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HAZED'S 1998 RECOMMENDATIONS |
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HAZED'S 1998 RECOMMENDATIONS |
The Joy of Work: Dilbert's Guide to Finding Happiness at the Expense of your Co-workers by Scott Adams Thankfully, I don't work for a huge faceless mega-corporation; nor do I have to work in a cubicle. But I did once, and when I remember it, I shudder! This book is the perfect guide to surviving life in a cubicle by tricking your bosses and playing pranks on your colleagues. And what's more, every single part of the book rings true to anyone who has ever worked in an office environment. Scott Adams' writing is punctuated with Dilbert cartoons, and also includes extracts from letters telling about real-life Dilbert-style situations. I laughed so much I ached. Click here for more information on this Dilbert book.
I was going to recommend one book which I read recently and loved, but since it's a sequel I need to recommend the book it follows, as well. But these two books aren't the first either, so I have to go back even further... Elizabeth Moon wrote three excellent science fiction books about Herris Serrano, the female captain of a space yacht, and her eccentric rich employee, Lady Cecelia. The three books - Hunting Party, Sporting Chance and Winning Colors - are very exciting, amusing in places, and Elizabeth Moon's characters are so believable and so likeable. But then she wrote Once a Hero, which picks up the minute that Winning Colors ended, and tells the story of the aftermath of the events in that book, but has a brand new, young protagonist. Herris hardly appears at all. But not to worry, because Esmay Suiza is just as much fun and has just as many problems. At the end of Winning Colors, she was forced to take on far more responsibility than her rank warranted, when she was involved in a mutiny by fellow Naval officers. Now, in Once a Hero, she has to face up to the consequences. Many of her superior officers distrust her and show prejudice because she's not a member of a great Navy family. When things blow up again, she once again has to take control in order to save the day. Meanwhile, she's working through some serious personal problems caused by events back in her childhood, and trying to learn how to make friends - and falling in love for the first time. In the sequel, Rules of Engagement, Esmay finds herself in even deeper trouble, with enemies within the Navy trying to discredit her and end her career, and her personal relationships in a complete mess. The main action is provided by a deeply unpleasant repressive religious militia movement, who kidnap the daughter of the current political leader, rape her and get her pregnant. Esmay is best qualified to help rescue her, but first she has to persuade her superiors she knows what she's talking about. Both these books - and the earlier books about Herris Serano - are unputdownable. They are the kind of science fiction I like the best - about people, societies, and politics, not just hardware and space battles. Click here for more information on:
I have no hesitation in recommending this video to anyone who plays computer games, because the story really is like an adventure game. You know how in an adventure game, you try something, it doesn't work, so you go back to your saved position, try it again, it still doesn't work, go back again... well, in this film, Bill Murray has to relive the same day over and over again until he gets it right! It's not a new film, but it is one of the funniest films I have ever seen. The idea is clever and it's executed neatly. The Bill Murray character starts out a real unpleasant chap, but by the end of the film we're rooting for him as he transforms himself from Mr. Nasty to Mr. Wonderful. Andi McDowell plays the female lead, which is a rather wet character. She does the best she can but is rather over-shadowed by Murray's superb comic acting. I rarely watch films more than once, but this is one that stands repeated viewing because there's so much going on that you notice new things each time. I guess I have to keep watching it until I get it right... Click here for more information on Groundhog Day.
Heinlein is one of the classic science fiction authors. His work spans several decades, and although his last four or five books before his death were flabby and overlong, he is rightly considered one of the top ten SF writers off all time. He was the second SF author I discovered (after Isaac Asimov) when I was first introduced to science fiction at the age of 13. I devoured his juveniles, which told tales of adolescent heroes (and sometimes heroines) facing up to danger, ruthless enemies, and stupid adults, and winning the day. When I had run out of his books for teenagers I turned to his adult works and found them equally enjoyable. Heinlein does have some bad habits; in particular, he uses some of his books to ram his rather extreme right-wing political views down the reader's throat. But still, despite that, he is one of the few authors that I read and re-read. My favorite of all his works is The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, which is set on Luna, an open penal colony of the twenty-first century. A group of loonies conspire to start a revolution to gain independence, aided by an unexpected ally - an intelligent super-computer. It's gripping stuff! Click here for more information on The Moon is a Harsh Mistress.
No, don't run screaming because you see the words "classical music". You'll like this, honest! Not only is this one of my favorite pieces of classical music, but it is particularly relevant to Fed, because The Planets consists of 7 pieces of music, each of them about one of the planets in the Solar System. You'll probably recognize some of the pieces because they are widely used for background music in adverts, films and TV shows. The most famous is probably Mars, the Bringer of War, with it's compelling drum beat forming a threatening rhythm in the background. The other planets are Venus, the Bringer of Peace; Mercury, the Winged Messenger; Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity; Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age; Uranus, the Magician; and Neptune, the Mystic. No Pluto because the planet hadn't been discovered at the time Holst wrote the suite. Also, no Titan or Castillo because they are moons, not planets. If you are new to classical music, The Planets is a good place to start. Each piece is fairly short so it's not too overwhelming, and the titles tell you clearly what the music is supposed to be about. And the tunes are pretty hummable. Click here for more information on The Planets CD. There are other recordings of The Planets available but this one is considered one of the best. |
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