Monday Morning Update – Me, A Print Edition and A Bummer.

Okay… so my foodie loving contemporary romantic comedy, Beauty and the Feast, has been released in print.  Many thanks to genius Jaye Manus and her talented consultant, Jayne.

If you want to check it out… see Here.  I’d be a little happier if the Amazon editors hadn’t added the words copyrighted material in fine print across the nose (not our handiwork) but I’ve ordered a couple books to see if that’s actually on the cover or just on the online image.  If it’s on the actual cover I’ll make sure it’s removed post-haste.

I found a quote which sums up several short stories I read this weekend:

“Do you realize that all great literature is all about what a bummer it is to be a human being? Isn’t it such a relief to have somebody say that?”

Kurt Vonnegut

How can you not love Kurt Vonnegut?  He speaks the truth.

Thanks to Jaye’s generosity, I had the opportunity to read three re-released short stories by eminent science fiction writer, Robert Silverberg.

Robert Silverberg is a multiple winner of both Hugo and Nebula Awards and a member of the Science Fiction Hall of Fame.  The amount of work he’s released is beyond belief.  I’d have to write a book merely to list his books.

I read House of Bones – the story of one man’s lonely and uncertain journey back through time to study paleolithic hunter-gatherers.  Bet you’re wondering how it works out for him.  The Macauley Circuit – about the rise of the machines and the obsolescence of human beings that fact portends.  Unintended consequences.  Symbiont – a futuristic tale about the ethical dilemmas and terrible choices that have plagued mankind from our very beginning.  Still plaguing us centuries from now.  Yeah… bummer.

These three stories are some of Silverberg’s older works.  There’s a striking difference in mood between these stark, dark, elegant narratives and our more modern fantastical hero’s journey.  Silverberg leaves the reader with questions, not answers.  His stories don’t end, rather they fade into an abyss of moral ambiguity.  His characters, his heroes, aren’t winners.  They may be survivors, but they aren’t winners.  There’s no prize.  They don’t get the girl.  They don’t even complete the journey.

The stories are a reminder of the existential hopelessness of the human condition– Fortunately I’m perfectly capable of ignoring the existential hopelessness of the human condition while getting on with things, which is, I repeat, the reason you want me as your companion in the Zombie Apocalypse.  Rick Grimes can suck it.

It’s interesting to see a little of Jules Verne’s influence in Silverberg and a little of Silverberg’s influence in multiple books and movies, including The Terminator and Minority Report, and even in Jean Auel’s Clan of the Cave Bear series and William Styron’s Sophie’s Choice.

Jaye and I had considered hosting a discussion of Mr. Silverberg’s short stories but we’re both pretty swamped right now.

It didn’t take much convincing on the part of book super maven, Tom Stronach, to get me to buy an entire series of books – much like he got me hooked on the Bernard Cornwell series, The Saxon Chronicles.  Yummmm!  If there’s one thing I adore it’s rockin’ historical fiction.

So I just ordered the entire set of The Conqueror Series by Conn Iggulden – all about them there Khans, you know, Genghis and his bunch.  I cannot wait to begin this series.  It’s next on my list as soon as I finish The Iron King and The Strangled Queen, by Maurice Druon – the only two books I managed to find in English from The Accursed Kings six-book series.  Oh if I could only read French!

I expected to watch a whole bunch of movies this past week during my staycation, but instead I spent a lot of time entertaining the dog and tuna-fying the cat.  But more important, the NCAA Softball Post-Season has begun.  If you’ve played fast-pitch softball or if your daughter has played fast-pitch softball, especially travel ball, you understand the addictive draw of NCAA Softball, especially during the Post-Season and the World Series.  Best game in the world.

Now if someone can invent a way for me to watch every single game at once…

 

 

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