Happy Birthday: Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (née Godwin; 30 August 1797 – 1 February 1851) was an English novelist who wrote the Gothic novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus (1818), which is considered an early example of science fiction. She also edited and promoted the works of her husband, the Romantic poet and philosopher Percy Bysshe Shelley. Her father was the political philosopher William Godwin and her mother was the philosopher and women's rights advocate Mary Wollstonecraft.

Mary's mother died 11 days after giving birth to her. She was raised by her father, who provided her with a rich informal education, encouraging her to adhere to his own anarchist political theories. When she was four, her father married a neighbour, Mary Jane Clairmont, with whom Mary had a troubled relationship.

In 1814, Mary began a romance with one of her father's political followers, Percy Bysshe Shelley, who was already married. Together with her stepsister, Claire Clairmont, she and Percy left for France and travelled through Europe. Upon their return to England, Mary was pregnant with Percy's child. Over the next two years, she and Percy faced ostracism, constant debt and the death of their prematurely born daughter. They married in late 1816, after the suicide of Percy Shelley's wife, Harriet.

In 1816, the couple and Mary's stepsister famously spent a summer with Lord Byron and John William Polidori near Geneva, Switzerland, where Shelley conceived the idea for her novel Frankenstein. The Shelleys left Britain in 1818 for Italy, where their second and third children died before Shelley gave birth to her last and only surviving child, Percy Florence Shelley. In 1822, her husband drowned when his sailboat sank during a storm near Viareggio. A year later, Shelley returned to England and from then on devoted herself to raising her son and her career as a professional author. The last decade of her life was dogged by illness, most likely caused by the brain tumour which killed her at the age of 53.

Until the 1970s, Shelley was known mainly for her efforts to publish her husband's works and for her novel Frankenstein, which remains widely read and has inspired many theatrical and film adaptations. Recent scholarship has yielded a more comprehensive view of Shelley's achievements. Scholars have shown increasing interest in her literary output, particularly in her novels, which include the historical novels Valperga (1823) and Perkin Warbeck (1830), the apocalyptic novel The Last Man (1826) and her final two novels, Lodore (1835) and Falkner (1837). Studies of her lesser-known works, such as the travel book Rambles in Germany and Italy (1844) and the biographical articles for Dionysius Lardner's Cabinet Cyclopaedia (1829–1846), support the growing view that Shelley remained a political radical throughout her life. Shelley's works often argue that cooperation and sympathy, particularly as practised by women in the family, were the ways to reform civil society. This view was a direct challenge to the individualistic Romantic ethos promoted by Percy Shelley and the Enlightenment political theories articulated by her father, William Godwin.

[Gulp....!]

Just Finished Reading: The Power of Geography – Ten Maps That Reveal the Future of Our World by Tim Marshall (FP: 2021) [364pp] 

This was, essentially, a continuation of the authors previous work on Geopolitics – Prisoners of Geography. Here he is more forward looking although each section still contains a goodly slice of history for the required context. Starting off with Australia (which I remembered him musing over in the previous book) he looks at that continental country in context with its place in the Japan, South Korea, China axis, especially focused on the ongoing problems in the South China Sea. This does look like a potential conflict zone in the years ahead if cooler heads fail to prevail. I doubt if it would take too much pushing to start an actual shooting war – never mind how stupid and pointless that conflict would be. 

Moving onto the ever ‘interesting’ Middle East zone, we looked at both Iran and Saudi Arabia. I’ve read a little (emphasis on little) about Iran, but this author really helped me understand its geography – especially in a strategic sense – much better than I had previously. I can now understand exactly why Iraq had such a hard time invading during their bloody conflict. The section on Saudi looks very much at its economic future as the US in particular slowly removes its reliance on Mid-East oil and its involvement in Mid-East politics. Although this is a good idea in and of itself (for a whole host of reasons) it doesn’t follow that the tensions in that area will diminish greatly never mind vanish overnight. There are certainly enough other ethnic and religious divisions in the region – to say nothing of Israel’s actions – to keep it in the news for decades to come. 

