Collection: The Fantastic in the Arts

A collection of books curated for attendees and those interested in the International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts 2022 meeting.

Image: Abstract whorl of white and purple clouds and a thin orange line; overlaying text in white, all lowercase: the fantastic in the arts book sale.

40% OFF BOOKS IN THIS COLLECTION

This is a curated list of books on sale for attendees and those interested in the International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts.

All books below are 40% off using code MN88900. Code expires May 15, 2022.

Interested in talking about your project? Contact our team of editors.

Sign up for UMP book alerts.

Request a book for course adoption consideration.

Learning tools and syllabus suggestions

BROWSE BOOKS:

POSTHUMANISM     //     ENVIRONMENT AND THE ANTHROPOCENE

SCIENCE FICTION STUDIES AND LITERARY CRITICISM     //    FICTION AND SCI-FI LITERATURE

PHILOSOPHY     //    THEORY    //    ANIMATION    //    VIDEOGAMES AND GAMING

PHOTOGRAPHY     //    FILM    //    ZOMBIES

Star Wars after Lucas: A Critical Guide to the Future of the Galaxy Star Wars after Lucas A Critical Guide to the Future of the Galaxy Dan Golding 2023 Spring
Politics, craft, and cultural nostalgia in the remaking of Star Wars
The Horror of Police The Horror of Police Travis Linnemann 2022 Spring
Unmasks the horrors of a social order reproduced and maintained by the violence of police
Dark Scenes from Damaged Earth: The Gothic Anthropocene Dark Scenes from Damaged Earth The Gothic Anthropocene Justin D. Edwards, Rune Graulund and Johan Höglund, Editors 2022 Spring
An urgent volume of essays engages the Gothic to advance important perspectives on our geological era
Troll Magic: Hidden Folk from the Mountains and Forests of Norway Troll Magic Hidden Folk from the Mountains and Forests of Norway Theodor Kittelsen 2022 Spring
A collection of macabre and magical folklore from the “godfather” of the Norwegian troll
Game: Animals, Video Games, and Humanity Game Animals, Video Games, and Humanity Thomas R.J. Tyler 2022 Spring
A playful reflection on animals and video games, and what each can teach us about the other
What If?: Twenty-Two Scenarios in Search of Images What If? Twenty-Two Scenarios in Search of Images Vilém Flusser 2022 Spring
An imagination of possibilities, of miscalculations, of futures off-kilter
Cosplay: The Fictional Mode of Existence Cosplay The Fictional Mode of Existence Frenchy Lunning 2022 Spring
An exploration of cosplay and its relationship with the realms of its global fandom, performance, and the modes of fictional existence
Animal Revolution Animal Revolution Ron Broglio 2022 Spring
Why our failure to consider the power of animals is to our deep detriment
Eco Soma: Pain and Joy in Speculative Performance Encounters Eco Soma Pain and Joy in Speculative Performance Encounters Petra Kuppers 2021 Fall
Modeling a disability culture perspective on performance practice toward socially just futures
Art and Posthumanism: Essays, Encounters, Conversations Art and Posthumanism Essays, Encounters, Conversations Cary Wolfe 2021 Fall
A sustained engagement between contemporary art and philosophy relating to our place in, and responsibility to, the nonhuman world
Black Pulp: Genre Fiction in the Shadow of Jim Crow Black Pulp Genre Fiction in the Shadow of Jim Crow Brooks E. Hefner 2021 Fall
A deep dive into mid-century African American newspapers, exploring how Black pulp fiction reassembled genre formulas in the service of racial justice
Life in Plastic: Artistic Responses to Petromodernity Life in Plastic Artistic Responses to Petromodernity Caren Irr, Editor 2021 Fall
A vital contribution to environmental humanities that explores artistic responses to the plastic age
The World Is Gone: Philosophy in Light of the Pandemic The World Is Gone Philosophy in Light of the Pandemic Gregg Lambert 2022 Spring
Exploring the existential implications of the Covid-19 crisis through meditations
Scale Theory: A Nondisciplinary Inquiry Scale Theory A Nondisciplinary Inquiry Joshua DiCaglio 2021 Fall
A pioneering call for a new understanding of scale across the humanities
