SF&F Literati meet 3/25/2019

9,995 Chances and Counting . . . 

Date: Monday, March 25, 2019, at 7:00 p.m.
Title: Reincarnation Blues
Author: Michael Poore
Available from: Fine Booksellers, including Barnes & Noble
Meeting Location: Barnes & Noble #2352, 2nd Floor, 11323 W. 95th Street, Overland Park, KS 66214
NOTE: All are welcome to the meeting, whether you’ve read the book or not.

A wildly imaginative novel about a man who is reincarnated over ten thousand lifetimes to be with his one true love: Death herself.

“Tales of gods and men akin to Neil Gaiman’s Sandman as penned by a kindred spirit of Douglas Adams.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

First we live. Then we die. And then . . . we get another try?

Ten thousand tries, to be exact. Ten thousand lives to “get it right.” Answer all the Big Questions. Achieve Wisdom. And Become One with Everything.
 
Milo has had 9,995 chances so far and has just five more lives to earn a place in the cosmic soul. If he doesn’t make the cut, oblivion awaits. But all Milo really wants is to fall forever into the arms of Death. Or Suzie, as he calls her.

More than just Milo’s lover throughout his countless layovers in the Afterlife, Suzie is literally his reason for living—as he dives into one new existence after another, praying for the day he’ll never have to leave her side again.
     
But Reincarnation Blues is more than a great love story: Every journey from cradle to grave offers Milo more pieces of the great cosmic puzzle—if only he can piece them together in time to finally understand what it means to be part of something bigger than infinity. As darkly enchanting as the works of Neil Gaiman and as wisely hilarious as Kurt Vonnegut’s, Michael Poore’s Reincarnation Blues is the story of everything that makes life profound, beautiful, absurd, and heartbreaking.

Because it’s more than Milo and Suzie’s story. It’s your story, too.

Praise for Reincarnation Blues

“The most fun you’ll have reading about a man who has been killed by both catapult and car accident.”—NPR

“This book made me laugh out loud. And then a page later, it made me sob. Reminiscent of Tom Robbins and Christopher Moore, Poore finds humor in the dark absurdities of life.”—Chicago Review of Books


“Charming . . . surprisingly light and uplifting . . . It reads like a writer having fun.”—New York Journal of Books

IMAGE: Many thanks to Amazon, for the Reincarnation Blues cover. 

Get FREE Tickets to Neil Gaiman TOMORROW!

Neil Gaiman?!? Where? When?
This is a rare opportunity, and we're certain these tickets will go fast. Plan accordingly!

Neil Gaiman in 2013, courtesy of
Kyle Cassidy and Wikipedia.

About GETTING tickets: 
Available starting 11:00 a.m. TOMORROW, Monday October 22, 2018.
FREE for the asking. 
Limit TWO.
IN-PERSON requests only.
Only at the Lied Center Box Office in Lawrence, KS

Gaiman's Appearance, NOV 19, 2018:
"An Evening with Neil Gaiman" is set for November 19 at 7:30 p.m. at Lied Center in Lawrence, KS, a program hosted by the Hall Center for the Humanities at KU in Lawrence. Gaiman's appearance is supported by the Hall Family Foundation.

In case you need a refresher about Gaiman, he is a bestselling author "listed in the Dictionary of Literary Biography as one of the top ten living post-modern writers. He is the author of American Gods, The Graveyard Book, Coraline, The Sandman series, and countless other works of prose, poetry, film, journalism, comics, song lyrics, and drama," as the Hall Center announcement notes.

"Gaiman's work has been honored with many awards internationally, including the Newbery and Carnegie Medals. His books and stories have also been honored with 4 Hugos, 2 Nebulas, 1 World Fantasy Award, 4 Bram Stoker Awards, 6 Locus Awards, 2 British SF Awards, 1 British Fantasy Award, 3 Geffens, 1 International Horror Guild Award, and 2 Mythopoeic Awards."

IMAGE: Many thanks to Kyle Cassidy and Wikipedia for the photo of Neil Gaiman, and to the Hall Center and the Hall Family Foundation for sponsoring his appearance in our area.

We have a Hotel! And Logos! And Books to Read! And a Game of Thrones Marathon!

