Errors-To: ecto-owner@ns1.rutgers.edu Reply-To: ecto@ns1.rutgers.edu Sender: ecto@ns1.rutgers.edu From: ecto@ns1.rutgers.edu To: ecto-request@ns1.rutgers.edu Bcc: ecto-digest-outbound@ns1.rutgers.edu Subject: ecto #829 ecto, Number 829 Wednesday, 27 October 1993 Today's Topics: *-----------------* She really isn't The dog ate my mail file 10,000 Maniacs Unplugged elspeth TANJ Blackadder I Canadian Orders Diamanda, Happy, etc. Nettwerk Mercedes Lackey Stephen R. Donaldson... KTB & Diamanda 2 Re: Cowboys can't fly Elspeth and Kate boxes.. Re: Stephen R. Donaldson... (Phil stuffs up) Books 'R' Us (Was: Re: Stephen R. Donaldson) present tense books Neil Diamond tickets Val in Chitown ======================================================================== Date: Tue, 26 Oct 1993 13:09:30 CDT From: Subject: She really isn't WRT the pointer in these pages to Gillian Garr's _She's A Rebel_: I have it, and indeed, like it or lump it, it doesn't discuss Happy. Mitch ======================================================================== Date: Tue, 26 Oct 1993 23:24:42 -0400 (EDT) From: Suspended In Duct Tape Subject: The dog ate my mail file Hi! Due to sheer technical stupidity on my part, I lost all the mail I had saved to answer from Friday, 10/22 to last night, 10/25/93. This means that you are all saved another Kolausal Klaus from me, but it also means that I've lost quite a few personal messages I needed to reply to. Since most of those were from fellow Ectophiles, I'm posting this notice here: If you sent me mail between late Thursday and late Monday night, please resend it! (Klaus, Uli, kelly... who else?) Today's mail made it safe and sound to my hard drive, so it's not a total loss. Just a pain in the posterior. Sorry to take up your time with this... in the future, I will remember how to properly name files and double-check them before deleting. :} Meredith meth@delphi.com ======================================================================== Date: Tue, 26 Oct 1993 23:36:39 -0400 (EDT) From: Suspended In Duct Tape Subject: 10,000 Maniacs Unplugged Hi! I picked up the 10,000 Maniacs Unplugged album today- the final release from them. It contains everything from the 60-minute version of the eMpTV special except the David Byrne material, dunno why (maybe because it was already released on the "Few And Far Between" single- who knows?)_. I really like it. The acoustic versions range from quite faithful to the original to a fresh new perspective, and Natalie's interpretation of Patti Smith's "Because The Night" is great, even if it's really no different from the original at all. (It also doesn't sound very unplugged, but that may be just me.) That's incidentally the single from the album, and it should go far- a good version of a great song. I highly recommend this album to any die-hard Maniacs fan, and am of the opinion that the lukewarm Maniacs appreciator would be into it, too. It's also on sale at Strawberries this week... :) Checking the liner notes, one finds some interesting names: Amanda Kramer on piano and pump organ, Jerry Marotta on percussion, Morgan Fichter and Mary Ramsey on strings and backing vocals... and at the end of the liner notes "Special Thanks" section, "-and everyone at Bearsville Studios". Hmmm... Pick it up, folks. It's worth the cash. Meredith meth@delphi.com P.S. I also got the new Patty Larkin CD, but haven't had time to listen to it yet. ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 27 Oct 93 01:39:39 EDT From: mojzes@monet.rutgers.edu (brni) Subject: elspeth hi there, i've never read mercedes lackey (or however that's spelled), but this last post of brian's sparked my interest. >And her latest series, which I am reading now, started with Winds Of Chance >and the followup is Winds Of Fate. They star Elspeth, the granddaughter(?) >of Kerowyn, the lead character in the 'Arrows' series. > well, you see, its like this: i've been having an affair with elspeth for the past few years. well, actually, my d&d character has been having an affair with a character named elspeth, who, in our world is actually a house who is actually a dream (a la sandman), and, as part of the dreaming she is able to assume different forms. and she seems to have taken a liking to my character. i never realized that kim (the dungeon master (mistress?)) took the name from somewhere, but now i'm curious; could someone tell me what elspeth is like in the books? i suppose i'll have to get one of these now. hmmm. i guess considering that my character's name was taken from a book, it's only fair... >br!an brni mojzes@monet.vill.edu ======================================================================== Subject: TANJ Date: Wed, 27 Oct 93 02:02:23 -0700 From: johnz@eaglet.rain.com ...means There Ain't No Justice, if