There are some writers whose treatment of a particular subject you can almost predict. That's not necessarily a bad thing. John Higgs, though, is not one of those writers. This warm, witty and endlessly interesting writer is described (accurately, for my money) on his website as someone who "specialises in finding previously unsuspected narratives, hidden … Continue reading The work of John Higgs
Awkward. I try to be positive on this blog because goodness knows there's enough negativity around. But equally, I have to be honest. If you take it at face value this is a gripping, well-written comic with excellent artwork. Those of you who know The Sandman will delight in the return of characters such as … Continue reading The Sandman – The Dreaming, Volume 1: Pathways and Emanations
The Nouveau Roman was a French Modernist literary movement of the 1950s whose antecedents were Joyce, Beckett and Proust. A common theme among the works produced by those writers grouped as nouveax romanistes were "discontinuity, rupture, difference and revolution"¹, and they defined themselves against "a dominant culture in thrall to a staid and anachronistic concept … Continue reading The “Nouveau Roman”: where to start?
Imagine "The Littlest Hobo" written by Ted Hughes... Marney the Fox was a two-page b&w comic strip featured in Buster from 1974-1976. It's been collated and nicely reprinted by Rebellion comics, who did a similarly good job on The Beatles Story (and other lost UK comic serials). Marney is a fox cub, orphaned in the … Continue reading Rural horror for kids! – “Marney the Fox”
Any discussion of Yukio Mishima's life and work has to deal, at some point, with his death. A right-wing nationalist appalled by the Western influence on Japanese society and culture, he tried to lead his own personal militia in a coup. It failed and Mishima immediately committed seppuku - ritual suicide - before (following the … Continue reading The Japanese Proust? Yukio Mishima
Just 6 months after the superb volume 3 of Tales from the Shadow Booth (which I reviewed here), "the international journal of weird and eerie fiction", Dan Coxon brings us another. And its just as good: that's all you really need to know. But if you want more, read on... It begins, as all trips … Continue reading Review: “Tales from the Shadow Booth: Volume 4”
In a previous post I looked at the increasing importance of, and focus on, the natural world in Kathleen Jamie's poetry throughout her career. With hindsight, the two essay collections she has written - 2012's Sightlines and it's 2006 predecessor, Findings (surely one of the finest books of the century so far) - seem to … Continue reading Kathleen Jamie: “Surfacing”
"The places I find myself interested in are ones that service other places, like refineries, electricity generators, processing plants and waste areas. Generally they are hidden areas, one way or another." The Scottish artist Carol Rhodes, who died in 2018, created a body of work that's of interest to anyone involved in the crossover area … Continue reading Carol Rhodes
First, let's agree on what these two stunning books are not. They are not Folk Horror, but they did grow in a neighbouring field. All Among the Barley by Melissa Harrison and Lanny by Max Porter are two of the finest novels I've read so far this year. They're part of a growing number of … Continue reading Max Porter’s “Lanny” & Melissa Harrison’s “All Among the Barley”
I know, I know. I said once before that I'm not going to blog about music. That post was about Warp's 'Artificial Intelligence' series from 1992-4, of which Dimension Intrusion - the debut album by English-born Canadian DJ & musician Richie Hawtin - was my favourite release. Now re-released, remastered and packaged with a load … Continue reading F.U.S.E. – “Dimension Intrusion / Computer Space (25th anniversary edition)”
Into the Gyre 