This page contains short essays on books, movies and other items that I've read, seen or used. Whenever time and fancy allow, I will post a few short reviews here. Hopefully I can pass along some good stuff.
I read a lot -- it comes with the job, but fortunately I also enjoy it a lot. I've got this big pile of books besides my bed that I periodically refill with new titles as older ones go to the shelves. Most of my current readings center around the style known as "hard science," or science fiction based around sound general science principles. Sounds boring, you say? Not at all! Actually, it's fascinating because the heroes can't "recalibrate the main emitter to activate a reverse polarity tachyonic field" to get themselves out of trouble -- they actually have to work at it.
Authors who have written in the hard science genre include, but are not limited to: Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov, Robert A. Heinlein, Allen Steele, Kim Stanley-Robinson, Robert L. Forward, Larry Niven, Jerry Pournelle, Ben Bova, Gregory Benford, Greg Bear, Vernor Vinge, Charles Scheffield and James P. Hogan.
Recently read titles include (most recent on top):
The Road to Damascus (John Ringo & Linda Evans, published by Baen Books): I already knew Ringo for his Legacy of the Alldenata series, and this title was just as good. Beyond the usual high tech battlefield action that is expected from a book set in Keith Laumer's Bolo universe, the story is also a cautionary tale on the possible excesses of utopian socialism. When you gradually give power to those who think they know how to live your life better than you do, you might not like the results, no matter how ideologically correct they might be. And if the bad guys are backed by a 13,000 tons combat robot (albeit a reluctant one), it won't be easy to get your freedom back once it's too late. While left-aligned readers will surely decry the story as "fear mongering," Ringo and Evans are careful to show all the steps along the way to tyranny, beginning with ever-encroaching bureaucratic rule and ending with death camps. It's a frighteningly possible "frog in boiling water" scenario that spans nearly twenty years, from the early Deng invasion to the story's ultimate resolution. The only downside to the book is the latter, as the writers end their tales once the good guys' victory is no longer in any doubt, but never bothering to actually show it. Overall, recommended if you like the Bolo stories or military fiction in general. Be aware that the middle part of the book (the rise of the Party) is somewhat hard to stomach -- you'll want to reach in and yell "wake up!" to the characters several times.
Omega (Jack McDevitt, ISBN 0-441-01210-8): An unexpected (ten years later!) finale to the author's previous Engines of God novel, this new story finally fixes the absence of resolution in the “EoG” plotline. McDevitt spends most of this novel exploring a primitive alien society that is in the path of one of the deadly clouds, and the human efforts to save them. His aliens are fun but not very imaginative, and the true purpose of the clouds is somewhat dull (but believable), but the novel was enjoyable nonetheless.
Altered Carbon and Broken Angels (Richard Morgan, ISBN 0-57507-390-X and 0-575-07550-3): though set in the same universe and featuring the same character, these are two independent stories (while Carbon predates Angels, you can read them in any order). An imaginative take on the cyberpunk genre, the first book proposes an intriguing premise: the hero is hired by the victim of a murder to find out what happened (neural implants allow personalities to be placed in new bodies, making people immortal). The second book features the same character, this time as a mercenary in a technological treasure hunt. Due to graphic sex scenes in both titles, recommended for mature readers only.
Fairyland (Paul J. McAuley, ISBN 0-380-79429-2): some say that the Cyberpunk genre is dead, but it's not true. It has simply mutated to adapt itself to the reality of the modern world. Case in point, Fairyland shows a future where underground hackers make drug viruses and alter genetic constructs, and where memes (ideas) are spread not just by argumentation but also by brain-altering nanobots. It's a dark future, but not a hopeless one. Recommended.
For Love and Glory (Poul Anderson, ISBN 0-812-54039-5): a postumous release from noted SF writer Poul Anderson, For Love and Glory is touted on the back cover as a duel over a Forerunner civilization artifact. This accurately covers the first three chapters or so, after which the story takes an entirely different turn. The foreword explains that this novel was built around two older (and unrelated) short stories, and it shows. The intrigue and pacing are somewhat disjointed and hard to follow, and you never quite care for the two main characters. Nice try, but I expected better from such a noted writer.
This Alien Shore (C.S. Friedman, ISBN 0-88677-799-2): this novel reminded me a bit of Dune, since it also features an all-powerful Guild that controls starflight. No spice melange in this one, but plenty of computer hacking, pervasive brainware, and some powerful animal imagery (the kaja social system is fascinating). Well done, with likeable characters, a good tempo and an interesting mystery. Recommended.
Forge of the Elders (L. Neil Smith, ISBN 0-671-31982-5): a decidedly not serious novel about a future where communism made a comeback, and the world has two superpowers, the USSR and the ASSR (American Soviet Socialist Republic). A small ASSR fleet composed of three refurbished Shuttle orbiters are sent to bring back an intriguing asteroid from the Belt. There are already aliens on it, though, and they are all capitalists! Much political and philosophical discussions follow. Good book, even though the premises are hard to believe, and the book feels like it's three novels slammed into one.