I'm remembering my Niven (?, or somebody) correctly. I'm sitting here having just finished a marathon session of digest reading (due to a bizarre work schedule, eaglet being down, and, well, the voluminous output of a certain fuzzy blue list I'm on :), feeling disgusted and dejected reading these incredible posts about Dead Can Dance concerts! They aren't coming any closer to Portland than Seattle, and what with the new job there's no way I could take the time off for the trip, and I'm just generally whining and feeling sorry for myself. There, I feel better now. :} Keep those concert descriptions coming! JohnZ, the envious ======================================================================== From: "Greg O'Rear" Date: Wed, 27 Oct 1993 08:13:17 EST5EDT Subject: Blackadder I Aeren Hawkins wrote: > Black, his gloves of finest silk, black his codpiece made of metal... Hazy early morning memory (at work without the tape) causes me to write: The sound of hoofbeats cross the glade Good sir, wake up your son and daughter ??? ...you'll end up two feet shorter Blackadder, Blackadder, he rides a pitch black steed Blackadder, Blackadder, he's very bad indeed Black, his gloves of finest mole Black, his codpiece made of metal His heart is blacker than a vole His pot is blacker than his kettle Blackadder, Blackadder, with many a cunning plan Blackadder, Blackadder, you horrid little man! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Greg O'Rear E-mail: orear@ise.ufl.edu Industrial and Systems Engineering Department Phone: (904) 392-3389 University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida FAX: (904) 392-3537 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 27 Oct 1993 08:13:42 -0700 (PDT) From: Neile Graham Subject: Canadian Orders Glad that people have managed to get the KaTebox from A&B Sound. It is a great price, but it is the Canadian box. The discs are mostly SuperSaver discs from EMI Canada. There aren't any stickers, but there is a lovely little book of pictures, and of course the two This Woman's Work discs are there. The sound seems very good to me, but I'm not an expert. And actually, I'm keeping my original discs because a couple of them are UK imports and all have the lyrics, etc. Another thing that A&B Sound have in their store is Sarah's _Fumbling Towards Ecstasy_ for $11.88 Canadian (about $8.32 US). Definitely a good deal and you don't have to wait until January. They also had a copy of Dalbello's _She_ in their Victoria store, which I would also recommend for any ectophile. I asked them though, for Jane's _The Walking_ which wasn't in their database. I have a copy, but was hoping to get one for a friend. Kath reports that their Phone # is 1-800-663-0596 Remember there's also the CD Bar from Toronto, which is 1-800-663-1616. I don't know what the prices there are, though, but they do handle US orders as well. Speaking of This Woman's Work, though, I had no idea quite how wonderful some of those songs were going to be. Stunned by how beautiful "My Langan Love" and "The Handsome Cabin Boy" are. I love traditional songs anyway, and KaTe does wonderful versions. --Neile neile@u.washington.edu ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 27 Oct 93 08:48:37 PDT From: hanson@ast.saic.com (Jeffrey Hanson) Subject: Diamanda, Happy, etc. Hi all! Well, I've finally been initiated. Neal loaned me a Happy Rhodes tape after the Diamanda Galas concert last night, and I finally got to hear her (and Diamanda for that matter). So far, I am definitely impressed with Happy. Yes, I hear the Kate Bush similarities, but overall, if I had to say she reminded me of someone, I would say she sounds more like Julieanne Regan (is that the right name?) of All About Eve. Unfortunately, I'm not real sure what I'm listening to, but I think its Ecto. Anyway, I love it and will soon be placing an order to Aural Gratification. As for Diamanda--definitely unique. Hopefully I wont be repeating Neal's review of the covncert. It was not the Plague Mass performance, but the Judgement Day performance. She came out and did one 15-minute performance of There are No More Tickets to the Funeral and then had a half hour intermission. After that fifteen minutes, my ears were relishing any moments of silence. I also found that I had hardly breathed in the last fifteen minutes. Definitely one of the most intense performances I've seen. And not exactly an enjoyable one. Done acapalla, standing half naked, dipped in oil, and illuminated by some incredible lighting effects, the woman has an incredible voice and can do incredible things with it. However, not all of them are pleasant. I can certainly not imagine listening to an album of something like that. However, after the first 15 minute thing, the rest of the show was much more