Shortly before the world went into full lockdown, I did what any book dork would do: ordered a bunch of books. Today’s book haul mostly contains books in the “things I want to read” category with a smidge of “books I bought to support authors.”
On the list:
- Pollen by Jeff Noon (Pan)
I read Vurt in a college cyberpunk class, so I’ve got a bit of a soft spot for his work! Pollen is not a book in my collection, so finding this was a welcome event. - Rites of Passage by Mike Brooks (Black Library)
Mike suggested his new Warhammer 40k novel in response to one of my open calls for recently released books. I’m friends with the delightfully prolific David Annandale, who has written many things for the Warhammer 40k universe. So this seemed like an easy purchase! - Death of a Discipline by Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak (Columbia University Press)
For those not familiar with Spivak’s work, this is probably the book that caught her the most flack. My understanding is that this short work of literary criticism is her attack on the field of world literature and postcolonial studies, of which she is a notable part, in response to its ready acceptance in the halls of academia. Of course, I haven’t read it, so I’m curious what the content really contains. - The Cult Film Experience edited by J.P. Telotte (University of Texas Press)
I got curious about cult films and cult fandom while teaching some of Matt Hills’ fandom work in my Digital Fandoms class. This is one of many books that grabbed my interest, so it went in the “want” pile and got gobbled up by my credit card. Curious fact: this book has a “damaged book” stamp on it even though it is in pretty good condition. Weird. - Science Fiction After 1900: From Steam Man to the Stars by Brooks Landon (Twayne Publishers)
Honestly, I grabbed this for the title alone. I’ve written a little bit about the Edisonades in some of my earlier academic work, and Landon’s work is briefly referenced in Space Opera Renaissance, a book I taught a while back for an American Space Opera course (oh how I long to teach that class again). I’m curious about Landon’s perspective on the genre.
And there you have it.
What are you all reading?
