Here are some reviews of books I've read recently:
Dead Men's Secrets - Tantalising Hints of a Lost Super Race - 4 Stars
This shakes your understanding of early history
Presented as a collection of short essays followed by a plethora of facts and observations, this book presents an interesting, if not compelling, case that what is taught as history today is not what actually happened. The book is built on the premise that history is in the eye of the beholder and him who controls the narrative. It argues a corollary to that is only facts which support an agenda are presented as history and that facts which don't support the narrative are buried in basements until they are forgotten.
The "history" it weaves from the facts it presents will shake your understanding of what you've been taught and leave you convinced that the whole story of man's existence here on Earth has not been told and even lied about.
The Contact Episode One - 3 Stars
Great idea, needs better development
This book, actually a novella, is the story of first contact of humanity by another extra-terrestrial race.
The style of the book is a little stilted and the author could have done a better job building tension. That said, I didn't mind the read and appreciated the cliff-hanger ending of the book. Would I recommend it? Yes.
I'm looking forward to the next episode. The idea he presents has always been an intriguing one for me. I want to see where he takes the story.
Monday, April 28, 2014
Saturday, April 12, 2014
Book Review: A Fall of Moondust
I am a HUGE Arthur C. Clarke fan. I remember as a little kid watching 2001: A Space Odyssey and being blown a way by the special effects. (Even by today's standards, they would be pretty impressive.) I've read most of his shorts and longer works.
One of his lesser known works is "A Fall of Moondust". It's very-hard-science fiction, and is one of the best, yet least known disaster tales of our day. The plot is about the rescue effort of a sight-seeing vessel, the Selene, which is buried in a lake of dust as the result of a moon-quake. Clarke strings you along with plot twists and very engaging human drama in the tale. (Poseidon Adventure, Towering Inferno et al, could take a few lessons from Clarke's writing.)
While we now know there is no lake of dust on the moon, the rest of the science about the moon is spot on. The technological means for finding the vehicle may be a bit dated, in that the sensitivity of infrared telescopes today far exceed the capabilities of the telescopes in the story, but everything else is accurate. Nothing in the book goes against physics. Like I said, this is a very hard-science, science fiction story. I won't spoil the ending if you haven't read it, but you'll enjoy reading it.
As far as content is concerned, (Again using my scale of 1-5, with higher scores meaning better values) this is how I rate the book:
Plot: 4.5 - Clarke gets you hooked with his description of the Sea of Thirst and the visual imagery of the moon. As the passengers and crew come to terms with what's happened and cope with their predicament, you get caught up in their efforts. You laugh with them and also fear for their survival as conditions deteriorate in the ship. You also feel for the people mounting the rescue attempt and pull for them as they battle the harsh lunar environment trying to find then rescue the passengers of the Selene.
Language: 5 - Tame by today's standards. Yet, the dialogue is believable throughout.
Sex: 4.5 - There's one love scene, but everything is left to the imagination. It's well done, but I'm not altogether convinced it was needed. On board the ship, for a time all the passengers strip down to their underwear to deal with the heat. All believable and all appropriate to the story and all very tastefully handled by the author.
Thematic content: 5. There's nothing here to worry about.
All in all, this is one of my more enjoyable science fiction books. You'll find it engaging and a page turner as you get caught up in the rescue team's race against time and the passenger's struggle to deal with the heat and the failing life support system.
Other books by Arthur C. Clarke I recommend: The Sands of Mars, Against the Fall of Night, Rendezvous with Rama and The Fountains of Paradise. I especially liked his short story anthology: Tales from the White Hart.
One of his lesser known works is "A Fall of Moondust". It's very-hard-science fiction, and is one of the best, yet least known disaster tales of our day. The plot is about the rescue effort of a sight-seeing vessel, the Selene, which is buried in a lake of dust as the result of a moon-quake. Clarke strings you along with plot twists and very engaging human drama in the tale. (Poseidon Adventure, Towering Inferno et al, could take a few lessons from Clarke's writing.)
While we now know there is no lake of dust on the moon, the rest of the science about the moon is spot on. The technological means for finding the vehicle may be a bit dated, in that the sensitivity of infrared telescopes today far exceed the capabilities of the telescopes in the story, but everything else is accurate. Nothing in the book goes against physics. Like I said, this is a very hard-science, science fiction story. I won't spoil the ending if you haven't read it, but you'll enjoy reading it.
As far as content is concerned, (Again using my scale of 1-5, with higher scores meaning better values) this is how I rate the book:
Plot: 4.5 - Clarke gets you hooked with his description of the Sea of Thirst and the visual imagery of the moon. As the passengers and crew come to terms with what's happened and cope with their predicament, you get caught up in their efforts. You laugh with them and also fear for their survival as conditions deteriorate in the ship. You also feel for the people mounting the rescue attempt and pull for them as they battle the harsh lunar environment trying to find then rescue the passengers of the Selene.
Language: 5 - Tame by today's standards. Yet, the dialogue is believable throughout.
