The Last Theorem by Arthur C. Clarke and Frederik Pohl

The Last Theorem by Arthur C. Clarke and Frederik Pohl. New York: Ballantine Books/DelRey, 2008. ISBN: 978-0-345-47021-8

This is one of the most congenial SciFi novels I've read in a long time. Meaning it's just a pleasant read (for the most part, anyway, with only a couple of minor exceptions, such as the period where poor Ranjit, our hero, is mistakenly locked up and “interrogated” as a suspected terrorist), entertaining, and intriguing all at once. Not to mention that it's the first, last, and only collaboration between these two science fiction greats, grandmasters both. This alone makes it essential reading for all serious science fiction buffs, such as myself.

Much, even most of the story takes place on the island of Sri Lanka, Arthur C. Clarke's chosen home for many decades. Unfortunately, he had passed on by the time this book made it into print.

Our primary protagonist is a brilliant young mathematician, who lives an eventful, but satisfying life. Among his accomplishments is finally solving Fermat's Last Theorem, one of the perennially classic mathematical challenges. In fact, he actually comes up with with the proof while in prison, suffering from those currently infamous “enhanced” interrogation techniques.

That wouldn't be enough on its own for a good SciFi story, though. What makes the novel more interesting is the fact that we (the human race, that is) have inadvertently and unknowingly come to the attention of the galactic civilization, such as it is, and they have decided that we are likely to be dangerous, and should be quickly snuffed out. There are interesting scientific developments going on here on earth, as well, such as the construction of the first “space elevator,” an actual cable stretching into earth orbit territory, which makes it possible to lift large masses of material into space much less expensively than with rockets.

How these various elements come together into a satisfyingly happy ending keeps you guessing all along the way. Definitely recommended essential reading for SciFi aficionados.

Identity Theft by Robert J. Sawyer

Identity Theft and Other Stories by Robert J. Sawyer. Calgary, Alberta, Canada: Red Deer Press, 2008. ISBN: 978-0-88995-411-3

Here we have another collection of short stories, in this case by Canada's preeminent Science Fiction author, Mr. Robert J. Sawyer. These are good stories, by and large, well written and entertaining. In addition to working as SciFi, some are also mysteries, some lean a bit in the horror direction, and some (at least one) are just plain jokes.

Several of the mysteries take place on Mars, a barren, desolate Mars where everyone mostly lives in one big domed city, but people go out on the regular surface hunting rare Martian fossils, from a brief period of life eons before. The other twist on these Martian stories involves transferring one's complete memory matrix into android bodies, and the complications that ensue for the private eye who has to untangle them.

In another story, the man left behind after such a transfer has a change of heart, and wants his life back. Unfortunately, he is no longer a legal entity, with no rights or standing whatsoever, beyond the right to live out his life in seclusion, in luxurious surroundings as a nonentity. He resorts to drastic action to attempt to persuade the powers that be, including his android replacement to reverse course.

Another story involves the first Catholic priest on Mars, who resorts to a miracle to enhance his status. And yet another is a sequel to H.G. Wells's The Time Machine. And yet another, “Immortality,” is from an anthology of tales by different authors based on Janis Ian songs. One brief humorous bit is a setup for classic awful pun based on the name of a very famous and prolific golden era SciFi author.

And that's just a taste of what's in store for the reader of this fine little collection. While I wouldn't probably call any of the stories here masterpieces, they are more than worth the time it takes to peruse them. Definitely recommended for all SciFi aficionados.

Steampunk edited by Ann & Jeff VanderMeer

Steampunk edited by Ann & Jeff VanderMeer. San Francisco: Tachyon Publications, 2008. ISBN: 978-1-892391-75-9

This sub-genre-driven collection contains a brief preface by the editors, a more detailed introduction by Jess Nevins, in which he traces the roots of the genre in areas that are probably relatively unfamiliar even to most modern practitioners, and concludes with two bibliographical essays, the first of which lists instances of steampunk in modern culture, including online on the Internet, in gaming, especially role playing games of the D&D variety, on TV and in film, and the second of which surveys “the genre within the comic book medium.”

In between are 13 steampunk stories, the first and last of which are excerpts from larger works. Their copyright dates range from 1971 to 2007. So what is steampunk, exactly? Basically, it's science fiction set in the Victorian age, with marvelous machines, often (but not nearly always) steam driven, and frequently alternate universes or worlds in which such advanced technologies existed in an earlier era than in ours.

The Jess Nevins introduction describes The Difference Engine, by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling as “still the finest expression of the genre yet written,” an assessment with which I must sincerely agree. The Difference Engine is a must read for anyone interested in science fiction at all, and is canonical within the sub-genre. It's quite simply a wonderful book, not to be missed.

As to the rest of the examples provided here, well, I could live without many of them. They offer sometimes intriguing, sometimes less than intriguing views of various steampunk universes. There were many entertaining moments along the way as I read my way through this collection, but no epiphanies, no discoveries of writers or stories so amazing or wonderful that I felt compelled to seek out more of the same.

If, on the other hand, steampunk is your thing, you'll find much to admire here. I think my favorite stories were Michael Chabon's “The Martian Agent, a Planetary Romance” and Stepan Chapman's “Minutes of the Last Meeting,” although the both had (in my view) unsatisfactory endings. The first just sort of trickles off (one charitably assumes it's just the first part of a much larger saga), and the second ends altogether too dramatically, in a denouement that makes the entire story up to that point an exercise in futility.

Still, this collection is recommended for anyone interested in exploring this fascinating, albeit (in my view) ultimately dead-end sub-genre within the larger science fiction universe.