listenable. She came out dressed in black, her hair tucked up in a bun, and looked like your typical symphony pianist (actually she looked like Lilith from Cheers). All were sung by her alone with her grand piano. She did a couple of original songs, but most were covers of old blues songs. She has an amazing high range, but also has an incredible blues voice, singing those low notes like I would imagine a Negro slave in pre-Civil War times would. At times her voice reminded one of Aretha Franklin, or Tina Turner, at other times it was like nothing else I've heard. She is also a very accomplished pianist, but tends to play the left/lower side of the keyboard more than any other pianist I've heard. After a while, the songs became somewhat monotonous. As I said, she has a very wide range, but not a very full range. She went from low to high, skipping most of the middle range. Also, most of the songs were very similar in structure. Some of the sound effects were overdone, particularly the reverb. On one song they also continued to "drop" notes (kind of like the sound on a video game when aliens fall out of the sky). At first this was very fitting and unique, but by the end of the song the effect was worn out. She has a unique enough voice that I felt the sound effects detracted from the performance, rather than enhanced it. Her conversation with the audience was minimal, stopping only to dedicate songs, or to announce "the obligatory crowd pleaser--a song popularized by Diana Ross." (Although I can't remember the name of it for the life of me. It certainly didn't sound like Diana Ross!) For me, the highlights of the show were Gloomy Sunday and See That My Grave is Kept Clean. The encore production of Meet Me at the Dark End of the Street was also excellent. The lighting throughout the second half of the show was minimal. I found my eyes aching for something to bright and colorful to look it. Overall, I would definitely recommend it. It is a most unique concert experience, those not an entirely pleasurable one. I admire her for her concern and compassion and the AIDS crisis, by I can't imagine a living your life so focused on death. If they ever found a cure for AIDS, I think she would have to find another cause to support (such as mental illness which she is also concerned with), because I can't imagine her singing a happy song. (No, not a Happy Rhodes song--though that either!) Well, enough rambling. Now I just have to start saving my money for all the great CDS coming out next week--Alison Moyet, Kate Bush, Cocteau Twins, plus all of Happy's, Heidi Berry's, etc, etc, etc. Take care all! Jeff Hanson ======================================================================== From: Tim Cook Date: Wed, 27 Oct 93 16:34:17 GMT Subject: Nettwerk I got the info from Nettwerk. They WILL ship to the UK and they DO accept Visa/Mastercard. I've already put my order in for "Fumbling Towards Ecstasy" - I can't wait!! tim ======================================================================== Date: Tue, 26 Oct 93 22:35:14 CST From: kiri Subject: Mercedes Lackey I have to say i'm not a big Mercedes Lackey fan. Something about her writing irritates the hell out of me. I can't quite pin-point the reason why, but the same feeling occurs with a couple other writers as well. It's something about the terseness of the writing, it's too simplistic or something. I guess that it's just a pet-peeve of mine. As for using gay figures in her writing, I applaude her. Alas there are better writers though, Marion Zimmer Bradley pops into mind. And while we are on the author track I just finished the third book of the Stephen R. Donaldson's Gap Series...A dark and Hungry God arises. Great stuff! This man is brilliant, i have never been disappointed with one of his books ever since I started the Thomas Covenant series when I was a wee babe of 8. Highly recommend! :) kiri whose opinions are only her own >) ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 27 Oct 1993 13:11:33 -0500 (EST) From: SANDOVAL@stsci.edu Subject: Stephen R. Donaldson... kiri says... >And while we are on the author track I just finished the third book >of the Stephen R. Donaldson's Gap Series...A dark and Hungry God arises. >Great stuff! This man is brilliant, i have never been disappointed >with one of his books ever since I started the Thomas Covenant series >when I was a wee babe of 8. Highly recommend! :) I second the recommendation for all of Donaldson's writings. I've enjoyed every book that he's written. The themes are very complex, and the characters are just a bit off-center. Any idea when the next Gap book is coming out? Take care, John ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 27 Oct 93 10:36:14 PDT From: Neal R. Copperman Subject: KTB & Diamanda 2 >>>Is it the Canadian box? >>> >>There *is* no Canadian box. There were two versions released: England and >>Japan. > >Glad that people have managed to get the KaTebox from A&B Sound. It is a >great price, but it is the Canadian box. The discs are mostly SuperSaver >discs from EMI Canada. Hmm, any comments/clarifications for this. Would the EMI Canada SuperSaver discs be the same "lesser" quality as the EMI America discs I already have, so that now I have multiple mediocre Kate's (that's sound quality, not music quality). Well, at least I'll have TWW discs, FINALLY. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jeff Hanson beat me to the punch, but I'll share some thoughts about the Diamanda show anyway - Wheeeeeew. Hands down the first fifteen minutes of that show was the most visceral concert experience I have ever had. We definitely needed an intermission then. She sounded like 1) A cat being sacrificed in an alley (sorry cat lovers ) 2) Sheila Chandra auditioning for the exorcist 3) SOmeone trying desperately to sing with a burst lung or a slit throat. 4) Karen Finley ranting My ear drums and chest cavity were vibrating throughout the song. She looked possessed, half naked and covered in blood, or glowing silver (a la Terminator 2) or just a shadow with dark shining eyes. Sometimes it was almost painful for me to breath as her tortured breathing echoed through the room. The moments of silence in the piece gave my brain time to quit vibrating and fall into a steady hum before the next aural assault. If that was typical of her albums, I'm not sure I would want to listen to one much at all. Then, after intermission, the mood changed, to merely somber but no longer painful. Every song seemed like a dirge though, the Make Sure that My Grave is Kept Clean dirge, the Insane Asylum dirge. THe piano was heavily amplified, and the few times she crept above middle C were notable. The first few numbers were intriguing, then the sameness of the next 4 caused my mind to wander. It came back during a French number, and I found the remainder of the show to be quite captivating. I believe this is what "The Singer" is like, and I would be interested in buying that album (but hesitant to recommend it to others until i knew it was really in this style). This portion of the show was sung in a low throaty growl, which occasional swoops to the upper register. Her low voice was very bizarre, but powerful, if sometimes a bit monotonous. I realize the first piece, No MOre Tickets to the Funeral (the funeral ... is ..... Crowded), was supposed to be a powerful AIDS piece, and it was aurally powerful, although a bit heavy handed and simplistic lyrically. But I have to feel like she is misdirecting her energy if she is trying to increase awareness to the problem of AIDS. The piece was harrowing, but it didn't make me think of AIDS, or increase my sympathy or interest in any way. Giving AIDS a human face is much more effective in touching people who have been thus far untouched, and her performance, while moving, did not accomplish that. I would recommend the show to anyone who isn't turned off by Jeff and my descriptions. I certainly have no regrets about having gone. Neal ======================================================================== From: C. Boek Subject: Re: Cowboys can't fly Date: Wed, 27 Oct 93 19:20:08 MET Hi all, I just thought I'd write to say that this message appeared to me as I THINK THEREFORE Cowboys can't fly. The conclusion is certainly correct I'd say ... Chris. ======================================================================== From: brianb@netcom.com (Brian Bloom) Subject: Re: elspeth Date: Wed, 27 Oct 93 11:27:44 PDT Sorry to bug the rest of the net with this, but my reader can never debug brni's address... Elspeth is adolescent, a budding mage, and pretty damn cocky. She thinks men are foolish, yet is discovering her own interest in them. She's not exactly gorgeous, but is attractive enough to get people's attention. She's the only Heir to the throne but resents living a docile life. Is that close at all brni? br!an -- __ ____ __ ____ __ __ (__==__) /\ \ / \_\ / /\ / \ \ / |\ / /\ (oo) ( moo.) / \_\ / /\ |_| / / /| /\ \ \ / ||/ / / /-------\/ -' / /\ | |\ \/ /_/_ / / / \ \/ \ \ / |/ / / / | U.T.