Archive for the ‘My thoughts’ Category
Authors you can’t go wrong with, part 5
This list continues from part 4. Jeanne Cavelos In addition to writing some brilliant Babylon 5 novels, Cavelos is also the founder of the Odyssey writing workshop. Masterpieces Babylon 5 The Passing of the Techno-Mages — Casting Shadows The Passing of the Techno-Mages –Summoning Light The Passing of the Techno-Mages –Invoking Darkness Good book Babylon […]
Authors you can’t go wrong with, part 4
This list continues from part 3. Joanne Bertin Bertin’s 3 fantasy books are all in her Dragonlord series. There was a 13-year gap between the second and third one. Hopefully she will now continue to write more. Masterpiece Dragon and Phoenix Great book The Last Dragonlord Good book Bard’s Oath James Clavell Clavell’s historical fiction […]
Authors you can’t go wrong with, part 3
This list continues from part 2. James Alan Gardner All of Gardner’s science fiction books are set in his League of Peoples universe. Sadly he hasn’t published a book in the last 10 years. Masterpieces Radiant Gravity Wells (collection) Great books Expendable Commitment Hour Vigilant Hunted Ascending Trapped Frank Herbert Herbert is best known for […]
Authors you can’t go wrong with, part 2
This list continues from part 1. Douglas Adams Adams’ most famous work, the Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series, started out as a radio show. He also worked on TV shows and computer games. The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is the funniest book ever written. Masterpieces Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy […]
Authors you can’t go wrong with, part 1
If you pick up any book by these authors, you will be well rewarded. There may be some off-by-one errors in my ratings for books I read many years ago, but this gives you a good idea of the books I like. Isaac Asimov Asimov wrote more books than just about anybody, in a wide […]
Directors worth keeping an eye on, part 6
This continues from part 5. The list contains 60 directors (or directing teams), and I think I’m going to call it done for now. Graham Annable & Anthony Stacchi Annable previously worked on video games while Stacchi worked on movies — coming together they produced a masterpiece. Masterpiece The Boxtrolls Susanne Bier Bier is a […]
Directors worth keeping an eye on, part 5
But wait, there’s more! A sequel to part 4. Sylvain Chomet Chomet is a French director who’s made 2 terrific animated movies. Masterpiece The Triplets of Belleville Great movie The Illusionist (2010) Isabel Coixet Coixet is a Spanish director who’s made 2 brilliant movies with Sarah Polley. Masterpieces My Life Without Me The Secret Life […]
Where are all the female directors?
I recently made a list of 40 directors worth keeping an eye on. Here’s the last part. Guess how many of those directors were female? None. Is it because I’m biased against females? I don’t think so. Is it because in the movie industry, at least some parts, females are routinely treated as second class […]
Directors worth keeping an eye on, part 4
Yet another set of 10 directors who have produced masterpieces, like the previous 10. Jon Favreau Favreau is both an actor and a director, and although the movies he’s directed have gone downhill over time there could definitely be an upswing. Masterpiece Elf Great movie Iron Man Good movie Iron Man 2 Mediocre movie Cowboys […]
A comic strip that disappeared and came back
The comic strip Gil by Norm Feuti was brilliant — it was the successor to Calvin and Hobbes. It appeared in some newspapers for a while and it appeared online for a while. I mentioned it before here. It disappeared but is now back on a different website. You can find it here: Gil Comic […]