Holiday Photo Diary: Prague and Kutná Hora

So those of you who are friends with me on Facebook and Instagram will know that I spent three weeks in November travelling around Europe. I was attending a conference in Odense, Denmark but really this trip was a way for me to celebrate finishing my PhD and finally make the trip over to Europe.

Prague wasn't my first stop on the trip but of all my stops this was the place I was most desperate to visit. I literally made my trip as complicated as possible so that I could spend some time in this beautiful city. Sadly I was dead sick when I arrived, so my first afternoon was basically a short walk along the river before collapsing in my bed and overloading my system with vitamin C.

Day 2 began with a free 3 hour tour hosted by my hotel which led me around the main sites in Prague. This trip was the first time I took part in any of these free tours and I have to say they're a brilliant way to get your bearings in a new town and cross off a few of those must-sees (which might not necessarily be sites you want to spend a lot of time at). The tour trekked through the old and new towns, past the astronomical tower, the Jewish cemetery, Wenceslas square, Charles Bridge, the Dancing House - all with a local giving us the history of the area as we went. I felt pretty confident making my way around the city after that tour and I used that quick tour to decide on the areas I wanted to explore in more detail. After the tour I went into the castle proper and visited Strahov Monastery and the Vitrus cathedral, which has a stained glass window designed by Mucha. I love the architecture in Prague so much, it was easily the grandest and most beautiful city I visited in Europe (no offence everyone else).

Day 3 was a national holiday in Prague and my museum day. I walked along the river to the John Lennon tribute wall and paid respect at the French embassy opposite. This was only a couple of days after the Paris attacks and it was so moving to see these gorgeous tributes of flowers, letters and candles in each city I visited. After this stop I headed across to the Kafka museum which, guys, you've got to visit if you're in Prague. It isn't really a museum museum, but more an experimental art space and installation to display Kafka's work and explore his life. There's also a brilliant pixelated moving statue outside the museum which needs to be seen rather than described. There's a little book store around the corner called Shakespeare and Sons (Shakespeare a synové) which is also worth a drop in. After Kafka I visited the Mucha Museum which again, not really a museum but more of a gallery space. I love Mucha, I could have stood and stared at the Sarah Bernhardt pieces for hours (*ahem* and perhaps I did). I finished the day with a walk up Petrin Hill where I saw the memorial to the victims of communism and walked up to the Petrin Lookout Tower which gave the most beautiful view over Prague. Seriously, this city is out of this world stunning.

Day 4 I left Prague and travelled out to Kutná Hora with a girl I met at my hotel. Kutná Hora is a small town about 45 minutes outside of Prague. It's a pretty unassuming place but it's home to the Sedlec Ossuary, the chapel of bones. It's absolutely stunning and completely macabre. There are four pyramids of skulls and bones in the corners of the underground room and the rest of the room is literally crowded with skulls formed into crests, candelabras, words and embellishments. It's amazing. About 10 minutes further up the road is the proper town of Kutná Hora, a small medieval town with the original buildings still standing. It's very small and doesn't take long to explore, but it makes a charming accompaniment to the Ossuary.

Vitrus Cathedral

John Lennon Wall

Memorial to the victims of communism

Kafka Museum

The Dancing House

Sedlec Ossuary

Kutná Hora

Kutná Hora

Time Suck Mini-reviews: True Crime Books and Comics

I'm going through something of a true crime bender. I read Ann Rule's The Stranger Beside Me while I was in Europe and before I knew it I was reading true crime comics, watching documentaries and listening to podcasts. True crime isn't outside of my interests, but I've never really gone this gung-ho before. So rather than make this a true crime blog for the forseeable future (although I think I'm getting too angry and sad to keep this up much longer) I'm going to squeeze them all into a couple of posts (one for the content I've read, one for the content I viewed), both for my sanity and yours.

What I've Been Reading: 

The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule.