|| / \/ |_| \ __ \_\ /_/ / \ /\ \_\ / /| / / * ||----|| / /\ ./_/ \ \ \/_/_\_\/ \ \ \/_// / | / / ^^ ^^ \ \/ |_| \ \_\ /_/\ \ \_\ /_/ /|_/ / Br!an Bloom \__/_/ \/_/ \_\/ \/_/ \_\/ \_\/ brianb@netcom.com .. but music hides me so well, ..and reveals me.. oh well - HR ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 27 Oct 93 14:04:36 CDT From: Courtney Subject: Elspeth and Kate boxes.. actually Brian..ELspeth is NOT the only heir to the throne..she has twin siblings..and there is a surprise in the latest book that Mercedes wrote.. About the Kate box: i cant help but think back to the time when i was in Canterbury visiting Stephen Thomas and we were record/disc shopping... imagine my surprise and disbelief when we found TWW disc's sold SEPARATE of the boxed set!!! Some idiot broke up the set or something!! So anyway.. keep looking everyone..one day a Kate treasure might fall into your lap!! Courtney.. ======================================================================== From: Philip Sainty Date: Thu, 28 Oct 1993 09:03:24 +1300 Subject: Re: Stephen R. Donaldson... (Phil stuffs up) Well I had written about two pages on this, before I promptly deleted it all by mistake... :(:( and I don't feel like typing it all out again... Therefore you get the short and dull version :) I've read both the Thomas Covenant series, as well as Mordant's Need, and I feel thet the original _Chronicles of Thomas Covenant_ is the best of the three... (MN was simply tooo predictable) I haven't read any of the Gap series, but I hear that provided you are willing to ignore some horrendous physics, it is very good :) (I hope to read it sometime in the future - I'll probably start it once it's all finished) Other authors of interest are Katharine Kerr (the 'Deverry' series, and _Polar City Blues_ - the only novel I have ever read (and ever will read, in all probability) which is written entirely in the present tense) William Horwood (the 'Duncton' trilogy - a sort of _Watership Down_ for moles (well in so far as being a tale from the moles' point of view, at least) Grant Naylor (if you haven't read the "Red Dwarf" novels, *especially* if you have never seen the TV series, then seek them out as soon as possible for a truely hilarious read) Emily Bronte (sadly not much choice here as far as novels go, but everyone should read _Wuthering Heights_ at some time IMHO) Ciao all, Philip (who can forsee a thread of somewhat large proportions growing) .________________________________________. ._______. | __ _ ___ _ __ __ |\________/| | | / / | / \ | \ | | | | / | __ | _O_ | | \_ | | | | |__/ |__| | | \_ | / \ | |/ | | / | | | | | | | | | / | |/\_/ | |\ | | \__ \_ | \_/ | | | | |__ \__ | | /\ | T W W | |________________________________________| N.Z. |_______| \ Philip Sainty: psainty@comp.vuw.ac.nz \________/ / `-------------------------------------------------------' ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 27 Oct 93 14:23:26 PDT From: erik@falcon.kla.com (Erik Johnson) Subject: Books 'R' Us (Was: Re: Stephen R. Donaldson) Philip Sainty writes: |> Well I had written about two pages on this, before I promptly deleted it |> all by mistake... :(:( and I don't feel like typing it all out again... |> Therefore you get the short and dull version :) Don't think of it as dull - think of it as high information content. ;-) |> I've read both the Thomas Covenant series, as well as Mordant's Need, and |> I feel thet the original _Chronicles of Thomas Covenant_ is the best of |> the three... (MN was simply tooo predictable) I read the original Chronicles when they first came out, and just could not stand the main character, which rather ruined it for me. If he'd changed in some way to be more tolerable, I could have enjoyed it more as a growing experience, but I came out of it disliking him as much as at the beginning. Maybe I should read it again now that I'm almost twice the age that I first did, but it's low on my priority list. |> Other authors of interest are Katharine Kerr (the 'Deverry' series, and |> _Polar City Blues_ - the only novel I have ever read (and ever will read, |> in all probability) which is written entirely in the present tense) The Deverry books are some of the grittiest, least romanticised fantasy it has ever been my pleasure to read. If you enjoy these, try _The Deed of Paksenarrion_ by Elizabeth Moon. It's more fantasy that doesn't forget the details of life go on even when you are doing heroic deeds. Steven Brust's 'Jhereg' books are also gritty, fast-moving crosses between fantasy and crime novels. Highly recommended. |> William Horwood (the 'Duncton' trilogy - a sort of _Watership Down_ for |> moles (well in so far as being a tale from the moles' point of view, at |> least) I'll have to investigate these. |> Grant Naylor (if you haven't read the "Red Dwarf" novels, *especially* if |> you have never seen the TV series, then seek them out as soon as possible |> for a truely hilarious read) Are they as good if you *have* seen all the shows? Or do they get weaker once the element of surprise is lost? |> Philip (who can forsee a thread of somewhat large proportions growing) And I'm feeding it fertilizer. ;-) I just *have* to add some personal favorites here. Dorothy Dunnett has some of the best historical novels I have ever read. If