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Title: Stand on Zanzibar by John Brunner ISBN: 1857988361 Publisher: Orion Audio Pub. Date: 1999 Format: Paperback List Price(USD): $19.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.56
Rating: 5
Summary: Classic SF - A Must Read
Comment: Seen and read it all? New to Science Fiction? READ THIS BOOK! Written on a Smith Corona typewriter in the late '60s, Stand on Zanzibar attempts to describe the world in 2010. World views are generally a tall order for any writer, but Brunner is up to the task. In some ways, his story line is far more relevant and entertaining than many recent SF novels, and again, this speaks to the intellect and literary talent of the late John Brunner. Stand on Zanzibar won the 1968 Hugo Award, and 33 years later, it's still on my top ten list of SF novels.
The "Innis Mode" style used in the book can be disorienting at first (I was pre MTV), but after a few chapters you'll be drawn into this beautiful and complex dance as the subplots and characters interact. There are laugh out loud vignets, poetry, songs, and scenes that will make your heart ache. From dirt floor huts in Africa, to the edge of space, Brunner's characters will guide, push, and drag you through experiences that reflect on what it takes to be a human being in a society driven by technology and greed.
I hope that someday a gifted director will make a movie version of SoZ. If the screenplay captures even half of what's in this novel, it would be a success.
Rating: 5
Summary: Flash-fast writing in a scary (and scarily accurate) future!
Comment: Stand on Zanzibar is a classic sci-fi novel from the late 60s that is, to paraphrase another review, simultenously dated and ahead of its time. Brunner created a future world where overpopulation and overstimulation would drive some people to become murderous "muckers." He may have missed the mark on his predictions about drug use and abortion, but... his central thesis - that people's biggest fear in the 21st century would be simply standing in the wrong place at the wrong time when an otherwise normal-looking person snapped and went psychotic - is such a BULLSEYE in the wake of events like Columbine and 9-11, it's scary!
It's not a downbeat as it sounds, mostly because of the creative narrative technique. Brunner's fast-paced writing style predated hypertext and MTV-style jumpcuts. I particularly enjoy the way he uses short paragraphs that each describe what multiple individuals are doing in a single moment across the globe -- a sort of a world's-eye-view technique that was supremely influential on narration of comic book writers like Alan Moore and Neil Gaiman. Brunner's joy of linguistic and narrative technique are apparent on every page, and the results are clever and often bitingly funny despite the downbeat theme.
Rating: 5
Summary: Acid Sci-Fi: The Larval Stage of Cyberpunk
Comment: I read (and reread) this book nearly twenty years ago, and still find it one of the best science fiction has to offer. I am always suprised and somewhat annoyed by Brunner's obscurity: isn't this (and his other "Acid Sci-Fi" books--"Jagged Orbit," "The Sheep Look Up," "Shockwave Rider") the obvious progenitor of cyberpunk? Noone ever mentions this book in connection with "Neuromancer," including Gibson (even though he makes a reference to it--one of the characters in "Neuromancer" is named "Yonderboy"). Brunner is also an excellent writer, far more clever and able than the gang of "hard sf" celebrities. Brunner, unlike any other science fiction author before or since, brought "futurism" right into his medium, chopping the typical linear narrative into a multiplexed, McLuhanesque media barrage, presaging "hypertext." Small minds may find this annoying; I found it courageous and sublime. The book is not without its flaws (it gets a little preachy, here and there, especially with the Chad Mulligan character), but these are dwarfed by its achievements. PS, if you like this book, I strongly recommend "The Sheep Look Up," also by Brunner. Much more scary.
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Title: The Sheep Look Up by John Brunner, James John Bell, David Brin ISBN: 1932100059 Publisher: BenBella Books Pub. Date: 01 June, 2003 List Price(USD): $28.00 |
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Title: Shockwave Rider by John Brunner ISBN: 0345324315 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: May, 1990 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title: Way Station (SF Collector's Edition) by Clifford D. Simak ISBN: 0575071389 Publisher: Orion Publishing Group Pub. Date: 19 October, 2000 List Price(USD): $26.95 |
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Title: Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny ISBN: 0380014033 Publisher: Avon Pub. Date: March, 2000 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title: A Case of Conscience by James Blish, Greg Bear ISBN: 0345438353 Publisher: Ballantine Books (Trd Pap) Pub. Date: 05 September, 2000 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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