A.B. Shepherd's Blog, page 19

Armchair BEA Genre Classics - Science Fiction - The Chrysalids by John Wyndham

So Armchair BEA wants to know why I love classics.


Well, why do YOU love classics? Honestly, I don't love all classics. I think somehow, somewhere in my mind they still have a stigma from high school lit class. My teachers picked the most boring classics for us to read when, way back then, all I wanted to read was bodice rippers. But times have changed, and I've grown up and more open minded. Bodice rippers are boring now. I hate reading romance novels. 


But I'm trying to read more classics in some different genres and give them a fair chance. I recently read The Chrysalids which is a classic science fiction novel. 


Here is my take on it. Before you go, tell me - do YOU love the classics? Which are your favorites and why?

Book Blurb:
The Chrysalids is set in the future after a devastating global nuclear war. David, the young hero of the novel, lives in a tight-knit community of religious and genetic fundamentalists, who exist in a state of constant alert for any deviation from what they perceive as the norm of God's creation, deviations broadly classified as 'offenses' and 'blasphemies.' Offenses consist of plants and animals that are in any way unusual, and these are publicly burned to the accompaniment of the singing of hymns. Blasphemies are human beings; ones who show any sign of abnormality, however trivial. They are banished from human society, cast out to live in the wild country where, as the authorities say, nothing is reliable and the devil does his work. 

David grows up surrounded by admonitions: KEEP PURE THE STOCK OF THE LORD; WATCH THOU FOR THE MUTANT. At first he hardly questions them, though he is shocked when his sternly pious father and rigidly compliant mother force his aunt to forsake her baby. It is a while before he realizes that he too is out of the ordinary, in possession of a power that could doom him to death or introduce him to a new, hitherto-unimagined world of freedom. The Chrysalids is a perfectly conceived and constructed work from the classic era of science fiction. It is a Voltairean philosophical tale that has as much resonance in our own day, when genetic and religious fundamentalism are both on the march, as when it was written during the Cold War.

My review:
This is a classic dystopian science fiction novel first published in 1955. It always amazes me when an author from so long ago can make such seemingly accurate predictions of the future world. I sometimes forget the devastating effects that were seen by those who lived through World War II and witnessed the devastation caused by the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I'm sure that played a huge role in Wyndham's future world where so much of the land is no longer inhabitable.

But there is a lot more at work in this story than uninhabitable land. It's a story of what is right and what is wrong. About shunning, or killing, things are are not "normal". About fear, about religious beliefs, about a society that has regressed and, conversely, a society that has progressed.

While I didn't love this book, it did find it thought provoking and I'm glad I read it. It was far ahead of its time. I think this should be on the curriculum of every middle school or high school in the world.

About the author:
John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris was the son of a barrister. After trying a number of careers, including farming, law, commercial art and advertising, he started writing short stories in 1925. After serving in the civil Service and the Army during the war, he went back to writing. Adopting the name John Wyndham, he started writing a form of science fiction that he called 'logical fantasy. As well as "The Day of the Triffids", he wrote "The Kraken Wakes", "The Chrysalids", "The Midwich Cuckoos" (filmed as "Village of the Damned") and "The Seeds of Time".

Book Review: The Chrysalids by John Wyndham

Book Blurb:
The Chrysalids is set in the future after a devastating global nuclear war. David, the young hero of the novel, lives in a tight-knit community of religious and genetic fundamentalists, who exist in a state of constant alert for any deviation from what they perceive as the norm of God's creation, deviations broadly classified as 'offenses' and 'blasphemies.' Offenses consist of plants and animals that are in any way unusual, and these are publicly burned to the accompaniment of the singing of hymns. Blasphemies are human beings; ones who show any sign of abnormality, however trivial. They are banished from human society, cast out to live in the wild country where, as the authorities say, nothing is reliable and the devil does his work. 

David grows up surrounded by admonitions: KEEP PURE THE STOCK OF THE LORD; WATCH THOU FOR THE MUTANT. At first he hardly questions them, though he is shocked when his sternly pious father and rigidly compliant mother force his aunt to forsake her baby. It is a while before he realizes that he too is out of the ordinary, in possession of a power that could doom him to death or introduce him to a new, hitherto-unimagined world of freedom. The Chrysalids is a perfectly conceived and constructed work from the classic era of science fiction. It is a Voltairean philosophical tale that has as much resonance in our own day, when genetic and religious fundamentalism are both on the march, as when it was written during the Cold War.

My review:
This is a classic dystopian science fiction novel first published in 1955. It always amazes me when an author from so long ago can make such seemingly accurate predictions of the future world. I sometimes forget the devastating effects that were seen by those who lived through World War II and witnessed the devastation caused by the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I'm sure that played a huge role in Wyndham's future world where so much of the land is no longer inhabitable.