Spook Country by William Gibson

Spook Country by William Gibson. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-399-15430-0

The only subject heading that (presumably) the Library of Congress bothered to assign to this, William Gibson's new novel, is Intelligence Officers—Fiction. And that's hardly what the book is about. It involves one or two (intelligence officers, that is), or perhaps wannabees or has beens, but they are only peripherally what the book is about. So what is it about?

It's about a new form of conceptual, virtual geo-referenced art. Art that is only visible if you're wearing some form of virtual reality gear. Virtual art that only exists (virtually) in a particular place and perhaps, time.

It's about a shipping container, one of those big rectangular, railroad car sized containers that travel around the world on container ships. This particular container is being tracked by various individuals for reasons that don't become clear until almost the end of the story.

It's about people playing espionage games in New York, then suddenly, near the denouement, moving abruptly to Vancouver, British Columbia. Which is where the various plot streams, and disparate characters all finally come together in a dramatic, and action-paced finale.

This latest Gibson tome is honestly more of a suspense novel, than it is science fiction, since most of it could be happening right now, in today's world. At least, for me it's hard to tell where the current reality ends, and any science fiction elements begin. But that's OK.

The book works. At the beginning, as is often the case with Gibson, it's hard to tell what's happening, where it's going, what the point is. The disparate characters are each leading their disparate and often bewildering lives, and you're not at all sure what the point of it all is. But knowing Gibson, you know that there IS a point, and that all will eventually become—if not entirely clear—at least clear-ER. Definitely recommended, especially for fans of previous Gibson novels. Must reading for all science fiction aficionados.

Ascendancies by Bruce Sterling

Ascendancies: The Best of Bruce Sterling by Bruce Sterling. Burton, Michigan: Subterranean Press, 2007. ISBN: 978-1-59606-113-2

The stories in this collection range in original publication dates from 1982 to the present. Some of them fit into series that Sterling has written, including five “Shaper/Mechanist” stories, three “Leggy Starlitz” tales, and three “Chattanooga Stories,” one of which I had read before in some other collection somewhere (I enjoyed it almost as much the second time around; it's a good story). Then there are even larger segments of the book simply lumped together under the headings “Early Science Fiction and Fantasy,” and “Later Science Fiction and Fantasy.”

Amazingly, there is nothing else by Sterling in my blog, which means, apparently, that I've not read any of his work (except in anthologies) since 2003. I know I read some of his cyberpunk stuff back in the 80's and 90's, but apparently nothing recently. It's the old “too many books, too little time” dilemma.

Because Sterling is definitely worth reading, and there are a lot of good stories in this collection, along with the requisite, albeit in this case, quite restrained, author commentary. While many authors feel compelled to unburden themselves given the excuse of a collection like this, Sterling's comments are confined to a paltry five pages at the beginning of the book. After that, he just lets the stories speak for themselves. And speak, they do! Definitely recommended.

All Tomorrow's Parties by William Gibson

All Tomorrow's Parties by William Gibson. New York: Berkley Books, 1999. ISBN: 0-425-19044-7

I had read this book before. In fact, I've read everything by William Gibson, I believe, except for his latest (2007) novel, Spook Country. But it had been long enough since I read it the first time, that I didn't remember too much of the story, or what was going to happen next. Reading it again was like a continuous episode of deja vu. I remember this! Yes, and this, too! Ah yes, that's what I remember! But not in advance. So it was basically just as good as reading it the first time.

And Gibson's novels are definitely good, and definitely worth reading, everyone. He was one of the inventors, and best exemplars of the so-called “cyber-punk” movement in science fiction. A seminal thinker, and a great story teller, his visions of how it might be, or almost could be, or might soon be, are compelling and visceral. If you call yourself a SciFi fan, but haven't read Gibson, you're fooling yourself.

So, what's it about? Good question. Maybe it's about the possibility of artificial intelligence becoming human. Maybe it's about a has-been cop, a private eye, in San Fransisco. Maybe it's about some cyber-savvy hacker living in a cardboard box in a Tokyo slum, who senses that some major paradigmatic change is about to happen, and works to influence events. Maybe it's about all of that, but somehow, much much more. Essential reading for SciFi readers.

A Deepness in the Sky by Vernor Vinge

A Deepness in the Sky by Vernor Vinge. New York: Tor, 1999. ISBN: 0-312-85683-0

What a complicated plot line this story weaves! It would be diffi­cult to distill it into a few sentences. First, there is a human trader empire, the Qeng Ho, that has lasted for centuries, millennia? Individuals in their extended “families” can live for centuries, using a combination of time shifting and cold sleep, as they travel from star to star.

Then there is an anomalous star, one that shuts itself off every few years, then reignites. And, even more amazing, when the Qeng Ho expedition gets there, they find an intelligent race of spider-like creatures there, just on the cusp of their first industrial revolution.

But another splinter human civilization, calling themselves the Emergents, gets there shortly after the Qeng Ho, and barely wins the resulting quick and devastating space war. Now the survivors have to pick up the pieces, and hang on until the spiders can bring their civilization to a high enough level technologically to refuel and rebuild the human fleet of spaceships. But all the while, some of the surviving Qeng Ho are plotting to retake control from the Emergents, who practice a kind of human slavery, and who also plan to enslave the spiders.

It's great science fiction in the best space opera sense, long, involved, convoluted plots, but a rewarding and entertaining read. If I have any quibble, it's that Vinge makes the alien spiders all too human in their thinking and behavior. They just seem like human beings in an alien shape. But that is merely a quibble. Definitely recommended. Incidentally, this novel won a Hugo Award in 2000.

