Belated Tribute & More
Although I like sci-fi movies, I’m not a fan of the written form. I know the names of the top authors in the genre and have sampled some of them. I’d never heard of Theodore Sturgeon until I picked one of his novels out of a box of sci-fi I display at the floating book shop. Published posthumously in 1986, Godbody is more morality play than genre fiction. It’s the story of the latest of Christ’s returns, which, according to the narrative, have been periodic since his crucifixion. It takes place in a small American town. Each chapter but the last is from the point of view of one of the residents. Godbody has a positive effect on almost all of them through his message of love and his healing powers. He goes about naked. One of the themes is shamelessness, especially regarding sexuality. He does not advocate promiscuity but true love through its highest form, the sexual act. Another theme is forgiveness, even of a rapist. Here are excerpts: “… There is only one of you in all the world, there has never been another, there never will be another…” “They got to come to me,” he said, “like you did.” “… I got no rules to recite except love each other; God, if you’d all only do that, you wouldn’t need no other rules at all, not even one.” Clearly, the work’s heart is in the right place. The novel also argues that organized religion is a barrier between people and God. Although only 159 pages, I would not characterize it as an easy read, as the vernacular of some of the characters is funky. My only quibble is with Godbody’s unpolished speech. Intended, I assume, as unpretentious, it had the opposite effect on me. 104 users at Amazon have rated Godbody, forging to a consensus of 4.3 on a scale of five. I’ll go with three. It is still selling modestly. The sexual aspect may have been shocking when the book was first published, but I doubt more than a handful would find it so today… Born Edward Hamilton Waldo on Staten Island, Sturgeon wrote eleven novels, more than a hundred short stories and two scripts for the original Star Trek: Shore Leave, Season One, Episode 15, and Amok Tome, (Pon Farr) Season Two, Episode One. There are 14 titles under his name at IMDb, which includes an episode of The Invaders and two of the mid-’80’s incarnation of The Twilight Zone, which adapted a pair of his short stories. His mom was published as Felix Sturgeon, her married name. In his teens Sturgeon suffered rheumatic fever, which damaged his heart and ended his dream of becoming a circus acrobat. He sailed with the Merchant Marine for three years. Although he was 4-F, he contributed to WWII, driving a bulldozer and operating a gas station. He was also a door to door salesman, a hotel manager, an advertising copyrighter, and he opened his own literary agency, which was eventually transferred to the Scott Meredith Literary Agency. He sold his first story in 1948. His novel More Than Human won the 1954 International Fantasy Award as the year’s best. The Science Fiction Writers of America ranked Baby Is Three number five among the “Greatest Science Fiction Novellas of All Time” up until 1964. Married three times, he was a father of seven. He passed away at 67 in 1986. Photo from Google Images:
Excerpt from a nypost.com article about the secrets to the world’s happiest music: “… 2022 study found that surgeons who listened to AC/DC in the operating room were quicker and more accurate.” Cue the cut: “I’m on the highway to hell.” (Angus Young, Malcolm Young, Bon Scott). Photo from GI:
Headline from newsmax.com: “Report: 500,000 People Left California in 2 Years.” Which makes liberal rule a lock in the Golden State for the foreseeable future.
What’s new in the Windy City? Headline from foxnews.com: “Lori Lightfoot condemned by Chicago Democrat for turning airport into ‘homeless shelter’.”
WTF? From FN: “Train derails outside Detroit weeks after toxic rail disaster in Ohio.”
And in the city of brotherly love, from FN: “Gas station blares opera music to deter crime.” Cue Seinfeld enemy Crazy Joe Davola: “Ridi, Pagliaccio!” (Ruggero Leoncavallo). Photo from GI:
Environmentalists must be thrilled, headline from FN: “WATCH: California catalytic converter theft victim who ran over suspect not facing homicide charges.”
More great weather, another good session of the floating book shop. My thanks to the kind folks who donated, swapped and bought books, especially the woman who said she was visiting her favorite shop. Here’s what sold: five books on the French language; one paperback in Russian; Are You Afraid of the Dark? by Sidney Sheldon; Xenogenesis by Octavia E. Butler; I’m Not Crazy, I’m Just Not You: Using personality insights to work and live effectively with others by Roger Pearman and Sarah Albritton; The Seductive Art of Astrology: Meet Your Dream Lover Through the Stars by Carole Golder; Strength Based Marriage: Build a Stronger Relationship by Understanding Each Other’s Gifts by Jimmy Evans; The Love Compatibility Book: The 12 Personality Traits That Can Lead You to Your Soulmate by Edward Hoffman & Marcella Bakur Weiner; The Art of Speed Reading People: Harness the Power of Personality Type and Create by Paul D. Tieger and Barbara Barron-Tieger; Thelma & Louise (1991) on DVD.
My Amazon Author page: https://www.amazon.com/Vic-Fortezza/e/B002M4NLJE
FB: https://www.facebook.com/Vic-Fortezza-Author-118397641564801/?fref=ts
Read Vic’s Stories, free: http://fictionaut.com/users/vic-fortezza
