From: Richard Hanna 
Date: Mon, 3 Feb 1997 20:04:20 -0500
Subject: Fantasy Books

First of all, I loved your web page.  It was simply bursting with reviews, I
was pretty startled that one could actually have that much time to read, I
envy you.  I have a similar page, but because Im new to it its not nearly as
large as yours, I only include the reviews of a few of my favorites.  My
page is more graphically inclined though....
    But to my point.  You seem pretty knowledgeable about the subject of
fantasy fiction and here's my question.  In your opinion, who is the ONE
must read author for a fantasy fan (this does not include those authors
which every fantasy fan has already read eg Tolkien).  I'm always looking
for suggestions from knowledgeable people so I can sort out the trash.
Thanks for your help.
-"Sometimes nothing is a real cool hand"
  -Erchamion

## I responded with "Brust", who seems to be universally liked.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Mike Trevors 
Date: Tue, 4 Feb 1997 20:31:39 -0700 (MST)
Subject: Glen Cook's Glittering Stone.

It's out.  It appears that it will be a series of novels, at least two.
The first book in the 'Glittering Stone' series is called 'Bleak Seasons'
and the second is called ' She is the Darkness.'
 
Cheerful titles huh? :)  I thought you might want to know, if you didnt
already know about this.  I am currently reading the third book in the
series.  
 
Thought you might want to know. :)

Mikey

## Wake me up when it is all out in paperback.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Cyr Center Lab4 
Date: Sat, 08 Feb 1997 11:19:24 -0500
Subject: Xanth

I sincerely think you should read some more of Pier's books on Xanth. 
I began these books at 9. I have loved reading them for as long as I 
can remember from starting them. I think That Pier's Author's Notes 
are funny and to the point. If Mr. Anthony likes his books on Xanth, 
PLEASE by all means tell him to keep writing them. I am currently 
waiting ( And asking all the time ) for his latest Xanth novel, Faun & 
Games. I think you ought to read the following books.

1.Harpy thyme

2. Roc and a hard place

3. Yon Ill Wind

4. Demons don't dream

5. Geis of the Gragoyle

## What else can I say but "Gah!"

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: dmyers@terra.MSRC.Sunysb.EDU (David S. Myers)
Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 15:43:44 -0500
Subject: you books page

Hi
I enjoyed finding your web page with book reviews, and your tastes seem
very similar to mine. (I am an INFP).
Even your choices of material in the nonfiction end seem similar to my
own: Stephen J. Gould, Deborah Tannen, Gleick, etc.
I agreed with most all of the reviews I read, including the
Clancy/Creighton/Turow types. My taste in SF is toward older stuff, and
I am not into it as heavily as you (but agree on things like Childhood's End,
Tolkein, Stranger in a Strange Land, Neuromancer, Differenc Engine, etc).

Just a few suggestions of good reads of my own:

Looking through the mailbag, I see that others have suggested Philip K. Dick
a few times. If you haven't already, go seek out Eye in the Sky, Time out
of Joint, Dr. Bloodmoney, just to name a few.
Also, I enjoyed Umberto Eco's Name of the Rose. Just finished his most recent
one: Island of the Day Before, and it is good too. On your review, I will
be seeking out Foucault's Pendulum.

-david myers
(ps - Philip K. Dick's short stories are also excellent, and there is an
anthology of ones about robots

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Subject: serendipity

I am an avid reader who has hit the "what shall I read next?" wall.

I chanced upon your page while surfin' for a site on Steven Brust to see if
he has any forthcoming books (I've read 11 of his 15 novels - I haven't been
able to locate the rest).  I whole-heartedly agree with your rule about not
picking up a book until the series is complete in paperback - I don't know
how people can bear to read that way.  I also try to read what I can of a
particular author.  I like to get a feel for the scope and breadth of their
work but usually it's just pure enthusiasm for the author after a satisfying
read.  Steven Brust, Orson Scott Card and Douglas Adams have not failed me
yet -  I've enjoyed everything of theirs that I've been able to get a hold
of.  I try to read a variety of books (I've just finished reading through
Jane Austen's repertoire) but the SF/Fantasy genre holds a special place due
to the influence of Star Wars and Tolkien.

I was shocked to have read so much of your list (everyone except King - I
can't read Horror) and will have to test your personality theory when I get
the chance.  I wholeheartedly agree with your review of Tad William's Memory,
Sorrow and Thorn series (right down to your observation regarding the final
30 pages) and am looking forwarding to his completing his next mammoth series
soon.

Thank you for the recommendations - I am looking forward to discovering
Donaldson and Simmons.

In turn, I would like to recommend CS Lewis' Perelandra trilogy - I read it
ages ago but it's still poignant (be forewarned that it has even more
Christian influences then The Chronicles of Narnia)

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Robert Jones 
Date: Tue, 11 Feb 1997 16:45:11 -0800
Subject: thoughts on Piers Anthony and (Stephen King)

Hello. I cant say that I have read many of the authors you recommend, I
visited because I was doing a Piers Anthony search.Im from Australia and
recently grabbed part of his Virtual Mode series and the first book of 
the Infinity series to help get me through the heat-wave.Liked both his 
stories and his style.He reminds me of STtephen King in the way he uses
realism(ie. the ordinary)in a fantastic story. I wonder who you assume
his target audience to be, in respect to his preoccupation with nice 
naked chicks.Im Female, and I didnt find it too much yet(few more 
Infinity books to go thru though.) To me, its appealing the way Piers 
notices and appreciates the female characters, and their form.Also the 
nakedness of the serfs on Proton (the mechanical world)creates an 
important tension between it, and the fantasy world of Phaze. Concidering
that the main character is male(hetro),it makes sense that nude females 
are noted.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Naomi Kalmus 
Date: Tue, 11 Feb 1997 11:48:24 -0800
Subject: Stephen Donaldson and Christopher Hinz

Doug, the scifi series, The Gap into Madness, by Donaldson is finally
complete and out in all paperback.  In writing style and tone it is
quite different from fantasy work.  I really enjoyed it - its full of
twists in turns in how you feel about the characters and in the plot.		