I’ve been aware of the ‘issues’ between Turkey and Greece for a while now, both from my reading about the region and from watching various conflicts (notably Cyprus) play out on my TV. So, it was a real eye-opener to understand exactly why these two countries – NATO allies indeed – are potentially at each other's throats so much. Not only do they have a LONG history of conflict to draw on, but there’s a whole new cause in play right now: the resources of the eastern Mediterranean. How this will play out... is definitely an open question. 

I’d be the first to admit that my knowledge of Africa is practically non-existent. Apart from some knowledge of Ancient Egypt, the North African campaigns of WW2 and a passing knowledge of the Boer War in South Africa I know almost nothing of that great continent. So, it was good to see two sections in this book dedicated to diminishing that oversight. Looking at conditions throughout the Sahel and Ethiopia I now have a much greater appreciation of the area's problems (often caused by those pesky straight borders again) and what they (and, typically, the Chinese) are doing about it. MUCH more on Africa to come! 

Overall, I enjoyed this a great deal and learnt MUCH. This is a valuable addition to his previous work, and I can definitely recommend it to anyone (like me) who is trying to understand why the world is the way it is. More to come.  

Happy International Dog Day............

Just Finished Reading: The Black Cloud by Fred Hoyle (1957) [219pp] 

It was spotted by an amateur astronomer. Just a dark speck in the sky, something wrong, something off. Within days it was confirmed by astronomers in the US and then in other countries. Part of the night sky had gone dark as if a black cloud was blocking out the light. Radio telescopes quickly confirmed the sighting. A large gas cloud was approaching at speed and would, in about 16 months, block out the Sun. More calculations followed. Scientists on both sides of the Atlantic concurred. At its present speed the cloud would obscure the Sun for around 4-6 weeks causing global temperatures to drop, crops to fail and global famine to occur – but many lives could be saved if appropriate measures were taken. It was going to be rough, but the event was not enough to threaten life on Earth in its entirety. As observations continued scientists noticed something strange, something very worrying indeed. If the figures were correct the cloud was doing something very unexpected indeed, something thought to be simply impossible. The cloud was slowing down. This meant a much longer transit through the Solar system and a much longer, deeper, cold ‘snap’. The threat to mankind's survival had just become much more acute. As monitoring continued the radio-telescopes regularly pinged the cloud to determine speed and direction in the hope that it would bypass the Earth and move on. As the approach continued and as the pings rang out the strangest thing so far happened – the cloud pinged back... 

As is usually the case this slim SF novel has been sitting on one of my shelves for many years unread. As part of a (actual failed) coupling I thought it was about time to give it a ‘go’. I was actually pleasantly surprised. I thought, especially from the blurb and what I’d heard about it, that it was going to be a standard ‘world in danger’, ‘politicians dismiss the science’ kind of thing. There were certainly elements of that – especially when politicians in the US and UK decided not to tell the public what was going on even when the worst was happening around them. Then, about a third of the way through, the narrative changed direction into a First Contact book (the alien was nicely *alien*). Once THAT dust had settled the book took another unexpected turn and (rather delightfully) surprised me again. It wasn’t all fun though – although I did have a few laugh-out-loud moments and particularly liked the Soviet scientists quip about letting the Cloud learn English so we could talk to it rather than us learning ITS language! 

Billed as ‘Science-Fiction by a Scientist’ this did have a tendency of pausing or stopping the narrative to discuss the science bits – including the odd diagram and even a sprinkling of equations! People (even very smart scientists) discussing things in smoke filled rooms is not really a good way to keep many people's interests! Oh, and I think most probably to save the cost of too much SFX the majority of the death and destruction took place ‘off page’ to be reported back in news broadcasts & the daily papers (which somehow seems to weather the global disaster much longer than you’d think they would. One last thing – the author made mention of one group of people who barely noticed the moderate cataclysm – the Esquimaux... I didn’t realise that this particular spelling lasted into the late 1950’s. Curious! 

Despite the sometimes-glacial pace of the narrative, this wasn’t half bad. It surprised me more than once and floated some interesting ideas of life in the Universe and our place in it. More than reasonable (if rather dated as you might imagine) and worth a read. 

