first contact – Page 5

Review of Eifelheim by Michael Flynn

SFFaudio Review

Eifelheim
By Michael Flynn; Read by Anthony Heald
2 MP3-CDs – 17.5 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: 2007
ISBN: 1433206129
Themes: / Science Fiction / Philosophy / Religion / Catholicism / Aliens / Physics / First Contact / Black Death /

“Eifelheim” is a novel that’s not in a hurry. It’s a multiple course meal that offers helpings of philosophy, science, and religion at a leisurely pace that’s refreshing in today’s hurry-up climate. It was also a Hugo nominee for Best Novel of 2007.

The novel takes place in two times. In “Now”, two live-in scientists discuss and compare their findings on seemingly different subjects. One of them is investigating the absence of people in Eifelheim, a German town whose population disappeared during the 14th century. According to calculations of population patterns, this is a mathematical anomaly. The other scientist, a physicist, is trying to figure out why the speed of light is slowing down. That these two things are related is part of the story.

In the 14th century, a parish priest named Father Deitrich, who is dealing with the beginnings of the Black Death in his area, experiences first contact with an alien race that appears in his town of Eifelheim. Father Deitrich is a smart, compassionate priest, and, as he considers the aliens God’s children, he befriends them and cares for them as he can.

The focus occasionally switches back to the two scientists from “now”, who have conversations that shed light on the happenings in Eifelheim in the past. The main charm of this novel for me was the realistic portrayal of this honorable priest, and his culture. It portrays a medieval religion that was considered the source of all knowledge, and as such, the priest’s logical reasoning makes for compelling listening. To readers who enjoy philosophy and speculative science, and the history of both, it would be hard to find a modern novel more interesting.

Author Michael Flynn provides historical and physics notes at the end of the novel, and thanks should go out to Blackstone Audio for including them here in the audiobook. Narrator Anthony Heald does a tremendous job with the narration. He’s an excellent match with the material, handling accents and characters with unobtrusive skill. Choices he made with the alien voices were particularly effective.

Posted by Scott D. Danielson

Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History podcast – absolute must listen episode

SFFaudio Online Audio

Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History podcast is awesome – Carlin literally puts awe into his performances. His podcast is all about the things he finds interesting in history. Thankfully, with his latest show, “Steppe Stories,” I now have a chance to tell you about his podcast. It seems that Carlin is a Science Fiction and Fantasy fan as well as a history fan. In his latest podcast Carlin explores the people of the Asiatic steppe. How meeting with them was like meeting aliens – very much like the “first contact” theme from so many Science Fiction stories. And who knew that Robert E. Howard’s Red Sonja of Rogatino, and the Marvel/Dynamite Entertainment‘s Hyrkanian version of Red Sonja, weren’t as unlikely as they appear? Dan Carlin, that’s who! The mythical half-man/half-horse Centaurs? The fabled Amazon warriors? Yep, they’re from the steppe too!

Listen in to the show “Steppe Stories” |MP3| and if you’re a fan of history, as all good SF and F fans should be, subscribe using the following feed – you won’t be sorry:

http://www.dancarlin.com/dchh.xml

posted by Jesse Willis

NOTE Because of the CBC strike, these links …

SFFaudio Online Audio

***NOTE***
Because of the CBC strike, these links aren’t working. Sorry! I’ll post an update when things are cleared up. –sd

Quirks And Quarks, CBC Radio’s excellent and long running Saturday afternoon science program is not only a great source of science news – it’s also a great Science Fiction resource! The show’s host, Bob McDonald, has even narrated an SF novel and is obviously a fan of both science and Science Fiction.

Every week, the program presents the people behind the latest discoveries in the physical and natural sciences, from the smallest sub-atomic particle to the largest objects in the sky and everything in between. The program also examines the political, social, environmental and ethical implications of new developments in science and technology. And now Quirks And Quarks has also got into podcasting too! Show segments are available in MP3 format for FREE!

