Flesh & Bone by Jonathan Maberry

Flesh & Bone is the third novel in a Zombie Apocalypse series that began with Rot & Ruin and Dust & Decay.

Our heroes have been heading east to see if they can find any trace of a jet they saw flying over in book two.  In a world where the living barely hang onto grim survival, the hope of some remnant of advanced society holds tremendous hope.

What they find is that a band of zealots has found a way to control zombies.  They march them enmasse through the landscape killing any outposts of humanity they find.  In their minds, the zombies are the inheritors of the earth and it should be left to them. It is their mission to destroy any living beings who are now not part of the natural order.

Benny, Nix, Chong and Lila the Lost Girl try to help save the living people they come across who are on the run, even though those people are initially hostile, so deeply are they in survival mode.

This is my favorite of the three novels.  It is tightly plotted, a real page turner and the characters have come a long way since we first met them.  Strong female characters are a bonus.  If only there had been girls like these in novels when I was a teen.

Maberry really has given readers much to think about between battles, as his characters see the zombies as humans gone awry and they feel for them, they examine their own beliefs and motives, and mourn those they have lost.

Highly recommended for anyone who likes adventure, road novels, or the delights of the Zombie Apocalypse.

A side note: in the front and back of each book are cards depicting heroes and villains of the era.  Kids collect these in the books.  They are so cool and should be available as posters or something.

Revolution

Tonight is the premier of Revolution, a new science fiction show that has all of the lights and power and energy go out in some mysterious event.  The setting of the show is fifteen years later than the event. 

It looks so super earnest and cheesy. Shades of Terra Nova.  The lead actress seems so bratty.

Can't wait!

http://www.nbc.com/revolution/video/revolution---first-look/1412426/

Children's Writing for Beginners Class tonight

Yay, Yay!  We are having a Children's Writing for Beginners class at Wescott tonight.  Anyone who is thinking about penning for the wee folk should come and get some tips.  This is taught by the Loft Literary Center, don't worry it isn't me giving tips on something I know zippo about.

 

 

Edit 9/14/12   We only had seven people (and I pictured a packed room, silly me).   I don't think anyone from either of the local writing groups came, which is disappointing.

 

It was so informative.  I learned alot about publisher expectations and requirements for some types of books.  Picture books stand out.  Did you know they are limited to 32 pages, sixteen full page drawings with text? 

 

Also, it is rare that the writer of the text and the illustrator are the same person.  To me, a picture book is a really tight marriage of text and illustration.  I can't see how the author doesn't have a set of pictures in their head to go with the text they write.  You must be able to "see" the scenes you're writing, right?

 

Beginner reading books are another curious group.  Sentences not only need to be simple, but you don't use certain things like dipthongs or silent letters in order to make it accessible for the new reader.   With such concentration on form, no wonder they are generally so...torturous to read for a good reader.  It is rather like Hemingway is to me, all of those short abrupt sentences.

 

I thought it was very valuable advice to know that when looking for an agent you should keep in mind they are working for you, and they should not require reading fees or any money from you.  They make money only when they sell your work, which sounds like a decent arrangement.  This explains though why it can be hard to find an agent, because they aren't going to take anyone on whose work they don't feel they can sell to anyone.

 

 



Sockpuppets!

There is this bizarre scandal sweeping the reviews scene wherein authors (and one guy in particular) have been found to be writing their own reviews and kudos on Amazon (and elsewhere) and giving BAD STARS to their competition.   These people are being referred to as Sockpuppets which sounds so darn cute!    

I want to make my own lil DOA sockpuppet and put a picture of it with the book in hand for anything I get around to writing a review of here.  Need a glue gun for attaching the googly eyes....

Enterprise takes off

Our library gets a new catalog interface today called Enterprise.  It is being released to us and our unsuspecting public about a month early.  I like everything I've seen about it so far.  It is a huge relief to be offering the public a single interface rather than trying to explain both Aquabrowser and eLibrary to them.

