SciFi Books you've just read - Part II

[pmn1]

Stargate SG-1 Roswell.....talk about screwed up timelines.<br /><br />No prizes for guessing who crashed......<br /><br />An answer to what happened at Tunguska and we get introduced to a certain familiar cigarette smoking guy.<br /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[spacefire]

Reading Conrad Stargard, definitely a series gearded towards engineers fascinated by medieval warfare and anachronisms <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>http://asteroid-invasion.blogspot.com</p><p>http://www.solvengineer.com/asteroid-invasion.html </p><p> </p> </div>

 

[astralith]

What cigerette smoking guy? My first thought was X-Files crossover but that aint right... right?

 

[bobw]

RE: Last and First Men, book from the original post in this thread. I read about half of it and had to put it down. It seemed like one big Cliché. It was probably a breakthrough view of the consequences of evolution in 1930 but what really made it drag for me was the constant references to stereotypical nationalistic psychological tendencies.<br /><br />On a happier note, I just finished <i>The Armageddon Blues</i> by Daniel Keys Moran. It is a weird, pretty funny, take on time travel into the past to avoid nuclear destruction of civilization. I liked it, never could predict what would happen next. I guess it is the first book of a four part series. Starting on Emerald Eyes next. Lots of Moran online here <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[pmn1]

Thats the impression I got from reading the book though it wasn't a cross-over. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[jmilsom]

Yes. I would agree with you to an extent on that point, though it is more a feature of the early part of the book. Gregory Benford in an introduction for this book (MasterWorks edition) gives warning on this and suggests reader actually skip the first four parts! Beyond that, Stapledon's 1930 imagination is remarkable and the book is literally brimming with new ideas. Of course with a history-style book of this scale, generalisation is unavoidable I suppose. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[bobw]

<font color="#c0c0c0">skip the first four parts!</font><br /> <br /><strong><font size="5"> </font></strong><br /> <br />I bookmarked it at chapter 10 and plan to finish it but it was a bit much all in one bite. I had to chuckle at the part about throwing babies out of airplanes as a way of ensuring only the best of the pilot caste reproduce. If daddy doesn't catch you in midair you are history! LOL. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[jmilsom]

Yes that is one of his sillier future societies! <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> Read on! <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[rybanis]

So I just started reading the Culture series by Banks. So far, its confusing, but I'm liking it. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[a_lost_packet_]

I'm looking for a new Sci-Fi series to sink my teeth into. I want something that is "High/Hard Science Fiction." Preferably, a recent publication from a new(ish) author. I've read most of the "big names" in Sci-Fi but, admittedly, some of the more obscure names I haven't read. However, I want something the book-stores actually carry. <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> I don't want to have to search through used-book stores in order to get my fix. heh heh<br /><br />Any suggestions? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="1">I put on my robe and wizard hat...</font> </div>

 

[rybanis]

Well, I'm sort of biased at this point, but Iain M. Banks is good... <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[a_lost_packet_]

I see he has 10 books to his credit. Are any of them "series" related or taking place in the same milieu? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="1">I put on my robe and wizard hat...</font> </div>

 

[rybanis]

Yeah, search for "The Culture" series. <br /><br />Look to Windward<br />Use of Weapons<br /><br />ect... Amazon should show you the way. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[jmilsom]

Have you ever read any David Zindell? Years ago I read one called <i>Neverness</i> in which mathematicians are a relgious class that control space travel.<br /><br />This apparently forms a prequel to a trilogy entitles <i>A requiem for Homo Sapiens</i>, which is meant to be quite good. I remember the mathematics in the book being quite out there, so it might fit your criteria. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[etavaunt]

When you go back far enough, EVERY writer seems to become Cliche, but that is just because HE was saying something fresh, and we are separate from him by 80 years mate!.<br />And time ain't stood still, the newer writers expounded on his works, so you have read things that took his for granted.<br /><img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" />

 

[bobw]

