BLOG TOUR - STRINGERS

TITLE - STRINGERS 

WRITTEN BY - CHRIS PANATIER 

PUBLISHED BY - ANGRY ROBOT BOOKS 

PUBLICATION DATE - 12TH APRIL 2022 

Page 20 of Chris Panatier’s “Stringers” contains this sentence - “She’d added muscle like a rutting brymlack on a torpgrub diet”. If that sentence appears perfectly normal to you, then you need to read this book.

I fear I may run out of adjectives to describe this extravagantly bonkers yet deeply profound book by the end of this review. The crazy plot involves Ben, an unwilling fount of amazing/pointless facts about natural science (and watches) which have appeared unbidden in his brain from an early age. Seeking out other sufferers on the Dark Web, he agrees to meet one of them who turns out to be an alien bounty hunter tasked with capturing Ben and others with the same gift, known as “stringers”. A galactic search for a devastating concept known only as The Chime ensues. Also, a stubborn jar of pickles plays a large part…

The supporting characters, especially the alien Naecia who has her own, more traditionally sci-fi narrative thread, are fully fleshed-out and individually interesting. Panatier juggles varied, exciting story strands which cleverly intersect whilst never dropping any of the narrative balls in what is quite an intricate and serious story, despite its humorous overtones. He takes a complex idea (people who can access the minds of dead people on the same “string” and their obscure and sometimes valuable knowledge) and creates a fun and accessible novel. “Stringers” is written very much in the same vein as Douglas Adams (there’s even a Babel Fish reference) or Jasper Fforde, the latter especially present in Panatier’s use of footnotes, which offer fascinating tidbits of Ben’s labyrinthine knowledge of the sex lives of bugs. The footnotes are actually highly relevant to the plot and shouldn’t be ignored.

This is not hard sci-fi, just a ridiculously fun romp with believable characters and a surprising amount of depth amidst the jokes. “Stringers” is incredibly easy to read and the plot moves at a satisfying pace that never becomes boring, with moments of great poignancy on the theme of friendship. Fresh and inventive, “Stringers” is naughty, sweary, heartbreaking and brilliant - with great big dollops of nerdiness, pop culture references and sexy alien tech. If you’ve ever argued about an episode of Blake’s 7 in a comic shop, “Stringers” is the book you need right now.

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LIFE & DEATH ON THE EASTERN FRONT | THE RARE COLOUR PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THE SECOND WORLD WAR

TITLE - LIFE & DEATH ON THE EASTERN FRONT | THE RARE COLOUR PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THE SECOND WORLD WAR 

WRITTEN BY - ANTHONY TUCKER-JONES & IAN STEWART SPRING 

PUBLISHED BY - PEN & SWORD BOOKS 

PUBLICATION DATE - AVAILABLE NOW 

Anthony Tucker-Jones and Ian Spring’s gorgeous book is a meticulously researched and arresting visual history of life on the Eastern Front of World War II, featuring an archive of colour photographs which provide an unprecedented insight into everyday wartime life.

The book begins with biographical detail of the various official (and unofficial) German and Russian photographers who took the photos at the time. Most of the photographs were taken using film made by the then up and coming manufacturer Agfa, which became widely popular both during and after the war. The shots have an honest, imperfect charm due to the limitations of the film.

Ian Spring’s stunning collection of over 30,000 colour photographs taken by Germans on the Eastern Front forms the backbone of this excellent book. The photos have a moving realism to them as they are naturally-posed records of the soldiers’ war experiences. Many of them are lighthearted with German soldiers posing and smiling for the camera, while others are incredibly poignant. There are even some shots of Hitler himself visiting the battlefield to the delight of the troops. Be warned that, as the book’s title suggests, there are scenes of death, both human and animal. 

The book is split into three parts, exploring the conflict on the ground, in the air and behind the lines. Anthony Tucker-Jones’ captions are full and detailed with a huge amount of technical information about armoured vehicles, fighter planes and weapons to satisfy the enthusiast. 

