Literature of Horror, Fantasy & Sci-Fi

"Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" THE ANSWER TO LIFE, THE UNIVERSE AND EVERYTHING IS 42! I must say I really enjoyed listening to the radio show of this story . I was already aware of HHG beforehand, I had heard of the movie and that it was based on a book, but I'd never really watched or read anything more about it beyond that . I didn't think it was something I would enjoy, but after listening to the radio show, it's certainly changed my mind . I'll have to give the movie a go at some point .  My favorite character has to be Marvin, the paranoid android with the brain the size of a planet who is always feeling depressed . Not just because I can relate to him, but I just found him the most funny, and he was the one character I recognized from the story .  The story had so many twists and turns; it's suddenly the end of the world, the Earth is destroyed, it turns out the Earth is an experiment planet that was blown up 5 minutes too early, th

"The Aquatic Uncle"  This story was about the events of evolution when animals would venture from the sea to the land and adapt to live there, while some remained in the water and evolved differently . It also adds a familial element to the creatures and applies real-life scenarios, such as a grumpy prejudiced uncle who remains in the "good old days" while other relatives move on . The main character whose name I won't even attempt to pronounce seems to resemble a frog of some kind, or an amphibious creature since he's often referred to as "tadpole" which is associated with the frog life cycle . He tries to get his uncle to join the rest of the family on land but the stubborn fish refuses to conform and stays in the water, eventually becoming more and more fish-like . The uncle's viewpoints are understandable and true based on actual science--creatures in the ocean seemed to evolve slower and much different compared to land creatures

"Bloodchild" 1 . My initial reaction to this story was "WTF am I reading?" There were so many names I had no idea how to pronounce, I had a hard time figuring out which characters were human and which were not, and the terms weren't immediately defined, leaving me confused at some parts of the story . 2 . The connections I made with this story was that a species of worm alien was using people as hosts for their offspring; Gan, the protagonist, ends up being one of these people . Some births don't go well, as seen with the Lomas character . Only certain people are chosen as these hosts; it seems to be a parasitic, symbiotic relationship . Some deem it an honor, others do not . 3 . If I had to adapt this into a different medium, it would probably be a short film so those who had a hard time reading (like myself) could understand it better through visuals . The only thing I'd change would be some of the terms and names: T'Gatoi, Tlic, N'T

"Fragments of a Hologram Rose" I have to say, this story isn't what I imagined it'd be; I'm not even sure what I thought it would be, only wondering what the title of William Gibson's story meant . This is the first of Gibson's stories I've ever read, so I'm not familiar with his work, but I personally had a hard time reading and understanding what was happening . I had to re-read the story a few times just to get a better picture, because this is clearly a different society compared to our own; nearly everything in this world has to do with holographics and things called "delta-inducers" which I assume delta means "sleep" . I also think these inducers create dreams, but these dreams are not the viewer's, but recorded from someone else's consciousness (how that is possible I don't know) . Parker, the protagonist, shreds a hologram rose and it's broken into fragments . From this I have come to one conclusio

"The Drowned Giant"  This story, written by J . G .  Ballard, really left me thinking about what was happening and why . At first glance, and after reading the first few sentences, I assumed the giant was meant to be a whale or marine animal that washed up; but later on it was revealed to be a human-like colossus that had suddenly appeared dead on the shores of this Lilliputian town-- Lilliputian  being in reference to "Gulliver's Travels" .  As I kept reading, I started thinking that it was a Greek god who had fallen from the heavens; I assumed so by how the narrator described the giant's appearance resembling Grecian style, or the possibility of being a character from The Odyssey . From then on, I started paying close attention to any description of the giant to see if I could identify it .  I saw the behavior of the townspeople was similar to how scavengers acted when finding food; as crowds gathered and eventually started removing the giant p

"The Star" For this week, I read the short story, "The Star" by Arthur C Clarke in 1956. With how short it was, there was a lot in it that piqued my interest.  The story crosses science fiction with religion, two topics that always seem to clash. The study of science had a way of calling the works of God into question, either causing people to doubt or outright prove this couldn't have happened. There are those, of course, who believe regardless, but none of those people are featured in this story. I had no idea how much it involved Earth's Christianity until the very end, that the dead star the explorers go to investigate--the white dwarf whose death wiped out a civilization on nearby planets--is actually THE Star, the Star that shone over Bethlehem to guide shepherds and the Three Wise Men to where Jesus was born.  Upon discovering this and finishing the story, I did sit for a moment to reflect; the story is basically saying that the death o

"The Ocean at the End of the Lane" This was quite an intriguing story; just when I thought I'd figured out the story, another curve-ball is thrown at me and I end up with more questions as to what the heck is going on in this story.  It starts out normal, the unnamed protagonist attending a funeral then strolls down memory lane--almost literally--and we, the reader, are catapulted into the past and go on the most bizarre adventure imaginable. In order to understand what is happening, you have to throw rationality out the window; rational thought does not exist in this world. I'm not even sure what kind of world this is, or what the inhabitants are. Clearly something walks among the humans, hidden in plain sight like the Hempstock family. One would think, from an outsider's perspective, the events of the story are nothing more but the fabrications of a seven-year-old boy who spends more time in the world of books than in the real world; it would be the o

