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Author Topic: What readeth thee?  (Read 380 times)

Don Seer

What readeth thee?
« on: August 27, 2003, 02:43:51 PM »
hehe in the same vein as the thread in the main forum...

Right now i'm reading....

Bruce Sterling - Schismatrix Plus

Was hard work getting into it, a bit stop/start/stop/start but its picked up now..

brief precis..

its actually a book and short stories, the book is called Schismatrix and there are more stories in the same universe hence the Plus...

this is more me catching up my cyberpunk.. some 'classic' books i cant find tho :(

a review..

Quote
chismatrix Plus gathers Bruce Sterling's five "Shaper-Mechanist" short stories of the early 1980s with his 1985 Shaper-Mech novel Schismatrix. In these works Sterling launched a guerrilla raid on the comfortable conventions of science fiction. Sterling's future history is neither a bland techno-utopia nor a dreary post-apocalypse ruin. Schismatrix Plus portrays instead a future of constant upheaval, fueled by non-stop social and technological change, the hardships of life in space, and humanity's own restlessness.

In this future two factions vie for control of the solar system. The Shapers have "reshaped" themselves through genetic engineering, adopting such enhancements as superior intelligence, longevity and odor-free perspiration. In the other corner lurk the Mechanists, who prefer to gradually replace their mortal flesh with prosthetic limbs and artificial organs.

The hero of Schismatrix, Abelard Lindsay, is neither Shaper nor Mechanist but merely a rabble-rouser in exile from a backwater space habitat. His quick wits and Shaper schooling, however, make him a consummate con artist, politician and survivor. Making his way through a dense, ever-changing web of plots, conspiracies, feuds and occasional small-scale wars, Lindsay manages to outfox Shapers, Mechs and even the Investors, reptilian aliens so rapacious they make Star Trek's Ferengi look like the Sierra Club.

In his turbo-charged tour of the future, Sterling shows his genius for conjuring bizarre, unsettling yet plausible settings, from grubby spaceships infested with mutant cockroaches to incomprehensibly strange alien vistas. Humanity itself, however, becomes the ultimate fountainhead of strangeness as various self-made strains of "posthumanity" overshadow the squabbling Shapers and Mechs and the technologically stagnant Investors.

The short stories alone are worth the price of admission, though their relentlessly dark tone can be oppressive if read all at once. Schismatrix is more upbeat, leavened by humor, a likable main character and a sense of exhilaration over the unbounded possibilities of posthuman life. The novel suffers from a couple dull stretches in the first half, and while Abelard Lindsay makes for an appealing protagonist, readers seldom know what he truly thinks or feels. Such narrative distancing can lend a magisterial tone to a novel encompassing many characters, but Schismatrix frustrates at times by remaining tightly focused on Lindsay without ever getting inside his head. Still, Schismatrix packs a full load of wonder, entertainment and wild ideas.

Schismatrix Plus also includes an essay by Sterling in which he talks about his growth as a science fiction writer, how he attained a "hot and sticky ten-fingered grip on the genre" and "gnawed my way through the insulation and got my teeth set into the buzzing copper wire." As he often does, Sterling seems insufferably pleased with himself here. More than many writers, however, he has reason to be.

Much of Sterling's best work is collected here. A must-read for anyone interested in truly cutting-edge science fiction. -- Curt

seems fair.. slagged off the start like i did.. but in better words :)


« Last Edit: August 27, 2003, 02:45:25 PM by Overseer »
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Lord Funk

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Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #1 on: August 29, 2003, 02:20:19 PM »
Peter Ackroyd's London: The Biography. A fuck-off big tome covering practically the entire history of the city.

Just started it and am a couple of chapters in - already thinking it's the kind of thing I'm gonna have to just dip into here and there rather than trying to read cover-to-cover.

Oh, and not really the size of book you can take onto public transport and casually read... :)
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Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #2 on: August 29, 2003, 07:54:17 PM »
The sept. issue of FHM :D
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T.J.

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Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #3 on: August 30, 2003, 01:15:30 AM »
right now im reading Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird (school novel)
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The Big Bad Ass

Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #4 on: August 30, 2003, 01:49:26 AM »
Star Wars book called Dark Saber. But I have no idea off hand who the author is.
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Don Seer

Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #5 on: August 30, 2003, 02:03:18 AM »
^ something like timothy zahn? i know he's done quite a few.. havent read any star wars novels, i heard some jedi academy ones are real good though
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The Big Bad Ass

Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #6 on: August 30, 2003, 02:18:20 AM »
Actually, it's Kevin J Anderson. Says on the back "Praise For Kevin J Andersons Jedi Academy Trilogy". I just started reading it, so I can't tell you if it's any good :)... I did read a book called the Crystaline Planet when I was in High School that was written by Zahn, but I don't remember much about it. I'm ashamed to admit that it was probably 8 years ago since I finished it lol. Damn I'm old.
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Don Seer

Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #7 on: August 30, 2003, 02:36:23 AM »
ahh right.. he's written some diff ones then.. only name i could remember :)
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The Big Bad Ass

Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #8 on: August 30, 2003, 02:46:48 AM »
Zahn wrote a trilogy of books taking place 5 years after Return of the Jedi. Heir To The Empire. Dark Force Rising. The Last Command. Takes place between Return of the Jedi, and The Jedi Academy. I'm reading out of order :(. I'll have to track down those books. I'm glad you said something, or I wouldn't have had any clue there were some before this book. Got all this info from the back of my book btw. I'm not THAT big of a Star Wars nerd :)
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CRAFTY

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Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #9 on: August 30, 2003, 04:48:39 AM »
Got Your Back - Frank Alexander (Pac's bodyguard) It's actually about 8th time I read it.

The latest XXL issue...
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Adam Donnelly

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Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #10 on: August 30, 2003, 08:05:51 AM »
Sammy The Bull - Under Boss
Was my last book
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T-Dogg

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Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #11 on: August 30, 2003, 09:43:27 AM »
Just some novels for school, Finnish literature. Just finished one that was boring as hell... But also I'm reading "The Egyptian" by Mika Waltari. One of the few Finnish novels you can find worldwide and (so far) the only Finnish novel that's been made into a Hollywood movie (a couple decades ago.) I dunno if any of y'all have heard of it, but trust me - it's hella good. That coming from a man who hates to read books.
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Javier

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Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #12 on: August 30, 2003, 12:34:37 PM »
Silent Spring by Rachel Carson
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Entreri117

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Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #13 on: August 31, 2003, 04:04:10 AM »
"Halo: The Flood" by William C. Dietz.  A very good read for people who like war/action books.

This would be my second time reading it.
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Lincoln

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Re:What readeth thee?
« Reply #14 on: August 31, 2003, 05:52:12 AM »
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Most hip-hop is now keyboard driven, because the majority of hip-hop workstations have loops and patches that enable somebody with marginal skills to put tracks together,...

Unfortunately, most hip-hop artists gravitated towards the path of least resistance by relying on these pre-set patches. As a result, electric guitar and real musicians became devalued, and a lot of hip-hop now sounds the same.

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