Just finishing a book by Christopher Hinz called Liege-killer.  It has a
copywright of 1987 but a more recent publishing date.  Its pure scifi,
about a group of genetically engineered assassins.  It started a little
slow and then picked up.  I recommend it.

Naomi Kalmus

## I'll be reading the gap series this summer sometime.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: "Martha Walls" 
Date: Wed, 12 Feb 1997 22:45:19 -0600
Subject: The Cat Who Walks Through Walls

	I noticed you like Steven King, and Grisham(sp?) and a few others that
make Heinlein's stuff seem weird.  Personally, I like the book, and it's
not about a spy\hero (books aren't always about their main characters, for
instance "Press Enter" by John Varley), it's RAH's Comedy of Manners, and
if you look at it, it's hilarious.  I will admit, RAH can get a little
'dirty-old-man' seeming in his books, but that happens at the end (which is
a little dissapointing, but so is _Job_).  If you want to read some great
stories, try to find his earlier stuff (That was my uncle's
recommendation).  
	N-E-Wayz, _The Cat..._ is actually one of his better books thinks I, and
that's really disputed.  I guess it's one of those books you either Love or
Hate, but it's hard to be neutral about...*sigh* oh well, thanx for
listening\reading...

		-Thale

PS. Sorry to disturb you again, but i REALLY reccomend you read _The Eyes of
The Dragon_, by Steven King.  I have heard no one say it wasn't at least
worth the money, and I 'COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN' (as you say)...

PPS. Yer probably tired of me by now, so I'll make it breif,
You can't review Niven without hitting his two series (BTW: He wrote these
himself), _Series: Ringworld_ and _Series: Smoke Ring_  A good book of his
short stuff that includes the much heard about story: "Superman: Man of
Steel, Woman of Kleenex"(sp?) is _Dyson Sphere(?)_

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Steve Swanson 
Date: Thu, 20 Feb 1997 17:16:31 -0500
Subject: The Death Gate Cycle

I was just recently reading your review of the Death Gate Cycle and I 
think you've taken a slightly shallow reading of it.  For instance, your 
comments about Zifnab, if you were a reading of Weis and Hickman, you'd 
know that that charecter (if you spell his name sorta backwards (Fizban)) 
appears in the highly acclaim series, The Dragonlance Chronicles.  
Fizban, is extremely excentric here and Zifnab is, as you thought, comic 
relief not only for a reader who has no idea that Chronicles exist, but 
for people who do too.  I believe they are mainly catering to those who 
are familiar.  Those who are, I believe, find the jokes and puns much 
more interesting an entertaining.

Also, I believe the plot to be well drawn out and specific.  The Keg, er, 
Dwarf, Limbeck, was a necessary part to the plot and deserved the 
expansions that he got to his story.  This not only explained the inner 
workings of the entire "world" but also added a little "humanity" and 
brought the story a little closer to Earth instead of the realm of 
fantasy.

I'm not bashing you, don't get that idea, but I do suggest that you read 
the Dragonlance Chronicles, get a feel for their writing a little more 
(Weis and Hickman's) and then come back to the Cycle.  You might be 
pleasantly suprised.

Steve Swanson
csswan0@sac.uky.edu

## Now this kind of disagreement I can respect.  Letters like this
## are nice, because I occasionally find that the first work I read
## by an author is not necessarily indicative of their best work.
## I saw promise in Weis and Hickman's work, and I particularly went
## to great pains to note the strength of their world-building in
## my review.  So I will probably pursue DragonLance at some point
## in the future.  I doubt my opinion on DGC will change, however.
##
## For another, much different letter from a Weis/Hickman fan, read on...

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Sphere Membership Editor
Date: Fri, 21 Feb 1997 11:53:06 -0500 (EST)
Subject:  SF/Fantasy Media 

We have added to our site a section that will be dealing 
with upcoming fantasy fiction book releases. At the 
moment Tor books is using Sphere to market some of their 
upcoming books, and we are hoping to have several 
other publishers sign on with us in the near future.

Please, if you are interested in knowing any more 
information about this service or Sphere in general for your 
publication, feel free to contact us at 
master@fantasylink.com 

Thank You.

The page mentioned is at: 
http://www.fantasylink.com/upcoming.htm
Pesach CV Lattin
Sphere Fantasy Resources
http://www.fantasylink.com

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Jennifer 
Date: Fri, 21 Feb 1997 23:12:48 -0400
Subject: Link?

HI.  My David Eddings page is just getting off the ground.  Can I link your
page to mine.  You can visit me at the address below.

Thank You.

Bye,
Jennifer
jeni@mail-me.com
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/8745/

## I try to avoid doing a lot of joint links, because I find I can
## never keep current on all the good links out there.  When someone
## sends me a URL, I'm happy to publish it in the mailbag, but that's
## about all I can promise.  Links are not what my site is about.  If
## you want links, go to the central sites mentioned on my book links
## page and you'll find everything you could possibly want.  No need
## for duplication of effort.
 
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Marcia Shindler 
Date: Sun, 23 Feb 1997 02:17:15 +0000
Subject: Dan Simmons

Here is a review of Endymion, which ran in the "Des Moines Register" last
year.  If you would like to use all (or part) of it on your site, feel free
to do so (I own the copyright).  Also, if you are interested, I wrote a
profile of Mr Simmons (after conducting an interview) which ran in the
"Bloomsbury Review," July/August '96 (a shorter version of this profile ran
in the "Des Moines Register," along with the book review, and in the "Denver
Post," Dec. 3, 1995).  What follows, is the complete review, plus my
standard byline.  If you don't use the byline, please mention that this
review ran in "the Register," because my editor there is a terrific woman
who is doing SF a good deed by making space (three times a year: Dec/Jan;
Apr/May; Aug/Sept) to run an entire SF review column.  Thanks!  ---- DTS (by
way of my wife's email address).   

