Book Review: The Magicians

Book Review: 'The Magicians' by James Gunn

2 / 5 Stars

‘The Magicians’ is based on a short story Gunn published in 1954 as ‘Sine of the Magus’; the novel appeared in hardback in 1976, and this Signet paperback (168 pp.) in July 1980. The artist who created the striking cover illustration is uncredited.

Casey Kingman is a private eye and down on his luck. Things are looking so dire that he’s on the verge of closing his shop, and returning to substitute teaching, when a little old lady named Mrs Peabody enters his dingy office and hires him to find someone - someone whose name she doesn’t know. But Mrs Peabody is paying well, so Kingman, armed with a description of a distinguished-looking man (think Mandrake the Magician, but without his top hat) heads for a nearby hotel and its Crystal Ballroom, where a ‘Covention’ is taking place. 

Sitting in the back row of the Ballroom, Kingman encounters a series of seminars and demonstrations that at first makes him skeptical and amused, then increasingly alarmed. For the participants in these seminars are not magicians in the sense of being practitioners of sleight-of-hand and illusion; they are genuine mages capable of performing feats that defy physics and the laws of the universe. 

Kingman learns that the leader of the mages, a sinister individual named Solomon Magus, is in fact the man he has been hired to trace. But tracing Magus won’t be easy, for he is dedicated to the darker aspects of magic and has no scruples about threatening the life of a too-nosy private eye. Within a matter of hours, Kingman finds himself facing all manner of otherworldly dangers. Unless he can discover the strange but logical philosophy that governs the use of magic, private eye Kingman will not only lose his commission, but his life….

With ‘The Magicians’, subtitled ‘A Science Fiction Novel’, Gunn places himself among a rather large body of SF authors who present the occult not as a supernatural phenomenon, but as the manifestation of alternate forms of energy and physics emanating from a universe parallel to our own. With the proper training, including the use of mathematical equations and symbols, anyone with adequate mental discipline can learn such feats as teleportation, telekinesis, and telepathy.

Unfortunately, ‘Magicians’ is really more of a private-eye adventure than an engaging SF thriller. The narrative, based as it is on a short story, is rather circumscribed, involving a small cast of characters with the action limited to the interior of the hotel. The expansion to novel-length is mainly achieved via the insertion of lengthy sections of dialogue, and the insertion of passages involving hallucinations / out-of-body experiences that present standard-issue scenarios of witchcraft and black magic. 

Things aren’t helped by the inclusion of  a plot thread involving a romance between Kingman and Swell Dame who also happens to be a female witch; this further dilutes whatever modest suspense is generated by the evil designs of Solomon Magus, who comes across as the sort of mild villain one might have encountered in the Comics Code-era books like ‘House of Secrets’,  ‘The Witching Hour’, and 'The Many Ghosts of Dr Graves'.

As an example of 70s ‘occult’ novels, ‘Magicians’ really doesn't stand up well when compared to other works of that era (such as those reviewed at The Groovy Age of Horror or Too Much Horror Fiction blogs).

The Oriental Dragon Fly

by Patrick Woodroffe, 1977

gouache and watercolor

from 'Dreamscape: The Best of Imaginary Realism 2007', Salbru Publish, The Netherlands 2007 

'Free Fall' by Moebius

from Heavy Metal magazine February 1978

While Moebius sometimes displayed a rather uninspired approach to his serial 'Airtight Garage', his other strips that appeared in Heavy Metal during the late 70s could be impressive, as is the case here with 'Free Fall.'

Arthur Suydam's 'Mudwogs'

from 'Echo of Futurepast' issue 2

Issue two (1984) of ‘Echo of Futurepast’ features another installment of Arthur Suydam’s Mudwogs, titled 'Croona, Moona, Joona'.

The loathsome giant continues to wreak havoc on the town and its people, now in an effort to impress ‘Blue Lady’, girlfriend of our diminutive hero. 

How can a tiny Mudwog defeat such a monster ? The result is some of weirdest, most inventive humor I’ve ever seen associated with the ‘funny animal’ comics genre…..

Killraven Amazing Adventures No. 35

Killraven: 'Amazing Adventures' No. 35

(March 1976)

'Amazing Adventures featuring War of the Worlds' from March 1976 was actually on the stands in January / February 1976. This issue relates the tale of 'The 24-Hour Man', written by Don McGregor, with layouts by Craig Russell, and art by Keith Giffin and Jack Abel.

