But first, as an introduction, a look at a new book on horror films…

NIGHTMARE MOVIES carries the subtitle “Horror On Screen Since the 1960’s” and author Kim Newman (Anno Dracula series) certainly makes an effort to cover that much ground. The third incarnation of this book – the previous two publications only went up to the mid 1980’s – is actually two books in one volume, with Newman updating and annotating the previous release which covers most of the trends and nuances of horror films – from the classic characters of ghost, vampire, zombie, werewolf and Frankenstein’s Monster and their evolution/variations to the beginnings and explosion of the slasher film; foreign horror (emphasis on the Italian giallo and zombie gut-crunchers); post-modern horror and auteurs like Dario Argento, Larry Cohen, David Cronenberg and Brian DePalma.

The second book picks up from the late ’80’s to present day, with updated looks at the evolution of classic horror characters (the resurgence of vampires and zombies); slasher films transforming into serial killer films; ‘franchise’ horror and remakes; “torture porn”; foreign horror (Japan and Spain taking the lead) and auteurs David Lynch, Guillermo DelToro, Larry Fessenden and David Lynch this time around.

At over 600 pages, including bibliographies and index, it’s a pretty comprehensive look at the modern horror film, though there are some omissions here and there – no one person can see EVERYTHING, after all. Newman strikes a nice balance between the scholarly approach and horror fan appreciation; whether or not you may agree or disagree with his opinions, his analysis is top notch.

Now, some suggestions for Halloween viewing that were made locally. Full disclosure – I was a part of the production crew on some of the films mentioned.

HEARTLAND HORRORS VOL. 1, is a collection of short films by local filmmakers Patrick Rea and Kendall Sinn (who have also collaborated on the upcoming feature NAILBITER) that premiered on the website The Horror Channel a few years ago. Like most collections/anthologies, it’s a varied collection of stories, serious and comic, yet there’s not a true dud in the bunch.

Patrick Rea continues to make shorts, but most filmmakers eventually decide to take the plunge into longer forms. THE EMPTY ACRE is Rea’s ‘no-budget’ debut feature, which has a young couple, caught in the midst of mysterious forces decimating a small town. The horror in this movie isn’t the bloody/gory/thrill-a-minute kind, so if you’re looking for blood to be strewn around, you’ll be disappointed – but fans of low-key, slow burning dread that steadily accumulates will find much to like.

If you’re a fan of more traditional horror-fare – the vengeance-oriented, ‘bad behavior punished’ type of morality play, then check out KC filmmaker Ty Jones’ debut feature LAST BREATH. A couple struggling with marital problems find themselves trapped in a warehouse by some Dark Figure who continually torments them, for crimes unknown to them. Who this Figure is and his connection to them is the crux of the mystery. LAST BREATH has been likened to, “SAW, with a moral uplift”, and that pretty much hits the nail on the head, so to speak; fans of movies like SAW, HARD CANDY and of twist endings will also enjoy this.

Horror sometimes has a close relationship with sci-fi – ALIEN, just to take an obvious example. Lawrence filmmakers Alec Joler and Ethan Shaftel straddle the line of sci-fi and horror with their debut feature SUSPENSION. It starts out as a drama, with a husband losing his wife and son in an accident – the sci-fi element is that shortly after the incident, he discovers that he has the ability to stop time, which he begins using to deal with his grief. The horror element surfaces when he begins to obsess and stalk a young woman using the ability. SUSPENSION makes good use of several Topeka locations, some startling low-key effects and good performances from the lead characters.

Finally, THE ONLY GOOD INDIAN, directed by Kevin Willmott, might at first glance appear to be misplaced on this list, since it can be found in the Western section – but horror can be found in unusual places and sometimes isn’t labeled ‘horror’. In the case of INDIAN, one can consider the story of a young Native American boy at the turn of the century (1900) who’s abducted from his home and taken to an Indian school to be ‘civilized’ to be a Native American horror tale. The film does utilize some subtle horror tropes – the tale of DRACULA is used as a metaphorical counterpoint, and as the story is from the viewpoint of the abducted boy ‘Charlie’, one could see some parallels to another tale of children in adversity, THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER.

Happy Halloween!

