Updated it all!

I've been uploading them throughout yesterday and today, keeping the dates sensitive to when they were meant to be posted. Now with more pictures!

This'll be my last entry. Probably gonna delete it soon. Ciao!

The Mediascape: 2015, 2025, 2060

In five years, we can be assured the way knowledge is presented and controlled will be different than it is today. If we can assume China is forward thinking (and indeed, they are), then the future looks dim. Google has been castrated already, while beheadings happen elsewhere when people present knowledge that isn't deemed fruitful to a culture. But the media, specifically. With the downfall of wikileaks, and the recently proposed yet overturned (this year, anyway) COICA bill (which would effectively do to us what China has done to Google) it's a scary sort of reality that we will be hushed. What this means is more advertisements, less freedom of thought, less tolerance for our first amendment, and, frankly, a more archaic outlook (violently?) shoved down the throats' of a population already so stomped on. Five years from now, I envision at the very least Google becoming a bad thing.

In fifteen years, my better guess, assuming control does become more... controlled, I think the thing most subject to change will be the way things are advertised. With the advance of technology, and new ways to view a glowing rectangle, advertisements will be inescapable. An Onion skit said it pretty well with a hypothetical phone that whispers products and businesses into your ear while on the phone. Funny, but not at all ignorable. [link] The military, I believe, will make itself more of a presence, coaxing people to join in newer ways than getting kids and adults alike hooked on Call of Duty and Halo 3. So much money has already been invested in the development of weapons, armor, anything that will give 'us' an advantage over 'them.' The discussion in class today has shown us that if 'they' have any sort of leg up, we just bomb 'them.' New technologies to kill, new technologies to repress and subdue.

Fifty years from now, though I could never really say for sure, I see the world as a wildly different place. I imagine robots and humans existing together, I imagine people finding new ways to stay alive longer through gene manipulation [link] and robotic extensions, and who knows what else. I imagine advertisements being transmitted directly into our brains (or as Futurama postulates, directly into our brains). I think if religion as a whole hasn't collapsed, it will have surely taken over. I see eugenics on the cusp of being normal (or perhaps a fate like in Oryx and Crake, the media and corporations overthrowing society in favor of a 'better world'), I see repression, I see a clearer separation of the haves and the have-nots than ever before. I have no idea where I will be, what I will look like, what I will be doing, any of that. I almost feel like education will be something available to only the few, as with various cultures world-wide today, and I see entertainment being king (Mike Judge seemed to know this with his film Idiocracy, not to mention that it's something that always thrives during repressions, strangely). A best case scenario in fifty years, in my eyes, is that we will have colonized Mars and are given a second start on a planet that doesn't hate us (yet). Or maybe the predictions of the Georgia Guidestones will come to new light. Either way, I'm not too hopeful. But maybe we will find ways to be happy. That's all that is really important.

Bizarro Fiction

I ripped off the art style directly from a panel. This is a piece I don't think I should be allowed to stylize, being so awesome.

Jennie 2.5 is the tragically ironic anti-media, anti-government, anti-everything heroine of the story. She, not too unlike her author Brian Wood, is incredibly sick of the way the world is repressing, controlling, and subduing an otherwise unthinking, uncaring populous. Tagged throughout the book are pages meant to be xeroxed and reprinted, stuck on the sides of buildings, poles, garage doors, cars, anywhere and everywhere with messages that seem to justify an end to a means (usually, if not exclusively, an outcry for violence, as with a gun and suggestive, clever text). This is where Jennie 2.5 seems to differ from her writer in that she is absolutely no holds barred when it comes to being pushed to the edge of what she can take. Her message is timeless, as with every culture in the world having made some advancement through a means of anarchy, and though the ending appears ironic and pointless, Wood really wants you to pay attention to what's happened and what's happening. He must want her message to be taken lightly, or at least appear to be. He may himself be a peaceful person, but he is an angry writer. He knows that anger and a drive to stop being stomped on starts with a spark, and a recognizable image is all you need to put fear into your opponent's heart.

