So What Are you Reading?: Generations

[KRAD]

Keith DeCandido was just reminding me the other day that we first met on a panel discussion of Mary Shelley's novel, thirty-four years ago. Before either of us starting writing Trek books, I think.

Frankenstein brought us together!

Long before -- the Frankenstein discussion on The Chronic Rift was in 1990. Your first Trek work was 1995 (the novel Devil in the Sky), mine was 1999 (the Perchance to Dream comic).

*wanders off whistling "Puttin' on the Ritz"*

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

Since it came up in the "A to Z" thread, and could barely remember even the basic premise, I'm now reading MJF's X-Men crossover novel.

 

[JD]

I finished up The Sky's the Limit yesterday and I started the digital collection of Star Wars: The High Republic: Trail of Shadows comic miniseries.

 

[JD]

I finished up Trail of Shadows eariler today. It was pretty good, nothing outstanding, but I liked it.
Hoopla has the digital version of the first issue of the new ongoing Star Trek: Lower Decks comic book series. I'm only 3 pages into it, and it's already been really funny.

 

[Smiley]

I finished my first read of To Lose the Earth. I have mixed feelings about it. There are some cool ideas in it and its predecessor, but A Pocket Full of Lies was a much more satisfying story.

Next up:

Plagues of Night (reread)
The Biology Book (published by DK, first read)
The Silver Chair (Narnia series, reread)

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

The Nightmare Virus by Nadine Brandes. YA fantasy

 

[Greg Cox]

Current reading: DARKLY by Marisha Pessl, author of NIGHT FILM.

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

I'm a little over halfway through re-reading MJF's TNG/X-Men crossover novel.

Entertaining, but it's not nearly as good as Barbara Hambly's unauthorized Here Come the Brides crossover, Ishmael.

Mainly because it assumes far too much X-Men knowledge on the part of the readers.

Even before I first saw an episode of HCTB (or knew that Ishmael was an unauthorized crossover), Hambly never made me feel like she was expecting me to already know who the Bolt Bothers, or Aaron Stemple [sic], or Captain Clancy, or Biddy Cloom were. And after I'd seen some episodes in strip syndication, and found out on this very board about the Easter eggs referencing other TV westerns, that just added to the fun.

This, on the other hand, feels like MJF expected me to have a working knowledge of X-Men, and to have already read the crossover comic book.

 

[Commander Troi]

I'm a little over halfway through re-reading MJF's TNG/X-Men crossover novel.

Entertaining, but it's not nearly as good as Barbara Hambly's unauthorized Here Come the Brides crossover, Ishmael.

Mainly because it assumes far too much X-Men knowledge on the part of the readers.

Even before I first saw an episode of HCTB (or knew that Ishmael was an unauthorized crossover), Hambly never made me feel like she was expecting me to already know who the Bolt Bothers, or Aaron Stemple [sic], or Captain Clancy, or Biddy Cloom were. And after I'd seen some episodes in strip syndication, and found out on this very board about the Easter eggs referencing other TV westerns, that just added to the fun.

This, on the other hand, feels like MJF expected me to have a working knowledge of X-Men, and to have already read the crossover comic book.

I had no idea the Ishmael characters came from anywhere else! I've never seen HCTB, but I don't recall being lost back when I read it.

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

I had no idea the Ishmael characters came from anywhere else! I've never seen HCTB, but I don't recall being lost back when I read it.

Exactly my point.

HCTB is a western/sitcom, and a highly fictionalized version of the early history of Seattle, Washington (for the real [and uncensored] history, I recommend two books by the late Seattle historian, Bill Speidel, namely Sons of the Profits (and no, that's not a typo!) and Doc Maynard.)

