The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang - 2018 - 566 Pages - Part One of a Trilogy - Nominee for Best Fantasy (2018), Nominee for Best Debut Author (2018)

The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang - 2018 - 566 Pages - Part One of a Trilogy - Nominee for Best Fantasy (2018), Nominee for Best Debut Author (2018)





I was pleased to be able The Poppy Wars and the two other novels in the Trilogy via Libby.


I enjoyed the opening portions of Poppy Wars as the orphan Rin struggled as Rin, an orphan abused by her opium dealing Foster parents studied to pass a very difficult exam which would gain her entrance to a very prestigious school. Above all she wanted to avoid being married off to an older man so her Foster parents can be paid. When she passes her entrance to the academy and her time there held my attention.


Then war breaks out and Poppy Wars to me devolves into endless violence. I found it becoming a task to finish the story. The characters were obsessed with killing. Maybe the book was just not right for me but I returned the other two books in the Trilogy.


"An epic historical military fantasy, inspired by the bloody history of China’s twentieth century and filled with treachery and magic.


When Rin aced the Keju—the Empire-wide test to find the most talented youth to learn at the Academies—it was a shock to everyone: to the test officials, who couldn’t believe a war orphan from Rooster Province could pass without cheating; to Rin’s guardians, who believed they’d finally be able to marry her off and further their criminal enterprise; and to Rin herself, who realized she was finally free of the servitude and despair that had made up her daily existence. That she got into Sinegard—the most elite military school in Nikan—was even more surprising.


But surprises aren’t always good.


Because being a dark-skinned peasant girl from the south is not an easy thing at Sinegard. Targeted from the outset by rival classmates for her color, poverty, and gender, Rin discovers she possesses a lethal, unearthly power—an aptitude for the nearly-mythical art of shamanism. Exploring the depths of her gift with the help of a seemingly insane teacher and psychoactive substances, Rin learns that gods long thought dead are very much alive—and that mastering control over those powers could mean more than just surviving school.


For while the Nikara Empire is at peace, the Federation of Mugen still lurks across a narrow sea. The militarily advanced Federation occupied Nikan for decades after the First Poppy War, and only barely lost the continent in the Second. And while most of the people are complacent to go about their lives, a few are aware that a Third Poppy War is just a spark away . . .


Rin’s shamanic powers may be the only way to save her people. But as she finds out more about the god that has chosen her, the vengeful Phoenix, she fears that winning the war may cost her humanity . . . and that it may already be too late"- from the publisher


I would say if you are a fan of the fantasy genre, as I am, give the book a try if you can get an E book via Libby

Devil Girl from Mars - 1954- Is black-and-white science fiction film, produced by the Danziger Brothers, directed by David MacDonald and starring Patricia Laffan, Hugh McDermott, Hazel Court, Peter Reynolds, and Adrienne Corri.

Available on YouTube 

 Devil Girl from Mars - 1954- Is black-and-white science fiction film, produced by the Danziger Brothers, directed by David MacDonald and starring Patricia Laffan, Hugh McDermott, Hazel Court, Peter Reynolds, and Adrienne Corri. 

"Nyah, a female commander from Mars, heads for London in her flying saucer. She is part of the advance alien team looking for Earthmen to replace the declining male population on her world, the result of a "devastating war between the sexes". Because of damage to her craft, caused when entering the Earth's atmosphere, and an apparent crash with an airliner, she is forced to land in the remote Scottish moors. She is armed with a raygun that can paralyse or kill, and is accompanied by a tall, menacing robot named Chani.

Professor Arnold Hennessey, an astrophysicist, accompanied by journalist Michael Carter, is sent by the British government to investigate the effects of the crash, believed to be caused by a meteorite. The pair come to the Bonnie Charlie, a remote inn run by Mr and Mrs Jamieson in the depths of the Scottish Highlands.

At the bar they meet Ellen Prestwick, a fashion model who came to the Bonnie Charlie to escape an affair with a married man. She quickly forms a romantic liaison with Carter. Meanwhile, escaped convict Robert Justin (under the alias Albert Simpson), convicted for accidentally killing his wife, comes to the inn to reunite with barmaid Doris, with whom he is in love.

