NYRB Classics Science Fiction & Horror Hidden in Plain Sight in the Bookshop Fiction Section
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ก.ย. 2024
- #sciencefictionbooks #bookcollecting #booktube #books #horrorfiction #literaryfiction
There are tons of SF and Horror books in print that are not published, packaged and marketed as genre fiction- and they are hidden in plain sight on the general fiction shelves in your loacl bookshop. NYRB Classics are one of a number of imprints who produce superb SF & Weird Fiction in stunning covers for the discerning reader...
Music: Steve Holmes (C)
I really enjoy these looks at publishers, series and editors. Clean graphic designs are so attractive. Thank you for sharing the NYRB line.
I'm telling you richard, you got to look into the goodies at MIT press: their Lem collections are amazing!
@@waltera13 I do have Lem’s ‘The Invincible’ from MIT and you are right, it is stunning. I really like the MIT press logo.
I show pretty much all of them in my Lem video.
Love NYRB, they're just fantastic editions, and a great list of authors.
Love the way you said 'vanilla SF enthusiasts', with unconscious pity, rather than scorn. What a gent, it must be said..
Well this is the thing- I don't look down on people who are overly guided in their expectations of SF, I just feel sorrow that they can't look outside the box- that is what SF is about after all.
I don't always have time to comment, but these videos are really informative and useful, thanks mate!
The invention of Morel is great, I recommend 1967 french movie too to visualise the story. Some people point similarities to Lost series plot probably influenced by this book.
Thank you so much for introduction to this series and the absolute gems you've reviewed in this video
My pleasure.
hi Steve, those are very handsome editions aren't they? Co-incidentally, I picked up the Avon 1971 edition of Brunch's Moderan today. I almost didn't take it, but changed my mind last minute. I hadn't realised he had some stories appear in the Harlan Ellison anthologies. Nice overview of a book collection I wasn't (in this as in so many things) aware of. 👍👍
Hi Jon- as you know, I aim to reach parts of the genre others have not discovered (yet). 'Moderan' is typical of a number of books that go in and out of print over the decades like tides coming in and receding. I still have quite a few aces like this one up my incraesingly aged sleeve!
I love NYRB classics. I know we're not supposed to judge books by their covers but I have done that a number of times with NYRB and have not been disappointed. I read that recent translation of the The Stronghold (The Tartar Steppe) last year on your recommendation and really enjoyed it. That's also where I first saw Christopher Priest's work thanks to that standout cover of Inverted World.
Glad you liked the Buzzati, genius.
Love the video! Love that you gave me some targets to hunt for (although I think there's nothing in this video that you haven't already suggested to us before.) it's very easy when hunting used books to justify taking something by the beauty or composition of the piece, and with nyrb books that can get dangerously expensive! Some of their nonfiction stuff looks great too! The 30 Years War, and The Crisis of the Negro Intellectual look like must haves.
And for the fantastic adjacent, A High Wind in Jamaica sounds really interesting. Their website is so vague and idiosyncratic though it's hard for me to know which one of these expensive paperbacks will be worth the risk, and which will make me wish I had just bought 5 secondhand Mass market paperbacks w/ spaceships.
Many of their more famous books are very long established in the Modern canon and taste aside, you can trust their editorial judgement.
Oo. Inverted World - I just read that. And Sheckley, I have just remembered that I used to really like Sheckley: I read Suspicious Area in an anthology and suddenly was reminded of him. Totally agree, btw, about The Handmaid's Tale. The recent upsurgence just bewildered me.
People seem to think Atwood's dystopia is the first feminist one simply because it's such a famous book- for every 100 copies I sell maybe one of those customers have read Joanna Russ for example. Shame.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal Right? Russ was far more controversial as an author. And in fantasy what about Sherri Tepper or McKinley? Their themes have been far more feminist for far longer and often are far more hard hitting than The Handmaids Tale, which I re-read recently. I guess it is the America/politics situation *shrug*
@@OmnivorousReader Agreed.
Beautiful volumes all. I read the two Sloane novels in my early teens, paperbacks found on the rack at the local pharmacy. Loved them, though have not re-read. A thrill to see the Wyndham books done up so nicely. My copies are "ancient" Ballantine editions, The Chrysalids bearing the title Re-Birth.
Wonderful spotlight on the NYRB line Stephen. I’ve been an avid reader of their offerings for at least a decade. They’ve opened my eyes to authors I otherwise would not have found. Glad to see you’re as big a fan. Cheers and hope you’re enjoying your summer!