you're ready for a long read, go buy, beg, borrow, or steal the six books of the Lymond chronicles. The second book is slow, but the rest left me in awe. Or find her novel _King Hereafter_ for a look at a "real" Macbeth. Not at all like Shakespeare. Other favorites: Katherine Kurtz 'Deryni' books; the afore-mentioned Steven Brust, much Zelazny, Robert Jordan, and many others. And, of course, Tolkien. Erik who has more books than music - and I've got a lot of music. ___________________________________________________________________________ Erik N. Johnson Don't believe any return address KLA Instruments Corp. rumors. The one and only True San Jose, CA Address is e_johnso@kla.com. Got the anti-Christ in the kitchen yelling at me again... TA ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 27 Oct 93 17:43:41 EDT From: mojzes@monet.rutgers.edu (brni) Subject: present tense books hi all, since philip mentioned present tense books, i'd like to quickly (that is to say, before someone stops me :) recommend 2 books, both written entirely in the present tense, one science fiction, one not, one easy to read, one decidedly not. 1. roger zelazny _creatures of light and darkness_ 2. thomas pynchon _gravity's rainbow_ enough for now, ta brni ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 27 Oct 93 17:22:09 EDT From: ksilver@zeus.st.3com.com (Keith Silver) Subject: Neil Diamond tickets I know that he's not Ecto food, but I have in my possession two tickets to Neil Diamond's concert at the Worcester Centrum on Sunday the 31st. I think that they are good seats (on the floor row H - but I should check). How, you may ask, did I come to receive these gems? Last year I went to a ice skating show at the Centrum which was excellent. I recall that an Ectophile also gave the show a glowing review. Anyways, they had a deal where if you bought tickets to the next year's show in advance, you would get the best of the best seats. I plunked down my plastic and waited patiently these many months. I just got a letter from the Centrum stating that the show is not going to be there this year, a refund check, and the previously mentioned tickets. I don't know what the face value of the tickets are or if the show is sold out, but I'm willing to let them go to the first $30 for the pair or best offer. Sorry, I already have somebody who would take them for free (-: There's probably not enough time to mail the tickets, but I live ~15 minutes from the Centrum and just off of rte 9 - so there is a good chance that you go right by my house on the the way to the concert. Sorry for the non-Happy content and the extreamly local applicability of this message. ks PS: They might make a good early mother's day gift (-: ksilver@engr.ST.3Com.COM "Peter would like to apologize for rhyming garment with varmint twice on the same record." Think Tree ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 27 Oct 93 18:27:49 EDT From: woj@remus.rutgers.edu (dressed to ingest) Subject: Re: Books 'R' Us (Was: Re: Stephen R. Donaldson) count me as another mercedes lackey non-fan. i've enjoyed the vanyel books and _children of the night_ but just could not force myself through the other valdemar novels or her parallel world thang with the elves in speedsters and what not. like kiri said, her writing style is just plain irritating. erik@falcon.kla.com (Erik Johnson) sez: >I read the original Chronicles when they first came out, and just could not >stand the main character, which rather ruined it for me. at the time i read the first trilogy, i couldn't stand covenant either. in retrospect (like around the time _the wounded land_ came out), i felt differently. covenant is the greatest anti-hero: he's a weinie, a weakling and unwilling. it's great to read a series where the protagonist is so annoying but also so intriguing since he defies the usual trend in fan- tasy for the hero to be admirable, likeable, powerful and, well, heroic. i can't say that i ever have the urge to go back and re-read them (well, except for maybe _the one tree_ and _the wounded land_) but they are cer- tainly great books nonetheless. >Steven Brust's >'Jhereg' books are also gritty, fast-moving crosses between fantasy and >crime novels. Highly recommended. agreed. the best thing about the vlad taltos novels is that everything is tied down - there are no loose ends (kinda like neil gaiman's sandman now that i think about it). every little details mean something somewhere in either that novel or one of the others. i would, however, shirk from reading _athyra_ as a first attempt. unlike the others, it's written in third person and has that "written for the money" feel about it. >Other favorites: Katherine Kurtz 'Deryni' books; the afore-mentioned Steven >Brust, much Zelazny, Robert Jordan, and many