The Official Matthew Reilly Homepage

Well, having given Thomas Friedman's pro-globalisation "The Lexus and the Olive Tree" a perusal, I thought I had to give the opposing view, Naomi Klein's celebrated anti-globalisation/anti-corporation tome, "No Logo", a try. And the verdict: I'm really enjoying it, although I find some of her arguments a bit wobbly. But whether you agree with Klein or not, in this day of violent protests at every World Economic Forum and the curious rise in the jostling of politicians as they campaign, I think the modern citizen is ill-prepared to deal with the modern world if they haven't read this work. The (true) anecdotes in the book are just great: how the Tommy Hilfiger company actually produces nothing, it just licences its name; or Pepsi's "threat" to project its logo onto the face of the moon! Worth a look if you're after some interesting non-fiction.

Just a short note, because I have been getting quite a few emails on this topic. A lot of people have been asking when AREA 7 is coming out in Australia. For the record, the release date is September 1, 2001. As for the UK, it'll be closer to Christmas (the UK release of A7 will be accompanied by the release of CONTEST there, too).

As most people who know me will tell you, I love movies, and in the near future, I intend to make one. Which is what brought me to the SMPTE Exhibition here in Sydney last Friday (it's an exhibition for TV and film equipment companies to show off their wares). Of particular interest to me was the Sony exhibit and seeing Sony's new 24P High Definition Digital Video camera -- otherwise known as the digital video camera that George Lucas used to shoot Episode II. Since this technology pretty much harks the end of the use of 35mm film (George Lucas has said that he "won't go back" and James Cameron has stated that his next movie will also be shot on digital video), I figured it was worth a look. In a word, it was awesome. And look at it this way: Lucas spent $100,000 on video tape shooting Episode II. If he had used (the notoriously expensive) 35mm film, it would have cost him $1.8 million...just for the film! I have seen the future and it is digital...

Noticed a recent trend here in Australia: our politicians are increasingly getting 'jostled' when they make public appearances. Our PM recently had something thrown at him. Our Treasurer was jostled by protesters, and our Defence Minister (a notorious union-buster) had his car kicked in by unionists as he was leaving a speech venue. Similar incidents, I noticed, happened in Britain during the last general election there. Now, some might say that if a politician tells the media when he or she is going to make an appearance, then that politician should have to tolerate whatever happens. I think something deeper is afoot, and I think it is a worldwide phenomenon: it is people saying to their elected representatives "YOU ARE NOT LISTENING TO ME!" Maybe the suits should start listening.

Lastly, I'll just put a short plug in for the Station 409 Fan Forum. For those who have asked, yes, I do check out the Forum from time to time, swinging by on my travels through cyberspace. If nothing else, it's just a nice place to chat with people who, generally speaking, might like the same kind of books you do! Check it out.

P.S. How about those Wallabies, huh? Good on you, boys! You did us proud. And might I just put in a good word for the legions of British & Irish Lions supporters who have been here in Australia this past month. It's been an absolute pleasure having you here in our country. A finer group of sports fans, I have not seen.