pub: Macmillan Audio. 5 CDs 5 hour book. Price: $23.99 (US). ISBN: 978-1-4272-0982-5.

check out website: http://us.macmillan.com/Book.aspx?isbn=9781427209825

I've never heard of Olivia Munn but that's not surprising because she features mainly on cable TV in the USA and I'm on the other side of the Atlantic. Apparently this lady, born 30 years ago, is very popular actress and comedian and co-hosts a show called 'Attack Of The Show' on the G4 Network.

This audio book is a collection of humorous essays sent to me by Macmillan to review. It has a tenuous link to Science Fiction in as much as Olivia likes to dress up as Wonder Woman. There is also an essay in the collection entitled 'What To Do When The Robots Invade'.



Olivia Munn is a self-confessed geek. She likes gadgets and geek history. She has also been on the cover of 'Playboy Magazine'. However, it is her ability to be funny in a candid way which has made her famous. Now, SFCrowsnest is an international magazine and it has readers from the USA who will undoubtedly like this material. Coming from the UK, some of the humour doesn't translate very well and her accent is perhaps a little too sharp and piercing for our sensibilities. After the first disc, it becomes a little monotonous and irritating.

However, overall I would say this is quite clever stuff. I'm sure there would be a place for Olivia Munn at the Edinburgh International Festival. She would probably come away with the top comedian prize. Okay, there is not a great deal of Science Fiction in this collection but it does have its merits. As far as her accent is concerned, my perspective is regional and surely she must have great appeal to many others. As such, it can be recommended.

Rod MacDonald