Review by Dorman T. Shindler (from "Des Moines Register," Jan. 28, 1996)

Endymion by Dan Simmons (Bantam Spectra/480 pages) $22.95

Although the type above the title on the jacket cover declares this book is
the sequel to Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion, it is nothing of the sort.
As Raul Endymion, the narrator of Dan Simmons' new novel, so aptly puts it:
"You are reading this for the wrong reason...If you are reading this because
you are a fan of the old poet's Cantos and are obsessed with curiosity about
what happened next in the lives of the Hyperion pilgrims, you will be
disappointed. I do not know what happened to most of them. They lived and
died almost three centuries before I was born."
	True to this beginning, Endymion does not take up where the "Hyperion
books" left off. This is the story of Raul Endymion and a young girl, who
may or may not be the messiah, named Aenea. The events which took place in
Hyperion serve only as history: a prologue to the political and social tenor
of Raul Endymion's world.
Having survived a rebellion by Artificial Intelligence computers, humans of
this far future have rejected all the lessons, structures, and ideas of
their past (a societal structure far more tolerant and liberal). Religion
and politics have become familiar bedfellows, and the dominant religion is
Catholicism. The Catholics have enlisted new members by gaining the secret
to controlling a symbiotic organism from the planet of Hyperion: shaped like
a cross, it provides its host with eternal life.
 The Pax, a military and religious alliance which allows priests and nuns
to become soldiers, is run by Pope Julius XIV. A man with ties to the events
on Hyperion some three hundred years ago, he has many secrets of his own.
	It was Pope Julius who introduced the majority of humans to the
crucifix-shaped symbiote. And it is the Pope who helps engineer an attempt
to obliterate the Ousters (highly evolved humans who live in zero gravity),
and orchestrates a hunt for the child, Aenea. Those pursuing her -- Father
Captain Desoya, Sergeant Gregorius, and Corporal Kee -- are told only that
Aenea represents a danger to the Pax, and to humankind. She must be
apprehended at all costs. They are given "Papal" authority to do and act as
they please, as long as the child is captured.
	An elderly man claiming to be the poet who wrote the "Hyperion Cantos,"
talks Raul Endymion (saved from wrongful execution on his home world of
Hyperion) into helping Aenea escape the clutches of the Pax. Though she
literally does most of the thinking and planning, and is the true
protagonist of this novel, Raul is her designated hero/disciple/protector.
He is something more than a Jay Gatsby, and less than a David Copperfield.
This unlikely pair is joined by a blue-skinned Android, named A.Bettik, as
they affect their escape. Just to keep things off balance, Simmons brings
back the Shrike (a multi-armed, razor sharp metal machine, which is part
monster, part avatar). There are other surprises in store for the reader as
well.
Like everything Simmons writes, Endymion is filled with concerns faced by
the entire human race: bigotry, religious intolerance, ecological
destruction. It is also, like the "Hyperion books," written around the
themes in the poem of the same title by John Keats. And Simmons is always at
his best (as in "The Great Lover" and The Hollow Man) when using the themes
and images of classic poetry as the foundation for thoughts about the fate
of mankind. His singular talent allows him to take the metal of poetry,
science, and philosophy,  temper them into suspense-filled plots, and polish
the entire package with memorable characters and beautiful prose. The result
is always a novel (or short story) both highly entertaining and profoundly
moving. Endymion is just that. In fact, this book is one of his most tightly
plotted and fast-paced, allowing only short periods of time for the reader
to catch his proverbial breath. After reading it, I found myself recalling a
comment about Charles Dickens, by writer John Irving: 
 "He never pretended to be an explorer, discovering neglected evils. Nor
was he so vain as to imagine that his love or his use of the language was
particularly special; he could write very prettily when he wanted to but he
never had so little to say that he thought the object of writing was pretty
language...The broadest novelists never cared for that kind of original
language...The larger, plainer things -- the things they are preoccupied
with, their obsessions -- these will last: the story, the characters, the
laughter and the tears."
	With Endymion, Dan Simmons has written yet another book which is
thought-provoking, moving, and unrelenting in its desire to entertain. Like
the readers of Charles Dickens, I hungrily await the next installment from
this modern master of narrative.

-End-
Byline: Dorman T. Shindler is the Science Fiction columnist for the "Des
Moines Sunday Register," and a contributing writer/reviewer for the "Dallas
Morning News," the "Denver Post," the "Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel," the "San
Antonio Express-News," the "St. Petersburg Times," the "Bloomsbury Review,"
and "The Armchair Detective." 

## The only reason I forego publishing this as a separate letter is
## because it doesn't recommend other books, but I thought it was
## a nice review, so it goes in the mailbag as an alternate opinion.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Joshua Hyde Library 
Date: Wed, 26 Feb 1997 18:34:51 -0800
Subject: Re: Lions of Al-Rassan

In your review of The Lions of Al-Rassan you describe Jehane as a 
kindath/*gypsy* doctor.  I was quite sure that the Kindath were a version 
of the Jews.  Do you think maybe?  
I am sending this from my local library and we cannot receive replies 
here.  But I absolutely agree with you that Lions was Kay's best so far, 
which is saying a lot.  (I liked Tigana the least.)  When is the next due 
out??? Not soon enough.  (He *is* writing another one, isn't he?