others. And, of course, Tolkien. c.j. cherryh (the oft-discussed), tanith lee, jo clayton, charles de lint, judy tarr (whom i'd read long before i met meredith - in fact, the connnec- tion had to be pointed out to me!). folks on the not-yet-read-but-highly- recommend list include dan simmons, kate elliot, tom de haven. +woj ======================================================================== Date: 27 Oct 93 13:17:53 EDT From: Mike Mendelson Subject: Val in Chitown Valerie Nozes: |and the trip to see vickie and chris' place is alone worth thhe trip! |their apartment is covered in all things bright and kate. mike tried |to prep me for the experience last night, but it's impossible to describe |the plethhora of goodies thhey have. NOBODY expects gaffa central! |my only regret is that chris is |not in town...this is the second time i've missed him. :-( Actually she did meet Chris the next day... |tomorrow is hopefully a trip to the airport to see thhe cool thing! ...and saw the cool thing (which I must add is IMHO overrated and decadent... or is it art?). |both mike and vickie make me realize how puny my record collection is, |and how far i have to go...*sigh* i hhave the feeling that moving to |chicago is going to be more expensive than i thought... but happily so. :) Hahh! My record collection can't even begin to touch C&V's so being mentioned in the same sentence as them is quite an anomale. When I look through bits of Vickie's collection it is bizarre, because I see all the music that has been mentioned in these pages, in particular things I've looked for and failed to find. It's like going to the library! (Then again my friends say the same thing about my collection -- that's it's like going to a CD store... except that Vickie's isn't like that because you can't *find* half the stuff she has in any store :-) |and seeing mike again has been great. his place is great - hardwood |floors, lots of rooms, and great company. Well, this cracks me up... Valerie, how many rooms did you notice? Maybe there are some hidden ones I haven't found yet! What are you living in in Atlanta? In Chicago, what I have is called a "one-bedroom apartment" :-). Hahahahahahahaha! |we met in jersey only a few months ago, Ah, it's amazing how quickly bonding occurs in the backseat of a small car on the Garden State Parkway... |but alrready i feel like he's a good friend. and he has |been fantastic, putting up with me for three probably long days. Boy, 3 of the longest days of *my* life. Phew! Glad that's over. Anyone else wanna visit? :-) Seriously, though, Val truly lucked out weather-wise; the 3 days she was here were warm and perfectly sunny. A true joy to behold. Invite her to your neck of the woods cos she really brightens up the place. You can come to Evanston any time, Val! -mjm ======================================================================== From: Philip Sainty Date: Thu, 28 Oct 1993 12:34:00 +1300 Subject: Re: Books 'R' Us (Was: Re: Stephen R. Donaldson) Erik of the One True Address writes: > The Deverry books are some of the grittiest, least romanticised fantasy it > has ever been my pleasure to read. If you enjoy these, try _The Deed of > Paksenarrion_ by Elizabeth Moon. It's more fantasy that doesn't forget the > details of life go on even when you are doing heroic deeds. Steven Brust's > 'Jhereg' books are also gritty, fast-moving crosses between fantasy and > crime novels. Highly recommended. Thanks, I'll have a look for them... > |> Grant Naylor (if you haven't read the "Red Dwarf" novels, *especially* if > |> you have never seen the TV series, then seek them out as soon as possible > |> for a truely hilarious read) > Are they as good if you *have* seen all the shows? Yes! Yes yes yes!!!!! They are sufficiently different from the series to be well worthwhile even if you've watched all six series several times over :) (IMHO) (although you may wish to keep them for when you feel withdrawl effects... :) You can get the two novels (_Red Dwarf_ and _Better Than Life_ in a _Red Dwarf Omnibus_ edition which should save a bit of cash) Philip .________________________________________. ._______. | __ _ ___ _ __ __ |\________/| | | / / | / \ | \ | | | | / | __ | _O_ | | \_ | | | | |__/ |__| | | \_ | / \ | |/ | | / | | | | | | | | | / | |/\_/ | |\ | | \__ \_ | \_/ | | | | |__ \__ | | /\ | T W W | |________________________________________| N.Z. |_______| \ Philip Sainty: psainty@comp.vuw.ac.nz \________/ / `-------------------------------------------------------' ======================================================================== The ecto archives are on hardees.rutgers.edu in ~ftp/pub/hr. There is an INDEX file explaining what is where. Feel free to send me things you'd like to have added. -- jessica (jessica@ns1.rutgers.edu)