This is made most obvious when he basically compared the revolutionary Che Guevara to Jenny 2.5. He knows the reputation Che has even many years after his death, and I feel like this may be a subtle way at rousing the reader to understand and fight for similar ideologies. Even if all you do is wear a shirt with the man's head, you are at least aware that he was not a man who did not, could not, allow for the government to control him so long as there was breath in his body. So though Jenny does become a media star, which she seems to be okay with even though it's exactly what she was fighting against, she leaves out that there is such a thing as positive attention that can be drawn through the media. If Wood asks you to print his anarchist signs everywhere, than he probably wants someone to see them. He probably wants someone to get angry or afraid. He probably had hopes of seeing these things all around the local streets, people fighting for their rights, as well as a life where what you hear is no longer absolutely controlled. And as much as he wants you to wear a Che shirt, he probably wants you to know exactly what it stands for, and exactly why you should wear it. If nothing else at all, he wants you to at least realize what the world is doing to you, and that you should be fed up.

Literary Speculation

Because there was no real definition for the characters except for the eponymous 8 year-old child porn star, I have decided to draw a pigoon. This is based on someone else's design, but was fun to draw.

A story that takes until the very end to unfold completely, this is possibly my second favorite book in the list, right behind A Wild Sheep Chase. The pacing is such that one man, Snowman, is living in the present. He's introduced as a prophet to a bizarre group of perfectly beautiful people, and he says he may or may not be the last living human. But more importantly, he was once Jimmy. This is more-or-less Jimmy's story, with Oryx and Crake being very prominent people in his development. When all is said and done, this is a story about the dangers of corporations and the blindness of eugenics.

Jimmy's father is the first person in his life to show an abandonment towards Jimmy, favoring his bio-engineering over his son's happiness. As his company, as well as his rivals, continue to genetically modify animals for any number of reasons, or develop medicines and drugs for a mass, or do whatever they must do the change the world, Jimmy finds himself estranged and somewhat evasive of it all. He ends up in college and becomes sexually active, and sexually unsatisfied, though he does get women who take pity on him. He is increasingly more lost in a world he doesn't quite understand; a theme that is only ever expanded on from the get-go. While the world goes on to do things (such as effectively poisoning and eradicating itself), he is merely lucky in his escape of danger. His only moment of feeling whole, apart from the brief period in his life of having owned a pet rakunk, was the even briefer period where he was finally with the girl he's loved since his teenage years. He is the manifestation of ignorance and jealousy, with his saving grace being his love of the English language. Oryx is in a lot of ways the spirit of acceptance and thankfulness, and Crake is the heart of greed and power-thirst. In many ways, the ultimate representations of yin, yang, and wuji (the space between both, being Jimmy). With this broad concept of gray area, Jimmy makes a very appropriate candidate to look after the new world, though it's clear he resents it.

On the note of the world Snowman inhabits, I feel it's important to analyze the residents. They are in many ways themselves devoid of yin and yang rules, always adhering to a specific code, what is inherent in their programming. They have no need to learn anything, and without Jimmy's presence, they probably wouldn't. Though... his presence seems to create some sort of religious open-mindedness as when they start building an idol in his likeness (or perhaps it is just an innocent detail). If it's not, you might question if the people who survive by routine and schedule could be open to changes like organizations (and how ironic that their creator would shield them from just that). One must wonder if they really are a superior species if they're susceptible to, as they say, the same ol' shit we are. They could just be stupid, though they're not fooled by their sex drives, nor do they see the need for education beyond Jimmy. I suppose the entire book is one big question of ethics. When must we draw the line? Should we? And in fact, will we?

Diverse Position Science Fiction

Pictured is Akin, who looked quite cool on the cover of the second book in the Xenogenesis series. I have regrettably only read through Dawn.

