more good post collapse YA
4 stars
I enjoyed this one slightly more than the first, since it didn't so quickly unwind into YA tropes. It did, however seem to delight in the details of civil war, child soldiers, and total failed states.
Reviews and Comments
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jonathan.brodsky@bookwyrm.social reviewed Agency by William Gibson, BA
"One of the most visionary, original, and quietly influential writers currently working" (The Boston …
its neuromancer 2
4 stars
Its interesting to see gibson circle back on his hit - this is very similar to neuromancer, but more grounded, and somehow set last year, or a few years ago even.
There is a minor grandpa vibes developing too. I don't think gibsons politics are bad, they just feel more visibly centrist than they were in the past.
jonathan.brodsky@bookwyrm.social reviewed The Vorrh by B. Catling
"The Vorrh follows a brilliant cast of characters through a parallel Africa where fact, fiction, …
Good
4 stars
I enjoyed this.
I had difficulty following the specific plots, particularly the points it was making about colonialism, but I really liked the texture of it.
jonathan.brodsky@bookwyrm.social reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries, #1)
In a corporate-dominated spacefaring future, planetary missions must be approved and supplied by the Company. …
good
3 stars
This was nice. Extremely pulp, but managed to get at some larger ideas.
In a world where magic has gone mainstream, a policewoman and a group of petty …
good nonsense
3 stars
I like this silly series. Glad that it is branching out to tell stories that aren't focused on the laundry and just set in the general world.
jonathan.brodsky@bookwyrm.social reviewed The crying of lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon (Perennial fiction library)
Review of 'The crying of lot 49' on 'GoodReads'
5 stars
I seem to recall enjoying vineland more, but this was still amazing.
Robert A. Heinlein wrote The Number of the Beast, which was published in 1980. In …
Review of 'The Fellowship of the Ring' on 'GoodReads'
4 stars
yeah, this book is really good, I guess there is a reason that so many people feel fondly about it, like the characters are friendly to each other and seem concern about each other. Its pretty refreshing.
jonathan.brodsky@bookwyrm.social reviewed Consider Phlebas by Iain M. Banks (Culture, #1)
The war raged across the galaxy. Billions had died, billions more were doomed. Moons, planets, …
Review of 'Consider Phlebas' on 'GoodReads'
2 stars
I don't know why I was under the impression that this was a super important part of the sci fi cannon. It had some interesting imagery in it, but it was pretty silly action movie sequences for the large part. I am curious how the culture grows in the other books though, there were enough of these written that some in them must have stuck.
jonathan.brodsky@bookwyrm.social reviewed The Power by Naomi Alderman
Review of 'The Power' on 'GoodReads'
4 stars
interesting flip of the handmaids tale.
jonathan.brodsky@bookwyrm.social reviewed White Noise by Don DeLillo
White Noise is the eighth novel by Don DeLillo, published by Viking Press in 1985. …
Review of 'White Noise' on 'GoodReads'
4 stars
I found this simultaneously a slog and super fascinating. The arc of the story reminded me of Ballard in a bunch of ways, it became increasingly hallucinatory as it went on, and was never truly grounded in the first place. Though it wallowed in mundanity in a way that reminded me of Ionesco for the first part of the book. I don't know that I could recommend it, and it possibly turned me off DeLillo forever, but its really hard to say. I think that there are moments from it that will stick with me for a long time, and that's really all I can ask for in a book.