Wow! There's a lot of Science Fiction Fans Out There

My wife tells me that the way to get comments on my blog is to post on EVERYONE else's (sigh). So being the dutiful man that I am, I google sci-fi blogs and SHAZAM!!! there are dozens of them in English alone. I find that amazing. Some of them are incredibly ingenious. I have posted a few links and intend to post more.

I still haven't found anybody (except one) that are as dedicated to books as I am, but TV, movies, comic books and graphic novels are covered up. I learned more about what's going on and what's going to go on in those media than I thought possible in an hour.

Does anybody out there still read? Did anybody besides me dislike the wild abandonment of the central plot in I, Robot offensive besides me? The Bicentennial Man was nothing as Asimov envisioned when Robin Williams took the part. Its strange how some movies just leave the central themes of some of these books behind. Oh well...I guess I read too much.

Lindsay Waggoner Was Never Like This!

The new Bionic Woman looks to be totally kick-ass! Check out the preview video and see if the villian doesn't look a little familiar aroung the edges. This promises to be a very good show, if they don't skimp on charater development (and it looks like they don't) or decide the special effects are too expensive. Check it out!

Dang! I'm old....

I was just sitting around thinking about blogging and I was looking over my books and reminiscing a bit...it occurred to me that I read my first science fiction novel in 6th grade when I was 12. I was hooked immediately. I burned through my elementary school's collection of sci-fi in about a week. (Which is no great feat. It only had about 5 or 6 books) That introduced me to Heinlein's young adult books. From there it was to the public library where I read Asimov, Doc Smith, and all that I could find or reserve. Then high school came along and with it came Heinlein's masterpieces and Tolkein's The Lord of the Rings.

So as of a few months ago, I have been reading science fiction and fantasy, in most of its forms, if not all, for 35 years, And I'm still doing it. I'm going to order Mrs. Bujold's newest book from Uncle Hugo's. I've already ordered a collector's edition of Harry Potter from Amazon. I've had the good fortune to meet some of the author's I enjoy and to enjoy some of the author's I've read ( a subtle but definite delineation).

And after all this time and energy (and money) spent, I can clearly state two things:

1) Science fiction is one of the best forms of entertainment there is. From Spiderman to Star Wars to Minority Report, it has captured and held the world's attention as well or better than any other genre, and,

2) I'm getting old....but I still ahve a long way to go to really absorb my chosen genre. Its always there to entertain, educate, ponder or confuse. I love science fiction and I probably will until I die....and if some of the books are right, even longer.

Future Books News

For Lois McMaster Bujold fans, her newest book will be released on June 26th.
Uncle Hugo's Bookstore will be hosting a signing on release day. This is the second book in The Sharing Knife series; TheSharing Knife: Legacy. The third book in this series is in the can and should be released in a year or so. Mrs. Bujold is now working on a brand new Miles Vorkosigan novel!

And if there's anybody left that doesn't know, the final Harry Potter is being released on July 21st. All of the major bookstores and most of the independents are pre-selling. I'll be taking my family to the release party at Bookpeople. Look around your part of the world and let me know what's going to happen when the last Harry Potter is released there....

Jack McDevitt Takes Best Novel Nebula Award

Mr. McDevitt came away from the Science Fiction Writers Assoc. Nebula Awards weekend carrying the award for Best Novel for Seeker. I did a review of it a while back. He richly deserves this award, although in my opinion, it should have been for The Hercules Text or A Talent For War. But, since he didn't get it for those prime examples of speculative fiction, he gets it for this one. I guess that kinda balances everything out.

Its an excellent book and well worth the cost of the paperback. For you collectors: Don't bother. A signed first edition just isn't available on the open market right now. I was lucky enough to obtain a signed first-edition before he won this award. But mine is not for sale.

Welcome

Ok, here's the blog as promised. For those of you who saw the previous version, this version makes it easier to comment on my blog page and its much easier to link back to my home page. I will be adding posts every couple of days on science fiction subjects. Feel free to comment anytime.