'24-Hour Man' starts with Killraven and his team approaching the outskirts of Atlanta, where they come upon a distraught woman and a monster named 'G'Rath'. This plot only gets stranger as the story goes on, and I can't make up my mind if it has an innate cornball brilliance, or is just a half-hearted effort by McGregor to get something out the door  Such was the nature of many Marvel comics from the mid-70s. 

 .

This issue contains one of the more bizarre marketing ploys yet delivered by Stan Lee: a record album titled 'Reflections of a Rock Super Hero' (!?). 

This ad lists some truly cheesy song titles, all dealing with various aspects of Spider-Man's life and loves.

 

I have never listened to any of these songs, but a remastered version of the album is available as a CD and is reviewed at amazon.com. There are sample clips from each track available there was well, for those adventurous souls who are truly earnest about exploring the most wretched of 70s excesses...

Book Review: Under A Calculating Star

Book Review: 'Under A Calculating Star' by John Morressy

2 / 5 Stars

Kian Jorry is an adventurer and part-time con man who travels the galaxy in search of the next hustle, or the next rumor of riches and treasure. Jorry is handsome, charming, smart, and always one step ahead of the Federation authorities.

Axxal is a member of the Galaxy’s laborer class, a race of humanoids called the Quespodons. Like most Quespodons, Axxal is slow and plodding, a follower rather than a leader, content to let others think of the big picture.

Jorry has chosen Axxal and a handpicked team of the most ruthless and cunning desperados in the Federation to join him in  finding the treasure rumored to lie on the deserted planet Boroq-Thaddoi. Within a Citadel of otherworldly construction, so the legends say, is a storage room filled with riches from all over the Galaxy, riches enough to make each man wealthy beyond measure. But many have tried to find the treasure of Boroq-Thaddoi, and few have returned, and those that did return were empty-handed and their addled brains filled with stories of deadly traps, bloodthirsty monsters, and perils unknown…

‘Under A Calculating Star’ was first published in 1975; this Popular Library paperback was issued in 1978. The cover artist is Paul Alexander.

The first 70 pages of the book are well-written and engrossing, as Jorry and his team of adventurers make their way to Boroq-Thaddoi and endure all manner of dangers in their quest to recover the riches in the Citadel. 

Unfortunately, after those opening 70 pages the plot loses steam, preoccupying itself with a series of encounters between a scheming Jorry and a dim-witted planetary despot. Another plot thread deals with Axxal and his growing awareness that maybe the Quespodons aren't the dumb laborers that everyone thinks they are. The author intended this segment of the novel as a thoughtful exposition on Axxal's voyage of self-discovery and seeing into the true nature of things....I think.

But for a Space Opera, such a loss of momentum is fatal, and in the case of ‘Calculating’ it negates the initial adventures on Boroq-Thaddoi and renders the novel as a whole a boring read. I had to force myself to finish the book. This one is best passed by.

'K.O.' by Voss
from the February 1981 issue of Heavy Metal

Book Review: Darkover Landfall

Book Review: 'Darkover Landfall' by Marion Zimmer Bradley

 3 / 5 Stars

While I was growing up in the 70s I never paid much attention to the ‘Darkover’ SF novels by Marion Zimmer Bradley. 

When I did try and read one of her books, it was 1982’s Arthurian treatment ‘The Mists of Avalon’, which was so remarkably boring that I decided to never again try a Bradley novel. 

The passage of time mellows sworn vows, however, so I decided that since I’m looking over a lot of the DAW books from the 70s, I might as well give a ‘Darkover’ entry a try.

Starting with ‘The Planet Savers’ in 1958, to her death in 1999, Bradley produced  nearly 40 Darkover novels, some in collaboration with other writers, and some released posthumously. ‘Darkover Landfall’ (DAW Books No. 36,  December 1972, cover art by Jack Gaughan, 160 pp.) is technically the first volume in the series, as it describes the advent of humans to the planet Darkover.

The story opens with a spaceship – originally destined for the colony world of Coronis -  crash-landed on Darkover; many of the crew have perished in the impact, and the dazed survivors are struggling to erect tents and procure food and water while their vehicle is evaluated for repairs. 