--mjb

## I added a little note to my Al-Rassan review regarding this
## letter.  Basically, while it may be true that Kindath parallel
## Jews more than gypsies, it seems rather irrelevant to try to
## make the distinction.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Glen Engel-Cox 
Date: Wed, 26 Feb 1997 11:53:17 -0800
Subject: Recommendations

Hey, Doug --

I was updated the book review resource list and got to your pages. 
Rereading your introduction, I was struck by the fact that you might
enjoy Alexandria Digital Library (that is, if you hadn't already heard
about it) at http://www.alexlit.com/.

glen

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Jasonsimp1@aol.com
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 21:52:11 -0500 (EST)
Subject: Great books

     Hi there.  I am glad you like to read, uh, reading is pretty much my
life.  I have read lots of books, by alot of authors, but I like Fantasy
best.  If you ARE interested in fantasy, I have a book or two to recommend.
 I just finished to books that are some of my very favorites.  and I have
read Lots of books :-).  So, have you ever heard of Mercedes Lackey or Andre
Norton?  well, they are two of my favorite authors, and they recently went to
together on two books, in a series.  They are Elvenbane and Elvenblood.  They
are NOT the ordinary, everyday fantasy type book!  Thet are great!  It has
dragons, halfbloods, elves, humans, Iron People (different race of humans),
and lots of other stuff. GREAT action, GREAT plot.  These two books have the
complexity and plot of a much longer series, truly great.  even if you don't
like fantasy that much, and you haven't read Lackey or Norton, these books
will make you.  I just finished Elvenblood today, it was just as great as the
first!  It is very important though that you read Elvenbane first, then
Elvenblood, if you decide to read them, or you will be really confused! :-)  
                          Thanks for your time,
                                Jason Simpson

P.S. While I'm here, do you know the adresses of where I can get some
different stuff to do with HTML?  I have read all the beginner's guides, I am
pretty good with it by now, but some of the complex pages I see you couldn't
have done with just what these guides tell you, and these are all I can seem
to find.  Thanks again.  No need to reply, I just felt like writing an e-mail
to someone who liked books, hoping I can get yet another unsuspecting person
hooked on Lackey and Norton! 

PS. By the way, 5 is too low a rating for Dune Messiah! :-) see ya later!

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: GSills100@aol.com
Date: Sat, 1 Mar 1997 09:46:38 -0500 (EST)
Subject: RE:  To New Address

Hi Doug !

I'm new to your page ( I wrote you for the first time earlier this week re:
your Minority Engioneering program).  Anyway, I just did a fast scan through
your fiction/N-F book reviews and found it enjoyable.  I plan to go back at a
slower pace.
    Since there is so much material there; I kinda did a sampling based on
authors/books I too had read; though actually I'm more interested in reviews
of books I have not read since I have an extrardinary backlog of "must-read"
books on my own list.  I am also curious about the man behind the reviews and
based on my sampling, I think I caught a few glimpses and snapshots (maybe)
of Doug Ingram.
    I'm debating about picking up Samuel Delaney's book, so I'm looking
forward to your review.
   Below I have just a few comments, mainly about Greg Bear.
    RE:  Greg Bear  "So you were depressed after "The Forge of God" too!
 Man, I was so surprised it made me feel down for 3 days....after all, it's
not like I've never read an 'end-of-the-world" book before.  Perhaps the idea
that there would be an entity so indifferent that it would invoke orchestrate
events to demonstrate our utter helplessness -- and then toy around with
humanity's hopes -- that made the book so depressing (not too mentioin the
graphic visulization of earth's de-evolution to a mass of molten fragments
from whence it came).  
        I was blown away by the hard sci-fi and technology and alien races of
"The Anvil of the Stars", so much so I reread it.  I too, did not like the
characters but it was not because of their homosexuality (i was surprised to
see Bear addressed that); they were just too annoying for the most part and I
had no empathy for Martin.
        "Blood  did you read the novel or the short story?  I thought the
novel was extraordinary, though I again struggled with tolerating characters
I neither liked nor had empathy for.

   Have you read books by David Darling?  I am trying to find "Deep Time" ;
simply extraordinary writing prose about an extraordinary topic.  I've also
read "The Equations of Time" and am working on "Zen Physics". 
    I need to finish Francis Crick's "The Astonishing Hypothesis", Michio
Kaku's "Hyperspace", Stephen Barnes "Blood Brothers" which was just released
 (I've e-mailed him on this story),  Terry McMillan's "Dissapearing Acts",
and newcomer Mary Kay Zaraslav's "The Frequency of Souls".   I juggle a lot
of science books, sci-fi, and fiction all at once.
      If you like speculative fiction, try marrying it with socio-politics
and take a stab at Derrick Bell's "And We Are Not Saved" and "Faces At the
Bottom of the Well".
*****
   By the way, are the minority outreach programs successful?  I am a product
of one from the 1970s and it made a big difference in my life.
Peace
Greg Sills
    
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Brett D Bochner 
Date: Mon, 03 Mar 1997 02:19:51 -0500
Subject: a rec

You should read "Gateway", by Frederik Pohl. It is one of the best.
The (3) sequels are okay, but not on the same level.

B.B.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: AliceShea@aol.com
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 18:01:49 -0500 (EST)
Subject: favorite authors: )

I really like to read, and although I do it all the time, I  am slow due to a
learning disability. I also don't spell very well, so forgive me please: )
Judith Merkle Riley   "The Oracle Glass"
just finished it for the second time.... I like it
also I knnow that I tend to read books about women,
I've also recently finished "Lady of the forrest" BY Jennifer Robinson (?)
not sure on the auther
I'm started on "the Strange Case of Dr. Jeckle and Mr. Hyde"
: )
I love Anne Rice, and I really like Paula Volski
"the Gate to Woman's country, as well as "A Plague of Angels", and "Beauty"
I don't remember the authors but they were all good books
"The Crystal Cave"
by Mary Stewart
"The Mists of Avalon"
those are the onlyones that I can remember right off the top of my head right
now: )
I hope to hear from you about your favorites

PS.  I like the classics too
Jane Eyre
The Good Earth
Necter in A Seive
Anything By Shakespere
Anything by Poe 
Dracula
Frankenstein
...... almost anything that is dark and of the Gothic nature: )

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: "Mark J. Levad" 
Date: Fri, 07 Mar 1997 13:15:45 -0800
Subject: Brust ommision

I noticed a large ommision in your list of Brust books.   The Sun, 
the Moon, and the Stars.

