Great news for cryptographers and fans of fantastical plants: this month, Yale University Press released the first complete photo facsimile of The Voynich Manuscript! This book is a centuries-old, lushly illustrated, densely coded alchemical treatise…unless it’s all a hoax. It was acquired by an antiquarian bookseller named Wilfrid M. Voynich in 1912, who spent years attempting to decode the text and find meaning in the 113 plant illustrations. After Yale University bought the book in 1969, they released it online in 2004, and finally uploaded higher resolution images in 2014, which led to the book becoming something of a cult hit. Now you can purchase your own painstakingly recreated version, complete with essays on alchemy and cryptography that will prove illuminating, even if you can’t truly understand the meaning of the Manuscript itself. Now, join us back in the present for a roundup of publishing news!
- The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America have named Jane Yolen the newest Damon Knight Grand Master!
- Buzzfeed lists their favorite fiction of 2016, and includes John Wray’s The Lost Time Accidents, Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad, and Manuel Gonzales’ The Regional Office is Under Attack!
- And The Washington Post shares their picks for the top ten superhero comics of 2016.
- C.S. Lewis had some interesting thoughts on democracy, equality, and the lure of tyrants.
- Over at File 770, Carl Slaughter writes about David Levine’s vision of a steampunk Mars.
- And over at Fantasy Faction, the relationship between fantasy and technology is explored.
- An appreciation of The Long Walk, an often-overlooked book by a young Stephen King.
- The creator of a little-known cult play called Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda, will adapt Patrick Rothfuss’ The Kingkiller Chronicle for film and television!