The Obelisk

Tillman took on the role of protective older brother.  Unfortunately their differing views on how to go about combating terrorism caused them to become estranged.  When Tillman, a.k.a. Abu Nasir (Islamic Jihadist) decides to surrender, the President of the United States asks Gideon to be the negotiator.  What unfolds is a page-turning adventure that will keep you from putting it down.

Howard Gordon has done an incredible job jumping from executive producer of the television show 24, to thriller novelist.  The characters are very well developed and the plot is well laid out.  I cannot wait for his next offering.  I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys reading Flynn, Thor, Clancy, Cussler, etc.  You will not be disappointed.

With an intro joke about a mistyped text message to his wife and segueing into an absurdly worded announcement that he has a child on the way, Patton Oswalt‘s album “My Weakness is Strong” starts with a bang.

This album, like typical Patton fare, is a romp through the convoluted mind of an unapologetic geek. His witticisms pull references from high culture and pop culture alike. When speaking of worries about Halloween in wake of his voice role in Pixar’s Ratatouille, he muses:

“I can no longer enjoy drinking scotch on Halloween for fear that some kid will come to the door in a Remy the Rat costume and I’ll blurt out enthusiastically… ‘You’re walking the night in my skin. How does that feel?’ which is really only one step away from, ‘Does this washcloth smell like chloroform to you?’”

Or his thoughts on self-checkout lines at the grocery store:

“Now, YOU wave your food over the laser beam, YOU give the money to the robot, YOU put the food in the bag,  and YOU take the bag out to your car, because my grocery store got all of my letters where I said, ‘I want to be a check-out clerk!’”

This album is not as absurdly obscene as his first album, “Feelin’ Kinda Patton” and lacks some of the Juggernaut-like momentum of his second album, “Werewolves and Lollipops”, but with its delightful observations on the barbs and pitfalls of being
human in this time and place, this album hits on all cylinders.

Between thoughts on mp3 players (an affordable miracle that no one cares about) and concerns about a post-apocalyptic future (“I need to be stringy or I’m dead.”), Oswalt’s comedy is as fresh and funny as it has always been.

Dancing with the Velvet Lizard, his first-ever collection of short fiction, includes a mind-bending 33 tales, with a fine balance of science fiction, fantasy, horror, and humor–more than one something for everyone.  It’s certainly the largest collection of such yarns I’ve ever come across.

There’s no single theme to this collection.  From the positively terrifying ‘The Withering,‘ to the tongue-radiating-in-cheek ‘I Was a Teenage Hideous Sun Demon,’ to the chilling apocalyptic tale of ‘Holiday,’ Golden’s work runs the gamut from dark to laugh-out-loud funny.  No two stories are alike, and it’s this variety that makes it well worth the reader’s time.  No one’s going like every story in a collection of short fiction (a handful of these tales were just so-so to me), but I challenge you not find enough here to make it worthwhile–no matter what you paid for it.

Along the way, Golden explores the personal consequences of popping pills for better orgasms, and provides a “what if” to what might have really happened to America’s beloved bandleader Glenn Miller during World War II.  He visits a Native American shaman who sends the government a bill for making it rain, and a 119-year-man who drives his classic automobile into the middle of an insurrection, chased by flying cars.  He asks if Little Red Riding Hood really lived happily ever after, and whether beauty is still in the eye of the beholder when that eye sees through an alien lens.

Dancing with the Velvet Lizard starts with one of the most powerful stories in the book.  A tale that looks (not so far) into the future, when we begin to warehouse our elderly, and care for them with machines.  This one made me cry.

Forget about steroids, in his story ‘One of Nine,’ Golden looks into a future where baseball players are grown in tanks, but don’t have all the rights of “regular” humans.  This tale has the same civil rights overtones as his novel Mortals All.

In the not-too-distant future of ‘Profile of a Patriot,’ a good American is someone who’s careful about what he says, doesn’t question authority, and is always ready to bear witness against his neighbor.  He switches gears again for ‘The Apocryphist,’ to divulge how the art of story-telling began on one particularly feline alien world.