Dreamsongs: Volume II by George R.R. Martin

Dreamsongs: Volume II by George R.R. Martin. New York: Bantam Books, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-553-80658-8

I reviewed Volume I back in July, and have finally gotten around to reading and now blogging Volume II. The stories are good. I certainly enjoyed the Haviland Tuf, biogenetic engineer extraordinaire. I suppose I should look up Tuf Voyaging (1986), which is a whole collection of Tuf stories, published as a novel.

Less successful, in my view, are the TV scripts. TV is for watching, not reading. Since these for the most part, never got made, this is admittedly the only way to experience them, but they're not worth the effort, in my view.

The "Wild Card" stories were better, almost (but not quite) good enough to make me want to read the series, either the original, or the revived versions, in which Martin invites lots of other writers to the party.

The final group of stories is a mixed bag. Even Martin admits that some of them are difficult to classify. SciFi? Horror? Fantasy? Who cares? They're stories! “The Hedge Knight” is still my favorite, even though I've read it at least twice before, once in its original Robert Silverberg Legends anthology, and once somewhere else.

Finally, the book ends with a bibliography of Martin's writings, compiled by Leslie Kay Swigart. If you're a fan of Martin's work, you'll want to read this collection. If you're a fanatical fan, you'll want to consult the bibliography, for sure. Recommended for both those fans, and anyone who enjoys a good story or two.

In the Courts of the Crimson Kings by S.M. Stirling

In the Courts of the Crimson Kings by S.M. Stirling. New York: Tor, 2008. ISBN: 978-0-7653-1489-5

More and more authors seem to be writing fiction that blurs the traditional lines between science fiction and fantasy. In this novel, Stirling imagines an alternate universe in which scientifically advanced aliens terraformed Mars and Venus, and planted humanity there. Mars, apparently, had an advanced civilization when intelligence had yet to evolve on Earth. Now Earth's science has developed enough to visit those planets.

This is the tale of a couple such travelers, and their adventures on an Edgar Rice Burroughs style Mars, replete with swords and sorcery. Well the former, at least, if not the latter. While traveling around in the Martian outback, they make friends (and one of them falls in love) with a Martian princess who is about to come into her own. It's an entertaining yarn. Definitely recommended.

Four more quickies

The Iron Tongue of Midnight by Beverle Graves Myers. Scottsdale, Arizona: Poisoned Pen Press, 2008. ISBN: 978-1-59058-232-9

This is “A Tito Amato Mystery,” and “The Fourth Baroque Mystery” by Myers. The sleuth is an 18th century opera singer, who just happens to be a castrato (if you don't know what that means, look it up!), who nevertheless is happily married. My assessment: fairly light and frothy. If you like mysteries with historical, musical background, this might be for you, but it's no literary masterpiece. Marginally recommended for those thrive on this kind of fare.

World Without End by Ken Follett. New York: Dutton, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-525-95007-3.

This is, of course, the highly successful sequel to Follett's acclaimed Pillars of the Earth, a historical novel set in medieval times, and focusing on the building of a cathedral. This tale takes place two hundred years later, and involves descendants of the original story. Essential reading for anyone who enjoyed the first book, the basic story line is not quite as compelling as the original, but equally entertaining. Once you get into it, you'll love the good guys and hate the bad guys just as intensely as the original. Highly recommended.

Rumo and His Miraculous Adventures by Walter Moers. Translated from the German by John Brownjohn. Woodstock and New York: The Overlook Press, 2006 (The original was copyright 2003 by Piper Verlag GmbH, München, 2003). ISBN: 978-1-58567-725-2

A note on the title page says “A novel in two books illustrated by the author,” and the book does contain imaginative and delightful illustrations throughout, which appear to be black and white pencil and/or pen and ink drawings. This is a truly fanciful fantasy, in which dogs that learn to walk upright and speak are known as Wolpertings, often fearless and ferocious fighters. They inhabit a universe in which fantastic creatures, both good and ill, abound. Rumo, our own heroic Wolperting, goes through a series of adventures that can only be described as fantastic. Charmingly written, this fantasy will appeal to adults and teens alike, especially dog lovers.

The Sons of Heaven by Kage Baker. New York: Tor, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-7635-1746-9

“A Company Novel,” says the cover, and so it is. Is it the LAST company novel? I suppose that only time will tell, but it could well be, given the way it ends. You shouldn't read this book unless you've read all of the previous Company novels, several of which are reviewed elsewhere on this blog (see the Science Fiction index), and a listing of earlier titles in the series is available in my review of her fantasy novel, The Anvil of the World.

Suffice it to say that this novel FINALLY gets us past the date in 2355, the future date which has featured prominently in all of the Company novels, the date past which no time traveler can go, and beyond which no one knows what the future holds. Now we get to find out what happens. Essential reading for anyone following the series, but it probably won't make much sense to anyone who hasn't. Start at the beginning, and work your way here for a truly rewarding time travel series par excellence.

Three by Jack McDevitt

Well, except for the lighthouse field guide I just posted, it's been several months since any new book reviews have been posted here. But that doesn't mean I've stopped reading in all that time. Far from it! Bookworm that I am, I can no more stop reading than I can stop eating or breathing or sleeping.

No, I've just gotten overwhelmed with the other activities in my life, and I haven't found the time to write about the books I've been reading. So, to get caught up, I'm going to resort to a succinct listing of the books, with just brief comments or recommendations regarding them. So here goes:

Infinity Beach by Jack McDevitt. New York: HarperPrism, 2000. ISBN: 0-06-105123-3

Chindi by Jack McDevitt. New York: Ace Books, 2002. ISBN: 0-441-00938-7.