Someday, some brilliant sort will make it possible for staff and public to use the same interface so we are all on the actual same page and talking the same talk.

Edit 9/12/12   Yay!  Day one was a GREAT launch.  People just went in and used the catalog without a word and NO CURSING (there were tons of curses the last time we debuted a new catalog).  Not a soul asked for help using it all day.   Lots of other questions but the catalog is sooo easy to use and sooo intuitive so far that voila!

Edit 9/13/12   Aha, people in the building only have the option to use the new Enterprise interface, but if you have AquaBrowser and eLibrary bookmarked at home you can continue to use those till November 1.  This might explain why we haven't had more feedback...though some oddity with Aquabrowser may force those folks over to the new interface.  Ongoing tale city.

edit 9/14/12    I had only two catalog related questions/comments yesterday.   One was a nice email saying how nice and easy to use the system is (yay) and the other was a classic "I'm looking for this topic and I don't quite know how to look for it in your new catalog" question.  

Not from the public but from a staffer was one of the practice questions we were given (which I did not work through but perhaps I should...but I don't have patience for fake questions!  Give me the real thing baby!) that turned out be just be a garbled title from the customer (fake, one might say SOCKPUPPET CUSTOMER oh noooo).

Strolling with a Bozo

Now that I am largely over my "con crud" I am back on the streets and did two miles.  I will try for three days a week for starters then hope to go daily.  There is nothing better for improving yourself physically and clearing the mental cobwebs as well.

iPad Games Poorly Ported: Puppet Theater and 7th Guest

I have had high hopes for games recently purchased for my iPad.  So far, two that I was really enjoying,  I find myself just stuck and it appears that the companies that have produced the games as ports from other platforms are unconcerned with the iPad as a gaming platform and they just ignore any problems.

What a shame.  The first is Puppet Theater from Big Fish Games.  Good plot!  Small town with a much admired puppet master loses the theater and puppet master in a tragic fire.  Only a small boy escaped, and years later there seems to be something going on in the theater and children are disappearing. 

You'll need to enter the theater and explore the town to solve the mystery.

There are traditional adventure game puzzles and in each area find the hidden object puzzles.  Unfortunately, some mini-games and hidden object puzzle pieces are not functional on the iPad so you get to a certain point ( in the theater with the oil lamp for me) and you're done.  You can't bypass this bit and you can't move on.

Game over.

7th Guest

I still have my pc game of this.  It was one of the first puzzle adventure games I ever played and the whole family got involved solving the puzzles and advancing through the house.  If I recall, there are three possible choices at the end you can make, and at the time I chose the "wrong" one.  I was looking forward to replaying this clever, spooky game and making the "right" choice at the end.

The problem here is I played till about midnight the first time I played this version and I got quite far (I think) but I cannot access my saved game.  The game will grudgingly load briefly then it backs right out to the loading screen.

Another game where people had the same problem and the game company people just did not respond on their forums.

Best Sentence Ever

I have read this multiple times and may frame it:

"No hypermetabolic lesion to suggest active malignancy."  

Grimm Check

I am two episodes behind on my Grimm commentary.  No worries, because they started the season early but are now on a three week break, the stinkers, till September 28 so I will surely get caught up.

World Science Fiction Convention Chicago 2012

I notice I have quite a few drafts or unpublished posts piling up that I wanted to tweak or add pictures to.  I'll just add the details as I can or I will never post another thing.  Just check back now and then for tweaks if something vaguely interests you.   9/10/12


Strolling with the Stars billed as a leisurely one mile walk around the area was a nice stroll indeed. We had a chance to talk with a few people who were also walking and trying things out. The real walk is today, with stars galore.

There were two authors there who I was unfamiliar with. You know how I love authors though so I talked with the gentleman about reading and science fiction and ya sf. I have this odd habit of getting nervous around serious people and then I start to babble. I'm not sure at which point I began babbling. But blah blah blah I went. At one point I could see the guy had a bit of that deer in the headlights look developing but I had gone by the wayside.

