tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post2252291407343247451..comments2023-11-02T06:28:23.104-07:00Comments on ... and now for something completely different.: Book Review: Darwin's Childrendbackdadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10700991588554336491noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-8749660608814947472011-11-24T13:15:12.395-08:002011-11-24T13:15:12.395-08:00JA - Check out the Sci-Fi listing on my Blog. I...JA - Check out the Sci-Fi listing on my Blog. I'm sure there's something in there you might like.CyberKittenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06394155516712665665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-13946153419379939632011-11-23T08:36:23.266-08:002011-11-23T08:36:23.266-08:00Thanks! I actually haven't read any Niven, I&...Thanks! I actually haven't read any Niven, I'll check him out as well as the others.Jewish Atheisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04616617537150446818noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-45025844521790557452011-11-22T18:00:35.398-08:002011-11-22T18:00:35.398-08:00I've always been a fan of Larry Niven, though ...I've always been a fan of Larry Niven, though that's older stuff that you may have already read (<i>Lucifer's Hammer</i>, <i>Mote in God's Eye</i>, and his stuff with Jerry Pournelle).<br /><br />More contemporary authors would include Bear. I'd recommend <i>The Forge of God</i>. Greg Egan's very good as well.<br /><br />Stephenson, as we mentioned, is good. Take a stab at <i>Cryptonomicom</i> if you haven't already.<br /><br />Probably my favorite right now is Iain Banks. I've read and loved <i>The Algebraist</i> and <i>Consider Phlebas</i>, though CK has read them all and could recommend others a little better than I.<br /><br />And, of course, William Gibson. I've read everything he's written.<br /><br />CK is much more prolific of a sci-fi reader and could give you many other good authors and books, I'm sure.dbackdadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10700991588554336491noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-4854766956713804672011-11-22T07:04:43.360-08:002011-11-22T07:04:43.360-08:00I liked Darwin's Radio more than most scifi bo...I liked Darwin's Radio more than most scifi books actually.<br /><br /><i>That suspension of disbelief is generally important for me and why I have always tended towards hard science fiction as opposed to fantasy.</i><br /><br />Exactly! I am the same way. Do you have any other recommendations? (I loved The Diamond Age -- at least the first half -- but not the rest of the series.)Jewish Atheisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04616617537150446818noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-69824725044118573392011-11-20T22:00:18.782-08:002011-11-20T22:00:18.782-08:00Stephenson is one of my favorite sci-fi authors (S...Stephenson is one of my favorite sci-fi authors (Snow Crash and Diamond Age are both very good). Cryptonomicon is indeed ambitious, spanning multiple eras and characters and somehow tying it all together. I'm starting Anathem right now.dbackdadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10700991588554336491noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-58240413401906459752011-11-20T18:50:37.945-08:002011-11-20T18:50:37.945-08:00I listened to the audiobook of this a few months b...I listened to the audiobook of this a few months back. SF is not my usual fare, but I found it engaging in a potboiler sort of way.<br /><br />Currently listening to Neal Stephenson's Criptonomicon, which is touted as some kind of ultimate nerd book. At 34 discs and some 43 hours, it's incredibly ambitious. About half way thru now.wstachourhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12447198404608861357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-12389824415392765332011-11-20T13:39:33.067-08:002011-11-20T13:39:33.067-08:00Well said. (30 or so years of sci-fi reading for m...Well said. (30 or so years of sci-fi reading for me so far).dbackdadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10700991588554336491noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-39057644133782528412011-11-20T13:32:54.073-08:002011-11-20T13:32:54.073-08:00All very good questions - which goes right to the ...All very good questions - which goes right to the heart of why Science-Fiction is such a great read. What other kind of literature makes you think about all kinds of things so much...? <br /><br />It's why I'm still an *avid* reader of SF after almost 40 years.CyberKittenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06394155516712665665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-7298585207854286432011-11-20T13:11:02.229-08:002011-11-20T13:11:02.229-08:00CK -- That's a valid criticism. The story did...CK -- That's a valid criticism. The story did seem to make short shrift of the UK response. <br /><br />It's hard to say what the exact fallout would be but there is historical precedent for a lot of the characterizations, especially in the US. America has not been afraid in the past to lock up people they perceived to be potential threats (Japanese-American internment camps of WWII).<br /><br />The more debatable social responses would be the widespread murders of pregnant women. It's hard to believe that would happen in a civilized society, but who's to say as we've never faced such a widespread pandemic.<br /><br />But all of that is part of the point - how would a civilized society react to a situation where an entire generation is potentially lost? And what effect would religion and anti-science sentiment have on that response?dbackdadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10700991588554336491noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-40291493467534356902011-11-20T06:12:25.862-08:002011-11-20T06:12:25.862-08:00I remember reading this back in 2007 and found mys...I remember reading this back in 2007 and found myself very disappointed by it. Although it was an interesting idea with some good characterisation I thought that the social and political fallout to be very unrealistic. Maybe it only felt that way from a European/British perspective? Maybe the US would have indeed reacted as the book portrayed.... It's an interesting thought.....CyberKittenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06394155516712665665noreply@blogger.com