Evelyn C. Leeper's Home Page: Books, Travel, and More

This week's MT VOID contents :

The Theory and Origins of Piquant Food (Part 2) (comments by Mark R. Leeper)
MARY POPPINS RETURNS (film review by Jim Susky)
THE CONSUMING FIRE by John Scalzi (audiobook review by Joe Karpierz)
Around the World in 80 Minutes? (letter of comment by Daniel T. Cox)
This Week's Reading ("The Foundation Trilogy" and AROUND THE 
     WORLD IN 80 DAYS) (book comments by Evelyn C. Leeper)
Quote of the Week

Featured articles, trip logs, and convention reports:

• Philcon 2017 (November 2017) (33K)
• Annotations and Thoughts on Moby Dick (FINALLY FINISHED!) (543K)
• Road Trip to Utah (October 2017) (56K)
• List of books read by the Old Bridge (NJ) Public Library's "Original" Book Group
• List of books read by the Old Bridge (NJ) Public Library's Science Fiction Book Group

Mark and I were Fan Guests of Honor for Windycon XXIX, November 8-10, 2002. Here are:

• My convention report
• A brief co-biography written for the Program Book by friend and seven-time Hugo nominee Bob Devney
• Further information on Windycon

What I do:

• I was for twenty years one of the judges for the Sidewise Award for Alternate History.
  • Click here for "AH 101," a quick introduction to alternate history.
  • Click here for a list of Jewish-themed alternate histories.
• I read books and write book reviews.
• I travel and write travelogues and science fiction convention reports.
• I maintain various lists and pages:
  • Lists of bookstores throughout the world
  • A Magical Realism page of discussion and links
  • A Harry Potter page: differences between the British and American editions of the first book (work in progress)
  • A Sherlock Holmes booklist
  • The rec.arts.books FAQ
  • The rec.arts.sf.written FAQ
  • The rec.arts.movies FAQ
  • The rec.arts.sf.movies FAQ
  • Recommended DVD commentaries

If you want to get some idea of my philosophy, check out my .sig quotes.

I have been nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer twelve times, most recently in 2001.

The MT VOID is a publication of the Mt. Holz science fiction club.

To subscribe, send mail to mtvoid-subscribe@yahoogroups.com or go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mtvoid/.