Anime's Identity: Performativity and Form beyond Japan Anime's Identity Performativity and Form beyond Japan 2021 Fall
A formal approach to anime rethinks globalization and transnationality under neoliberalism
Young-Girls in Echoland: #Theorizing Tiqqun Young-Girls in Echoland #Theorizing Tiqqun Heather Warren-Crow and Andrea Jonsson 2022 Spring
Who’s worse, the Young-Girl or the Man-Child?
Our Grateful Dead: Stories of Those Left Behind Our Grateful Dead Stories of Those Left Behind Vinciane Despret 2021 Fall
An award-winning exploration of the presence of the dead in the lives of the living
The Three Sustainabilities: Energy, Economy, Time The Three Sustainabilities Energy, Economy, Time Allan Stoekl 2021 Fall
Bringing the word sustainability back from the brink of cliché—to a substantive, truly sustainable future
Assuming the Ecosexual Position: The Earth as Lover Assuming the Ecosexual Position The Earth as Lover Annie Sprinkle and Beth Stephens 2021 Spring
The story of the artistic collaboration between the originators of the ecosex movement, their diverse communities, and the Earth
Ambivalent Childhoods: Speculative Futures and the Psychic Life of the Child Ambivalent Childhoods Speculative Futures and the Psychic Life of the Child Jacob Breslow 2021 Spring
Explores childhood in relation to blackness, transfeminism, queerness, and deportability to interrogate what “the child” makes possible
The Dance of the Arabian Babbler: Birth of an Ethological Theory The Dance of the Arabian Babbler Birth of an Ethological Theory Vinciane Despret 2021 Spring
A groundbreaking reflection on the process by which one arrives at an ethological theory
Solo Viola: A Post-Exotic Novel Solo Viola A Post-Exotic Novel Antoine Volodine 2021 Spring
A harrowing early novel by one of France’s most unusual contemporary writers
Watershed: Attending to Body and Earth in Distress Watershed Attending to Body and Earth in Distress Ranae Lenor Hanson 2021 Spring
A personal health crisis, stories from environmental refugees, and our climate in danger prompt a meditation on intimate connections between the health of the body and the health of the ecosystem
Fates of the Performative: From the Linguistic Turn to the New Materialism Fates of the Performative From the Linguistic Turn to the New Materialism Jeffrey T. Nealon 2021 Spring
A powerful new examination of the performative that asks “what’s next?” for this well-worn concept
Curiosity and Power: The Politics of Inquiry Curiosity and Power The Politics of Inquiry Perry Zurn 2021 Spring
A trailblazing exploration of the political stakes of curiosity
Training for Catastrophe: Fictions of National Security after 9/11 Training for Catastrophe Fictions of National Security after 9/11 Lindsay Thomas 2021 Spring
A timely, politically savvy examination of how impossible disasters shape the very real possibilities of our world
The Digital Black Atlantic The Digital Black Atlantic Roopika Risam and Kelly Baker Josephs, Editors 2021 Spring
Exploring the intersections of digital humanities and African diaspora studies
Timescales: Thinking across Ecological Temporalities Timescales Thinking across Ecological Temporalities Bethany Wiggin, Carolyn Fornoff and Patricia Eunji Kim, Editors 2020 Fall
Humanists, scientists, and artists collaborate to address the disjunctive temporalities of ecological crisis
The Computer’s Voice: From Star Trek to Siri The Computer’s Voice From Star Trek to Siri Liz W. Faber 2020 Fall
A deconstruction of gender through the voices of Siri, HAL 9000, and other computers that talk
Pulses of Abstraction: Episodes from a History of Animation Pulses of Abstraction Episodes from a History of Animation Andrew R. Johnston 2020 Fall
Reshapes the history of abstract animation and its importance to computer imagery and cinema
The Probiotic Planet: Using Life to Manage Life The Probiotic Planet Using Life to Manage Life Jamie Lorimer 2020 Fall
Assesses a promising new approach to restoring the health of our bodies and our planet
Infrastructures of Apocalypse: American Literature and the Nuclear Complex Infrastructures of Apocalypse American Literature and the Nuclear Complex Jessica Hurley 2020 Fall
A new approach to the vast nuclear infrastructure and the apocalypses it produces, focusing on Black, queer, Indigenous, and Asian American literatures
