By Spider Robinson. (1) Callahan's
Crosstime Saloon; (2) Time Travelers Strictly Cash; (3) Callahan's Secret; others
I haven't bought yet.
How can you go wrong when you write
stories about mutants, aliens, and time travelers, who all have one thing in
common: they all drink too much...? These books of short stories are a quick
and entertaining read. The characters are all sympathetic and you'll never anticipate
the plot twists Spider Robinson throws at you. Despite an unforgivable arsenal
of bad puns, there are tons of genuinely funny -- in fact side-splitting --
jokes and situations in these stories.
By Joan D. Vinge. (1) Catspaw;
(2) Psion; another new one I haven't read yet.
This is an example of true science-fiction
at its best, where crucial issues of the here-and-now are dressed up in futuristic
allegory and presented for your consideration. This set of books tackles problems
like homelessness, religious fanaticism and intolerance, urban blight and environmental
devastation, and corporatization all at once. Plus the punk street kid hero
really resonates with a lot of people. A must.
This is the book that most people
cite as the quintessential "classic sci-fi" story. (Postmodern fiction
is a little different.) The author of 2001 presents a spellbinding
vision of man's development and potential as a race, in both scientific and
psychic terms. Still the characters are never lost in the shuffle (although
they're not as engaging or fleshed-out, IMHO, as the ones in, say, Catspaw).
This book is really unusual in that
it was written by an actual scientist instead of a scientific aficionado (like
most sci-fi) or an engineer (like Ringworld, etc.) It reads like a scientist
wrote it, but I felt it was well worth the effort of putting up with the dry
writing style. The book differs from the recent movie starring Jodie Foster
in several ways. First, the aliens' reaction to human TV transmissions was very
interesting: they were wise enough to see the images and realize what Nazism
implied; yet they heard the music (Beethoven) accompanying the images, and knew
there was some hope for humans. That point was all-but edited out of the movie.
Second, I'm spoiling one aspect of the conclusion here, but I found the mere
idea fascinating that an intelligent signal might be embedded in a universal
constant like pi (another detail that was completely cut out of the
movie).
By Orson Scott Card. (1) Ender's
Game; (2) Speaker for the Dead; (3) Xenocide; (4) Children of the Mind.
An amazing glimpse into the soul
of mankind, as exposed when we encounter various alien races in the future.
The military mindset and the fine line between beast and sapient are the focus
of this series. Time after time Card exposes the reasoning and motivations of
the various antagonists, alien and human, and turns them into sympathetic characters
when the heroes choose the moral course of action.
Try to forget about the mediocre
TV movie loosely based on this novel. This is a hilarious book about a stopwatch
that stops time for everybody except its owners. The characters and comic situations
come through so much better via the book. And the book goes completely over-the-top
in a way the TV censors never allow... let's just say, 'hilarity and nudity
ensue'. An extremely well-written book.
This is a rare old book by the
author of When Worlds Collide. People theorize that it was among the
inspirations for the character of Superman. It's the life story of a man born
with superhuman strength and invulnerability, and like Hercules, it basically
causes him nothing but grief. Quite an entertaining read, though.
By Douglas Adams. (1) The Hitch-Hiker's
Guide to the Galaxy; (2) The Restaurant at the End of the Universe; (3) Life,
the Universe, and Everything; (4) So Long, and Thanks for All The Fish; (5)
Mostly Harmless.
These books are the living embodiment
of that maxim that "the universe is not only stranger than we imagine,
it is stranger than we can imagine". Douglas Adams originates unforgettably
comic characters and grinds them through every sci-fi cliche in existence in
this side-splittingly funny satire that approaches the sophistication of Gulliver's
Travels, but with a ton more belly laughs. The last book in the series,
Mostly Harmless, is kind of a let-down, Douglas Adams said he was very
depressed for personal reasons when he wrote it. But the first three books have
rightly earned their status as a kind of sci-fi cultural icon.
I would also recommend "The
Salmon of Doubt," a collection of Douglas Adams' writings for various magazines
plus some half-finished stories pulled off his hard drive after his untimely
early death. Every once in awhile this posthumous collection reminds us of the
severity of our loss, but on the whole his writing is so upbeat that it's hard
to stay depressed. Doug, we miss you.
By Robert Anton Shea and [?] Wilson.
Usually packaged as one thick book instead of three.
You're never sure for a minute
in this saga whether the author is just spewing free association while on serious
drugs, cracking uproarious satire, crafting subtle social commentary, or dropping
veiled hints about real-life secret societies of powerbrokers. It's probably
a combination of all of the above. I've always wanted to name a computer server
after one of the computer characters in this book, called "F.U.C.K.U.P.-Leviathan".
No doubt it's hard to get through if you're not in the right mood, but if you
are, it sings.
One of a few novels that basically
foresaw and spawned the real-life notion of Cyberspace. Gibson has written several
other books in this vein, but this was by far the one I enjoyed the most, about
the struggle of an artificial intelligence to make itself smarter.
By Arthur Conan Doyle. Various
books and short stories including "When The World Screamed," "The
Lost World," and others.
The author of Sherlock Holmes actually
hated his Baker Street detective, and preferred some of his other creations,
including this hirsute irascible professor who brawls his way through Victorian
sci-fi threats. At least on a par with Doyle's more famous hero. A cheesy sci-fi
series on TV right now is loosely based on "The Lost World," but Professor
Challenger was a much more major character in the original story.
