There was a lot of history here, but it was very much a narrative of del Rey's thoughts about who published what and who worked with who. I was hopingThere was a lot of history here, but it was very much a narrative of del Rey's thoughts about who published what and who worked with who. I was hoping for more analysis, and it just wasn't that kind of book. This is more like a history of jazz that tells you who performed what and where, and what people thought about it, without ever taking about why Big Band was commercially successful and Be Bop was not.
Honestly, I've been looking for a book that would analyze what makes Science Fiction unique, and how it really has evolved. I keep finding more like this: narratives of what happened. Still looking....more
Really impressive graphic continuation of the story of Firefly/Serenity, as plotted by Joss Whedon. A very credible continuation of the story, if you Really impressive graphic continuation of the story of Firefly/Serenity, as plotted by Joss Whedon. A very credible continuation of the story, if you thought the TV series was fun and interesting. Several stories suggest how the people and story could have continued, mainly set after the movie version. The best experience is "The Shepard's Tale" in which we get a definitive answer to Shepard Book's mysterious past. It's satisfying, if not completely living up to the level of mystery developed in the original series. Written in a nice style, it does tell you a story of how Book could have been to be the wonderful character played by Ron Glass in the TV series. So good I read it twice. If you liked Firefly, I suggest you read this book. (If you didn't like Firefly, I'm surprised you're reading this review.)...more
Interesting data, well researched, excellent bibliography. The greatest strength was how it made me realize a few principles that have shaped our statInteresting data, well researched, excellent bibliography. The greatest strength was how it made me realize a few principles that have shaped our state structure, and, in particular how the battle over slavery, from founding through the civil war, shaped a lot of the principles by which we created states. There were some ideas that will stick with me, but I won't want to read it again.
Despite the good humor of the writer, the book is hard to read cover to cover, is too repetitive (albeit perhaps without any option), and isn't a fun read. I needed to force myself to finish it. It might have worked better if I had done it more as a "state a day" read.
The book structure was helped a lot by a section at the beginning that was title "Don't Skip This" and the writer is very clear about his sources. I had watched the TV series and found it much more fun, but the TV series seemed to suffer from a random selection of topics to focus on. In contrast, the alphabetical structure of the book made it hard to find common themes. I do think the "Don't Skip This" chapter made some of the most important historical points more understandable.
I think the book did make clear to me how principles I understood -- Congress' desire to make each state roughly equal in size and resources -- were still closely related to the desire to keep the Senate equal in the number of slave and free states. I had never before understood that the willingness of Virginia, Georgia, and the Carolinas to donate their land to the US Government to form future states (a profoundly surprising act) was largely to ensure that the number of slave states equalled all those new states that the independent USA would form in the Northwest Territory. Decisions made to sustain the equal vote in the Senate set up rules that formed almost all of our State boundaries.
I was entertained by two things I'd never considered that came up several times for small elements of the borders: making sure that 'ungovernable' areas were not created, and giving up mining areas to avoid being overwhelmed by miner voters that did not share the values of the original settlers. For the later, I was surprised at how many nascent states wanted to cut off the miner areas more than they wanted the resources. And I never would have guessed how many edges of states were formed because only one of the two states could have easy access to the area and history had shown that a State government that couldn't easily reach an area was an invitation to lawless havens. There must be a dozen or so of those spots on the U.S. map.
I picked up this book at the Smithsonian when I arrived early for a lecture and finished the book I had with me too quickly. Since I'd wanted to read the book, I picked it up. On the whole, I think the TV series was better.
However, don't underestimate the bibliography. If you want to find definitive histories for each State, and clear historical references (sometimes prime sources) for critical events, you'd be hard pressed to find a better one....more
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