<font color="#c0c0c0"> HE was saying something fresh, and we are separate from him by 80 years mate!. </font><br /> <br />I am not as sure about that as you are. After reading a few chapters I'm like WTF? So I looked up Stapledon and found that he was a philosopher. I <em>knew</em> it! It reminded me of nothing so much as the books I read for an English class called "Utopian Thought." Looking Backward, Bellamy:1888, Erewhon, Butler:1871, A Modern Utopia, Wells:1905. <br /> <br />Was he really so innovative, or more of the same over a longer period of time? Are his different races so unique when we remember that Wells' <em>The Time Machine</em> with the morlocks came out in 1895 and <em>The War of the Worlds</em> in 1898? <br /> <br />One website even said "Stapledon was somewhat taken aback in the 1940's when he was acclaimed by science fiction fans." <br />http://www.sfhub.ac.uk/~cheshire/sfead/html/13A0.html <br /> <br />Another, "...Olaf Stapledon, the vintage British SF writer whose works tend to be more respected than read. " <br />http://homepages.pavilion.co.uk/users/tartarus/print1.html <br /> <br />Although I wouldn't, by any stretch of the imagination, call <em>Last and First Men</em> entertaining I plan to finish it as much to see what he has been influenced by as to see what he has influenced. It seems to me that the primary SF concepts were ~40 years old 80 years ago and the rest was the usual professional philosopher's bread and butter fare. <br /> <br />Which parts of it seemed "fresh" to you? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[etavaunt]

No, you misunderstood me. He doesn't seem fresh to us now, because we are not reading it in 1930.<br /><br />OK, you rightly point out that HG Wells was before him in some ways, but remember this is sci fi readers specifically we are talking about. For his audience, and his time, many of his ideas were fresh, and philosophically innovative.<br /><br />If it was written now, people would say "Oh, how trite and cliched" and yet, that is because everything he writes in that book, is part of SciFi cannon BECAUSE he wrote it.<br /><br />It is as if someone read the Grey Mouser and Ffahard stories and said "Meh, a cunning little hero thief, and his tall northern barbarian friend, how last century".<br />These stereotypes only are so, BECAUSE Leiber wrote the books.

 

[HermitFromPluto]

<p>I had no email registered, so under my new handle, let me post my next review:</p><p>Title: The Sirens of Titan<br />Author: Kurt Vonnegut<br />First Published: 1959</p><p>This is only the second of Kurt Vonnegut's works I have read, and like the other (Galapogas), I enjoyed it immensely. This book recounts the strange adventures of Malachi Constant, formerly the richest man on the planet, whose unexpected interplanetary stopovers take in Mars, Mercury and Titan. Behind the scenes and seemingly steering everything is Winston Niles Rumfoord who prior to the events in the book flew his spaceship into a chrono-synclastic infundibulum. This converted him into a waveform with one end in our sun and the other in Betelgeuse. He only materialises for one hour every 59 days when earth intercepts his wave. Sound crazy! If you haven't read any Vonnegut, I would highly recommend this book. He is such a funny writer and this work is LOL in places. Incredibly though he makes everything completely understandable. While his works are to a large degree satire on human society (and highly satisfying satire at that), he imbues his work with some moving and subtle truths.</p>

 

[asp3]

<p>"Kindred" by&nbsp;Octavia Butler's - I finished this last weekend.&nbsp; I thought it was quite good, but the science fiction element was rather limited.&nbsp; It was more of a historical novel than a science fiction novel, but it was well written and kept me interested.</p><p>"The Accidental Time Machine" by Joe Haldeman - This book was a thoroughly enjoyable romp of light science fiction with some fun time travel issues thrown in.&nbsp; It was also somewhat of a political novel which pitted the forces of conservative christianity with those of liberal headonism.&nbsp; But it was a fun read and worth my time.</p><p>"Lilith's Brood" by Octavia Butler - This is a collection of three novels, "Dawn", "Adulthood Rites" and "Imago" combined into one edition.&nbsp; I think this is one of the best trilogies I've read in recent years.&nbsp; I think the interactions between humans and aliens was very fresh and different than anything else I've ever read.&nbsp; The characters were believable, intriguing and interesting and the story made a lot of sense.&nbsp; I had a hard time putting this book down and was always wondering what would happen next.&nbsp; I highly recommend the combined edition or these books.</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> Immature beyond my years </div>

 

[10_stone_5]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>...Title: The Sirens of TitanAuthor: Kurt VonnegutFirst Published: 1959This is only the second of Kurt Vonnegut's works I have read, and like the other (Galapogas), I enjoyed it immensely.</p><p>Posted by HermitFromPluto</DIV></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>I really enjoyed <em>Sirens</em> and have also read <em>Slaughterhouse Five</em> - another Vonnegut SF entry. Really wonderful !</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>I'm going to have to over my Clarke list to see what I have missed and really must read. Its important to eulogize this man -- and I can't think of a better way !<br /></p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em><strong></strong></em></p> </div>

 

[jmilsom]

