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1985 In Literature
This article contains information about the literary events and publications of 1985. Events * February 25 – Sue Limb's parodic pastiche of the Lake Poets, ''The Wordsmiths at Gorsemere'', begins broadcasting on BBC Radio 4 in the U.K. *March 1 – The GNU Manifesto by Richard Stallman is published for the first time, and becomes a fundamental philosophical source within the free software movement. * August 11 – A memorial to the poet Hugh MacDiarmid is unveiled near his home at Langholm, Scotland. *''unknown dates'' – Three notable novels in English by female authors are published during the year: Margaret Atwood's ''The Handmaid's Tale'', Jilly Cooper's '' Riders'', the first of the Rutshire Chronicles, and Jeanette Winterson's ''Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit''. New books Fiction * Isaac Asimov – ''Robots and Empire'' * Margaret Atwood – ''The Handmaid's Tale'' *Jean M. Auel – ''The Mammoth Hunters'' *Iain Banks – ''Walking on Glass'' *Clive Barker – '' The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
February 25
Events Pre-1600 * 138 – Roman emperor Hadrian adopts Antoninus Pius as his son, effectively making him his successor. * 628 – Khosrow II, the last great Shah of the Sasanian Empire (Iran), is overthrown by his son Kavadh II. *1336 – Four thousand defenders of Pilenai commit mass suicide rather than be taken captive by the Teutonic Knights. 1601–1900 * 1705 – George Frideric Handel's opera ''Nero'' premiered in Hamburg. *1836 – Samuel Colt is granted a United States patent for his revolver firearm. * 1843 – Lord George Paulet occupies the Kingdom of Hawaii in the name of Great Britain in the Paulet Affair (1843). *1870 – Hiram Rhodes Revels, a Republican from Mississippi, is sworn into the United States Senate, becoming the first African American ever to sit in Congress. *1875 – Guangxu Emperor of Qing dynasty China begins his reign, under Empress Dowager Cixi's regency. 1901–present * 1912 – Marie-Adélaïde, the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jeanette Winterson
Jeanette Winterson (born 27 August 1959) is an English writer. Her first book, '' Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit'', was a semi-autobiographical novel about a sensitive teenage girl rebelling against convention. Other novels explore gender polarities and sexual identity and later ones the relations between humans and technology. She broadcasts and teaches creative writing. She has won a Whitbread Prize for a First Novel, a BAFTA Award for Best Drama, the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize, the E. M. Forster Award and the St. Louis Literary Award, and the Lambda Literary Award twice. She holds an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) and a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. Early life Winterson was born in Manchester and adopted by Constance and John William Winterson on 21 January 1960. She grew up in Accrington, Lancashire, and was raised in the Elim Pentecostal Church. She was raised to become a Pente ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marion Chesney
Marion Gibbons (née Chesney; 10 June 1936 – 30/31 December 2019) was a Scottish writer of romance and mystery novels, whose career as a published author began in 1979. She wrote numerous successful historical romance novels under a form of her maiden name, Marion Chesney, including the "Travelling Matchmaker" and "Daughters of Mannerling" series. Using the pseudonym M. C. Beaton, she also wrote many popular mystery novels, most notably the Agatha Raisin and Hamish Macbeth mystery series. Both of these book series have been adapted for TV. She also wrote romance novels under the pseudonyms Ann Fairfax, Jennie Tremaine, Helen Crampton, Charlotte Ward, and Sarah Chester. Writing as Marion Chesney, her final endeavour was an Edwardian mystery series featuring Lady Rose Summer, a charming debutante with an independent streak, and Captain Harry Cathcart, an impoverished aristocrat. In an interview, she stated that she ceased writing the Edwardian series as a result of the pressure ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eon (novel)
''Eon'' is a science fiction novel by American author Greg Bear published by Bluejay Books in 1985. ''Eon'' was nominated for an Arthur C. Clarke Award in 1987. It is the first novel in ''The Way'' series; followed by ''Eternity''. Story In the early 21st century, NATO and the Soviet Union are on the verge of a second nuclear war. Incidentally, a 290 km prolate spheroid has been detected following an anomalous energy burst just outside the solar system. It is an asteroid: Juno. It moves into an eccentric near-Earth orbit where the rival polities of Earth each try to claim this mysterious object. Juno has been hollowed out along its long axis, subdivided into seven cylindrical chambers, and rotates to provide artificial gravity. The chambers are terraformed, with the second and third containing cities that have been maintained by automatic systems for centuries. This small world is dubbed "the Stone" by the Americans, "the Potato" by the Soviets, “the Whale” ( 鲸) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blood Music (novel)
''Blood Music'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Greg Bear. It was originally published as a short story in 1983 in the American science fiction magazine ''Analog Science Fact & Fiction'', winning the 1983 Nebula Award for Best Novelette and the 1984 Hugo Award for Best Novelette. Greg Bear published an expanded version in novel form in 1985. ''Blood Music'' deals with themes including biotechnology, nanotechnology (including the grey goo hypothesis), the nature of reality, consciousness, and artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence—perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information—demonstrated by machines, as opposed to intelligence displayed by animals and humans. Example tasks in which this is done include speech r .... Plot summary In the novel, renegade biotechnologist Vergil Ulam creates simple biological computers based on his own lymphocytes. Faced with orders from his nervous employer to destroy his work, he inje ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greg Bear
