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Post by dem bones on Nov 10, 2008 9:25:30 GMT
Jon E. Lewis - The Mammoth Book of Boys Own Stuff (Robinson, 2008) Cover Design: Ken Leeder From the back cover blurb: A staggeringly large guide to all that a modern boy needs to know and to do Step 1: Turn off the TV, the PC, the PS3, the Wii… Step 2: Open up The Mammoth Book of Boy’s Own Stuff and get into boyhood like it’s meant to be …
A guide to life, the universe and pretty much everything The Mammoth Book of Boy’s Own Stuff is full of fun as well as important facts on how to be top and an all round great person - from essential Latin to making your own volcano, from SAS survival skills to basic movie making. In his youth, the author's father gave him a copy of Cecil H. Bullivant's The Boys Book Of Hobbies (1911) which had served as an inspiration to him during his own childhood. This is Jon E. Lewis's attempt to update that book for the modern age - but not too much. You'll not find any tips on how to download mp3's or dodgy video's in here - computers haven't been invented. Come to that, neither have Televisions, Nike's, mobile phone bullying, stabbing an innocent passer-by outside KFC to prove you're hard and win the undying "respect" of your peers, or even girls. Instead - we get the stuff that made our Empire great! Rudyard Kipling's If. Step by step guides to everything from setting up a tin can telephone system to making your own stomp rockets and water bombs. Handy SAS survival skills to practice on your friends include Making Fire. The Laws Of Soccer explained. Learn Good Manners and how to keep a guinea pig. When you require a break from these exhausting activities ( How To Polish Your Shoes), you can settle back and enjoy a selection of ripping yarns and tales of derring-do by H. Rider-Haggard, H. G. Wells, Conan-Doyle, Edward Leslie and Lieutenant Col. A. Lloyd Owen. There's a feature on James Bond novels - "Warning: Some of these books contain scenes unsuitable for those under 12" - and a list of twelve books you should read by the age of twelve. There's always so much to do and learn in Boys Own world. Although Mr. Lewis's book is for the most part in keeping with the original Boy's Own and it's several Penny Dreadful-bashing derivatives, there are some concessions to 2008 and even the occasional very welcome departure. Dr. Martin Luther King's inspirational speech, for example, would never have found it's way into the pages of Union Jack.
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Post by dem bones on Mar 28, 2011 10:16:10 GMT
Seth Grahame-Smith - Abraham Lincoln Vampire HunterPress Release JoeRoberts.co.uk. Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter By Seth Grahame-Smith Published by Corsair, 21 April 2011 Paperback, £7.99
Forget Buffy, Bella or Van Helsing - it was Abraham Lincoln who tamed the world of Vampires. From the author who brought you the best-selling Pride and Prejudice and Zombies comes another brilliant genre mash-up, this time about one of the world's most renowned heroes: Abraham Lincoln. Known for his remarkable presidency, this book introduces you to the lesser known, darker exploits of the great American leader. For over 250 years, between 1607 and 1865, vampires thrived in the shadows of America. Few humans believed in them. What few humans also know is that Abraham Lincoln was the most gifted vampire hunter of his day, and kept a secret journal about his war against them. Rumours of the journal's existence have long been a favourite topic among historians and Lincoln biographers. Most dismiss it as myth. Through the extraordinary discovery of Abraham Lincoln's previously unknown and long lost journals, Seth Grahame-Smith brings to life the Great Emancipator's untold history – his lifelong pursuit of the immortal un-dead. With unparalleled daring, Seth re-writes Abraham Lincoln's biography to include this significant and gory piece of US history. Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter features all the detail, colour, and readability of Team of Rivals – Barack Obama's favourite book and the number one bestselling Lincoln biography – with only some of the historical accuracy (and thrilling new scenes of vampire combat). From Lincoln's Frontier childhood to his assassination, this richly re-imagined history gives new meaning to the moments of an already incredible life.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Seth Grahame-Smith is a film and television writer/producer, semi-frequent blogger, and bestselling author. His first novel, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, debuted at #3 on the New York Times bestseller list. Since its release in April 2009, it's sold over a million copies and been translated into 20 languages. Seth is also the CoCreator/Executive Producer of the MTV comedy series, "The Hard Times of RJ Berger." He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and son.These mash-ups have yet to infiltrate my regular hunting grounds so grateful thanks to the lovely Sam and Jamie-Lee at Constable for sending on a preview copy of this forthcoming Corsair 340 pager! i seem to recall there was quite a fuss over Pride and Prejudice and Zombies with many bemoaning the whole notion of this latest literary mutation, so i will need you to advise me if i think these are proper or rubbish before i commit my sage-like observations to print.
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Post by andydecker on Mar 28, 2011 17:48:08 GMT
Seth Grahame-Smith - Abraham Lincoln Vampire HunterPress Release JoeRoberts.co.uk. Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter By Seth Grahame-Smith Published by Corsair, 21 April 2011 Paperback, £7.99
i will need you to advise me if i think these are proper or rubbish before i commit my sage-like observations to print. I have to say that I am begining to loathe that sub-genre with a passion. I remember when it was a kind of joke to make historical characters a part of a novel. It was done in crime novels, often in retro stuff about 40s Hollywood. Like the late Stuart Kaminsky´s Toby Peter series. Then came the historical Rome crime novels. So you got Julius Caesar in the background. Then Shakespeare became a hero in fantasy-novels. (Which kind of made sense) Nowadays this has become a cottage industry. And the heroes become ever more idiotic. You have Eleanor Roosevelt solving murders, and Poe and the Rat Pack and Freud. Or Lovecraft fighting demons (ugh!) I just don´t get the appeal. This is just lazy writing. Rant over.
