1987 / Ebook / 251 pages / USA
**
With the author's reputation, I was hoping for something comparable to what Robert Shearman did for Doctor Who, but this self-indulgent quirky!!1 comedy came out more like Michael Moorcock's 'Who misfire.
Richard Greene, Holst: The Planets
1995 / Ebook / 112 pages / USA****
Reclaiming these influential tunes from the vulgar public domain to the world of proper music, without being snobby about it, this fittingly accessible reading of the horoscope illuminates the astrological themes, recounts its origin and reception and handily catalogues the instruments and forms used. It's missing the seemingly compulsory chapter on its film score legacy, but you get enough of that in tiresome YouTube comments. Now who's being snobby?
David Hofstede, Planet of the Apes: An Unofficial Companion
2001 / Ebook / 220 pages / USA****
An overly comprehensive, occasionally opinionated guide to the first 30 years of the unlikely franchise. I didn't know much of the trivia from the films, let alone the original novel, TV series (live action and animated), comics, water pistols and everything else. The funniest part is the composite timeline where the Earth gets destroyed but fresh batches of astronauts continue to land on its surface for several decades regardless.
Rhys Hughes, Less Lonely Planet (Tales of Here, There & Happenstance)
1992-2009 (collected 2015) / Ebook / 244 pages / UK
****
I thought "the stories in this book were written in strict chronological order" was just a funny statement, until I realised he was (also) talking about the arrangement. Before we reach the story cycle proper, these tales that take place in places (a handily vague theme) take us through the various ages of Rhys Hughes: from weird rom-com and dark fantasy pastiche (with recurring pub's-skeleton-chandelier motif) to self-deprecating experiments and self-conscious homage, finally finding a home for early gems like 'Troubleroot' that inexplicably passed by previous collections. Meanwhile, oft-anthologised shorties flash past with the familiar frequency of adverts.Fave: 'The Impregnable Fortress'
2019 / Audiobook/ebook / 288 pages / UK
***
I didn't fancy sitting through another vain Brian Cox documentary, but getting a layman's update on what's going on out there every decade or so seems like a good idea. He only wrote the Mars chapter and let the other bloke write the rest, lazy.