Sex: 4.5 - There's one love scene, but everything is left to the imagination. It's well done, but I'm not altogether convinced it was needed. On board the ship, for a time all the passengers strip down to their underwear to deal with the heat. All believable and all appropriate to the story and all very tastefully handled by the author.
Thematic content: 5. There's nothing here to worry about.
All in all, this is one of my more enjoyable science fiction books. You'll find it engaging and a page turner as you get caught up in the rescue team's race against time and the passenger's struggle to deal with the heat and the failing life support system.
Other books by Arthur C. Clarke I recommend: The Sands of Mars, Against the Fall of Night, Rendezvous with Rama and The Fountains of Paradise. I especially liked his short story anthology: Tales from the White Hart.
Friday, April 4, 2014
Book Review: Dragonsdawn by Anne McCaffrey
Dragon Riders of Pern is one of the most enduring fantasy - science fiction series ever written. It was started by Anne McCaffrey in 1967 with the novella Dragonrider but best known for the trilogy: Dragonflight, Dragonquest and The White Dragon. Her son, Todd McCaffrey, continues to add to the series, which now consists of23 books. I read the first book while attending high school. I kept track of the series off an on through the years, then a few years ago I got a copy of Dragonsdawn which established the "science" behind what otherwise is a fantasy series.
Dragonsdawn begins twenty-five hundred years before the time of the first Dragon rider book Dragonflight, with three colony ships decelerating towards the planet Pern which was surveyed some two hundred years earlier and deemed colonize-able by the survey team. The plot of the story revolves around the early days of the colony on the planet and their first encounter with thread fall. There are several character story lines woven in the novel. They come and go throughout the unfolding of the story, the net effect of them is to move the plot along and give some character color to the story. One of the main sub-plots in the story is the discovery of indigenous, small, winged lizards which have telepathic abilities and the ability to shoot small puffs of flame. They are labeled "dragonets". When the colonists first encounter a thread fall and realize the grave danger they represent to the viability of the colony let alone the lives of the colonists, they attempt to use genetic engineering to make the dragonets into full-sized dragons.
There was enough science-tech geekery in the story to hold my interest plus their frantic race against time to genetically engineer dragons capable of fighting off the Thread held my attention through to the end of the story. McCaffrey spends a lot of time however on a sub-plot by a member of the crew, Avril Bitra, an astrogator who schemes to get rich and try to leave the planet in one of the abandoned transports. That doesn't end well for her and another character in the story.
On the whole, I found the story engaging, but a bit long-winded in some of the expositions on details of the story. This is not a fast paced thriller. There are moments of intensity when they are fighting the thread, but it's clearly a character driven rather than plot driven story.
My take on various aspects of the novel: (Using the 1-5 scale where the higher the score the better the rating.)
Plot: 3.5 - It's not bad, but I found it plodded along. My preference is to a much more up-tempo pacing.
Language: 3 - Again, it's not bad. There are no F-bombs, but it has its moments where emotions are running pretty hot and the language is similarly laced with expletives. Outside of these areas, the rest of the story is safe.
Violence: 4 - I liked the pacing and the narratives of their struggles against the thread fall. There is a murder that is perpetrated on one of the transports.
Sex: 4 - It happens, but there's nothing graphic nor any love scenes. There are some references to members of the crew sleeping with others with whom they are not married.
Thematic content: 5 - This is an entertaining story. The author isn't trying to make a point other than to explain how the dragons of Pern came to be. There's no eco-message of any type in it.
If you're a fan of the Pern universe and haven't read Dragonsdawn, you'll find this an interesting story in seeing how it all began. If you're not familiar with the Dragon Riders series, this book will have less appeal for you. If the book were a movie, it would be rated PG-13 for the violence and the matter of fact, yet horrifying recounting of the effects of the Thread when they fall on a human being. Once you get started though, you'll want to finish.
Dragonsdawn begins twenty-five hundred years before the time of the first Dragon rider book Dragonflight, with three colony ships decelerating towards the planet Pern which was surveyed some two hundred years earlier and deemed colonize-able by the survey team. The plot of the story revolves around the early days of the colony on the planet and their first encounter with thread fall. There are several character story lines woven in the novel. They come and go throughout the unfolding of the story, the net effect of them is to move the plot along and give some character color to the story. One of the main sub-plots in the story is the discovery of indigenous, small, winged lizards which have telepathic abilities and the ability to shoot small puffs of flame. They are labeled "dragonets". When the colonists first encounter a thread fall and realize the grave danger they represent to the viability of the colony let alone the lives of the colonists, they attempt to use genetic engineering to make the dragonets into full-sized dragons.
There was enough science-tech geekery in the story to hold my interest plus their frantic race against time to genetically engineer dragons capable of fighting off the Thread held my attention through to the end of the story. McCaffrey spends a lot of time however on a sub-plot by a member of the crew, Avril Bitra, an astrogator who schemes to get rich and try to leave the planet in one of the abandoned transports. That doesn't end well for her and another character in the story.
On the whole, I found the story engaging, but a bit long-winded in some of the expositions on details of the story. This is not a fast paced thriller. There are moments of intensity when they are fighting the thread, but it's clearly a character driven rather than plot driven story.
