Unfortunately I must say that this is my least favorite Pip and Flinx adventure thus far. But considering how much I like the series as a whole, that’s not too bad. This book develops a little bit more culture, though we get too little of the culture of the planet Flinx winds up on. It…
I like military science fiction, and so it was natural to pick up this book, my first by author William C. Dietz. Let me get a couple of things I didn’t really like out of the way first. This is more in the line of an extended history with several story lines followed at the…
OK, having trashed one Terry Pratchett book, with apologies to all his fans including myself, let me just say that this one is up to standard. I actually found it a little less twisted than the average discworld book, but I found the story equally appealing, incredibly funny, and even a bit more suspenseful. Ankh-Morpork…
This is a young adult book, and I’m not a young adult anymore, but I thought I’d try it. I really, really love Terry Pratchett. I think he’s a brilliant, imaginative, and humorous writer. Who wouldn’t think those things? They’re obvious characteristics of his work. But I’m sorry, I just couldn’t get into this one….
If you have enjoyed the writings of Robert Silverberg, as I have, and if you still occasionally (or more often!) enjoy some of the early action based science fiction, then this book is for you. It’s a collection of 16 short stories by Silverberg from the 1950s, with introductions and commentary. I really enjoyed this…
Our frenzied packing was interrupted by the arrival of the royal messenger. “Good news!” he said. “There’s a cease fire. You don’t have to leave.” We all stood around watching him, foolishly holding precious possessions in our arms, and looking at the wagons, mules and donkeys that were partially loaded. “What happened?” I asked. “A…
This is the result of my having fun with my morning devotions and then mixing it with thinking about translation theory. Anyone up to produce Psalm 46 in another poetic form? I’m particularly interested in playing with translating into fixed forms. I’m safe with God my strength, my shield, my friend. In danger he is…
I truly love the Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters. It combines my love for mysteries with my love for and knowledge of the ancient near east. Though it is set in Egypt, which was the least of my own studies, it nonetheless never fails to please, and Peters is very good about fitting her…
Note: I wrote this in 1986 when thinking about how the time of the judges in Israel would have looked from a Canaanite perspective. I have woven into it a critical understanding of the authorship of Psalm 29. “The voice of the Lord is loud . . Psalm 29 (Author’s Translation) “The Canaani are not…
Alan Dean Foster has always provided me with interesting science fiction that was easy to read. It’s the sort of stuff that I read when I don’t want to get too serious, but at the same time my brain is still functioning. Thus far, he has never disappointed me in that. Sometimes lighter fiction is…