The water resort part includes some outdoors and some inside.

Major announcements have been coming in like meteors in a Perseid meteor shower, recently. Here's a rundown of our top "breaking news" stories:
 
We have a Hotel!
ConQuesT, or science fiction convention, is moving to a new hotel for ConQuesT 44, held on Memorial Day Weekend, May 24-26, 2013. It is the Holiday Inn Southeast CoCo Key Resort, 9103 East 39th Street, Kansas City, MO. 

The convention room rate is $85/night (discount cutoff is May 1, 2013). The room fee includes free wi-fi, free parking, and discounted access to CoCo Key Water Resort. For more information, please see the ConQuesT website or the hotel's website.

View Larger Map  


We have Official Logos!

Not tired of it yet!

The votes are in, and we have "new" logos for KaCSFFS and ConQuesT. We will be using these on our official communications.

The new ConQuesT logo

"New" is in quote marks, however, because the KaCSFFS logo chosen by the majority of our voters is the original 1977 logo! Designed by Ken Keller and clearly still meaningful to our members, this perennial classic will continue as our "mark."

The new ConQuesT logo really is new, though! Designed last spring to be updated with new numbers as years pass, the round shape of this Keri O'Brien design should complement our KaCSFFS classic well. For creating the new logo, Keri wins a free membership to ConQuesT 44, a Certificate of Recognition, and a box of Annedore's Artisanal Chocolates or suitable alternative of her choice.

Read it by October 22, and join in!

We have Books to Read!
The SF&F Literati group has announced a new list of selections for the next four meetings. Don't wait a moment longer to get your copy of Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys for the October 22 meeting! The group meets to discuss the book selection of the month at the Oak Park Barnes & Noble Booksellers, second floor at 7:00 p.m., on the fourth Monday of most months (No meeting in December, and 3rd Monday in May).

The Barnes & Noble Overview says of Anansi Boys:
"When Fat Charlie's dad named something, it stuck. Like calling Fat Charlie 'Fat Charlie.' Even now, twenty years later, Charlie Nancy can't shake that name, one of the many embarrassing "gifts" his father bestowed -- before he dropped dead on a karaoke stage and ruined Fat Charlie's life.

"Mr. Nancy left Fat Charlie things. Things like the tall good-looking stranger who appears on Charlie's doorstep, who appears to be the brother he never knew. A brother as different from Charlie as night is to day, a brother who's going to show Charlie how to lighten up and have a little fun . . . just like Dear Old Dad. And all of a sudden, life starts getting very interesting for Fat Charlie.

"Because, you see, Charlie's dad wasn't just any dad. He was Anansi, a trickster god, the spider-god. Anansi is the spirit of rebellion; he is able to overturn the social order, create wealth out of thin air, baffle the devil, and cheat Death himself.

"Exciting, scary, and deeply funny, ANANSI BOYS is a kaleidoscopic journey deep into myth, a wild adventure, and a fierce and unstoppable farce, as Neil Gaiman shows us where gods come from, and how to survive your family."

The rest of the lineup looks pretty good, too:
Nov 26, 2012  Redshirts by John Scalzi
(No meeting is planned for December: the 4th Monday is Christmas Eve.)
Jan 28, 2013  Leviathan Wakes by James A. Corey (Hugo Nominee)
Feb 25, 2013  The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss  (ConQuest GOH)

And we have a Game of Thrones Marathon! 

Looks as if they're going to do it after all!  The Laser Rangers have just announced they will host a special showing of Season 2, Episodes 5, 6, and 7.

Proceedings begin at 4:45 p.m., enjoying the amenities of David Sooby's home theater . To follow the food theme, ample help is on hand from the Inn at the Crossroads.

Here's an atmospheric warm-up video you may enjoy, produced by Karilene Reynolds and available via YouTube:

IMAGE CREDITS: The exterior of the Holiday Inn Southeast/CoCo Key Resort is from the hotel's website. We are indebted to Ken Keller and Keri O'Brien for their logo designs. Barnes & Noble Booksellers provided cover art for the SF&F Literati selections, and the movie screen frame image used for the Laser Rangers contact information is courtesy of Psychology Today Online. Karilene Reynolds is responsible for the video about the Game of Thrones.