In his Firebrand Fiction award-winning story ‘I Found Love on Channel 3,’ Golden delivers a portrait of man who lusts after a sexy cartoon character, who then comes alive and makes his fantasy come true–or does she?  Sex is also a dangerous element in another tale, where a young couple’s orgasms are wreaking havoc with the fabric of time.

Admittedly, there are few happy endings herein, but if you like stories that make you think, that draw you in so you’re rooting for the protagonist, so that you care, you won’t be dissatisfied.  However, just when you think you’ll be enveloped by the darkness, the collection shifts gears, going from heartbreaking to hilarity.  Golden revisits Dave and his computer friend Hal, but adds a Cheech & Chong twist;  lets a late ’50s B-movie monster relate his life story; sends an angelic censor to the game show from Hell; and shows us a seldom seen side of God, when the deity grabs a scribe from his heavenly ranks to write his biography.

Golden’s greatest strengths have always been his ability to create vivid characters and craft uncannily true-to-life dialogue.  As a result, his narratives are extremely character-driven and fast-moving.  If you like to dwell in the land of purple prose and endless descriptive paragraphs, this book isn’t for you.  Golden doesn’t spend much time on that.  Instead he drops you into the middle of scene where things are already happening.

After each tale Golden includes a little epilogue that I found very interesting.  He reveals something about the story’s background, what inspired it, how it was written, places it was published (though some of the tales in this collection are being published for the first time).  I found these tidbits fascinating because they also reveal a great deal about the author himself–his passions, his politics, his foibles.

If you dare to dance with The Velvet Lizard, you won’t be disappointed.

What unfolds is an incredible fast-paced adventure that will take you from Europe to the Caribbean to the Gulf coast of the United States.  This is a well written and witty tale of intrigue and suspense.

Charlie is forced to try to get information regarding the location of the device from his father, a former CIA operative.  The problem is Drummond suffers from Alzheimer’s disease.   He has moments of lucidity in which Charlie frantically questions him.

Overall this is a great read.  If you are a fan of Vince Flynn, Brad Thor, Tom Clancy or any of the other espionage authors then make sure you add Keith Thomson to your list of must reads.

Throughout my entire life, I have had people tell me that I do not smile enough, so you can imagine my excitement when I finally read a book telling me to smile less. Well, perhaps more accurately, it told me to think a little more before I smile. Barbara Ehrenreich’s Bright-Sided: How Positive Thinking is Undermining America claims that optimism can actually have negative impacts.

Ironic, I know. The book details how the elusive thinking behind optimism can cloud our judgment and how this clouded judgment is harming America. Although Bright-Sided ought to be read with an ounce of scrutiny, I highly suggest it as a thought-provoking book.

It is very clear that one of Ehrenreich’s goals is mass circulation. Bright-Sided addresses the entire US population, not a specific generation, social class, religion, or other social group. This is evident from the very moment the book is under your nose.

The subtitle on the cover labels positive thinking as an American problem. Once you open up the book and explore inside (which I highly recommend you do), you will find that Ehrenreich includes a chapter on The Dark Roots of American Optimism, integrating optimism into the development of America’s culture. The very first page of the introduction begins, “Americans are a ‘positive’ people. This is our reputation as well as our self-image.”

Although it may seem at first as if Ehrenreich is over-generalizing the American population, she has a good reason to do so. By bringing all of America into the conversation, Ehrenreich ensures that she has a far-reaching impact. She ensures that the issue of optimism is debated among the diverse community that is the American population. This is even more evident when you analyze what issues Ehrenreich has decided to cover in her book.

She includes a chapter on breast cancer, one on religion, another on the business world, and yet another on the economy. Because of this, Ehrenreich’s book attracts everyone from breast cancer victims to motivational speakers. It may hold interest for a laid off worker but is also relevant to anyone of the Christian faith. By making her book apply to so many people, she made it more likely that conversation surrounding positive thinking and its disadvantages would begin to take place.

Ehrenreich has been known to take a very liberal stance on social issues. According to the autobiography on her own website, www.barbaraehrenreich.com, she began her involvement with activism after receiving her PhD and joining a poverty eradication non-profit in New York City. From there, Ehrenreich became active in the women’s health movement, writing for esteemed publications such as Ms. magazine. She has written books and articles on poverty, peace, healthcare, women’s rights, and political oppression.