Nyah happens across the inn, incinerates the Jamiesons' handyman David, and enters the bar. When she finds no one willing to come with her to Mars, she responds with intimidation, trapping the guests and staff within an invisible wall and turning Chani loose to vaporise much of the manor’s grounds. Discovering Justin and Tommy, the Jamiesons' young nephew, hiding in the grounds, Nyah kidnaps Tommy as a possible male specimen, and sends Justin back to the inn under some manner of mind control. Nyah then brings Professor Hennessy aboard her spaceship to view the technological achievements of Martian civilisation, including the ship's atomic power source. In exchange for Tommy, Carter volunteers to go to Mars with Nyah.

Realising that the only road to victory over Nyah requires trickery, Hennessy suggests Carter sabotage the ship's power source after take off. However, Carter attempts a double cross before boarding the ship, snatching Nyah's controller for Chani, but this attempt is thwarted by Nyah's mind control powers. Carter is released by Nyah, and they both return to the bar, where she announces that she will destroy the inn and kill everyone within when she leaves for London. However she allows for one man to go with her in order to escape death. The men draw lots and Carter wins the draw, still hoping to enact Hennessy's plan to destroy the spaceship.

At the last minute, Justin, alone at the bar and now free from mind control when Nyah returns, offers to go with her of his own free will. After take-off he successfully sabotages Nyah's flying saucer, sacrificing himself to save the men of Earth, and atoning for the death of his wife. The survivors celebrate their escape with a drink at the bar." Wikipedia 

I found Devil Girl From Mars a very entertaining way to spend 75 minutes.  It comes across as low camp.

Unknown World (a.k.a. Night Without Stars) is a 1951 black-and-white science fiction adventure film, directed by Terrell O. Morse, and starring Bruce Kellogg, Marilyn Nash, Jim Bannon, and Otto Waldis.

 Unknown World (a.k.a. Night Without Stars) is a 1951 black-and-white science fiction adventure film, directed by Terrell O. Morse, and starring Bruce Kellogg, Marilyn Nash, Jim Bannon, and Otto Waldis.

Available for free on YouTube 

The film concerns a scientific expedition seeking livable space deep beneath the Earth's surface in the event a nuclear war makes living above ground impossible.

Dr. Jeremiah Morley is concerned about an imminent nuclear war. He organizes an expedition of scientists and has them use a large atomic-powered tank-like boring machine, called the Cyclotram, capable of drilling down deep through the Earth's surface in order to find an underground environment where humanity could escape and survive a future nuclear holocaust.

"The expedition (Andy Ostergaard, Dr. Lindsey, Dr. Bauer, Dr. Paxton, and Dr. Coleman) begins after government funding has fallen through, and they are bailed out at the last minute by private funding from newspaper heir Wright Thompson, who insists on going with them as a lark. Romantic rivalry soon develops between Ostergaard and Thompson for Lindsey, and during the dangerous underground expedition two lives are lost to the perils of their adventure.

In the end the scientists accomplish their goal and find an enormous underground expanse with a plentiful air supply, its own large ocean, and phosphorescent light. However, all the lab rabbits brought with them give birth to dead offspring. Through autopsies, it is discovered that this strange underground world has somehow rendered the rabbits, and hence any other life form, sterile. Dr. Morley is deeply depressed by this news. When an underground volcano suddenly erupts, he fails to enter the safety of the Cyclotram and quickly perishes.

The Cyclotram, carrying the remaining survivors, enters the underground ocean to avoid the eruption. They soon find themselves rising toward the surface of the upper world, having been caught up in a strong, upward-moving ocean current. They eventually break the surface near an unknown tropical island." From Wikipedia 

At times the movie now seems unintentionally comic. I endorse it as escapism.

"Chemistry" - A Short Story by Carol Shields - 20 Pages- included in The Short Stories of Carol Shields- 2004

 This year, Buried in Print, a marvelous blog I have followed for over ten years,is doing a read through of the short stories of Carol Shields. I hope to participate fully in this event.

