hugo – Page 2 – Made by Mikal

Old Man’s War

Post author:mikal
Post published:November 2, 2010
Post category:Book

I've owned this book for a while, and now really regret not reading it the second it hit my shelves. Its amazingly good for a first book, and is definitely as good as The Forever War and Forever Peace, and better than Starship Troopers. I'm very very impressed with it. An excellent book if you're into combat scifi. Update 2011: I've been in a rut recently where I haven't really been enjoying the books I've been reading. The number of books I read has also dropped off a lot since I moved back to Australia. Some of the drop off is associated with living in a house instead of an apartment -- there is constant maintenance work to be done, and I might never finish painting this place. However, I was worried that perhaps I simply wasn't as into reading as I was a couple of years ago. So, I decided to go back and read a book I enjoyed before, and see if I still liked it. This was that book. The answer is hells yes. This book is still fantastic, and I really enjoyed it. I also knocked it over in a time similar to when I was…

The Diamond Age

Post author:mikal
Post published:September 16, 2010
Post category:Book

I loved this book. I think its going on my list of all time favorites. The first half of the book is better than the second, but I think that might be because young Nell resonated much more strongly with me than older Nell. I read this book because it came up at a scientific conference where I went to a presentation about 3D fabrication, and its now entirely clear why the presenter thought this was relevant, given 3D nanotech fabrication plays a strong part in this book. Excellent read.

Mona Lisa Overdrive

Post author:mikal
Post published:August 17, 2010
Post category:Book

This is the book which wraps up the Sprawl series (Burning Chrome, Neuromancer and Count Zero). Its a great book, with several separate story lines which are beautifully molded together by the end of the book. It also wraps up the confusing elements of the various other stories nicely. I really enjoyed it.

Count Zero

Post author:mikal
Post published:July 20, 2010
Post category:Book

The voodoo aspect of this book is a bit odd, but its a very readable story set about eight years after Neuromancer. I like that it is not a "me too" story, and has its own unique and interesting plot arc. Overall a good read.

Cyteen: The Vindication

Post author:mikal
Post published:July 3, 2010
Post category:Book

This is the final book in the Cyteen trilogy (proceeded by Cyteen: The Betrayal and Cyteen: The Rebirth). This book is good in that it avoids much of the politics that mired the first book. Additionally, its nice to see Ari2 and Justin resolve some of their differences, even if its from a position of mutual distrust. The series doesn't really resolve the problem of Ari's research, but I assume that theme is covered more in later books. [isbn: 0445204303] [award: winner hugo 1989]

Cyteen: The Rebirth

Post author:mikal
Post published:June 23, 2010
Post category:Book

This book is a follow up to Cyteen: The Betrayal, and was originally published in the same volume as it. The book would make little sense without having read Cyteen: The Betrayal first. Apart from that its a good book, and much more readable than the first. I think that's mostly because all the important scene setting is done and we can finally get on with things. That was my impression with the first book too -- the second half was better than the first. [award: nominee hugo 1989] [isbn: 0445204540]

All The Weyrs of Pern

Post author:mikal
Post published:June 16, 2010
Post category:Book

This is the science fiction that I thought the Pern stories should have been all along. Its fair enough that there is a build up to this point, although it took a long time and involved a lot more light weight fiction than I would have liked. This was a good book, and I enjoyed it. [award: nominee hugo 1992] [isbn: 0345368932]

Neuromancer

Post author:mikal
Post published:June 1, 2010
Post category:Book

This book is a classic, and I first read it a long time ago. Its pretty clear in retrospect why it kicked off the cyberpunk movement, and I'm glad that the future it proposed hasn't come to pass (yet). Despite being written in the 1980s the book isn't dated, although it does make more sense if you've spent some time in Japan. [isbn: 0586066454] [award: winner nebula_novel 1984; winner hugo 1985]

Cyteen: The Betrayal

Post author:mikal
Post published:May 25, 2010
Post category:Book

I read this book at the recommendation of my father. Its an interesting concept -- artificially produced humans have been created to fill gaps in a society far out on the edges of occupied space. However, how are these artificial humans different from "real" humans? How are they different from slaves given they are programmed to perform certain duties with joy and without question? However, despite the interesting concept, the first two thirds of the book are very slow, and took me ages to read. The last third was much better and I think I'll read the sequels because of that. If the book had stopped after the boring bit, there would be no way I'd read the next book. I think part of the problem is that this book was originally in one volume, instead of the three volume set I own. [isbn: 0445204524] [award: winner hugo 1989]

Cryptonomicon

Post author:mikal
Post published:March 22, 2010
Post category:Book

I read this book on an international trip, and it was a good choice for that. Its long (around 900 pages), but very readable. This is the second time I've read the book, and this time its amazing how well the description of Silicon Valley startups matches my experiences there. I love this book. Update 2022: having now read this book for a third time, I have to say it does stand the test of time. However, having read the rest of the Baroque Cycle now, I do wish somewhere in the series more attention was paid to explaining Enoch Root's back story.