The Science of Science Fiction

San Francisco's Mission District, it seems, has become addicted to "crawls."  Just a few weeks ago they hosted the huge Lit Crawl that ends the LitQuake Festival, and this past Friday night they hosted a Science Crawl.  What are they going to think of next?

My final stop on the Science Crawl was essentially the same as my final stop of the Lit Crawl, except this time I stopped a the bookstore side of Borderlands Books and Cafe.  Regular readers of this blog have heard me sing the praises of this independent specialty bookstore many times, but I won't let that stop me from doing it again.  Let me just say, if you have any interest in fantasy, science fiction, or horror, this store or their website should be destination shopping for you.  I'm not even especially fond of any of those genres, and I still consider it one of my very favorite spots in all of San Francisco.

In addition to the friendly setting and the interesting subject matter, there was another compelling draw to this particular event.  The three panelists were awesome!  I'd actually heard Scott Sigler speak very entertainingly at another Science Fest event earlier in the week.  The popular Porchlight Storytelling Series had half-a-dozen story-tellers (including a physicist, a neurologist, and a mathematician) speak on the subject of "epic fail."  Scott had told a story that wasn't science- or science fiction-related, but it was an epic fail.  (And if you're really curious about those stories, you may view them on my You Tube channel here.)

Now, I had the pleasure of hearing Mira Grant read at the Lit Crawl, where she definitely piqued my interest in her work.  So much so that I've already read and very much enjoyed Countdown, the novella that's the prequel to the series she's speaking about in the videos to follow.  It's only a matter of time before I break down and read Feed.  (And, yes, for a woman who claims not to be interested in zombies, I do read an awful lot of zombie books.)

Finally, there's Jeff Carlson, the author of one of the best opening lines of all time: "They ate Jorgensen first."  I ask you, how do you read that opening sentence and not want to read on?  Oh, you may not want to admit you want to read on, but you do.  Incidentally, that is the opening line to Plague Year, the first novel of a kinda fabulous nanotech trilogy.  As it happens, nanotech thrillers are one of my favorite things, and I went to a signing--at Borderlands Books, in fact--of Plague Year several years ago.  At that first signing, Jeff and I hit it off famously.  We discovered that we had several friends in common, and we have stayed chummy (mostly over email) ever since.  I have always been shocked that a guy who writes such sick, sick stuff is such a very, very nice guy.  Jeff and I hadn't had a chance to catch up face-to-face in literally years, so it was especially nice to see him.  (Sorry we went on and on, Mira!)

BTW, you'll be seeing more about Jeff on the blog in the near future.  I've got some books I'm looking forward to reading and reviewing shortly, and I also have an excellent story to share in a separate blog post.  It will be entitled:  How I tricked Jeff Carlson into killing me.  Look for it soon.

But enough about me and my murderous friends.  Let's get to the good stuff!  This was an awesome panel discussion!  Truly, it was the perfect way to end my Science Fest week.  I was so very happy to have a front row seat for this fascinating discussion among peers, and I'm so happy to be able to share the event with you.  These three writers are being billed as science fiction authors, but I think you could make a case that they're thriller authors and horror authors and probably many more classifications.  And if you're not interested in science fiction, thrillers, or horror, I'd recommend watching the first couple of minutes of this video just to see Frost, the coolest bookstore cat ever.  (When the video wobbles a little in the first section, it's because Frost is climbing up my shawl.)  Enjoy!

Mailbox Monday: I can't think of an edition edition

So, last week was chock full of excitement between the Bay Area Festival of Science and the literary events.  Man, I was busy!  My two loves converged at the end of the week with a completely awesome panel discussion entitled The Science in Science Fiction held at the completely awesome Borderlands Books.  The panelists were Scott Sigler, Mira Grant, and Jeff Carlson.  I could try to describe to you at length, just how awesome these three were, but why don't I just post video of the whole thing later this week?  And folks, I got good video for once.