Same here.
Great video Steve. I read lots of Sheckley when I was young- along with my other favourite Ss, Silverberg and Simak. Sheckley must be the Swift of SF, the master satirist of works like "Options". I will get that collection by NYRB (lovely covers) and maybe "Moderan" which is also being mentioned a lot on You Tube. There's a great blog called Biblioklept who reviewed "Moderan" and Sorokin's books. I'd like to read "Blue Lard" as it's another clone book. Nice to see a modern Russian take on clone literature.
Yes, as Aldiss said Sheckley is 'Voltaire and Soda'. For me 'Options' is a key work and the very extreme of his approach- it would make an ideal NYRB Classic.
Perfect timing. I was scouring the nyrb website the other day thinking about what I would do next. I came across them in the last year or so reading Robert Bresson's Notes on the Cinematograph (as a beautiful film study) and My Death by Lisa Tuttle. I recently picked up Moderan, Butcher's Crossing, Stoner, and Walkabout.
All great books, I sell the Bressob regularly. The Williams are published by Vintage in the UK - I have the NYRB ones- and are not a patch on NYRB's versions.
Aickman's stories pack a punch for sure !
Great look at this publisher and a lot of stuff i was unaware of. I have and have read one NYRB Classic: The Slynx by Tatyana Tolstaya. It was quiet the wild story.
Hey Matt, good to hear from you - yes, that's a crazy one!
I do enjoy the style of these covers! One thing I find a little offputting with these is the way they line up the colour of the title, not with the author of the books, but with the individual who wrote the foreward or translation. Very minor quibble. Dissipatio H.G. is a book I am not familiar with but it's precisely the type of book I would like I suspect. Adding it to the list! Very interesting discussion on whether Inverted World is considered hard SF or not. Just finished not long ago myself and wouldn't classify it as hard SF either, but I'm just some random schmuk so what do I know? As always I am a completely different page than you on Atwood, but I am thankful that you have always been consistent in not shying away from more offbeat views on some popular authors. Great video.
You are completely right! I've noticed it before, and it has tricked me into misreading the authors before, but it is a criticism that leaves my mind shortly after I shake my head and reread the proper author.
You're 100% right. That is terrible design - unless the editorship thinks showcasing the new hand that touched the manuscript a more important selling tool than the author themself.
I've read 'The Invention of Morel' and watched Alain Resnais' 'Last Year at Marienbad' too. And Louise Brooks's looks defined an era - I should watch 'Pandora's Box', possibly her most famous film. Casares's web of illusions is absolutely haunting. I remember the fascinating parallels with 'The Island of Doctor Moreau'.
I remember a Sydney screening of 'Pandora's Box' about 30 years ago, with an accompanying live soundtrack played by a string quartet. Louise Brooks owned that screen!
@@mike-williams How lucky! It sounds like an unforgettable experience.
These books look really interesting. Although I'm only 39, I think I am old school like you. I have been really disappointed with the newer scifi books I have read so far but really enjoy the classics and new wave era.
Apart from the odd great book, the truth is that SF's key period was 1950-1990. If you watch my videos about Hauntology, Modernism and so on -especially 'Why The Modern Science Fiction You're Reading Isn't Modern' and 'Why You Like the Books With Old Covers' all will become clear. SF is, like popular music, well past its sell by date as a fresh and innovative thing.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal I used to be a musician so I can definitely attest to that. I haven't heard a good song from the mainstream in at least 20 years. There are still some great underground bands though, they are in the extreme metal/power electronics genres.
I love the NYRB books as well for the way they feel. They have a density and warmth in the hand along with texture of paper that is a pleasure to hold. I have read Stoner, Butcher’s Crossing, Warlock, and Nightmare Alley from this publisher. Thanks for a new list of titles to view that I otherwise would miss. Barnes & Noble has an ever-growing shelf of these editions and maybe I will actually spot a Priest or Wyndham title there for a change.
I read 'Nightmare Alley' about a decade ago, loved it, plus all the others you mention about 15 years ago. Another I'll point you toward from their list is 'Hard Rain Falling' by Don Carpenter, which is like a cross between a Beat Gneration novel and a Prison Noir, great book.