My take on various aspects of the novel: (Using the 1-5 scale where the higher the score the better the rating.)
Plot: 3.5 - It's not bad, but I found it plodded along. My preference is to a much more up-tempo pacing.
Language: 3 - Again, it's not bad. There are no F-bombs, but it has its moments where emotions are running pretty hot and the language is similarly laced with expletives. Outside of these areas, the rest of the story is safe.
Violence: 4 - I liked the pacing and the narratives of their struggles against the thread fall. There is a murder that is perpetrated on one of the transports.
Sex: 4 - It happens, but there's nothing graphic nor any love scenes. There are some references to members of the crew sleeping with others with whom they are not married.
Thematic content: 5 - This is an entertaining story. The author isn't trying to make a point other than to explain how the dragons of Pern came to be. There's no eco-message of any type in it.
If you're a fan of the Pern universe and haven't read Dragonsdawn, you'll find this an interesting story in seeing how it all began. If you're not familiar with the Dragon Riders series, this book will have less appeal for you. If the book were a movie, it would be rated PG-13 for the violence and the matter of fact, yet horrifying recounting of the effects of the Thread when they fall on a human being. Once you get started though, you'll want to finish.
Book Review: The Moon is a Harsh Mistress
Robert Heinlein is one of the grand masters of science fiction. His stature is equal to such luminaries as Orson Scott Card, Arthur C. Clark and Isaac Asimov. Some of his books, especially his juvenile works were amazing reads. Others required a lot of filtering, Stranger in a Strange Land anyone? Others were less so, one of these middle-ground books is a personal favorite: The Moon is a Harsh Mistress.
In this universe, the moon is a large penal colony and a dumping ground for political prisoners. Its plot is the war for independence fought by humans who live on the moon. They revolt to free themselves from an oppressive global UN type of government agency. A cabal of three humans and a sentient computer named "Mike" plan then foment and carry out this revolution.
An undercurrent to the plot is a lot of lecturing by Heinlein through the personae of the male protagonist named Manny about the virtues of atypical family types. It got to the point that I wished Heinlein would just not talk about the topic if for no other reason than it didn't move the plot forward. I'm all into character development and helping the reader see why a character does what he does, but in my reading of the novel I could never see how Manny being in a "line family" made a difference.
Heinlein espouses a very libertarian world view through the mindsets of his protagonists: Manny, Wyo and the Professor. He also touched on the difficulty of mounting a revolution when most people are either to apathetic to care or accepting of the status quo. The key feature of the story which turns it into an engaging science fiction piece is Mike, the computer who spontaneously attains sentience.
My take on the various aspects of the novel: (1 - 5 where the higher the score the better the rating )
Plot: 5 - for how he uses Mike to be the "brains" of a revolution. Heinlein was decades ahead of his time in arguing that computers would/could be great enablers to individuals.
Language: 5 - No offensive words.
Violence: 4 - For scenes of "hand-to-hand" combat when forces from Earth try to quell the revolution.
Sex: 4 - There isn't any that occurs "outside" of marriage. And when it is mentioned, it's done in passing with no vivid descriptions. There is lots of innuendo and talk of "bundling," a code word for a one-night stand, but it's all talk and no action.
Thematic Content: 3 - For his long discussions about alternative family styles. He uses straw man arguments for these families. If your children read the book, you'll definitely want to discuss this with them.
On the whole however; it's a teen safe book, but it will get the reader to ask questions about what constitutes a viable family and what are acceptable standards for treating women. (The lunar culture is very protective of women because they are so scarce. But that protection comes in a very "wild, wild, west" manner.)
Thursday, April 3, 2014
This is a new blog that reviews Science Fiction books
I love science fiction of just about every flavor: hard, soft, space opera, fantasy and speculative. I love it all. Just one problem... I have pretty traditional values when it comes to violence, morality and language. It's a real bummer when I'm really into a book and come across a love scene or encounter violence or language that I find offensive. It throws me out of the reading and forces me to insert a filter between me and what I read which diminishes my enjoyment of the material.
I can't imagine I'm the only guy out there that thinks that way. So, if you're like me, this blog is for you. I will be reviewing books, movies and maybe the rare television show that I can stomach with an eye towards how much filter you need to apply to read/watch the story. If I find a book that I can enjoy without filtering, I'll put it in my side bar where you can get a copy for your self. There will be no erotica reviews here so if that's your thing, you'll find this blog a waste of your time.
So, check back often. Leave a comment. I'd love to hear from you. I'll be reviewing as often as a busy life will allow. My goal is a book a week.
I can't imagine I'm the only guy out there that thinks that way. So, if you're like me, this blog is for you. I will be reviewing books, movies and maybe the rare television show that I can stomach with an eye towards how much filter you need to apply to read/watch the story. If I find a book that I can enjoy without filtering, I'll put it in my side bar where you can get a copy for your self. There will be no erotica reviews here so if that's your thing, you'll find this blog a waste of your time.
So, check back often. Leave a comment. I'd love to hear from you. I'll be reviewing as often as a busy life will allow. My goal is a book a week.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)