Book Reviews & Essays on Literature
LIU Cixin, or Cixin Liu as he is known in English, is the author of the famous Science Fiction trilogyContinue Reading
In the last of this series of posts on Fictional Fiction, I look into those famous authors whose invented booksContinue Reading
In this series of posts, I’m looking into some examples of “fictional fiction”. I’ve already spoiled the fun about books in Dr.Continue Reading
Books associated with characters in a book or a film sometimes look real and are actual published books. But sometimesContinue Reading
In a world filled with loud, angry voices, there’s something to be said for the quiet, thoughtful voice. Nick Cave,Continue Reading
Rhyming is devilishly difficult. It’s a serious head-scratcher, as people who write poems, lyrics and rap well know. If youContinue Reading
A reader should approach with caution any book that has won a whole bunch of awards. A reader should alsoContinue Reading
Here is the fascinating first-hand exposé of how Julian Barnes wrote his first novel, Metroland, and got it published inContinue Reading
John Scalzi’s Science Fiction (SF) novel Head On was taken a step closer to being real when, in December 2018,Continue Reading
In a previous post, I commented on Helena Gunter’s recently published anthology of short stories called Tweespoor (meaning “Double Track”).Continue Reading
The statistics for 2018 for the Seven Circumstances book blog illustrate some basics about the world of book writing, publishingContinue Reading
The statistics for 2018 for the Seven Circumstances book blog, released just before New Year, illustrate some basics about theContinue Reading
Recently my nose led me to a stall in down-town Vancouver where people were selling lavender products made in Provence,Continue Reading
Part 4/4 of The Long Read review of Codex 1962, by Sjón (Back to part 3/4 of the review) TheContinue Reading
Back to part 2 of the review of Codex 1962, by Sjón The parts of the Trilogy The three partsContinue Reading
Part 2 of the review of CoDex 1962, by Sjón (Back to part 1) Antagonist/Protagonist Sjón comes close to directlyContinue Reading
CoDex 1962 is Icelandic author Sjón’s first new novel since Moonstone – The Boy Who Never Was, published in translation inContinue Reading
This is the rack of “mass market” paperbacks that I see when I stand in the queue, every time IContinue Reading
I have never written an easier review of a novel, than this one. Why? Because it does not need reviewingContinue Reading
“Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose” – “the more things change, the more they stay the same”, said by French critic Alphonse Karr,Continue Reading
In previous posts on this subject, I focused on finding a publisher, finding an agent and finding your voice asContinue Reading
Step 2: Find a literary agent In my previous post, I went into why and how writers connect with publishersContinue Reading
There are thousands of aspiring authors, thousands of unpublished books, and millions of readers who have not connected with particularContinue Reading
What is the connection between Mining Engineering and writing fiction? None. In fact, the minds of Mining Engineers often workContinue Reading
This is the Icelandic version of Bram Stoker’s famous Victorian Gothic novel, Dracula. Powers of Darkness, called Makt Myrkranna, “the powerContinue Reading
Can the same subjects, settings and characters be successfully used in a podcast, and in published script format, and in aContinue Reading
Compact Crit. #12 – The Books of Babel, by Josiah Bancroft (In particular: Arm of the Sphinx) I am publishingContinue Reading
Sometimes, a line from a book or a film just sounds to good to resist. It sticks in your headContinue Reading
Anthony Bourdain is dead – he killed himself. His body was found in Kaysersberg-Vignoble, France, on Friday, June 8, 2018. HeContinue Reading
Ruuf Wangersen’s debut novel is The Pleasure Model Repairman, reviewed here. I was fascinated by this new author and theContinue Reading
“Welcome to Night Vale” it says on the cover. Inside, there are stories about the town of “Night Vale”, somewhereContinue Reading
Like in music, one-hit wonders are a never-ending source of fascination for people. Depending on how you define a “one-hitContinue Reading
The mystery over who “Hendrik Groen” is, continues. Groen is the pseudonym of a Dutch author who has produced twoContinue Reading
There is a lot more to the phenomenon of literary one-hit wonders than you’d think. There are many reasons forContinue Reading
The teaser trailer for the new film based on the Mary Poppins books by P.L. Travers was released to coincideContinue Reading
Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr’s famous epigram reads; “Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose” – “the more it changes, the more it’s the sameContinue Reading