Table of Contents

• 01/18/19, Vol. 37, No. 29: Comments on hot food; film review of Mary Poppins Returns; book review of The Consuming Fire; letter of comment on circumnavigating the globe; and comments on books ("The Foundation Trilogy" and Around the World in 80 Days).
• 01/11/19, Vol. 37, No. 28: Question about circumnavigating the glove; comments on hot food; book review of The Very Best of Caitlin R. Kiernan; letters of comment on Rotten Tomatoes, Mortal Engines, and Aquaman and comments on books (Walden, Edgar Allan Poe, The Scarlet Letter, and "Benito Cereno").
• 01/04/19, Vol. 37, No. 27: Announcement of OFCS film awards; comments on Oscar Wilde; film reviews of Men and Monsters, Mowgli, Bohemian Rhapsody, The Favourit, Aquaman, and Mortal Engines; letters of comment on The Advocates and median income, on super powers, on Spartacus, and on Red Moon; and comments on books (Book Girl).
• 12/28/18, Vol. 37, No. 26: Announcement of science fiction discussion groups; comments on Mark's picks for Turner Classic Movies in January; book review of Red Moon; film review of The Advocates; letters of comment on super powers; and comments on books (Inside the Third Reich).
• 12/21/18, Vol. 37, No. 25: Comments on Harry Potter, Tor.com short fiction, and the Elf on the Shelf; short film reviews of Darkest Hour, Eating Animals, and Tito and the Birds; film reviews of 20th Annual Animation Show of Shows, Green Book, and Cannibals and Carpet Fitters; letters of comment on super powers, and on comic books; and comments on books (Inside the Third Reich).
• 12/14/18, Vol. 37, No. 24: Comments on magic swords and zombie dogs; film reviews of Suspiria (2018) and The Hate U Give; letters of comment on super powers; and comments on books (Inside the Third Reich).
• 12/07/18, Vol. 37, No. 23: Comments on maps of imaginary worlds, on the 1910 Frankenstein, and on super powers; book review of Salvation; letters of comment on Astounding, and on penguin quotes and quotes in general; and comments on books (The Idea of Progress).
• 11/30/18, Vol. 37, No. 22: Correction; announcement of science fiction discussion groups; comments on Mark's picks for Turner Classic Movies in December, film review of Mac and Me; letters of comment on the metric system, on the Penguin quote, on Thanksgiving, on square dancing, on Isle of Dogs, on origami, on quotes, on James Bond, and on The Song of Sway Lake and comments on books (Ready Player One, Space Opera, and 100 Greatest Film Scores).
• 11/23/18, Vol. 37, No. 21: Comments on the square dance conspiracy; book review of Astounding; letters of comment on Isle of Dogs, on Penguin Books, and on the metric system; and comments on books (The Annotated Emerson).
• 11/16/18, Vol. 37, No. 20: Comments on the square dance conspiracy; film review of Isle of Dogs; letters of comment on the metric system, on gender pronouns, on George Orwell, and on the square dance conspiracy; and comments on books (The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon).
• 11/09/18, Vol. 37, No. 19: Comments on the square dance conspiracy; book review of If Tomorrow Comes; letters of comment on the metric system, gender pronouns, and the square dance conspiracy; and comments on books (The Penguin Essays of George Orwell and Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography).
• 11/02/18, Vol. 37, No. 18: Comments on the square dance conspiracy; film review of Bonehill Road; letters of comment on the metric system, and on profanity; and comments on books (the "Foundation" trilogy").
• 10/26/18, Vol. 37, No. 17: Announcement of science fiction discussion groups; comments on Mark's picks for Turner Classic Movies in December; film reviews of Solis and Murders in the Zoo; letters of comment on profanity, and on gender pronouns; and comments on books (Pride and Prometheus).
• 10/19/18, Vol. 37, No. 16: Comments on word choice; film review of First Man; letters of comment on harbingers, on gender imbalance, and on envisioning the future; and comments on books (the "Murderbot" series).
• 10/12/18, Vol. 37, No. 15: Comments on harbingers in nature; film review of Strange Nature; book reviews of Head On and The Rubicon; letters of comment on gender imbalance; and comments on books (Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Death of a Salesman).
• 10/05/18, Vol. 37, No. 14: Comments on cloning; letters of comment on The Rain, on The Calculating Stars and The Fated Sky, on The Odd Couple, on 7 December 1941, and on spoilers; and comments on books (Six Months, Three Days, Five Others).
• 09/28/18, Vol. 37, No. 13: Announcement of science fiction discussion groups; comments on Mark's picks for Turner Classic Movies in October; television review The Rain; letters of comment on Paradise Lost, on Making Movies, on "carpe diem", on cliches, on Ethelred the Unready, on spoilers, on the Beloit Mindset List, and on the dubious wisdom of Mark Leeper; and comments on books and movies (The Odd Couple, Severance, The Calculating Stars, and The Fated Sky).
• 09/21/18, Vol. 37, No. 12: Comments on Ethan Hunt and James Bond, and on a possible Chengdu Worldcon; book reviews of Blue Remembered Earth and Unholy Land; television review of Peppermint; letters of comment on Matt Helm and other spy films; and comments on books (Journey to Portugal, Where the Time Goes, American Notes, and The Black Cat).
