Eat any good books lately Worf?

[Rocketboy1313]

I just finished and can heartily recommend "We are Legion (We are Bob)" by Dennis E. Taylor. It is about a guy's mind and memories being used as a template for a space faring AI and his explorations of the universe. It is a story about a smart person given cool resources and going on an interesting adventure(s). I loved it.

Thanks for the suggestion. I've been seeing that pop up in my Audible recommendations recently, have picked it up and will give it a listen on the drive home.

To reemphasize my endorsement. After finishing the first book I tried to listen to something else "The Left Hand of Darkness" which is an iconic sci-fi classic, got too bored with "Darkness" and instead bought the "Bob" sequel, "For we are Many" and finished it in two days.

The last of the trilogy comes out later this year and I am eager for it. I think it must have been written as 1 big book and they broke it up because there is next to zero re-cap of book 1 in book 2. Things carry forward as if there was no interruption.

[Rocketboy1313]

I know that I have now posted 3 times in a row but I wanted to complain about the book "Ready Player One".

This thing needs a pruning. Constantly redundant lines, lists upon lists of nerd bullshit, over explaining basic sci-fi stuff that is easily part of a cultural lexicon. I have no idea how this thing is super popular and I am the target audience, as I already know large amounts of the trivia he is explaining.

[Fixer]

I just finished and can heartily recommend "We are Legion (We are Bob)" by Dennis E. Taylor. It is about a guy's mind and memories being used as a template for a space faring AI and his explorations of the universe. It is a story about a smart person given cool resources and going on an interesting adventure(s). I loved it.

Thanks for the suggestion. I've been seeing that pop up in my Audible recommendations recently, have picked it up and will give it a listen on the drive home.

To reemphasize my endorsement. After finishing the first book I tried to listen to something else "The Left Hand of Darkness" which is an iconic sci-fi classic, got too bored with "Darkness" and instead bought the "Bob" sequel, "For we are Many" and finished it in two days.

The last of the trilogy comes out later this year and I am eager for it. I think it must have been written as 1 big book and they broke it up because there is next to zero re-cap of book 1 in book 2. Things carry forward as if there was no interruption.

Finished the first audio book on my drive to work this morning. Was going to say. Interesting concept, good characters and has piqued my interest to continue into the sequel so far. However it just stops at the founding of the colony without any definitive conclusion.

With the multiple parallel story lines it reads more like a shared universe comic serial which is generally heading in some sort of direction but without any sort of true endgame or goal in sight.

It's still a good Audio book but I'd put the Expeditionary Force series far ahead. Tighter writing, great application of real world physics problems in a "sufficiently advanced technology" setting and an excellent narration by R.C. Bray.

[Rocketboy1313]

I did not recognize "Expeditionary Force" when you first mentioned it, but I looked over the series names and I already have the first one on my wish list.

It is almost like we are both fans of science fiction, talking to one another on the message boards of a website all about science fiction for all the things that seem to overlap.

[Admiral X]

"The Left Hand of Darkness" struck me as really odd in how it handled differences in gender by presenting some really odd ideas about what it meant to be masculine and feminine. At different points it manages to come off as both misogynist and misandrist, which is somewhat unique as far as what I've seen or read.

[Fixer]

I did not recognize "Expeditionary Force" when you first mentioned it, but I looked over the series names and I already have the first one on my wish list.

It is almost like we are both fans of science fiction, talking to one another on the message boards of a website all about science fiction for all the things that seem to overlap.

People of similar interests meet in the strangest of places sometimes

I picked up the second Bobiverse audiobook. It finished much better than the first and introduced a real challenge for the collected Bobs to overcome in the future. Looking forward to the third.

Also finished Children of Time. Not a bad book overall. The best parts were definitely the uplifted spiders and how their alien perspectives evolved with their civilization. Also how their technology evolved in an entirely separate way.

The human story was average in comparison. Reasonable sci-fi as it progressed on the hundreds of years of re-awakenings on the colony ship, but let down by a couple of cliched authority characters.

Ending left me a bit ambivalent. The solution had some serious moral questions which weren't really thought though or discussed. Overall though, the book is worth reading for the uplifted spider's unique alien mindset alone.

Anyway, that's two high concept sci-fi series in a row. I feel I need some pulp Sci-Fi to cleanse the palate

[Rocketboy1313]

I would like to note that I asked for my first ever refund on a book I hated. "Ready Player One" is fucking garbage and I have no idea in Heaven why it is so well reviewed and selling so well. It is billed as a comedy, it is not. There are no jokes, there are references.

YOU KNOW WHAT? NOT EVEN REFERENCES. There are lists of things. A reference is when you have have Bruce Wayne offhandedly mention Metropolis to Richard Grayson, "Player One" LISTS things. There is an entire chapter that is just lists of movies, authors, and games. No jokes, no clever analysis, just lists. The main character is intolerable, and the author over did it on the underdog element, the universe is comically downtrodden and the main character is the bottom of the bottom of the heap.

It is crap.

"The Left Hand of Darkness" struck me as really odd in how it handled differences in gender by presenting some really odd ideas about what it meant to be masculine and feminine. At different points it manages to come off as both misogynist and misandrist, which is somewhat unique as far as what I've seen or read.

We're coming up on the 50th anniversary of it being written. It is probably just a case of "Sociology marches on".
I have less an issue with the presentation of the 1 idea (society without sex & gender) and more an issue with the fact that the story is just dull. I don't need action scenes, but something funny or some new element that was previously unseen (like the scientists who made the society like this, or some other looming threat) to give it some pop.

[Admiral X]

I'm almost done on a reread of "The Keep." While the movie was cheesy goodness I couldn't help but love, the book is much better (as is usually the case anyway). It's sad that it didn't get a proper adaptation. Part of me would like to see it as an anime. They could easily get a full season out of it.

[LittleRaven]

I love The Keep. That book a wonderful self-contained story. Great characters, a good plot...I reread that one every few years. Always a good time.

I'm currently finishing off The Great Ordeal. I totally agree with the person who said that Scott Bakker's books are not dark and gritty, they're pitch black and sticky. Jesus his books are good for destroying your faith in humanity. But very well-written.

[Rocketboy1313]

"Ubik" reads like a book written by a paranoid schizophrenic addicted to amphetamines.
Makes sense, it is a Philip K Dick novel.