"The Hobbit" "In a hole in the ground, there lived a hobbit..." The line that many J.R.R. Tolkien fans recognize--aside from "one ring to rule them all". When people hear the word "hobbit", they think of his stories of Middle Earth. I know I certainly do. I've been a fan of his works for as long as I can remember, but it's only thanks to the films that I knew of them. I have never actually read any of the books because I preferred to see the visualizations of the film adaptations.  While reading The Hobbit , I found myself nodding to things I recognized from the film: Bilbo and Gandalf's conversation at the beginning, the Dwarfs introducing themselves, the Misty Mountain hymn, and much more. It was certainly shorter than I thought it would be, but I suppose I'd prefer it this way rather than a 500 page read. After reading it I can see how Tolkien never intended to get this story published; it's in a format I am

"Akata Witch" "Akata Witch" was definitely a different witch story than what I was used to; while it does feature witches in the sense, not the stereotypical ones portrayed in modern film and literature. The subject of witches is far broader than people realize. It's not all pointy black hats and broomsticks. The three girls, Orlu, Chichi, and Sasha go by "leopard people" instead of "witches", which helps reminds the reader this is taking place in Nigeria. They all have their own unique powers: Chichi has the memory of an elephant, and Sasha is the same, regarding they remember everything they read. Orlu's power is known as "juju", meaning she can undo awful things that happen.  One thing I like about this story is that the witches are portrayed as heroes in the story rather than the antagonist, since they help a character named Sunny try to catch a known serial killer who goes by "Black Hat Otokoto. People often

"ANNIHILATION" Annihilation is one of my top favorite sci-fi movies, along with Ex Machina and Interstellar . I hadn’t realized that the movie was based off a book until my second time around of watching it, so I was curious as to what the book itself was all about. Before reading, I did a bit of research on the book to see how much was different compared to the film adaptation; while the movie does branch off from the book, it’s not a bad thing. If anything, the visuals of the film help add to the story in a way the book couldn’t. One of the big differences between the book and the movie is that the research team all have names and backstories in the film, whereas in the book the only thing known about the others are their jobs—biologist, anthropologist, surveyor, psychologist. The only character we know much about is the protagonist, who is the biologist. I personally preferred the movie’s direction with this because it helps the audience build a connection

"A Wild Sheep Chase"  Reading "A Wild Sheep Chase" by Haruki Murakami was quite...an odd turn of events. Even now I am still questioning what I just read! It was definitely a unique story, one I've never read before. Was it my favorite read? Not exactly, but it wasn't a jarring experience. But the more I read, I began to lose interest because of the story length. Plus, with all the mystery and fantasy elements, I was just eager to find out what the heck was really going on. The first thing that threw me in a loop was that there was no literal sheep--but a Sheep MAN. A guy in a sheep suit, but isn't even a guy--he's a freaking ghost or spirit! There's the mythological element of the story. Second thing that got my brain scrambled was finding out that Rat was actually dead, appeared as a ghost, and is ALSO THE SHEEP MAN IN A DIFFERENT FORM. Rat apparently died by hanging himself to escape the Sheep's hold because it affected him li

"Interview With the Vampire" I've always been fascinated by the mythology and legends of vampires and have seen all various takes on the creatures: from Nosferatu to Guillermo del Toro's TV show The Strain , and watching other shows discussing the history of the vampire. "Interview With the Vampire" has got to be among my new favorites. I've read the book and watched the movie as well for a visual experience, and I enjoyed both. It was certainly a take on the vampire story that I hadn't seen before. I grew up believing all the stereotypical lore--stake through the heart, crucifixes, garlic, etc. Not only did Anne Rice's story turn these "facts" into nothing but silly human superstition, but it also showed another sight to the vampire characters themselves that I hadn't seen in any other adaptation: the ability to love. The main characters Lestat and Louis end up raising a little girl named Claudia and turn her into a vampire

"The Fall of the House of Usher" Edgar Allen Poe is well known for his writings of the macabre and supernatural. When people think of gothic literature, Poe is what many instantly picture. His work in poetry and short fiction was perfect in creating senses of dread and madness. That is essentially what "The Fall of the House of Usher" is about. The story is as gothic as it comes--with a dark and depressing atmosphere recognized by our unreliable narrator (a classic in Poe's writings) that lingers evermore throughout the story and seems to worsen as the story itself progresses. Our narrator is deemed unreliable because the negative energy within the House of Usher has an effect on him to the point he's unable to differentiate reality with fantasy. So how are we, the readers, supposed to know what he says is true? Indeed supernatural elements are used throughout the story, evident as to how the House of Usher seems to deteriorate along with twins Roderick--