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Conference noted::sf

Title:Arcana Caelestia
Notice:Directory listings are in topic 2
Moderator:NETRIX::thomas
Created:Thu Dec 08 1983
Last Modified:Fri Jun 06 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:1300
Total number of notes:18728

883.0. ""Hard" scifi summer reading" by DOOLIN::HNELSON () Thu Jun 21 1990 14:02

    I'm off Saturday for two weeks of vacation on our Maine island
    get-away. Ah, bliss.
    
    Tonight, the wife-object and kid-objects and I are going to the
    bookstore to stock up on reading material, and I'm faced with my usual
    problem: how to sift the dreck from the good stuff. I know there's lots
    of "best" topics in this conference, and I'll refer to them if y'all
    don't come to my aid, but nonetheless I'll ask: What scifi books should
    I buy?
    
    To give you some sense of my taste, my favorites are Niven, Varley,
    Scheffield (sp?), Brin, and Card. I guess this is "hard" scifi. Can
    anyone please point out some authors I'd probably enjoy? I probably
    want to buy about eight books.
    
    Thanks - Hoyt
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883.1Here's a couple of suggestionsCIM::GEOFFREYBeware the robots of CricketThu Jun 21 1990 14:2020
    
    	I highly recommend "Boat of a Million Years" and if I recall
    correctly was written by Anderson. The book deals with immortality,
    every once in a while someone is born you never dies. The story traces
    the lives of these immortals from the Phonecian days to our future.
    I am not sure if it is out in paperback yet. Maybe you could get it at
    a library. 
    
       You might also want to reread the Asimov robot/empire/foundation
    novels. I just did, following the reading order that was recommended in
    "The Prelude to the Foundation" it was very good. I just went to my
    local library and checked each book out. 
    
	You might also want to read Renedevouz with Rama and Rama II by A.
    Clarke.
    
    
    
    					jim
    
883.2Any others, please?!!?!DOOLIN::HNELSONThu Jun 21 1990 14:3211
    Oh yeah: I like Clarke and have read all of his stuff. 
    
    Strangely, I can't abide Asimov. His books read like he wrote them in a
    month (which he apparently does) and he appears to have a contract with
    his publisher which prohibits editing. The Foundation series was my
    original taste of SF and here it is 25 years later! On re-reading,
    though, I lost a lot of respect.
    
    Just my humble opinion, and thanks for the suggestions.
    
    - Hoyt
883.3"Earth" by BrinBIGRED::PARKERThu Jun 21 1990 14:331
    Try EARTH, by David Brin.  I hear it is a good read.
883.4DIR/TITLE=topicnameWRKSYS::KLAESThe Universe, or nothing!Thu Jun 21 1990 15:455
    	SF Topics already related to this Topic:
    
    	38, 98, 126, 140, 179, 236, 240, 246, 287, 562, 577, 634, 645, 
    and 767.
    
883.58^)DOOLIN::HNELSONThu Jun 21 1990 17:029
    Hi, Klaes!
    
    Thanks for the referrals. I extracted most of the notes, yielding 835
    blocks comprising 8276 lines. That seems like a bit much to review, but
    it also is certainly too much to ask people to recapitulate. Anyway,
    the problem is solved: I'll just read the extracted notes during my
    summer vacation!
    
    - Hoyt
883.6John Varley - Titan/Demon/Wizard trilogyEXIT26::STRATTONPlaying golf with Eric ClaptonFri Jun 22 1990 01:431
        
883.7BSS::COLLUMOscar's only ostrich oiled an orange owl todayFri Jun 22 1990 16:4323
    I really enjoyed these:
    
    Walter Jon Williams - Hardwired                  !!
    			  Angel Station
    			  Voice of the Whirlwind
    			  Ambassador of Progress
    
    William Gibson	- Neuromancer                !!
    			  Count Zero
    			  Burning Chrome (shorts)
    
    John Varley		- Titan/Wizard/Demon         !!!
    			  Millenium                  !!
    			  Blue Champagne (shorts)    
    			  The Persistance of Vision (shorts)
    
    Rebecca Ore		- Becoming Alien
    
    Robert Silverburg	- At Winter's End
    
    These are the most recent goods reads for me.  Enjoy your trip!
    
    Will
883.8There is still another book coming out for the 2nd seriesPFLOYD::ROTHBERGI want my license back!!!Fri Jun 22 1990 17:2825
                
                I'm ALWAYS  suggesting Roger Zelazny's Chronicles
                of Amber
                
                Nine Princes in Amber
                Guns of Avalon 
                Sign of the Unicord
                Hand of Oberon
                Courts of Chaos
                
                are the first and best five, and the 2nd series
                
                Trumps of Doom
                Sign of Chaos
                Blood of Amber
                Knight of Shadows
                
                I think I  have  the  last four titles right, but
                I'm not sure if  they  are  in  the proper order.
                That would keep you busy!    The  first  5 are my
                absolute  favorite  series,  the  last  four  are
                enjoyable, but nowhere near as good...
                
                
883.9COMET::JOHNSTONWonFarfugIsKnotEnuf! WhoIsTooBlam?!Fri Jun 22 1990 19:3811
   C J Cherryh has a new book out called Rimrunner. I bought it, but
   haven't read it yet. Am re-reading Ringworld and Ringworld Engineers.
   Also, have bought but not read the Man-Kzin wars (from Niven's
   Universe) but written by such people as Poul Anderson, Ing (forgot his
   first name) and Jerry Pournelle.

   Poul Anderson's Boat of a Million years sounds good (it won something
   or other.... Nebula?) anyway, it's not out in paperback yet, and I buy
   too many damned books to be purchasing hardbacks.

   Mike JN
883.10SA1794::CHARBONNDUnless they do it again.Sat Jun 23 1990 18:075
    I'll add to note 7
    
    >Becoming Alien  by Rebecca Ore
    
    The sequel, Being Alien, is also very good.
883.11BSS::COLLUMOscar's only ostrich oiled an orange owl todayMon Jun 25 1990 15:433
    re -1  Cool, I was wondering...
    
    Will
883.12Spider Robinson = not muchDOOLIN::HNELSONMon Jul 09 1990 18:094
    Thanks all! I'm back from my vacation (four SF, five "other" books) but
    there's plenty of summer left for reading.
    
    - Hoyt