Gaian Systems: Lynn Margulis, Neocybernetics, and the End of the Anthropocene Gaian Systems Lynn Margulis, Neocybernetics, and the End of the Anthropocene Bruce Clarke 2020 Fall
A groundbreaking look at Gaia theory’s intersections with neocybernetic systems theory
Invoking Hope: Theory and Utopia in Dark Times Invoking Hope Theory and Utopia in Dark Times Phillip E. Wegner 2020 Spring
An appeal for the importance of theory, utopia, and close consideration of our contemporary dark times
Kill the Overseer!: The Gamification of Slave Resistance Kill the Overseer! The Gamification of Slave Resistance Sarah Juliet Lauro 2020 Fall
Explores the representation of slave revolt in video games—and the trouble with making history playable
Hungry Listening: Resonant Theory for Indigenous Sound Studies Hungry Listening Resonant Theory for Indigenous Sound Studies Dylan Robinson 2020 Spring
Reimagining how we understand and write about the Indigenous listening experience
Pipers at the Gates of Dawn: The Wisdom of Children’s Literature Pipers at the Gates of Dawn The Wisdom of Children’s Literature Jonathan Cott 2020 Spring
Jonathan Cott’s reflections and conversations with six celebrated children’s authors—now in a new edition
The Metabolist Imagination: Visions of the City in Postwar Japanese Architecture and Science Fiction The Metabolist Imagination Visions of the City in Postwar Japanese Architecture and Science Fiction William O. Gardner 2020 Spring
Japan’s postwar urban imagination through the Metabolism architecture movement and visionary science fiction authors
Curiosity Studies: A New Ecology of Knowledge Curiosity Studies A New Ecology of Knowledge Perry Zurn and Arjun Shankar, Editors 2020 Spring
The first English-language collection to establish curiosity studies as a unique field
Happiness by Design: Modernism and Media in the Eames Era Happiness by Design Modernism and Media in the Eames Era Justus Nieland 2019 Spring
A cultural history of modern lifestyle viewed through film and multimedia experiments of midcentury designers Charles and Ray Eames
Furious Feminisms: Alternate Routes on Mad Max: Fury Road Furious Feminisms Alternate Routes on Mad Max: Fury Road Alexis L. Boylan, Anna Mae Duane, Michael Gill and Barbara Gurr 2020 Spring
A provocative peek into this complicated film as a space for subversion, activism, and imaginative power
The Monster Theory Reader The Monster Theory Reader Jeffrey Andrew Weinstock, Editor 2020 Spring
A collection of scholarship on monsters and their meaning—across genres, disciplines, methodologies, and time—from foundational texts to the most recent contributions
Asemic: The Art of Writing Asemic The Art of Writing Peter Schwenger 2019 Fall
The first critical study of writing without language
Playing Nature: Ecology in Video Games Playing Nature Ecology in Video Games Alenda Y. Chang 2019 Fall
A potent new book examines the overlap between our ecological crisis and video games
How Not to Make a Human: Pets, Feral Children, Worms, Sky Burial, Oysters How Not to Make a Human Pets, Feral Children, Worms, Sky Burial, Oysters Karl Steel 2019 Fall
From pet keeping to sky burials, a posthuman and ecocritical interrogation of and challenge to human particularity in medieval texts
Re-Enchanted: The Rise of Children’s Fantasy Literature in the Twentieth Century Re-Enchanted The Rise of Children’s Fantasy Literature in the Twentieth Century Maria Sachiko Cecire 2019 Fall
From The Hobbit to Harry Potter, how fantasy harnesses the cultural power of magic, medievalism, and childhood to re-enchant the modern world
Scenarios III: Stroszek; Nosferatu, Phantom of the Night; Where the Green Ants Dream; Cobra Verde Scenarios III Stroszek; Nosferatu, Phantom of the Night; Where the Green Ants Dream; Cobra Verde Werner Herzog 2019 Fall
For the first time in English, and in his signature prose poetry, the film scripts of four of Werner Herzog’s early works
An Ecotopian Lexicon An Ecotopian Lexicon Matthew Schneider-Mayerson and Brent Ryan Bellamy, Editors 2019 Fall
Presents thirty novel terms that do not yet exist in English to envision ways of responding to the environmental challenges of our generation