Fabulous as always.. Casares is pronounced with a K sound. KAH-sah- rez. If you want to get a feel for the time) place and culture of The Invention of Morel I recommend looking up the film: Los que aman, odian... based on another Casares piece. It's a psyc murder mystery but it transports you to the island of Morel in ambiance. It stars the beautiful wife of Michael Buble, I think u will enjoy it. Keep up the excellent work you do here. VERY enjoyable.
Many thanks for this, I shall check the film out!
Another intriguing post. I've just started reading Italian horror, mesel', with a first-time English translation of 'The Gypsy Spiders' collection by Nicola Lombardi. (Tartarus Press). Very good so far; also, a new English translation of 'Alcina & Other Stories' by Guido Gozzano (Snuggly Books), although that's more sedately decadent in era and flavour.
I've not read much Italian Horror, I must say- but I'm a huge Italian Crime buff. Good to hear from you Mark.
I've recently picked up the Buzzati titles on your recommendation, and they're high up on my reading list. I see NYRB have an anthology forthcoming in early 2025.
NYRB Classics have an accompanying Children's imprint which has brought some wonderful juvenile fantasy back into print. I was in touch with one of the editors regarding one of their series as I had some of the original UK editions. She was very lovely and receptive to the extra information I was able to provide.
Yes, there is a collection (not an anthology) coming later this year. I have some of their children's books, they're fantastic.
as always, thanks, steve. i will echo what another poster said: i also really enjoy your videos about publishers. you've piqued my interest particularly with the italian writers. i read the last man standing by davide longo a while back and, though i didn't think it was great, i did enjoy it. looking forward to taking a look at the vanishing.
imagine thinking feminist sf started with atwood. unreal.
The Atwood thing is unreal, but it's the commonly held belief, tragically. I read 'Last Man Standing' about a decade ago and enjoyed it, though I didn't feel it was front rank. I am planning some Italian Fiction vids at some point, though if you watch my Capri videos, in them I talk about Italian- and other writers- a quite a lot.
I'm a massive fan of Robert Aickman's works of horror - I have 6 short story collections by him, & one short novel (the name of it's title escapes me at present, but it was of novella length, & it wasn't included in any of his collections which I own).
His stories are creepy, his prose is beautifully balanced, & always a joy to read.
The name of Dino Buzzati keeps cropping up. I haven't read him yet - but some readers say that he may have been an influence on Thomas Ligotti, who is another vastly underrated horror writer.
Note - The name of Aickman's novel was "The Model", which was published 5 years after his death. It was weird/fantasy/quest story, praised by Robert Bloch, Gene Wolfe, & others...
I can't see Buzzati as an influence over Ligotti in any direct way- Ligotti, despite the quality of his writing falls definitively into the Supernatural Fantasy subsection of Horror, while Buzzati is much broader and more fabular. But 'The Tartar Steppe' (aka 'The Stronghold' is incredible, one of the great European Modernist novels- watch the video about it I link to at the end of this video.
@outlawbookselleroriginal I've just read several excerpts of Buzzati's works. I don't think I've ever read anyone like him. He's definitely a writer I need to seek out.
The NYRB Classics series is generally wonderful. The only thing I have against them is the introductions. Adding an introduction to a work of fiction, unless it's an incredibly difficukt work, is talking down to readers; it assumes we're so dim we need to have things explained to us or to have a context given. That said, I have a few of these, and Moderan is pretty essential for the additional, previously uncollected episodes it includes.
They don't always have introductions, some have afterwords, some have no extra material, though a large percentage do include intros. I've always been more of an afterword man myself.
I highly recommend the Lisa Tuttle. I just read it myself, as the first thing I dug into from a big haul of NYRB stuff I bought during a recent sale, and it is quite a fantastic little book. I picked up the Buzzati's as well, based on your recommendation -- can't wait to read those!
As it happens, I just started reading Moderan by David Bunch. Amazing so far.
Yes, it's quite something, but it never stays in print long and the more vanilla SF readers just never get it, shame.
Got the edition of Warlock they put out. Didnt manage to grip me straight away but I think it will be good when I have an extended bit of time to dig into it. I do like the designs.
'Warlock' is a slow burn and sophisticated read, I enjoyed it, but it is not your typical Western, hence its interest.
Very handsome livery indeed, OB. I've seen this publisher's books here and there but never saw a title that caught my interest. On a side note, I really like that Outlaw Bookseller "It must be said" graphic at the end of this episode. First I've seen of it. Great look. Cheers. old chap.