By Larry Niven. Various
books and short stories including "Ringworld," "The Ringworld
Engineers," "Neutron Star," "All the Myriad Ways,"
"Convergent Series," and more.
Niven practically coined a new
genre when he came out with Known Space, a series of stories (including the
Ringworld stories) set in an exquisitely detailed universe with a rich
history and an interesting future for Earth society. Niven pretty much single-handedly
introduced the concept of "continuity" to science-fiction: where you
have a consistent back story and setting, which totally diverse and unrelated
stories draw upon. After reading a few of these books, you'll feel like you've
rubbed elbows with aliens like the Kzinti, the Tnuctupin, the Puppeteers, and
so on.
A Scanner Darkly
By Philip K. Dick.
This incredible book is about people
hooked on a drug called "Substance D"...
(I love that name; ya gotta
wonder what happened to the people who tried Substances A through C)...
Among the drug's side effects, it
makes its users schizophrenic (more technically, gives them a split personality).
The main character is Bob Arctor, a deep-undercover narcotics officer whose
police agency goes to extreme lengths to protect his anonymity while he's reporting.
With the combination of these two procedures, the narc is eventually narc-ing
on himself and he doesn't even realize it. It's unbelievable how well Philip
K. Dick pulls off this patent absurdity. The result reads something like a 21st-century
Trainspotting. Besides that aspect, it makes you wonder about questions
of identity and how your identity changes with your surroundings. Plus it's
a great allegory of how the real-life Drug War fits that Nietzsche quote about
doing battle with monsters. Nobody comes off clean in this book. I have to make
it a point to read more by this author (Blade Runner, or Do Androids Dream
of Electric Sheep, is probably his most famous work).
Another one of the books which
presaged Cyberspace, this thick volume is an amazing exploration of the near
future when governments compete for customer/citizens alongside with big business;
the disenfranchised populace kills its brain cells on drugs and pop entertainment;
somebody is walking around with a personal nuclear device; and a villain has
introduced an amazing information virus that strikes down computers and human
brains with equal effectiveness.
Crystal Express
By Bruce Stirling.
This book of short stories by one
of the originators of the cyberpunk genre is an excellent example of the sci-fi
writer's craft.
This author also wrote a fiction
book called "Zodiac" which I thought was top-rate. However, it's not
on my "fiction books" page because I didn't think it really changed
my life. Honorable mention, though.
By Harry Harrison. (1) The Adventures
of the Stainless Steel Rat; (2) The Stainless Steel Rat Wants You!; (3) The
Stainless Steel Rat for President; (4) The Stainless Steel Rat Gets Drafted.
Harry Harrison must be quite the
wiseacker, because these books are filled with cynical yet warmhearted comedy
about the future's best planet-hopping burglar. Each book is broken up into
smaller, independent novellas, so they make a fast read. And they can't help
but inspire ideas for practical jokes and mayhem in our own high-tech, bureaucratic
culture.
If "Childhood's End" is
the quintessential Classic Sci-Fi story, then this one is the quintessential
Modern one. A human child raised by Martians brings a mind-blowing
spirituality to Earth by synthesizing Martian and Human philosophies. A well-thought
and uplifting book.
Uplift series
1
By David Brin. (1) Sundiver; (2)
Startide Rising; (3) The Uplift War.
Speaking of Uplifting, this opus
by David Brin showcases an amazing concept: the intelligent races of the galaxy,
including humans, "Uplifting" more primitive ones by a system of patronage
and genetic engineering. But the intricate social systems of the alien races
take a back seat to the unforgettable characters populating these novels. The
aliens really act like aliens, the humans show off a hopeful future, and the
dolphin characters are so unique, not stereotypical but so individual,
that I felt like I could read a whole 'nother book about each of the characters.
To be more specific, the second
book, Startide Rising, the only one about the dolphins, is among the
top ten best books I've ever read. The third book is cool but not epic; and
the first one is a bit of a log, actually. Brin's written some other stinkers
in his time as well. (Stay away from The Practice Effect!) But don't
pass up Startide Rising if you can help it.
Uplift series 2
By David Brin. (1) Brightness Reef;
(2) Infinity's Shore; (3) Heaven's Reach.
I hear word that a lot of people
didn't feel Brin's second Uplift trilogy was a worthy successor to the first.
My response is, hey, take it easy on the guy -- we all knew that Startide
Rising would be just about impossible to top. Just like "The Simpsons"
versus "Futurama," the blinding energy from the first one eclipses
the fact that the second one is worthwhile in its own right, even though it's
not as world-shaking as the original.
The planet Jijo, which the series
revolves around, is a pretty unique vision of racial tolerance and respect for
the environment. And the answers to the cosmic questions raised by Startide
Rising are slow in coming... (very slow), but they're there, eventually,
and they turn out to be pretty mature and sublime social conundrums.
The first series gave us a glimpse
of a vast galaxy full of wonders; this series takes us on a tour and shows us
a fascinating life cycle of entire intelligent species, creatures like us and
creatures not at all like us joining in a common destiny. I'll remember this
trilogy for some time yet.
The River of Time
By David Brin.
This book of short stories, like
the author's entire career, is a little hit-or-miss. But when he's on, he's
really on, and at least three of these stories have stuck with
me for decades. Check out "The Crystal Spheres," "Lungfish,"
and (believe it or not), "Thor Meets Captain America." You won't regret
them.
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