podcast – the drax files radio hour

my friends: i decided to end this podcast. we started way back in 2014, shortly before ebbe altberg came in. we had over 2000 listeners per week. we are down to 9! i don’t mind. i am happy that i can cancel myself in fact because we churn out over 150 videos with second life... Read More

Two authors this week: one writing about a narcissistic man from the future, hijacking the mind of a woman from the 1860s [and they both can’t handle it …] & the other author depicting a world where humans can communicate with animals [and by and large humanity can’t handle it!]. enjoy a fabulous conversation [which... Read More

aliya whiteley has written a wonderfully strange novel about human/alien relationships, centered around a pub and a mysterious drink called “jarrowbrew” that facilitates becoming one with our past and our future, maybe – if you drink enough of the stuff – it is even able to collapse geographies? ….. incredible how aliya was able to... Read More

finally a horror writer on the show today [well we had daniel kraus last year but this is 2021 after all]: alan baxter, coming to us from australia. what a craftsman, what an inspiration. since i spent my youth with conan and horror, i abandoned the genre for a while to catch up with thomas... Read More

today on the show am dassu with a wonderful book for upper middle grades: “boy, everywhere” tells the story of syrian teenager sami, who flees damascus in search for a peaceful place, where no bombs threaten him and his family, a place where his 5-year old sister may get well after experiencing major trauma. the... Read More

lavanya laksminarayan has written a stunning debut: “analog/virtual” depicts apex city, built on the ruins of bangalore, a city state, tightly controlled with zones for virtuals [the affluent with access to everything] and the analog [the poor, scraping by on the leftovers of tech and everything else]. the book/world has overtones of kafka and vonnegut,... Read More

two very different authors on the show today, from different parts of the world which is reflected in their works: good friends a.a.chaudhuri and awais khan are presenting their work today. one novel a deep exploration of the classist society of pakistan and the other an investigation into the depraved world of a serial killer,... Read More

finally a talk about speculative fiction coming from africa and the african diaspora all over the world. oghenechovwe donald ekpeki and zelda knight are talking “dominion” which is their anthology of fantastic stories (and one poem too!), we dive into the dominance and conflation of african-american writing plus a look into the indie publishing business.... Read More

just a quick post today, highlighting a normal length show about an extraordinary book by tracy sorensen. “the lucky galah” depicts australian life in the 60s, narrated by a galah [yes that is this pink grey cockatoo bird, plentiful on the island!] who is capable of tuning into human frequencies … in more ways than... Read More

lauren beukes was our guest today to discuss her latest novel “afterland” [careful: it has a pandemic in it and almost all men are dead from that fictional virus!] lauren is no stranger to virtual worlds [she arguably merged the cuteness of animal crossing with the ruthless narcissism of some visitors to a second life... Read More

simon han‘s exceptional debut “nights when nothing happened” about a chinese family coming to the the american suburb of plano, texas was the topic of discussion on the book club this week. alienation, fear, roles and expectations of parents and children within the family unit, assimilating and retaining the self, whatever that is: a tight... Read More

roseanne a. brown‘s debut novel “a song of wraith and ruin” is a wonderfully rich fantasy novel, a celebration of storytelling as means to preserve cultural memory. written for young folks, but thoroughly enjoyed by at least one adult [me!], it combines bits of west-african folklore tradition with a nod to sprawling epics like “lord... Read More

what utter horror: we spent this week’s book club inside a classroom with a “no exit” sign on the only door, surrounded by cardboard cut-out suburban houses with happy people [also made of primwood!], big chain stores [asda anyone?], all watched over by the übermensch on the roof & a stoner metal band in the... Read More

wanye santos‘ debut novel “the chimera code” is a powerful and unique contribution to the cyberpunk genre which gained steam – in the literary world – with william gibson’s “neuromancer”. on the second life book club we [or ruby rather!] built a set that pays homage to the the master william and welcomes the disciple... Read More

jonathan lethem in the house, again, as yellow duck [as we find out the reason is hidden in plain sight of his story “forever, said the duck” from “the wall of the sky, the wall of the eye”]. we discuss “they live”, the great 80s movie by marxist scholar john carpenter, we find out about... Read More