But there is a lot more at work in this story than uninhabitable land. It's a story of what is right and what is wrong. About shunning, or killing, things are are not "normal". About fear, about religious beliefs, about a society that has regressed and, conversely, a society that has progressed.

While I didn't love this book, it did find it thought provoking and I'm glad I read it. It was far ahead of its time. I think this should be on the curriculum of every middle school or high school in the world.

About the author:
John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris was the son of a barrister. After trying a number of careers, including farming, law, commercial art and advertising, he started writing short stories in 1925. After serving in the civil Service and the Army during the war, he went back to writing. Adopting the name John Wyndham, he started writing a form of science fiction that he called 'logical fantasy. As well as "The Day of the Triffids", he wrote "The Kraken Wakes", "The Chrysalids", "The Midwich Cuckoos" (filmed as "Village of the Damned") and "The Seeds of Time".

Interview with Tony Brooks author of Halfway Human

Today I am privileged to interview Tony Brooks, author of Halfway Human. Tony and I recently met (virtually) through a mutual friend. Tony is a veteran author living in the Adelaide area. He's an interesting man. I think you'll agree. Do read on. Book Blurb: In the early 19th century British convicts were transported to the penal colony of Australia by the thousands. Irish farmer, Laurence Frayne finds himself caught in the crushing gears of the Crown's justice system for a minor offense, and learns first hand of its barbaric treatment of prisoners. Laurence becomes a focus for the insane hatred of the Norfolk Island penal colony's commandant, Morisset. The prisoners' lives are an unending nightmare of brutality, back breaking labour,and the searing tropical sun. After a bloody failed mutiny there is a sudden ray of hope for a reprieve from their torture in the appearance of Morisset's replacement, the courageous reformer, Alexander Maconochie.

Entwined in the story is a modern thread that follows the Australian reporter, Margaret Frayne and the Manhatten attorney, Dominic Hurley as they seek the truth about their common, long dead ancestor. Finding truth in the past and the present, they struggle to gain clemency for a repentant modern day prisoner condemned for murder.

You can pick up Halfway Human at Amazon. 
 Hi Tony - Welcome to my blog. Thanks for agreeing to answer a few questions for me and my readers. Ready? Let's jump in. Halfway Human is based in 19th century Australia. What is it about that era you find fascinating?The 19th century was a time of enormous change in this huge, ancient continent. The England of the industrial revolution created a class of people which had tremendous challenges to face here.
Are penal colonies of particular interest to you? Penal colonies, yes, but it was the discovery of the characters of Morisset and MacConochie and the revolutionary initiative in reform rather than revenge that really piqued my interest. It was an amazing period that seems to have slipped under the radar. 
Do you think deportation was a just punishment for British criminals? Was it more, or less, cruel than imprisonment?Deportation wasn’t just a savage punishment for the victims of the industrial age, it was a pathetic admission of social failure. You emigrated to Australia from England as a young adult. Does that bear influence on Halfway Human? I don’t think my emigrating as a young adult influences the book particularly, although the enormous impact of the experience did make me examine all my previous values and attitudes. So, a fresh look at life I suppose.
What influence has Australian culture had on your writing?I think that the distinctive societal structures and values to be found here have made me approach my work with much more boldness and energy. 
What is the most important thing you want readers to know about Halfway Human? This work tries to focus on the richness of the characters, both historical and devised, but attempts to capture the impact of an outstanding innovation in penal practice that took place here, and is sadly somewhat forgotten.
What is the most important thing you want readers to know about you? That I place richness of character and the telling of a good story at the centre of my work.
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
I believe that Australia has so much more of value in terms of literature and film than it is achieving at the moment.   About Tony Brooks:
Born in England, Tony Brooks served in the Royal Navy and then trained as a teacher. He studied French at the Sorbonne. His degree is in Educational Drama. His scripts have been performed and presented on stage, radio, and in film form both here and in the United States.

His novel, ‘First of All’, about the reformer, Catherine Helen Spence was published by Axiom Press in 1995 and re-printed in 2001. In 1994 his play, ‘Games’ received an Advertiser award as the best new play of the year. His novel about the blackbirding era was published on the internet. In 2001 his full length play with music, ‘Ice’, based on the love letters of Douglas and Paquita Mawson was given a production by Opus Performing Arts Company at the prestigious Noarlunga Theatre.