Polaris by Jack McDevitt. New York: Ace Books, 2004. ISBN: 0-441-01202-7

Now this is science fiction—really hard science fiction—as it should be! Jack McDevitt is one of my new favorites, and this is my first stab at catching up on everything he's written so far. Chindi is another Academy (Priscilla Hutchins) novel. Polaris and Infinity Beach are both set much further in the future, a thousand years or so, when human-kind has spread throughout the stars. But people are still people! And they still behave in human ways.

This trio of novels share two overlapping themes. Chindi and Infinity Beach are both exciting adventures on the quest to find another nonhuman sentient race, another civilization out there among the stars. And both Infinity Beach and Polaris are science fiction mysteries. In Polaris the passengers on a luxury space yacht just disappear. What happened to them? Were they abducted by aliens? In Infinity Beach, four missing persons, a mysterious explosion, and a an ill-fated search for aliens some years before lay down a baffling set of clues that may lead to an alien encounter.

All three of these books are highly recommended for all science fiction fans. Any mystery readers who don't mind a SciFi setting will probably enjoy them as well.

Cauldron by Jack McDevitt

Cauldron by Jack McDevitt. New York: Ace Books, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-441-01525-2

I KNOW I've read some other Jack McDevitt books, but apparently not since August of 2003, when I started this blog. Strange. After reading Cauldron, I'm definitely in the mood for more. If only I can find the time. You know how it goes, “So many books, so little time.”

Nevertheless, I was surprised to learn that Cauldron is the sixth novel in “The Academy (Priscilla Hutchins) Novels” albeit, Hutchins is hardly a primary character in this novel. She does have a significant part, but not the most significant by any means.

This story takes place about 250 years from now, in a future in which an FTE (Faster Than Light) drive has been discovered, but, alas, it takes months to cross to the nearest star system. Consequently, humanity is pulling back from the stars, having only discovered a few other civilizations and life forms here and there, and somehow, for some not reasons, not altogether clear to me, has decided that it's too costly, too dangerous, just plain not worth doing any more.

Until, naturally, someone discovers a REALLY fast drive, that can travel to other stars in a matter of minutes, not weeks! And everything changes in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, so to speak. Of course, the drive doesn't work quite right at first, and there is a good deal of suspense over whether enough money will be raised to actually test and put it into practice.

But all is resolved in due course, and an intrepid crew, Priscilla Hutchins among them, is off for an amazing adventure or three among the far-flung stars, and the galactic core. Even though I find some of the premises behind this story a little far-fetched, the tale itself is just too good to be missed. McDevitt has a truly inspired imagination, and the adventures of his motley crew make for very entertaining reading, indeed. Highly recommended for all SciFi fans.

The Sam Gunn Omnibus by Ben Bova

The Sam Gunn Omnibus by Ben Bova. New York: Tor, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-765-31617-2

So who is Sam Gunn, anyway, and why should we care about him? He's a character in what one hopes might be the near future of solar system exploration. He's a larger than life, entrepreneurial, authority-flaunting, irrepressible, astronautic adventurer. He's a short, feisty, red-haired, freckle-faced, snub-nosed, womanizing rapscallion. He's made and lost more fortunes than he can shake a stick at. Everyone who's ever met him either loves him or hates him.

He was one of the original space station astronauts who goes on to be involved in the first moon colony, the first asteroid mining expedition, the first orbiting hotel, and other firsts too many to mention, including the first human to supposedly travel through a black hole and return to tell about it.

Apparently SciFi grand master Ben Bova has been writing tales about this lovable scamp for quite a while. These stories have been written (or at least published) as early as 1983, and as recently as 1995, but only now have they all been gathered together, together with some new ones, all in one place.

“Featuring every story every written about Sam Gunn, and then some,” according to the blurb on the title page. As is often the case, Bova spins a new tale as a way to tie all of these stories together. A young orphan grows up on the moon, and eventually comes to realize that Sam may be her father. She grows up and eventually becomes a reporter, out to produce a definitive documentary on the life of Sam Gunn. This gives her (and Bova) the excuse for contacting different folks who knew Sam, and getting them to tell her their stories.

Unlike many of these contrived settings, this one actually works. We learn about Sam along with his ostensible daughter, and while some of the stories are pretty preposterous, so is Sam, apparently. This is classic near-future science fiction at its best. Definitely recommended.

Dreamsongs: Volume 1 by George R.R. Martin

Dreamsongs: Volume 1 by George R.R. Martin. New York: Bantam Books, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-553-80545-1

Once an author becomes (presumably) rich and famous, and publishers are hanging onto his every word—or so it seems, sooner or later the author feels the need to publish all of his or her work, early, late and middle—good, bad, or indifferent, in a collection. Short stories, and some not so short; anyway, the kind of thing that can be readily anthologized. And for some odd and unknown reason, recently I've been awash in these self-selected collections. I've just finished (look back on the blog!) reading and reviewing collections by Orson Scott Card, L.E. Modesitt, Jr., and Neil Gaiman. And I've already finished reading, but haven't yet gotten around to blogging a similar collection from David Gerrold.

So here's the first of two, not just one, mind you, from master fantasist, George R.R. Martin, whose “Song of Ice and Fire” cycle has all of his fans twitching in anticipation for the next and fifth volume, A Dance with Dragons, due for release in September. Martin must be extremely and exceptionally prolific in the short story genre, since his “Books by” page lists no less than seven (7!) previous short story collections by him.

This is the first that I've read, I must confess, at least so far as I can recall. At least, none appear on my blog, which covers pretty much everything I've read since August of 2003, including Vol. 4 of the “Song of Ice and Fire,” A Feast for Crows.