• 09/14/18, Vol. 37, No. 11: Announcement of Philcon 2017 convention report; comments on Matt Helm and on going to see Mission: Impossible--Fallout; book review of Phoresis; film reviews of BlacKKKlansman and A Song for Sway Lake; letters of comment on the Beloit College mindset list, on the wisdom of Mark Leeper, on origami, on convention panels, and on temporal parochialism; and comments on books (The Collected Poems of Emily Dickinson, Crazy Sh*t Presidents Said, and Hungry Stones and Other Stories).
• 09/07/18, Vol. 37, No. 10: Comments on the Beloit Mindset List, and on the wisdom of Mark Leeper; book review of Infinity's End; film reviews of Rodents of Unusual Size and A Night in Old Mexico; letters of comment on Andre Norton, and on misunderstandings; and comments on books (John W. Campbell, Jr., Award winners).
• 08/31/18, Vol. 37, No. 9: Comments on monster movie memories; Announcement of science fiction discussion groups; comments on Mark's picks for Turner Classic Movies in September, film review of Three Identical Strangers; letters of comment on Paying the Price for Peace, on the Hugo Awards, on monster movies, and on The People's Republic of Everything; and comments on books (Catseye).
• 08/24/18, Vol. 37, No. 8: Comments on monster movie memories; list of Hugo and Retro Hugo Award winners; film reviews of The Monster That Challenged the World and Paying the Price for Peace; and comments on books (Hugo and Retro Hugo Awards winners and Uncharted: Lewis and Clark in Arcane America).
• 08/17/18, Vol. 37, No. 7: Comments on Dead Poets Society and teachers, and on grammar; television review of El ministerio del tiempo; film review of The Hypnotic Eye; letters of comment on The Merchant of Venice; and comments on books ( The New Annotated H. P. Lovecraft).
• 08/10/18, Vol. 37, No. 6: Comments on reference books; book reviews of The People's Republic of Everything and Faraday, Maxwell and the Electromagnetic Field; and comments on books (All's Well That Ends Well and The Problem Plays of Shakespeare).
• 08/03/18, Vol. 37, No. 5: Announcement of Sidewise Award finalists; film retrospective of Kronos (1957); comments on museums; film review of Curvature; letters of comment on Paradise Lost, on the heat wave, on Philcon 2013, on War of the Satellites, and on Mystery in the Wax Museum; and comments on books (Fire Watch).
• 07/27/18, Vol. 37, No. 4: Announcement of science fiction discussion groups and availability of Philcon 13 convention report; comments on Mark's picks for Turner Classic Movies in August, film retrospective of The War of the Satellites (1958); and comments on books (Paradise Lost).
• 07/20/18, Vol. 37, No. 3: Comments on water shortages and on The Fly (1958); film retrospectives of The General (1926) and 3:10 to Yuma (1957); letters of comment on Lifeforce, on History's Worst Decisions, on The Martian War and Martian invasions, on The Fly (1958), and on The Apartment; and comments on books (Making Movies).
• 07/13/18, Vol. 37, No. 2: Comments on The Fly (1958); film review of Lifeforce (1985); letters of comment on electronic menus, on confusion, on The Fly (1958), and on The Autobiography of an Unknown Indian; and comments on books (History's Worst Decisions and The Martian War).
• 07/06/18, Vol. 37, No. 1: Comments on The Fly (1958) and on confusion; film review of A.I. Tales; and comments on books (Dazzled and Deceived, Defining Moments in Books, and The Autobiography of an Unknown Indian).
• 06/29/18, Vol. 36, No. 52: Announcement of science fiction discussion groups; comments on Mark's picks for Turner Classic Movies in July; book reviews of Provenance and Apocalypse Nix; letters of comment on quidditch, on Tim Merrigan, on Retro-Hugos, on fanart, on word usage, on Robert A. Heinlein, and on giant higweed; and comments on books (The Brothers Karamazov and In the Devil's Garden).
• 06/22/18, Vol. 36, No. 51: Comments on giant hogweed and triffids, on created languages, and on Wonder Woman; film review of Mabel, Mabel, Tiger Trainer; letters of comment on the Lambeth Walk, British television, Hamlet, and Klingon; and comments on books (the "Harry Potter" series and quidditch).
• 06/15/18, Vol. 36, No. 50: Comments on the Batmobile and on the Lambeth Walk; letters of comment on Wonder Woman and on eadio drama; and comments on books (The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis, The Martian,amd Friends of the Library book sales).
• 06/08/18, Vol. 36, No. 49: Comments on issue numbers and on three days' grace and Night of the Demon; letters of comment on The Devil's Envoys, on Holiday Inn, on Jungle Book, on radio drama, and on television memories; and comments on movies (Blade Runner 2049, Get Out, The Shape of Water, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Thor: Ragnarok, and Wonder Woman).
• 06/01/18, Vol. 36, No. 48: Comments on television memories; letters of comment on turning on lighhts, on issue numbers, on Get Out, on The Shape of Water, and on Turner Classic Movies; and comments on movies (Bambi, Cat People, The Ghost of Frankenstein, I Married a Witch, Invisible Agent, and Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book).
• 05/25/18, Vol. 36, No. 47: List of Nebula Award winners; announcement of science fiction discussion groups; comments on Mark's picks for Turner Classic Movies in June; book review of Six Wakes; and comments on books ("Etaoin Shrdlu", Mimic", "Proof", "Runaround", "The Sunken Land", and "The Twonky").
