Fun little medical thriller. Most notable for me, though (in a somewhat amusing way), was how odd it was to read a medical thriller set in 1976, when a major subplot theme is the sexism and male domination of the medical world (when I've been seeing women doctors for years on shows like ER, Scrubs, and Grey's Anatomy), and with all the descriptions of cigarette and pipe smoke hazing the air thoughout nearly every room in the hospital except the ORs. Just a product of the time, but it jarring me out of the story.

Most short fiction anthologies I end up giving a solid three stars to, as there's generally a good balance of a few above-average, a few below-average, but mostly good enjoyable stories. This is an unusually good collection, though, with only one or two entries that didn't appeal to me, and a majority of strong entries.

Particular favorites in this bunch are [a:Cyril M. Kornbluth|2768688|Cyril M. Kornbluth|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66.jpg]'s The Advent on Channel Twelve (being the holy scripture of Poopy Panda), [a:Fritz Leiber|23001|Fritz Leiber|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1233439233p2/23001.jpg]'s Space-Time for Springers (the life of the kitten Gummitch), [a:Robert Bloch|12540|Robert Bloch|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1208225228p2/12540.jpg]'s Daybroke (sunrise over nuclear devastation), and the only entry that I'd read previously, [a:Jerome Bixby|502042|Jerome Bixby|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-M-50x66.jpg]'s It's a Good Life (watch what you think around little Anthony).

Simply put, this should be highly recommended, if not required reading not just for goths, but also for anyone curious about the goth community, whether because they are personally interested or because they have an acquaintance, friend, or loved one (spouse, significant other, boy- or girlfriend, relative, child, or secret crush) who counts themselves among the spooky set.

Miss Manners' more somber-dressed and bat-festooned doppelgänger, the Lady of the Manners, has adapted from and expanded upon columns from her long-running website and assembled a delightful collection of advice for the goth and goth-friendly. Covering everything from the basics ("The difference between being a Goth, a NotAGoth, and not being a Goth yourself but being Goth-friendly") to social etiquette both online ("The Internet is not Real Life (with an aside about the Great Flounce-Off)") and off ("What to do when people ask why you're dressed like that") to parenting ("How to show support to your babygoth or babybat without relinquishing the keys to the hearse, and everything you need to know to Not Freak Out"), Gothic Charm School quickly becomes, in many small and a few not-so-small ways, the very "Goth handbook" that the Lady of the Manners so often reminds us does not exist.

I can't go back in time twenty years and hand this book to my teenaged self (more's the pity), but I canquite heartily recommend this to both old and new members of the goth community, as well as those around them who just might not quite get it.

Following are a couple of short excerpts, collecting some of the Lady of the Manners own recommendations for further reading:

Babybat-friendly books the Lady of the Manners recommends:

* The [b:Vampire Kisses|263147|Vampire Kisses (Vampire Kisses, Book 1)|Ellen Schreiber|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173239029s/263147.jpg|255085] series by [a:Ellen Schreiber|153734|Ellen Schreiber|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1237786044p2/153734.jpg]
* A Series of Unfortunate Events (beginning with [b:The Bad Beginning|78411|The Bad Beginning (A Series of Unfortunate Events, Book 1)|Lemony Snicket|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170942131s/78411.jpg|1069597]) by [a:Lemony Snicket|36746|Lemony Snicket|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1199734355p2/36746.jpg]
* The [b:Scary Godmother|1278448|Scary Godmother|Jill Thompson|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1182454083s/1278448.jpg|1267435] storybooks by [a:Jill Thompson|9931|Jill Thompson|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66.jpg]
* [b:Coraline|17061|Coraline|Neil Gaiman|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41rAKdi8NjL._SL75_.jpg|2834844] by [a:Neil Gaiman|1221698|Neil Gaiman|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1234150163p2/1221698.jpg]
* [b:The Wolves of Willoughby Chase|36638|The Wolves of Willoughby Chase|Joan Aiken|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168734548s/36638.jpg|856203] by [a:Joan Aiken|12075|Joan Aiken|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1205348188p2/12075.jpg]
* The Spiderwick Chronicles (beginning with [b:The Field Guide|444304|The Field Guide (The Spiderwick Chronicles, Book 1)|Holly Black|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174837774s/444304.jpg|1092293]) by [a:Holly Black|25422|Holly Black|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1204641580p2/25422.jpg]
* [b:The Witches|6327|The Witches|Roald Dahl|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1176400132s/6327.jpg|105046] by [a:Roald Dahl|4273|Roald Dahl|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1217358820p2/4273.jpg]
* [b:The Dark Is Rising|210329|The Dark Is Rising (Dark is Rising, Book 2)|Susan Cooper|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172717828s/210329.jpg|1530651] series by [a:Susan Cooper|7308|Susan Cooper|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1223869862p2/7308.jpg]
* [b:Bizenghast Volume 1|359323|Bizenghast Volume 1 (Bizenghast)|M. Alice LeGrow|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174078845s/359323.jpg|349445] by [a:M. Alice LeGrow|205812|M. Alice LeGrow|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66.jpg]
* [b:The Wee Free Men|34494|The Wee Free Men (Discworld)|Terry Pratchett|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168566154s/34494.jpg|62580], [b:A Hat Full of Sky A Discworld Novel|34501|A Hat Full of Sky A Discworld Novel|Terry Pratchett|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168566174s/34501.jpg|2889659], and [b:Wintersmith|34492|Wintersmith (Discworld)|Terry Pratchett|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168566153s/34492.jpg|583590] by [a:Terry Pratchett|1654|Terry Pratchett|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1235562205p2/1654.jpg]

Thirteen of the Lady of the Manners's favorite vampire books, in no particular order:

* [b:Drácula|3094938|Drácula|Bram Stoker|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1206417660s/3094938.jpg|3165724] by [a:Bram Stoker|6988|Bram Stoker|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1202438456p2/6988.jpg]
* [b:Anno Dracula|33535|Anno Dracula|Kim Newman|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1221011425s/33535.jpg|1731834] by [a:Kim Newman|18879|Kim Newman|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-M-50x66.jpg]
* [b:Those Who Hunt the Night|176261|Those Who Hunt the Night|Barbara Hambly|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1223642807s/176261.jpg|1229981] and [b:Traveling with the Dead|773989|Traveling with the Dead|Barbara Hambly|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178231188s/773989.jpg|2501163] by [a:Barbara Hambly|10333|Barbara Hambly|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-F-50x66.jpg]
* [b:Interview With the Vampire|43763|Interview With the Vampire (The Vampire Chronicles, #1)|Anne Rice|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1218672404s/43763.jpg|873132] and [b:The Vampire Lestat|43814|The Vampire Lestat (The Vampire Chronicles, #2)|Anne Rice|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170230507s/43814.jpg|3241580] by [a:Anne Rice|7577|Anne Rice|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1185379015p2/7577.jpg]
* [b:The Delicate Dependency|1261704|The Delicate Dependency|Michael Talbot|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1220466927s/1261704.jpg|1250549] by [a:Michael Talbot|112838|Michael Talbot|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66.jpg]
* The Blood Opera Sequence ([b:Dark Dance|81122|Dark Dance|Tanith Lee|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1239500785s/81122.jpg|78321], [b:Personal Darkness Blood Opera Sequence 2|572528|Personal Darkness Blood Opera Sequence 2|Tanith Lee|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1223776828s/572528.jpg|559554], and [b:Darkness, I|498560|Darkness, I (Blood Opera Sequence 3)|Tanith Lee|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1223663651s/498560.jpg|959088]) by [a:Tanith Lee|8694|Tanith Lee|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1218895130p2/8694.jpg]
* [b:Lost Souls|452244|Lost Souls|Poppy Z. Brite|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/718N3NF4Q2L._SL75_.gif|440863] by [a:Poppy Z. Brite|9558|Poppy Z. Brite|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1198013655p2/9558.jpg]
* [b:Hotel Transylvania|71054|Hotel Transylvania (Saint-Germain series)|Chelsea Quinn Yarbro|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170754623s/71054.jpg|1048840] by [a:Chelsea Quinn Yarbro|40173|Chelsea Quinn Yarbro|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1235019480p2/40173.jpg]
* The [b:Vampire Kisses|263147|Vampire Kisses (Vampire Kisses, Book 1)|Ellen Schreiber|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173239029s/263147.jpg|255085] series by [a:Ellen Schreiber|153734|Ellen Schreiber|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1237786044p2/153734.jpg]
* [b:Gothique A Vampire Novel|2355495|Gothique A Vampire Novel|Kyle Marffin|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41CNYX9EWTL._SL75_.jpg|2362252] by [a:Kyle Marffin|26936|Kyle Marffin|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66.jpg]
* [b:Bloodsucking Fiends|33454|Bloodsucking Fiends|Christopher Moore|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168444146s/33454.jpg|1799438] by [a:Christopher Moore|16218|Christopher Moore|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1200095788p2/16218.jpg]
* [b:The Stress of Her Regard|417656|The Stress of Her Regard|Tim Powers|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1181975958s/417656.jpg|937457] by [a:Tim Powers|8835|Tim Powers|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1190307815p2/8835.jpg]
* [b:Sunshine|8088|Sunshine|Robin McKinley|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51ADM24K60L._SL75_.jpg|2321294] by [a:Robin McKinley|5339|Robin McKinley|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-F-50x66.jpg]