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Post by Craig Herbertson on Mar 28, 2011 18:34:03 GMT
Sort of with you on this Andy. I quite like Philp Jose Framer's series where he used a few favourite characters but this sort of rewriting of history and tucking in a vampire or two doesn't do it for me. Then again I sometimes use real characters in my efforts but they're usually a background figure, not a lead, and I try to make the story the thing.
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Post by dem bones on May 23, 2011 19:28:53 GMT
These ain't strictly 'Mammoths', but they're new from those-lovely-people-at-Robinson and i couldn't think where else to put 'em! Trisha Telep (ed.) - Corsets And Clockwork (Robinson, May 2011) JoeRoberts.co.uk Trisha Telep - Introduction
Lesley Livingston - Rude Mechanicals Frewin Jones - The Cannibal Fiend or Rotherhithe Ann Aguirre - Wild Magic Michael Scott - Deadwood Dru Pagliassoti - Code of Blood Adrienne Kress - The Clockwork Corset Jaclyn Dolamore - The Airship Gemini Maria V. Snyder - Under Amber Skies Tessa Gratton - King of the Greenlight City Tiffany Trent - The Emperor’s Man Dia Reeves - Chickie Hill’s Badass Ride Caitlin Kittredge - The Vast Machinery Kiersten White - Tick, Tick BoomAbout the book A stunning anthology of the very best of steampunk that is taking teen fiction by storm.
Bestselling romance editor Trisha Telep brings an exciting new element to the fast-growing sub-genre of steampunk, which bends and blends the old and the new in increasingly popular dark urban fantasies. Young heroes and heroines battle evil, in various forms with the help of super-technological or supernatural powers, while falling in and out of love.Liz Miles - Truth & Dare: Love, Life and Falling on your Face (Robinson, May 2011) Matthue Roth - Girl Jesus on the Inbound Subway Sarah Rees Brennan - The Young Stalker’s Handbook Michael Lowenthal - Lost In Translation Jennifer R. Hubbard - Confessions And Chocolate Brains Sherry Shahan - Iris and Jim Saundra Mitchell - The Last Will and Testament of Evan Todd Heidi R. Kling - Headgear Girl Courtney Gillette - Never Have I Ever Gary Soto - Dirty Talk Jennifer Knight - Abstinence Makes The Heart Grow Fonder Shelley Stoehr - Somebody's Daughter Jill Wolfson - Margo Ferkel's Two-Hour Blitz Of Badness Jennifer Finney Boylan - Nude Descending A Staircase Liz Miles - Scrambled Eggs Ellen Wittlinger - Rules For Love And Death Luisa Plaja - Cool Cats And Melted Kisses Cecil Castellucci - Orange Tootsie Pop Emma Donoghue - Team Men Sara Wilkinson - Pencils A.M. Homes - Yours TrulyBlurb Edgy, raw, real and funny - stories about slipping on the stepping stones of life.
Girls and guys, straight or gay, striding or struggling - the characters in these tales will make you laugh and break your heart. Swinging between melting moments and dark disgrace, hilarity and tears, they bravely test life's limits, search for big truths or simply seek that perfect kiss.
If you want to laugh and cry, then dip into these surprising, quirky and often hilarious tales of red-faced romancers, city stalkers, crazy parties, disappearing dads, mad aunts, embarrassing falls, shared secrets, mixed messages, and, of course, yearning love.
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Post by lemming13 on Oct 29, 2011 13:32:12 GMT
I am well pleased this weekend - just picked up several Mammoth collections for the Kindle at a bargain price. Haining's Modern Ghost Stories, Ian Watson's Alternate Histories, lots of Stephen Jones' Best New Horror collections and some tasty smut as well. Thank you Mammoth Books!
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Post by dem bones on Oct 29, 2011 19:30:07 GMT
Now there's a thought. i'm wondering if some of the out-of-print mammoth's and best new horrors might become (are already?) available for kindles? they've a huge back-catalogue ripe for revival - i think Tim Haydock's Mammoth Book Of Classic Chillers may have been the first of the horror & supernatural titles and that was a quarter of a century back. last catalogue they sent, there were a few left of Best New Horror 15 but none of the previous volumes.
hope you enjoy the Peter Haining Modern Ghosts, lemmy. i've found the selection patchy so far, and i think there's a fair bit of recycling from earlier PH collections, but it's still of infinitely more interest to me than any of the books featured on this page, though i am sure they are all jolly lovely.
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Post by noose on Oct 29, 2011 20:46:51 GMT
If Robinsons still have the contracts for the authors I'd presume they'd have to re-negotiate as the contracts as the earlier books would be different to the ones of today?
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Post by pulphack on Oct 30, 2011 7:19:34 GMT
heh, they may not have to. the area of e-exploitation in publishing is a thorny one and many older contracts give a publisher either no or all rights for e, in perptuity, to be discussed by solicitors at length. had a most interesting chat last year with a guy who does franchising and cross-media work who was fuming at the mouth about bok publishing and its inability to come to terms with e-books. it's got better, but not by much in this country, and older contracts are up for - er - 'interpretation' a lot of the time.
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Post by pulphack on Oct 30, 2011 7:20:13 GMT
that's 'book' by the way, and nothing to do with south african literaure.
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