The graphics are courtesy of another regular viewer, Chris Badenoch, a solid guy.
I can't remember if you mentioned it in a previous video but I picked up their Daphne du Maurier short story collection last year and really enjoyed it.
I didn't, but I have mentioned her stories at least twice on other videos, they are very good stuff.
I like the phrase, "vanilla SF readers", I'm going to try and work that into conversations. I love Sheckley, but I think he's a bit uneven. The collection Untouched by Human Hands is great, as is the Penguin Robert Sheckley Omnibus and the novella The Status Civilisation.
Sheck is uneven, but that gets to be part of his charm after I while I find, though it does prevent him from being a truly great novelist.
And NYRB have acid-free paper unlike Penguin Classics.
OMG yes!
Penguin Classics have been on shit paper since they went to the beautiful black livery! So Frustrating!
The tan bordered ones from the 80s & 90s have better paper that lasts longer, and the ones from the 60s and 70s are usually still bright white if they're not outright foxed. I used to work for Penguin and I can't see where the money from the price jumps are going.
Yes. Acid-free has long been popular in the USA but in the UK we've lagged behind badly on this, though there is some evidence of late that US University presses are starting to drop the ball. Penguin will do anything in my view to keep their production costs down and their prices high.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal you're quite right. I see Penguins under 10 years old browning. Disgraceful.
Wow an absolutely stunning collection Steve . The only thing I’ve read out of this selection is the stronghold/ tartar steppe totally loved that book . This is a collection I will certainly be seeking out. So many interesting authors.I watched your video on Stanislaw lem and have been reading / collecting the mit editions which are rather beautiful also . Really enjoyed this many thanks as always 🫡
All genius level stuff, mate.
Hi Steve, I'm currently reading The Foundation Pit by Andrey Platonov, in a NYRB edition. It seems it could fit into the school of Soviet science fiction alongside Tatyana Tolstaya, but I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on that, or perhaps Soviet sci-fi in general. Cheers!
NYRB might be my favorite publisher. A great range of books. I’m impressed that they include so much “genre” fiction. I recently finished The Singularity. Thought provoking.
Yes, NYRB provides constant literary stimulation on all levels I find. I reviewed 'The Singularity' here a couple of videos back. For your first Buzzati, read 'The Stronghold' (aka 'The Tartar Steppe').
Beautiful covers. I've run across Shadows Of Carcosa in the wild at the thrift and used shops a dozen times over the years and none of the others. Thanks for sharing.
People tend to hang onto their NYRB, I find.
That Cover on Moderan is just fantastic...
Well, that's the in print edition, so it can be easily bought! It is the best cover the book ever had.
Nice Charles Burns cover
Absolutely love the look of NYRB novels as well, and similarly think the 'borderless' genre, literary, and otherwise fiction publishing from them scratches a wonderful 'hidden gem' itch. They remind me in some ways of the Criterion Collection for films. Very collectible.
Stoner is one of my favorite books, but I did read it the year it started it gain traction again. My local bookstore had a little tag about it and had brought in a beautiful and strange hardcover version that I just had to have. (the 50th anniversary edition with 3 overlapping colored planes)
Hey Jozef, good to hear from you. Yes, NYRB are beautiful, must be said.
Yet again another great episode Stephen! So many great books that I haven't heard of, thank you!
Pleasure.
That cover for Moderan is superb. Also, I own The Quest for Corvo, another great one.
The Corvo book is a classic example of the NYRB titles that have been Penguin Modern Classics for decades in the UK.
The Invention of Morrell is one of my favorite books. The ending is sublime.
Yes, it's great stuff.
Bioy Casares’s wife was an accomplished writer in her own right
m.th-cam.com/video/_ea2RfV278Y/w-d-xo.html
NYRB certainly have a sure feel for list-building - I'm yet to be disappointed with anything of theirs that I have read. I also found the editor to be very approachable. As for Dissipatio HG, I enjoyed it. As you say, perhaps a reread will alter your opinion of the book - I have lost track of how many times that has been the case for me.
Yes, they've led me down many shadowy alleys and I've generally been pleased.
Fantastic video. I've only recently started exploring NYRB's and have read Wliiam Sloan's "The Rim of Morning" and Jeremias Gotthelf's "The Black Spider". Both great, although Sloan's tales finished a little flat for me. Shame he didn't write more.
Although you've talked about these nyrb's ( and others ) before in your back catalogue, it's wonderful to concentrate them here in one place and focus on them.