This book starts up at the beginning of the end of man. Ambiguity quickly turns into fear as our protagonist Lilith learns she has been asleep for many, many years, and that the fall of man is old news. It chronicles her steady struggle with acceptance of the life she's been thrusted into, including the decisions she is ultimately not allowed to make, as well as the facts she's not supposed to know (in particular, the briefly evaded subjects of where all the books of the Earth went), despite the promise of being a non-biased group of creatures. She is modified through diet and slight experimentation to live longer and healthier, much to her chagrin. She is treated as she recalls humans having treated animals, though there is some obvious respect given to her by the Oankali, she is being tested for her survival and sexual aptitude through a majority of the pages. While she is initially defiant, she soon becomes reluctant and, eventually, accepting of her fate.

Of course, one of the most interesting themes in this book is the third sex present in the alien race; a genderless role by the name ooloi. Their general purpose is to gather DNA and expand the race, making it perhaps more perfect, perhaps just less the same. It is what their species must do, just as humans have the instinctual drive to reproduce, a fact the aliens take advantage of in their own way. The ooloi gender is one without bias, and represents the potentials of genetic evolution, even for humans, who do eventually sacrifice their own unique encoding in favor of long-term survival, something that isn't surprising by the time it becomes the only option. The hint here is that we are not done evolving, that we are still wrapped up in hating and bombing one another, and that we condition the environment to suit us. When the Oankali come, the structure of human existence is quickly changed, having the survivors live in the new environment around them, and opening up the idea of genetic growth once again, just as animals must change to survive in new environments. Once this happens, Butler has given her interpretation of what potential we might have. Her big message seems to be that if we want to continue evolving, we must seize war and development and instead let nature be our guiding factor. She seems equally interested in the development of proper relationships with those around us; the first time she meets a human in this new world, it's not terribly unlike how she felt when she first met the new alien race, though the human was legitimately more of a threat. This is perhaps a commentary on our naivety in fearing the unknown, and how this is holding us back from advancement. She is told to embrace, and yet she must ease into it. If she didn't, I suppose there wouldn't be a second book. Or a trilogy of books.

Cyberpunk

I was pretty excited when this book popped up on the reading list. It's one my father must have loved reading, as I've heard him mention the name Hiro Protagonist a number of times when I was younger (knowing I enjoyed puns and himself being a science fiction nerd). Reading through this, more than anything, I think I enjoyed the vulgar edge to the otherwise very intelligent writing. The way this story was told was really unlike any other writing I've ever gone through. Everything was so unbelievably chaotic. There was a surprising depth of detail and history relating to this bizarre drug, as well as in the very bizarre realities Hiro exists in. While it's not a particularly believable future (not the physical world, anyway) much of this text is rooted in early pretenses about where the digital age would take us, when it was written ~18 years ago. Years later, we do have things either coincidentally like this world, or perhaps (more likely) inspired by this tale. I was immediately reminded of that odd game Second Life that emerged a few years ago, and I have a feeling that if anyone could develop a drug that affected people both in the internet (or metaverse) and in the physical world, that people would probably take it. We are brinking on this concept, though I'm sure there won't be as much interesting history once we're finally there.

In many ways, through the depth of the text, this is spiritually related to Babel-17, in that the Snow Crash virus is related to Sumerian speech, the binary language of the world, wherein both it and this virus are able to spread and infect in a very primitive, all-purpose sort of way. As with Babel-17, this language is itself a virus. It all goes back to code, to binary. In his writing this concept, Stephenson pays very close attention to this place he's created, developing an important hierarchy within the game itself, as well as a functioning tangential narrative for each and every character. Hiro follows a very strange, compelling life in the metaverse as the world's greatest sword fighter, something that greatly assisted his character in overcoming the Snow Crash virus. His concepts of being who you want to be, look as you want to look, and otherwise do what you want to do on the internet have likely given light to the way the internet itself has developed (I read that this book was in fact very influential) and is a likely indicator at what is sure to come. He questions the importance of the real world through out most of this novel, ignoring it almost completely and blurring the lines between the real, the perceived, the necessary, and most importantly, the future. Will we be communicating in this digital place while the world around us falls apart as it's hinted to have done in this book? Will we even care? In all curiousness, do we even care now? As people fall victim to the online games in so many ways including major addictions, many lives have already been changed dramatically. I can bet Stephenson is not surprised one bit.

