Post
Thu Dec 11, 2014 8:26 am
#271
Re: Books!
I'm afraid I haven't read either of those. Totally losing my Nerdcard.
sounds like Ian Banks' culture series.Surface Reflection wrote: Ever heard about a ship called Prosthetic Conscience ? How about No More Mr Nice Guy ? Honest Mistake? Ethics Gradient ? So Much For Subtlety? or one of my favorites... Frank Exchange Of Views?
Now, those are some ships, let me tell you. What a bunch of characters
Those are indeed Iain M. Banks characters, yes.Cornflakes_91 wrote:sounds like Ian Banks' culture series.Surface Reflection wrote: Ever heard about a ship called Prosthetic Conscience ? How about No More Mr Nice Guy ? Honest Mistake? Ethics Gradient ? So Much For Subtlety? or one of my favorites... Frank Exchange Of Views?
Now, those are some ships, let me tell you. What a bunch of characters
i'd have to finally read the series... not only one book out of a giant universe.Scytale wrote: Those are indeed Iain M. Banks characters, yes.
Man, I'd love to recommend it without inhibition, but I have to tell you in my opinion they're awesome about 50% of the time. They're kind of hit and miss, I think.Cornflakes_91 wrote:i'd have to finally read the series... not only one book out of a giant universe.Scytale wrote: Those are indeed Iain M. Banks characters, yes.
Use of Weapons is indeed one of the most important novels of Science Fiction ever written. But it is a hard story to read. Deals with some very heavy themes and isnt actiony or entertaining like some trashy pulpy sci-fi. Definitely not a material for those that search for usual mass market "fun".Scytale wrote: Man, I'd love to recommend it without inhibition, but I have to tell you in my opinion they're awesome about 50% of the time. They're kind of hit and miss, I think.
But I would definitely recommend, out of the culture series: the Player of Games, and Excession. I have a friend who would recommend Use of Weapons above all things but I disagree, not that it was a bad book. Consider Phlebas I think is an excellently meaningful book, but I never really liked it very much.
Hah, i certainly hope not.Flatfingers wrote:Gotcha.
In Limit Theory, we will be more like Helga....
That's interesting, I didn't perceive it that way. Maybe I should give it another read - doing that certainly seemed to help in the case of Consider Phlebas.Surface Reflection wrote:
Use of Weapons is indeed one of the most important novels of Science Fiction ever written. But it is a hard story to read. Deals with some very heavy themes and isnt actiony or entertaining like some trashy pulpy sci-fi. Definitely not a material for those that search for usual mass market "fun".
Sure - I prefer putting the M. in because I haven't read his literary fiction and get the strong impression his science fiction bibliography is in a wholly different paradigm, and since he used different names for his two paradigms, I think it's important for us to recognize that. But it's splitting hairs, hey.(he only used the M when writing Culture novels...)
And now I have the information I needed to know that I don't need to read those novels.Scytale wrote:My problem with the Banks science fiction novels is that (I think) he uses his (very inventive) ideas to push agendas rather than as an exploration.
Definitely. That novel is more of a character study set in a tragedy then some type of action SF, like Excession is a super fast mega ultra super hyper space ships battles porn like nothing else ever written.Scytale wrote: That's interesting, I didn't perceive it that way. Maybe I should give it another read - doing that certainly seemed to help in the case of Consider Phlebas.
I agree with this part. Dune is also one of the supreme titles of SF. I would say they both belong to the top 100 list.I tend to be a broken record in how I think Dune holds the supreme title -snipped-
Yeah i know about that kind of critique for Ian`s Culture series. I dont see any of it in them. Those are false accusations that dont have any truth to them. He was on the left/socialist part of the political spectrum during life, so some dumbasses criticized his Culture novels as being some sort of "socialist propaganda" which i find utterly laughable.My problem with the Banks science fiction novels is that (I think) he uses his (very inventive) ideas to push agendas rather than as an exploration.
No problem, i was just explaining that small detail so others dont get confused about it.I prefer putting the M. in because I haven't read his literary fiction and get the strong impression his science fiction bibliography is in a wholly different paradigm, and since he used different names for his two paradigms, I think it's important for us to recognize that. But it's splitting hairs, hey.
Never to know a Mind... never to watch rapid offensive units dishing justice... never to meet Cheradenine Zakalwe... never to see a GSV do what they are really meant to do, never to see Excession... never to meet Gray Area, ... an Orbital...Flatfingers wrote:Although I've read a pretty fair amount of science fiction, I haven't read any of the "Culture" novels.
And now I have the information I needed to know that I don't need to read those novels.
I hear you. For the record I've read all his science fiction works (in case I didn't make that clear), and typically I find his non-culture novels to be more reliably well-told. Feersum Endjinn was a masterpiece (and would certainly agree I didn't detect any sort of agenda) and Algebraist holds a special place for me as just an excellent adventure story.Yeah i know about that kind of critique for Ian`s Culture series. I dont see any of it in them. Those are false accusations that dont have any truth to them. He was on the left/socialist part of the political spectrum during life, so some dumbasses criticized his Culture novels as being some sort of "socialist propaganda" which i find utterly laughable.
Since you havent read his books but a few, it seems to me you also saw such false critiques and then found some details in his stories that seemed to support such slander. But in reality... there is nothing of it in the series. Those kinds of slanders are the same as if i would say that Frank Herbert was some sort of Islamist. The Culture is not a bloody socialist society :snort: ... its a super advanced civilization that exists in complete abundance of resources due to its super advanced technology. There is no money in Culture because it would be hyper idiotic to have money when you can have everything without any problems. Not because its a frakking socialist utopia.
This is a good summary of the general sense of the Culture novels. His talent is also taking this concept and wrapping it around a sub-concept which he may address in a given novel, which is what I think makes Player of Games so exceptional. Flat - what I said about agendas doesn't apply to all his novels in my view, and if the inclination struck you to read just one I'd recommend Player of Games. But, as with all things, fancy latin proverb about taste.The novels explore what life in such a civ would be and what that kind of civ would have to deal with. It explores how humans as we are would live in such a civ where they can have everything they want whenever they want, including immortality. It explores what if such a civ would meddle. And meddle HARD.
Opinion time!Graf wrote:Yeah... but Dune had Muad'Dib. A name and a weapon. Hard to beat that.
(mmmuuuuuUUUUAAAAAAAAAADDD' DIIIB! *Over image of Dirty Harry with magnum* )
I recently picked up A Player of Games, but I haven't read it yet. I did notice that Surface Detail was one of his books... (Nods name reference) I kind of like Alastair Reynolds' stuff, and Banks seemed to be in a similar vein so I decided to try out his books. Are they of similar caliber?
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