The more I read in the stories of Carol Shields the more grateful I am to Buried in Print for turning me on to her work. There are sixty some stories in the collection,it is my hope to read and post on them all in 2024.

"Chemistry" is the 25th story by Carol Shields upon which I have posted,  it centers on a mixed group of music students who gather weekly for lessons.

It is told by a narrator whom we learn little personally about and addressed to an unknown person she refers to as "you".  Shields has a great talent for bringing people to life in just a few sentences.

One of the common features in her stories is inclusion of references to items from high culture. In "Chemistry" is is Mozart and Bach.

The Carol Shields Literary Trust has lots of data on her life and work.

Giant from the Unknown 1958 ‧ Horror/Sci-fi ‧ 1h 17m - Directed by Richard Cuhna - Available on YouTube

Giant from the Unknown 1958 ‧ Horror/Sci-fi ‧ 1h 17m - Directed by Richard Cuhna - Available on YouTube 

The citizens of mountain town Pine Ridge, California, are concerned about a series of livestock mutilations in nearby Devil's Crag. A local, Harold Banks, is also found dead there, killed in the same manner as the livestock. Sheriff Parker orders everyone to stay away. Local speculation is that the deaths are supernatural in origin. Native American, "Indian Joe", confirms their fears of a tribal curse, but is driven out of town by the sheriff.

Local geologist Wayne Brooks is told of Banks' death by friends Anne and Charlie Brown, two Pine Ridge siblings. Sheriff Parker is suspicious of Brooks, having heard about a recent confrontation between Brooks and Banks. As the sheriff is questioning him, Dr. Cleveland and his daughter Janet arrive in town. Cleveland is planning to do archaeological research in the area. While Brooks helps Janet pick up supplies, Parker warns Cleveland about the Banks murder. While at dinner with Cleveland and Janet, Brooks, formerly Cleveland's student, offers to be his area guide.

Brooks tells Cleveland of a local Native American legend that evil spirits will rise up in Devil's Crag. He also says that Native American artifacts have been found there and that he has them. Dr. Cleveland reveals that he is searching for the remains of a Spanish expedition that he believes reached Devil's Crag 500 years earlier. The specific group Cleveland is tracing, known as the "Diablo Brigade", split off from the main expedition and was led by a huge man named Vargas, also known as the "Diablo Giant". After dinner, Janet agrees to go on a date with Brooks after he takes Cleveland to his field laboratory.

At the laboratory, Cleveland is examining Brooks' artifacts when Janet opens a box with a small lizard inside. Brooks found it inside a rock, where it had been in a state of suspended animation for a long time. Cleveland continues examining it and the artifacts, as Indian Joe peers through a window, watching closely.

When Brooks and Janet return, Cleveland excitedly calls them inside. He pieced together broken fragments into a cross and now theorizes that the Conquistadors influenced the locals hundreds of years before. The next morning all three go to Devil's Crag, and Sheriff Parker follows them in his police car. Parker pulls up and chastises Brooks for leaving town because he knows that Devil's Crag is off limits. Cleveland produces a permit from the Commissioner of Public Lands that allows him to conduct his research. Cleveland assures Parker that they are armed and can defend themselves. Unconvinced, Sheriff Parker leaves, and the small group sets up camp.

The next day, while Brooks is examining the area, Indian Joe fires his rifle in Brooks' direction. Joe tells him that he is just hunting rabbits, but pointedly asks if they are there to rob Native American graves. Brooks assures him that they are only after Spanish artifacts, so Joe agrees to hunt elsewhere, warning Brooks that the place is evil.

Brooks returns to camp and informs Cleveland that the area is changed. He theorizes that a recent electrical storm disturbed the whole area. They begin using their metal detectors to search but without success. Janet encourages Cleveland to give up, and he agrees to stop. She uses one of the detectors and by chance detects something. The spot is excavated and a cache of Spanish artifacts, armor, weapons, and bones are found. Brooks finds a rock formation similar to the one in which the lizard was entombed and discovers the handle of a massive, still intact axe he believes belonged to the "Diablo Giant". Brooks is forced to leave because of a large electrical storm, just before the "Diablo Giant" Vargas rises from the site's detritus.