This is a beautifully produced book which is highly recommended for anyone interested in the history of WWII at a human level.

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YOUNG ELIOT - FROM ST. LOUIS TO "THE WASTE LAND"

TITLE - YOUNG ELIOT - FROM ST. LOUIS TO "THE WASTE LAND"

WRITTEN BY - ROBERT CRAWFORD 

PUBLISHED BY - JONATHAN CAPE 

PUBLICATION DATE - AVAILABLE NOW

A reluctant biographee, many of his personal papers and letters were destroyed at his own request, however “Young Eliot” examines the poet’s formative years in much more detail than previous biographers have devoted to them. Drawing on hitherto untapped sources and documents, Robert Crawford has written a definitive and personal, though unofficial, biography which reveals the human being behind the legend.

A seemingly ordinary, slightly timid young man stares out from the dust-jacket. Referred to as “Tom” throughout the book,  Crawford paints an unvarnished portrait of a young man, brilliant but human. Young Tom would’ve often displayed the casual racism and sexism of the time, but Crawford doesn’t ignore Eliot’s failings in favour of a hagiography. Nor does he gloss over the bawdy poetry Eliot wrote at Harvard, an university he was nearly thrown out of for “loafing”, achieving lacklustre grades in the process.

As expected in a two-volume work, the biographical detail is intensive. Crawford begins right at the beginning, examining Eliot’s birth into quite a large family with several much older siblings, his school life and early forays into poetry. Each chapter of Eliot’s life is vividly detailed as Crawford skilfully charts his development as a poet up to and including the publication of “The Waste Land”. There is much in this work that even the most dedicated Eliot scholar will find surprising and new.

Two sections of revealing photographs are included, each snapshot loaded with meaning and poignancy, along with notes and an index. Scholarly, intelligent and accessible, “Young Eliot” is a joy to read and must surely be hailed as the beginning of a definitive biography of T. S. Eliot.

THE LAST WHITE MAN

 

TITLE - THE LAST WHITE MAN 

WRITTEN BY - MOHSIN HAMID 

PUBLISHED BY - PENGUIN GENERAL UK/HAMISH HAMILTON

PUBLICATION DATE -11TH AUGUST 2022 

The opening chapter of Mohsin Hamid’s “The Last White Man”, as the lead character Anders wakes to find his skin having turned brown and the fear and anger which results, strongly evokes Kafka’s “Metamorphosis” in which the protagonist awakens to find himself transformed into a giant beetle. This is no bad thing, and I think “The Last White Man” can be taken as a modern, prescient updating of that story as Anders and the affected people fight for the acceptance of a society which he now thinks shuns and distrusts him. 

His coolly disinterested girlfriend, Oona, sees him as “utterly different” which initially distresses her; a telling moment occurs when their lovemaking feels almost like infidelity. Anders feels palpably threatened when out in public, hiding his appearance as best he can. Anders sees his work colleagues start to treat him differently in a way that is almost imperceptible, but real. Soon, events take an ugly turn as riots and lynching's occur. 

Mohsin Hamid uses a stylised, and, admittedly, sometimes infuriating writing style. Paragraphs are formed of usually one sentence, heavily punctuated; sometimes this results in punchy, rhythmic text, other times it can be tiring getting to the end of the paragraph. I haven’t read any of Hamid’s previous books so I don’t know if this is his “thing” or not, but once I had got used to the style it became easier to read. The style does not detract from what is a very well-written novel with many powerful moments, but it does demand close attention. 

“The Last White Man” is, at a basic level, a story of what white people would do if they suddenly became Black. This may sound heavy-handed and clunky, and in the hands of a less skilled novelist it would be, but Hamid has managed to transcend such an obvious literary device to create a timely work of genius that challenges how we view anyone who is different.

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OH, YOU THOUGHT THIS WAS A DATE?!

TITLE -  OH, YOU THOUGHT THIS WAS A DATE?! 

