Don't Forget to Read a Book!

Hello, Stranger. Let's talk about Oleh Shunkarenko's  Kaharlyk. This is part of a short excursion into Ukrainian SF and fantasy literature, for obvious reasons. The Short of It Plot: Chaos remains after a Russian invasion of Ukraine, and Oleksandr's fragmented memories push him to find Olena. Originally published in Ukrainian as a series of 100 word Facebook posts. Page Count: 176 Primary Driver:  (Plot,  World , or Character) Bechdel Test : Fail Technobabble:  Lots. Review:  Intriguing if difficult read. Lots of cool SF concepts tossed around, but combined with the 100 word block style, often confusing. Equal parts baffling and engaging. Extremely deliberate but sometimes difficult translation choices add to the mess. Nonetheless fascinating and chock full of clever ideas. The Medium/Long of It This is extremely hard to discuss without spoilers, and I'm not going to try.  The book kicks off with a note from the author and another from the transla...

Hello, Stranger. Let's talk about Michael Swanwick's  Stations of the Tide. The Short of It Plot: Someone is breaking interplanetary laws and spreading illegal technology, and the culprit must be found before cyclical tides rise, completely changing a planet. Page Count: 252 Award:  1991 Nebula Worth a read : No Primary Driver:  (Plot,  World , or Character) Bechdel Test : Fail Technobabble:  High Review:  Plenty of neat ideas that do not sum to more than their parts. Somehow feels both rushed and tedious. A lot of thought went into the broader world and setting, but the same care was not given to any other aspects of this book. After a solid opening chapter it's all downhill. Uninteresting characters with weak motivations butt heads over uninspired conflicts. A lot of unnecessary sex thrown in, hoping to keep the reader engaged.  The Medium of It Spoiler Free! This is an incredibly ambitious work that falls far short of its potential. The wo...

Hello, Stranger. Just a fun thing: happened upon the graves of John Keats and Joseph Severn, who are of course quite vital to the Hyperion Cantos. Also, for, you know, other stuff, because Keats wrote other things. But that's not really my wheelhouse... These are in the Non-Catholic Cemetery of Rome. The graves, side by side. Keats's Inscription Severn's Inscription That's it for this one - just thought it was neat! As a final note, here's a more fun grave from the same cemetery Livin' the death! Have a swell day, Stranger. And don't forget to read a book!

Hello, Stranger. Let's talk about Lois McMaster Bujold's  Borders of Infinity. The Short of It Plot: In an attempt to balance the books, Miles relates three of his early adventures to Ilyan. Page Count:  311 Award:  Part of the Vorkosigan Saga Worth a read : Yes Primary Driver:  ( Plot ,  World , or  Character ) Bechdel Test : Pass Technobabble:  Moderate. Review:  A bit all over the place, as the three stories fall at different points in the Vorkosigan timeline. The first is a murder mystery, the second and third are both infiltrations. All of them work on their own, but are a bit awkwardly fit together - the framing narrative is nothing more than a husk. These are non-optional reads, which introduce a number of essential characters. Pacing is good for the first two, drags a bit in the third. It is nice to see more of these smaller stories: a bit less interplanetary conspiracy, a bit more nuance. The Medium of It Spoiler Free! This is a coll...

Hello, Stranger. Let's talk about Marina and Serhiy Dyachenko's Vita Nostra. This is part of a short excursion into Ukrainian SF and fantasy literature, for obvious reasons. The Short of It Plot: Sasha has no choice but to attend the Institute of Special Technologies, and the price of failure is far, far too high. Page Count: 416 Primary Driver:  (Plot,  World , or  Character ) Bechdel Test : Pass Technobabble:  Lots o fantasy babble, but that's the point. Review:  There is something refreshing about a "school of magic" book that is truly about the school. Learning magic should be hard: unlearning reality is a painful process. Vita Nostra  is about the process of learning magic and the cost that people pay for it. There are a handful of compelling characters, including Sasha, but most are flat. Starts slow and spends too much time on everything before the school itself, but once at the school everything picks up.  The Medium of It Spoiler Fre...

Hello, Stranger. Let's talk about Vernor Vinge's  A Fire Upon the Deep. The Short of It Plot:  After awakening an ancient technology, a number of humans end up trapped on an alien planet, inhabited by a breed of medieval wolf-like aliens. An interspecies rescue project might be their only chance. Page Count:  613 Award: 1993 Hugo Worth a read : Yes! Primary Driver:  ( Plot ,  World , or  Character ) Bechdel Test : Pass Technobabble:  High Review:  There is just so much book in this book. Crazy aliens who have their own odd physicality, social systems, communication, etc? Yes! Novel distant future depiction of humans? Yup! Successful balance of small and large scale threats? Of course! Rogue intelligences? Why not? Tantalizing hints of a distant past? Obviously. Good characters, both human and not? Clearly. Every twist and turn is more bizarre and SF then the one before. At no point did I have any idea what would come next.  The Medium of...

Hello, Stranger. Let's talk about Lois McMaster Bujold's  Ethan of Athos. The Short of It Plot: Ethan is sent to figure out what went awry with his (entirely male) planet's delivery of ovarian tissue, needed for the next generation. Page Count: 237 Award:  Part of  Vorkosigan Saga Worth a read : Vorkosigan completionist? Yes. Otherwise, not so much. Primary Driver:  (Plot,  World , or  Character ) Bechdel Test : Pass Technobabble:  Moderate to high. Review:  One of the more isolated Vorkosigan books. Lots of new characters, but not all are engaging. Protagonist has a very obvious arc and is a bit flat. Nice to have some new locations, but Athos itself feels half-baked - and is not particularly important in the series as a whole. Pacing is a bit rough: lots of exposition dumps, sporadic action, and then stalls. Enjoyable enough, but does not feel like it progresses the Vorkosigan Saga  enough to make sense. The Medium of It Spoiler Free! ...