Carl A. Posey (1933–2018)
Auteur van The Big Book of Weirdos
Over de Auteur
Werken van Carl A. Posey
Gerelateerde werken
Tagged
Algemene kennis
- Officiële naam
- Posey, Carl Alfred, Jr.
- Geboortedatum
- 1933-09-13
- Overlijdensdatum
- 2018-02-09
- Geslacht
- male
- Nationaliteit
- USA
- Geboorteplaats
- Ancon, Canal Zone, Panama
- Opleiding
- Texas A&M University (A.B. ∙ 1962)
- Beroepen
- Houston Chronicle, Houston, Texas, artist and copywriter, 1955-56
Douglas Aircraft Co., Long Beach, Calif., technical writer, 1956- 58
John I. Thompson Co., Washington, D.C., technical writer, 1958-60
General Dynamics/Astronautics, San Diego, Calif., engineering writer, 1962- 63, publications editor, 1963
U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, Washington, D.C., writer and editor, 1963-66
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Washington, D.C., public affairs officer in Washington, 1966-71, and in Boulder, Colo., 1971-81 (toon alle 10)
International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Laxenburg, Austria, head of communications, 1981-82
free- lance writer, 1983
National Optical Astronomy Observatories, Tucson, Ariz., director of public information, 1984-87
Time-Life Books, Alexandria, Va., text editor, 1988- - Organisaties
- Authors Guild
Authors League of America - Prijzen en onderscheidingen
- Silver medal from U.S. Department of Commerce, 1976
National Magazine Award, 1986, for "The Inspectors, " published in Science 85 - Korte biografie
- Novelist and award-winning science writer Carl A. Posey is the author of six published novels, a number of non-fiction books, and dozens of magazine articles, most of them about science and aviation. A talented natural cartoonist, he had expected as a young man to make his way by writing and drawing comic strips, but instead turned to the novel and magazine journalism. But he wasn't through with graphic storytelling. In 1995, DC Comics published The Big Book of Weirdos, "by Carl Posey and 67 of the world's top comic artists."Now, when asked what he does for a living, he likes to use the Victorian term: writer of all work.
Leden
Besprekingen
The XVIII Olympiad: Tokyo 1964, Grenoble 1968… door Carl A. Posey
An in-depth look at the 1964 Summer Olympics and the 1968 Winter Olympics, part of a sprawling and absorbing series of histories of the modern Olympic Games. Very detailed, with a wealth of very good photographs.
½
One of Posey's better efforts in the series, largely because these were two relatively apolitical Games. The section on Squaw Valley does have an interesting discussion of how the small village came to hold the Winter Games, rather unexpectedly.
Red Danube is a Cold War spy thriller set in Vienna. Published in 1985 and originally entitled Dead Issue in its UK release, Red Danube is a tale of espionage and danger amidst the prosaic world of a scientific Centre. The Centre is modelled after the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Posey's employer at the time of his writing.
The title Red Danube is of course a reference to the legendary waltz Blue Danube. It might have been a wittier title had it not already been claimed by a 1940s Hollywood film based on the 1947 book Vespers in Vienna.
The US first edition front cover is classic 80s spy thriller. The font and colour are bold with just enough the unusual to hint at the other that is the Soviet Union. The front cover also contains an image of a domed building with a star, presumably an orthodox church though not obviously the well-known orthodox church in Vienna. The inside cover explicitly evokes Graham Greene though there is no case to be made that Posey is in the same class as Greene. The blurb has a good snippet of plot though ends with reference to a horrifying international conspiracy moments from completion. It is not clear from the book itself what that conspiracy is.
Red Danube is largely set in Vienna. Posey's atmospherics and cultural references such as Faschingsfest really do build an image of that great city. For an outsider there is enough here to feel a part of the action, to be able to understand the environment it takes place in. Places like the Vienna Woods are described well enough for the reader to build their own images. There are quite a few errors though. Some of the action takes place in the delightful residential 18th district. That district is Währing rather than Währinger - the latter being a reference to the main thoroughfare. A small mistake. Posey references the best park in Vienna, Türkenschanzpark. He fails to take advantage of the amazing history that place represents to build context, an error of omission. The denouement takes place on Hauptallee, a well known thoroughfare. Hauptallee is not on Donau Insel as Posey dsecribes. Hauptallee is very well known as the avenue running through the Prater. With the reference to Graham Greene on the inside cover, a mistake of that nature just seems odd for an author who lived and workd in Vienna.
What Posey gets so right though is the atmosphere. The feel of Vienna is so tangible. It is a set of images that do not look out of place almost 30 years later. While the East-West role Vienna played in the early 1980s has long gone, the city itself and Posey's description of it remain so familiar.
