M.A. Kropp: Writer, Blogger, GeekGirl. My Life. My Words. My Way.
There will probably be a few TV, movie, or other reviews for a bit on Fridays. I am reading non-fiction right now, and that is always a bit slower reading for me. But, hey, I have opinions on stuff other than books, so it's all good, right? The Last Ship is one of TNT's original … Continue reading Friday (TV) Review: The Last Ship
I've linked to some of National Geographic's Photos of the Day before. Here's a look at the best of those from September (Warning: Baby fox cuteness!): September's Best Photos Y'know how everyone says they have their best thoughts in the shower? Well, here's twenty that prove this to be true (Numbers 5 and 20 were … Continue reading Wednesday Wanderings: Best of Photo of the Day September, Shower Thoughts, Redesigned NFL Helmets, and Apples!
I've seen some discussion lately on "message fiction." That is, stories that have a defined theme, a point, a message, if you will. And the strong advocates of these will say that all stories must have a message embedded within them. The argument is particularly strong in the speculative fiction arenas, where there seems to … Continue reading Monday Musings: Is Escapism Wrong? Or, Does Everything Need to Have a Message?
The City Stained Red by Sam Sykes My rating: 4 of 5 stars This was my first book by Sam Sykes, and it was a good introduction to his works. The book opens with a band of adventurers (read: mercenaries) on a mission to collect the payment owed to them by their latest employer. They … Continue reading Friday Review: The City Stained Red (Bring Down Heaven #1) by Sam Sykes
The big news from NASA this week was the discovery of flowing salt water on Mars: Waters of Mars We all know that the original Grimm Brothers' fairy tales were not the cleaned-up versions we read to our children. But here are some facts about the stories I didn't know before: Grimm's Fairy Tales With … Continue reading Wednesday Wanderings: Water on Mars, Grimm(er) Fairy Tales, How to Tell if a TV Show Might be Good, and Star Wars: Special Editions
My rating: 4 out of five stars This is the last in the short works reviews for now. I have more in the TBR pile, and will get to them at some point. The Lady Astronaut of Mars won the 2014 Hugo award for Best Novelette. It is the story of Elma York, who led … Continue reading Friday Review: The Lady Astronaut of Mars by Mary Robinette Kowal
What this woman does with bubbles is amazing: Bubbles Using data from the Cassini mission, scientists have discovered a global ocean on one of Saturn's moons: Moon Ocean This is from a few months back, but it gives more hints and details about the upcoming Star Wars: The Force Awakens: Star Wars VII Yogi Berra, … Continue reading Wednesday Wanderings: Bubbles, Saturn’s Moon’s Ocean, More Star Wars VII Details, and the Wisdom of Yogi Berra
It was a long weekend. Two days of chili cook offs in CT. Fun time, as always, but tiring, especially when it's back-to-backs. So, I took yesterday off from blogging my usual Monday post. And today's is going to be a quick one, since we are heading out to visit our newest grandchild (born yesterday) … Continue reading Tuesday Thoughts: Welcoming a New Addition
The Ink Readers of Doi Saket: A Tor.Com Original by Thomas Olde Heuvelt My rating: 3 of 5 stars This is another short piece that was nominated for a Hugo award in 2014. It is a fairy tale fable type of story rather than strict science fiction. The story takes place in Thailand, primarily in … Continue reading Friday Review: The Ink Readers of Doi Saket by Thomas Olde Heuvelt
Here are some more pictures of Pluto. These are really spectacular, and show a lot of detail about our little planet buddy: Pluto Remember all those things Mom would tell you, over and over? With these motivational posters, all she has to do is hang some artwork: Mom Posters Because one can never get enough … Continue reading Wednesday Wanderings: Pluto Pictures, Mom Posters, Tom Does Hank, and the Shek Report
And So On... 