Starfish (Peter Watts, ISBN 0-812-57585-7): an interesting book set in the deep sea, the abyssal plain to be precise. A group of cyborgs are sent to maintain a geothermal power facility set on a fracture rift. While their bodies are augmented to withstand the pressure, their minds aren't. Good pacing, good mystery, good character interaction. While complete in itself, a sequel is available (Maelstrom, on my reading list).
A Deepness in the Sky (Vernor Vinge, ISBN 0-812-53635-5): awesome hard SF from one of the new masters of the genre -- so hard, in fact, that there is no faster-than-light drive, and relativistic effects play a big part in the background of the story. The portrayal of the aliens is masterfully done, too, letting the reader (and the crew) humanize them until it is revealed that they are indeed different from us. My only small disappointment is that the head bad guy doesn't quite get the comeuppence he so richly deserve (a fate placed instead on his second-in-command, more brutal but not quite as evil). Highly recommended.
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress (Robert A. Heinlein, ISBN 0-312-86355-1): one of the better Heinlein novels, just before he started his creative decline in his later years. Loosely patterned after the American revolution, this Libertarian fable tells the story of the Moon colony's independence war. Lots of cool tech, social and political concepts -- including the first mention in SF of massdriver bombardments -- with only a few dated ideas (computers big as houses, women as housewives, long term low gravity exposure as debilitating, etc.).
Ancient Shores (Jack McDevitt, ISBN 0-06-105426-7): I'm a big fan of "SF archeology" and this book looked promising. Intriguing set-up (a boat made of unknown, alien material found buried deep in a field in the middle of the northern USA), which the author proceeds to develop well until a deeply unsatisfying finale that snaps our suspension of disbelief. But the worst thing is, like in the same author's Engines of God novel, an absence of resolution at the end. McDevitt raises many questions but doesn't provide any answers, which I think the reader is entitled to after reading through 360-odd pages.
Shrek the Third: the latest and weakest of the three movies. Most of the jokes fell flat, and too many were reused from previous movies (fighting princesses, Puss in Boots making kitten eyes, etc.). Also felt remarkably short, despite being 90 minutes long. Keep it for rental, and even then feel free to skip it – if you’ve seen the trailer, you saw the best jokes already.
Fantastic Four 2 – Rise of the Silver Surfer: not as bad as many of Marvel’s previous superhero movies, but not great either. Jessica Alba phones in her performance; she looks like she’d rather collect her paycheck and be elsewhere. A combination of this and the script makes it hard to believe that Sue and Reed are really a couple in love, not just two persons that have to be a couple because they were in the comic. As to the Surfer himself, he was spot on, from the voice to the gestures and so on. I wish I could say the same of Galactus, which was little more than a cloud-shaped footnote. Dr. Doom was much better than in the first movie. A good rental for a slow night.
1408: didn’t see it, but my wife says that it’s an okay horror movie. She was hoping for a The Ring-level scare, and the movie only delivered in a couple of scenes. (Personally, I only read the short story, and it was scary as heck.)
Kung Fu Hustle (Stephen Chow, 2005): an amazing Chinese movie that adds "CGI-fu" to the classic wire-fu techniques to create a breathtaking martial arts comedy. Literally a manga come to life, with characters smashing through walls and objects. Highly recommended.
Lost in Translation (Sophia Coppola, 2003): a slow-paced movie about the boredom of two Americans visiting Tokyo, one an aging actor (Bill Murray), the other the young wife of a fashion photographer (Scarlett Johansson). What I liked about it was the "otherness" of the Japanese society, which made me want to visit even more, and the complex relation between the two main characters. To see if you're not afraid of contemplative movies. IMDB
More reviews will be forthcoming.
There won't be many of those, but some things are so bad I can't help but warn people away. Consider it a community service. These entries will be short, since I don't want to devote too much time to crap.
F.T.L. (Kevin D. Randle, ISBN 0-441-01192-6): This was a terrible novel, with poor pacing and unlikeable characters. I made the mistake of purchasing all three "Exploration Chronicles" books at once, and the quality of writing goes down with each title (FTL is #3). Someone needs to get Mr. Randle an editor. Beyond the numerous typos, his grating tendency to use little "teasers" at the end of nearly all chapters needs to be curbed. It's a poor attempt at foreshadowing, and Mr. Randle needs to be told that the old axiom "Show, Don't Tell" is as valid today as it was yesterday. I will stay away from this author from now on, and will likewise look with suspicion at all future Ace titles.
Mars Plus (Novel): follow-up to Man Plus, and one of the worst SF books I ever read. You don't, I repeat, you don't, include gratuitous rough sex scenes with no impact on the plot, a bad guys-controlled view point character (and we don't discover this until the very end of the book), and you don't make the bad guy win, "just because"!
I Am Jade Falcon (Novel): a licensed Battletech novel, and probably one of the worst ones. Apart from an unlikeable main character and poor pacing, the book suffers from a lack of firm editing. The author leaves his characters in a no-win situation (unarmed, in a cavern deep underground, cut-off from the single elevator by 300-odd armed men), then shifts the narrative to three weeks later and several light-years away, with no explanation on how they got there. Apparently, we're supposed to believe the main characters are so badass, they fought their way out?!