Recommendations listed in "The roots of Goth's dark garden"

* [b:Jane Eyre|10210|Jane Eyre (Penguin Classics)|Charlotte Brontë|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41GT7KJHSVL._SL75_.jpg|2977639] by [a:Charlotte Brontë|1036615|Charlotte Brontë|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1200329744p2/1036615.jpg]
* [b:Drácula|3094938|Drácula|Bram Stoker|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1206417660s/3094938.jpg|3165724] by [a:Bram Stoker|6988|Bram Stoker|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1202438456p2/6988.jpg]
* [b:Frankenstein|18490|Frankenstein|Mary Shelley|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1245864498s/18490.jpg|4836639] by [a:Mary Shelley|11139|Mary Shelley|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1205347203p2/11139.jpg]
* Anything by [a:Edgar Allan Poe|5756|Edgar Allan Poe|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1183237044p2/5756.jpg]
* [b:The Sandman Vol. 1 Preludes and Nocturnes|23754|The Sandman Vol. 1 Preludes and Nocturnes|Neil Gaiman|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1201718740s/23754.jpg|1228437] (and the rest of the series) by [a:Neil Gaiman|1221698|Neil Gaiman|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1234150163p2/1221698.jpg]
* Anything by [a:H.P. Lovecraft|9494|H.P. Lovecraft|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1196193667p2/9494.jpg]
* Any of the illustrated works of [a:Edward Gorey|21578|Edward Gorey|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1200338278p2/21578.jpg]
* [b:Something Wicked This Way Comes|248596|Something Wicked This Way Comes|Ray Bradbury|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/71V5B3CT2CL._SL75_.gif|1183550] by [a:Ray Bradbury|1630|Ray Bradbury|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1190744775p2/1630.jpg]
* [b:Lost Souls|452244|Lost Souls|Poppy Z. Brite|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/718N3NF4Q2L._SL75_.gif|440863] by [a:Poppy Z. Brite|9558|Poppy Z. Brite|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1198013655p2/9558.jpg]

A strange one, and very obviously from the very early years of Trek fiction (this appears to have been only the second Trek novel that wasn't an episode adaptation). It has a halfway decent Trek plot at its core, but suffers greatly from being written during the 70's period of "every future society must be far more sexually evolved than ours, and we're going to tell you all about it, even though we're still fairly sexist in our thinking" science fiction writing. While I have nothing against an open approach to sexuality -- in fact, I highly approve of it -- this felt far too much like a clumsy melding of Trek and bad fan-written soft porn.