"I haven't been everywhere, but it's on my list."

Susan Sontag.

Happy Birthday: Eugene Curran Kelly (August 23, 1912 – February 2, 1996) was an American dancer, actor, singer, director and choreographer. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style and sought to create a new form of American dance accessible to the general public, which he called "dance for the common man". He starred in, choreographed, and, with Stanley Donen, co-directed some of the most well-regarded musical films of the 1940s and 1950s.

Kelly is known for his performances in An American in Paris (1951), which won the Academy Award for Best Picture, Singin' in the Rain (1952), which he and Donen directed and choreographed, and other musical films of that era such as Cover Girl (1944) and Anchors Aweigh (1945), for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. On the Town (1949), which he co-directed with Donen, was his directorial debut. Later in the 1950s, as musicals waned in popularity, he starred in Brigadoon (1954) and It's Always Fair Weather (1955), the last film he directed with Donen. His solo directorial debut was Invitation to the Dance (1956), one of the last MGM musicals, which was a commercial failure.

Kelly made his film debut in For Me and My Gal (1942) with Judy Garland, with whom he also appeared in The Pirate (1948) and Summer Stock (1950). He also appeared in the dramas Black Hand (1950) and Inherit the Wind (1960), for which he received critical praise.

He continued as a director in the 1960s, with his credits including A Guide for the Married Man (1967) and Hello, Dolly! (1969), which received an Oscar nomination for Best Picture. He co-hosted and appeared in Ziegfeld Follies (1946), That's Entertainment! (1974), That's Entertainment, Part II (1976), That's Dancing! (1985), and That's Entertainment, Part III (1994).

His innovations transformed the Hollywood musical, and he is credited with almost single-handedly making the ballet form commercially acceptable to film audiences. According to dance and art historian Beth Genné, working with his co-director Donen in Singin' in the Rain and in films with director Vincente Minnelli, "Kelly ... fundamentally affected the way movies are made and the way we look at them. And he did it with a dancer's eye and from a dancer's perspective." Kelly received an Academy Honorary Award in 1952 for his career achievements; the same year, An American in Paris won six Academy Awards, including Best Picture. He later received lifetime achievement awards in the Kennedy Center Honors (1982) and from the Screen Actors Guild and American Film Institute. In 1999, the American Film Institute also ranked him as the 15th greatest male screen legend of Classic Hollywood Cinema.

Just Finished Reading: Prisoners of Geography – Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics by Tim Marshall (FP: 2015/2019) [300pp] 

I’m sure that I’m not alone in wondering what exactly is going on with the world right now. It seems, at least if you watch the news or spend any time on-line (and especially if you spend any time swimming in the increasingly toxic depths of ‘Social Media’) that things are definitely ‘off’ to say the least. I’d even go so far as to say that it seems, on a good day, that a significant percentage of the humans on this planet have gone (or maybe just have gone public about being) crazy. So, what’s up? I thought reading up on Geopolitics might help – and it did! 

Personally, I’m one of ‘those people’ who just enjoy looking at maps, hunting out strange place names, and wondering what a place is actually like. Studying Geography at school (MANY years ago) I was completely intrigued by the idea that you could understand much about a place by looking at things like navigable rivers (or otherwise), locations and heights of mountains, placement of natural resources, the type of border (natural of the ominous straight-line) and so on. Looking closely the location of major cities, battles, migration paths, agricultural land and much more become ‘obvious’ once you take the physical geography into account. Things like cities are not scattered randomly on a landscape. They exist where they do for practical reasons. So, you can tell, almost at a glance, why some countries are prosperous and others poor. You can see why some countries are often invaded by their neighbours and others seems ‘designed’ for defence. 

Looking across the world, from Russia to the Artic, the author takes 10 locations and shows how their geography shaped their individual histories and how their geography shapes both their present and their futures. But as biology is not destiny neither is geography. A mountain range or a river will often constrain options for any country, but we are rather inventive beings who can literally move mountains, or at least blast holes through them. We can also redirect rivers, build bridges over them, or dam them – sometimes annoying or frightening the governments of countries downstream which could, under the wrong circumstances lead to conflict. 

