Some recommendations for the summer:

• Comic strip: There are many comic strips which I read faithfully each day, such as Rose is Rose, For Better or Worse, and Zits, but the one which consistently makes me laugh out loud is definitely Pearls Before Swine. You gotta read this strip about an apartment complex whose inhabitants are an evil rat, his buddy a dimwitted pig, a cynical zebra, a family of moronic crocodiles who try repeatedly and futilely to eat the zebra, and others;

• Vegetarian meal: When I was young Friday nights were still meatless, so one of my favorite meals was spaghetti and oil. The recipe is simple: in a large pan heat 1/3 cup of olive oil, then add garlic powder, onion flakes, chopped mushrooms, and 1/3 cup of breadcrumbs. Mix it all together over low heat. Finally combine the warm ingredients to 1 pound of cooked spaghetti. This meal is so good it almost makes you wish Vatican II had never taken place;

• Thought-provoking sf movie: Movie producers tend to believe that science fiction is nothing more than a sub-genre of action-adventure thrillers, a fact which any reader of sf knows is nonsense. Still you can almost count on one hand the classic sf movies which provide some thought after the movie has ended. The original Forbidden Planet from the 1950s is one such movie, starring Walter Pidgeon, Anne Francis and a pre-farce Leslie Neilsen. If you think Star Wars or The Matrix are cinema sf’s high points, try this movie;

• Novels: Since everybody has different preferences in reading, I will recommend five diverse novels here, all classics:
> If you loved comic books as a kid and want to read an adult novel by an author who shares your fond memories, Michael Chabon’s The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay is the book for you;
> if you are a sports fan and want to read a thoughtful novel about a minor league baseball team during World War 2, Michael Bishop’s Brittle Innings will both touch and amaze you;
> if you enjoy rock and roll with a touch of the fantastic, then you will love George R.R. Martin’s The Armageddon Rag;
> if you are enamored by classic culture and enjoy a good mystery, you cannot do better than Steven Saylor’s The Judgment of Caesar, which features such supporting characters as Pompey the Great and Cleopatra;
> If science and exploration appeal to you, Andrea Barrett’s Voyage of the Narwhal takes you on a wondrous and chilling 19th century voyage seeking the Northwest Passage.

• Nonfiction book: Three recommendations here:
> If you want to experience the difficulties of life in 20th century China, Jung’s Wild Swans is a moving testament to her family’s survival under the most difficult circumstances;
> If you want a glimpse at how scientific research can be as exciting as a genre mystery, James D. Watson The Double Helix is a fabulous book;
> If you have ever visited Vatican City, or long to do so, you will enjoy Ross King’s Michelangelo and the Pope’s Ceiling which is as exciting as a good novel but historically faithful.

• Progressive Rock Primer: Progressive rock is more sophisticated and more intricate than most rock music, but at its best it soars majestically, combining elements as disparate as jazz and symphonic orchestration. Here are some of my favorite progressive rock albums which provide a good introduction to that sub-genre of rock music:
> Thick as a Brick, by Jethro Tull
> The Dark Side of the Moon, by Pink Floyd
> The Yes Album
> Hero and Heroine, by the Strawbs
> Brain Salad Surgery, by Emerson, Lake and Palmer
> Even in the Quietest Moments, by Supertramp
> Hot Rats, by Frank Zappa
> Turn of the Cards, by Renaissance
> The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, by Genesis
> Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy, by Return to Forever

Check my sf blog Visions of Paradise for more recommendations.