SPOOZE!! It is with continued joy that we raise tenstacles in order to better lead you to enlightenment. As a superior species (in all ways, forms and directions) we feel it is not only our obligation but our duty to raise your consciousness. So, stop raping your planet's resources for a few moments and take a look at our recommendations for this month. Also take note (we mention this here because the slower among you will not read every word and instead just leap and flit from spot to spot and thus miss it) that we are beginning two new features here--Media Spotlight where we peruse and make comment on books which are related to movies and television; and our BIG IMPACT section where we comment on those books which were, well, not exactly what we had expected. It's happened to you and we deal with it here.

Oh yes, we have secretly been informed that our work has significant value therefor it should exist in archived states so that others may follow the path you have already begun. The first step is reached simply by pointing and clicking right about here.

order Bone Wars

Bone Wars, Brett Davis, Baen Paperback, ISBN 0-671-87880-8, $5.99 ($7.99 Canada), 312 pgs.

This is a bit of an odd mix of a book. It is set in Montana in the late 1800's so it has a certain historical bend to it. It is about paleontologists and the quest to find bones so it also has a certain ancient competitiveness as well. And it has aliens (not that Davis got the aliens right of course, but he probably has not met as many as we have.) that's okay, this is fiction anyway so one expects that certain liberties will be taken. The two main characters are Othniel Charles Marsh and Edward Drinker Cope. Both are paleontologists who have been competing with each other for quite some time. Both are in the west searching for bones and both have small camps of followers. It should be noted that the west in the late 1800's was a dangerous place of indians on the warpath, of aggressive expansion of the white man and of a yet mostly-undiscovered wilderness. Oddly enough both Marsh and Cope are in nearly the same place at nearly the same time. Even more oddly there are a pair of additional searchers present; one from Sweden and the other from Iceland. These two foreign searchers align themselves each with Cope and Marsh, at least initially. Soon enough though it is doscovered that not only do neither of these foreigners know much about their home countries but they act much too diferently to be even human.

There's also a subplot of young love as one of Marsh's followers is found to be not a young lad but a young lass who then falls in love with an indian brave educated in the East. This subplot provides not only some amusement but also provides the link to Sitting Bull who is fresh from his encounter with Custer. The whole bunch soon get mixed up in trying to thwart the aliens from absconding with fossils even though they all have their own agendas for doing so.

Those of you who enjoy have your science fiction mixed with historical fact and who revel in the intermix of ancient setting and future technology with not be disappointed here. While the plotting is fairly straightforward and direct it is done well and produces an enjoyable read. We believe that there are worse activities to occupy a couple of your solar rotations than reading about dinosaurs, prospectors and aliens.

Davis has produced a book with many diverse pieces and they all more or less come together in a fashion that is sometimes humerous (although perhaps not as such as Davis thinks) and which is sometimes poignent and troubling. It is adventure akin to 'Around The World In 80 Days' and '20,000 Leagues Under The Sea.'

Most Tenstacles raised!

order Kirinyaga

Kirinyaga, Mike Resnick, Del Rey, ISBN 0-345-41701-1, $25.00, 293 pgs.

This is perhaps the most honored single-author book of science fiction stories of all time. Every story here has been nominated and won numerous awards, including Hugos and Nebulas. The book is reflective of what SF does best, take a what-if idea and flesh it out warts and all. In the back of the book Resnick tells the tale of how the stories began and how each one added to the whole. I won’t do more than mention that the story behind the stories is almost as fascinating as the tales themselves. This should be no surprise since Resnick is a master storyteller.

Kirinyaga is a novel of eight connected stories framed by a prologue and an epilogue. The stories are about the Africa of the future--Kirinyaga to be exact, although both the prologue and epilogue take place in Kenya. This future Africa is not set on Earth but is instead one of the utopian colonies established on a terraformed planetoid. This new Kirinyaga is the vision of one man--Koriba, mundugu or witch doctor to the colonists. Koriba’s Kirinyaga is the Africa of the old ways and of the old values and beliefs. The one catch is that anyone can leave anytime they want

Within this framework Resnick deals not only with the obvious issues of environment and leading a primitive life in an era of technology but also of values and beliefs and of conflict and change. Resnick takes the tales in unexpected directions and, unlike many of his contemporaries, the science is critical to the tale and not just window dressing.