Homesickness: Of Trauma and the Longing for Place in a Changing Environment Homesickness Of Trauma and the Longing for Place in a Changing Environment Ryan Hediger 2019 Fall
Introducing a posthumanist concept of nostalgia to analyze steadily widening themes of animality, home, travel, slavery, shopping, and war in U.S. literature after 1945
The Complete and Original Norwegian Folktales of Asbjørnsen and Moe The Complete and Original Norwegian Folktales of Asbjørnsen and Moe Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe 2019 Fall
A new, definitive English translation of the celebrated story collection regarded as a landmark of Norwegian literature and culture
Theory for the World to Come: Speculative Fiction and Apocalyptic Anthropology Theory for the World to Come Speculative Fiction and Apocalyptic Anthropology Matthew J. Wolf-Meyer 2019 Spring
Can social theories forge new paths into an uncertain future?
Reimagining Livelihoods: Life beyond Economy, Society, and Environment Reimagining Livelihoods Life beyond Economy, Society, and Environment Ethan Miller 2019 Spring
A provocative reassessment of the concepts underlying the struggle for sustainable development
Metaphysical Experiments: Physics and the Invention of the Universe Metaphysical Experiments Physics and the Invention of the Universe Bjørn Ekeberg 2019 Spring
An engaging critique of the science and metaphysics behind our understanding of the universe
Cyberwar and Revolution: Digital Subterfuge in Global Capitalism Cyberwar and Revolution Digital Subterfuge in Global Capitalism Nick Dyer-Witheford and Svitlana Matviyenko 2019 Spring
Uncovering the class conflicts, geopolitical dynamics, and aggressive capitalism propelling the militarization of the internet
Zoological Surrealism: The Nonhuman Cinema of Jean Painlevé Zoological Surrealism The Nonhuman Cinema of Jean Painlevé James Leo Cahill 2019 Spring
An archive-based, in-depth analysis of the surreal nature and science movies of the pioneering French filmmaker Jean Painlevé
Anthropocene Poetics: Deep Time, Sacrifice Zones, and Extinction Anthropocene Poetics Deep Time, Sacrifice Zones, and Extinction David Farrier 2019 Spring
How poetry can help us think about and live in the Anthropocene by reframing our intimate relationship with geological time
Information Fantasies: Precarious Mediation in Postsocialist China Information Fantasies Precarious Mediation in Postsocialist China Xiao Liu 2019 Spring
A groundbreaking, alternate history of information technology and information discourses
Toward a Living Architecture?: Complexism and Biology in Generative Design Toward a Living Architecture? Complexism and Biology in Generative Design Christina Cogdell 2018 Fall
A bold and unprecedented look at a cutting-edge movement in architecture
None of This Is Normal: The Fiction of Jeff VanderMeer None of This Is Normal The Fiction of Jeff VanderMeer Benjamin J. Robertson 2018 Fall
How the otherworldly worlds created by the author of the Southern Reach Trilogy speak to—and even affect—our own
A Billion Black Anthropocenes or None A Billion Black Anthropocenes or None Kathryn Yusoff 2019 Spring
Rewriting the “origin stories” of the Anthropocene
Bad Environmentalism: Irony and Irreverence in the Ecological Age Bad Environmentalism Irony and Irreverence in the Ecological Age Nicole Seymour 2018 Fall
Traces a tradition of ironic and irreverent environmentalism, asking us to rethink the movement’s reputation for gloom and doom
The Robotic Imaginary: The Human and the Price of Dehumanized Labor The Robotic Imaginary The Human and the Price of Dehumanized Labor Jennifer Rhee 2018 Fall
Tracing the connections between human-like robots and AI at the site of dehumanization and exploited labor
The Sound of Things to Come: An Audible History of the Science Fiction Film The Sound of Things to Come An Audible History of the Science Fiction Film Trace Reddell 2018 Fall
A groundbreaking approach to sound in sci-fi films offers new ways of construing both sonic innovation and science fiction cinema
Scenarios II: Signs of Life; Even Dwarfs Started Small; Fata Morgana; Heart of Glass Scenarios II Signs of Life; Even Dwarfs Started Small; Fata Morgana; Heart of Glass Werner Herzog 2018 Fall
The second in a series: the master filmmaker’s prose scenarios for four of his notable films