WRITTEN BY - C. RUSSELL PRICE

PUBLISHED BY - NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY PRESS 

PUBLICATION DATE - 15TH JUNE 2022

Apocalypse poetry is “in”, and C. Russell Price’s “Oh, You Thought This Was A Date?!”, a hardcore yet quietly excellent collection of self-styled “Apocalypse Poems”, joins a growing End Times library. These verses are most definitely not for the fainthearted with themes of child abuse, suicide, self-harm, rape amongst more progressive ideas of gender and identity, from a gay voice that refuses to be silenced. 

Each section has a title, such as “Pretend A Pandemic” and “The Devil Has Been Busy Today”. The apocalypse, real and metaphorical, stalks and occasionally attacks these poems, each one complete with its own soundtrack to listen to whilst reading and a “Ritual” for daily activities, including “get drunk in front of your cat”. 

Shoving the reader into a world of sex in vacant parking lots and weed-smoking millennials discussing their favourite doomsday scenarios, this is pretty grim reading from the outset. A nihilistic threads runs throughout the poems, which is visualised perfectly in “Armageddon Origin Story” where molestation in a lake house is juxtaposed with a man mowing his lawn; if you’re not convinced, try “On Reading a Copy of Pushkin I Stole from My Childhood Rapist: A Cento”, a title which, on reading the poem, turns out not to be metaphorical as the poet depicts their abuser in something approaching awe. In a later poem, Price telephones his “molester” and can’t help seeing him in all men with the same name. 

There are touches of Beat poetry in many poems, indeed the whole collection evokes it, especially in “Someone Is Missing for You and the Whole World Feels Empty” which begins - 

“We’re on LSD going eighty in a downpour”. 

Another highlight is the opening verse of “How to Die on a Farm” - 

“The vegetarians have slipped/and cannibalism is on its way.”

The rest of the poem is a rhythmic, punchy treat, displaying the usual pitch-dark sexual negativity. Elsewhere, the Apocalypse is renamed Carl, and we get a list of all of Carl’s foibles which are all too recognisable to our 2022 eyes, e.g. 

“Carl and cancel culture are in heat”

Overall, this is a modern, powerful  collection with many effective moments - and it ends strongly - a kind of “hate-letter” to modern America. There are some poems where the titles are possibly the best thing about them, but they all have a pleasing kinetic rhythm and vivid, often brutal imagery. This isn’t a book to be read in one sitting as the negative imagery can become very overwhelming, but an occasional sampling can offer a jolt of angry, modern darkness that is so very now. I loved it!

TEMPO - EXCURSIONS IN 21st CENTURY ITALIAN POETRY

TITLE - TEMPO - EXCURSIONS IN 21st CENTURY ITALIAN POETRY 

EDITED BY - LUCA PACI

PUBLISHED BY - PARTHIAN BOOKS 

PUBLICATION DATE - 1ST JULY 2022 

 

“Tempo - Excursions in 21st Century Italian Poetry”, edited by Luca Paci, is a collection of select works by over twenty modern Italian poets, separated into their own discrete section, with each poem presented in both Italian and English, alongside a short biography of both the poet their translator. Pretty much all the poetry included in this collection is very good to excellent, with vivid, often brutal imagery melding with effortless lyricism, creating many memorable moments. 

There is no doubt that a certain something is lost in translation, as always, but I would argue that something is gained, too. The poems, on the whole, are about the “dark underbelly” of the Italian psyche. The Italian language doesn’t seem suited to such dark themes, it being one of the most lyrical, romantic and “happy” languages in the world, but the translations often lay that darkness bare by using the harsher words of English. It’s telling that the first line of the first poem in the book, the sombre “VI” by Antonella Anedda, translates as “This language has no innocence”. Death and darkness stalk Anedda’s stark poetry; it is deeply concerned with mortality and the inevitability of decay. By contrast, the work of the next poet, Franco Buffoni, evokes Italy’s classical age. 