Kirinyaga is character driven, not only by Koriba and his vision but by the other individuals who inhabit this new utopia. The novel is a wealth of riches from the writing to the setting to the delicate weaving of mystery and fable. How Resnick deals with this move backwards to a utopian past amidst the shattering of ideals and beliefs is as important as how the characters deal with it. Resnick’s actual safari’s to Africa provide him not only with the kind of detail that adds a layered richness to the stories but with a first hand experience which transcends the mere presence of words on a page.

Our tenstacles are raised in full salute to this finest example of what an Earth author can produce.

order Factoring Humanity

Factoring Humanity, Robert J. Sawyer, Tor Hardcover, ISBN 0-312-86458-2, $23.95, 350 pgs.

Robert Sawyer has developed a reputation for world building and for hard SF. Perhaps it is his Canadian heritage or maybe it’s just that it’s so cold there that there is plenty of time for thinking and research. Or maybe it’s just plain talent. Regardless of the groundwork Sawyer produces award winning work time and again. He’s on track again with Factoring Humanity.

This is a book about some pretty complex issues, not the least among them is false memory, trust and personal belief. I believe that Sawyer has hit these issues fairly and solidly with a gritty realism that can only make one wonder at an author who can not only get the science right but the people too. The crux of the book is the reception of a signal from space which comes in bursts daily. The only problem with all this is that it is so far indecipherable This continues for ten years and then stops. One of the individuals working on the decoding of the signals is Heather Davis, a professor at the University of Toronto. Davis personal life is in about the same state as the alien message--frozen in time and going nowhere. Her estranged husband is working at the same university with the development of artificial intelligence systems. Into this whole mix is woven ideas of trust, incest, politics, intelligence and sentience. Sawyer does a brilliant job of weaving all of these factors into a story with some punch. There is, in fact, so much here that one of the important subplots almost gets lost in the whole affair.

Davis is Sawyer’s main character in the book and we move with her, sharing her frustration not only with the messages but with her personal difficulties. We share also in her trials and thoughts as she tries to grasp an alien psychology and make some sense not only of a message but of an intent. Heady and complicated stuff and always begging the question, what if the intent is malevolent?

We enjoyed the book, even if Sawyer gets alien intent wrong. Of all the aliens we know, none would be so obtuse as to send puzzles over intergalactic airwaves. We liked the book and the human struggle, although we wonder at times why you humans struggle so much. Still, Sawyer appears to be a human with his hand on the pulse of human wonder and foible.

Tenstacles upraised in glorious wonder.

order Thirdspace

Babylon 5: Thirdspace, Peter David, Del Rey Paperback, ISBN 0-345-42454-9, $5.99, 256 pgs.

This is a book based on the original screenplay by J. Michael Straczynski which was written for the television movie based on the series. New York Times bestselling author Peter David does the honors although one would guess that almost any hack could turn one of Straczynski’s scripts into a novel with one arm tied to a tree.

This novel takes place between the two great wars and involves the discovery of a large artifact which holds mysteries and the key to a door. It also deals with how Commander Sheridan and the crew of Babylon 5 deal with the threat that the artifact eventually produces.

Now, let us be upfront about this. Surely you have all seen the episode so you know the story. Your utility in purchasing such a book as this would be to garner details not evident in the film or to get an insight into thought patterns. Both of those are adequate reasons to purchase the book and you will not be disappointed for doing so. If you have not seen the teleplay than we wonder, being a superior race we wonder a lot, exactly what you are doing? Go buy something real. Go buy something we have positively reviewed. This is fluff; well written fluff true, but fluff none-the-less.

Completists will have no choice but to consume copies. Fans will probably also make purchases. Understand all though that this is a book based on a screenplay which is meant to be seen visually. You humans need to do such things having only five senses.

We acknowledge that this is fine writing. Well, we almost all do. One of us wishes to protest the use of the Drazi as major characters because they remind him of food, but otherwise it is unanimous.

Tenstacles fluttering in equilibrium.

order The Coming Of Shadows

Babylon 5: The Coming Of Shadows, Jane Killick, Del Rey Trade, ISBN 0-345-42448-4, $11.99 ($14.95 Canada), 178 pgs.

This is the guide to the 22 shows which make up the second season of Babylon 5. The book begins with a brief introduction about how the show got made and the decisions that go into making a weekly television show. The opening also details some of the important differences between B5 and regular TV shows. It’s interesting stuff, especially if you have any hankering for behind the scenes info.