What makes this volume interesting is how it showcases Martin's work from its earliest feeble beginnings (said with tongue firmly in cheek, since none of them are particularly feeble), on into his maturing in his craft as a writer. His introductions are an essential part of this journey, explaining as they do how he first got started by telling himself stories as a child, reading the “funny books” (comics), and then starting to write for the fanzines of the early sixties.

Interestingly enough, even these very earliest stories, while admittedly somewhat naive in their conception at times, are well written, and entertaining to read. Even when the ideas behind them are a little on the shallow or trivial side, they still keep you turning the pages. What's amazing to me is that by just the second batch of stories, Martin already pens one, “With Morning Comes Mistfall,” that get nominated for both the Hugo and Nebula awards! It didn't win, but it got nominated. I'll admit it's a good story, but I wouldn't have thought it was THAT good, personally.

By the third batch, he actually DOES win a Hugo, this time with “A Song for Lya,” which, again, was nominated for both the Nebula and Hugo, but only won the Hugo. And it IS a darn good story, even if I knew what was going to happen well before it actually came to pass. Can't be helped, I suppose. This section also has “And Seven Times Never Kill Man,” which is a truly disturbing story. Aliens against human religious fanatics, with an ending in this case NOT anticipated, at least not by me. Martin is really catching his stride with stories of alien worlds, alien artifacts, aliens embracing human religions, humans embracing alien religions, and more.

Next comes a section of fantasy stories, and these are very well done also. I think I actually liked them better than the SciFpi stories. Then come the horror stories, and these I don't like quite as well, but I can't deny their power. I'm just not a horror fan, even though these stories can also be considered fantasy, or in the case of the often-anthologized “Sandkings,” science fiction. I think “Sandkings” is the only story that remember reading before, and probably more than once, but then, it's a story that once read, is not likely to be forgotten. The stories in this section are also some of the longest in the book. “Nightflyers” is another SciFi horror tale, involving as it does, interstellar travel, and a most strange alien lifeform.

Well, I've already written way more about this book than I intended, while probably not saying all that much that is really helpful to the potential reader. I definitely recommend this collection for anyone who is a fan of Martin's work, and for that matter, for anyone who wants to read elegant, evocative, slightly twisted tales of wonder and the macabre.

Keeper of Dreams by Orson Scott Card

Keeper of Dreams by Orson Scott Card. New York: Tor, 2008. ISBN: 978-0-7653-0497-1

I am a huge Orson Scott Card fan. I’ll read anything he’s written. This collection of short stories being no exception. This is by far and away the best of the several collections I’ve read recently. By definition, and by experience as well.

Card has divided his collection into five sections, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Literary, Hatrack River and Mormon Stories. The Hatrack River stories are the best, of course. Kind of like eating dessert. Anyone who’s read any of The Tales of Alvin Maker will want to read these two stories. In one of them Alvin and Arthur Stuart run into Davy Crockett a-grinning a bear. That one is quite funny. The ending especially, had me literally really truly LOL (laughing out loud).

In the other one they meet up with Jim Bowie, Stephen Austin, and more importantly, Abe Lincoln. According to Card’s comments about the story, which is titled “The Yazoo Queen,” it is actually the beginning (Chapter Zero, so to speak) of The Crystal City, the penultimate book in the Alvin Maker series. But because it was specifically written for Robert Silverberg’s second Legends anthology, and was under exclusive contract for that collection, it couldn’t even be reprinted as part of Crystal City. So it’s definitely a must read for all Hatrack River/Alvin Maker fans.

But I’ve given you the good stuff first (not really) and there are several other stories worthy of a mention. The very first story in the book, “The Elephants of Poznan,” is a very good post-holocaust kind of story, with a totally new and unexpected variant on why and how mankind is vanishing off the earth.

The next story, “Atlantis,” is one of my all-time favorite Card stories. I’ve read it at least twice before, but that didn’t stop me from reading it again here, once I came across it, nosirree. This story purports to tell the true tale of the original Noah, the person, people, and events that formed the basis for all of the ancient flood tales, from the one in the Bible, to the one in the Gilgamesh epic, not to mention all of the Atlantis legends. And it’s a most persuasive version. If it’s not really true, it SHOULD be. If you’ve not read it yet, you’re in for a treat. For those who read all of Card’s stuff, it is worth mentioning that “Atlantis” is connected to his novel, Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus.

In the fantasy section of the book, “Dust,” is definitely worth a mention. It’s the kind of fantasy story I always enjoy, in which someone stumbles through an unusual doorway, or portal of some kind, and ends up in fairly land, or some other reality. This one is as good as any of them, incorporating elements of the Fisher King or related stories.

“In the Dragon’s House” was another favorite. It involves one of the more unusual dragons you’re ever likely to meet. It’s also a wonderful childhood to adolescence coming of age kind of story, which has always been one of my favorite genres.

There are two “literary” stories, and “Feed the Baby of Love,” is a bona fide winner, another of the truly outstanding stories to be encountered in this collection.

Finally, Card ends the book with four “Mormon” stories. I’m glad he included them, because they help to show the real man, the person who’s at the heart of all of Card’s writing, and it’s a man you can’t help but respect, even though you may not agree with all of his views and opinions about issues. Not that there is really anything in these stories themselves to disagree with, mind you. That’s not what I meant. One of them, “Christmas at Helaman’s House,” is, indeed, a Christmas card kind of story. As is “Dust,” incidentally, back in the fantasy section. Someday, Card may have to put out a collection of “Christmas Card” stories (pun intended), since the one I recently reviewed on this blog makes at least the third one that I’m currently aware of, and I don’t doubt there may be others.

All in all, this book is a treasure house of stories waiting to be unlocked. I’ve mentioned my favorites, but there weren’t any that I aggressively disliked. Highly recommended for all fans of Mr. Orson Scott Card, long may he live and prosper, and continue to give us excellent stories like these.

