Lost worlds and ports of call
Just finished Ramez Naam’s sequel to his superb 2012 novel Nexus, called Crux. Quite a breathtaking book in terms of near future ideas and non-stop action. Picking up a few months after the events in Nexus, the sequel rushes down the same paths, with many old characters plus a few new ones. Naam has narrative talent, and clearly a third book will follow.
Over at Wired, and interview with Margaret Atwood. Also, some notes from a panel on political fiction, with contributions from other writers.
This puts my small collection to shame.
A few years ago, when the number of Discworld books were below 20 and I was scouring used book stores for some of the early books, I bought only paperback. Since then, I have a few hard covers, but I still usually wait for the paperbacks, despite their awful covers. If I had the money, I could scrap all those books and get the collector’s library. Each volume is only 10 quid, which means they’ll be devilishly hard to get in the US.
I’ve been following Scott Bieser’s serialized online graphic novel, Quantum Vibe, since day one. This month the first volume of his panels was published as a book, available from the usual sources. Weighing in at 236 pages, the first volume focuses on Nicole, a young woman, often irresponsible and prone to drink and scenes, who embarks on a new career and life of adventure after getting dumped by her flake boyfriend.
In the aftermath of her depression and self-indulgance, she is fired and forced to look for new work. She interviews for a job as personal assistant to a peripatetic inventor/businessman, Dr. Seamus O’Murchadha, who has a bold and ambitious project that needs a pilot and all-around gopher. Young Nicole at first is overwhelmed, bt later accepts, and begins a journey that will take her from the sun and outward, with stops along the way at various planets and orbital stations. Continue reading
From the remarkable people at Subterranean Press, news about a vast anthology in the worlds of grandmaster sf writer Poul Anderson. Multiverse contains stories by writers like Greg Bear, Nancy Kress, Gregory Benford, and many others. Currently available as a pre-order, it will be available in limited and trade editions.
Book news round-up from NPR, including mention of a publishing company planning to bring back forgotten young adult novels from the 1930s onward.
Positive run-down on the Arthur C. Clarke Award shortlist, which seems fairly well-represented by dystopian fiction this year. Glad to see Ken MacLeod’s Intrusion among the books, even a front-runner, possibly.
Scientists build a small-scale robotic ant society. Having recently read Daniel Suarez’ novel Kill Decision, the implications are almost scary.
Interesting article at National Review, laying into sf movies and books with themes of the corporate as evil overload. Lists several books and movies with this theme, and then debunks the power of corporates. There is little coercive force behind corporations, but apologists of government force often splutter and come back with “but what about the evil influence of McDonalds or name-your-most-hated-company?” The power of the market is what they say they fear, but this really masks their distaste of popularity of things they don’t like.
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