<p>Just finished reading:</p><p>Title: The Rediscovery of Man<br />Author: Cordwainer Smith<br />First Published: 1999 (A collection of short stories published between 1950 and 1964)</p><p>I had never read a Cordwainer Smith story before this compilation of stories, which was put together as the tenth volume in the SciFi Masterworks series. The author's life story is as interesting as the work. Cordwainer Smith was one of three pseudonyms used by Dr. Paul Linebarger. He spent some of his childhood in China and was a god son of Sun Yat Sen. He spoke six languages by the age of 23. He was in Army Intelligence in China in WWII and advised the British forces in Malaya and authored a standard text called <em>Psychological Warfare</em>. He became Professor of Asiatic Politics at Johns Hopkins and was an adviser to President Kennedy. </p><p>And throughout this time he wrote the odd SciFi story as Cordwainer Smith, slowly building up his vision of a galactic future from 2,000 to later than 16,000 AD, which is referred to the Instumentality of Mankind. This is a really interesting collection of 12 short stories. Smith envisions a future of interstellar travel, where the worlds of man are ruled over by a powerful and mysterious Instrumentality, sort of like an oligarchy of rich and powerful select individuals. In his future animals are genetically modified into human form and become the ranks of underpeople that serve mankind. The ulimate emancipation of these people is a major theme runnning through his works. In his works, disease is all but wiped out and people's lives are extended to great ages by use of the drug Stroon, only grown on one planet Nortstrilia. The rediscovery of man refers to the fact that with everything so perfect, mankind has lost its humanity. </p><p>This is a really different and beautifully written set of stories. Smith weaves a lot of international experience into his storytelling, bringing different styles and methods of writing. The result is a rich and strange future that is distinctly his own. Well worth reading!</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[10_stone_5]

<p><font size="2" color="#000000">Haven't picked up anything in a&nbsp;while, but my next will probably be <u>Learning The World: A Novel Of First Contact</u> by Ken MacLeod.</font></p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em><strong></strong></em></p> </div>

 

[jmilsom]

<p>Welcome asp3 above. Thanks for adding to the thread. You'll find a good proportion of the people on this forum are immature beyond their years. </p><p>And, 10stone5, let us know what you think of that book.</p><p>My thesis is taking the bulk of my time, but just read:</p><p>Title: Babel-17<br />Author: Samuel R. Delaney<br />First Published: 1966</p><p>A very interesting work by Delaney written when he was 24 years old and winner of the Nebula Award (can you imagine winning a Nebula at the age of 24!). This is an interesting book. It is the first I have read that explores linguistic variation and perceptual differences that derive therefrom, in a futuristic setting. The setting of the book is the distant future when humans are spread throughout a number of galaxies. There are two major regions at war. The Alliance side has started picking up transmissions in a strange language prior to each attack and the central theme of the novel is the attempt to decipher the language (Babel-17) to counter the threat. </p><p>This novel brims with creativity. The central exploration of the power of language is truly ingenious. However, I found the book overall to be somewhat incohesive, and the ending a bit of an anticlimax. With the exception of the main character Rydra Wong, I found the rest of the characters unengaging and dull. There are many interesting tangents (e.g. body modification, communication with discorporates), but I found some of these, particularly the exploration of future relationships to be quite tedious. I am surprised this is in the top ten of the Masterworks series. I far preferred Nova, which I consider to be a much more accompished work. An interesting read but not one of my favourites. </p><p>&nbsp;</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[StrandedonEarthsince1970]

I just finished reading "<u>Star Wars: Outbound Flight</u>" and all I have to say is that Zahn is the Thrawn of the Star Wars expanded universe! <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><em><strong>Now where on Earth did I park my UFO?</strong></em></p> </div>

 

[10_stone_5]

<p><em><font color="#0000ff"><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Haven't picked up anything in a&nbsp;while, but my next will probably be Learning The World: A Novel Of First Contact by Ken MacLeod. <br />Posted by 10_stone_5</DIV></font></em><br />I'm still working on getting this - as I've been pretty busy lately, but I'll let you know jmilson once I've perused it.</p><p>On a lark though I picked up <em>The Children of Men</em> by PD James.</p><p>Pretty amazing book considering she is really a british whodunit type of author. The film is probably better or at least it is more easily accessible, though the book is quite a good though difficult read. In many ways James takes a Conan Doyle approach to sci-fi which is very interesting, but also makes for a bit of a difficult read since there is a great deal of detail you need to pay attention to. </p><p>The upshot is I liked how Children of Men [the film] handled the climactic ending better than how James handled her original ending.</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em><strong></strong></em></p> </div>