Fortunately the atmosphere and chemistry of Darover is compatible with human biology, but the ship’s captain has no idea as to where in the galaxy their emergency landing site is located. Rafael MacAran, the ship’s geologist, is recruited to journey to a nearby mountain to erect instruments capable of analyzing the night-time constellations and other planetary data.

The weather on Darkover is tumultuous, changing from sunshine, to rain, to sleet, and snow, all in the course of a day. Luckily the ship’s crew includes a group of colonists of Scottish descent, whose ancestors lived in the Hebrides and the Orkney Islands. Accustomed to perpetual rain, sleet, snow, overcast skies, and other manifestations of wretched weather, these stalwarts cope by drinking whiskey, dancing, and singing Ballads from the Olde Country. 

However, just as the crash survivors are starting to assess the likelihood of lifting off into space again, the 'Ghost Wind' takes them unawares. Will madness seize the colonists and destroy their chances of ever leaving Darkover ? Are there indigenous life-forms on the planet, and are they hostile ? Will discord among the survivors lead to internecine warfare and doom any chance at escape ?

‘Darkover Landfall’ is a well-written book, but I found it to be lacking in terms of action. Much of the narrative revolves  around the emotional lives of the main characters, and the efforts of the crew to cope with the terrible weather. Evil aliens, rampaging monsters, murderous parasites, and intergalactic warlords are not in evidence. Readers looking for a slow-paced, introspective novel may want to try ‘Landfall’, but those seeking livelier fare will want to pass.

'The Bus' by Paul Kirchner

Little X

'Little X' by Sonsyrea Tate

Celebrating Black History Month 2011

Here at the PorPor Books Blog, we celebrate Black History Month by reading a book about the Black Experience. For Black History Month 2011 we feature an autobiography by Sonsyrea Tate, titled 'Little X: Growing Up in the Nation of Islam' (1997, Harper San Francisco).

Born in 1966,Tate grew up in Washington DC in a second-generation Nation of Islam (NOI) family; her paternal grandparents had joined the sect in the 1950s. Although Tate's father had left the church when he became older and was an on-and-off believer, Tate, her mother, and her siblings were all devout followers, and Sonsyrea attended the NOI Temple and grammar school in the Shaw neighborhood of DC.

'Little X' relates Tate's upbringing and schooling as a member of the NOI, as well as her family life during the 'Black is Beautiful' era of US history in the 1970s. While I was aware to some degree of the rather odd doctrines of the NOI (for example, white people are descended from a race of androids created eons ago by a mad black scientist named Yucub), Tate describes a curriculum that is a strange melange of Black Pride rhetoric, science fiction tropes, and historical facts. The resultant curriculum was designed to provide NOI youth with a unique interpretation, as given by Wallace Dodd Fard and Elijah Poole, of World History.

Tate and her classmates were raised in a self-contained bubble, in which all knowledge and associations were dictated by the NOI. Her awareness of events outside the small world of her family and the Temple was miniscule.

As she grew older, Tate began to realize that not all was well within the NOI and its community of believers. The unrelenting indoctrination about 'white devils' (i.e., Caucasians) and 'lost' blacks (i.e., those that did not belong to the Nation) gradually seemed more and more false with each passing year. As well, the author became increasingly aware of the subservient role women played in the sect's affairs.

Sonyrea Tate's life as a follower of the NOI began to unravel in 1979, when at age thirteen,  she started junior high at Eastern High School. Tate no longer had to wear a hijab, and became more aware of world at large, even trying marijuana. She and her brother began to rebel against their mother and the Nation, even as their neighborhood started to deteriorate from an influx of drugs, crime, and violent gangs. 

As 1982, and graduation from high school, approached, Sonsyrea Tate was disillusioned and even suicidally depressed at the thought of continuing to live as a woman in the NOI, destined to be married, and converted to a housewife, at a young age. As if in recognition of her daughter's disaffection, Tate's mother moved away from the orthodoxy of the NOI and embraced a more liberal version of its doctrines. Sonsyrea Tate was able to defer marriage and enroll in college, eventually becoming a journalist and writer for the Washington Post and other prominent newspapers.

'Little X' is an interesting memoir, something of a black American counterpart to Julia Scheere's best-seller 'Jesus Land'. Readers interested in the NOI, as well as what it was like to grow up in DC during the 70s, will want to look for it on the shelves.