tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5904298510069073946.post6868862499035605624..comments2024-01-21T11:22:28.211-08:00Comments on The Ants Of God Are Queer Fish: HAPPY HALLOWEEN from R. A. LaffertyDaniel Otto Jack Petersenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07278782665152906956noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5904298510069073946.post-82690248002696697382011-11-01T08:13:06.188-07:002011-11-01T08:13:06.188-07:00'A kind of horror-fest with some jokes thrown ...'A kind of horror-fest with some jokes thrown in' - ha! so true. Lafferty fans so often wildly disagree about what are the best works (although there's also always huge overlap). I, for example, have always rated Past Master near the very top of his novels and, though I do love it, Reefs of Earth quite a ways down the list. With re-readings it may well move very far up the list. This is as apt to happen as not in re-reading Lafferty's body of work. Glad to hear of someone freshly discovering Laff and enjoying him so. Thanks so much for sharing, Jonathan.Daniel Otto Jack Petersenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07278782665152906956noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5904298510069073946.post-62173089888141573562011-11-01T07:48:42.014-07:002011-11-01T07:48:42.014-07:00I just finished The Reefs of Earth, which was almo...I just finished The Reefs of Earth, which was almost entirely in this "comic-horror" vein. From the ghost-stories, to the odd bloodlust of the Puca children, to the corrupt humans, it was a kind of horror-fest with some jokes thrown in. It was excellent, and I enjoyed it much more than Past Master. I will get into Apocalypses after a few other books on my "to-read" pile!Jonathan Strangehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04571745562603796380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5904298510069073946.post-31832689291395165652011-11-01T07:42:40.918-07:002011-11-01T07:42:40.918-07:00Oh, and come to think of it, Reefs of Earth opens ...Oh, and come to think of it, Reefs of Earth opens with a series of little comic-grotesque ghost stories that the children tell each other - really wonderful. One of my favourite Lafferty chapters.Daniel Otto Jack Petersenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07278782665152906956noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5904298510069073946.post-77447091973286194032011-11-01T07:40:58.845-07:002011-11-01T07:40:58.845-07:00correction: awaiting 'their' executionscorrection: awaiting 'their' executionsDaniel Otto Jack Petersenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07278782665152906956noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5904298510069073946.post-10574262789800644682011-11-01T07:39:15.418-07:002011-11-01T07:39:15.418-07:00'Comic-horror', absolutely, Jonathan. The...'Comic-horror', absolutely, Jonathan. There's a great chapter some ways into Apocalypses that has this burlesque-grotesque comic-horror feel. Men affixed on a wall to the 12 (or 13) points of the clock, awaiting there executions - the ground below is swarming with mechanical rats waiting to eat them. It's really weird and wonderful. Look out for it.Daniel Otto Jack Petersenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07278782665152906956noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5904298510069073946.post-70836126098562685572011-11-01T07:12:18.329-07:002011-11-01T07:12:18.329-07:00What a great (weird) writer. I am very happy to h...What a great (weird) writer. I am very happy to have just found my second and third Lafferty novels at a used bookstore (The Reefs of Earth and Apocalypses). He definitely has a good feel for the comic-horror element in his stories. I look forward to reading more!Jonathan Strangehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04571745562603796380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5904298510069073946.post-8965389751804583032011-10-31T16:16:45.757-07:002011-10-31T16:16:45.757-07:00That's the kind of redundancy I personally nev...That's the kind of redundancy I personally never tire of. Glad I can be a conveyor of the repeated striking of Laffertian awe.Daniel Otto Jack Petersenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07278782665152906956noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5904298510069073946.post-87409003827565486612011-10-31T13:36:33.398-07:002011-10-31T13:36:33.398-07:00Not to be redundant, but I'm always awestruck ...Not to be redundant, but I'm always awestruck by the quotations you post from this guy. Wow again.Stephen Cefalohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09430312663771567684noreply@blogger.com