I would love another video just like this with another 14 or so books from this line. . . You know, in your infinite spare time. 😉
I have considered getting "Amsterdam Stories," and "Memories of the Future" myself : heard any feedback on them? Read them yourself?
* I LOVE that you used that "Shadows of Carcosa" reprint for the thumbnail.
Do you remember the original giant sized edition : same title, same Burns cover? In the 80s you used to always see it in all of the punk and underground stores ( at least in NYC.) looking at it in MMPB size is like looking at a toy miniature.
Can't say I know the giant sized one, must have been US only. I have read "Memories of the Future"- he is very challenging, very fabular and modernist at the same time, something the Russians are big on and it often makes me want to scream 'cut to the chase and stop playing' at them. Not always, though.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal Thank you. At $2 how could I *not* grab it?
Too modern for you is a serious warning to me who shies away from a lot of modernists. Perhaps not top of the list then. . .
Blindly trusting any / all of them becomes more daunting when you stand in front of a wall of the whole nyrb collection.
One of the best used / new book stores in the region is here in SF. They have made the great sales decision to give them their own section and really amp up the intellectual materialism appeal!
@@salty-walt I did an NYRB display where I work about ten years ago. Wasn't a huge success as I think it was too daunting for some readers. I think it would have done better if NYRB selected one colour for their spines and text box, but they go their own way and I admire that.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal they probably didn't have the same rep at that time.
Or maybe the suburban parts of San Francisco are just that much more elitist that there are people who only shop nyrb. Anyhow, it works well for Green Apple books.
I guess you were just ahead of your time again!
@@outlawbookselleroriginal P.S. that large format size shadows of carcassa from the 80s is totally where nyrb got their livery from BTW.
Informative and entertaining as always. Have to disagree about Atwood though. I find the style of The Handmaid's Tale suits perfectly the austerity and disjunctiveness of the world depicted. Her Madd Adam trilogy is superb, filled with pace, inventiveness and humour; a very believable near-future where online isolation has fractured society and genetic engineering has created ecosystem chaos.
We'll have to disagree then, as you say. Have you read any pre- Atwood feminist dystopia? Let me know!
@@outlawbookselleroriginal Not sure I know of any earlier feminist dystopian writers. Who would you recommend?
@@nigelwillits7818 There are/were numerous ones. Going back centuries, there was Margaret Cavendish's 'The Blazing World', though you could say she was simply a misandrist, over a century ago Charlotte Perkins Gilman's 'Herland' is key. In the 1960s Feminist SF really got going with Ursula K LeGuin and more importantly Joanna Russ, whose 'The Female Man' is really important. There were lots of others from then on, such as Suzy McKee Charnas, Jody Scot, Marge Piercy's 'Woman on the Edge of Time' and pretty much all the Women's Press SF line from the 1980s, which featured loads of books from the 1970s and 1980s. Atwood was a latecomer, simple as that. Plenty of them are mentioned on this channel in numerous videos as I read, re-read and pick up some of their books in hauls. Don't make the assumption that 'popular is first and best'. Cheers.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal Thanks for the recommendations. I have read quite a lot of Le Guin but don't recall her writing a feminist dystopia set on Earth in our own era. The immediacy of The Handmaid's Tale and especially its sequel The Testaments, with many elements being just slight extrapolations of what actually exists among the political/religious right-wing of America today, enhances its power.
@@nigelwillits7818 No Dystopia is set in our era, they are by definition set in the future, or in archaic cases on undiscovered islands. "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas" is one of LeGuin's dystopias and her feminism is subtler and more inclusively humanist than Atwood's. Yes, Atwood's work reflects today, but then all dystopias do- they are fundamentally satires, viewing our society through a metaphoric glass darkly- and to take this further, all good SF is metaphoric and really about the contemporary. More's 'Utopia' was not published in whole in the UK- even in its original Latin- while Henry VIII was alive- as More realised it could be read as a critique of Tudor kingship- and that was in the 16th century. The nature of dystopia is long established and that's my point- if you read earlier feminist dystopias - like Russ and Piercy, they are critiqueing their own times as well. The point is that Atwood was following in their wake and does not deserve excessive recognition compared to earlier pioneering figures who showed her the way.
I'm seeing some Roger Waters in you as well. I think you're half way between Bono and Waters, a Bono-Waters hybrid.
That's a new one as well!