tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post116373299029653548..comments2024-03-26T15:22:25.095-06:00Comments on The Earliad: The Speculative Fiction CanonEarl J. Woodshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07963936256606285358noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-1165621179321764042006-12-08T16:39:00.000-07:002006-12-08T16:39:00.000-07:00Hmmm, I don't remember anyone getting taunted, I j...Hmmm, I don't remember anyone getting taunted, I just remember it as one of those things that gets blurted out by way of mouth before the brain has a chance to say to it, "Shut up, you!" In sermo inconsideratus adveho verum.<BR/><BR/>Still, I wouldn't consider myself one of Asimov's fans. He was definitely a brilliant scientist who could also write moral plays, and his best work is the kind of stuff that you can think about much later, rather than as you are reading it. On the other hand, not very much of his writing has colour or excitement to it, and one futuristic vista (or character)in an Asimov novel is fully interchangeable at any time with at least a dozen others. That makes his writing actually pretty easy for the novice to get into, and maddening for someone who decided to slog though any great percentage of his many, many stories.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-1165372905542167462006-12-05T19:41:00.000-07:002006-12-05T19:41:00.000-07:00Thanks for the excellent feedback, everyone. As I ...Thanks for the excellent feedback, everyone. As I suspected, I missed some important stuff - but in the process I received some valuable insights!<BR/><BR/>P.S. I remember the "Asimov was a hack" reference - the time frame and the words, if not the exact circumstances. Who was taunting whom that time?Earl J. Woodshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07963936256606285358noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-1165316431683755912006-12-05T04:00:00.000-07:002006-12-05T04:00:00.000-07:00Well, let's add to the list some. The other day, ...Well, let's add to the list some. The other day, I was buying gas for the car, and the attendant was reading a dog-eared copy of "Lord Of The Flies" (by choice!), written by William Golding. It's not exactly science fiction, although it has one off-hand mention of futuristic transportation technology - the airplane that crashes (not really a spoiler) - but it is one of those books that high shool English classes never escape from, nor should they. I actually quite loathe the book, but it does have a lot of social value in terms of what kind of power a book can have in modern culture, and love it or hate it, it deserves to be read, preferably under coersion, as in part of a windowless, cement-walled high school curriculum -- that, and "A Separate Peace". I digress.<BR/><BR/>Also kind of in the same category: the triumvirate of John Wyndham - The Midwich Cuckoos, The Chrysalids, and The Day Of The Triffids, each one better than the one before. Again, that's not to say I personally enjoyed these books, but they do represent a way that's gone past of recounting science-based narrative without indulging in the flash of space opera, or the lugubriousness of fantasy. Best enjoyed as part of a somewhat enlightened, yet strict and unliberated English Lit high school or early University class. <BR/><BR/>Gibson? Gibson. A nice enough guy, has a slick way with words, but ends up no better than a cyber-soap opera regarding plot and character. Students will be drawn to the pre-Matrix "Johnny Mnemonic" movie with the unfortunate Keanu, and will be scarred for life. Beware of Gibson, it's dated, and fraught with pitfalls, but if you know what you like, I guess he's an enjoyable read, certainly memorable for patches of vivid descriptive writing. <BR/><BR/>Lastly, by all means read your Tolkein. Good, straightforward fantasy that sets a standard for a lot of stuff that has to follow. Too bad Tolkein a) couldn't self-edit, b) find endings to big story arcs, or c) write women, otherwise he's be in the same league as the true contemporary giant of genre fiction: Patrick O'Brian. Trouble is, Patrick O'Brian mostly wrote novels about the Napoleonic Wars, which isn't quite the genre you are interested in, Earl. Still, anybody who enjoys reading at all owes it to themselves to give O'Brian a chance.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-1165314607874465772006-12-05T03:30:00.000-07:002006-12-05T03:30:00.000-07:00I am feeling quite old enough today. Anonymous #1...I am feeling quite old enough today. Anonymous #1 has never been a Pete. The reference is to an inside joke that I believe will turn twenty years old sometime next year. If you didn't get it then, you won't get it now.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-1165271527486447472006-12-04T15:32:00.000-07:002006-12-04T15:32:00.000-07:00I agree with Anonymous the Third; Gibson should be...I agree with Anonymous the Third; Gibson should be represented and my vote is for "Neuromancer". A real departure from other sf of the time, generally regarded as the first 'cyberpunk' novel, and Canadian to boot! <BR/><BR/>An excellent list otherwise, and yes, for heaven's sake, read LOTR so your fantasy list has some gorram credibility.<BR/><BR/>- StephenAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-1164651958495283132006-11-27T11:25:00.000-07:002006-11-27T11:25:00.000-07:00I'd say for the fantasy one, probably "The Chronic...I'd say for the fantasy one, probably "The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever" -- at least the first ones. Donaldson deals with some pretty weighty issues and shows ugliness as ugly.<BR/><BR/>Probably some Michael Moorcock too, just so that it's not all epic fantasy.Liam J.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05670587605642193711noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-1164054391371586962006-11-20T13:26:00.000-07:002006-11-20T13:26:00.000-07:00Nothing by William Gibson?Nothing by William Gibson?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-1164015207682104602006-11-20T02:33:00.000-07:002006-11-20T02:33:00.000-07:00I'm going to guess that the "Asimov was a hack" co...I'm going to guess that the "Asimov was a hack" comment was Pete, but it's possible there are other Asimov unfans (maybe even plus-unfans or even double-plus-unfans) out there.Tottyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04252515652206509990noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-1163975048664473012006-11-19T15:24:00.000-07:002006-11-19T15:24:00.000-07:00The only thing this post is missing is a picture o...The only thing this post is missing is a picture of a "Speculative Fiction CANNON" that shoots out some of the books you mentioned.Sean Woodshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08464958057859824819noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-1163958831857027742006-11-19T10:53:00.000-07:002006-11-19T10:53:00.000-07:00Glad to see The Left Hand of Darkness on your list...Glad to see The Left Hand of Darkness on your list Earl. <BR/><BR/>Nor can I believe you haven't read The Lord of the Rings. Really, it's required reading, just as reference material. You can skip all the songy bits and not miss anything.Andreahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07179356784364968422noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-1163887992159544832006-11-18T15:13:00.000-07:002006-11-18T15:13:00.000-07:00A little off-track from your list, in that its foc...A little off-track from your list, in that its focus is very narrow: Lawrence Sutin's "Divine Invasion" is a non-fiction biography of Philip K. Dick, or at least as non-fiction as a PKD bio could possibly get. It also represents to my mind one of the best-written examples of the form of contemporary biography in general.<BR/><BR/>Also needing mention on your list in the classical-classics department of fantasy: the Epic of Gilgamesh, Beowulf, and perhaps Homer's Odyssey. If you're going to build an edifice, you always start with the cornerstones.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5077773.post-1163887324206388942006-11-18T15:02:00.000-07:002006-11-18T15:02:00.000-07:00"Asimov was a hack.""Asimov was a hack."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com