Outsider Theory: Intellectual Histories of Unorthodox Ideas Outsider Theory Intellectual Histories of Unorthodox Ideas Jonathan P. Eburne 2018 Fall
A vital and timely reminder that modern life owes as much to outlandish thinking as to dominant ideologies
99 Theses on the Revaluation of Value: A Postcapitalist Manifesto 99 Theses on the Revaluation of Value A Postcapitalist Manifesto Brian Massumi 2018 Fall
A speculative exploration of value, emphasizing practical experimentation in its future forms
Hybrid Child: A Novel Hybrid Child A Novel Mariko Ōhara 2018 Spring
A classic of Japanese speculative fiction that blurs the line between consumption and creation when a cyborg assumes the form and spirit of a murdered child
Into the Extreme: U.S. Environmental Systems and Politics beyond Earth Into the Extreme U.S. Environmental Systems and Politics beyond Earth Valerie Olson 2018 Spring
The first book-length, in-depth ethnography of U.S. human spaceflight
Wild Child: Intensive Parenting and Posthumanist Ethics Wild Child Intensive Parenting and Posthumanist Ethics Naomi Morgenstern 2018 Spring
Exploring how the figure of the “wild child” in contemporary fiction grapples with contemporary cultural anxieties about reproductive ethics and the future of humanity
The User Unconscious: On Affect, Media, and Measure The User Unconscious On Affect, Media, and Measure Patricia Ticineto Clough 2018 Spring
Wide-ranging essays and experimental prose forcefully demonstrate how digital media and computational technologies have redefined what it is to be human
After Extinction After Extinction Richard Grusin, Editor 2018 Spring
A multidisciplinary exploration of extinction and what comes next
The End of Man: A Feminist Counterapocalypse The End of Man A Feminist Counterapocalypse Joanna Zylinska 2018 Spring
Debugging the Anthropocene’s insistence on apocalyptic tropes
The Anime Ecology: A Genealogy of Television, Animation, and Game Media The Anime Ecology A Genealogy of Television, Animation, and Game Media Thomas Lamarre 2018 Spring
A major work destined to change how scholars and students look at television and animation
Double Visions, Double Fictions: The Doppelgänger in Japanese Film and Literature Double Visions, Double Fictions The Doppelgänger in Japanese Film and Literature Baryon Tensor Posadas 2018 Spring
A fresh take on the doppelgänger and its place in Japanese film and literature—past and present
Archaeologies of Touch: Interfacing with Haptics from Electricity to Computing Archaeologies of Touch Interfacing with Haptics from Electricity to Computing David Parisi 2018 Spring
A material history of haptics technology that raises new questions about the relationship between touch and media
Interpreting Anime Interpreting Anime Christopher Bolton 2018 Spring
For students, fans, and scholars alike, this wide-ranging primer on anime employs a panoply of critical approaches
A Capsule Aesthetic: Feminist Materialisms in New Media Art A Capsule Aesthetic Feminist Materialisms in New Media Art Kate Mondloch 2018 Spring
How new media art informed by feminism yields important and original insights about interacting with technologies
The Modernist Corpse: Posthumanism and the Posthumous The Modernist Corpse Posthumanism and the Posthumous Erin E. Edwards 2018 Spring
An unconventional take on the corpse challenges traditional conceptions of who—and what—counts as human while offering bold insights into the modernist project
Veer Ecology: A Companion for Environmental Thinking Veer Ecology A Companion for Environmental Thinking Jeffrey Jerome Cohen and Lowell Duckert, Editors 2017 Fall
An innovative toolkit designed to prompt new awareness of the risk and potential of living on—and with—an alarmingly dynamic planet
Fictionalizing Anthropology: Encounters and Fabulations at the Edges of the Human Fictionalizing Anthropology Encounters and Fabulations at the Edges of the Human Stuart McLean 2017 Fall
On anthropology, creativity, and becoming other
Zombie Theory: A Reader Zombie Theory A Reader Sarah Juliet Lauro, Editor 2017 Fall
An interdisciplinary collection of the best international scholarship on zombies as the embodiment of anxieties, critiques, and desires