Narratives from the Multiverse

My read through for this book left me just a bit confused. It was worth a bit of research to get some form of clarification as to what exactly had been going on, and I like to think I've finally picked up on the bulk of this text. Being an older book, it is based on a dated (and generally refuted) theory about how language affects not only the way a person thinks, but also how a person behaves. The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, which was the basis for most of this piece of science fiction, had at one point merit enough to inspire what would happen to Rydra Wong. Without really realizing it, she had been learning an ancient language, the first language, I think we're told, that has basically been booby-trapped and used as a weapon to control (or at least manipulate) the interpreter. In this case, we're in the midst of war-plant sabotage, and Rydra, being a brilliant linguist and all, has been asked to decipher this cryptic code. The more she discovers about it, the more she finds herself enveloped in it, indeed manipulated by it. She accepts this with some surprise, still marveling at the brilliance of the language, which has opened up the world so much wider to her, and Butcher. It ends on a fairly positive note. The varying critiques of this book suggest a second read, which I think I will have to do when I get a little more time. Over the break.

The book gets into other elements that would have otherwise just been thrown in, but fit nicely. There are several characters who have gone through body manipulations, adding robot parts, or gaining additional ligaments, or whatever their hearts may desire; in some cases, people might be modified so that they appear near reptilian (isn't there a guy these days who has gotten many tattoos and his tongue split to achieve this effect? I'm pretty sure there is) or even dragon-esque. Nails, tails, scales, and the like. In some ways, these are just ways of expression, like language is. Sending a message. The other large plot element is that there is a huge galactic war going on, and that the bad guys are never really introduced properly (to my better memory). It's a novelette that is very heavily focused on language and construction, and I'm sure the writer was himself a linguist. He points out the absolute importance of how we perceive, how we express, and how we interact based on just a single language. There are many universal truths that can be explored through his interpretation of a fictional language, most notably that, while it IS a theory that has been tested and refuted time and again, there is some important differences in the fundamentals of a person's thoughts depending on the language that has affected them. In these instances that happen in the book, it is up the reader to decipher how Rydra and Butcher are different in their knowing this language, as it's something they can't recognize themselves. We are asked, therefore, to be more aware of ourselves, and of our surrounders, and to be critical of language in every sense of the word possible. Not bad for a short story, not bad at all.

The Final Frontier

For the record, and to start, not a quick drawing. But worthwhile!

Though the previous weeks' read had elements of science in it, this book is the first real voyage into the world of science fiction for the class (well, unless you count Frankenstein, I guess). As far as sci-fi is concerned, this one is really incredibly rich in speculation. He is, at the beginning of the story, just a man (more-or-less), like anyone else. Through a set of circumstances, he is abandoned and left for dead. The audience is able to relate to his loneliness, his developing hatred, and eventually, his potential for revenge. As he wanders, so too do we, in a universe with potential to make us both happy and miserable, his life is victimized by circumstance more often than not. Throughout much of the book, he seems to be encouraged to be cruel, angry, and otherwise primal. He seems for some while to be the darkest part of our souls, the beast waiting to get out and take what it wants, how ever it wants to. Until, of course, he manages to meet himself quite literally.

The book introduces a very cool concept called jaunting, where Gully and a very few others can manage to travel at first through space, and then time. I feel like this is a vessel Bester uses in order to have us try to confront ourselves in a less literal way. Our lead acts with anger because he has been wronged. He was wronged because he couldn't be trusted by strangers, though he was clearly in need of help after his ship had crashed. Negative feelings and emotions topple one another over and over, person by person, creating a disdain that would otherwise be insurmountable, were it not for his new unique and rather profound vantage point. In this simple manner, though circling a wild plot the entire time, he gains some sentience that changes his perception entirely. He reveals in us our own malice, and exemplifies its inconquerableness, making it painfully obvious that we're either going to have to accept one another or kill ourselves over preconceptions, using a powerful explosive that, while this was written in the 50's mind you, rings a dark bell even for the modern day. The beauty of this book is in the ending, where all speculation is cut short and what is revealed as the solution is an uncolonized planet that can only be lived on if you believe in peace and harmony, (as is the secret of his power to move through time and space) the ultimatum of which being a fate beyond the control of any one person. Thinking about this a little more, it is perhaps the author's way of begging us to step back, and to colonize not anew, but differently. To face our demons with bravado, and our enemies with warmth. Which... would make sense, I guess. In that respect, the audience (reader) could 'jaunt' with ease, and could find harmony.