HCTB has got a lot of conflation and reshuffling of the actual historic figures, and Ishmael is based on the HCTB version, rather than the historic one. The basic premise and milieu of HCTB is pretty well stated in Ishmael: the Bolt Brothers (two of which were played by ST guest stars!) ran a logging operation in pre-Statehood Seattle, and Aaron Stempel (spelled "Stemple" in Ishmael, and played by none other than Mark Lenard) owned the sawmill. With the loggers threatening to seek their fortunes elsewhere, for lack of female companionship, the Bolt Brothers went back East (to New Bedford, MA) to recruit women to join the settlement. There was an ownership dispute between the Bolt Brothers and Stempel, with respect to a timber-rich mountain, which they resolved with a bet: if all the women were at least spoken-for by a specified deadline, the Bolt Brothers would keep the mountain; if not, it would go to Stempel.

The 1968 popular song, "Seattle," started out as the open/close music for HCTB.

Most of the known Easter eggs are mentioned in the Review Thread. As I recall, there are Easter eggs for Maverick and Have Gun, Will Travel. Maybe also for Kung Fu. And there's at least one cameo by an actual historic figure, "Emperor" Norton. And even Dr. Who and Star Wars Easter eggs. (And to reiterate something I said in the review thread, I'd like to see another appearance by a Drelb, either Steiner or another of her species. Preferably an on-screen appearance.

Planet X, by contrast, doesn't have much exposition at all, with regard to who the X-Men are, and where they came from, or even how Picard & co. came to know them (in the crossover comic book, of course). Neither, I suppose, did MJF make it any easier on X-Men fans who had never seen an episode of TNG. Probably one of the reasons why this is only my second time reading Planet X, whereas I think I had to break out the Scotch Book Tape on my copy of Ishmael.

(And if the current series of ST TPBs is made out of more stable stock than the MMPBs that preceded them, then it's worth the extra money.)

 

[CaptainCalvinCat]

I'm a little over halfway through re-reading MJF's TNG/X-Men crossover novel.

Entertaining, but it's not nearly as good as Barbara Hambly's unauthorized Here Come the Brides crossover, Ishmael.

Mainly because it assumes far too much X-Men knowledge on the part of the readers.

Even before I first saw an episode of HCTB (or knew that Ishmael was an unauthorized crossover), Hambly never made me feel like she was expecting me to already know who the Bolt Bothers, or Aaron Stemple [sic], or Captain Clancy, or Biddy Cloom were. And after I'd seen some episodes in strip syndication, and found out on this very board about the Easter eggs referencing other TV westerns, that just added to the fun.

This, on the other hand, feels like MJF expected me to have a working knowledge of X-Men, and to have already read the crossover comic book.

Weren't there even other characters in the Book? Starbuck? Apollo?

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

Weren't there even other characters in the Book? Starbuck? Apollo?

Somebody ought to go through the entire Ishmael review thread, and collect all the Easter eggs mentioned.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

Most of the known Easter eggs are mentioned in the Review Thread. As I recall, there are Easter eggs for Maverick and Have Gun, Will Travel.

HGWT is a bit more than an Easter Egg. That's Paladin on the cover!

 

[Greg Cox]

Weren't there even other characters in the Book? Starbuck? Apollo?

The Hokas, from the stories by Poul Anderson & Gordon R. Dickson.

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

Which is indeed why I bought a hardcover omnibus of the complete Hoka stories. Maybe that's why nobody actually complained about the unauthorized crossover: it led people to discover the properties it crossed over with.

And Aurelia Steiner's species may be an allusion to Gary Owens, Laugh-In, and "Morgul the Friendly Drelb."

 

[Christopher]

Maybe that's why nobody actually complained about the unauthorized crossover: it led people to discover the properties it crossed over with.

More likely just that tie-in novels were a small enough part of the media landscape that the book went unnoticed by the people who had reason to sue.

 

[JD]

I started reading Star Wars: The High Republic: The Rising Storm by Cavan Scott.

 

[Reanok]

I just finished reading David Mack's short story in star trek Magazine about Weasley Crusher being a traveler and exploring his memories of his dad was well written I really liked it alot.

 

[trentman359]

Finished Susan Wright’s Badlands books. Moved onto VOY Violations, also by Wright.

 

[TalkaboutTrek]

Going to finish the first Captains Table book tonight. So far I am really enjoying both the stories and how they come together. I am excited to see how the other books play out.