Here’s a list of links to show segments that deal with
Science Fiction concepts:

Multiple Worlds & Parallel Universes (April 16, 2005)
LINK: http://www.cbc.ca/quirks/media/2004-2005/mp3/qq-2005-04-16a.mp3

Telepathy (November 20, 2004)
LINK: http://www.cbc.ca/quirks/media/2004-2005/mp3/qq-2004-11-20a.mp3

First Contact (March 9, 2002)
With SF writer Robert J. Sawyer
LINK to Part 1:
http://www.cbc.ca/quirks/archives/01-02/mp3/qq090302a.mp3

LINK to Part 2:
http://www.cbc.ca/quirks/archives/01-02/mp3/qq090302b.mp3

Settling The Stars (February 23, 2002)
With SF writers Joe Haldeman, Charles Sheffield and
Geoffrey Landis
LINK: http://www.cbc.ca/quirks/archives/01-02/mp3/qq230202a.mp3

Terraforming Mars (May 12, 2001)
LINK: http://www.cbc.ca/quirks/archives/00-01/mp3/qq120501a.mp3

posted by Jesse Willis

Review of Fruitcake Theory By James Patrick Kelly

Fruitcake Theory by James Patrick Kelly Fruitcake Theory
By James Patrick Kelly; Read by James Patrick Kelly
FREE MP3 DOWNLOAD (link to jimkelly.net) – 30 Minutes (14.33 MB) [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: www.jimkelly.net
Published: March 2004
Themes: / Science Fiction / Aliens / First Contact / Christmas / Immortality /

“This one hears much of the information of fruitcake.”

Maggie is a tour guide. Her job is to escort an alien that looks like a rooster, and acts as dumb as one, during the yuletide season. The rooster is just one of two kinds of aliens from a bifurcated species visiting Earth. This is a story that posits some very interesting aliens, something Kelly is good at, but the heart of the story is the Christmas theme. It’s a bit silly, but I liked it that way. Told in the first person, Kelly does a great muppetish voice for the alien rooster that creates some great mental images to go along with the description. The reading concludes with a very appropriate Christmas music. It was great!

First published in the December 1998 issue of Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine, “Fruitcake Theory” and this great recording of it will certainly get you in the mood for Christmas. As with the all the other audio stories of Jim Patrick Kelly’s we’ve reviewed, “Fruitcake Theory” is available for download on Kelly’s website for FREE – you’d have to be as nutty as a fruitcake not to try a deal like that! Kelly only asks that if you enjoyed hearing the tale you consider making a donation to his PayPal account. Donate as little or as much as you like, but seeing as the Christmas spirit is fast approaching be generous.

Posted by Jesse Willis

Review of Independence Day UK

Independence Day UK
Produced, written, and directed by Dirk Maggs
Starring Nicky Campbell, Patrick Moore, Toyah Wilcox, Colin Baker, and Simon Treves
1 Cassette – 1 Hour [AUDIO DRAMA]
ISBN: 1858496314
Date Published: 1995
Published by the BBC
Themes: / Science Fiction / UFOs / Alien invasion / First contact

I was very intrigued by this title, because First Contact is one of the themes in science fiction that interests me most. This title appears to have been released as a promotion for the movie called Independence Day. The story is new, though it follows the same lines as the successful film.

In this one, a BBC FM Radio station holds a UFO watch after spending some time previous to the story beaming signals into space with hopes that a UFO will respond. The whole thing is tongue-in-cheek and done in good fun. But then something does respond, and it’s headed this way.

The structure of the story is very much like Orson Welles’ War of the Worlds, which is referenced in the beginning. It starts out in a realistic way, the FM host Nicky Campbell reporting the news as it’s happening, then moving into a third person perspective after the aliens have landed, just like Orson Welles’ 1939 production.

I wasn’t fond of this audio drama for one main reason – the entire “realistic” part of it was simply not believable. Nicky Campbell was on an aircraft along with an astronomer (Patrick Moore) and reported live as they monitored the incoming signal. None of the performers in this part of the production act in a believable manner when presented with evidence of an extraterrestrial craft headed their way. It’s more of a “isn’t this interesting and amusing” attitude rather than a “wow, this is REALLY happening” attitude.

In the production’s favor, the host they used (Nicky Campbell) is a real BBC host, and the astronomer (Patrick Moore) a real astronomer, both of BBC Radio 1. In other words, these folks were not actors. Regardless, it just didn’t work, but perhaps the entire production was not meant to be taken seriously.

The rest of the production? More Dirk Maggs audio magic. UFO’s and jets dueling in the skies, all remarkably done with sound.

Posted by Scott D. Danielson

CBC Radio One’s pop culture media show Definitely …

SFFaudio Online Audio

CBC Radio One‘s pop culture media show Definitely Not the Opera has just done a delightful and lighthearted interview with Robert J. Sawyer. Here’s the link: DNTO Oct 18th 2003.

And

CBC Radio One‘s science program Quirks & Quarks has also archived a panel discussion of interest, it was first broadcast March 9, 2002 and is called First Contact: What If E.T. Calls US?

Here are the links:

| Listen to MP3 of Part 1 | Listen to MP3 of Part 2 |

Posted by Jesse Willis