taking place during S2.

Strange Bedfellows. Graphic novel. Occult. Tie-in to Angel (TV series) taking place during S1 and possibly S2.

Angel (IDW)

Angel: After the Fall

Continuation of the series in comic form, post-"Not Fade Away."

Auld Lang Syne #5. Comic series continuing after the end of Angel (TV series). Occult.

The Curse #1. Comic series after the end of Angel (TV series). Occult.

Masks. Comic anthology. Occult.

Old Friends

Likewise taking place after the end of Angel (TV series).

Spike: Old Wounds. One-shot set during Angel S5 (TV series). Occult.

Spotlights

One-shots focusing on various characters.

Angel Sanctuary

Manga by Kaori Yuki: science fantasy/occult (angels).

Astonishing X-Men

Comics: superheroes.

Batgirl

A Knight Alone. Comics: superheroes.

Battle Angel Alita

#1-4. Manga: dystopian? sf.

Battlestar Galactica

Origins #1. Comic prequel to Battlestar Galactica remake.

Bleach

Occult.

Blade of the Immortal

#1-3. Manga: samurai drama.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Dark Horse)

Haunted. Graphic novel: occult/fantasy tie-in.

The Hollower. Graphic novel: occult/fantasy tie-in.

The Remaining Sunlight. Graphic novel-anthology: occult/fantasy tie-in.

Tales of the Slayers. Graphic novel-anthology: occult/fantasy/horror tie-in.

Tales of the Vampires. Graphic novel-anthology: occult/fantasy/horror tie-in.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer S8: The Long Road Home (Dark Horse)

Buffy the Vampire Slayer S8: No Future for You (Dark Horse)

Buffy the Vampire Slayer S8: Wolves at the Gate

Catwoman

Her Sister's Keeper. Comics: superheroes. (Villains?)

Clover

CLAMP's Clover, #2-4, brief thoughts. Manga: science fantasy.

Count Cain/Godchild

Gothic Victoriana with extremely improbable science. It's Yuki Kaori, after all: read for the crack, not the realism. Note that Godchild is significantly better than Count Cain (also known as Cain Saga?), and Count Cain may even be entirely skippable.

Death Note

Manga. #1.

The Dreaming

#1. Occult goings-on at a boarding school. Manga-like (by Queenie Chan).

Excalibur

#1 Forging the Sword. Comics: superheroes. Appears to take place concurrently with Astonishing X-Men.

Fray: Future Vampire Slayer

Joss Whedon et al.'s Fray: Future Vampire Slayer. Comic: science fantasy set in the future of Buffy: The Vampire Slayer.

Free Fall

#1 [page down a bit]. Dystopian present/near-future comic from Narwain Publishing.

Fruits Basket

Shoujo manga.

Fullmetal Alchemist

Manga on which the anime series was based.

Gundam Wing: Episode Zero

Prequel to Gundam Wing (anime). One-volume manga.

Hellsing

Occult (vampires, etc.)/action. Much gore.

The Incredible Hulk

Return of the Monster. Comics: superheroes.

Instant Teen: Just Add Nuts

#1. Manga: romantic comedy. I am unlikely to read more of this.

JLA

Comics: superheroes.

JSA

Justice Be Done, brief reaction. Comics: superheroes.

Kare Kano

Shoujo manga by Masami Tsuda.

Krishna

Krishna. Comic: Indian mythology.

Mai the Psychic Girl

Manga: sf/occult.

Maus

Biographical/historical graphic novel.

Mushishi

Fantasy manga series.

MuZz

Yes, the spelling is correct: violent and surreal fantasy graphic novel/comic.

Nana

Reaction to first volume opening. Shoujo.

Naruto

Manga: fantasy.

New X-Men

Comics: superheroes.

Persepolis

Persepolis 2. Graphic novel memoir by Marjane Satrapi.

Planetes

Hard sf near-future manga.

Priest

Occult/horror alternate history manhwa.

Prince of Tennis

Shounen sports manga.

Ragnarök

By Myung Jin Lee. #1, initial impressions. Manhwa: fantasy with Norse elements.

Rani of Jhansi

Rani of Jhansi. Comic: Indian history.

Runaways

Comic: superheroes.

Saiyuki

Manga: mythology retelling/occult/fantasy?