Tony has now written a trilogy of novels based on TV scripts, ‘Curve of the Earth’, set on the Yorke Peninsula, which has had three print runs. In 2005 his one act play, ‘Honest John’, set about the great drivers’ strike of 1910, won the South Australian Hills Drama Festival. In 2007 he brought out his novel, ‘Halfway Human’ based on events in the penal colony of Norfolk Island, with a modern story line developed from his own experiences as a tutor at Yatala Labour Prison. Late in 2007 he brought out his sixth novel, ‘The Far Side of the Reef’, set amongst the Pacific Islands during the period now known as the Blackbirding era.
 

Release Day Blitz & Giveaway! Enter now. Annealed by Lynne Cantwell

Release Day Blitz for the 5th and Final Book in The Pipe Woman Chronicles by Lynne Cantwell Naomi Witherspoon lives in interesting times.  At the winter solstice, she was Seized by a Native American goddess to mediate a power-sharing agreement between all the pagan gods and goddesses and the Christian God.  Then, as her relationship with her new boyfriend Fissured, she Tapped a wellspring of strength – her Native American heritage.Now, Gravid and due any day, she must conduct the mediation of her life.  Will she succeed?  Or will it all go up in smoke?The answers to those questions, and more, can be found in Annealed , the final installment in the Pipe Woman Chronicles, an urban fantasy series by Lynne Cantwell.

It began at the winter solstice
And it ends
Now. 

It’s zero hour…Naomi has just two weeks to find a new home for Joseph's grandfather. The old Ute shaman is fighting for his life against a mysterious injection of toxin he received at the hands of the Norse Trickster god Loki. If Naomi is to defeat Loki once and for all, she must learn what it is he seeks under the old man's wickiup. She has just one week before she must mediate between the Earth's pagan gods and goddesses and the Christian God. If her efforts fail, all of humankind will suffer the consequences.And her baby is due any day.In this, the fifth and final book of the Pipe Woman Chronicles, Naomi is in a race against the clock to balance the demands of her body, her family, and her friends – and she must do it while the whole world is watching.

PAPERBACK | KINDLEA taste of chapter 10: Jehovah sighed. "White Buffalo Calf Pipe Woman, I concede that much of what You have said here is true. Humanity wrestles still with its baser impulses, even as it reaches for the pinnacle of its potential. Math, the sciences, engineering. I never thought they would figure out fractal theory." He chuckled. "I love My children dearly. Soon they will reach the stars. They are ever a surprise and a delight to Me." Lynne Cantwell's take on the excerpt: "Naomi has finally reached the Big Mediation -- the one between the Christian God and all the pagan gods and goddesses that the whole series has been driving toward. In this scene, White Buffalo Calf Pipe Woman has just outlined all the ways humanity has trashed God's Creation: ruining the environment, using Scripture as an excuse to treat other human races like animals, and so on. God acknowledges all of that. But it's also clear that He takes great delight in what He has created -- and He has a sense of humor, too."

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the Author: Lynne Cantwell Lynne Cantwell has been writing fiction since the second grade, when the kid who sat in front of her showed her a book he had written, and she thought, "I could do that." The result was Susie and the Talking Doll, a picture book, illustrated by the author, about a girl who owned a doll that not only could talk, but could carry on conversations. The book had dialogue but no paragraph breaks. Today, after a twenty-year career in broadcast journalism and a master's degree in fiction writing from Johns Hopkins University (or perhaps despite the master's degree), Lynne is still writing fantasy. In addition, she is a contributing author at Indies Unlimited and writes a monthly post for The Indie Exchange.TWITTER | FACEBOOK | BLOG | GOODREADS | AMAZON

Book review: Running by Rhiannon Douglas

Book Blurb:
She will be hunted. She will be found. The Empire will never be the same.

In a world where Power is everything, Gwendolyn leads a quiet life in a country town. That life ends the day a Rogue attack triggers the dormant Power within her.

Her guardian has been kidnapped and her home is no longer the sanctuary it once was. Accompanied by a young man who is more than what he seems, hunted by Rogues and the Empire Ruling Council, Gwen must find herself before they do.

With Power she can't control and plagued by forgotten memories she does the only thing she can.

Run.

Book 1 of The Empowered Series: Running - available now on Amazon
Book 2: Behind the Curtain (available late 2013)
Book 3: The Empowered Wars (available 2014)
Book 4: Old Enemies (available 2014)

My review:
I interviewed Rhiannon recently about Running. You can read that review here. 

I was privileged to receive an ARC of this novel. Running is the first in a series of at least three books called The Empowered Series. It tells the story of Gwen, a young woman who leads an ordinary life, in an ordinary town, until one day a Rogue Empowered comes looking for her. Then she has no choice but to run. Rhiannon Douglas has all the elements of a fantastic fantasy best seller here. Her characters are well developed and we want to KNOW them. She teases us with tid bits of what is to come. She makes us NEED to read more. There are no dragons or witches here, but there is magic and power. I don't want to spoil it for you, but my favorite scene is near the end in the caves. You have to read this for yourself. If you are a fan of epic fantasy novels you will LOVE Running!