Posey's description of the Centre, his alternate name for the Institue he actually worked at, is decent. The funny because it is true moment where the staff at the Centre have their work scrutinised by international delegates especially a tough-minded Finn is written by someone who has been there. Of course it is also retrospectively funny to read of IIASA once being so important international delegates from serious countries turned up to its meetings.
Posey's ability to describe also works well when the action turns to Sweden. His description of Malmö in particular is slightly condescending, getting the tone so right when describing what is in reality nothing more than a suburb of Copenhagen.
Posey's ability to describe does not translate quite so well to his characters. The protagonist is Schaefer Braun, a tall, blond Californian oceanographer with a remarkable record of success with women. Braun's ability to turn women's heads without seemingly much in the way of wit or charm seems to make him the man Posey wishes he was. It is not an especially ambitious alter-ego. Braun is the focal point around which the plot events unfold. He is a somewhat passive observer of those events. There are no steps along the way in which Braun works something out or makes something happen. Posey's alter-ego is a strange combination of very popular including with women but very limited in his skillset.
There is slightly too much badly written liaison between man and woman. Braun's very short affair with his uncle's wife is ok but the sex scenes with Soviet love interest Valentina are just a bit unnecessary. Perhaps the Valentina scenes do not really work because she is also uninteresting. Valentina is something of an archetype - a beautiful blond Soviet scientist keeping her passion locked inside out of a sense of duty to the Party.
With the protagonist and his love interset being a bit dull, it is left to the secondary characters to shine. At times they do. Academican Pastukh has gravitas and skill. Soviet hard man Trulov is the dangerous physical force but also is the feature of the most engaging chapter of the book. Americans Lincoln, Carney, and Cybelle weave their machinations throughout, playing a high risk game with other peoples lives. Brit Gordon Dexter is the source of most of the banter as well as being both Braun's guardian angel and a useful tool to move the plot forward on several occasions.
The Trulov chapter in particular is a really interseting piece of characterisation. It is the best chapter of the book. Trulov's journey to Stockholm and his interaction with a potential soulmate work really well. Trulov is large, he is imposing, and he is troubled. He could easily be a stereotype. During his time in Stockholm though he is insightful, he has an inner monologue with terrific insight, and his tender side is revealed as being just the right side of aggressive. The scenes in Stockholm featuring stolen information hidden on tapes, four different named characters competing with one another, and murder are excellent.
Posey writes spy thriller well. In particular he has excellent command of the tantalising. The truth is there, it is just slightly out of reach. Quite often the plot turns towards reveals but those reveals are strung out leaving the reader wanting to read on to solve the conundra.
The pacing is pretty clever. It starts off slowly, the world of international delegates, Heuriger, scientists. Not a gripper from the first page but the pace picks up gradually so that when it really races through towards the end it feels natural. Once the reveal about Schaefer takes place there is some really excellent description of the links between WWII, the Cold War, and Vienna.
The ending is a little bit weak. Endings are tough but Red Danube goes out with something of a damp squib. The story behind Schaefer is terrific. The actual reveal a bit of a cliche. Some minor characters are left without payoffs, loose ends not quite tied up. A major antagonist is left having not really explained why he made such a big mistake. The ending is a bit disappointing but as the Schaefer chapter is so good there is still enough to hold onto.
As a Cold War spy thriller, Red Danube is very much of its time. It was a fascinating time though. The murky world of cooperation in Vienna during the Cold War has a bit of light cast onto it, a nice read 30 years later. Red Danube will not be mistaken for best in class but as the plot unfolds there is excellent use of thriller techniques to keep pulling the reader along. Red Danube is a reasonable if not defining diversion.… (meer)
The title Red Danube is of course a reference to the legendary waltz Blue Danube. It might have been a wittier title had it not already been claimed by a 1940s Hollywood film based on the 1947 book Vespers in Vienna.
The US first edition front cover is classic 80s spy thriller. The font and colour are bold with just enough the unusual to hint at the other that is the Soviet Union. The front cover also contains an image of a domed building with a star, presumably an orthodox church though not obviously the well-known orthodox church in Vienna. The inside cover explicitly evokes Graham Greene though there is no case to be made that Posey is in the same class as Greene. The blurb has a good snippet of plot though ends with reference to a horrifying international conspiracy moments from completion. It is not clear from the book itself what that conspiracy is.