   This is a fascinating story and worth checking out.

   Although it seems as though you only read paperbacks I would like 
to recomend Brust's new book Freedom and Neccisity.

Mark Levad

## I intend to read both eventually, I promise!

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Mel DeKraker 
Date: Sat, 08 Mar 1997 21:40:41 -0500
Subject: Thanks

Thanks 
 For your insightful review of Harry Turtledove The Guns of the South!!
 I will buy it for sure.I just discovered Turtldove with the World
 in the Balance book .It's funny I like history and I asked my wife
 to pick up any book for me.Wow I couldn't put it down!  Mel :-)

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Fred Fenimore 
Date: Sun, 09 Mar 1997 21:27:31 -0500
Subject: Random feedback...

Just a quick note to say I very much enjoyed your site.  Got there from
alta-vista searching on "replay +grimwood".  Been a fav of mine for some
time now.  Especially liked the comedic treatment in Groundhog Day (the
movie).  

Thought I would suggest one for you if you can find it.  Journey of the
Oceanauts by Louis Wolfe. Interesting juvenile I picked up at a great
used book store in Florida some years ago. 

The other suggestion is Belgarath the Sorcerer.  I know, I know...  The
prospect of getting burned by Eddings tendency to rehash things looms; I
hated the Mallorean about as much as you can for the constant rehash
(and read it for the same reason you did).  But I have to hand it to
him.  He actually made retelling the original story make sense in a
larger scheme of things. 

Fred

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Thomas Gellhaus 
Date: Thu, 13 Mar 1997 16:54:58 -0800
Subject: your home page

Dear Doug:

I greatly enjoy checking your web page out - you have the best-written
reviews I have seen for books.  You have given me some good
recommendations to look for and read (I am a prolific reader).
    
I see (March 13) that you are reading Grass, by Sheri S. Tepper.  She
is one of my favorite writers.  I strongly recommend reading her book
Raising the Stones afterwards.  It is (not quite) a sequel - one
character in Grass appears near the end of Raising the Stones.  She also
wrote Sideshow as a (not quite) sequel to the first two, but I did not
enjoy it nearly as much as the others.
   
The only other recommendation I would make right now is to suggest you
take a look at the Recluce series of fantasy novels by L.E. Modesitt,
Jr.
Although I have no idea how good he is at science fiction, these novels
are impressive (imho).
	The Recluce Series:  THE MAGIC OF RECLUCE, THE TOWERS OF THE SUNSET,
THE MAGIC ENGINEER, THE ORDER WAR, THE DEATH OF CHAOS, FALL OF
ANGELS.
	All except FALL OF ANGELS are in paperback, and I did not like 
FALL anywhere near as much as the first five (which are fine by
themselves.) 
	                       Sincerely yours	
				Thomas Gellhaus 
				tg265769@hvcc.edu

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: jason a marhshall 
Date: Sat, 15 Mar 1997 01:52:06 -0800
Subject: Books

I would like to humbly suggest some other books you may enjoy.

Patricia Mckillup: The RiddleMaster of Hed series

Diane Duane:  My Enemy, My Ally; Spock's World. The other's are also
good, but you can see for yourself.  Highly recommended

John Ford:  The Final Reflection.  Highly recommended

Alan Dean Foster:  you might like the Spellsinger series....  Look for
them in used book stores.

Charles DeLint:  Svaha, the Jack the Giant Killer series

Orson Scott Card:  Children of the Mind (Ender's Saga); The Alvin
Journeyman series is excellent (but not yet complete); the Harmony books
are good.... 

Raymond Feist:  The new Midkemia books are okay, but not as good as the
original series.  This series is also still not yet complete.  You might
try the Kelewan books written with Wurst, those are fairly good....

	Anyway, just thought I would send my two cents.  I know there is more I
would recommend, but I will not bore you with a lengthy list of books
that I enjoyed.  I hope you are not offended by this; if you are, I
apologize in advance, and hope you are not TOO angry.

	If you want to reply, my e-mail address is:
	rannis-h@eecs.wsu.edu

Sincerely yours,
Richard C. Annis-Hilliard

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: JLWHill@aol.com
Date: Sat, 15 Mar 1997 23:29:38 -0500 (EST)
Subject: Grass

Doug,  Can't wait to read your opinion of Grass. I, and probably many others,
recommended it to you a few months ago. Since then, I have taken your advice
and read 3 Simmons books (H, TFoH, Endymion). Enjoyed them a great deal! Hope
you enjoy Grass and go on to read more of Tepper (she only has a couple of
misses).
Thanks for keeping up the website!     Jackie. 

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Steve  Breakfield  
Date: Mon, 17 Mar 1997 10:28:09 -0600
Subject: A book suggestion

     I discovered your home page while searching for reviews of William
Greider's books.  I enjoyed it.   I haven't thought about some of those old
SF books like Cities In Flight or The Mote in God's Eye in many years. 
I've gotten away from the genre in recent years and now read more
history, economics, health and a little philosophy.
     I just finished a good book you might want to try:  How the Irish
Saved Civilization by xxx Cahill (don't recall his first name).  Cahill is a
real scholar who has a flair for writing and tells his story well.  The Irish
monks fell in love with writing and copied eyerything they could get their
hands on at the time when Rome fell to invading barbarians.  Their busy
coping was the source of just about everything we know of Roman and
Greek civilzations.  bye for now, SteveB.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: mdmoore@mailhost.capecod.net
Date: Mon, 17 Mar 1997 12:21:37 +0000
Subject: a link for your book list

Here is a good link I found.  They have a ton of good links.