Her list of liberal stances is long enough to make any conservative bolt out of the library door after coming across one of her books in the stacks. If you are a conservative, however, I suggest that you give Bright-Sided a chance. Although she is very liberal minded, Ehrenreich presents intriguing reasons why conservatives should shun positive thinking as well. For example, Ehrenreich’s primary argument against optimism in the face of breast cancer is scientific, not social.

She indicates that since cancer cannot be cured by the immune system, claims that cancer can be solved by optimism are false. She also attacks the scientific theory behind positive psychology. Florence King, who wrote a review of Bright-Sided for the March 2010 issue of the online and print publication The American Conservative, called Ehrenreich “the conservative’s favorite liberal author.”

One of the most controversial issues that Ehrenreich tackles in Bright-Sided is what she calls the “pink ribbon culture” surrounding breast cancer. She does so in the very first chapter, Smile or Die: The Bright Side of Cancer. Ehrenreich gives an account of her own experience with breast cancer and hints at the fact that it was the inspiration for Bright-Sided. Her argument is that optimism has taken over breast cancer and tried to transform it into something glamorous, but this has been detrimental to its victims who end up blaming themselves for lack of recovery.

Ehrenreich’s criticism of the pink ribbon culture has incited much debate among breast cancer victims and the general population. For many, this is a view of breast cancer that they had not considered previously. At first glance, many have called it offensive. Others have given it due evaluation and accepted it. Either way, it is an issue that affects many Americans and ought to be considered.

As a strong-willed activist, Ehrenreich presents most of her writing in a very persuasive tone. When she takes a stance, she gives very little slack to the other side and pushes her view to the limit. Many of the issues she writes about in her other books appear again in Bright-Sided, so Ehrenreich clearly has a great interest in the topics she analyzes.

In a book review by Jeffrey Cass, published in the April 2010 issue of The Journal of Popular Culture, Ehrenreich is praised for “her involvement with her subject.” Cass claims that, “Ehrenreich enters the dialogue on America’s obsession with positive thinking through a highly emotional lens—her own breast cancer…” By taking on an aggressive tone about a topic she is emotionally involved in, Ehrenreich automatically incites debate. She challenges other viewpoints that disagree with her. Whether you disagree or agree with her point of view, she leaves you riled up and ready to challenge either her or the status quo. She makes sure she is hard to ignore.

Although the discussion that Ehrenreich begins is a riveting one, it should by no means be the last word on positive thinking. In order to support many of her claims, Ehrenreich ignored data that contradicted her. In the introduction, she indicates that the United States ranks 150^th on the Happy Planet Index. She attempts to use this statistic to show that Americans are not as happy as they seem, but according to www.happyplanetindex.org, the official website for the Happy Planet Index, this measurement “reveals the ecological efficiency with which human well-being is delivered.”

There is no doubt that Ehrenreich could have found a more applicable measurement of happiness. She also exaggerates some of her claims. In the last chapter, she indicates that wealth is the greatest determinant for happiness when the study she cites, conducted by an analytical social psychologist at the University of Leicester and published in Science Daily, actually shows that health has a greater correlation. Additionally, some of her sources are unqualified, such as blogs and popular news sources.

Finally, Ehrenreich takes a slanted view towards a few of her sources. While describing the father of the positive thinking movement, Martin Seligman, she deeply criticizes how he handled her interview, even though it was irrelevant to the purpose of the book. These sourcing issues have resulted in a number of criticisms. Despite reviewers’ disapproval, though, many can’t help but agree with the general message of the book. This indicates that it may have been written, yet again, as a conversation starter rather than a final word on the subject.

Clearly, Bright-Sided is not perfect. Regardless of its imperfections, though, I still herald it as an effective piece of literature. It fulfilled the purpose it was written to achieve. Ehrenreich was successful in at least one aspect of writing Bright-Sided: she incited discussion. I challenge you to join it.

