Literature

[rogue]

I started reading Rama II, but Arthur C. Clarke and Gentry Lee. I had to put it down after about 50 pages. I might pick it up again in the future. Clearly ACC did little (if any) of the writing. It might just be that I am burned out after completing the Dune series a few weeks ago. Frank Herbert's last two books (I have avoided his kids books) were drawn out bores.

[Uncwilly]

Originally Posted by rogue

I started reading Rama II, but Arthur C. Clarke and Gentry Lee.

Was there ever a better un-intended lead in to a sequel than the end of Rama? I devoured the whole set. I even bought at least on of them hardback and stayed up to the wee hours reading it. IIRC correctly I was house sitting at the time.

[Batalov]

I recently started reading Vladimir Sorokin (*wiki), a celebrated deconstructivist/post-modernist. His novels are translated to many languages. I wonder is anyone had heard of him.

Part 5 of the novel "The Norm" is perhaps the best description of how a person slowly drifting into insanity sounds like. It is profound (in a painful way).

Originally Posted by https://languagehat.com/sorokins-norma/

Part 5, perhaps the highlight of the book, is a series of letters from an increasingly upset worker to Martin Alekseevich, a homeowner whose house he’s working on; beginning with respectful reports and polite enquiries about the health of his family, it ends in obscene abuse and a wordless scream that goes on for pages (ааааааааааааааааааааааааааааааааааааааааааа).

The novel The Hearts of Four was a finalist, Russian Booker, 1992.

Day of the Oprichnik (День опричника), a short story, is a remarkably accurate description of Russia in this year 2022 AD. It is uncanny. It was supposed to be too weird and crude at the time it was written (2006); now it is almost surgically precise.

Fascinating stuff. (sort of like William S. Burroughs, but more coherent)

[Uncwilly]

For some Sci-fi fun I would recommend the Bob-iverse series (Dennis E. Taylor).
And the I would recommend the Three Body Problem series (Cixin Liu), they are a slog initially. But they do get better as you go.
Also, Project Hail Mary (Andy Weir).

[xilman]

Originally Posted by Batalov

Part 5 of the novel "The Norm" is perhaps the best description of how a person slowly drifting into insanity sounds like.

Part of my problem is that I am getting ever more certain that they are trying to drive me sane.

[Batalov]

Originally Posted by xilman

Part of my problem is that I am getting ever more certain that they are trying to drive me sane.

The lunatics are in my hall
The paper holds their folded faces to the floor
And every day the paperboy brings more
...
You raise the blade
You make the change
You rearrange me till I'm sane
You lock the door
And throw away the key
And there's someone in my head

...but it's not me

[xilman]

Originally Posted by Uncwilly

For some Sci-fi fun I would recommend the Bob-iverse series (Dennis E. Taylor).
And the I would recommend the Three Body Problem series (Cixin Liu), they are a slog initially. But they do get better as you go.
Also, Project Hail Mary (Andy Weir).

I really disliked the first TBP book and have no incentive to read the others. Very very silly, IMAO, and requires far too much suspension of belief.

Supposedly describing Alpha Centauri, which indeed is a triple star system, the depicted behaviour has the orbits chaotic on a day to year timescale. In practice, the main binary is stable over gigayears and Proxima over, at least, megayears.

If you want an alternative (and a n-body problem in stellat dynamics) I stronglyh recommend Greg Egan's "Incandescence". It repays several readings. Second time around, I recommend reading chapters 2i+1 followed by chapters 2i, as the novel is an interleaved narrative.

Most everything by Egan is fun and/or thought provoking. I also very much like Peter Hamilton's oeuvre (post Mandel, that is) and works by Stephen Baxter and Alistair Reynolds though the latter can be rather bleak.

[xilman]

Originally Posted by rogue

I started reading Rama II, but Arthur C. Clarke and Gentry Lee. I had to put it down after about 50 pages. I might pick it up again in the future. Clearly ACC did little (if any) of the writing. It might just be that I am burned out after completing the Dune series a few weeks ago. Frank Herbert's last two books (I have avoided his kids books) were drawn out bores.

Never got on with the Rama series, nor the Foundation and Dune series.

Asimov's original trilogy was basically a rehash of Gibbon's Decline and Fall.

Perhaps I should give them another chance.

Try Jack Vance, https://www.jackvance.com/ .. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Vance
I believe I read most if not all of his novels. If you require a recommendation, read those novels which won awards.
"Vance's stories written for pulps in the 1940s and 1950s covered many science fiction themes, with a tendency to emphasize mysterious and biological themes (ESP, genetics, brain parasites, body switching, other dimensions, cultures) rather than technical ones." [from WikiPed]

"Another way in which Vance expands the usually narrow focus of most speculative fiction writers are the extensive details ranging from the culture of language, to food, music, and rituals. In The Languages of Pao, after a planet with a passive, lazy and backwards culture is invaded and occupied, the planet's leader orders three new languages developed, to make his people more aggressive, industrious and inventive. In the short story "The Moon Moth", natives must master a number of musical instruments in order to communicate with each other. Spoken words are modulated to acquire different meanings, or may be said to be given full meaning, (respect, derision or sarcasm) by means of the musical sounds. These fascinating details paint a far more detailed and complex picture of life and cultures in his books." [from WikiPed]

[chalsall]

Originally Posted by Batalov

Part 5 of the novel "The Norm" is perhaps the best description of how a person slowly drifting into insanity sounds like. It is profound (in a painful way). ... Fascinating stuff. (sort of like William S. Burroughs, but more coherent)

Personally, I have found those /some/ might consider somewhat insane to be far more interesting than "nominals".

Burroughs worked with Laurie Anderson, who worked with Andy Kaufman.

For those who haven't watched it, Carrey's performance in Man on the Moom is worth the investment of time.

Kaufman was quite insane. And knew exactly what he was doing.