The Quatermass Book-Reading Marathon Blog: Going Fourth

Post Reply New Topic

Book 27...

REVIEW: The American Way of Death by Jessica Mitford


After reading Evelyn Waugh's The Loved One, I found myself strangely wanting to read more about the funeral industry. I wondered how much Waugh exaggerated, and how much was real. Reading further, I came across Jessica Mitford, and her sixties expose, The American Way of Death (later updated in the nineties, although it is the sixties version I have read). Intrigued, I delved into it.

It is a rather horrifying look at the trappings and traps of the funeral industry. In a way, it reminded me of Fast Food Nation, Eric Schlosser's expose of the fast food industry, as well as what big business does to farmers and meatworkers. Mitford writes in a style that is somewhat dry by modern standards, but nonetheless manages to remain engaging for the most part. A few sequences, such as a detailed description of an embalming, may not be for the faint of heart.

The style in which she writes is clearly designed to bring out the worst of the funeral directors. How much of it is pure truth and how much of it is the highlighting of the worst cases to make a point, I have no idea. However, as far as exposes are concerned, it is a chilling work that shows how funeral directors charge a high price for sentiment, with many misleading comments and statements along the way on the behalf of the funeral directors (like whether embalming is compulsary by law, which, at the time of the book's writing, it certainly wasn't in California).

If there are faults to be had, it's that it's rather dry writing by modern day standards of sensational journalism, and while intriguing and engrossing, fails to grab my attention as completely as it should. And I would have thought that there might have been something more juicy in the whole thing, but it seems like she revisits variations on the same thing from different angles.

Still, if you're looking for an interesting expose of what might happen at a vulnerable time in your lives, The American Way of Death is pretty good reading. Just be aware, you may never look at the funeral industry the same way again...



8/10


First words: O Death, where is thy sting?

Last words: Whether the narrow passageway to the unknown, which everybody must cross, will continue to be as cluttered and as expensive to traverse as it is today, depends in the last analysis entirely on those travelers who have not yet reached it.

Book 28...

REVIEW: Doctor Who: Frontios by Christopher H Bidmead


Having recently watched the Doctor Who story Frontios, I realised that I hadn't, at least in its entirety, read the novelisation. Written by the same man who actually wrote the original story for television, Christopher H Bidmead, it would restore many of the concepts that weren't realised onscreen, as well as scenes cut from the transmitted version. But how good is this version of Frontios?

Accidentally arriving in the far future, the TARDIS materialises above the world of Frontios, where one of the last surviving colonies of humanity, fleeing the destruction of Earth, have crash-landed. The colonists are paranoid, suffering in primitive conditions and from meteorite bombardment caused by an unknown adversary, and with many deserting the colony and going Retrograde. The Doctor intends to leave as soon as possible, as this is at the edge of Gallifreyan knowledge, and this sort of interference may incur the wrath of the Time Lords. But the TARDIS is pulled down to Frontios along with meteorites, and the Doctor, Tegan, and Turlough are getting involved whether they like it or not. The colonists, led by the young and unprepared Plantagenet, and his brooding and hard deputy Brazen, believe that the Doctor and his companions are to blame, but the Doctor suspects otherwise. For Frontios buries its own dead, sucked into the ground, and the TARDIS itself is apparently destroyed in a heavy bombardment. While Tegan allies with science officer Range and his daughter Norna, Turlough is on a collision course with a race memory. And the Doctor must determine what enemy lurks beneath the ground, or he'll never leave Frontios alive...

I use different standards, it must be admitted, measuring the books I review here and the Doctor Who stories I review in the other thread, partly because of the different media. Frontios is actually quite a good story, and with the scenes removed put back in, along with some of Bidmead's original concepts (like having the Tractators being able to curl up into balls like the woodlice they were based on, or their gruesome excavation machine made even more horrific), it actually puts some polish on a good story. There are even some minor extensions of epic scope, and some nice examination of some of the characters, particularly Tegan, who seems to be the companion of choice for a POV sequence.

Part of the problem preventing a novelisation such as Frontios a really high mark, really, comes from the restrictions imposed on the Target novelisation of the series. I read once that there were word limits, and this might have adversely affected any stronger characterisation, though this was still given in many other novelisations, like those by Malcolm Hulke. So I must be disappointed in Bidmead actually for not taking the opportunity to expand his world as much as he could have, even make it more explicit the dangers that the Frontios colonists faced.

Even so, Frontios is a good novelisation of a good story, possibly overlooked by most fans, but something to relish, nonetheless. Certainly something to read if you have time to kill and want to read a quick but good story...


9/10


First words: At a sign from Captain Revere the diggers put up their picks and stood still as the shadows on the chill rock walls.

Last words: But that was only to be expected.

Book 29...

REVIEW: Cowboys & Aliens by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, Fred van Lente, Andrew Foley et al


Although I did not go to see the movie Cowboys & Aliens, I decided to try the graphic novel, once I found it at the library. On the face of it, the title merely seems to suggest one of those rather cheesy mixtures of two popcultural icons to make a supposedly exciting adventure. Would this turn out to be the case, or is there more to this than meets the eye?

