Alas.  According to multiple sources Gene Wolfe has died at the age of 87 in his Illinois home. I’ve been on a mini-binge of Gene’s books lately, mostly recently Home Fires, and I think the mini-binge will have to continue. I admired Gene’s plain, clear style, which was an ideal surface beneath which to hide the machinations […]

Friend of the blog Anonymous— I presume not the entire hacker collective— tells me that the audio book of City on Fire is available! Go forth and listen! (While checking to see where I could find the book, I discovered that the reader reviews of City on Fire on Amazon all properly belong to a more recent book of […]

Once again Hugo voters have inexplicably failed to recognize my greatness, but I’m very pleased to note that they have recognized the greatness of a number of veterans of Taos Toolbox, the master class for writers of science fiction and fantasy. Kelly Robson got a novella nomination for “God, Monsters, and the Lucky Peach.” Simone Heller received […]

I have lately been enjoying some examples of black humor, which may confirm my moral depravity the eyes of some of you, but if so I think you’re wrong.  According to Wylie Sypher, black comedy strengthens the oppressed and damages the morale of the oppressors.  “To be able to laugh at evil and error means […]