I did think throughout this very interesting book that there was more than a slight hint of Jared Diamond (not that such is a bad thing), with nods to the direction of river flow and, more importantly, their navigability which gave Europe a head start in development (along with abundant natural resources in the shape of coal. Other zones, notably South America and Africa struggled in this regard coupled with the problems of transporting anything long distances through inhospitable regions (deserts, mountains, jungles etc). The chapter on India/Pakistan was most illuminating especially how India broke apart after the British left and how different ethnic groups ended up where they did – complete (of course) with much suffering and death in the process. I think the chapter I learned most from was that on the Middle East. Despite remembering watching many of the conflicts in that region as well as reading an excellent book on Palestine just recently, I did enjoy discovering much of the background to the wars, displacements and massacres over the decades – caused, in no small part, by the fact that the countries boundaries and indeed the countries themselves are the highly artificial constructs of European Powers after WW1 (I’m looking at YOU Britain and France). We REALLY screwed that region LONG before the present messes play out on our TVs and phones. It’s pretty much a given that wherever you see a straight line on a map you KNOW there’s trouble there!  

As my first dip into Geopolitics for a while I was both impressed and educated by this understandably bestselling book. If, like me, you wonder why conflicts start and persist over time, often in the same place's generation after generation, or have wondered why some countries are rich why others remain poor (often despite being resource rich) this is definitely a source for some answers. Definitely recommended and more to come both on the subject and from the author.  

Just Finished Reading: That’s All Folks! - The Art of Warner Bros. Animation by Steve Schneider (FP: 1988) [239pp] 

I have been a fan, to say the least, of Warner Bros cartoon for as long as I can remember – probably my entire self-aware life. In fact, I can’t remember a time I didn’t come running or a smile break out when I heard/saw the starting logo. So, it was interesting to finally read about the history of the endeavour and enjoy the nostalgic memories (much smiling and laughing ensued) associated with leafing through this book. 

As you might well imagine, being focused primarily on the art of the cartoons in question, this was a HEAVILY illustrated book often with whole page drawings of characters or particularly noteworthy or impressive backgrounds. One of the (many) things I found particularly fascinating was the evolution of characters and how their drawn selves changed over time – and between artists – before settling down, by and large, to an agreed look. One of the other things that intrigued me, and made me laugh out loud with recognition, was that the individual characters very much had individual personalities which the artists brought out on screen, but that Bugs and others were ‘real’ and that the stories where character driven – because each character had backstory, motivation and a ‘life’ off-screen. Indeed, I was reminded of a number of cartoons (mentioned here) where individual characters were shown ‘outside’ of the normal cartoon environments and either arguing with the artist ‘drawing’ them or speaking directly to the audience.  

The second part of the book was much more focused on the characters themselves – with the first part much more focused on the history of the company and overall artistic developments. Although Bugs Bunny is, by far, my favourite (and is, indeed one of my 3 foundational heroes) I did enjoy learning about Porky Pig who went through quite the development phase before becoming the porcine we know and love, Daffy Duck (ditto) who I particularly loved as Duck Dodgers of the 24 ½ century(!), the LONG suffering Elmer Fudd, Tweety and Sylvester (a plushie of which is sitting on my desk in front of me), Pepe Le Pew (those POOR cats!), the ever excitable Yosemite Sam (WoW Mule!), another personal favourite Foghorn Leghorn (Well, I SAY boy!), the Road Runner and the long, long suffering Wile E Coyote and who could forget Marvin the Martian? Oh, and I almost forgot the fastest mouse alive, Speedy Gonzales... 

I enjoyed this book, and the trip down a chaotic memory lane very much indeed. The only problem I had with the book was its size (essentially it is a coffee-table book) and its floppiness (paperback version) which made it a challenge to hold at times! Other than that, I Highly Recommend it to all Warner brothers cartoon fans. But that’s not ALL folks... I have a similar book just on Bugs himself (of course). Watch this space. 

The Last 10 Movies – August 2025 edition.   