So, I haven't had a chance to write up my dead mules in Southern Literature follow up yet, but I did receive nice notes from both Hillary Jordan and Bookseller Bob from Books, Inc. subsequent to my post about our evening together last week.  Very, very nice.

There are a couple of cool lit events going on here in SF this week that I might try to hit.  Local author Peter Orner is at The Booksmith on Wednesday.  I just acquired a copy of his novel Love and Shame and Love that I'm looking forward to reading, so it would be great to hear him speak.  Also, Gregory Maguire is going to be at The Booksmith on Saturday night.  Perhaps it'll be less of a mob scene because it's a Saturday?  Anyway, we'll see if I make it to either event.  I've been pretty run down lately and really need to pace myself.  Tonight I will go straight home after work like a good girl.

You may have noticed that I'm trying to catch up on the book reviews I've been slacking off on for the past few months.  So, expect more of them this week.  In addition to the backlog, I did read The Time in Between, which goes on sale tomorrow and which Simon & Schuster has been promoting so heavily.  I wanted to jump right into Eco's The Prague Cemetery right after, but I was defeated on my first attempt by the staggering outpouring of pure hatred in the opening pages of the novel.  The character actually articulates the philosophy, "I hate, therefore I am."  It's funny, but very tough to take.  So I set it aside and got distracted by I YA novel which is the funniest thing I've read since I don't know when!  It was Libba Bray's Beauty Queens.  What a pleasure over a dreary weekend at home.  Of course, I finished it in a day, and launched back into the Eco.  God, it's tough going!  Will this man defeat me again?  I've never made it through one of his novels.  I've about a quarter of the way through The Prague Cemetery, and I've already read each page at least twice.  And on that note...

Out of Oz
by Gregory Maguire
Release date: November 1, 2011
Source: Finished hardback from publisher

As noted previously, I have only read the first book in this series.  I'm not sure yet if I'm prepared to catch up on the intervening books.  Perhaps going to hear Maguire speak will help me decide.

Hard Target
by Howard Gordon
Release date: January 3, 2011
Source: Paper galley from publisher

Howard Gordon has all sorts of television writing/producing cred, and this is his second novel, a follow-up to Gideon's War.  I have a galley of that one, too, but the book descriptions sound a little macho for my tastes. 

The Time in Between
by Maria Duenas
Release date: November 8, 2011
Source: Finished hardback from publisher

Yes, another copy.  Meanwhile, I read this last week and had a mixed response.  It's been a big bestseller in Europe.  It will be interesting to see if S&S can duplicate that success here. 

Beauty Queens
by Libba Bray
Release date: May 24, 2011
Source: Audiobook from Library

First, best cover ever, am I right?  This is an over-the-top high-concept comic novel about a planeload of teen beauty queens who crash onto a mysterious island.  I won't guarantee that this book is for everyone (humor is so subjective), but I had a blast listening to this!  I also noticed this morning that PW named it one of the top books of 2011.  Take that, Umberto Eco!

Ashes to Dust
by Yrsa Sigurdardottir
Release date: March 27, 2012
Source: Electronic galley from publisher

Wow, you don't see a name like that on a book cover every day.  I think I'll have a Guess How to Pronounce it Contest in my face-to-face book group, with a winner chosen by our Swedish member.  Anyway, I do not even remember what this novel is about, but I know that I was quite interested in reading it.

The Odds
by Stewart O'Nan
Release date: January 19, 2012
Source: Electronic galley from publisher

O'Nan is one of those authors that I hear nothing but good things about.  I know that he is a real favorite of my BFF, Jon.  This will be the first work of his that I've read, and I'm really looking forward to it!




Besides the titles above, there were about 125 books from the NCIBA show.  I haven't organized a list of them yet.


Books finished this week:

Why Read Moby Dick by Nathaniel Philbrick
The Time in Between by Maria Duenas
Beauty Queens by Libba Bray


Currently reading:

The Prague Cemetery by Umberto Eco


So, what books have you acquired this week?  What exciting (or not so exciting) books are you reading?  Have you successfully read an Eco novel?  Please let us know in the comments!