And the more-or-less sequels in Saiyuki Reload:

Shoujo Kakumei Utena

Vol. 3. Manga: fantasy/surrealism?

Spyboy

Comics: superheroes.

Spyboy/Young Justice

Young Spies Like Us. Comics: superheroes.

The Tarot Cafe

Manhwa by Sang-Sun Park.

Teen Titans

Comics: superheroes.

The Ultimate Daredevil and Elektra

The Ultimate Daredevil and Elektra (page down a bit). Comics: superheroes.

Ultimate Elektra

Devil's Due. Comics: superheroes.

The Ultimate Spiderman

#1. Comics: superheroes.

Uncanny X-Men

Poptopia. Comics: superheroes.

Wish

CLAMP's Wish. Manga: occult/fantasy.

X-Men

Children of the Atom and Phoenix: Endsong. Comics: superheroes.

xxxHolic

Vols. 1-6. Manga: occult/fantasy.

Miscellany

Movies and TV shows

Angel

Spin-off from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. A vampire with a soul trying to "help the helpless" in L.A., frequently finding friends and just as frequently screwing it up. Early on it does something resembling noir; later seasons raise the stakes (pun unintended). Often deeply flawed (S1 and S4 are, for my money, the strongest seasons) and aggravating...and it is my favourite TV series ever, especially for some of the character arcs.

All-purpose/multi-season commentary:

Aura Battler Dunbine

Science fantasy mecha anime. Not particularly recommended.

Avatar: The Last Airbender

Children's fantasy animation. Beautiful fight sequences, gorgeous animation, and great worldbuilding, and surprisingly mature for a children's show.

Babylon-5

Space opera epic for classicists. No, seriously. This doesn't have plot; it has PLOT. And very thoroughly consistent worldbuilding. Someday I will finish watching S4.

Battlestar Galactica

Military sf with fighter pilots in. Remake of a previous version about which I have little knowledge.

Battlestar Galactica: Razor.

Black Lagoon

Modern-day pirates, cloak-and-dagger politics, and improbable, violent action scenes.

Bleach

Anime based on the manga. Shounen/occult. Also, the musical.

Bones

Procedural with physical anthropologist and ex-sniper FBI agent in. We'll see how it goes. I know nothing about procedurals, but I can apply Whedonverse-analysis, whether or not it's appropriate...

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

This starts out as a very literal manifestation of High School Is Hell. One girl in all the world vs. all the vampires and things that go bump in the night. Except this "one girl" insists on sharing the fight with her friends and the family she builds. I adored S1-S3, while others gravitate more toward the later seasons. The series is deeply uneven (even S2, which I consider the best season, has a fair number of dreadful yet necessary episodes; the worst seasons have embedded in them some of the best single episodes of the entire series), and frequently irritating, and the worldbuilding makes me want to bury myself; but it rewards analysis and rewatching, and it's extremely ambitious in certain directions.

Miscellaneous series/multi-season notes:

Entirely Pointy: silly Buffy-based gag strip.

Plus draft of Through the Season [locked], S1-S6 Buffy-filk.

Coffee Prince

Korean drama, mostly romantic comedy.

The Collector

Canadian occult TV series. Viewing guide, no spoilers.

Criminal Minds

Procedural focused on an FBI criminal profiling unit.

Damo

Korean historical drama.

Dark Crystal. Fantasy movie.

Das Boot. WWII submarine movie.

Doctor Who

Sf.

The Emperor's New Groove. Disney fantasy children's movie.

Eureka

Firefly

Frontier sf, canceled. The episodes are dreadfully uneven. There are people fanatically devoted to the show and its potential; there are people who are unmoved. I'm somewhere in the middle.

Note: these are listed in DVD order, not original? U.S.? airing order. Also, the highly spoilery (especially in discussion) Firefly in a nutshell. And a dialogue on Firefly vs. Angel. A eureka moment concerning Jayne.

Fullmetal Alchemist

Science-fantasy anime series. Explorations of humanity, conscience, militarization and industry; great characters. The series arc (and it's a fairly long series, at 51 episodes) is stunningly well-constructed.

Good Night and Good Luck. Tribute to Edward Murrow, historically based.

Gundam 00

Anime with giant robots in.