Viewpoints Critical by L.E. Modesitt, Jr.

Viewpoints Critical: Selected Stories by L.E. Modesitt, Jr. New York: Tor, 2008. ISBN: 978-0-7653-1857-2

Here’s another short story collection by an established author much more known for his novels. In fact, as the author tells us in his brief introduction, “this collection has been a long time in coming,” since “the first story in this volume was published more than thirty years ago.” In other words, it’s taken him a long time to come up with enough short stories to fill up a publishable collection.

Modesitt is a prolific writer of science fiction and fantasy, but one I have hardly gotten around to reading. I started reading The Spellsong Cycle years ago, and enjoyed the first two volumes very much, but somehow never got around to reading the rest. I don’t know if they had yet to be written and published at the time, or if I just somehow never got around to finding and reading them. Then I reread the first volume recently (link), but my library has no copies of the second volume, so I guess I’ll have to break down and buy a copy. I need to reread it before I go on to the other three volumes.

These are all competently written, more or less entertaining stories. Which is to say that none of them were really that compelling. The best were actually the stories set in the author’s existing universes. “Black Ordermage,” for example, which is set in the Recluse universe, and explains how the character Cassius ended up there. Even though I’ve never read any of the Recluse novels (the more shame on me!), I very much enjoyed this story. Likewise “Sisters of Sarronnyn, Sisters of Westwind” which is another Recluse story.

“Beyond the Obvious Wind” was another story I liked, and it’s the story from which the entire Corean Chronicles originally sprang, even though it goes off in a different direction entirely, according to the author. I have to take his word for it, because, again, I’ve never read any of the novels in question. There are, to misquote that immortal old saw, just too many books, too little time.

So, Modesitt fans will definitely want to read this book, if only for those stories alone. Definitely recommended for his fans; others can take it or leave it, depending on the level of interest and the amount of time available.

Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman

Fragile Things: Short Fictions and Wonders by Neil Gaiman. New York: William Morrow, 2006. ISBN: 978-0-06-051522-5

I’ve been reading several short story collections recently, and this is just the first of them. Short stories are not my favorite genre, but when the author is someone known to me, particularly someone whose novels I enjoy, and especially in the science fiction and/or fantasy genre, I will generally read their short story collections, not only just to see what their stories are like, but also because they often include some stories based in one or more of their fictional universes that I have already enjoyed.

For example, Neil Gaiman includes a story set in his “American Gods” universe, a story that he originally wrote for one of Robert Silverberg’s justly famous Legends compilations. So anyone who is a fan of American Gods (which I’ve read and reviewed on this blog) or Anansi Boys (which I’ve not yet read or reviewed, but mean to as soon as I get around to it) will want to check out this Fragile Things collection if for no other reason than to read “The Monarch of the Glen,” unless, of course, they’ve already read it in Legends.

As for the rest of the collection, as with nearly every short story collection I read, it’s a mixed bag. Some of the substantial stories, such as “Closing Time,” “Bitter Grounds,” “Goliath,” and “Good Boys Deserve Favors,” I really enjoyed.

Others, not so much. I didn’t particularly appreciate the turn-around ending for “A Study in Emerald,” even though it (the story) won a Hugo award AND got Gaiman inducted into the Baker Street Irregulars. “Forbidden Brides of the Faceless Slaves in the Secret House of the Night of Dread Desire” was just plain silly, although I suppose that was probably the intent. I could complain about some of the others, but to what point? The point is that anyone reading this collection will like some, dislike others.

Some of my favorites were actually some of the shortest, quickest little stories, the ones you can read out loud to someone you’re with, and it will only take 5 or 10 minutes, short enough that they probably can be persuaded to listen that long. Examples include “Other People,” “Locks,” “Instructions,” “In the End,” and “The Day the Saucers Came.” Several of these, some of my favorites, are actually poems. Or at least, written in verse.

So, if you’ve read and enjoyed any of Neil Gaiman’s work, you’ll probably want to read this short story collection as well. You’re sure to like some of them; you may not like some of the others; some of them may be disturbing, annoying, depressing, or even abhorrent, but that’s the way it is when you read a collection like this.

Oh, don’t overlook the introduction, in which Gaiman explains how each came to be written. You may want to read it after the fact or along with each story, but don’t leave it out altogether. Why? Because he actually embeds a very short story into one of the introductory comments, which you won’t want to miss. I have to say, I would have preferred the introductory materials to have been printed with each individual story, instead of grouping them together at the beginning, as that it would have made it easier to read each one with the associated story.

Definitely recommended for Gaiman fans.

Hunter's Run by Martin, Dozois, and Abraham

Hunter's Run by George R.R. Martin, Garner Dozois, and Daniel Abraham. New York: Eos (HarperCollins), 2008. ISBN: 978-0-06-137329-9

This is nitty gritty SciFi at its best. Our protagonist, one Ramón Espejo is an uneducated, roistering, hard-drinking, hard-living, blue collar kind of a guy who finds himself in an untenable situation, and makes the best of it. He's an independent prospector on the lam from the law, after a drunken spree in which he brutally murders a visiting gringo muckety muck, who while out in the wild unexplored reaches of the planet, stumbles onto an alien secret that is definitely too big for him.

Not only that, but he realizes that he is actually a clone of himself, slaved to the aliens he's discovered, and tasked with finding and preventing his real self from getting back to civilization to report what he's found. By killing himself (his other self), if that's what it takes.

The basic scenario is this: human kind finds itself somewhat adrift in a universe where alien races seem to have the best real estate already locked up. These aliens, at least some of them, are happy to use human kind as their worker bees. Espejo, along with an entire mining crew, ships off to a frontier planet to help in its development and exploitation.