• 05/18/18, Vol. 36, No. 46: Comments on India, and on migrating our desktop; film reviews of Wonder Woman and The Greatest Showman; book review of The Nine; and comments on books ("Bridle and Saddle", "Foundation", "Goldfish Bowl", "The Star Mouse", "There Shall Be Darkness", and "The Weapon Shop").
• 05/11/18, Vol. 36, No. 45: Comments on The Man from Earth trailer, on India, and on migrating our desktop; book reviews of The Prefect and A Skinful of Shadows; and comments on books ("Asylum", "The Compleat Werewolf", "Hell is Forever", "Nerves", "The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag", and "Waldo").
• 05/04/18, Vol. 36, No. 44: Comments on Flowers for Algernon TV adaptation, and on India; film comments on Downsizing; book reviews of In Other Lands and Stuff Matters; letters of comment on Tarzan, Beyond This Horizon, Islandia, tablets, and Retro Hugo Award finalists; and comments on books (Darkness and the Light).
• 04/27/18, Vol. 36, No. 43: Announcement of science fiction discussion groups; comments on Mark's picks for Turner Classic Movies in May, on palmtops and tablets, and on interplanetary travel; letter of comment on India, on The Left Hand of Darkness, and on libraries; and comments on books (Beyond This Horizon, Donovan's Brain, Islandia, Second Stage Lensman, and The Uninvited).
• 04/20/18, Vol. 36, No. 42: Comments on India, and on Lewis and Clark and the paradox of induction; letter of comment on The Left Hand of Darkness; and comments on books (Ex Libris).
• 04/13/18, Vol. 36, No. 41: Links to Retro Hugo finalists on-line and in print, and to a new podcast; comments on eyes and on 2001: A Space Odyssey; film review of Baja; letters of comment on Year 2018!, Star Wars, Moby Dick and Starbucks, Edgar Allan Poe, and Frankenstein; and comments on books (The Left Hand of Darkness).
• 04/06/18, Vol. 36, No. 40: Announcement of Hugo Award finalists; link to blog on SpaceX 2018 goals; comments on obvious languages and on diseases; book review of Autonomous; and comments on books (comments on the Hugo Award finalists).
• 03/30/18, Vol. 36, No. 39: Announcement of science fiction discussion groups; comments on Mark's picks for Turner Classic Movies in April; book reviews of The Freeze Frame Revolution and 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed; letters of comment on squid, and on rules for film reviewing; and comments on books (What Unites Us and Norton Critical Editions).
• 03/23/18, Vol. 36, No. 38: Comments on the Locus recommended reading list, on extreme characters on films, and on Mark's rules as a film reviewer; book review of Binti: Home; film review of The Forgiven; letters of comment on Stephen Hawking, on shotgun marriages, on city names, on Kate Wilhelm, on Black Panther, on squid, on Frankenstein, and on gender pay gaps; and comments on books (Drowned Worlds).
• 03/16/18, Vol. 36, No. 37: Obituaries for Kate Wilhelm and Stephen Hawking; comments on a space force, on Florida marriage laws, and on squid; film reviews of Black Panther, Prodigy, and Madame; book review of Binti; letters of comment on Annihilation, on Ian Stewart, and on Frankenstein; and comments on books (Drowned Worlds).
• 03/09/18, Vol. 36, No. 36: Comments on squirrel sports and on gender pay gaps; book reviews of Frankenstein and Calculating the Cosmos; film review of Actors of Sound; film score review of Annihilation; letters of comment on sporting animals and Annihilation; and comments on books (The Complete Tales of Jules de Grandin).
• 03/02/18, Vol. 36, No. 35: Comments on AARP's movies for grownups and on squirrels; film review of Annihilation; letters of comment on Moby Dick; and comments on books (Essays and Reviews by Edgar Allan Poe and The Dispatcher).
• 02/23/18, Vol. 36, No. 34: Announcement of science fiction discussion groups; comments on Mark's picks for Turner Classic Movies in March; list of Nebula Award nominees; film reviews of The Sect and The Millionaires' Unit; letter of comment on issue #2000, on mashed potatoes, on computer fonts, on The Berlin Project, on "By the Red Giant's Light", on My Journey to the Stars, and on Endurance; and comments on books (synchronicity, A Numerate Life and The Historical Film: History and Memory in Media).
• 02/16/18, Vol. 36, No. 33: Comments on restaurant ratings, and on arsonist birds; book reviews of Persepolis Rising and Raven Stratagem; film reviews of 7 Guardians of the Tomb and The Music of Silence; letters of comment on issue #2000, on Exapno Mapcase, on scientists and applications, and on mashed potatoes; and comments on books (Artemis and The Martian).
• 02/09/18, Vol. 36, No. 32: Comments on John W. Campbell's map and Fitbit; film review of Entanglement; letters of comment on immortal naked mole rats, on issue #2000, and on mashed potatoes; and comments on books (The Great Detective and The House of Unexpected Sisters).
• 02/02/18, Vol. 36, No. 31: Comments on MT VOID issue #2000, on the history of illustration in THE MT VOID, and on mashed potatoes; television review of The Blackist (Season 5); film review of Casanova Variations; letters of comment on ionic moments, and on Ulysses S. Grant; and comments on books (A Doll House).

Older back issues are available here and at fanac.org.

Here are some links to sites of interest:

• the incomparable Mark R. Leeper's Home Page
• The Internet Speculative Fiction DataBase
• Uchronia Alternate History List, Overview
• Steven Silver's Jewish Science Fiction Bibliography