Arizona, 1873. The battles between the European settlers and the Native Americans is still going on, and Zeke and Verity, a cowboy and cowgirl respectively, have been hired to protect a caravan heading to Silver City, a boom town with silver mines. But during an ambush by Apache Indians, a mysterious craft passes overhead and crash-lands nearby, and it soon turns out that the craft is actually an alien spaceship, accidentally landed on Earth, but filled with militaristic aliens who decide to conquer Earth. Silver City, far from being a boom town, has no silver mines any more, and it's soon to become no refuge. European settlers and Native Americans are forced to team up with each other, taking what alien technology they can, and the help of a defector from the aliens, but can they prevent the conquest of Earth by the ruthless Rado Dar?

Okay, I'll admit it. It's a good, if rather short story that, while a little cliched and heavy handed in criticising Manifest Destiny (though really, that does need to be criticised), is nonetheless engrossing, entertaining, and a rollicking good ride. It manages to pack a lot into its short frame, and while a bit short on substance, especially where characterisation is involved, it is still quite good. The romances do take a little too short a period of time to develop, really, and seem to develop more out of infatuation than love, something that other comics tend to avoid.

The artwork is also quite good, colourful and doing much to show what is going on. The alien designs are a mixture of cliches and interesting new designs, and there's some intriguing ways that the alien weapons are used, ranging from a repair device to a green explosive chemical. But it's nothing too noteworthy, though it manages to be something of a spectacle at least.

All in all, this graphic novel was enjoyable to read, and had enough deeper themes, despite the short length and heavy handed way of integrating them, to keep me satisfied for depth. Whether it needs a sequel or not, I dunno, but it's still a decent enough book nonetheless.



8.5/10


First words: Every conqeueror believes himself moved by a higher power.

Last words: Howdy.

Book 30...

REVIEW: Black Lagoon volume 1 by Rei Hiroe


Okay, so I'm not really that much a fan of manga and anime, so it does take me a little effort to branch out, as I noted in my Claymore and Soul Eater reviews. It was partly for this reason, and partly because of its reputation for violence, that I haven't tried the frankly bizarre crime manga, Black Lagoon. Having now tried it, would I enjoy it? Or does it get thrown on the reject pile?

Rokuro Okajima, a rather meek and mild mannered young salaryman, has been sent on assignment to the South China Sea by his company, Asahi Industries. Problem is, his boat gets assaulted by a trio of pirates cum mercenaries, the Lagoon Company, and after being interrogated, one of his captors decides to bring him along for extorting ransom money from Asahi. But a series of events culminates in Rokuro joining the Lagoon Company. With Dutch, an African American Vietnam War veteran, Revy, a psychotic trigger happy woman, and Benny, an even-keeled communications officer and hacker, and taking orders from Russian gangster Balalaika, Rokuro, newly christened Rock, is in for the time of his life, if he can live that long. For he has just entered a world where betrayal is the norm, cynicism is the nearest equivalent to idealism, and death can come at any moment, from the edge of a knife, or the barrel of a gun...

Okay, so Black Lagoon is violent. In fact, it is certainly on the level of many a Hollywood action movie or graphic novel, only to a ridiculously over the top level. Well, as far as gunplay and explosions are concerned. While blood is often prevalent, as is injuries, actual gore is actually rare, though there is a disturbing shot early on in the graphic novel of a man getting hit in the face with the prow of a boat (no blood or brains or anything, but seeing from the side a man's face getting literally flattened is still a mite disturbing). The storyline is also typical of this kind of manga, in that at this point, it is virtually non-existent, being instead a glorified serial.

And yet, despite the violence and thin overarching story, it is also an intriguing and engrossing one. This is a world where there are no heroes, except maybe Rokuro, and even he is kept in line by his fellow mercenaries. It is dark, grim, and violent, and yet, there are touching moments, like when a boy, upon finding out his maid was a former Cuban terrorist, nonetheless defends her. And you do get the feeling that, despite their natures as criminals, both Dutch and Balalaika have, if not morality or empathy, then sympathy for some.

There is also continual lashings of dark humour throughout the series. In fact, in both that and the art style, I am strongly reminded of the horror manga series Hellsing. There are certainly many similar characters, crazed blood knights who live only for battle. But there is stronger humour in Black Lagoon. Plus, I like the characters better, despite them mostly being more abhorrent than the good guys in Hellsing. Revy is quite funny when she isn't being terrifying (and sometimes when she is), and Rokuro's reactions to many a situation are hilarious.

Black Lagoon, then, isn't for everyone. But if you love high octane action with lashings of black humour, you could do worse. I just wish they had a better story.


8/10


First words: All right.

Last words: Oh, joy...

I'm probably going to abandon this for the time being. Unfortunately, I've lost a lot of motivation to read at the moment, so I'm going to leave this until later this year and start a new one, probably in November or later.