After a 25-year absence, comic book artist Berkeley (“Berke”) Breathed restarted his famous and much-loved comic strip, Bloom County on Facebook,Continue Reading
In the previous article, I discussed the link between psychopathology and creativity. So here is a shortlist of authors whose bodyContinue Reading
Compact Crits #7: 54-second review of Insomniac City, by Bill Hayes Read the whole story here. Make no mistake, thisContinue Reading
Insomniac City made me cry – but in a nice way. I am an incurable romantic and Hayes’s revealing memoirContinue Reading
In the previous article, part 2 of the Long Read about the creative process, I looked at the link betweenContinue Reading
Does an unreliable narrator mean the author is also unreliable? In the previous article, about “mad, bad and dangerous toContinue Reading
Brian Bilston’s first anthology of poetry contains more than 200 poems, and despite some of them being only four linesContinue Reading
Brian Bilston’s saucy, witty and insightful poems on Twitter (@brian_bilston) have made him famous. In this podcast (recorded in 2016,Continue Reading
I watched the final episode of the second season of Cardinal, based on the books by Giles Blunt, on Feb. 8,Continue Reading
In Charles Bukowski’s famous novel, Hollywood, one of his many famous cult classics, his alter-ego “Henry Chinaski” describes actors asContinue Reading
“A thing of beauty is a joy for ever”, John Keats wrote in his poem “Endymion” in 1818 – aboutContinue Reading
What is the appeal of the old-fashioned stiff upper lip? Of a person with backbone, inner strength, dogged determination? Caroline,Continue Reading
I did not think that I would get tired of reading the heavily stylized and very British English of StephenContinue Reading
Tom Hanks’s debut work of fiction, a collection of short stories, came out on October 17, 2017. It has beenContinue Reading
Prue Leith, as Anglophiles and food show fans would know, replaced Mary Berry as the co-judge with Paul Hollywood whenContinue Reading
There is a current trend for novels with long titles about eccentric old people: The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed OutContinue Reading
With books, as with films, success depends a lot on the timing and the tie-ins. Whether it will resonate withContinue Reading
It has been said that the problem with poetry is that whatever poem you come up with, due to theContinue Reading
Popular TV shows that are based on series of books are often favourite sources for “literary tourism”, but when fansContinue Reading
On principle, I never respond when authors write to me to either complain about or say thank you for myContinue Reading
Icelandic writer Sjón has spent the first half of this year in Lillehammer, Norway, where, on June 2, 2017, heContinue Reading
You could be tempted to dismiss Roger Moore’s autobiography, My Word Is My Bond, as a bit of a joke,Continue Reading
On day 2 of Worldcon 75 in Helsinki, I finally got to have a word with one of the “insider”Continue Reading
See me, hear me and walk with me – that’s what many websites try to achieve; in other words, connectContinue Reading
You know the colour “octarine”? It’s the colour of magic, visible only to magicians and cats, a sparkly, glowing combinationContinue Reading
The reboot of the TV series Twin Peaks, Twin Peaks: The Return premiered on the 21st of May, to a hugeContinue Reading
This novel is on the shortlist for the 2017 Hugo Awards which will be handed out at Worldcon 75 inContinue Reading
In the previous post I discussed Ūgh and Bõögâr, the creations of Berlin-based Icelandic artist Egill Sæbjörnsson. The two trolls areContinue Reading
Sometimes artists use themes or characters from Mythology, and currently, two artists have done this in Venice, Italy, in exhibitionsContinue Reading
(Above: Spot the possum details on these re-imagined book covers. Graphics by M. Bijman) I wondered what would happen ifContinue Reading
Dum-dah-dah…Another one bites the dust…♬ (Sorry, Queen.) A few months ago I announced that my reviews will be published inContinue Reading
“Madam, I’m afraid he’s come down with a bad case of Trolls.” If you’ve never imagined that trolls are anContinue Reading
Here is the last part in a series of four posts on the subject of fan fiction versus copyright rules.Continue Reading
On the subject of fan fiction versus copyright rules, I am discussing examples of three cases of what seems toContinue Reading
The Era of the Reboot and Sequel Whenever an author adds a new book on to a successful novel orContinue Reading
As of this month, I’m going to be contributing book reviews to Fairlady magazine. For those who don’t know, it’s anContinue Reading
My piano It has been said about inherited upright pianos that they are “1200lb heirloom paperweights”, unless they are keptContinue Reading