About the author:
Rhiannon Douglas lives in South Australia with her partner Joseph and her cat Silver. She spends her time writing fantasy, playing with her cat and loitering in the vegetable garden while Joseph does all of the work.

You can connect with Rhiannon on her website or on Twitter. 

Book review: Shield: Allie's War by J.C. Andrijeski

Book Blurb:
Grappling with her identity as "Bridge," a being thought to herald the end of humanity, isn't even Allie's biggest problem. She's also dealing with being married to a seer while trying to stop the Rook she put in the White House from starting a war. Then the boy appears. A highly dangerous telekinetic seer, he doesn't appear to have aged in over 100 years. Worse, he thinks Allie belongs to him.

My review:
It's been over a year since I read the first book in this series - you can check out that review here. Shield is the sequel to Rook, both in the Allie's War series. It is a complicated, sophisticated, continuance of the story of Allie, a seer who was raised as human, and her seer husband, Revik. While I found it

About the author - J. C. says:
I've published novels, short stories and nonfiction articles and essays, as well as an illustrated children's story in an anthology. I've also produced a graphic novel version of my Bridge series books, entitled Rook, and written a number of screenplays for short films and done other odd and end film type stuff. My main focus right now is writing novels however, including several middle grades and continuing the "Allie's War" series of books. I'm also doing the occasional short piece for anthologies and other venues, and writing essays when I can find the time.

If you'd like to know more about J.C. check out her website.

I've Stowed Away!

I have become a stowaway aboard the UFO that has abducted my heroine in Lifeboat. 

Click here and you can eavesdrop as I tell the Cabin Goddess all about it. You can enter to win a copy of my ebook too!

Unexplained Fascination

I am not quite a conspiracy theorist, but I am thoroughly fascinated by the unexplained, and love ideas of legend. This post is inspired by a thread I read on a message board, which is primarily geared toward women, last night about Tinfoil Hat Conspiracies.

There were a ton of conspiracies mentioned over topics ranging from 9/11, to the American economy and education systems, to UFOs.

It got me thinking. Some of the things I find intriguing in this life are Big Foot, The Loch Ness Monster, and UFOs. Although I cannot say with any degree of certainty these things exist, no one has yet convinced me that they definitively do not exist.

But my biggest fascination is unexplained disappearances.

Amelia Earhart's disappearance on her final flight. The Flight 19 disappearance off the coast of Florida. The Valentich disappearance.  The lost city of Atlantis. And nearly anything involving the Bermuda Triangle. Although theories abound regarding all of these things, and some would say they have been solved, none have with any degree of proof.

Where, you might ask, am I going with this?

All roads lead back to Lifeboat, my novel. My fascination with disappearances has had a heavy influence on my novel, and yet, I didn't even  realize this until last night. Oh, I knew of my fascination, and I knew what I had written, but I didn't connect the two, you know?

Lifeboat tells the story of Cass, who has had a rough life and has pretty much given up on it. She sees a UFO and becomes obsessed with them, hooking up with a couple of Ufologists. She is then rescued by a UFO when the Earth is destroyed by natural disaster, and taken to a New World with 999 other survivors. Once they settle in to their new lives, however, the survivors start disappearing, without a trace. Cass has to figure out what is happening, before she, too, disappears.

Thus, my fascination with the unexplained strikes again - in novel form.

What fascinates you? What do you think has happened in the cases of the disappearance I've listed?

Launch the Lifeboat! It is here!

I'm so excited.

The time has come to launch my Lifeboat!

The ride has been a roller coaster, but I think it will be worth it.

My novel is now available for purchase in eBook format.

Click here to get your copy at Amazon, and Amazon UK,  in Kindle format, or at Smashwords in any eBook format.

If you are new to my blog, you can also click the Lifeboat tab above to read the blurb, and find the book trailer link.

If you read it, please come back and tell me what you think. If you are interested in reviewing it, message me for a review copy. 

Pre-launch Jitters - It's nearly time!

If you are a faithful reader of my blog, you will know that I have been working on my debut novel - Lifeboat - for some time now.

It is nearly ready for launch! Only a few more short days.

I am elated.

I am terrified.

I feel like an arrow, pulled back and ready to soar into something big.

I've borrowed that line from Cass, my heroine in Lifeboat. It feels appropriate.

I could fly into a wonderful new adventure. Or I could fail, dismally.

Either way, for better or for worse, Lifeboat is on its way.

Wish me luck?