The Geek's Guide to SF Cinema


Book Description

'Awesome. Everything you've ever wanted to know about big-screen sci-fi' - James King, film critic 'Don't leave Planet Earth without it' - Dan Jolin, film critic 'A wonderfully accessible, fascinating, flat-out treasure chest of science fiction cinema, from an author whose love of the subject leaps off the page' - Simon Brew, Editor, Den of Geek Why do SF movies matter? What do they tell us about the interests of storytellers and the changing tastes of cinema-goers? How have SF movies evolved with filmmaking technology over the past 110 years? The Geek's Guide To SF Cinema provides an entertaining and in-depth history of the science fiction genre's pivotal and most influential movies. From the pioneering films of Georges Méliès to such blockbusters as Avatar and Inception in the 21st century, the book will explore how these key movies were made, how they reflected the mood of the time in which they were released and how they have influenced other filmmakers in the years since. Historians and experts contribute to answer questions such as: 'How important was Fritz Lang's contribution to cinema?' and 'What did Alien say about the cynical climate of the 1970s?'. Providing nostalgia for long-time SF addicts and context for those whose knowledge and love of the genre is still growing, this is a pop-culture book with depth.




Movie Geek


Book Description

A comprehensive compendium of cult website Den of Geek's most popular articles combined with new material to create the ultimate alternative encyclopedia of film.




TV Geek


Book Description

Essential nerdtastic reading! - Jason Issacs From the author of Den of Geek, this is the ultimate, nerdy television guide for TV geeks everywhere! TV Geek recounts the fascinating stories of cult-classic series, reveals the nerdy Easter eggs hidden in TV show sets, and demonstrates the awe-inspiring power of fandom, which has even been known to raise TV series from the dead. Includes: - How the live-action Star Wars TV show fell apart - The logistics and history of the crossover episode - The underrated geeky TV shows of the 1980s - The hidden details of Game of Thrones - Five Scandinavian crime thrillers that became binge hits - The Walking Dead, and the power of fandom TV series are now as big as Hollywood movies with their big budgets, massive stars, and ever-growing audience figures! TV Geek provides an insightful look at the fascinating history, facts and anecdotes behind the greatest (and not-so-great) shows.




Geek Silicon Valley


Book Description

Silicon Valley veterans and newbies alike will want to explore this book that delves into the rich history behind the region that birthed the world's most important industry. Technology journalist Ashlee Vance has captured almost every aspect of the area stretching between San Francisco and San Jose, California, starting with the eager radio and electronics enthusiasts of the early 1900s and ending with the computing powerhouses of today such as Google and Apple. Along the way, the book profiles the people and places that have elevated Silicon Valley to an almost mythic pedestal. This book delivers Silicon Valley, taking us from success story to failed startup and back again as we drive the roads from San Francisco to Menlo Park, Palo Alto, Mountain View, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara and San Jose. It's full of profiles of the larger-than-life characters that pioneered the processor, computer, and Internet revolutions. The book's vibrant design includes "Silicon Valley Soundbytes" packed with insider information and trivia, and "Click Here" sidebars, which suggest places to eat, drink, and shop. Place by place, readers get the inside scoop on all the addresses that count, which include Microsoft research centers; the headquarters of Google, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Sun Microsystems, and Oracle; research powerhouses such as Stanford University, NASA Ames, and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory; the Computer History Museum and The Tech Museum; the Shoreline Amphitheater; the Churchill Club; and many more.




The Rough Guide to Comedy Movies


Book Description

This guide discusses laughter in the cinema, from "Airplane!" to "Withnail and I" and from John Belushi to Billy Wilder.




Geek Wisdom


Book Description

The essential companion for the geek era: a fusion of inspirational quotes, philosophy, and pop culture drawn from the entire cult-classic canon of film, TV, books, comics, and science. Celebrate nerd culture by taking a page out of your all-time favorites, like Star Wars and Star Trek, The Lord of the Rings and Dune—and much more! Computer nerds are our titans of industry; comic-book superheroes are our Hollywood idols; the Internet is our night on the town. Clearly, geeks know something about life in the 21st century that other folks don’t—something we all can learn from. Geek Wisdom takes as gospel some 200 of the most powerful and oft-cited quotes from movies (“Where we’re going, we don’t need roads”), television (“Now we know—and knowing is half the battle”), literature (“All that is gold does not glitter”), games, science, the Internet, and more. Now these beloved pearls of modern-day culture have been painstakingly interpreted by a diverse team of hardcore nerds with their imaginations turned up to 11. Yes, this collection of mini-essays is by, for, and about geeks—but it’s just so surprisingly profound, the rest of us would have to be dorks not to read it. So say we all.