It's a story of revenge turned into a story about acceptance. As flowery as that must sound, it was a fantastically entertaining read through. Good show.

Emerging Directions in Traditional Fantasy

Another long, long read! Though I recognize the world building is actually not too different from the Golden Compass, what with the bizarre interpretations of Breath (not too unlike Dust, eh?) and otherwise the use of kingdoms and magic, this read was more enjoyable (to me). Maybe because it was more simple, if only slightly. Or maybe because I've played World of Warcraft and enjoyed it, if only for a couple weeks. As discussed in class, this is basically how any fantasy video game would function if written into a book. There is a heavy emphasis on this collectible substance, the good guys, the bad guys, and if you're into things like World of Warcraft, there are a number of story lines to choose from too, though the cover of the book is of one of the two princess sisters (I can't decide which), it is a read that pays attention to at least four people in detail. It's an intricate book that really has a lot going on, but I suppose its primary focus is on Breath, what is gained from it, and why it should be reviled. On top of this, there is a lot of cheap humor, juxtaposed with a few great lines.

Arguably the most interesting thing to me about this book (apart from the hilarious and intriguing Lightsong) is the relationship the two sisters, Vivenna and Siri, share. Their places are switched close to the beginning of the novel when Vivenna's long-planned marriage to a God is unexpectedly passed on to the younger Siri. In this way, before they are really even truly established, their roles are reversed. This is more-or-less a common theme in the world of Warbreaker, the manner in which many of the characters develop, and the numerous red herrings used to allow for these changes to happen. Perhaps these inconsistencies are indicative of our inherent hypocrisies, or of our maturity (whatever maturity means to you). In some cases, it might be acting tough in order to save those you care about. In others, perhaps it is pretending to be nice in order to rule the world. All just typical themes in this book. But continuing on my earlier musing, I think it's interesting how the two princesses always seem to be opposing one another, one more adept with magic, the other still learning, one rather tomboyish, the other somewhat timid. Of course, given the nature of this book, I could be referring to either of them with those descriptions. Hence, why it's an interesting relationship they share.

Religion in this book plays a more pivotal role than it does in the Golden Compass, which focused more on the corruption of the church than any God/s. Gods and kings in Warbreaker work on a level only imagined by, say, the Egyptians. Also as in the polytheistic peoples' beliefs, Warbreaker manages to make zombies (though not mummies) a believable theme. Among other things, like lesser gods, mysterious male leads, and characters with (questionably) questionable intent, it's got a lot going on. To relate this book to social politics is difficult, but it was a very enjoyable, twisty, and pseudo-scientifically fascinating read.

Mythic Fiction and Contemporary Urban Fantasy

How can you not love Neil Gaiman? Before this it had been Good Omens, Sandman (courtesy of your Comic Literature class), and Coraline for me. I was more than happy to tack on another book from his mind to my list of have-reads. My first real impression of this book was how it really read like an epic myth. I'm reminded of the stories I know through Greek and Roman mythology, in such these beings, these gods, caught up in the minutiae of the every day, effecting the people around them in great ways. Though I feel this sort of theme is a bit subdued, I also recognize typical mythical elements. (For example, Fat Charlie just accepting that he now has a brother named Spider, a sort of matter-of-fact transition that might be found in, say, The Oddysey. More pertinent to my point, the interesting magic behind the animated clay spiders or the bizarre action of having one's tongue stolen - far from typical fantasy.) Yet they are not Greek or Roman. They are African myths. Or so it's implied; I can't really say I know any genuine African mythology. The gods being named after animals is the first clue to divert from typified thought surrounding myth.