While out prospecting, he inadvertently stumbles onto ANOTHER alien civilization, carefully hidden away, and determined to remain so. Apparently humans are mere pawns in a much larger game of high stakes, in which one alien race is trying to wipe out another, for reasons poor Espejo is not equipped to fathom. But he IS willing to play whatever limited cards he has, in hopes of first surviving, then bettering his situation.

“Gritty” is hardly an adequate description of this story. Suspense there is too, in plentiful supply. Definitely recommended for anyone who enjoys a universe which doesn't assume that humans are always on top, or even remotely NEAR the top in the fight for survival. But still, we humans persist. We struggle on. We refuse to give up, even in the face of overwhelming odds.

The Grapple by Harry Turtledove

Settling Accounts: The Grapple by Harry Turtledove. New York: Del Ray Ballantine Books, 2006. ISBN: 0-345-45725-0

This is the third in the series of novels depicting World War II fought between the United States and a Confederacy which won the Civil War. The Confederacy lost World War I with its trench warfare and early use of tanks (called “barrels” in this alternate history), and are out for revenge in the Settling Accounts series. Unfortunately for them, their attempt to crush the north in one savage blitzkrieg reached its high water mark in the previous volume, The Drive to the East.

This volume takes us through the inevitable next phase of the war, as the tide turns, and the north, with its superior numbers, infrastructure and manufacturing capabilities, begins to wear down and even invade the South. Meanwhile, the fascist South is busily exterminating its black population in gas chambers and concentration camps just as fast as it can.

For information on the earlier books in the series, see my entry on The Victorious Opposition. Recommended for those following the series.

Science Fiction Author Index

This post is an author index to the science fiction titles that have been reviewed on Tillabooks. Fantasy, mystery and suspense, "other" fiction and nonfiction indexes are also available, as well as an index to "musical" books. This index was last updated on 12/26/2008.

Use the linked letters below to jump directly to that portion of the index.

A | B | C | D | F | H | M | N | R | S | T | V

• Abraham, Daniel: Hunter's Run


• Aldiss, Brian W.: Harm


• Allen, Roger McBride: The Depths of Time


• Anders, Lou, ed.: Futureshocks


• Anderson, Kevin J. Hunters of Dune


• Anderson, Kevin J.: Slan Hunter


• Anderson, Poul: Murasaki: A Novel in Six Parts


• Bailey, Dale: The Resurrection Man's Legacy


• Baker, Kage: The Children of the Company


• Baker Kage: Gods and Pawns


• Baker, Kage The Life of the World to Come


• Baker, Kage: The Sons of Heaven


• Ball, Margarget: Acorna: The Unicorn Girl


• Ball, Margarget: Acorna's Quest: The Adventures of the Unicorn Girl
• Banks, Iain: The Algebraist


• Baxter, Stephen: Coalescent


• Baxter, Stephen: Emperor


• Bear, Greg: Murasaki: A Novel in Six Parts


• Bear, Greg: Quantico


• Benford, Gregory: Beyond Infinity


• Benford, Gregory: Murasaki: A Novel in Six Parts


• Blumlein, Michael: The Healer


• Brin, David: Murasaki: A Novel in Six Parts


• Bova, Ben: Mercury


• Bova, Ben: The Sam Gunn Omnibus


• Buckell, Tobias S.: Crystal Rain


• Buckell, Tobias, S.: Ragamuffin


• Bujold, Lois McMaster: Beguilment


• Butler, Octavia E.: Clay's Ark


• Butler, Octavia E.: Mind of My Mind and Wild Seed


• Card, Orson Scott: Invasive Procedures


• Card, Orson Scott: Keeper of Dreams


• Cash, Steve: The Meq


• Cherryh, C.J.: Destroyer


• Cooper, Brenda Building Harlequin's Moon


• Cooper, Brenda: The Silver Ship and the Sea


• Cramer , Kathryn, ed.: The Hard SF Renaissance


• Dickson, Gordon: The Antogonist


• Dickson, Gordon R.: The Right to Arm Bears


• Doctorow, Cory: Eastern Standard Tribe


• Doctorow, Cory: Someone Comes to Town, Someone Leaves Town


• Dozois, Garner: Hunter's Run


• Dozois, Gardner: The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twenty-second Annual Collection


