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Book Review: The PS Book of Fantastic Fictioneers: A History of the Incredible (volumes 1 and 2) edited by Pete Von Sholly

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The PS Book of Fantastic Fictioneers: A History of the Incredible (volumes 1 and 2) edited by Pete Von Sholly

PS Publishing, 2019

ISBN-13: 978-1786364258 (volume 1)

ISBN-13: 978-1786364265 (volume 2)

Available: Hardcover

 

Fantastic Fictioneers is a two-volume set from PS Publishing of short essays, arranged alphabetically, meant to celebrate 120 people who have contributed to what creator Pete von Sholly describes as the “imaginative arts”.  This term covers individuals who have contributed to a wide swath of media, from children’s authors to comic book artists and writers, movie directors, animators, actors, publishers, and writers of science fiction, mystery, and horror. Some have passed away, like H.P. Lovecraft and Forrest Ackerman, and others are still with us, like Stuart Gordon and Ramsey Campbell. Each entry starts with a large illustration filling three-quarters of a page including the likeness of the entry’s subject accompanied by an illustration by von Sholly of what made them a prominent “fantastic fictioneer” (for example, the entry on Charles Addams pictures the Addams Family conjuring up Addams’ ghost in a seance; the background of Hiernomyous Bosch’s portrait contains creatures from his paintings; Ray Harryhausen’s face floats among his many models) followed by the first few paragraphs of a short essay. Some essays are detailed biographical entries, others are more personal accounts, and many are a combination. The entry on H.R. Giger includes musings and analysis on his work; the entry on Octavia Butler goes into detail on her life but includes a personal account; and Maria Alexander’s entry on Clive Barker is mainly a personal account of her experiences with him and his work.  Each essay includes many photographs of artifacts and artwork related to the work of the essay’s subject, as well as photos of the individual. Von Sholly was able to get some prominent names to write many of the essays, including S.T. Joshi on Lovecraft, J.D. Lees on Ishiro Honda, and Harlan Ellison on Frank Herbert. If you have the time, you could spend quite a while turning the pages and learning a little about the varied “fantastic fictioneers” included.

The entries aren’t consistent enough in their format and content for the books to be used reliably as a reference source of biographical information, but the collection of individuals profiled crosses many areas of the “imaginative arts” and there is information on individuals that might not be typically covered (I had never heard of Seabury Quinn before). Although it could have benefited from a little more diversity (very few women and minority “fictioneers” are covered), Von Sholly explains that, outside of a few “obligatory” entries, the majority are subjective favorites. As long as the set already is, ultimately choices about what would be included had to be made, and there is no doubting that Fantastic Fictioneers is a labor of love. Unfortunately, while it is a gorgeous volume, it lacks an index, and many of the images are not credited, which could be a detriment to a library purchasing it. Fantastic Fictioneers will appeal most to collectors and fans, and large libraries interested in adding specialized biographical reference materials to their collections.

Due to the variety of individuals covered, and the expense of purchasing the set (about $130 for both volumes), I’m including images of the table of contents of both volumes below. It really is a wide-ranging collection of entries! For those fascinated by all aspects of speculative fiction, this is a unique collection!

Editor’s note: I received a PDF file from the publisher for this review.

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Posted on January 24, 2020 by , Reply

Little Apocalypses

There’s something that makes people want to read about the end of the world. Maybe it’s because reading about it insulates us from our genuine fears that the end is coming, maybe sooner than we think.

The most terrifying end-of-the-world scenarios, in my opinion, aren’t destruction on a worldwide level. When that happens, I don’t think I’m going to be around long enough to feel the horror. They focus on things that are unstoppable, unknowable, personal, possible.

When fiction captures the heartbreak, fear, and panic caused by natural disasters, incurable diseases, unknown causes of terrible events,  and the effects of these things on hope and community, on the people touched by these events, it’s describing the little apocalypses that shake us in personal, everyday ways. It stays with you when you face the end of the world.

This week, a lot of people have faced the end of the world. Tornadoes devastated Indiana, leveling  the town of Henryville. Here’s an astonishing first person account by someone who was very near there, shared with me by a friend. So very close to disaster, without any way to communicate with the outside world, but still, everyone pulled together.  Here, I waited at the bus stop for my son in the rain, unaware that the buses had been delayed due to a tornado watch. When the bus finally pulled in the sun was shining. It’s completely random that the weather skipped over us and decimated other areas of the state. The tornadoes also touched down in nearby Kentucky, where some of our reviewers reside. I was very relieved that they all were fine! Here’s a link if you would like to donate.

More terrifying than the weather was the news that the three year old son of someone I know had died, with no apparent cause (it has since been identified as RSV). He just didn’t wake up. When you have a tiny baby, you constantly worry about this, but it isn’t supposed to happen at this age for no reason. This is a parent’s nightmare, that when you put your child to bed safely at night it isn’t really safe at all. As much as we want to protect our children(or, sometimes, our parents), sometimes it’s beyond our ability to do so. Sometimes there doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason, and sometimes there is a reason, but things are still out of our control.

This fear and pain and feeling of helplessness is at the center of the scariest of end of the world scenarios- the end of YOUR world, and what you will do to get past it to the next thing. It’s the little apocalypses that are at the heart of horror, both in life and in fiction. It is so important that there are writers who get it down on paper, and amazing people of all kinds who help us through the end of the world, however difficult that may be. Thanks to all of you who bring help and hope to others facing circumstances that shake their worlds.

Posted on March 7, 2012 by , Reply

Teacher Appreciation

This week is Teacher Appreciation Week. Let me tell you about a teacher whose students and former students really admire and appreciate, Judy Buranich.

Judy Buranich is a high school English teacher who is also a published writer of erotic romance. She writes under a pen name, Judy Mays. Some parents were unhappy to discover her second job. They went to the media who exposed her career as a “racy novelist” and suggested that it was inappropriate for a teacher to write the “racy” stuff.

Happily, Judy Buranich has gotten the kind of support every teacher could wish for. Current and former students have come out swinging on her behalf. Her school is behind her. Most people are supportive. As a writer, she’s got the power of the romance community behind her.

I think people have funny ideas about what writers are like. My mom is always shocked when I tell her what some of the authors we’ve interviewed do for a living. Some of them are high school teachers, too. Writing horror doesn’t make them bad teachers any more than writing erotica makes Judy Buranich a bad teacher. Actually, being an excellent full time high school teacher AND a published author is pretty impressive! Here is a link to a video that one of Judy’s former students made to support her. It is pretty awesome to see her former student so passionate about her rights. It makes me wish I’d gone to high school in Middleburg, Pennsylvania.

If there’s a teacher you appreciate, this week is a good time to tell them.

Posted on May 6, 2011 by , Reply