Gregory Dale Bear (August 20, 1951 – November 19, 2022) was an American writer and illustrator best known for science fiction. His work covered themes of galactic conflict ('' Forge of God'' books), parallel universes ('' The Way'' series), consciousness and cultural practices ('' Queen of Angels''), and accelerated evolution ('' Blood Music'', ''Darwin's Radio'', and '' Darwin's Children''). His most recent work was the 2021 novel ''The Unfinished Land''. Greg Bear wrote over 50 books in total. Early life Greg Bear was born in San Diego, California. He attended San Diego State University (1968–1973), where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree. At the university, he was a teaching assistant to Elizabeth Chater in her course on science fiction writing, and in later years her friend. Career Bear is often classified as a hard science fiction author because of the level of scientific detail in his work. Early in his career, he also published work as an artist, including il ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Damnation Game (novel)
''The Damnation Game'' is a horror novel by English writer Clive Barker, published in 1985. It was written just after finishing the first trilogy of ''Books of Blood'', and tells a Faustian story that touches on topics such as incest, cannibalism, and self-mutilation in a frank and detailed manner. It was his first novel. Synopsis Marty Strauss is a gambling addict recently released from prison. He is hired as the personal bodyguard of Joseph Whitehead, one of the wealthiest men in the world. The job is more complicated and dangerous than first he thought. He gets caught up in a series of supernatural events involving Whitehead, and a devilish man, Mamoulian, through whom Whitehead made a deal with the Devil during World War II. Whitehead is haunted with Mamoulian's supernatural powers (like raising the dead) to urge him to satisfy Mamoulian's pact. Whitehead decides to escape after several encounters with Mamoulian and after having his wife, his former bodyguard, and his d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clive Barker
Clive Barker (born 5 October 1952) is an English novelist, playwright, author, film director, and visual artist who came to prominence in the mid-1980s with a series of short stories, the ''Books of Blood'', which established him as a leading horror writer. He has since written many novels and other works. His fiction has been adapted into films, notably the ''Hellraiser'' series, the first installment of which he also wrote and directed, and the '' Candyman'' series. He was also an executive producer of the film '' Gods and Monsters'', which won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Barker's paintings and illustrations have been shown in galleries in the United States, and have appeared in his books. He has also created characters and series for comic books, and some of his more popular horror stories have been featured in ongoing comics series. Early life Barker was born in Liverpool, the son of Joan Ruby (née Revill), a painter and school welfare officer, and Leona ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Walking On Glass
''Walking on Glass'' is the second novel by Scottish writer Iain Banks, published in 1985. ''Walking on Glass'' is formed of three storylines that initially do not appear to be linked, but eventually come together. The extent to which these stories are interconnected is dependent on how deeply into the book the reader is willing to read. Plot summary Each part of ''Walking on Glass'', apart from the last, is divided into three sections, which appear at first sight to be independent stories. Two of the stories are set in and around Islington in North London, the other is set in the far distant future. *Graham Park is a young man in love with a girl he met at a party, Sara ffitch. Richard Slater is his friend. Bob Stock, a "macho black-leathered never-properly-seen image of Nemesis" seems all that stands in the way of Graham's happiness. *Steven Grout is a paranoid roadmender who believes himself to be an admiral from a galactic war imprisoned in the body of an Earthman. He belie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iain Banks
Iain Banks (16 February 1954 – 9 June 2013) was a Scottish author, writing mainstream fiction as Iain Banks and science fiction as Iain M. Banks, adding the initial of his adopted middle name Menzies (). After the success of ''The Wasp Factory'' (1984), he began to write full time. His first science fiction book, ''Consider Phlebas'', appeared in 1987, marking the start of the Culture series. His books have been adapted for theatre, radio and television. In 2008, ''The Times'' named Banks in their list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945". In April 2013, Banks announced he had inoperable cancer and was unlikely to live beyond a year. He died on 9 June 2013. Early life Banks was born in Dunfermline, Fife, to a mother who was a professional ice skater and a father who was an officer in the Admiralty. An only child, he lived in North Queensferry until the age of nine, near the naval dockyards in Rosyth, where his father was based. The family then moved to Gourock due ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Mammoth Hunters
''The Mammoth Hunters'' is an historical fiction novel by Jean M. Auel released in 1985. It is the sequel to '' The Valley of Horses'' and third in the Earth's Children series. Plot summary This book picks up where '' The Valley of Horses'' ends; Ayla and Jondalar meet a group known as the Mamutoi, or Mammoth Hunters, with whom they live for a period of time. As the group's name suggests, their hosts rely on mammoth not only for food but also for building materials and a number of other commodities - and indeed for spiritual sustenance. The protagonists make their home with the Lion Camp of the Mammoth Hunters, which features a number of respected Mamutoi. Wisest of their nation is Old Mamut, their eldest shaman and the leader of the entire Mamutoi priesthood, who becomes Ayla's mentor and colleague in the visionary and esoteric fields of thought. Observing Ayla's affinity with horses and wolves, Mamut begins to introduce her into the ranks of the Mamuti (mystics). Mamut is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jean M
Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jean Pierre Polnareff, a fictional character from ''JoJo's Bizarre Adventure'' Places * Jean, Nevada, USA; a town * Jean, Oregon, USA Entertainment * Jean (dog), a female collie in silent films * "Jean" (song) (1969), by Rod McKuen, also recorded by Oliver * ''Jean Seberg'' (musical), a 1983 musical by Marvin Hamlisch Other uses * JEAN (programming language) * USS ''Jean'' (ID-1308), American cargo ship c. 1918 * Sternwheeler Jean, a 1938 paddleboat of the Willamette River See also *Jehan * * Gene (other) * Jeanne (other) * Jehanne (other) * Jeans (other) * John (other) John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Test ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