This was the book that kicked off this cycle, although in fairness I was probably primed for it by listening to Serial last year. The Stranger Beside Me is the story of Ted Bundy, the man and the murderer. However, as seems to be a bit of a trend for me in the true crime I pick, this book tells the tale of author Ann Rule's relationship with Ted Bundy. Beginning when she was an aspiring writer penning the occasional article for true crime magazines, Ann Rule also worked at a helpline with the young Ted Bundy.  He was (if I recall correctly) about 15 years her junior, but they became close friends almost instantly. As Rule's writing career began to take off and she was hired to write a book about the series of murders that would be tied to Bundy. This connection made it increasingly difficult for Rule once it became clear that Bundy was not only the key suspect but the perpetrator of the 30+ rapes and murders committed across the country. I found Rule's writing to be compelling and her reenactments of the crimes really captured the methodical and sadistic nature of Bundy. However, I actually struggled with the personal element of the book by the end. It seemed to me, based on the accounts in her book, that he was clearly using her because of her connection to the police. While she said they were close, the only personal anecdotes involving interactions outside of work begin after he starts his murders (or around the time of the first murder). So either they weren't as close as she thought and he manipulated her in the same way he manipulated his victims, or she left out some compelling evidence that they were anything more than co-workers who chatted in their downtime on late night shifts. Tne subheading of this book is "the shocking inside story," but Rule is guarded in providing too many personal details, so I don't know that we really get much of an inside story at all. And without any real divulgence of personal details, we also don't get any real introspection about the relationship.  If you're going to make the story personal, make it personal. Otherwise just write a compelling story of Ted Bundy and his crimes - which is already 80% of this book. I also think her personal involvement muddies her perspective somewhat. She struggles to separate the Ted she knew and the Ted who committed the murder and that gives way to a lot of waffling over certain decisions like him breaking out of prison - which to most people is a pretty clear sign of his guilt. She also gets to the end of the book without straight up stating that he is guilty, rather she frames it as he was convicted of the crimes, which to me - coupled with the other way she discusses the case - suggests that she thinks he may be innocent or wrongfully convicted. I think she went through a lot of confusion and mixed emotions about his involvement and subsequent conviction and I think the book would have benefited greatly if she had either fully opened up and made it a personal account of a woman who was friends with a serial killer up until their conviction (she sent him lots of money and letters while he was in jail leading up to the trial) or an objective account of a horrific serial killer.  In the end it flitters a little between the two and is weaker for it.

Green River Killer: A True Detective Story written by Jeff Jensen, illustrated by Jonathan Case. 

Last year I read the graphic novel My Friend Dahmer and really dug the idea of true crime comics. Obviously they aren't going to be as dense with detail and information as a normal true crime novel, but they have the potential to tell a much more personal angle than you typically read in this genre. Green River Killer was a title that came up every time I looked for a follow up to My Friend Dahmer but it wasn't until today that I found a copy. It's written by Jeff Jansen, the son of Tom Jansen - the cop who spent over 20 years on this case. It takes place over several decades, though it is set primarily 2005 when Jansen and several other police officers were stuck in a room interviewing Gary Leon Ridgeway about his murders for a controversial plea deal (he'd get life in prison, no death penalty). Ridgeway had confessed to being the Green River killer, but remained vague and cagey about the details of his crimes. The plea deal meant that he had to give them information about several murders he says he had committed that the police had never uncovered, but when they would take him to the locations he disclosed he'd clam up or only give details that were well known by the public. Was he playing with them or could it be that he wasn't the serial killer he confessed to being? (surprise, he was a killer but he had disassociated from that past 'Gary'). The book flashes back to some of the key murders in Ridgeway's life, such his first attempted murder in 1965 of a young boy, and the murder and bizarre presentation post-mortem of the victim Christine King. But more often than not the book presents the victims of Ridgeway as in flux, hair styles and clothing changing in each sequential frame because to Ridgeway these women held no real importance - there was no real reason for him to remember them. All told, Ridgeway murdered at least 48 women and teenage girls primarily between 1982-1984. Ridgeway picked prostitutes as his victims because they were easy to lure and kill, because he knew society didn't care about them. He would pick up prostitutes and take them either to his house or the woods and if they didn't 'love him right', he would murder them. There is even one occasion depicted in the book where Ridgeway picked up a girl with his son in the car, although it isn't made clear if this was one of the women he killed or one lucky enough to get away. It's also unclear whether Ridgeway continued murdering up until his capture, but if he did he didn't continue at the same rate as his early period in the 1980s. The fact that the book takes place 20 years after that initial period makes for a compelling narrative because we are likely seeing a man who considers his murders the acts of a different version of himself, an earlier Gary. In all of the interviews and encounters he separates himself, while also never denying that he did commit the murders. He talks of it all being so 'long ago' and yet for the police who interview him, the details of his brutality are seared into their memories. This book isn't just about Gary Leon Ridgeway and the Green River murders though. It is also a loving tribute for a son who respects his father and his father's dedication to find answers for the families of the women lost. Aspects of Tom Jensen's own life - his marriage, his police officer re-tests - are juxtaposed against the case investigating the murders and Ridgeway's recollections of the murders. This case, like his marriage, family and the endless renovations on the family home, was his life. And it's surprisingly beautiful to find this tribute entwined among such horror.