Consumed


Book Description

The story of two journalists whose entanglement in a French philosopher's death becomes a surreal journey into global conspiracy.




The Magic of Terry Pratchett


Book Description

An in-depth look into the life and writings of the bestselling author of the Discworld novels, Good Omens, and Nation. The Magic of Terry Pratchett is the first full biography of Sir Terry Pratchett ever written. Sir Terry was Britain’s bestselling living author*, and before his death in 2015 had sold more than 85 million copies of his books worldwide. Best known for the Discworld series, his work has been translated into thirty-seven languages, and performed as plays on every continent in the world, including Antarctica. Journalist, comedian and Pratchett fan Marc Burrows delves into the back story of one of UK’s most enduring and beloved authors, from his childhood in the Chiltern Hills, to his time as a journalist, and the journey that would take him—via more than sixty best-selling books—to an OBE, a knighthood and national treasure status. The Magic Of Terry Pratchett is the result of painstaking archival research alongside interviews with friends and contemporaries who knew the real man under the famous black hat, helping to piece together the full story of one of British literature’s most remarkable and beloved figures for the very first time. * Now disqualified on both counts. Praise for The Magic of Terry Pratchett "In this encompassing biography of the prolific fantasy and science-fiction author, writer and comedian Burrows details both the writing accomplishments and the personal life of Sir Terry Pratchett. . . . Burrows spoke to friends and family, and this biography has moments of sadness, especially when discussing Pratchett’s fight with Alzheimer’s. But the book is also funny and conversational in tone, and an excellent tribute to a beloved author.” —Booklist “Affable and consistently engaging . . . Burrow’s buoyant, pun-peppered, and aptly footnote-flecked style . . . helpfully marries his subject matter, propelling us through decade after decade of a heavily writing-centric life while illuminating Pratchett’s complexities and contradictions without any drag in the tempo.” —Locus Magazine “An impressively comprehensive, engagingly written biography. ****”—SFX




How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe (Enhanced Edition)


Book Description

This enhanced eBook includes video, audio, photographic, and linked content, as well as a bonus short story. Hear TAMMY talk. Learn the origins of Minor Universe 31. See the TM-31. Take a trip in it. Photos and illustrations appear as hyperlinked endnotes. Video and audio are embedded directly in text. *Video and audio may not play on all readers. Check your user manual for details. National Book Foundation 5 Under 35 Award winner Charles Yu delivers his debut novel, a razor-sharp, ridiculously funny, and utterly touching story of a son searching for his father . . . through quantum space–time. Minor Universe 31 is a vast story-space on the outskirts of fiction, where paradox fluctuates like the stock market, lonely sexbots beckon failed protagonists, and time travel is serious business. Every day, people get into time machines and try to do the one thing they should never do: change the past. That’s where Charles Yu, time travel technician—part counselor, part gadget repair man—steps in. He helps save people from themselves. Literally. When he’s not taking client calls or consoling his boss, Phil, who could really use an upgrade, Yu visits his mother (stuck in a one-hour cycle of time, she makes dinner over and over and over) and searches for his father, who invented time travel and then vanished. Accompanied by TAMMY, an operating system with low self-esteem, and Ed, a nonexistent but ontologically valid dog, Yu sets out, and back, and beyond, in order to find the one day where he and his father can meet in memory. He learns that the key may be found in a book he got from his future self. It’s called How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe, and he’s the author. And somewhere inside it is the information that could help him—in fact it may even save his life. Wildly new and adventurous, Yu’s debut is certain to send shock waves of wonder through literary space–time.




Save Me Plz and Other Stories


Book Description

A collection of 20 fantasy & science fiction stories by David Barr Kirtley, host of the Geek's Guide to the Galaxy podcast. Includes the following stories: "Beauty," "The Black Bird," "Seven Brothers, Cruel," "Blood of Virgins," "Seeds-for-Brains," "Family Tree," "Red Road," "Save Me Plz," "The Ontological Factor," "The Second Rat," "They Go Bump," "The Prize," "Cats in Victory," "Transformations," "Veil of Ignorance," "Power Armor: A Love Story," "Three Deaths," "The Disciple," "The Skull-Faced Boy," "The Skull-Faced City." Also includes 13 illustrations by various artists.