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I am very upset about that... In my opinion he's the best living science fiction author... but not for long, I guess... :-( I've read most of his books (all of
by swombat 14y ago
I am very upset about that... In my opinion he's the best living science fiction author... but not for long, I guess... :-(
I've read most of his books (all of his SF books). The Culture is an amazing universe, but the rest of his works are also outstanding.
- xradionut 14y agoI rank him in my top tier of writers along with John Barnes.
- tjic 14y agoExcellent call-out on Barnes; he's one of the most under-rated authors out there. If you haven't read his stuff, pick it up.
- pavel_lishin 14y agoI think the only novel of his I read was Finity, and that kind of turned me off.
- xradionut 14y agoNot all of his work is great, but the "Thousand Cultures" series and "Century Next Door" series are the great reads. Note: The dark anti-hero in "Kaleidoscope Century" is probably the reason he hasn't won many major awards. You can't write such a character and not piss off the various sci-fi author and fandom cliches.
- tjic 14y agoAgreed. Barnes can go dark - REALLY dark. The Directive 51 universe is really dark, but has a ton of great ideas and great writing.
- pavel_lishin 14y agoThank you, I'll check them out
- DomBlack 14y agoI only just started reading the Culture, after the first book I was already hooked. He is a great writer.
- engtech 14y agoHere's Banks explaining the Culture, which is a great background that isn't even in the books. http://nuwen.net/culture.html http://nuwen.net/culture.html
- limmeau 14y agoWhat do you recommend as a first book to read? (edit: never mind, sibling thread has it covered: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5485695 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5485695 )
- engtech 14y agoRead this page first as an amazing introduction to the Culture: http://nuwen.net/culture.html http://nuwen.net/culture.html
- swombat 14y agoI wouldn't. It's amazing only after you've read some of the books and familiarised yourself with it. Any teenage SF fan can come up with some kind of crazy and awesome-sounding universe, but turning it into a series of dozens of amazing novels is another thing altogether!
- richardjordan 14y agoConsensus seems to be Player of Games but I have to say my first one was Use of Weapons, which I picked up from a book store in London on a whim, one weekday lunchtime in the late 90s. It's a fantastic starting point.
- swombat 14y agoIf you LOVE science fiction already, I'd go straight for the jugular and start with Excession. It's hardcore, it's full of awesome technology, it will blow your mind and forever seduce you into the world of the Culture. If you're just a normal science fiction fan, start with Use of Weapons. It's complex and sci-fi-ish enough, but not as hardcore as Excession. The plot is amazing. To me it is one of the most memorable books of science fiction that I've read. It really made me question some basic beliefs about ... well, you'll see. If you're a normal person, who wants a slightly softer intro into the Culture universe, or someone who's not particularly into science fiction, Player of Games is a great starting point because it is less about the tech and more about the ideas and the people, but nevertheless a great book. Ultimately, the only one I wouldn't start with is Consider Phlebas, which is good, but imho nowhere near as good as the rest. To me, Consider Phlebas was about the same level as, say, the Reality Dysfunction by PFH - great space opera, fast paced, gripping, but not exceptional in any way. Every subsequent book (with very few exceptions) is not just great, but also unique and different from all the other science fiction books out there.