Much of the poetry is dark to the point of morbidness. The frailty of the human body and it’s eventual collapse, murder, the brutality not only of death but of birth, too, are recurring themes - the visceral body-horror of Dome Bulfaro being a standout - but depictions of such things have rarely been so beautifully rhythmic. However, this is not, to coin a phrase, poetry to kill yourself too, yet the reader would be forgiven for thinking that the world conjured up in these verses jars quite significantly with their accepted impression of Italian culture. From the urgent, urban poetry of Milo De Angelis, to Matteo Fantuzzi’s savage dissections of terrorist attacks and Shirin Ramzanali Fazel’s love letters to language and home - there are rare, enlightening jewels to be found in this uncharted territory, though I feel that the poems are best consumed in small doses. 

The selection is a model of diversity. The aching and poignant verse of Mariangela Gualtieri is fragile and elusive, and concerned with the passage of time, while Andrea Inglese’s clinical and highly visual blocks of prose conjure up images of scientific exhibits, forensically detailed. There is something for everyone in this vital and energised collection. 

With this collection, Luca Paci has delivered a breath of fresh poetic air that deserves a wide audience. If nothing else, it presents a new side to Italy that I assume many are unaware of: an Italian intellectualism that perhaps even it’s own country has suppressed, whether by accident or design. Very much a groundbreaking celebration of Italian poetry, presented in both the original language and in new translations, Parthian Books are to be congratulated for bringing such a vibrant, diverse and thorough compilation of under-known verse to a wider audience. I have rarely been so moved by poetry this dark, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

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THE UNOFFICIAL HISTORY OF THE BEANO

TITLE - THE UNOFFICIAL HISTORY OF THE BEANO 

WRITTEN BY - IAIN MCLAUGHLIN 

PUBLISHED BY - WHITE OWL/PEN & SWORD BOOKS

PUBLICATION DATE - 30TH MARCH 2022

The Beano has been a treasured stalwart of British culture for over 80 years, and Iain McLaughlin’s book is a splendid celebration of Britain’s longest-running comic. Furthermore, it is also relives the glory days of British comics with enthusiasm and depth. 

The Beano’s importance as a morale-boosting publication despite paper shortages during the Second World War is analysed with the strips gloriously lampooning real-life figures such as Hitler and Mussolini and even the characters themselves doing their bit for Britain. The creation and development of all the major Beano characters such as Dennis the Menace, Roger the Dodger, Minnie the Minx and The Bash Street Kids is thoroughly examined. Thoroughly researched and full of interesting nuggets such as the fact that the first issue had ten pages devoted to text stories, and that the Bash Street Kids’ headmaster was modelled after the Beano’s editor. Biographies of the artists and writers who created the comic being these lesser-known figures to life, and the book includes quotes and anecdotes from them. Each decade of the Beano’s life is analysed right up to the present day where it continues to go thrive. 

This is an unofficial history but the book is fully illustrated with photographs, and there is a full timeline and an index. This book is written with skill and knowledge, relating the whole Beano story from its birth right up to the present day. McLaughlin keeps the tone light throughout and writes with obvious affection for the comic, but this doesn’t detract from what is most definitely a work of scholarship. The book shows how the comic has survived the decades and adapted to the times while maintaining its core values of quality, fun stories and characters for everyone.

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MARVEL - CRISIS PROTOCOL | SHADOW AVENGERS

TITLE - MARVEL - CRISIS PROTOCOL | SHADOW AVENGERS 

WRITTEN BY - CARRIE HARRIS 

PUBLISHED BY - ACONYTE BOOKS 

PUBLICATION DATES - 

US PAPERBACK - 26TH APRIL 2022 

US/UK EBOOK - 5TH APRIL 2022

UK PAPERBACK - 7TH JULY 2022 

With Doctor Strange back in the limelight recently with his new movie coming this year, this is a perfect time for this book to come out, which sees his team, the Shadow Avengers, battling an invasion from the Dark Dimension. Throw in everyone’s favourite bad guy, Loki, who teams up with Venom and Green Goblin, and you’ve got another immensely enjoyable and riotous Marvel romp from Aconyte Books. 