Torso written by Brian Michael Bendis, illustrated by Marc Andreyko.

Torso is less the personalised account of a relationship with or connection to a murderer and more a semi-fictionalised retelling of a particularly grisly cold case. It's like a short From Hell in that sense. Taking place in 1930s Cleveland, Torso explores the Torso serial murders amidst the turbulence of Eliot Ness's installment as Safety Director and depression-era America. Ness was a prohibition agent in Chicago, so his arrival in Cleveland is depicted in reflection to the murders, as both shook the police force and public to their core. The murders are horrific, someone decapitated and dismembered at least 12 victims from Cleveland's "shanty town". Much like the Green River Killer, the murderer targeted these people because they were easier to miss, both because of their transient nature and their position in society. The comic follows the popular theory that a Dr. Sweeney (named Mr Sundheim in the comic) but towards the end diverges completely from fact and re-imagines a much more action-packed finale. It's a riveting read but it's also pretty obvious that it isn't based in reality, which conflicts with the earlier portions. One thing the comic did that was really interesting was juxtapose illustration with photos from the time (see above). This makes for an interesting visual. They seem to primarily be photos related cirectly to the case and, in fact, at least one photo used is an actual crime scene photo of one of the victims. It makes it hard to separate from the reality of the situation, that while the comic is interesting and action-packed it is still a retelling of a series of murders which were never solved. Not as consistent as Green River Killer, but an interesting experiment in true crime comics nonetheless. 

2016: A Year of New Beginnings

Happy New Year everyone!

It's been a little while since my last post, but in my defense 2015 was insane. Even once the insanity boiled down and I managed to get some reading done blogging was the last thing on my mind.

But now it's 2016 and I want to blog again, so blog I shall! I decided to set myself a few little resolutions for my blog and reading life this year, and we'll see how I go by the time December rolls in.

*I don't have to write a review for every book I read. This is a big one for me, and I think it was one of the reasons I faded out of blogging last year. This doesn't mean I'll only be writing glowing reviews for books I love, but I'm not going to force myself to get a review out if a book doesn't inspire me to write about it.

*I will write a brief summary about each book though. At the end of each month I'll write a little wrap up post where I yay/nay the books I managed to read, whether I wrote a review or not.

*I am on a book buying ban for all of 2016. I have so many unread books on my shelves and the library is pretty splendid, so no more book purchases. I can do this!

*Diversify. I am going to read at least one diverse book/comic each month.This means an international author, a female author, a LGBTIQ author, or non-fiction.

Graphic Novels #35

Nemo: Heart of Ice (League of Extraordinary Gentlemen special #1)

Written by: Alan Moore; Illustrated by: Kevin O'Neill

Published: 2013

My Thoughts: I usually avoid these types of specials and one-shots because they rarely capture the magic of the original. But The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is the kind of series that I think could have benefited from being more serial in nature, so I decided to give this one a go. The story follows Nemo's daughter, Janni Dakkar, as the new captain of the Nautilus. Feeling jaded and a little constrained by her father's legacy, Cap'n Nemo II decides to take on the one expedition that her father failed, a trek through Antarctica. Nemo and her crew are being followed by these evil inventors, and there's something about an African Queen I didn't quite understand. I don't know if these are threads of a story I haven't read or if it's as disconnected as it felt to me, but I didn't quite grasp the over-arching storyline. That being said, when I concentrated just on Nemo II and her journey with her crew, I really enjoyed it. It's like a comic version of the old Tarzan pulp novels and the art style reflects this very well. As is Moore's want, there's also a Lovecraftian supernatural aspect to the story which I especially enjoyed. It's very short, but very readable.

