The IBIC Journal: Reviews of Current and Forthcoming Books

Chronological Index

• March 1995
  • BEGGARS AND CHOOSERS by Nancy Kress (Tor)--should we hope the author comes down with Card/Brin Syndrome?
  • Is THE RED HOUSE MYSTERY by A.A. Milne [!] (Dell pb, 1950) "one of the three best mystery stories ever told"?
  • Have there been any important advances in educational technology since the publication of VOYAGE OF THE SPACE BEAGLE by the venerable and somewhat quacky science fiction author A.E. Van Vogt (Simon & Schuster, 1939)?
  • Any book with protagonists like Harry Houdini and Arthur Conan Doyle can't be all bad: NEVERMORE by William J. Hjortsberg (Atlantic Monthly Press).
  • For Rumpole fans: MURDERERS AND OTHER FRIENDS by John Mortimer (Viking)
  • Essence of unobtainium: three books by Daniel Keys Moran--ARMAGEDDON BLUES, EMERALD EYES, and THE LONG RUN (all by Bantam)
• February 1995
  • THE CENTAUR by John Updike (Books on Tape)--this early Updike is one of the best books I've ever read about the love between father and son.
  • FLASH: a review of O.J. Simpson's new book, I WANT TO TELL YOU (Little, Brown)
  • A trio of Star Trek books:
    • STAR TREK MOVIE MEMORIES by William Shatner with Chris Kreski (HarperCollins)--is it possible that William Shatner has written the best Star Trek book ever?
    • FEDERATION by Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens (Pocket Books)--a must if you like Kirk and Picard.
    • TREK: THE UNAUTHORIZED A-Z: YOUR COMPLETE WARP-SPEED GUIDE TO EVERY VOYAGE by Hal Schuster and Wendy Rathbone (HarperPrism)--what do you expect when you see the word "Unauthorized" in a book title?
  • HITLER'S LAST GAMBLE: THE BATTLE OF THE BULGE, DECEMBER 1944-JANUARY 1945 by Trevor N. Dupuy, David L. Bongard, and Richard C. Anderson, Jr. (HarperCollins)
  • FAITH by Len Deighton (HarperCollins)--can Deighton ever return to the heights of such classics as THE IPCRESS FILE?
  • A LONG LINE OF DEAD MEN by Lawrence Block (William Morrow & Company)
  • THERE WAS A LITTLE GIRL by Ed McBain (Warner)
  • SHOOTING BLANKS: WAR MAKING THAT DOESN'T WORK by James A. Dunnigan and Albert A. Nofi (William Morrow & Company)
  • GETTING IT RIGHT: AMERICAN MILITARY REFORMS AFTER VIETNAM TO THE GULF WAR AND BEYOND by James F. Dunnigan and Raymond M. Macedonia (William Morrow & Company)
  • MIDSHIPMAN'S HOPE by David Feintuch (Warner Aspect). Hornblower in space--again?
  • THE UNWOUND WAY and THE END OF FAME by Bill Adams and Cecil Brooks (Del Rey)
  • I WANT TO TELL YOU by O.J. Simpson
• December 1994
  • HOMICIDAL PSYCHO JUNGLE CAT by Bill Watterson (Andrews and McMeel). How to solve problems the Calvin & Hobbes way.
  • DEBT OF HONOR by Tom Clancy (G.P. Putnam's Sons). Will anyone be reading Clancy 50 years from now?
  • THE SHAME OF SAVO: ANATOMY OF A NAVAL DISASTER by Bruce Loxton with Chris Coulthard-Clark (U.S. Naval Institute Press). Who was to blame for the defeat that almost cost the Allies Guadalcanal?
  • THE BURGLAR WHO TRADED TED WILLIAMS (Dutton) is the first Bernie Rhodenbarr mystery by Lawrence Block in more than 10 years. Can Block still hit 'em out of the park?
  • THE SPIDER by John Crompton (Nick Lyons Books). Extending the metaphor of the Web.
• November 1994
  • HOW WE DIE: REFLECTIONS ON LIFE'S FINAL CHAPTER by Sherwin Nuland (Alfred A. Knopf) is one of the most important books I read this year.
  • HEAVY WEATHER, the latest SF novel by noted Netizen Bruce Sterling. Recommended.
  • IF YOU'RE TALKING TO ME, YOUR CAREER MUST BE IN TROUBLE by Joe Queenan (Hyperion). Hyperprose about the movies.
  • MY LIFE IN COURT by Louis Nizer (Doubleday, 1961). A classic legal autobiography by one of the forerunners to Gerry Spence.
  • 13TH GEN: ABORT, RETRY, IGNORE, FAIL by Neil Howe and Bill Strauss (Vintage Books, 1993). Are you an Xer or a Boomer?
  • MOVING MARS by Greg Bear (Tor). One of the leading entrants in the 1994 Mars novel sweepstakes.
  • On rereading A FIRE UPON THE DEEP by Vernor Vinge (Tor). Will this be an enduring SF classic?
  • In honor of Veterans' Day 1994, a review of Robert Graves' classic memoir of the First World War, GOODBYE TO ALL THAT
  • THE SPORTING NEWS OFFICIAL NBA GUIDE: 1994-1995 EDITION, edited by Craig Carter and Alex Sachare; THE SPORTING NEWS OFFICIAL NBA REGISTER 1994-1995 EDITION, edited by George Puro, Alex Sachare, and Kyle Veltrop (The Sporting News Publishing Company); and DICK VITALE'S COLLEGE BASKETBALL (College Sports)
• October 1994
  • THE LAST DANCER by Daniel Keys Moran (Bantam Spectra, 1993)
  • Four novels by Tom Sharpe: WILT, THE WILT ALTERNATIVE, WILT ON HIGH, and PORTERHOUSE BLUE
  • LEND ME YOUR EARS: GREAT SPEECHES IN HISTORY, selected and introduced by William Safire (W.W. Norton, 1992)
  • DIRTY LITTLE SECRETS OF WORLD WAR II by James Dunnigan and Albert A. Nofi (William Morrow)
  • Four novels by Ed McBain: KISS (William Morrow & Co.), ICE (Arbor House), EIGHT BLACK HORSES (Arbor House), and LET'S HEAR IT FOR THE DEAF MAN (Doubleday)
  • IL BASKET D'ITALIA by Jim Patton (Simon & Schuster)
  • WILD HORSES by Dick Francis (G.P. Putnam's Sons)
  • OTHER by Gordon Dickson (Tor)
  • THE PATRICK O'BRIAN CALENDAR 1995 (W.W. Norton)
• September 1994
  • TOWING JEHOVAH by James Morrow

About the IBIC Journal: Reviews of Current and Forthcoming Books

Journal (n.) A record of experiences, ideas, or reflections kept regularly for private use.

I publish the IBIC Journal: Reviews of Current and Forthcoming Books as a way of documenting and organizing what I have read and why I read it.

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