The On The Bookshelf Podcast

Alex Segura's sequel, "Alter Ego", looks at the world of comics

 Alex Segura, award–winning author of Secret Identity, returns with Alter Ego, a clever and escapist standalone sequel set in the world of comic books. In the present day, a comics legend is given the chance to revive a beloved but forgotten character. But at what price?  Sharply written, deftly plotted, and with a palpable affection for all kinds of storytelling, ALTER EGO is a one-of-a-kind reading experience.  "Gorgeous excerpts from Annie’s in-progress Legendary Lynx comic sprinkled throughout. " We discuss these topics:

As a sequel of sorts, how are the two stories connected, and if you need to read Secret Identity before ALTER EGO.

What role the comic book pages incorporated into the novel play, and how they amplify the story.

Both stories feature Cuban American heroines as lead protagonists, and why their journey facing the racism and sexism of the industry important for him to highlight.

How comic books influenced him when he was growing up.

If, with the growth of the Marvel and DC superhero franchises, manga and the Comic Con fan convention, we are in a “golden age” of comics.

Movie Journalist Esther Zuckerman on Rom-Coms & Falling in Love at the Movies

 

Prepare to swoon, ugly cry, laugh, and fall in love with this officially licensed exploration of the impact and legacy of one of film's most beloved genres from Turner Classic Movies: the rom-com.

 

Romantic comedies have had an incredible influence on popular culture, shaping everything from how we think of relationships to fashion. Often swept aside in film history, these movies are thought of as pure comfort viewing. Although they certainly provide those fuzzy feelings, they have also had a significant artistic influence and cultural impact. Spanning decades of romantic comedies-from movies of the 1930s such as It Happened One Night and the rom com craze of the 80s and 90s including When Harry Met Sally.all the way to contemporary hits like Crazy Rich Asians, and everything in between-Falling in Love at the Movies will make you fall in love (all over again) with romantic comedies.

 

Esther Zuckerman-accomplished entertainment journalist and member of the New York Film Critic's Circle-takes readers on a journey through the rom-com. She examines the psychological aspects that make us so drawn to these types of films, diving deep into the key auteurs-from Preston Sturges to James L. Brooks to Nora Ephron and beyond-who both created and subverted the canon. These directors, actors, and writers shaped the genre, establishing and also busting traditional pillars and tenets of these movies such as the "Perfect Pair" or "The Man in Crisis" and "The High Maintenance Woman." Featuring full-color images from the films throughout, along the way Zuckerman takes detours, explores iconic lines of dialogue (Who could forget Julia Roberts' "I'm also just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her" iconic moment from Notting Hill) to memorable scenes (the magical moments at the Empire State Building in An Affair to Remember and Sleepless in Seattle) and weaves in interviews of artists and romantic comedy fanatics in the industry.

 

Looking beyond the traditional rom-com, Zuckerman digs into the nooks and crannies, the films that buck the trend of "happily ever after," the ones that think beyond heteronormative narratives, and the indies that kept the rom-com alive outside of the studio system, to offer a more comprehensive story of the rom-com than has ever been seen before-and one that you're bound to love. How's that for a happy ending?

 

Dick Stone on the true story of Project Mayflower-1957

“Project Mayflower: Building and Sailing a 17^th-Century Replica” by Ricard A. Stone (Lyons Press)

 

It all began with a desire to express gratitude during WWII for the Americans who sent tanks and other war material to their allies the British fighting in North Africa. The outspoken British journalist Warwick Charlton determined that the best way to show his nation’s appreciation was to build an authentic replica of the historic vessel that tied us together, The Mayflower. That was, of course, the ship that the Pilgrims sailed to the New World in 1620 which landed in Plymouth. Charlton contacted Harry Hornblower, the founder of the Plimoth Plantation in Massachusetts to see if their museum would be willing to accept and maintain the ship after its arrival. They were considering building one for their display, and had hired the naval architect William A. Baker to prepare plans and specifications for a second “Mayflower”> His plans would become essential to the combined effort in 1955.