Bookzone
http://www.bookzone.com/index.html

Mark D. Moore
mdmoore@capecod.net

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Kent Shambaugh 
Subject: Robert Asprin, Jimmy Buffett

Dear Doug,

I would first like to say that I think your library is a wonderful idea and
that as long as it keeps being updated I will be certain to check it out
whenever I finish my latest book.

While I was browsing through yur reccomendations, I notice that while you
mentioned Robert Asprin in regard to the "Theives World" books, you did not
mention the Myth series, "Phule's Company" or "Phule's Paradise".  While I
understand that you might not want to get involved in a series that is still
producing books, the Phule's books really are separate books and can be
easily read without having to wait for the entire series, if there will even
be another book out I don't know.

Also, I didn't see Jimmy Buffett in the list of author's.  I know he is more
popular as a singer, but he can also write books and has several out.  They
are very humorous and I highly reccommend them.

Once again, I think you library is an exceptional source for finding
something to read and I am certain that many will and have found enjoyment
from your reccommendations.

Sincerely,
Kent Shambaugh

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: coolfunk@bellatlantic.net
Date: Tue, 18 Mar 1997 23:10:32 -0800
Subject: Great Library!

While searching for information on Robert Ludlum, I came upon your site.
I love mysteries, thrillers, and true crime.  And, although I am not a
fan of SF, I found your site to be well written, informative, enjoyable,
interesting, and entertaining.  It's a library worth mentioning to my
friends.  Thanks!

					Katie

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Floydtopia@aol.com
Date: Tue, 18 Mar 1997 22:13:41 -0500 (EST)
Subject: Hello

Hello, my name is Floyd Fox.  I am 16 and a great fan of Science Fiction and
Fantasy books.  I am really impressed with your booklist.  It covers a wide
range of authors, styles, and ideas.  I have read many of the ones you
listed.  My favorites include The Lord of the Rings by Tolkien, all the Star
Wars books (especially Zahn), The Paratwa trilogy by Hinz,  and the whole 10
book Mission Earth series by Hubbard.  The Paratwa was by far my most
favorite!!!  I would really enjoy hearing some of you thoughts and
suggestions for books if you have a chance.

Thank you for your time.

Floyd Fox,
Floydtopia@aol.com

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From ingram Wed Mar 19 13:04:08 1997
Date: Wed, 19 Mar 1997 13:04:02 -0500 (EST)
Subject: Re:  Hello

Thanks for the note; I've actually read the first Paratwa book in the
distant past, but I forgot to include it on my page because I don't
own it now.  I probably won't read and review the series for some time
to come, but I will eventually get back to it.  As for Hubbard, I
basically gave up after book 1 and haven't regretted it.  If you want
a concise list of my book recommendations, check out my poll votes,
linked to the welcome page.

Doug

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Kent Shambaugh 
Date: Sat, 22 Mar 1997 14:34:37 -0700
Subject: Jennifer Roberson

Dear Doug,

While browsing through your library, I came across a section of Jennifer
Roberson's works.  I noticed that you haven't yet reviewed the Sword series.
It consists of four book titled in order:  Sword-Dancer, Sword-Singer,
Sword-Maker, and Sword-Breaker.

I highly reccommend reading the series, and would try to describe them for
you, if I didn't think my writing style and descriptions would pale in
comparision to what others might be able to put into words.

Sincerely,
Kent Shambaugh

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Benjamin Cook 
Date: Sun, 23 Mar 1997 13:36:44 -0600 (CST)
Subject: Terry Brooks

Salutations.  I was recently browsing through your page(the list of 
authors) and found that under Terry Brooks you didn't have the Magic 
Kingdom for Sale series.  I assume that is because you didn't read them. 
Yes, they sound very idiotic, but they are good, light reading. Thus, I 
recomend them.  So why did I take the time to write this useless e-mail?  
I'm bored, what else am I going to do?  oh, wait, perhaps read......

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Shadow 
Date: Mon, 24 Mar 1997 17:34:58 -0400
Subject: Time Travel Genre

Dear Doug:
Do you have a recommended list of good time travel fiction genre?  I
have read Anderson's "There Will Be Time" and Grimwood's variation on
the theme "Replay."     Your insights would be appreciated.
Shadow

## Nothing leaps to mind except Replay and Hawke's "Time Wars" series.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Lupus Yonderboy 
Date: Mon, 24 Mar 1997 21:05:58 -0500
Subject: nice site

Hey - nice site. Must have taken a lot of work. I seem to be interested
in many of the same authors so I skimmed through your reviews. I agree
with many of them, but I must strongly disagree with you review of
Eddings' work. Of course it's only my opinion, but I find him to be one
of the most entertaining authors in the fantasy/swords&sorcery genre. I
especially like the way he handles the way magic works in his universe.
Not many authors make it as "real" feeling.

I noticed you haven't read all of the Julian May books yet. I highly
recommend them. She ties everything up quite nicely - including the tie
in with her other series _The Saga of the Pliocene Exile_.

Anyway, as I read more of your reviews I may comment more and pick up
some of the stuff I haven't read too.

