Monthly Archives: February 2012

simultaneously dated and prescient

Posted on February 28, 2012 by Marcus

‘The Puppet Masters’ by Robert A. Heinlein (1951) Haven’t read much Heinlein other than ‘Stranger In A Strange Land’ – which I enjoyed and think I’ll re-read some day. Hey, it could happen! I’ve recently re-read, for the first time since my … Continue reading →

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forward into the past (the idiot’s guide to time travel)

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Marcus

‘Chronocules’ by D. G. Compton (1970) “We build a village, so we need a village idiot. Put him on the payroll.” (p. 22) “If you do not believe in predestination, then you believe in free will…to travel backward in time … Continue reading →

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Psychedelic Sci-Fi

Posted on February 17, 2012 by Marcus

Chester Anderson’s ‘The Butterfly Kid’ (1967), Michael Kurland’s ‘The Unicorn Girl’ (1969), and ‘The Probability Pad’ (1970) by T.A. Waters are three novels collectively referred to as The Greenwich Village Trilogy.     Anderson was a musician, poet and underground press editor involved in the … Continue reading →

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real speculative fiction

Posted on February 12, 2012 by Marcus

Several weeks ago I found and posted the image found at the bottom of this post. For anyone who didn’t appreciate the joke here is the explanation- Question: What do you get when you combine the novels of Roger Zelazny, Siddhartha by Hermann … Continue reading →

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time for a cigarette break

Posted on February 12, 2012 by Marcus

Barry N. Malzberg’s 1972 novel, Overlay, contains a total of 192 pages. Appearing exactly in the middle of the book between the 96th and 97th pages is this two-sided Kent cigarette advertisement-   What I find to be of great interest is … Continue reading →

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Father, Son and Holy CPU

Posted on February 12, 2012 by Marcus

‘The Steel Crocodile’ by D. G. Compton (1970) When using a computer to predict who the next messiah will be you may want to ask the one doing the thinking if they’re interested in the position. Compton uses a husband and … Continue reading →

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the man behind the curtain of sci-fi

Posted on February 10, 2012 by Marcus

‘echo round his bones’ by Thomas M. Disch (1967) “And it was all fakery, mere public relations and stagecraft. The jump to Mars could have been made with the equivalent of four tin cans of electronic hardware and a power … Continue reading →

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mixtapes for the psychotic

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Marcus

‘SYNTHAJOY’ by D. G. Compton (1968) “Edward Cadence was a brilliant man, and a dedicated scientist. He had invented Sensitape, a means of recording the thoughts and emotions of great musicians, religious figures, etc. so that other could experience at … Continue reading →

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Ray Bradbury meets Franz Kakfa

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Marcus

‘Farewell, Earth’s Bliss’ by D. G. Compton (1966) “The time is the future; space travel has encompassed Mars, finding it barren, without mineral resources, useful only as a dumping ground for socially unacceptable humanity – a latter-day convict settlement.” (from … Continue reading →

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fifty-something going on twelve

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Marcus

‘The Third Eye’ by Theodore Cogswell (1968) From the back cover – “The common problems of today’s world/The Strange solutions of tomorrow’s world” “From the complexities of the employment-economic problems to new ways to promote breakfast cereals…from the first awareness … Continue reading →

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