 

“The resulting agreement was a matter of mutual benefit.” The task would not be simple, easy nor inexpensive. Mayflower II would be constructed using painstaking traditional methods and materials”, by designers and artisans of exceptional ability, to be as perfect a reconstruction of the legendary ship as humanly possible. The only exceptions were temporary navigational equipment (to be removed after the voyage). “Retired shipwrights, sail makers, and riggers shared outmoded skills on hewing and shaping the oak timbers, hand-stitched real linen-canvas sails, treated the Indian hemp rigging with Stockholm pine tar, and caulked the seams with oakum and pitch to achieve a credible authenticity.” The selection of experienced captain Alan Villiers and his crew of veterans with square-rigged deep-water experience who would sail the little ‘barque’ to America without an auxiliary engine of any sort.”

 

At first the British government was not particularly enthusiastic, as the aristocracy was not impressed and wanted nothing to do with it. However, political considerations became critical: President Nassar of Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal, essentially stealing it from the British and French who built it in the 1860s. They mobilized and brought in Israel. President Eisenhower was shocked and angry; with the USSR invading one of its satellites (Hungary), suddenly the Allies were picking a fight with Egypt. In the midst of the Suez Crisis was an election in the US. So suddenly, building the Mayflower II together seemed like a great way of repairing the alliance of UK and USA.

 

April 20, 1957, the ship was launched to much fanfare. June 11, after a good trip, they arrived in the New World. Two days later they anchored in Plymouth Harbor. It would make one more trip across the Atlantic Ocean, then returned to Plimouth Museum for its permanent berth. It can still be seen to this day. It remains a tribute to the “special relationship” that England and America still share.

 

 

 

Anne Serling & Marc Scott Zicree-Centenntial B-day of Rod Serling

This Christmas Day, December 25, 2024, marks what would have been Rod Serling's 100th birthday-a milestone for the iconic series, THE TWILIGHT ZONE. Since its debut in 1959, Serling's groundbreaking work has left an indelible mark on pop culture, captivating millions through its 156 episodes and enduring marathons. To honor this legacy, both Marc Scott Zicree, author of The Twilight Zone Companion, and Anne Serling, Rod Serling's daughter and author of As I Knew Him, a memoir honoring the legacy of her father, are available. With the holidays coming up and THE TWILIGHT ZONE marathons airing nationwide, together, they can share insights into Serling's iconic and enduring legacy, his profound impact on pop culture, and personal anecdotes that celebrate his life and work.

 Zicree's current third edition of The Twilight Zone Companion an American Book Award nominee that has sold more than a half a million copies, is an essential guide, featuring episode summaries, critical commentary, and behind-the-scenes stories. The complete show-by-show guide to one of television's all-time greatest series, covers the celebrated show's inception through to its subsequent offshoots and remakes, and is fascinating reading for even the most casual fan. Coverage of each episode includes a plot synopsis, Rod Serling's narrations, critical commentary, behind-the-scenes stories, and anecdotes from the original artists who created the series, a complete list of cast and crew, and photographs. The Twilight Zone Companion has been credited with creating the modern genre of books on TV series and inspiring a generation of series creators and filmmakers, including J. J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof.

 As I Knew Him: My Dad Rod Serling offers an intimate look at Rod Serling as a father and a visionary, blending personal memories with rare family photos and letters. The soulful memoir reveals the fun-loving dad and family man behind the serious figure the public saw hosting THE TWILIGHT ZONE each week. In 1975, Rod Serling's untimely death left 20-year-old Anne stunned and reeling. But through talking to his friends, poring over old letters, and recounting her childhood memories, Anne not only navigated her profound grief, but gained a deeper understanding of this remarkable man both as her father and as a dynamic writer. In the book, Anne shares her journey, along with personal photos, letters, scenes of her dad's youth, his service in WWII, and her family's time together.

 

Rafael Martinez on Undocumented Immigrant Youth

 In Illegalized: Undocumented Youth Movements in the United States, Rafael Martinez— undocumented himself as a youth and now a DACA recipient in limbo alongside 500,000 others—illuminates how undocumented youth began a new phase of the broader immigrant rights movement back at the turn of the millenium, and how the different organizing strategies they have used since changed the way we talk about immigrant rights in the US today.

 As the Dream Act played out and ultimately failed over the first decade of this century, many undocumented youth tired of performing the “model citizen,” and instead began actively challenging the immigration system. From lives lived in the shadows, they turned to direct activism—including civil disobedience—using their bodies to disrupt the way immigrant rights are seen, and challenge the family separations, detention, and deportations that had come to define US policy. In the process, undocumented youth revealed the ways in which the state criminalizes or illegalizes undocumented populations through differing forms of repression.