As a book, it's classically Gaiman. (Whatever that means.) Filled with humor, strange triumph with all the depressing story to finally build up to it, and sublimely bizarre and original, this is not typical of any other authors I can name immediately. Like any of his other work, it's hard to put down, and it's surprisingly easy, pleasurable reading. As diverse as his characters and plots are, he has a real penchant for keeping things simple. I think that must be a big appeal in his work. To that end, it's interesting to compare him to writers like Tolkien; as stated in class he refuses to know the formula to a typical Heroic Journey, so the outcomes and the journeys of his own characters feel significantly less forced, less implied. There must be a lot of underlying appeal to his work. He is hugely successful for a reason.

The Novel of Spirtual Education

The Golden Compass is at a glance a re-examination of world building. Taking our preconceptions and twisting them (Dust, dæmons, airships, and "Gyptians," not at all how we see them). There are kingdoms, a magical compass, and mighty armored bears. But upon closer inspection, we can deduce that it's really just a book about a horrible little girl who begins her journey by being selfish and lying about her life. Of course, as her character develops, she becomes more wholesome, but It never really settled with me. This is a book, to me, that critiques the complicated world in which we live, and postulates how we must all put up our own battles to conquer the harsh realities of life in our own ways. This is made obvious by the incredibly dense plot that is somewhat hard to follow (as with how we begrudgingly come to discover the true nature of our own world) that is combined with characters who must overcome their own trials and tribulations in order to allow for their lives to go on. My favorite example of this is Iorek, who has inadvertently traded what is most important to him for the temptations of alcohol, and must essentially overcome addiction (in a way) to function like a normal... armored bear prince... would. More so, Lyra constantly struggles with who she should trust, what she should do, and most importantly, who she actually is. In that respect, as unlovable as she is, she represents what is most important in our own lives: ourselves. Indeed, she is not only the most important person in her mind (for a long while, if not for the entire book) but she is also literally one of the most important people in the world various worlds. Important to note also is the notion of dæmons, as well as the armor worn by creatures like Iorek, which as stated represent our souls, our drives. Those without this drive suffer and die, while those who grow with it will watch it grow with them (settling down at the same rate humans do). It's an interesting principle, and one can assume Pullman is a huge believer in choosing one's own fate. These creatures can be physically seen, manipulated, and turn the idea that we have no say in the world on it's head.

This was a long read. I'm not going to pretend that I didn't end up just glazing over parts of it, and so I have no problem saying it was too girthy. It establishes this fantastic, bizarre universe very quickly and never really drops pace. It has lore and science, neither of which we would be familiar with. When relating it to our own world, you have to take what you know and ignore it, focusing on what you don't know in order to relate. There is a lot to be learned about ourselves in reading this. I just wish I had been more serious about analyzing it, while slogging through it instead. I'll be sure to watch the movie one of these days I guess.

The Heroic Journey

I read The Hobbit as a kid. I wasn't really psyched to pick it up again as an adult. I remember it being boring and drawn out, especially in the beginning. In fact, I distinctly remember asking myself why the tea party in the beginning took so long to end. Am I contesting that Tolkien isn't a fantastic writer? Not at all. He's just more interested in this book than I ever could be. Upon a more recent inspection I discover that this book is, in fact, pretty boring. Not as bad as I remember (the few fight scenes are pretty cool, and I forgot how awesome the ring itself was as a side-story, along with Smeeeeagol/Gollum) but, I attest, still pretty boring. However, this is the first genuine piece of fantasy that a lot of readers in the world become familiar with for good reason. He has established the living habits of a number of different races and species, and has created through the text a subtle nuance that ties everything together in one way or another. A staple, if you will. His world is absolutely believable, and as far as being a precursor to what is perhaps the greatest fantasy trilogy of all time (or so I'm told, but can believe), I would say it sets the mood fantastically.