Regards

Scott

p.s. I found your site through an Alta Vista search for Umberto Eco. In
case you were wondering.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Sylvia Reinhart 
Date: Tue, 25 Mar 1997 17:12:25 -0800
Subject: bookreviews

Hi,
I just finished glancing through your page and thought I'd send you a 
short letter.
I found it quite fascinating to see how much you've already read. I 
recognized about a third of the authors you wrote about. 
I've read one book of David Brin (Sternenflut in German) and enjoyed it 
very much. I liked Orson Scott Card's Ender-series and Timothy Zahn's 
sequel to Star Wars. I'm waiting to borrow Tad Williams series from my 
cousin, who is also a great science-fiction fan. It's sure a lot cheaper 
if you can swap books and you don't need as much room.
I got started on Science Fiction/Fantasy by Alan Dean Foster and Anne 
McCaffrey. I try to buy any of their books on paperback, that come out.
Recently I bought the sword-singer series by Jennifer Roberson, which I 
enjoyed a lot and have now started on the Cheysuli-series which I'm 
keeping for my holiday.
Have you read Michael Scott Rohan/Rowan(?)? He wrote a series of three 
books which I enjoyed very much but of which I only know the German 
name(Pfortenwelt). It reminds me a bit of Foster, but is different again.
Have a good time reading.
Sylvia

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Rgal@aol.com
Date: Wed, 26 Mar 1997 19:08:59 -0500 (EST)
Subject: OUR UNIVERSE

Dear Doug,
Just to let you know that my National Geographic book is now in its third
edition and is very much alive and well and up to date. Thanks for your nice
comments the book. It's in Japanese and Hebrew also.  Cheers. How many of my
other 80 some books have you listed?   --Roy Gallant

## Since receiving this letter, I've updated my review comments.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Uhyon Chung 
Date: Thu, 27 Mar 1997 08:53:35 -0500
Subject: comments

Hi there,

Since your mailbox seem to be overflowing with e-mail about
recommendations, you probably didn't want any more (I'm just
supposing... but i don't see how one can read all those recommended
books in one lifetime!). So I decided to write some comments on what you
put on your page.

Anthony, Piers... I always enjoyed his writings... Sometimes they can be
really silly, but so far, it's been fun.

Brooks... Your comments were rather amusing. Mainly because you seem to
be reconciling all the "hate-mail" you've received from Brooks fans! :)
Sort of scary if you ask me. Personally, I thought his books were pretty
good, and enjoyable, except for the occasional slow parts I skipped
over. The one really annoying part was when he switched perspective at
the critical moment, like the way they place commercials between movies.
It's so very annoying! I sometimes just skip the next perspective
sometimes and read back. (Robert Jordan does that a lot too.) BTW, the
next series (Scions of Shannar) is pretty good too, in some ways better.

deCamp, L.Sprague... I haven't read "Incompleat Enchanter", but I've
read his second book, (whose title I forgot). I loved the light humour
of the story, and found it "fun" to read, which is what I care about
most about in a book.

Donaldson... I guess we really have different tastes. I liked most of
the series, and thought it was great. However, towards the end,
especially The One Tree and the White Gold Wielder, I had to chug along
and grind through the books... It was just too much inner thoughts and
other nonsense.

Feist... His books were pretty good, as you've said. Prince of Blood
(the fifth) was the only one I'd not recommend. You've really got to
read the Empire serious though. It's one of those books I've spent the
whole night reading (and so has my sister.)

Hubbard... I think his writings are "fun" (which means I've read the
whole thing.) but very cynical. I'm also anti-Hubbard in general after I
found out about his scientology thingy.

Watt-Evans... My favorite author! Favorite book is With a Single
Spell... loved it!!!

Williams, Tad... Like Donaldson, I liked his beginning... The third book
was Slow... I kept wishing that magic existed in this world. The
references were too vague...

Weis, Margaret... Love her series. In the Dragonlance books, her book
stand out among the others who write for it. Her books are also "fun" to
read and one those that I spent the whole night for. I thought Zifnab
was a really funny/silly reference back to Dragonlance. :) Comic relief,
you might say...

I guess what we look for in these books are totally different. What I
look for are book that are "fun" to read, and I can read through without
having to start think of it as a philosophy book. I think some of that
philosophical nonsense is good in a novel, but when the whole thing is
like that, it bores me half to death. Reminds me of my Philosophy class
I took last year. I could BS well enough to get As on tests, but I never
found reading other people's BS very exciting.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: "usaf" 
Date: Thu, 27 Mar 1997 14:29:39 -0500
Subject: Death Gate 

I've just finished reading your rather dull review of one of my favorite
fantasy series, The Death Gate Cycle. I must admit, I had to laugh at how
ignorant you were of what the character of Zifnab really was. Obviously,
you either haven't read the authors' Dragonlance series (The only D&D books
I've EVER recomended to anyone), or you are completely clueless. Zifnab,
aka Fizban, is a character from this trilogy who is carried over. If you
would take the time to do a little research, you wouldn't need me to tell
you these things.
In parting, I leave you this one piece of advice, those with imagination,
write. Those without, critique. What a waste........

## Well, this deserves a reply only because it hit a nerve.
## Those of you who have read other letters similar to this in my
## mail bag along with my replies may see some similar comments.
## In fact, I did a little cutting and pasting.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From ingram Sun Mar 30 12:58:42 1997
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 1997 12:58:42 -0500 (EST)
Subject: Re: Death Gate

> I've just finished reading your rather dull review of one of my favorite
> fantasy series, The Death Gate Cycle. I must admit, I had to laugh at how
> ignorant you were of what the character of Zifnab really was. 

	Actually, though it doesn't say so in my review, I had guessed
that Zifnab was a character from another series by one or both authors
because he was introduced on the assumption that the reader was already
familiar with his personality in some sense.  This may work well for
readers of Weis/Hickman, but regardless of Zifnab's origins, I personally
felt his presence detracted from the series.

> Obviously,
> you either haven't read the authors' Dragonlance series (The only D&D books
> I've EVER recomended to anyone), or you are completely clueless. Zifnab,
> aka Fizban, is a character from this trilogy who is carried over. If you
> would take the time to do a little research, you wouldn't need me to tell
> you these things.

	I don't understand the rudeness and condescension here.  Are you
really that personally threatened by a simple book review that you feel
the need to act this way toward someone you haven't met?

	To be clear, it is *you* who need to do a little research.  First
of all, my book reviews are simply opinions, and I invite disagreement
and/or agreement and/or further recommendations.  That's the *point* of
the page.  Your letter, just like all the other letters I've received,
will be published in my mail bag.  Your attitude doesn't speak well for
fans of Weis and Hickman (from whom I've received several emails over
the past year) and is more likely to drive away potential fans than
get them to agree with you.