Red Danube is largely set in Vienna. Posey's atmospherics and cultural references such as Faschingsfest really do build an image of that great city. For an outsider there is enough here to feel a part of the action, to be able to understand the environment it takes place in. Places like the Vienna Woods are described well enough for the reader to build their own images. There are quite a few errors though. Some of the action takes place in the delightful residential 18th district. That district is Währing rather than Währinger - the latter being a reference to the main thoroughfare. A small mistake. Posey references the best park in Vienna, Türkenschanzpark. He fails to take advantage of the amazing history that place represents to build context, an error of omission. The denouement takes place on Hauptallee, a well known thoroughfare. Hauptallee is not on Donau Insel as Posey dsecribes. Hauptallee is very well known as the avenue running through the Prater. With the reference to Graham Greene on the inside cover, a mistake of that nature just seems odd for an author who lived and workd in Vienna.
What Posey gets so right though is the atmosphere. The feel of Vienna is so tangible. It is a set of images that do not look out of place almost 30 years later. While the East-West role Vienna played in the early 1980s has long gone, the city itself and Posey's description of it remain so familiar.
Posey's description of the Centre, his alternate name for the Institue he actually worked at, is decent. The funny because it is true moment where the staff at the Centre have their work scrutinised by international delegates especially a tough-minded Finn is written by someone who has been there. Of course it is also retrospectively funny to read of IIASA once being so important international delegates from serious countries turned up to its meetings.
Posey's ability to describe also works well when the action turns to Sweden. His description of Malmö in particular is slightly condescending, getting the tone so right when describing what is in reality nothing more than a suburb of Copenhagen.
Posey's ability to describe does not translate quite so well to his characters. The protagonist is Schaefer Braun, a tall, blond Californian oceanographer with a remarkable record of success with women. Braun's ability to turn women's heads without seemingly much in the way of wit or charm seems to make him the man Posey wishes he was. It is not an especially ambitious alter-ego. Braun is the focal point around which the plot events unfold. He is a somewhat passive observer of those events. There are no steps along the way in which Braun works something out or makes something happen. Posey's alter-ego is a strange combination of very popular including with women but very limited in his skillset.
There is slightly too much badly written liaison between man and woman. Braun's very short affair with his uncle's wife is ok but the sex scenes with Soviet love interest Valentina are just a bit unnecessary. Perhaps the Valentina scenes do not really work because she is also uninteresting. Valentina is something of an archetype - a beautiful blond Soviet scientist keeping her passion locked inside out of a sense of duty to the Party.
With the protagonist and his love interset being a bit dull, it is left to the secondary characters to shine. At times they do. Academican Pastukh has gravitas and skill. Soviet hard man Trulov is the dangerous physical force but also is the feature of the most engaging chapter of the book. Americans Lincoln, Carney, and Cybelle weave their machinations throughout, playing a high risk game with other peoples lives. Brit Gordon Dexter is the source of most of the banter as well as being both Braun's guardian angel and a useful tool to move the plot forward on several occasions.
The Trulov chapter in particular is a really interseting piece of characterisation. It is the best chapter of the book. Trulov's journey to Stockholm and his interaction with a potential soulmate work really well. Trulov is large, he is imposing, and he is troubled. He could easily be a stereotype. During his time in Stockholm though he is insightful, he has an inner monologue with terrific insight, and his tender side is revealed as being just the right side of aggressive. The scenes in Stockholm featuring stolen information hidden on tapes, four different named characters competing with one another, and murder are excellent.
Posey writes spy thriller well. In particular he has excellent command of the tantalising. The truth is there, it is just slightly out of reach. Quite often the plot turns towards reveals but those reveals are strung out leaving the reader wanting to read on to solve the conundra.
The pacing is pretty clever. It starts off slowly, the world of international delegates, Heuriger, scientists. Not a gripper from the first page but the pace picks up gradually so that when it really races through towards the end it feels natural. Once the reveal about Schaefer takes place there is some really excellent description of the links between WWII, the Cold War, and Vienna.
The ending is a little bit weak. Endings are tough but Red Danube goes out with something of a damp squib. The story behind Schaefer is terrific. The actual reveal a bit of a cliche. Some minor characters are left without payoffs, loose ends not quite tied up. A major antagonist is left having not really explained why he made such a big mistake. The ending is a bit disappointing but as the Schaefer chapter is so good there is still enough to hold onto.
As a Cold War spy thriller, Red Danube is very much of its time. It was a fascinating time though. The murky world of cooperation in Vienna during the Cold War has a bit of light cast onto it, a nice read 30 years later. Red Danube will not be mistaken for best in class but as the plot unfolds there is excellent use of thriller techniques to keep pulling the reader along. Red Danube is a reasonable if not defining diversion.… (meer)
Prijzen
Misschien vindt je deze ook leuk
Gerelateerde auteurs
Statistieken
- Werken
- 10
- Ook door
- 1
- Leden
- 252
- Populariteit
- #90,785
- Waardering
- 3.7
- Besprekingen
- 3
- ISBNs
- 22
- Talen
- 1