A good portion of his most well-known stories were adapted into memorable TWILIGHT ZONE episodes; in the early 60′s, Roger Corman chose him to write some of the Edgar Allen Poe adaptations – HOUSE OF USHER, THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM, THE RAVEN; in the ’70′s, Steven Spielberg kicked off a promising career by directing a tv-movie called DUEL written by Matheson, and Dan Curtis (DARK SHADOWS, THE WINDS OF WAR) had a fruitful alliance with Matheson with the tv-movies, THE NIGHT STALKER and THE NIGHT STRANGLER, DRACULA, and TRILOGY OF TERROR.

A substantial amount of Matheson’s novels have been turned into beloved films – THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN, THE LAST MAN ON EARTH, THE OMEGA MAN, SOMEWHERE IN TIME, A STIR OF ECHOES, WHAT DREAMS MAY COME, I AM LEGEND…

With an impressive CV like the one above, it’ll take a solid effort to pay proper respect to the man and his work in literary form. HE IS LEGEND, a collection edited by Christopher Conlon, declares itself to be an ‘anthology celebrating Richard Matheson’; and it does fit the bill. All of the stories present are Matheson-related; either inspired by his work, or sequels/prequels to his work.

It can also be said that all of the contributors chosen owe quite a debt to Matheson and his efforts, and that debt is worked-off by some heavyweights in the genre. The main attraction is pretty major – a collaboration by father/son Stephen King and Joe Hill; but also on the bill are William F. Nolan, Ed Gorman, Joe Lansdale, Ramsey Campbell (providing an introduction rather than a story), F. Paul Wilson, John Shirley, Nancy Collins, Whitley Strieber, Richard Christian Matheson (his son), and several others.

It’s a pretty strong tribute anthology – though the thing with tributes is, it usually only means something if you know of the original work. With adaptations of Matheson’s work still being done (such as the recent THE BOX), most of it is still in print and quite easy to find.

Tributes of this nature are usually given once the recipient is either near death, or has passed on over. Neither is true in Matheson’s case, with the release of his new novel OTHER KINGDOMS. After writing in almost every genre, Matheson finally attempts a work in the fantasy genre – fantasy in the realm of faeries, enchantments, witches — that type of fantasy.

Written as the memoir of Alex White, a successful author, the book’s main setting is the early 1900′s, at the start of World War I and Alex’s enlistment to escape his home life. Wounded in battle, he ends up relocating to a remote English village whose surrounding woods, are reputed to be the realm of ‘the wee folk’.

Even in straight fantasy, Matheson doesn’t go where you expect him to, which is a huge plus for those who roll their eyes whenever the Faerie card is played. Matheson keeps the reader grounded with his main character, through whose eyes and viewpoint the events are experienced, from disbelief to grudging acceptance.

Matheson also incorporates a great deal of research in Wicca and folklore which adds a veneer of believability to the story’s more mystical aspects.

OTHER KINGDOMS is closer in tone to SOMEWHERE IN TIME and WHAT DREAMS MAY COME than some of his more horrific work, Fantasy fans will immediately flock to this and it should win over those who normally squirm when faced with ‘fantasy’ literature.

J

One of those being the novel THE DRIVE-IN, a twisted love letter to lo-budget exploitation fare, wherein the patrons of a Texas drive-in go from being the audience of the main feature, to being IN one, with all of the trimmings – explosions, cannabalism, mutants, and general bad behavior all around.

Like all good drive-in fare, there was a sequel, THE DRIVE-IN 2, which followed the survivors from THE DRIVE-IN into even more twisted adventures and added some new characters. Both books went quickly out of print, leaving followers in their wake who took to used bookstores or libraries, or small press catalogs to scratch that itch.

Now that Lansdale has ‘broken through’, that has allowed THE DRIVE-IN Saga to be collected into one volume, THE COMPLETE DRIVE-IN: Three Novels of Anarchy, Aliens, & The Popcorn King.

Oh, the third novel? Well, trilogies were the hottest thing, now weren’t they? THE DRIVE-IN 3, which brings in newer characters and more crazed situations does provide some answers to the goings on in the previous books and it’s a good stopping point; but it does leave some room for continuing adventures, if the muse strikes a fourth time. It quickly sold out as a limited edition, so it’s great that all three are available in an affordable edition.