I think the point may have been when he and others were mentioning that some were pushing for a YA and Children's Hugo and I was all perky and thought that was a fantastic idea because this is such a great time for ya sf especially. Blah blah, I said, as he gave me a skewering look, even alot of adult authors are now writing ya, blah blah.

I tried to steer the conversation to mysteries but when he asked me who I read and my mind went blank and I could only name a few...I might have as well been wearing a full BOZO the Clown outfit.

We're going on the stroll this morning. I shall seek to be zenlike and not go blah blah blah.

Our first panel was on How to Moderate a Panel

Four women who had done considerable moderation offered tips and experiences. Unfortunately, two of them had such strong personalities that they dominated the conversation, thus nullifying their own panel as an example of "here is how to do this". The moderator sat silent with her arms folded most of the time and another woman with some valuable things to offer did not get many words in edgewise.

My husband was beginning to twirl his thumbs in a gesture of something not good, and every time one of the women spoke he leaned forward a little bit like a bird of prey and I thought he might say something to her when luckily it ended.

Panels are one and a half hours long which is really too much. We took away from that one sit at the back of the room by the door so you can slink out, but we were right up front, still in ComicCon mode of thinking that was the place to be.

Opening Ceremonies

John Scalzi was the toastmaster for the opening ceremonies. He ran a very Johnny Carson like routine with the accompanying band accenting his moves.

Huge couches were set up in front and he interviewed the guests of honor then they took a seat as a new person came by. I found the guest of honor Mike Resnick to be a particularly interesting fellow, also very down to earth.

The lady whose design won the selection for the base of the Hugo award was also quite interesting. I hadn't known it was a competition.

There was a bit of Chicon history which was also fun.

LARPING: Make Believe for Grownups

I read a book a year or so ago called This is Not a Game by Walter Jon Williams. In it, a man ran LARP events that had people via the Internet solving puzzles and acting as characters in a dramatic game that he had created. He had some people who were regular players and others who would join in for a single game. Things go awry when a new player seems to know too much and he/she takes over the game. It becomes clear that this new game is a matter of life or death for someone and the regulars join in to help the game master solve the puzzles before anyone dies.

That story is what I had in mind, but the panel participants all have very diiferent experiences. I don't think they really explained what a particular LARP session would be like, they all just mentioned favorite bits of LARPS they have been involved in.

My best guess explanation from what they said is: someone writes a scenario which is acted out in a very limited space, say a room or two. The game master responds to player questions and moves things forward plotwise as he would in a Dungeons and Dragons game. Only, there are no cards, no boards, no character figures. The players themselves are the figures, often in costume, and with props for weapons.

Haunted Bus Tour

We could go to the Planetarium for a special event or on a Haunted Bus Tour of Chicago. Although I've never been to a planetarium and would like to go, I am not one to pass up something like a Haunted Bus Tour.

We visited various sites such as a theater where a fire had killed several hundred people, the site of the St. Valentine's Day Massacre and the former coal pit where the doc from The Devil in the White City supposedly disposed of ashes.

As we rode along the guide told stories of murder and disaster throughout the city. Occasionally after hearing a tale we got out of the bus and examined the site. He told us in many cases that people would find ghostly shapes or people in their photographs. He himself had one seen the imprint of six bodies in the snow at the site of the St. Valentine's Day massacre.

Having grown up reading ghost stories like mad it was all fun, but only two places looked creepy as if something might lurk there:

The alley outside the Iroquois Theater seemed shadowy and spooky.

The Jane Addams Hull-House was curiously empty for a museum. Though well kept it was eerie. I kept thinking this would be a good place for Lizzie Borden to hang out. Note how close the name is to "Hill House". Yup. Creepy place. It has a charming story of a "devil baby" having been in hiding there that is detailed on the museum web site.