I must apologize for my lack of correspondence recently. During a nasty firefight with a water dragon, I lost my notebook. I feared that it had fallen into the lake or been lost in the tangled forest bed, but I had only misplaced it in the other pocket of my jacket. I shall have to make up for the lost words.
Shadows Over Baker Street by various authors: Shadows is an anthology of newly written stories that feature Sherlock Holmes mucking around in the world of H.P. Lovecraft. As a fan of Holmes and Cthulhu, I couldn’t resist purchasing this book. With stories written by Neil Gaiman, Elizabeth Bear, Tim Lebbon and Michael Reaves, you know it will be a good read. surprisingly, Holmes makes a splendid addition to the Lovecraft mythos and I would’nt be surprised if he makes a return in a future anthology sometime soon.
The Best f H.P. Lovecraft:Bloodcurdling Tales of Horror and the Macabre by H.P. Lovecraft: I guess you could call Lovecraft the father of weird horror. I will be the first to admit that his stories are not the easiest to read but his descriptions of dread and unknown horror from beyond are hard to beat. His stories have birthed a huge mythos featuring Cthulhu, The Necronomicon, crazed cultists, intrepid investigators of the strange and much more. Do yourself a favor and read one of his stories on a dark October eve to get you in the mood for the Halloween season.
Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll: I always liked the various incarnations of the Alice stories brought to life in movies and television. Carroll wrote a wonderfully odd book full of contradictions and clever word play that always is a joy to read. I have a small Borders Classics edition that has a ribbon bookmark and is easy to stow in most bags when traveling and in need of a quick read in between destinations.
Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs: Tarzan is perhaps Burroughs most widely known creation, with good reason. The story of a boy raised by apes in the wild jungle and his introduction to other men and his own identity is a great story. There are several books in the Tarzan series but this first book has remained my favorite so far. He always painted a picture with his words of fabulous places and heroic endeavors that remain with you long after the pages stop turning.
The Martian Tales Trilogy by Edgar Rice Burroughs: This collection contains the books A Princess of Mars, The Gods of Mars and The Warlord of Mars. These are all stories featuring John Carter; an American Civil War captain mysteriously transported from Arizona to the planet of Mars. This is not the Mars that we know but a fantastical version filled with ferocious beasts, four-armed Martians, vast cities and a princess (of course). Though many felt to the contrary, I enjoyed the recent movie based on the Burroughs books of John Carter and felt it captured much of the feel of these tales. I wish it would have been better received so we could watch the continuing adventures on the big screen. Ah well, all things in Hollywood are cyclical so maybe we’ll see Captain Carter on the big screen again.
Brandon Jimison 