Carrie Harris’ “Shadow Avengers” is the latest instalment in the Aconyte’s Books” Marvel - Crisis Protocol series, but it isn’t necessary to have read the previous book (although I recommend you picking up “Target : Kree” by Stuart Moore asap) as it can be read and enjoyed as a standalone story. 

Chapters are short and dynamic which makes the story pacy and exciting, and there is a veritable who’s-who of Marvel characters. Carrie Harris has a good handle on each of the characters, and she ensures each one gets equal exposure: something which is not always easy in a multi-character story. 

Aconyte Books’ Marvel range is an enjoyable alternative history of the Marvel universe with every instalment being excellent. I recommend these books to all Marvel comics fans and want to assure them that they have nothing to fear from the longer prose format as it allows their favourite hero or villain to be fleshed out in a deeper way that comics can’t always achieve. I would go so far as to say that this range is one of the best things currently coming out under the Marvel banner.

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I received an advanced reading copy of this book in return for an honest review.

About Marvel Entertainment

Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media for over eighty years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing, publishing, games, and digital media.

For more information visit marvel.com. © MARVEL 2022

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BLOG TOUR - ALEXANDER THE GREAT VERSUS JULIUS CAESAR | WHO WAS THE GREATEST COMMANDER IN THE ANCIENT WORLD?

 

TITLE - ALEXANDER THE GREAT VERSUS JULIUS CAESAR | WHO WAS THE GREATEST COMMANDER IN THE ANCIENT WORLD?
 
WRITTEN BY - SIMON ELLIOTT

PUBLISHED BY - PEN & SWORD BOOKS 

PUBLICATION DATE - AVAILABLE NOW 
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They are two of the most accomplished military leaders in history and both knowingly destined for greatness from an early age, but if you’ve ever wondered exactly which of them was the best - Alexander the Great or Julius Caesar - then this book will help you decide. 

In his quest to determine just who was the greatest military leader of all time, Simon Elliott’s book draws on surviving (but often exaggerated or incomplete) primary sources and the work of contemporary historians. An introduction sets out the structure of the book - each leader’s life and achievements considered in turn - and includes notes on terminology and timeline. Despite an admitted preference for Alexander, Simon Elliott covers each leader even-handedly. Starting with Alexander, he lucidly documents the almost continual conflict that led to Philip II (father of Alexander)’s reign. 

This is history at its most violent, a time of invasions, battles and intrigues when you could lose your throne to a member of your own family at the point of a blade. There is a wealth of detail on contemporary weapons and tactics and Elliott depicts the many battles with brutal drama. Five decisive battles and/or sieges are closely examined by the author as evidence of his military prowess. Similarly, with Julius Caesar, the author provides context to the Roman leader’s life with a chapter on the violent creation of the Roman Republic, (beginning with the legend of Romulus and Remus), a concise biography and a study of his major battles and campaigns. Elliott’s depiction of Caesar’s infamous murder is brutally compelling, and contains the heartbreaking fact that Caesar’s last act was to pull his toga over his head when he saw that his friend Brutus was one of his assassins.

 

 

In a climactic round of historical “Top Trumps”, Elliott ends the book with a summing up of his findings by directly comparing the leaders on factors such as brutality, conquests, strategic skills etc, and their enduring legacies. In short order, he reaches a perfectly logical conclusion - which I won’t spoil here. The book is further enhanced with annotated colour plate photographs of artefacts, maps, locations and models of soldiers in the armour of their time. There is also a bibliography, full index, and a striking, full colour dust-jacket.

