The Judge

Posted on December 19th, 2015 by Dave Switzer  |  No Comments »

{5/5} “Imagine a far away place, Hank, where people value your opinion. Now go there.” The Judge, released in 2014 Hank is a big city lawyer who returns to his home town for his mom’s funeral. He hasn’t had much contact with his family in the last couple of decades — his daughter hasn’t even […]

Pan’s Labyrinth

Posted on December 18th, 2015 by Dave Switzer  |  No Comments »

{4.5/5} “Once upon a time when the woods were young, they were home to creatures who were full of magic and wonder.” Pan’s Labyrinth, released in 2006 In Spain in 1944 Ofelia moves with her mother to the home of her mother’s new husband. Ofelia doesn’t particularly like him — he’s super serious and always […]

Authors you can’t go wrong with, part 7

Posted on December 13th, 2015 by Dave Switzer  |  No Comments »

This list continues from part 6. Peter S. Beagle Beagle also wrote the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “Sarek.” Masterpiece The Last Unicorn Good book A Fine and Private Place Christopher L. Bennett Bennett’s Star Trek books are always worth reading. Great books TOS: Ex Machina TNG: Greater than the Sum TITAN: Orion’s Hounds […]

Directors worth keeping an eye on, part 7

Posted on December 13th, 2015 by Dave Switzer  |  No Comments »

This list continues from part 6. Marc Forster Forster’s movies are all very different, but they’re worth watching whether they’re funny or tragic. Masterpieces Finding Neverland The Kite Runner Great movies Stranger Than Fiction World War Z Ron Fricke Fricke directs movies that have no plot or dialogue — they show you the world in […]

SF & fantasy collections & anthologies

Posted on December 13th, 2015 by Dave Switzer  |  No Comments »

Collections Best of the best I, Robot – Isaac Asimov Nightfall – Isaac Asimov Virtual Unrealities – Alfred Bester The Golden Apples of the Sun – Ray Bradbury Keeper of Dreams – Orson Scott Card Maps in a Mirror – Orson Scott Card Stories of Your Life and Others – Ted Chiang Expedition to Earth […]

All Flesh is Grass

Posted on December 12th, 2015 by Dave Switzer  |  No Comments »

{4.5/5} “Even in the face of potential danger, should we bar the way to them? For here was an alien life, the first alien life we’d met. Here was the chance for the human race, if it would take the chance, to gain new knowledge, to find new attitudes, to fill in the gaps of […]

Tie-in books

Posted on December 12th, 2015 by Dave Switzer  |  No Comments »

The tie-in books that I will continue to read come from the worlds of Star Trek, Babylon 5, and Battlestar Galactica. Ones I’ve tried in the past include Star Wars, The X-Files, and Indiana Jones. Novels Best of the best B5: The Passing of the Techno-Mages #1 — Casting Shadows — Jeanne Cavelos B5: The […]

Comic strips & collections

Posted on December 11th, 2015 by Dave Switzer  |  No Comments »

Here are my votes on newspaper and online comic strips, current ones and ones from the recent past. It’s possible that some of these strips used to be funnier than they are now. There are some comic strips that are supposed to be serious — I haven’t gotten into any of them (if there was […]

Fiction books

Posted on December 11th, 2015 by Dave Switzer  |  No Comments »

Here’s my list of best fiction books that aren’t science fiction or fantasy. Best of the best Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen The DaVinci Code – Dan Brown Shogun – James Clavell Tai-pan – James Clavell Gai-jin – James Clavell Noble House – James Clavell Whirlwind – James Clavell Generation X – Douglas Coupland […]

Comic books & graphic novels

Posted on December 11th, 2015 by Dave Switzer  |  No Comments »

I was never a big comic book person, but there are some particular series and authors I’ve followed. My comic book collection mostly consists of Star Trek comics from the 1990s. I have some more recent graphic novels — many from J. Michael Straczynski (his complete run on Spider-man) and Joss Whedon and his team […]