V for Vendetta

Written by: Alan Moore; Illustrated by: David Lloyd

Published; 1982

My Thoughts: I can't believe it's taken me this long to read V for Vendetta! I was a little lukewarm about the film, but I felt like the comic was a much more complete story. While it's a heftier comic than some of the ones I review on here, it really doesn't take much time to get through at all - it's immensely consumable. Dystopia is where Moore really shines, and the simple art with muted colouring really suits the story being told here. That being said, since it's an early book by Alan Moore some of the writing and ideas aren't as solid as is could be. Some threads are left hanging, others are wrapped up a little too neatly and it does get a little tell-over-show sometimes (I think Moore likes a good monologue). An absolute must-read for Moore, dystopia and political comic fans.

Locke and Key: the audiobook

So this isn't actually a review, that will come soon, but I wanted to get a post out about the audiobook adaptation of Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez's graphic novel ASAP. Why? Because until November 4th, you can download the audiobook for free. FOR FREE.

I'm sure some people are a little curious as to how you translate a primarily visual medium to an entirely audio one. This adaptation of Locke and Key is very similar to the audiobook for Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere. It's less an audiobook and more an audioplay. Each chapter (which loosely corresponds to an issue of the comic) is introduced by a narrator who sets the scene in a few lines, after that it is made up entirely of dialogue between the cast. The production so far is incredibly well done and the cast is sensational. Tatiana Maslany, Kate Mulgrew, Haley Joel Osment (I think this is the first acting gig of his I've seen/heard since The Sixth Sense!), and Joe Hill himself all star in the audiobook along with a bunch of others. According to audible there are over 50 voice actors all told, so that gives you an idea of the scale of this project.

Anyway, if you've been looking for a new audiobook or have always been interested in checking out Locke and Key but wasn't too keen on comics then I highly recommend you get this while it's free.

Book Review: Queens of Noise by Evelyn McDonnell

Queens of Noise: The Real Story of The Runaways

Written by: Evelyn McDonnell

Published: 2013

Synopsis: In four years the teenage members of the Runaways did what no other group of female rock musicians before them could: they released four albums for a major label and toured the world. The Runaways busted down doors for every girl band that followed. Joan Jett, Sandy West, Cherrie Currie, lead guitarist Lita Ford, and bassists Jackie Fox and Vicky Blue were pre-punk bandits, fostering revolution girl style decades before that became a riot grrrl catchphrase.

The story of the Runaways has never been told in its entirety. Drawing on interviews with most of this seminal rock band’s former members as well as controversial manager Kim Fowley, Queens of Noise will look beyond the lurid voyeuristic appeal of a sex-drugs-rock ’n’ roll saga to give the band its place in musical, feminist, and cultural history. (Via Goodreads)
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I have well and truly dropped the blogger ball this month. I have been extremely busy with uni work and life stuff, but it's sad to see so few posts up on my blog! So here is a quick review to add another post to my meager blog offerings.

Where to start? I came across this book when Jackie Fox (first bassist of the Runaways) made headlines the other month accusing their manager of raping her while she was in the band. I had long been a fan of the music of The Runaways, but outside of knowing that they were teenagers and hugely influential on future female bands I really didn't know much about their formation or the scandals that followed them pretty much from the start. Jackie Fox's statement, and the subsequent fallout from her other bandmates, led me on a wikipedia binge which ended with a visit to Goodreads. The main reason I decided on Queens of Noise over one of the autobiographies is that I hoped it'd be a broader look at the band, rather than prescribing to a certain person's memories and perspectives. Given how many fights and court cases this band has fought since the 1970s, I just don't know how much weight those autobiographies can be given.

Unfortunately that wasn't what I got. Generally speaking, I didn't get any insights in this book that I couldn't find on wikipedia or fan websites. It covered the highs and lows of the band, but it didn't really introduce any new perspectives or stories. McDonnell may have been backed against a wall, so to speak, because it seems from the interviews included in the book that she didn't really get access to all of the band and the ones willing to talk were the ones who have always been willing to talk. In terms of this complaint, if you haven't really read anything about this band then I don't think the content will be a problem. It's comprehensive and it covers a lot, from their lives before the band to their careers afterwards. If you have, like me, done some internet searches on the band then don't expect too much from this book.