Somewhat slower with my movie watching ATM. I blame the heat.... New (to me!) movies in BOLD.

John Wick (2014) 

Blown away by the trailer so a bunch of ‘The Guys’ went to see this extravaganza of mayhem. Lost count of the bodies dispatched. Silly violent FUN. 

Margin Call (2011) 

Surprisingly gripping story around the 2008 financial crash. Amazing how the acting & camera work made a group of people essentially talking in rooms in hushed tones could be SO mesmerising. A very surprise hit with me. 

Spartacus (1960) 

Sword & sandal epic from the Golden Age. Reasonable in parts but has aged BADLY. 

John Wick 2 (2017) 

I’m always rather wary of a sequel to a movie I enjoyed a great deal. Although this wasn’t as ‘fresh’ as the first outing it still rocked, and I really enjoyed ‘discovering’ more about the Wickverse. 

Back to the Future (1985) 

Still FUN after all these years. A well-made and thoughtful Time Travel film. What more could you want.... 

Stargate (1994) 

Where it ALL started. A little ‘lacking’ in parts but I forgive any problems with the original film that gave rise to some of the best TV I’ve seen in decades. 

Kill Command (2016) 

I’d seen clips from this movie on YouTube and finally took the plunge. Despite being MUCH wrong with the plot from beginning to end it still turned out to be fairly watchable. 

The Guest (2014) 

I’ve watched this 4-5 times now and still enjoy it. Both the male & female leads ROCK and its lots of fun if rather violent at times.  

Back to the Future 2 (1989) 

Set partly in the future (in 2015 with flying cars and FAX machines which was SO funny) and partly back in good old 1955 this was, I think, the weakest of the trilogy. But I still remember being impressed by Doc Brown’s explanation of alternate timelines. 

Wind River (2017) 

Impressive crime/western I watched essentially because I liked the director (Taylor Sheridan) who was responsible for both Sicario & Hell or High Water – both of which I was VERY impressed by. This movie was 3 for 3 for me. I remember thinking “My GOD, Elizabeth Olsen can actually ACT!” 

Happy Birthday: Thomas Edward Lawrence CB DSO (16 August 1888 – 19 May 1935) was a British Army officer, archaeologist, diplomat and writer known for his role during the Arab Revolt and Sinai and Palestine campaign against the Ottoman Empire in the First World War. The breadth and variety of his activities and associations, and Lawrence's ability to describe them vividly in writing, earned him international fame as Lawrence of Arabia, a title used for the 1962 film based on his wartime activities.

Lawrence was born in Tremadog, Carnarvonshire, Wales, the illegitimate son of Sir Thomas Chapman, an Anglo-Irish landowner, and Sarah Lawrence (née Junner), a governess in the employ of Chapman. In 1896, Lawrence moved to Oxford, attending the City of Oxford High School for Boys and read history at Jesus College, Oxford, from 1907 to 1910. Between 1910 and 1914, he worked as an archaeologist for the British Museum, chiefly at Carchemish in Ottoman Syria.

After the outbreak of war in 1914, Lawrence joined the British Army and was stationed at the Arab Bureau, a military intelligence unit in Egypt. In 1916, he travelled to Mesopotamia and Arabia on intelligence missions and became involved with the Arab revolt against Ottoman rule. Lawrence was ultimately assigned to the British Military Mission in the Hejaz as a liaison to Emir Faisal, a leader of the revolt. He participated in engagements with the Ottoman military culminating in the capture of Damascus in October 1918.

After the war's end, he joined the Foreign Office, working with Faisal. In 1922, Lawrence retreated from public life and served as an enlisted man in the Army and Royal Air Force (RAF) until 1935. He published the Seven Pillars of Wisdom in 1926, an autobiographical account of his participation in the Arab Revolt. Lawrence also translated books into English and wrote The Mint, which detailed his service in the RAF. He corresponded extensively with prominent artists, writers and politicians, and also participated in the development of rescue motorboats for the RAF. Lawrence's public image resulted in part from the sensationalised reporting of the Arab Revolt by American journalist Lowell Thomas, as well as from Seven Pillars of Wisdom. In 1935, Lawrence died at the age of 46 after being injured in a motorcycle crash in Dorset.

