The Fantasy and Science Fiction/Theory Reading Group is a casual, convivial group that meets once a month. We gather to discuss works (partial list of previous readings) that we have chosen collectively and to put those works in some sort of theoretical perspective, the sort, of course, depending on the works and the viewpoints of those assembled. The Group is open on a drop-in basis, because we are always interested in the views of those who are especially interested in a particular work or author, but most participants try to attend regularly. Our currently active members include faculty, graduate students, and staff from the University of Michigan,Wayne State University, and other local residents with strong interests in the field. (We are not open to undergraduates. Interested undergraduates may want to consider joining a local science fiction club such as the Stilyagi Air Corps in Ann Arbor.) The Fantasy and Science Fiction/Theory Reading Group normally meets year round from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. although occasionally our schedule varies, so please consult the calendar below. Our current location is 3200 Angell Hall in the Department of English of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Eric Rabkin, the group's convener, always provides something like peanuts; others sometimes bring additional snacks.
At our meeting of 14 Oct 2008, we agreed to continue meeting generally on the second Tuesday of the month. If all goes according to custom, at the October meeting listed below, we will pick books for at least a few subsequent months, so participation in person or by prior contact for that meeting is especially invited.
All of the works listed below were available either new or used when the schedule was set, but some books may require ordering, so it is advisable to begin acquiring texts early. Our schedule follows:
| Dates |
Works |
|---|---|
T 11 Nov |
Barry Hughart, Bridge of Birds. A gorgeous fairy tale for adults set in "a China that never was." |
T 9 Dec |
Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet Frankenstein, a classic comic-horror pastiche with an "appearance" by Vincent Price as The Invisible Man. This, our annual view-and-pizza meeting, in order to show the video, will be in the Viedoconference Suite (Room 1180) at the Duderstadt Center. Travel directions. |
T 13 Jan |
Mary Doria Russell, The Sparrow. A moving, best-selling anthropological science fiction exploring the relations between science and religion, the limits of faith, and the meaning of humanity. (This is a long book, so you may want to start early.) |
T 10 Feb |
Kevin Crossley-Holland, The Norse Myths. Thirty-two splendidly retold classic tales of the Vikings as they were before Stan Lee got his hands on them. |
T 10 Mar |
Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards! A favorite stand-alone installment in the hugely popular, outrageously comic Discworld series. |
T 14 Apr |
Toby Barlow, Sharp Teeth. A critically acclaimed modern werewolf novel told in verse. |
T 12 May |
Scott McCloud, Zot!: The Complete Black and White Collection: 1987-1991. An excellent alternate Earth teen-hero saga by the creator of the classic Understanding Comics. |
T 9 Jun |
Micahel Cisco, The San Veneficio Canon. A subtly written, self-reflexive, Gothic fantasy in two linked novellas. |
T 14 Jul |
Adolfo Bioy Casares, The Invention of Morel. The most acclaimed work of a founder of modern Latin American fiction. Since this polished tale is quite short, feel encouraged to bring very short (three pages or shorter) relevant fictions to this meeting. |
T 11 Aug |
Adam Rex, The True Meaning of Smekday. A delightful alien-meets-schoolkid young adult novel that is sweeping America of a certain age, and older. |
T 8 Sep |
Scarlet Thomas, The End of Mr. Y. Crazy SF with lots of sex, rogue academic, cursed text, and so on. |
T 13 Oct |
Book selection meeting! Please come ready to suggest books for the group to read. If you wish, bring a copy of each suggested book and/or bring reviews. Please check in advance to make sure that the books you suggest are available. In case our selection discussion takes less than our two-hour allotment, Eric will bring copies of a short-short story for us to read together and chew on, but anyone else who wants to do that should feel free to do so. If you can't make the meeting but want to make a recommendation, please send it to our mail group. |
T 10 Nov |
Markus Zusak, The Book Thief. A hauntingly written international bestseller about growing up under the Third Reich, as sympathetically narrated by Death. (This is a long book, so you may want to start early.) |
If you want to send an electronic message to this Reading Group, please address FantasySF@umich.edu. If you want to see this message on the World Wide Web, please point your browser at http://www-personal.umich.edu/~esrabkin/fsftsched.html. If you want to add your name to the mail group or make suggestions or inquiries, please contact Eric Rabkin by e-mail (esrabkin@umich.edu) or snail mail at Department of English, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1003.
Come join us!
| Eric | This page was last updated on
Wednesday, 15-Oct-2008 15:27:57 EDT
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