Another issue I had was the quality of the writing. McDonnell has had a lengthy career as a journalist but when I started reading this I turned to my mum and said "this reads like someone's Masters thesis". Low and behold, that's exactly what this book was. I've read a lot of book which have begun as a Masters or PhD thesis, but the successful transitions are the ones which eliminate the unnecessary academic framework. McDonnell frames the formation of the band around academic discussion on Los Angeles in the 1970s in terms of "four ecologies"*. It's quite interesting stuff but it's introduced early in the book and then never really adds any real context or depth to the girls' stories. Does it really help for a music fan to know that certain girls grew up in "autopia" or "surfurbia"? This broad academic framework has a very specific purpose in academia, but this isn't a book advertised to music academics, it's a book for fans of the Runaways. And considering how often McDonnell refers to the biopic starring Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning, it's clearly a book created for young new fans of the band who want to know more about the real life women who inspired the film.

But outside of the academic framework at the start of the book, the writing is pretty sub-par.There is a lot of groan-worthy, overly descriptive language typical of a feature article:

"Laying down the chinka-chinka guitar rhythms of the band's dirty rock sound, Joan Jett is already Joan Jett: a cute but dark-eyed tomboy in a custom, red catsuit - gymnast meets race-car driver - and, of course, boots. She has outlined her Cleopatra eyes in dark liner and sings with the sexy bravado of one who was once painfully shy"

This is sandwiched between McDonnell's most overused stylistic choices, 'to' comparisons:

"To this day, he speaks a sort of tourette's jive that's a crucial link in the lineage from the Beats to Jack Bruce to Tom Waits to Wildman Fisher to David lee Roth to Perry Farrell"

What does this mean? What exactly is she comparing? The way they speak? Were they all influenced by Kim Fowley (who this quite is about) and how he spoke? Was he influenced by them? To comparisons are fine in moderation, but they are incredibly overused in this book. It just ends up reading as lady and as though she's wanting to prove her credentials, "look at all these things I know! Seven degrees of musical Kevin Bacon!" The final straw, for me, is that McDowell doesn't view this story objectively. Her person opinions on events that occurred and people that were involved came through so strongly. When discussing a somewhat controversial interview that music manager Danny Sugarman conducted with the Runaways McDonnell writes:

"Sugarman was a shitty writer and drug addict who thought he was a rock star and died married to Fawn Hall of Iran-Contra infamy"

Look, his article was garbage and lewd but there's a way to say that without bringing your own personal opinions on the guy into the story. And what does it matter if he was a drug addict - so was just about everyone in the Runaways!

But perhaps the biggest straw for me is the sympathy McDowell has for Fowley, the man who Jackie Fox accused of raping her. Throughout the book there are interviews with crew, journalists and musicians who say that Fowley was a creep and aggressive and abusive towards the girls. While I don't think it was McDowell's responsibility to address all of the rumours, especially when there was conflicting stories or a lack of evidence, but she follows so many of these moments of criticism with some really gross explanations for why Fowley isn't so bad. I.e. it was the 1970s and tonnes of men had sex with underage girls. Heck, Roman Polanksi "got busted" for having sex with an underage girl**. Or modern society has a different definition for what constitutes predatory behaviour. Or he was a freak, and was an easy target because of this. It just comes across as so apologetic, especially since she failed to be objective throughout the book, like she'd met him and liked him and didn't want to face the idea that he wasn't the charming and weird guy in a salmon coloured suit she envisioned.

So at the end of the day this book just didn't deliver what I was hoping for. It'd be fine for a complete Runaways novice or younger reader as it reads pretty well in spite of my issues with style and it does cover the details about the formation of the band, career highlights and band fights. It does paint some interesting pictures of the 1970s L.A music scene, but these are too few and far between for my liking. A resounding meh, from start to finish.

*It's based in architectual and cultural studies stuff. 

**This upset me the most. She didn't address that he was arrested and found guilty of raping a child before fleeing the country. She simply mentioned he was "busted". ugggggghhhh