Capsule book reviews in 255 characters or fewer. Ish. A reading diary (1st Jan 2019 onwards) by Eamonn Griffin.
A collection of one-and two-line gags, puns, and wordplay from the UK stand-up comedian. And that’s it: the book does exactly what it promises. There’s about 1000 well-crafted little jokes here, some obviously selected as they work better in print rather than delivered on stage. All tastes catered for, from the cheekily rude to the impressively inventive.
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My own books are here, if that’s your thing. Newest is noir thriller East of England.
An overview of the development of motion pictures, from pre-photographic days to the present. Good-looking but insubstantial introduction: the scope of the subject renders this patchy despite its intentions. A sense of Boardman working towards something: the follow-up volume (on UFOs) is a more focused beast. The images are great though.
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My own books are here, if that’s your thing. Newest is noir thriller East of England.
An autobiography of comedian Steve Martin, charting his early life and stand-up career. Excellent, clear-sighted, and well-written: whether you like Martin or not, there’s a lot here on creativity, persistence, and on being able to walk away, while also dealing with family relationships with honesty and perception. Recommended.
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My own books are here, if that’s your thing. Newest is noir thriller East of England.
An overview of John Carpenter’s 1978 horror movie. Thorough monograph, focusing on the film in close textual terms rather than in terms of its position in wider generic terms. Plenty here for fans of the film, of Carpenter, and of 1970s US cinema. Recommended.
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My own books are here, if that’s your thing. Newest is noir thriller East of England.
A Himalayan climbing guide moonlighting as an Everest graverobber stumbles across secrets for which a shadowy agency will gladly kill. Zippy thriller blending international spy-jinks and guilty past narratives with authentic-feeling mountaineering content. Plenty to appreciate and enjoy here. Recommended.
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My own books are here, if that’s your thing. Newest is noir thriller East of England.
A chronological history of UFO sightings and associated lore. Rendered in crisp graphics and accompanying text, somewhat similar to a book-length infographic, this is a clear, comprehensive and accessible introduction for just about all ages, with a few dry jokes along the way.
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My own books are here, if that’s your thing. Newest is noir thriller East of England.
After Britain’s sale to another country, two men guard a gate designed by the new president’s son-in-law. Another of Mills‘ blank-faced absurdist satires and studies of entropy, this time with an eye on the era of Brexit and Trump. Glorious stuff if you’re a fan of this modern master, though maybe not an entry point for others. Recommended, nevertheless.
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My own books are here, if that’s your thing. Newest is noir thriller East of England.
An overview of building architecture and of the spatial design of cities, from a transgressive perspective. The book’s a little light, padded, and a touch overwritten, but nevertheless a hugely enjoyable and illustrative exploration of social control, our assumptions about design, and about how burglars approach questions of space and movement. Recommended.
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My own books are here, if that’s your thing. Newest is noir thriller East of England.
A young woman, pursued by an unstoppable supernatural contract killer, tries to erase all trace of her existence. Smart and dirty action-horror with arty leanings, in a Clive Barker meets late 80s Vertigo comics kinda way. This collects issues 1-4. Volume 2 follows.
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My own books are here, if that’s your thing. Newest is noir thriller East of England.
Bodies accumulate as the ghost writer of a radio agony column draws on listeners’ letters in their serial killing. 1940s Barcelona-set deadpan absurdist noir that might be a touch impenetrable at first, but which comes with some useful appendices: based on a real-world radio show. Great-looking though, being rendered in lovely monochrome.
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My own books are here, if that’s your thing. Newest is noir thriller East of England.
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