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Crap Books

I’m Podside Official!

As of today, I'm excited to announce I'll be the third host for the Podside Picnic podcast. My discussions about Crap Books have been a blast to do, and I hope to bring that same level of fun to other areas of the podcast. I'd like to bring on current science fiction and fantasy authors who've written shorter works as guests, as well as other activities that are tangential to science fiction and fantasy. There's also a series of other exciting stuff we have planned and can't wait to share some of these projects with you when the time comes. Keep in mind that If you have a suggestion or something they feel we've missed that they'd like to see featured on Podside Picnic, the best way to let us know is by joining the Patreon, but otherwise, feel free to comment or contact me here. Until next time! ...

October 12, 2020
Crap Books, Podcast, Podside Picnic
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Two manticores scowling at each other. One is saying, "soon" while the other is replying with, "It's here"

Xanth Is a Four Letter Word

The Xanth episode of Crap Books has come and gone. While we had fun discussing just how awful the books are on several levels (the prose is not great, the misogyny and objectification of women that's the norm is awful, the internal logic and plots are nonsensical, and so on), one of the things that I've been thinking about is how awful the politics of A Spell for Chameleon are. Bink, the supposed hero, just following the rules no matter how unjust or cruel they may be is truly something that I'd forgotten. To clarify, not every hero or protagonist of a book needs to be an exemplar, but nothing that happens in A Spell for Chameleon challenges Bink's spinelessness. If anything, Bink suffers no lasting consequences for his continued existence as a human doormat, which seems to hint at the author's own beliefs and privilege. https://twitter.com/PodsideP/status/1310700089430556674?s=20 An example of awful prose and...

October 1, 2020
Crap Books, Fantasy
Close up of Manticore's scowling face, with the caption "Soon" under it

Episode 4 – A Spell For Chameleon

In which Pete and I go work our way through the stages of grief, and finally reach acceptance that we've been Xanthed. Listen in for a wide-ranging discussion about self-selected Florida Man, Piers Anthony, and his best-known (and oh-so-craptastic) works. Oh, and we manage to fit in some A Spell For Chameleon talk, too! https://soundcloud.com/user-733327042/episode-84-crap-books-iv-a-spell-for-chameleon-ft-karlo-yeager-rodriguez ...

September 29, 2020
Crap Books, Fantasy, Podcast
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A Descent Into The World Below

What if I told you there was a world before this one you know, a world ever dark and cold, where cold water drip-drip-drips down into lightless depths. . . A world usurped by this one, full of sunlight and the wind tousling the grasses, and resentful of losing its place. A world that sends its inhabitants squirming up out of the depths, throngs twisted by their hatred of us living above, all waiting just on the far side of our cellars and between our walls for their moment to strike. . . Recently, I heard of a gaming supplement called The Veins of the Earth, which sounded like a re-imagining of the now-tired idea of The Underdark (I'd offer my apologies to R. A. Salvatore, but I never got around to reading his books detailing Menzoberranzan and drow culture). Veins of the Earth does what many works do when they...

September 13, 2020
Crap Books, Fantasy, Podcast
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