Ready Player Two: Women Gamers and Designed Identity Ready Player Two Women Gamers and Designed Identity Shira Chess 2017 Fall
A timely look at the implicit biases in video games as they construct and define feminine identity
Scenarios: Aguirre, the Wrath of God; Every Man for Himself and God Against All; Land of Silence and Darkness; Fitzcarraldo Scenarios Aguirre, the Wrath of God; Every Man for Himself and God Against All; Land of Silence and Darkness; Fitzcarraldo Werner Herzog 2017 Fall
The first in a series: Urtexts of the quintessential early films of Werner Herzog
Evil Dead Center: A Mystery Evil Dead Center A Mystery Carole laFavor 2017 Fall
Renee is back at it, this time uncovering a dark web with far reaches and implications
Along the Journey River: A Mystery Along the Journey River A Mystery Carole laFavor 2017 Fall
When tribal traditions run strong, is it possible to love an “other”?
Transhumanism: Evolutionary Futurism and the Human Technologies of Utopia Transhumanism Evolutionary Futurism and the Human Technologies of Utopia Andrew Pilsch 2017 Fall
Exploring the rich history and utopian potential of transhumanism’s belief that humanity is on the cusp of radical evolutionary transformation
The Sacred Era: A Novel The Sacred Era A Novel Yoshio Aramaki 2017 Spring
A brilliant work of speculative fiction, blending science and metaphysics, by a Japanese master of the 1970s New Wave
Arts of Living on a Damaged Planet: Ghosts and Monsters of the Anthropocene Arts of Living on a Damaged Planet Ghosts and Monsters of the Anthropocene Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing, Heather Anne Swanson, Elaine Gan and Nils Bubandt, Editors 2017 Spring
Can humans and other species continue to inhabit the earth together?
Out of the Blue: New Short Fiction from Iceland Out of the Blue New Short Fiction from Iceland 2017 Spring
A groundbreaking collection of fiction from Iceland’s best contemporary authors
Metagaming: Playing, Competing, Spectating, Cheating, Trading, Making, and Breaking Videogames Metagaming Playing, Competing, Spectating, Cheating, Trading, Making, and Breaking Videogames Stephanie Boluk and Patrick LeMieux 2017 Spring
A playful and provocative call to stop playing videogames and begin making metagames
Queer Game Studies Queer Game Studies Bonnie Ruberg and Adrienne Shaw, Editors 2017 Spring
A landmark anthology opens video game studies to queer culture
Anthropocene Feminism Anthropocene Feminism Richard Grusin, Editor 2017 Spring
A stunning experiment in thinking of the Anthropocene through feminism and queer theory
The Book of the Dead The Book of the Dead Shinobu Orikuchi 2016 Fall
The first complete English translation of a Japanese literary masterpiece
Of Sheep, Oranges, and Yeast: A Multispecies Impression Of Sheep, Oranges, and Yeast A Multispecies Impression Julian Yates 2017 Spring
Refocusing our lens on literature and history to lives beyond the human
Like Clockwork: Steampunk Pasts, Presents, and Futures Like Clockwork Steampunk Pasts, Presents, and Futures Rachel A. Bowser and Brian Croxall, Editors 2016 Fall
From Dragon*Con to IBM’s big data and neo-Victorianism to disability studies—the fascinating rise of an international subculture
Against Purity: Living Ethically in Compromised Times Against Purity Living Ethically in Compromised Times Alexis Shotwell 2016 Fall
Why contamination and compromise might be a starting point for doing something, instead of a reason to give up
The Perversity of Things: Hugo Gernsback on Media, Tinkering, and Scientifiction The Perversity of Things Hugo Gernsback on Media, Tinkering, and Scientifiction Hugo Gernsback 2016 Fall
The founder of science fiction and his other inventions
Object-Oriented Feminism Object-Oriented Feminism Katherine Behar, Editor 2016 Fall
A discipline-expanding book that explores the political and ethical potential of being an object
The Child to Come: Life after the Human Catastrophe The Child to Come Life after the Human Catastrophe Rebekah Sheldon 2016 Fall
A bold new reading of the child for the twenty-first century, with implications for contemporary environmentalism
Fuel: A Speculative Dictionary Fuel A Speculative Dictionary Karen Pinkus 2016 Fall
Undoing the dream of free, clean power from A to Z