Obviously a fake.... as its not *gamefully* employed.... But GAINFULLY employed.... DUH! 

Just Finished re-Reading: Count Zero by William Gibson (FP: 1986) [305pp] 

Turner is a mercenary and is very good at his job. That job involves ‘assisting’ executives transition to other Corporations over the sometimes considerable objections of their original host. On this occasion everything looked pretty much as expected, including the planted agent and questionable medical team. What Turner didn’t expect, just before the hammer came down HARD was that the ‘transfer’ in the microlight was the executives enhanced daughter. 

On the edges of the Sprawl, a neophyte hacker by the name of Count Zero almost dies to Black ICE (Intruder Countermeasure Electronic) while testing out a new Ice Breaker against a seemingly innocuous target. Now hunted by some very dangerous people indeed, who are not beyond using a missile strike inside an urban complex to kill him, he does the only thing he can – go back to the people who gave him the code and demand to know where it came from. 

Meanwhile in Paris, disgraced art gallery owner Marly Krushkhova is hired by one of the richest men in the world, the extremely reclusive Josef Virek, to track down a mysterious artist who is producing some of the most exotic and sort-after artifacts in the world. No one knows who they are or where they operate from. The objects – both beautiful and disturbingly strange – show up randomly raising fantastic prices on the art market. Marly suddenly finds herself with a seemingly bottomless bank account and the knowledge that she is being watched every second. 

I first read this not long after publication (which, these days, is almost unheard of). Part of that reason is that, back in the mid-80's my TBR pile was miniscule by todays standards and the fact that the first book in this trilogy (Neuromancer) COMPLETELY blew me away. After a gap of 40 years I hardly remember much about the plot. Small instances rung the odd bell, but essentially this was a first time read – which COMPLETELY blew me away again! Here we have mega-corporations moving from Cold to Warm war (it hasn’t quite gone fully HOT yet!), top-of-the-line Mercs doing their thing, high-tech happenings (hacking & such), ‘things’ moving in The Matrix (which reminds me, I really must read up about Voodoo some day), criminal gangs (nice people once you get to know them), VERY clever AI’s (along with the interesting idea of the Turing Police to make sure they stay controlled), spoiler: they fail but don’t know it – and much else besides. 

This is one of the foundational books in the Cyberpunk genre and with good reason. Most of the tropes fans know and LOVE came from the mind of William Gibson. Personally I find his books – all of them so far – to be completely intoxicating. Apart from the fact that he writes REALLY well (he definitely earns the ‘Raymond Chandler of SF’ label), he produces great believable characters (both main and side), excellent dialogue and, probably most of all, a fully realised and believable world for the story to develop in. For example, one of the things I do enjoy is being dropped into a world without knowing too much about it and being forced to figure things out as you go WITHOUT being spoon-fed items so the plot make sense. You learn by reading. IRL people don’t sit in rooms having conversations about events that built their world. They already KNOW this shit because they LIVED through it. We didn’t, so we need to pay attention to what’s going on and what people say – or don’t say. Case in point: several times a character would mention something along the lines that a development project (or whatever) was abandoned ‘after the war’, but nothing about what war, who fought it or who won/lost... Because characters in world wouldn’t NEED to elaborate as in was, no doubt, in ALL the papers. LOVE that sort of thing. 

Despite being published in 1986 I was impressed by the forecast technology – in particular the Internet/Matrix (it was called that amongst other things). A few things did make me chuckle though. Although Gibson didn’t imagine laptops out of whole cloth (early models were around at the time of writing) he did see how important they’d become. Several things he did miss however: despite being in the medium future (I’m guessing at least 50 years ahead) there’s neither cell phones nor Wi-Fi. Oh, and the Soviet Union is still a thing [grin] 

As you can no doubt tell I LOVED this re-Read and will be scheduling the final book in the trilogy (Mona Lisa Overdrive) as soon as possible. If you’re a SF fan and especially if you like things Cyberpunk this is a MUST read. Highly recommended. 

Happy World Lizard Day...........!