As for Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, it is indeed an excellent book and I do recommend it, but I’d recommend some of Philip K. Dick’s other works over that, my two personal favorites being Ubik and Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said.

I grabbed the two titles you mentioned – Stainless Steel Rat (1961) Harry Harrison and Heinlein’s Puppet Master (1951). Loved ‘em both. Thanks for the recommendations.

The relationship between father and son in Puppet was both subtle and moving. It put a lump in my throat. Maybe its just me and my own history but that story really got to me. Yes, it is wrapped in an entertaining alien invasion story but the subtext is where all the meat is. Absolutely LOVED Puppet. Thanks.

Had to give it an 8.5-9.0/10. Don’t do that often. Only 23 books out of my 424 read so far have crept into any part of 9.0 territory. My scale is almost logarithmic I guess. Heinlein’s “Door into Summer” worked for me in the same way.

Well, what was I going to say … ? Oh ya, my obsessive search for good authors is almost done. Since March 31 of 2001 I have read 294 different authors. 424 books total. Have only 9 more authors to read and then I’ll just mine the favorites for books to read for the next 50 years. Just wanted to drop a couple recommendations for those who might be interested in some of the new stuff.

In my quest to get a good overview of science fiction I decided to sample some of the fringe genres such as alien horror and supernatural thrillers. I know , technically not Sci Fi but pretty close. I was very pleasantly surprised that I did so.

JL Bourne’s Day By Day Armageddon (2004) is a fantastic ( and quick ) read. Zombie Sci Fi I guess you could call it. Its only the first half of a story so be prepared to read the sequel ( I just ordered it ). Very straight forward delivery. Journal style survival story. No frills. Gripping persistent mood feels consistent with what one would envisage (did I spell that right ?) an end of the world scenario. Single man fights to survive and maintain his sanity. Gave it an 8.0-8.5 ( high rating for me) even though it was a cliff hanger ending. This is NOT a high brow intellectual read. Don’t get it if that’s the type of fiction you prefer. This is escape into a story type of read. I am the type of guy who enjoys EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS, Art Clarke and John Scalzi.

Another great new book was Scott Sigler’s Infected (2008). Absolutely gruesome riveting tale of an alien invasion. Don’t read this if you’re squeamish. It has perhaps the scariest most stomach churning sequences I have yet encountered in my 424 books. I’m serious. The overall writing is highly skilled. This author is not simply trying to gross you out he is an excellent story teller. Internal structure, character development and consistency, plot progression and pacing, the building and release of tension. All very well done as if the author had much more experience writing. Very impressive. Straight forward prose style. Quick reading.

Here’s one that will stop you in your tracks. The title alone will cause you to guffaw. ( Is that a word ? ) MONSTER HUNTER INTERNATIONAL ( 2007) Larry Correia. I know, I wanted to pass on it because of the goofy title. Glad I did’nt. Let’s call it a supernatural action thriller. Some FANTASTIC action sequences. Very exciting. Got my heart pounding. Pages vanish in around 20 or 30 seconds through many parts. You don’t realize you’re reading that fast sometimes. Maybe its because I don’t read that type of book usually but the ratings on amazon or good reads are justified in my opinion. Great , fast fun read. 713 pages but super fast reading.

My last recommendation is one that isn’t in the new author vein but I wanted to throw in because it is so obscure yet quite enjoyable. Almuric (1939) Robert E Howard. Much of what Howard wrote was in the form of short stories. He really only had a few novels to his name. This is one of them. The polish on this novel had me suspicious that it may not even have been Howard. His style is typically more visceral and coarse. Almost crunchy. Whether it was Howard or not doesn’t really matter to me. I liked the story. Reminded me of A Princess of Mars in many ways. Read Almuric for nostalgic reasons if you like pulp, if you are able to enjoy a simple swashbuckling story written almost 75 years ago. If you’re the type of person that considers Tarzan juvenile and ” beneath you ” then avoid this one.217 pages. It’ll take you about 3 to 4 hours. 8.0/10

Woa, I’m rambling. Sorry guys. Anyway, there’s a couple newer titles and one from way way back. I’ll post again once I’m done with those last 9 authors.

To Joe, you had asked whether or not I had read Abbott’s Flatland(1884). I have heard of it but it didn’t sound like it would appeal to me and if I understand you correctly that might have been a reasonable guess. I did try Hal Clement’s Mission of Gravity (1953) and found it to be similarly odd but not really enjoyable. Gave that one the dreaded 4.5/10. I understand the two books have many similarities including, I suppose, their overall quirky nature.

Hope you’ve found some good books to read in the mean time, Joe. Catch you again later !

Have a good day all !

Ice
Thursday 2011 September 29