The major piece of this offering however is the episode by episode guide. In depth summaries accompanied by cast list, guest star list and expert commentary and analysis. Now we realize that analysis is a bit of a strong and strange thing considering we are talking about American television but it is included none-the-less. We believe that if you set fruit out on Hollywood boulevard for more than two days someone would begin an analysis and commentary on it. You earth people are just plain strange.

Fans of the show (and we include ourselves in that grouping even if we don’t recognize any of the other aliens) will find this to be a must have book. Fans and television buffs will also want to acquire copies. Those with some interest in how this all gets done should get copies as well. We have ours and we’d loan it to you but the tenstacle marks are already obscuring key passages.

Tenstacles upright and waving (especially during second season reruns.)

order Highlander

Highlander: The Complete Watchers Guide, Maureen Russell, Aspect Trade Paperback, ISBN 0-446-67435-4, $13.99, 242 pgs.

Like the offering above, this is a behind the scenes offering on that other popular television show. Unlike the above though there are more than just episode guides. Firstly this is a picture heavy book (black and white but they are everywhere.) Second there is discussion with the cast, the directors, the producers, the cameramen, the sword sharpener, the keeper of special effects heads and lots more. If there is an aspect of the Highlander you want to know about this book will probably provide it.

Better than 120 photos grace the pages, sometimes three or more per two page spread. Want behind the scenes reports? They are here. Want to know about the music? Here. Interested in special effects secrets? You got it. In fact this is a darn near perfect companion guide. Keep it by the chair as you watch and peruse it during those pesky commercials.

Maureen Russell does an excellent job of compiling facts, human interest stories, episode information and behind the scenes info. The actors become human, the men and women behind the scenes are human too. In fact they are all humans. (We need to speak to someone about this obvious slight.)

An excellent guide for fans and friends and in the final pages there is contact information so your journey can continue. We especially liked the episode guides although we wished for a bit more technical info.

Tenstacles raised with heads ducked (we really don't quite understand this fascination with heads but we prefer to keep al of ours.)

order Kingdom Come

Kingdom Come, Elliot S. Maggin, Warner Hardcover, ISBN 0-446-52234-1, $20.00 ($24.95 Canada), 341 pgs.

This book is based on the story by Mark Waid and Alex Roos. For story you can insert comic book. Understand here that we love comics. We love Superman and Batman. We are not so enamored of the Fantastic Four or the Hulk but those are other stories. When we got this novel our excitement grew. How quickly it was crushed. Page after page we turned waiting, hoping, desiring action, explanation, plotting. Page after page we wilted, despair rising; to see the heroes of our youth treated so poorly. Superman was nobody. Batman was not seen. Wonder Woman was wimpy. We were confused. 90 pages we waded, far deeper than usual but our early love pushed us on. Our heroes robbed of their humanity, their ability to act and their excitement. Despair became like a rock on our back. There could be but one solution.

Fling!!!!

Dent!!!

Not to worry, it’s a reforming Iridium hull which slowly, over the course of a few hours, regains its smooth flowing curve. The dents look pretty while they last though and the recycler is right there as well so particularly good shots go straight to pulp. We missed on this one but we’re pretty sure we broke the spine so it will not be able to harm anyone else.

Three tenstacles involved in the heave.

order Darwinia

Darwinia, Robert Charles Wilson, Tor Hardcover, ISBN 0-312-86038-2, $22.95 ($29.95 Canada), 320 pgs.

Perhaps the prettiest cover of the year. If for no other reason than that, search out this book. We were compelled to raise it to our eyes. We were compelled and we opened the cover. No pretty pictures graced the inside. No pretty plot greeted us either. No enthralling story met our eager wander lust. Travelogue, travelogue, travelogue. And written in historic mode as well as if we really wanted to go back and reread H. G. Wells boring over description of corn fields. Gads, a full 60 pages we waded. We were enticed at first by the opening premise--the replacement of most of Europe with a new continent. It’s an alternate world story. They called the replacement the Miracle. Not miracle enough say we.

Fling!!!!

Dent!!!

A two tenstacle toss as one of us tried to grab the cover, thus robbing us of the full fluttering impact of this newest Wilson offering. We’d try again but all that tedious reading has us exhausted.

Order any book you see reviewed here by going directly to Amazon.com. Just click and buy.

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