Author Archives: Henry Gee

About Henry Gee

Henry Gee is an author, editor and recovering palaeontologist, who lives in Cromer, Norfolk, England, with his family and numerous pets, inasmuch as which the contents of this blog and any comments therein do not reflect the opinions of anyone but myself, as they don't know where they've been.

From McDonalds to Mordor

Posted on 10 March 2022 by Henry Gee

When The Lord Of The Rings was published in 1954, some readers suggested that its story echoed that of the Second World War, then still fresh in the minds of many. The onslaught on the ill-prepared Allies by an evil … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in allegory, applicability, aragorn, Denethor, J R R Tolkien, mcdonalds, mordor, Politicrox, Putin, Sauron, the lord of the rings, Tolkien and the Great War, Ukraine, Writing & Reading | Comments Off on From McDonalds to Mordor

What I Read In March

Posted on 10 March 2022 by Henry Gee

Ehsan Masood: GDP The astute reader will note that this is very similar to Masood’s book The Great Invention, which I read in January. And the astute reader would be correct: the latter book was published in 2016, whereas the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Bob Shaw, Ehsan Masood, Max Adams, Research, Svante Paabo, Tom Higham, Writing & Reading | Comments Off on What I Read In March

Februareads

Posted on 28 February 2022 by Henry Gee

Kyle Harper: Plagues Upon The Earth. Kyle Harper is an historian, specialising in the history of disease. He is specifically interested in the pandemics that swept through the Roman Empire – events that might have changed the course of history. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in A Natural History of the Future, cyberpunk, Kyle Harper, plagues upon the Earth, Rob Dunn, the peripheral, william gibson | Comments Off on Februareads

Januaread

Posted on 31 January 2022 by Henry Gee

This year’s pile of books got off to a promising start, and the ones I’ve read this month will set a high standard for the year. So, here they are, in order of reading. J. R. R. Tolkien (ed. Carl … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Carl Hostetter, Christopher Tolkien, Ehsan Masood, Francesca Stavrakopoulou, God An Anatomy, J R R Tolkien, Richard Osman, The Great Invention, The Man Who Died Twice, The Nature Of Middle Earth, the silmarillion, The Thursday Night Murder Club, Writing & Reading | Comments Off on Januaread

Opinions

Posted on 13 January 2022 by Henry Gee

Never a truer word was spoke than when Abraham Lincoln said that you can’t please all of the people all of the time. At least, I think it was Abraham Lincoln. Anyway, the same fellow who said that 95% of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in a very short history of life on earth, Books, language, Una muy breve historia de la vida en la Tierra, Writing | Comments Off on Opinions

My Reads of 2021

Posted on 30 December 2021 by Henry Gee

Yes, the time is coming up to the top of rapidly fast approaching when I list my favourite reads of the past year.  I’m amazed I’ve managed 54 books this year given that I have been very busy elsewhere. Going … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in ali smith, antisemitism, asimov, batman, bring up the bodies, children of dune, clarke, coraline, david baddiel, delia owens, dracula, dune, dune messiah, Erebus, frank herbert, frankenstein, golden age of SF, heinlein, hilary mantel, jekyll and hyde, jews don't count, kate atkinson, life after life, lost in math, matt haig, michael palin, my books of 2021, needful things, neil gaiman, peter rabbit, philip ball, sabine hossenfelder, star wars, stephen king, struwwelpeter, terror, the accidental, the big bang theory, the midnight library, the mirror and the light, the modern myths, thomas cromwell, where the crawdads sing, wolf hall | Comments Off on My Reads of 2021

PR

Posted on 16 December 2021 by Henry Gee

First, I’d like to wish you (both) a happy holiday. Second, I’d like to share with you my recent experiences promoting my latest book. My agent advised spending a chunk of advance on hiring a PR company for the US … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Writing & Reading | Comments Off on PR

Launch

Posted on 26 November 2021 by Henry Gee

My latest book A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth has now come out in the US and Canada. Actually, it came out 17 days ago, and it’s available from St Martin’s Press and the proverbial All Good Bookstores, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in a very short history of life on earth, Writing & Reading | Comments Off on Launch

Week

Posted on 29 October 2021 by Henry Gee

What an ericacious exhausting sackbut amazing week. It started last Saturday morning when I discovered that I was being followed by the Literary Editor of the Times.  Followed, in the sense of Twitter. At least, I don’t think the Literary … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in a very short history of life on earth, Literary Review, times, Writing & Reading | Comments Off on Week

Office

Posted on 3 October 2021 by Henry Gee

Small spaces at home, hitherto neglected nooks and crannies, have begun to assume a far greater importance in our lives than they once did. These are those closets, spare bedrooms, cupboards under the stairs, corners of bedrooms, edges of dining … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Domesticrox, Home Office, working from home | Comments Off on Office