	Which brings me to my main point:  What was the purpose of your
letter?  If your goal is to get me to change my mind about the series,
you shouldn't just say "You're wrong" in an insulting way.  You should
give me some kind of thoughtful reason, listing some of the positives
I may have overlooked (though in retrospect, I think my review was
unusually kind).  Same is true if your goal is simply to present a
counterpoint to my review in the mailbag.  If you really care about it,
be my guest.  If you don't, then from my end, it looks like you're
just spouting off for the sole purpose of venting anger at me.  Hey,
it's a free country, but don't expect me to show you a lot of respect 
in return.

	Believe me, I sympathize with the plight of someone whose
favorite author is critically lambasted.  I mean, come on, I'm a
Donaldson fan, for crying out loud!  But you should really consider
your words more carefully.

> In parting, I leave you this one piece of advice, those with imagination,
> write. Those without, critique. What a waste........

	How ironic that you should write this, given that it is *you*
who are criticizing something that *I* wrote.  

Doug

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Mark Travaglia 
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 1997 20:49:43 +1200
Subject: Books to read

 After looking at your page my to read list, already far too large, swelled
to tremendous proportions.  I agreed with most of your reviews, all the ones
I like you like too, but you like some ones that I don't like. My
personality type is INTJ, if thats any help. I haven't read very many decent
books, but I thought I should return the favour and recommend some.

 My favorite Discworld books are Witches Abroad, Interesting Times, and
Reaper Man. And seeing as you like Pratchett and Adams you'll probably like
Robert Rankin, although if you're in the states you might have trouble
finding his books. Another obscure author that just popped into my head is
Jack Yeovil, (I might have spelt that wrong) he's written Drachenfels,
Genevieve Undead, and Beasts in Velvet that I'm aware of, there are probably
some more. Don't be put off by the Warhammer setting, they are good.

 Despite the overwhelming urge to do so I have refrained from mentioning
that Robert Jordan is my favorite author, and you should read the Wheel of
Time as soon as possible (Sorry, I shouldn't have said that.) But I would
like to tell you the other side of the 'Why Jordanites have a bad name in
rasfw' story. Apparantly rasfw was at one time nearly overrun by Jordan
posts, and the Jordanites were subjected to unreasonable abuse by irate
rasfwians. Eventually they got kicked into a new newsgroup and everyone was
happy. Of course thats completely biased account by an ardent Jordanite, but
it offsets the biased account by an ardent anti-Jordanite(s?) you seem to
have gotten. Anyway, if the regulars in rasfw are anything like the regulars
in rasfwrj then I can easily imagine both sides being at fault.

Jon Travaglia

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Richard Winters and Tienchin Ho 
Date: Sun, 30 Mar 1997 10:20:31 -0800
Subject: more books

Some books you may wish to glance at if you have time:

Waking the Moon (Elizabeth Hand) 
Well written as far as literature goes with some well-developed themes
of the female archetypes - and an excellent story besides
my favorite book this year (possibly in part because I read it sitting
in some nice parks in Washington DC where the story takes place) -
achieves what other authors (Mists of Avalon) have tried to accomplish
for the female archetype - not for the easily injured male ego

China Mountain Zhang (Maureen McHugh)
Her first book and still her best (Half the Day is Night is the newer
one) - more sci fi than fantasy - excellent literature and
psychoanalysis

The Diamond Age (Neal Stephenson)
Not anything like Snow Crash - has some themes in common with Williams'
Otherland - this book has much more substance and is less of an Indiana
Jones type of adventure movie - and has more literary merit as well

Zodiac (Neal Stephenson)
Not anything like The Diamond Age - back to the adventure movie but now
one with a "moral" standard - mediocre literature

Pastwatch (Orson Scott Card)
only in hardback I think
Fun and quick read - interesting ideas - mediocre literature

Some info to temper my recommendations -
I am an INTP
I loved Grass (Tepper), the Ender series, all LeGuin books, The
Dragonbone Chair/The Stone of Farewell/Otherland, Madelaine L'Engle,
Robert Jordan, and Tolkein of course.
I liked Hyperion (more than TfofH), Shannara Elfstones/Wishsong (not so
much the later ones), To Green Angel Tower (I agree that it was
anticlimactic - I think Williams got tired), Zelazney's stuff.
I sort of liked Donaldson's Covenant series (read during my banishment
from the world while I had the chickenpox).
I do not like Piers Anthony (boring), Katherine Kurtz (predictable),
Heinlein (VERY dated and somewhat homophobic), Hickman/May/etc (all the
same).

If you post this please post without my e-mail address. Hope this adds
some good reading for you.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: Julio Septien 
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 1997 11:22:27 +0200

I think you should update your comments on Julian May's saga. 
You shouldn't wait too
much for the Pliocene Exile series. It was a great success ten (or so)
years ago, specially
The Many-Colored Land. Along with the other three books of the series, it
is a wonderful
retelling of all the myths of human past (including the celtic Tuatha de
Danan people, or 
the Christian Devil himself, one of the Remillards gone the the remote
past). It even explains
in a curious way how Gibraltar strait was formed in an epic battle,
separing Europe from Africa.
I enjoyed it very much, even if I read it in a quite bad Spanish
translation. Just after I finished
the first book I had to go for the rest of them, and had to wait one more
month for the last 
of them to be published.
I agree many other comments. Specially those on the Shannara or Pern
Dragons books, 
that have been largely overvlued.
Also agree on the great books and writers. Tolkien, Simmons, Donaldson,
Brin, Silverberg, or Le Guin...
I read years ago the first three books from Glen Cook's Black Company
series, so injustely
forgotten, and also found them astoundly good. I had no news of the other
books until I read your pages, and will try to find them.
Thank you for your effort.
Julio Septien