Something Old and New for April 2019

Old

I love philosophy. And I adore used books. So imagine my delight when I found The Gospel According to Zen (editors Robert Sohl and Audrey Carr) at a library sale for an unbeatable price: Freeee! 

This is a fabulous skinny (133 pages) volume of writings about Zen, God, faith, and religion, with the intriguing subtitle of Beyond the Death of God. Originally published in 1970, it can easily be found relevant today. The subject matter and individual essays are timeless. 

Eric Fromm warms up the audience with his opening essay, “Today’s Spiritual Crisis,” which he sees as an epidemic in the West: “It is the crisis which has been described as malaise, ennui, mal du siecle, the deadening of life, the automatization of man, his alienation from himself, from his fellowman and from nature.”

Yeah. Yesterday’s spiritual crisis is today’s spiritual crisis. Go figure. There are also koans, riddles, and poetry mixed in with the critical work to jigger your brain as only philosophical and artistic expression can.

When I went looking online, I found plenty of used copies available at places like Amazon and AbeBooks. Not free, but cheap. My copy has underlining, margin notes, and highlighting all over the place. I’m sure you can do better in the open market. 

I invite you to post a favorite used book treasure on my blog anytime!

New

I talk about my short story “Bella and the Blessed Stone” in this interview posted on the F&SF site (April 11). I hope you get a chance to check it out. You can buy a copy of the March/April 2019 F&SF here. 

Finally, as a reminder, the March 2019 Galaxy’s Edge (#37) contains my Italian folktale “The Sin-Eaters.” The magazine is available on the GE site.  

Happy springtime reading, peeps!

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New Story and Other

New Nick Story

I’m happy to announce that one of my short stories is in the brand new
March/April 2019 issue of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. F&SF is celebrating 70 years of publishing some of the genre’s finest tales. I’m thrilled to be among so many excellent authors, including my two great pals John Kessel and Rich Larson.

Special thanks to C.c. Finlay and all the fine folks at the magazine. You can find the issue in bookstores in the US, including most Barnes & Nobles, or buy directly from F&SF. (I’ve copied in some order info at the bottom of this post.)

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Other

Since I’m digging on short stories so much lately, I’ll take this opportunity to recommend Haruki Murakami’s Men Without Women. Just as the title suggests, each story is about a man who is haunted by a woman he cannot possess. Murakami is one of my favorite authors. He’s a brilliant stylist who is equally adept at the long and short forms. I enjoyed this book for its many layers of complexity and surprisingly sensitive exploration of men and the inner workings of their hearts. (For you writers out there, Literary Hub published an interesting compilation of Murakami’s writing advice well worth exploring.)

Order info for F&SF:

• Paper subscriptions: https://www.sfsite.com/fsf/subscribe.htm
• Electronic subs via Weightless Books anywhere in the world: https://weightlessbooks.com/category/publisher/spilogale-inc/
• Electronic subs for Kindle US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004ZFZ4O8/
• Electronic subs for Kindle UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004ZFZ4O8/

One Last Quickie

From the Department of Misleading Headlines

I wanted to write one last blog before the end of the year, so in the spirit of our shrinking 2018 timeline, I’ll make it a quickie.

First, for those of you who love short fiction as much as I do, my last literary journey of the year is Ottessa Moshfegh’s Homesick for Another World. It’s a fabulous short story collection filled with quirky characters in search of their own perfect worlds. The stories are often as odd as the people who inhabit them. I love how creepy the author makes me feel inside my own skin as she explores the inner workings, troubled minds, and secret longings of her characters. Fans of the bizarre hiding inside realism will quiver with joy.

(Rating: Forgettable Title but Great Book!)

One for the Road

If you read my short story “The Baron and His Floating Daughter” in the Nov/Dec 2018 Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, you might be interested in checking out the interview F&SF posted a few days ago on its blog site:

(Rating: Happy New Year, Friends!)

Monsters and Blondes

October gave me two great books. First, hats off to Mary Shelley and the 200th anniversary of the novel Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus. If you haven’t read the book in a long time, get the recent Penguin edition that reprints the original 1818 text with a new intro. Then, as a companion piece, watch the National Theatre’s live stage play on the big screen, Frankenstein, 2018 Encore. I saw it with friends at The Little Theatre during my visit upstate. You might need to hunt around for a theater that’s showing it, but it will be worth the effort. Promise!

I became a Michael Connelly fan a few years ago, and he’s now my favorite working writer of detective fiction. I’ve been knocking off his books in no particular order. I recently read The Concrete Blonde, a Harry Bosch novel, the third if you’re counting (originally pubbed in 1994). It’s one of the best I’ve read in the series so far. If you aren’t familiar with Connelly, check out his work, and read this exquisite feature piece in The Guardian. 

One final note to my cherished few readers. Here are the ordering and social media links for the Nov/Dec F&SF where my Italian folktale “The Baron and His Floating Daughter” appears. It’s a great issue. Enjoy!

• Paper copies and subscriptions (also available in most Barnes & Noble stores) 
• Weightless Books
• Amazon US (Kindle) 
• Amazon UK (Kindle)
• F&SF Blog (WordPress)
• Twitter (to retweet)
• Facebook (to share)
• Goodreads 

The Baron and His Floating Daugther

I’m very happy to announce that another of my Italian folktales, “The Baron and His Floating Daughter,” will appear in the November/December issue of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. Special thank you to F&SF editor C.c. Finlay for liking the story. (Prosecco not shown in photo!)