Having seen the Lord of the Rings (not read, yet) I feel like this book almost doesn't exist in the same realm. It lacked the epic-ness of it's predecessors, in a lot of ways, but it had to I suppose. After all, it's a bunch of old bearded men traveling together. That can't be too much more exciting than it sounds, can it? (It actually is more exciting than that.) Bilbo registers as almost forgettable compared to Frodo and Gandalf and... some of the other characters. I guess a lot of them are forgettable. But his descriptions of the world, of the cultures, of the languages and settings, that's where the magic in his work lies. That is what made it worth finishing a second time. Quite probably, a last time.

Aside: In this illustration, I used the original pallet swatches for the animated Hobbit movie. Really pretty bad.

J-Horror: Japanese Narratives of the Supernatural

I would like to think I'm already fairly familiar with J-Horror. I've seen The Ring (which makes me an expert, right?) and have read the full body of works by Junji Ito (not at all for the faint of heart, but Uzumaki and Gyo are nice places to start if you haven't read either) among other authors and movies. I had read Kafka on the Rocks by Haruki Murakami back when I was pretty obsessed with anything that had anything to do with Franz Kafka (which, as it turns out, had nothing to do with him) but A Wild Sheep Chase was new to me. On a relative note, it reminded me quite a lot of Franz Kafka's work, in the sense that it dealt with a character who has no identity who becomes more and more estranged with the strange, initially awful world around him. But it just becomes so surreal that it breaches that realm entirely and just becomes... nigh-esoteric. Or, perhaps it wasn't at all. But if the story wasn't arbitrary, then I feel like I missed something important (probably because I'm not, nor have I ever been, Japanese).

All the same, this I felt was in interesting choice to have listed as the primary piece of reading for J-Horror week, since it didn't at all read as a traditional horror novel, withholding many elements visible in the previous readings. It feels maybe more like a fantasy novel, but I suppose it lurches between the two realms. Tacking on in that fashion, and as the title implies, it's something of a mystery novel too. On the other hand, it was rather dark and... rather morose in a number of ways, so I suppose it must qualify as horror. The writing style reminded me a lot of his Kafka on the Shore piece, so I'm glad I had that inadvertant introduction. It beckons me to read whatever else has been translated, as my Japanese is about as good as my Klingon. I've never watched Star Trek. As an aside, I really loved the humor in this and his other novel. Dry, cheap laughs. My favorite.

UPDATE: Sorry I missed class this day. I was genuinely too ill to stick around. I feel like I must have missed something wildly interesting and sincerely wish I could have made it.

Vampires

I've never been a HUGE fan of Anne Rice. Until now, I assumed I hadn't been missing out on anything in particular (after all, the hype associated with her work is comparable to a certain other contemporary vampire fiction writer whose infame precedes her, and whose name isn't worth actually writing out). But boy-oh-boy, I was wrong. I can understand why people get so caught up in her works. Religious spectacles aside, Rice is a phenomenal writer who develops genuinely interesting characters with genuinely interesting stories. Even the outline for the rather lengthy first book in this series, 'a vampire is being interviewed,' is a wonderfully unique approach to a piece of fiction (and that theme is expanded upon rather uniquely, itself). I love that she plays up the dynamic between the Loius and Lestat, giving them an almost uncomfortably developing relationship that saws back and fourth, and the involvement of what I picture as a surrogate child (who is burned alive! in a wonderfully edgy and probably controversial move on her part).

I wonder, reading this, what sorts of deviations were made from original vampiric myths (a quick Google search yields many results about origins and myths, so I really couldn't say without more research), but I would love to know. My proposing this stems from the earlier Frankenstein reading, and having seen before hand how that had grown and mutated. At what point did vampires go from being ugly and sort of bat-like, unable to enter doors without permission, to being sexually confused (clearly, in this book) beautiful objects of desire, to glittery unicorn wannabes with psychic/unique powers? (Don't get me started.) I'm thankful she didn't decide to include were-wolves in this. But I digress. Rice resigns the writing with a cliffhanger, which entices me to go on to her next piece of work, but I shan't. Not until I've got a bit more free time, I don't think. All the same, I do see I have been missing out on a fantastic body of work that has earned its' keep in the world of fictional vampire writings (as opposed, as I'm sure you're very familiar with, to non-fictional vampire writings). Haha.