If nothing else, then Simon Elliott’s book is a fresh reappraisal of the lives and legacies of two towering historical figures, with many myths exploded along the way. Elliott freely admits that we know, or at least think we know, more about Julius Caesar than Alexander, and indeed the former has always held more of a fascination for people. Simon Elliott’s excellent book certainly goes a long way towards redressing the balance by placing Alexander the Great in a wider historical context. Displaying an unprecedented depth of research into the structure of both leaders’ armies, their battles and campaigns, this book is indispensable for military and ancient history enthusiasts.

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About Dr Simon Elliott

Dr Simon Elliott is an award winning and best selling historian, archaeologist, author, broadcaster, Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Kent, Trustee of the Council for British Archaeology, Ambassador for Museum of London Archaeology, Guide Lecturer for Andante Travels and President of the Society of Ancients. He has published many well-received books on themes related to the ancient world, most recently the Amazon no.1 best-selling "Roman Britain’s Missing Legion", and frequently appears on broadcast media as a presenter and expert on ancient world and military themes.

RADIOHEAD - LIFE IN A GLASSHOUSE

TITLE - RADIOHEAD - LIFE IN A GLASSHOUSE

WRITTEN BY - JOHN AIZLEWOOD 

PUBLISHED BY - PALAZZO EDITIONS LTD

PUBLICATION DATE - 5TH MAY 2022 

John Aizlewood follows up his sublime book on Joy Division & New Order by turning his considerable talents towards another idiosyncratic British band, the unique and groundbreaking Radiohead. 

Written in his usual erudite, irresistibly flowing and ever-so-slightly irreverent style, Aizlewood charts the evolution of Radiohead from their early days as private school boys with potted histories of each band member, through their “a bit pants” gigs as On A Friday, onto Britpop-shunning stardom as Radiohead, and their enduring legacy as one of the most critically-acclaimed bands Britain has ever produced. 

Every album is listed and analysed, with the chapters on the era-defining “O. K. Computer” and the game-changing “In Rainbows” being especially good, but the whole book is superb. Radiohead’s rise to the top wasn’t easy and Aizlewood’s sparkling prose brings the story of their eagerness to evolve from their surprise hit “Creep” and the later ups and downs of their career to vivid life. 

Radiohead have always done their own thing and John Aizlewood’s book is a celebration of that. No surprises, this book is awesome.

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THE OUTFIT

TITLE - THE OUTFIT

WRITTEN BY - DAVID TALLERMAN

PUBLISHED BY - REBELLION

PUBLICATION DATE - 1ST MARCH 2022 

Joseph Djugashvili -  soon to be known to history as Joseph Stalin - plans to pull off the biggest bank robbery ever to aid Lenin’s revolution in David Tallerman’s “The Outfit”, a glorious romp of a novel which also features Lenin and a motley band of revolutionaries in a crazy heist story set in revolutionary Russia. This is the true story of The Outfit - think Ocean’s Eleven meets Dr. Zhivago - and how they carried out one of the most daring and brutal bank raids in history. 

I absolutely loved this book. The narrative is brisk and the action scenes are vivid and dynamic. Tallerman writes well, making the story a joy to read; it may be a short book but it has great depth, with the genesis of the revolution set against the omnipresent threat of the Tsarist secret police like a shadow over everyday Russian life. Not a word is wasted by Tallerman as he depicts the days leading up to the robbery, the heist itself and its aftermath. 

The characters are superbly realised. David Tallerman skilfully paints the calculating Stalin as someone who is at least an antihero, because it would be difficult to make a legitimate hero out of him, and yet we find ourselves cautiously rooting for him, even as his “future self” comes ever more to the fore. His crazy associate Kamo, leader of the Outfit, has some wickedly funny passages devoted to him, and his zealous desire for immediate action contrasts with the more cautious Stalin’s. However, events conspire to completely alter their relationship and the mechanics of the heist as Stalin makes a deal with the Devil. 

At turns laugh out loud funny and shockingly serious, “The Outfit” is a supremely enjoyable, well-written tale made even more irresistible due to it being true, and I devoured it in one sitting.

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