Unpopular opinion: I personally had more fun reading the Wikipedia page (and others) detailing the actual background and setting and workings of the Culture tha

Unpopular opinion: I personally had more fun reading the Wikipedia page (and others) detailing the actual background and setting and workings of the Culture than I had reading any of the books. :) Really the world (universe?) of The Culture is very deep and interesting (and the Tolkien comparisons very apt, since I have the same feeling about LoTR). Also I particularly enjoyed Consider Phlebas more than the 'following' book (player of games), so I do not agree about phlebas being "skippable".