Anarchist Science Fiction: Essential Novels

What exactly does  “anarchist science fiction” mean? Stories written by anarchists? Stories with anarchist characters? Stories with anarchist settings? Stories that make anarchist political and social points? Stories with an “anarchist sensibility” (whatever that is)? Stories that anarchists will simply enjoy? All of the above? Who knows….. Because of this, I’ve taken a somewhat expansive […]

Anarchist Science Fiction Links

  by Nicholas P. Oakley, author of The Watcher 1. Ben Beck’s Anarchism and Science Fiction Reading List Perhaps the best of the bunch. Comprehensive and regularly updated. Definitely worth a look. 2. io9′s 10 Greatest Libertarian Science Fiction Stories  Even with the L-word in the title, still a strong list all the same. Recommended […]

Anarchist and Atheist Science Fiction Novels

A few years ago we put up lists of what we consider the best anarchist and atheist science fiction novels, along with brief comments about the books, and cover images from many of them. Since then, we’ve been adding new titles, new comments, and new cover images, especially over the last year or so. At […]

The Anarchist Cookbook — thoughtful feedback from a reader on the Simple Living section

In the new Anarchist Cookbook (2015), we considered various means to social change, recommending some and criticizing others, among them “simple living.” We noted its inadequacy as a primary approach to change, but also noted that both of us follow many “simple living” practices simply because they make sense. A few days ago we received […]

Our First 1,000 Posts — Best Science Fiction Posts

Sharp and Pointed has been around for just over three years, and we’ve put up just over 1,000 posts —  this  is number 1,001 — in 37 categories. Coincidentally, we reached 30,000 hits yesterday. Science fiction is probably our most popular category, and we’ve put up nearly 100 sci-fi posts. Here, in no particular order, are those we […]

(corrected post) PDF Book Samples — Anarchism, Atheism, Humor, Music, Politics, Psychology, Religion, Science Fiction, Skepticism

(It’s shocking, we know, but we made typos when we put up this list a couple of weeks ago, and as a result  “404ed” our readers when they clicked on the links. Our apologies if you were one of them. All of the links work correctly now, so . . . back to the original […]

Best Blog Posts 2014 (Science, Skepticism, & Science Fiction)

We started this blog in July 2013. Since then, we’ve been posting almost daily. When considering the popularity of the posts, one thing stands out:  in all but a few cases, popularity declines over time. As well, the readership of this blog has expanded gradually over time, so most readers have never seen what we consider […]

Recommended Science Fiction Books (as Holiday Gifts)

  compiled by Zeke Teflon Since this blog began in July 2013, I’ve reviewed approximately 50 science fiction novels, short story collections, and anthologies, some old, most new.  Over the last five years, I’ve also read probably another 200 to 300 sci-fi books and started but not finished probably twice that many. (So many books, so […]

Australian Science Fiction Great George Turner (part III)

The Political, Social, and Economic Concepts in George Turner’s Science Fiction Novels by Zeke Teflon There are three central socio-political-economic assumptions in George Turner’s sci-fin novels. One is that advanced society can’t exist without coercive authority. The second is that human beings will continue to reproduce willy nilly in all social conditions. Turner has Nick, one […]

An Anarchist Bibliography

  This is the bibliography from our upcoming release, The Anarchist Cookbook, by Keith McHenry with Chaz Bufe, introduction by Chris Hedges (October 2015). For decades, anarchists have talked about publishing a real anarchist cookbook–a book that accurately reflects its title, a book with recipes for social change and tasty food, and accurate information on […]

Notable Atheist Science Fiction Novels

MOST SCIENCE FICTION IS IRRELIGIOUS — in most sci-fi stories, religion is simply not there. Some sci-fi novels, however, are implicitly or explicitly atheist: some have atheist characters, some revolve around the conflicts of atheists with religious believers and religious institutions, and — to make the definition even looser — some that I’d classify as atheist […]

Positive Science Fiction: Iain M. Banks’ “Culture” Novels

by Zeke Teflon One of the current standard complaints in science fiction circles is that there’s too much dystopian sci-fi (and way too much hack-work, trivial sci-fi, though the complainers rarely mention this), and too  little “positive” sci-fi. There’s some truth in such complaints, given that authors’ environments inevitably influence what they write, and there’s little […]

Book Review: American Science Fiction: Four Classic Novels 1953-1956

  (Gary K. Wolfe editor, Library of America, 2012) reviewed by Chris Edwards What novel best captures the ethos of the 1950s? Someone fresh from an American Lit survey course would likely reply, On the Road. But did Kerouac write anything which is still relevant to the structure of society today, anything that is now […]

Our Best Posts (Addictions, Anarchism, Atheism, Baseball, Capitalism)

We hit 100,000 views a few days ago, and to celebrate (if that’s the right word) we’re listing the best posts we’ve published, divided by category. Here’s the first installment. Addictions Alcoholics Anonymous Does More Harm Than Good Alcoholics Anonymous Is Not Effective Alcoholics Anonymous Is Religious, Not Spiritual Anarchism Anarchist Science Fiction: Essential Novels […]

Our 50 Best Posts of 2017

We published about 250 posts in 2017, and consider the following the 50 best. We’ve divided them into categories to make navigating easier; as with our past “best of” lists, the Humor, Politics, Religion, Music, and Science Fiction categories account for most of the posts. (Because several of the posts fit into more than one […]