Gundam Seed

Anime with giant robots in.

Gundam Wing

Anime with giant robots in. For randomness, a stab at d20 stats for the pilots. Also, the sequel movie, Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz.

Harry Potter

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Fantasy movie.

Hellsing

Animé series. Occult/horror. Frequently gory, but stylish, in its way. The Royal Protestant Knights are a secret anti-vampire order in Britain; and their deadliest weapon is the geased vampire Alucard.

The Incredibles initial reaction/response, particularly on gender roles. On race. Superhero movie.

Heroes

Superheroes. "Save the cheerleader, save the world."

Hikaru no Go

Go-based anime.

Honey and Clover

Slice-of-life anime about art students.

Hwang Jin Yi

Korean historical drama.

The Inside

Dark-toned crime drama.

Jenna

#1-3. Occult/horror comic from Narwain Publishing.

Journey to the Center of the Earth. Old sf movie.

Kareshi Kanojo no Jijyo (His and Her Circumstances)

High school romantic comedy/drama anime series. Breathtakingly funny and honest. Brief overview.

Kitchen Confidential

Pilot of a half-hour comedy.

A Knight's Tale. "Medieval" spoof romantic comedy.

Last Exile

Airship steampunk animé.

Lost

I haven't seen enough of this to be sure just what it is, but it sure looked interesting.

Mad Men

The Muppets

The Muppet Movie. Just so.

Nodame Cantabile

Animé with misfit musical students.

Oldboy. Korean drama. Not for the weak of stomach.

Oban Star Racers

French-Japanese co-produced sf animé, eps. 1-3. I intend never to watch more of this if I can help it.

Ouran Host Club

Shoujo anime parody.

Persepolis. Animated movie based on the graphic novel memoir by Marjane Satrapi.

Pirates of the Caribbean. Movie.

Planetes

Sf animé with more gritty realism than most.

Prince of Tennis

Shonen sports anime based on the manga of the same title.

Princes et Princesses. Animated science fantasy movie in the form of a fairytale anthology.

Princess Tutu

Fairytale metnarrative anime series.

Ratatouille. Fantasy. Animated movie about a rat who wants to be a chef.

Rent. Movie based on the musical.

Samurai Champloo

Anime.

Sarah Connor Chronicles

Spin-off sf series from the Terminator movies.

She-Ra

Children's science fantasy cartoon.

Shoujo Kakumei Utena

Also Revolutionary Girl Utena.

Simoun

Science fantasy anime. First episode.

Spooks (MI-5)

British spy show.

Stardust. Fantasy movie based on the Neil Gaiman novel.

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Supernatural

Horror/occult.

Sweeney Todd. Musical, but I watched it on DVD. A question about musical foreshadowing.

The Thirteenth Warrior. Movie.

Threshold

Sf drama.

Torchwood

Doctor Who spin-off. Pilot episode.

Ultraviolet

British vampire-fighting squad. With ruthless logic.

Veronica Mars

High-school noir, private investigators and skeletons in closets and sassy dialogue and all. Smart and complex characters, all of whom seem to have on-screen chemistry with each other. A great relationship between the obsessive, truth-seeking high schooler Veronica Mars and her father, a private investigator. "Mysteries of the week" (cf. Buffy and Angel's "monsters of the week"); twisty, ruthlessly intelligent plotting; a massive, thorough, shatteringly satisfying season arc--in fact, the single best season of TV I've seen. If the genre is your thing, it will be your thing.

Visions of Escaflowne

Science fantasy animé.

Walk the Line. Movie: biopic about Johnny Cash.

X-Files

Paranormal investigation.

Sf/f Conventions

Boskone 2005

Boskone 2007

Eeriecon 8

Norwescon 28

Readercon 2006

Readercon 2007

Viable Paradise

A one-week sf/f writing workshop that runs in autumn. I attended VP VIII; instructors were Debra Doyle, James Macdonald, Steven Gould, Laura Mixon, Patrick Nielsen Hayden, and Teresa Nielsen Hayden. I originally typed up impressions from memory, then retrieved my notebook and typed up the detailed notes.

Wiscon 2005

Wiscon 2006

Wiscon 2007

Wiscon 2008

Worldcon 2005

All reports provided by the gracious Helen Keeble, posted in my LJ by permission.