THE COMPLETE DRIVE-IN is a good introduction to the other side of Lansdale for newer fans, and a good keepsake for the die-hards; but even more ‘out there is FLAMING ZEPPELINS. Subtitled, “The Adventures of Ned The Seal”, FZ brings together into one volume 2 linked novels, ZEPPELINS WEST and FLAMING LONDON, where Ned is a recurring character in both.

FLAMING ZEPPELINS is a flat out crazy genre mashup – crazy as in Nic Cage-type crazy – that Lansdale does SO well. ZEPPELINS WEST starts out as an alternate history adventure kicking off with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show on tour and heading for Japan… the method of transportation is via zeppelin and Buffalo Bill is a floating head in a jar with a robotic body.

As things progress, Bill and his crew wind up stranded on a remote island under the control of a “Dr. Memo”, and a raucous parody of THE ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU is carried out, with The Frankenstein Monster, Captain Bemo and Tin (who are suspiciously similar to Captain Nemo and The Tin Man) and even Dracula makes an appearance.

FLAMING LONDON, the follow-up, has Ned The Seal, who survived the goings-on in ZEPPELINS WEST, end up in London where he ends up, along with authors Mark Twain and Jules Verne, attempting to thwart a Martian invasion of the Earth! Some familiar faces also drop in, along with H.G. Wells himself – whose work gets a satiric workover, along with a bit of E.R. Burroughs too.

FZ is Lansdale at his wildest; it helps if you’re a genre fan, since more than likely you’ll be familiar with the works getting ruthlessly pulp-parodied. Fair warning – the humor will get a bit raw at times, so if you’re easily offended, this may not be for you. Come to think of it, if you’re easily offended, you wouldn’t be reading Lansdale at all.

About L. Rob Hubbard – In between reviewing books and films, blogging and plotting Eventual World Domination, L. Rob Hubbard also finds time to work freelance in film production. He also likes cats.”

Pulitzer Prize winning author Richard Russo narrates the story of a married couple, Jack and Joy Griffin, whose lives have intersected for 30 years. They are once again experiencing “That Old Cape Magic” as they revisit the scene of their honeymoon to attend the wedding of their daughter Laura’s best friend Kelsey.

The story is told from Jack’s point of view. Jack, only child of two college English professors transplanted from the East to a large Midwestern university in Indiana, vacationed with his family on Cape Cod when he was a child. It was their escape from the humdrum life on campus. His parents eventually divorced and remarried. Jack carries his deceased father’s ashes on this most recent visit to the Cape, but he has a tough time letting go of the past. He cannot shake the memories.

Joy and Jack travel in separate cars to the wedding, the first indicator that their lives together are unraveling. Their daughter Laura is distressed by her parents’ situation that ends in a separation. Jack alone must deal with his acidic mother’s terminal illness and suffers mentally because of their estranged relationship. Jobs dry up, and Jack feels like a failure in so many ways.

Flash forward one year – another wedding – his daughter Laura is marrying her sweetheart Andy, and Jack must cope with Joy’s family. Their hostility toward him is thinly masked, and the wedding is almost a disaster after a fiasco at the rehearsal dinner, but the wedding itself is a success.

Russo’s humorous treatment of his serious subject matter is refreshing. He delineates his characters, especially Jack’ mother and Joy’s father, quite clearly and makes them come alive on the pages of the novel. Hilarious incidents reveal the true nature of Joy’s family relationships. We readers see inside a complex character’s thoughts and grow in understanding along with him.

Reviewed by Susie Nightingale

Switch is loaded with case studies of individuals, companies, and teams who are all trying to change something. I just love a good case study! Switch gives us a more precise look at how our minds and emotions play into accepting or resisting change and how we can work around those obstacles. Switch gave out-of-the-box solutions that amazed me. I had many “now why didn’t I think of that?” moments while reading. Switch gives the reader a step by step action plan to make change happen. After reflecting on what I learned in this book, the answers to solving the change problem seem like common sense solutions. The authors give the reader the facts in a narrative, humorous way. It was an enlightening and entertaining read.

I think this book would be great for counselors, teachers, parents, politicians, community leaders, doctors & nurses, and anyone who wants to generate a lasting change within themselves or in the world around them. What do you want to change?

Switch: how to change things when change is hard by Chip Heath

Reviewed by Dahlia O’Neil

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