All the Myriad Ways by Larry Niven

If you ever recommend me a book, and I say I’ll check into it, rest assured that though it may take upwards of 8 years, I will get around to it.

Way back in the days before Internet Messenger, I had an email conversation with a friend about the Back to the Future trilogy and time travel movies in general. In that conversation, he referenced an essay from All the Myriad Ways about time travel.

Fast forward to a couple weeks ago when I was pondering my excessive number of credits on paperbackswap.com, and I remembered that book. Someone had it, and it arrived in time for my latest trip to Juarez.

It’s a mixture of sci-fi short stories and essays, and includes one of the more famous and wittier essays in sci-fi history, Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex, a frank and logical discussion of Superman’s potential sex life. One imagines that the writers of Superman II had read this essay.

Ironically, the weakest essay of the bunch was the one on the various (fictional) theories of time travel. It was good to be sure, but missed some of the things we discussed in emails in 1999. Of course, the book was written sometime before 1971, but neither of the 1999 writers were purporting to be career science fiction writers describing an overview of all time travel theories.

The short stories were also well written and engaging, which almost makes up for the later Ringworld books.

The Duke and I by Julia Quinn

Okay, it was free. It came with my Palm Z22. I was stuck in a lab in Mexico with nothing to do, my books were elsewhere, my internet connection failed… it was just me, a Palm Z22, and several guys who didn’t speak english.

So, I read a romance novel.

It started off a little Jane Austinesque, sort of, but then deteriorated. My expectations were low, and they were met.

But it was a little interesting to think about what makes a book “bad”, aside from an uninteresting plot. This one was a textbook example of constantly, constantly telling instead of showing.

“Really?” Violet asked, trying not to look interested.

And how, exactly, does one try not to look interested? Show me.

Though, I supposed the author simply doesn’t have the motivation to work at it. I mean, apparently this book has 6 sequels or something like that, so Julia Quinn ain’t hurtin’.

Now, I’ve got to figure out how to get some more eBooks on my Palm, ’cause all that’s left is the Merriam-Webster dictionary.

Superheroes Edited by John Varley and Ricia Mainhardt

Like most folks of my ilk (and here I mean geeky), I’m a sucker for superheroes.

Not all, but most. I don’t care for the Green Lantern¹ or The Hulk.

I was optimistic but ultimately disappointed by Mystery Men, as I like the idea of alternate superheroes. So this book, purportedly a series of essays about alternate superheroes, sounded good to me.

It was okay. As an Amazon reviewer noted, a couple sharp pieces, and the rest just so-so, one-joke stories.

She Who Might Be Obeyed was so convoluted as to be almost unreadable.

Truth, Justice and the Politically Correct Socialist Path the story by the editor that hypothesized Superman’s life had he landed in the USSR (which served as the inspiration to do the collection) was somewhat predictable but very witty.

Others were arty and pushed the margins of what one would define as a superhero.

But, all in all, fine mind candy.

¹ My sole contribution to Free Parking, a Dad’s Garage sketch show of some years back, was a piece called The Green Lantern Buys A Stamp where I itemized the lameness of GL when he fails to convince the citizenry that he needs to cut in line at the post office as a matter of life or death. He ends up being bludgeoned by the crowd, saved from death only by the sudden appearance of the Wonder Twins.

Smoke and Mirrors: Short Fictions and Illusions by Neil Gaiman

The first point I should make is that I read this on my new (refurb) Palm Z22. It came as a sample book with the eReader software, along with Never Eat Alone and some romance novel. I used to read stuff all the time on my old Palm IIIe, and it’s nice to always have a book or two on me, wherever I go. The interface is greatly improved as well.

Previously, I’ve read a Sandman, Good Omens (with Terry Pratchett), American Gods and, recently, Neverwhere. Good Omens is much beloved by many and I am no exception. But the other three works, done solo, were just OK by my estimation. I didn’t plan on going out of my way to get another Neil Gaiman piece.

But there it was in the Palm. And I’m glad it was.

I really enjoyed these short stories. In fact, the shorter the better. He had a whole collection of two paragraph stories about vampires that were very funny.

Honestly, though, I skipped most of the “poetry”. If it didn’t grab me in the first couple stanzas, I was off to the next thing. I’m a plebe that way.

There’s a funny story about a woman who finds the Holy Grail in a junk store. And one about a guy who looks for bargain priced assassinations. All very creative and fun.