The vampire pictured is neither of the protagonists. I felt like drawing someone cooler than Brad Pitt or Tom Cruise. Someone like Count Orlok. So yeah.

Monsters and Zombies

I'm just going to start with this: Ho-ly-shit. What a great read. This is the first zombie-themed writing I've really immersed myself in (I did, however, enjoy Max Brooks' Zombie Survival Guide, and I'm sure I'd love his World War Z book too) but this blog-style book really drew me in, particularly with its' leading zombie character, Gary. Yes, it was simple writing, yes it was almost (almost!) predictable in many ways, but I loved the tension and the fear Wellington manages to bring to his writing. He has an interesting attention to detail, and the incorporation of the female Somalian soldiers and the almost out of place mummy theme was interesting (Africa certainly crawls into America one way or another). Disregarding that, I felt the ending was as appropriate as possible, the looming onset of zombie-dom taking over our until recently quite humble protagonist, while he scripts his tragic memiors to a captive audience (at least, I was captivated). Beautiful. I wonder if all zombie novels are written to be as epic as possible (it makes sense, certainly) but I know a lot of them just... fall short? Pride and Prejudice and Zombies seemed gimmickey and I really hate every zombie movie I've ever seen, aside from Shaun of the Dead and Zombieland. Though, honestly, I don't know how many zombie fliques I've seen in the grand scheme of things.

I would love to know how the next two books pan out. Dekalb and all the characters of real interest are dead (or undead), and I'm almost itching to read what comprises a sequel. So few people are left in the world as it stands, it would be interesting to see how the story develops. But at the rate of reading a book a week in this class, I'm probably going to just stick those on the back-burner for now. This weeks reading felt more like a horror to me than did last week's Frankenstein, though the content is much the same, in that the 'bad guys' are either reanimated or scientists. Or, in the one case, both. I'm still not quite over Gary's general awesomeness.

Classic Goth

I had seen Young Frankenstein many years back, and my first question after reading this piece is, "where the Hell did Igor even come from?" Also, why is Dr. Frankenstein in college as a student and not an old, crazy scientist? Anyway. I suppose before I read Mary Shelley's version, I just assumed the story to be... timeless? What a concept; man makes monster. My better guess has always been that it had always existed in concept. This was a beautiful book (or, rather, ebook for me), and I thought the development of humanity was entirely interesting, particularly since it isn't as played up in various spin-offs. The use of the captain as a framing device was also novel to me. Clearly the story has been so warped and contorted from telling to telling that it has somewhere along the lines lost all semblance of what it once was. I am glad, to say the least, that I did read the first telling.

It's interesting how the Frankenstein monster (not "Frankenstein," contrary to popular belief) was devoid of description. He is larger than the average man and indeed a composite of varying human parts, but no stitches across the forehead, no bolts in the neck, no flat head, no none of that. It's sort of just left up to the imagination. Also interesting is that the monster isn't a bumbling beast, but rather quite sentient, rivaling the good doctor (hardly, haha) in philosophical matters. From a piece of philosophy and conjecture, it becomes a piece about revenge and significance, and from there it resumes philosophy with a macabre and dread that can only be represented in horror works. However. This piece doesn't really otherwise read as a horror. It's a piece that really makes the reader think. It's not something filled with dread, gore, and the like (... for the most part!), but rather, focuses on the story itself. It's more of a piece of art than it is the stupidity of what I know as horror (I flat-out refuse to watch the new Piranha 3D movie) or the silliness I've known as Frankenstein (Mel Brooks only, of course). All-in-all, an interesting foray into the world of what is to come.