The next day, the group finds a large indentation in the ground and giant-sized armor and other artifacts. They discuss the possibility that like the lizard Vargas has been in a state of suspended animation and is still alive. Later that night, the body of the 500-year-old Vargas, revived by a lightning strike, stalks the group and eventually kills Anne Brown.

Sheriff Parker accuses and arrests Brooks for Anne's murder because a medallion (one of his excavated artifacts) was found clenched in her hand. It is later revealed that the giant Vargas is roaming the wilderness after causing another brutal death. Local men from Pine Ridge help the sheriff hunt down the giant, who is causing more damage and deaths. Brooks is eventually able to kill Vargas, forcing him to fall to a watery death from a bridge spanning a raging waterfall.

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang - 2023 - 336 Pages

 

August is  off to an excellent start for me with Yellowface by R. F. Kuang. From the shocking first chapter on I was magnetised by one unexpected turn of events after another.

"White lies. Dark humor. Deadly consequences… Bestselling sensation Juniper Song is not who she says she is, she didn’t write the book she claims she wrote, and she is most certainly not Asian American—in this chilling and hilariously cutting novel from R.F. Kuang, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Babel. 

Authors June Hayward and Athena Liu were supposed to be twin rising stars. But Athena’s a literary darling. June Hayward is literally nobody. Who wants stories about basic white girls, June thinks.

So when June witnesses Athena’s death in a freak accident, she acts on impulse: she steals Athena’s just-finished masterpiece, an experimental novel about the unsung contributions of Chinese laborers during World War I.

So what if June edits Athena’s novel and sends it to her agent as her own work? So what if she lets her new publisher rebrand her as Juniper Song—complete with an ambiguously ethnic author photo? Doesn’t this piece of history deserve to be told, whoever the teller? That’s what June claims, and the New York Times bestseller list seems to agree.

But June can’t get away from Athena’s shadow, and emerging evidence threatens to bring June’s (stolen) success down around her. As June races to protect her secret, she discovers exactly how far she will go to keep what she thinks she deserves.

With its totally immersive first-person voice, Yellowface grapples with questions of diversity, racism, and cultural appropriation, as well as the terrifying alienation of social media. R.F. Kuang’s novel is timely, razor-sharp, and eminently readable." From the Publisher Harper and Row

Rebecca F. Kuang is the award-winning, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Poppy War trilogy, Babel: An Arcane History, and Yellowface. She has an MPhil in Chinese Studies from Cambridge and an MSc in Contemporary Chinese Studies from Oxford; she is now pursuing a PhD in East Asian Languages and Literatures at Yale.from the author’s website

I hope to read more of her work soon.

Mel u

The Reading Life

The Reading Life Review. - July 2024 - Future Plans and Hopes

 

The Reading Life has entered year fiveteen. I expect to pass  8,000,000 Pages views in August.

During July I posted on three short stories by Carol Shields (I am following a read along of all her stories initiated by Buried in Print).

In July for the 14th time I partipated in a wonderful event, Paris in July.

Blog Stats 

Eight of the featured writers in July are women, nine men. Only two are deceased, nine were featured for the first time.

Home Countries of July Authors

1. USA- 8

2. France - 4

3. UK - 3

4. Canada - 1

Home Countries of Visitors 

1. Hong Kong 

2. Singapore 

3.USA

4. India

5.Germany

6. Philippines 

7. Canada 

8. China

As of today our posts have been viewed 7,975,472 times

The most viewed posts were on short stories 

Future plans

I am currently reading two novels, Yellowface by R.K. Kuang and Fortunes of War-The Balkan Trilogy by Olivia Manning. Additionally I am reading Jerusalem-The Biography of a City

by Simon Sebag Montefiore

I will continue reading short stories by Carol Shields.

I am also considering watching and posting on a few S/F films from the 1950s, all available on YouTube 

Mel u

The Reading! Life