I had an extra special day in London recently - extra special because I went to meet leximaven and fellow Geek Love editor Shanna Germain, who was on a working trip to England!
It was so fabulous to meet up after all these years we've known each other online, and to sit in a restaurant for a couple of hours with her and her partner Monte Cook, and chat about everything from smut and gaming to politics and dogs. She is just as smart and friendly and wonderful in real life as she is online, all despite the jet-lag and the rubbishy English weather (Well, she's from Seattle. She's braced for rain).
And as a bonus treat for myself, I made sure to visit the new British Library for the first time.
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| Newton, by Eduardo Paolozzi |
The British Library is the legal repository of every book published in the country. Somewhere in there* are my own novels, heh heh:
But you've probably spotted the pink signs. I went to the Comics Unmasked exhibition, which was a total trip through my own reading past. Everything from wife-beating-newspaper-cartoon Andy Capp (ugh) through Misty comic for girls (my personal gateway drug) to 2000AD and the much-missed Crisis and the thaumaturgic head-fuck of Promethea. Very political and absolutely fascinating. It hosts a lovely section on Sex too ... which has a mysterious indie strip referencing a women's sex-shop called Sh! ... I'm not sure what connection that has with the Sh! I know and love today :-)
Little extras include one of Dr Dee's original magical grimoires, manuscripts by Crowley, Dave McKean puppets and Dredd's helmet from the recent movie.
If you have any interest in comics, pop culture or art, I totally recommend this exhibition, which runs until 19th August. But won't let you take photos indoors.
*or possibly in their warehouse in Boston Spa, Yorkshire, which is actually a LOT closer to where I live, but not so cool.
Yes, my excitement over the fact that Rock My Socks Off was in the Bodleian (thanks to their "we'll take one of everything" mandate) went down a notch when I learned the novel was likely stored offsite—possibly in an abandoned salt mine.
ReplyDeleteP.S. ♥ you and Shanna! (But you knew that.)
We <3 your <3
ReplyDelete:-)