• Duchamp, L. Timmel: Love's Body, Dancing in Time


• Emshwiller, Carol: The Secret City


• Farmer, Nancy: The House of the Scorpion


• Fforde, Jasper: The Eyre Affair


• Fforde, Jasper: Lost in a Good Book


• Fforde, Jasper The Well of Lost Plots


• Finney, Jack: From Time to Time


• Finney, Jack: Time and Again


• Flint, Eric: Boundary


• Flynn, Michael: Eifelheim


• Flynn, Michael: In the Country of the Blind


• Gaiman, Neil: Fragile Things


• Gerrold, David: The Involuntary Human


• Gibson, William: All Tomorrow's Parties


• Haber, Karen, ed.: Science Fiction: The Best of 2003


• Haldeman, Joe: The Accidental Time Machine


• Hartwell, David C., ed.: The Hard SF Renaissance


• Herbert, Brian: Hunters of Dune


• Herbert, Brian: Timeweb


• Herbert, Frank: Dune


• Heinlein, Robert A.: Variable Star


• Hughes, Matthew: The Gist Hunter & Other Stories


• Hughes, Matthew: The Spiral Labyrinth


• Johnston, Aaron: Invasive Procedures


• King, Laurie R. (as Leigh Richards): Califia's Daughters


• Kress, Nancy: Murasaki: A Novel in Six Parts


• LeGuin, Ursula K.: Changing Planes


• Macdonald, James D.: The Apocalypse Doo


• Mackay, Scott: Tides


• MacLeod, Ken: Learning the World


• Marley, Louise: The Maquisarde


• Martin, George R.R.: Dreamsongs: Volume I


• Martin, George R.R.: Dreamsongs: Volume II


• Martin, George R.R.: Hunter's Run


• McCaffrey, Anne: Acorna: The Unicorn Girl


• McCaffrey, Anne: Acorna's Quest: The Adventures of the Unicorn Girl


• McCaffrey, Anne: Acorna's People: The Further Adventures of the Unicorn Girl


• McCaffrey, Anne: Changelings


• McCaffrey, Anne: The City and the Ship


• McCaffrey, Anne: The City Who Fought


• McCaffrey, Anne: Dragon's Fire


• McCaffrey, Anne: Dragon's Kin


• McCaffrey, Anne: Maelstrom


• McCaffrey, Anne: The Ship Who Saved the Worlds


• McCaffrey, Todd: Dragon's Fire


• McCaffrey, Todd: Dragon's Kin


• McDevitt, Jack: Cauldron


• McDevitt, Jack: Chindi


• McDevitt, Jack: Infinity Beach


• McDevitt, Jack: Polaris


• McDonald, Ian: River of Gods


• Mesta, Gabriel: The Martian War


• Modesitt, L.E., Jr.: The Eternity Artifact


• Modesitt, Jr., L.E.: Viewpoints Critical


• Niven, Larry: Building Harlequin's Moon


• Niven, Larry: Burning Tower


• Niven, Larry: Ringworld's Children


• Niven, Larry: Scatterbrain


• Nixon, David: The Antogonist


• Nye, Jody Lynn: The Ship Who Saved the Worlds


• Oltion, Jerry: Anywhere but Here


• Pohl, Frederik: Murasaki: A Novel in Six Parts


• Pournelle, Jerry: Burning Tower


• Reynolds, Alastair: Century Rain


• Richards, Leigh (pseudonymn for Laurie R. King): Califia's Daughters


• Roberts, Adam: Gradisil


• Roberts, Adam: Swiftly


• Robinson, Kim Stanley: Fifty Degrees Below


• Robinson, Kim Stanley: Forty Signs of Rain


• Robinson, Spider: Variable Star


• Robson, Justina: Mappa Mundi


• Rucker, Rudy: Postsingular


• Russo, Richard Paul: The Rosetta Codex


• Scalzi, John: The Android's Dream


• Scarborough, Elizabeth Ann: Acorna's People: The Further Adventures of the Unicorn Girl


• Scarborough, Elizabeth Ann: Changelings


• Scarborough, Elizabeth Ann: Maelstrom


• Scott, Melissa: The Shapes of Their Hearts


• Sheffield, Charles: The Amazing Dr. Darwin


• Shinn, Sharon: The Alleluia Files


• Shinn, Sharon: Angel Seeker


• Shinn, Sharon: Angelica


• Shinn, Sharon: Jovah's Angel


• Silverberg, Robert: Star of Gypsies


• Simmons, Dan: Ilium


• Simmons, Dan: Olympos


• Spoor, Ryk E.: Boundary


• Stableford, Brian: Streaking


• Steele, Allen: Spindrift


• Stephenson, Neal: The Cryptonomicon


• Stephenson, Neal: Quicksilver Baroque


• Sterling, Bruce: Ascendancies: The Best of Bruce Sterling


• Stirling, S.M.: The City Who Fought


• Stirling, S.M.: Conquistador


• Stirling, S.M.: Dies the Fire


• Stirling, S.M.: In the Courts of the Crimson Kings


• Stirling, S.M.: A Meeting at Corvallis


• Stirling, S.M.: The Protector's War


• Stirling, S.M.: The Ship and the City


• Stirling, S.M.: The Ship Avenged


• Strahan, Jonathan, ed.: Science Fiction: The Best of 2003


• Stross, Charles: Glasshouse


• Tepper, Sheri S.: The Companions


• Tepper, Sheri S.: The Visitor


• Tepper, Sheri S.: The Singer from the Sea


• Thomas, Scarlett: The End of Mr. Y


• Turtledove, Harry, ed.: Alternate Generals III


• Turtledove, Harry: American Empire: The Victorious Opposition


• Turtledove, Harry, ed.: The Best Alternate History Stories of the 20th Century


• Turtledove, Harry: Beyond the Gap


• Turtledove, Harry: Colonization: Aftershocks


• Turtledove, Harry: Curious Notions


• Turtledove, Harry: Days of Infamy


• Turtledove, Harry: The Disunited States of America


• Turtledove, Harry: Homeward Bound


• Turtledove, Harry: The Gladiator


• Turtledove, Harry: Gunpowder Empire


• Turtledove, Harry: Opening Atlantis


• Turtledove, Harry: Settling Accounts: The Drive to the East


• Turtledove, Harry: Settling Accounts: Return Engagement


• Turtledove, Harry: Settling Accounts: The Grapple


• Turtledove, Harry: Settling Accounts: In at the Kill


• Twelve Hawks, John: The Dark River


• Twelve Hawks, John: The Traveler


• Van Vogt, A.E.: Slan Hunter


• Vinge, Vernor: A Deepness in the Sky


• Vinge, Vernor: Marooned in Realtime


• Vinge, Vernor: Rainbow's End


• Weber, David: Off Armageddon Reef


• Wells, H.G.: The Martian War by Gabriel Mesta


• Williams, Tad: Rite


• Wilson, Robert Charles: The Chronoliths