Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

 
Title: Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

Pages: 440

How it was obtained: Library.

Time spent on the "to read" shelf: 1 ½ weeks.

Days spent reading it: 3 days.

Why I read it: The cover looked cool and it kept getting recommended to me in my amazon searches.

Brief review: Leviathan is set during World War I with a few significant changes.  Genetically altered animals serve as the backbone of the British Empire, and mechanical war machines for the German army. This is a futuristic novel written about the past.  The story follows two individuals: Alex (the son of the assassinated Archduke of Austria) and Deryn (a girl who disguises herself as a boy to join the air force). The plot kept moving, the characters were interesting, the creativity was flowing. We follow their adventures as these two characters attempt to find safety from their pursuers and eventually join forces. My only gripe is that this was just the first installment of a trilogy and I thought it was a stand alone.  But really this is not a bad thing, the story was interesting enough that I would follow a trilogy (I was a little less excited about the possibility of a longer series). 

This is a fun introduction to the steam-punk genre if you have never experienced it before. Steam-punk usually involves a story set in the Victorian era and then adds crazy elements from the future back into the era. Like giant mechanical war machines, or flying whale-like airships.

Leviathan was a fun novel, worth the quick read. I would highly recommend to young adults and people who like (or would like to be introduced to) steam-punk.

Favorite quote: "What the Clankers lack in finesse they make up for with blanket ruination."

Stars: 4 out of 5.

Final Word: Beastly.

Book 44: Forward the Foundation by Isaac Asimov

Title: Forward the Foundation by Isaac Asimov 

Pages: 480

How it was obtained: I bought it on half.com.

Time spent on the "to read" shelf: 3 years.

Days spent reading it: 2 days.

Why I read it: I wanted to finish the last of the Foundation series that Isaac Asimov wrote.

Brief review: This is the seventh and final book in the Foundation series by Isaac Asimov. It was finished just before Asimov died in 1992. In the Foundation chronology it comes just after Prelude to Foundation and just before Foundation. It is really a direct sequel to Prelude to Foundation, but more importantly it is a very gratifying conclusion to the series.

Forward the Foundation chronicles the life of Hari Seldon in 10 year increments. At each decade mark something significant has happened to Hari or his plans for psychohistory. I think this book shines because it reads more like four short novels rather than one long novel (which I've commented on about Asimov's writings before). The character of Hari Seldon is fleshed out a little more, as are many of his associates and family members.

Forward the Foundation is a much better conclusion to the series than Foundation and Earth (the last book in the Foundation timeline). It struck me as almost nostalgic. This is good, because I think that the series really struggled during Foundation's Edge and Foundation and Earth. I think Asimov really liked the character of Hari Seldon, and so in Prelude to Foundation and this book, we catch a glimpse of a great character during some crisis moments. These crisis moments are my favorite part about the Foundation series.

This was a fitting ending to a fairly solid series. I think it fleshed out Asimov's vision of Hari Seldon who is sure to be a titan among Science Fiction fans for decades to come. Thanks Isaac, job well done. I would definitely recommend this book to Foundation fans, it was worth it.

Favorite quote: "But together…our power is awesome!" (I know, it makes no sense without context, sorry!)

Stars: 4 out of 5.

Final Word: Gratifying.

Book 39: Xenocide by Orson Scott Card

Title: Xenocide by Orson Scott Card

Pages: 592.

How it was obtained: I bought it at Borders.

Time spent on the "to read" shelf: 2 years.

Days spent reading it: Over 1 ½ years. I started reading it just before a family vacation in June of 2008.

Why I read it: It is the third book in the Ender series by Orson Scott Card. Ender's Game is one of my favorite books of all time.

Brief review: Xenocide is a strange book to categorize for me. On the one hand, Card has created a morally fascinating novel that started in Speaker for the Dead and continues here in Xenocide. At the heart of the book is the question—how do we determine who we will go to war with and kill? What if it is us or them, how do we respond? And he takes these very great questions and extends them to the extreme. So, what if it was the entire human race or an entire alien race? What would we do? What if it was three or four intelligent species? I love the questions that this book creates and begins to solve.

Second, I like how Card makes me think about how we would interact with a culture that is entirely different from our own. Sure, Card is using aliens as his example of a new culture, but aliens are a clear metaphor for any culture different from our own. How will we interact with that culture, influence that culture, change that culture, even by simply observing? It is a question cultural anthropologists and missiologists have been dealing with for a long time now.

This book struggles (and so does Speaker for the Dead) in explanations about science. Card gets bogged down explaining philosophy about human connections (philotes), DNA splicing, space/time travel, etc. It is clear that Card has done his background research, his explanations just seem forced. I feel like someone needs to tell him, "It is science fiction, it does not have to be based on REAL science."

Reading Xenocide made me want to read Ender's Game again. And that is not a bad thing. I think people who are already committed to the Ender series will like this book, but it would not be a good place to start.

Favorite quote: "Isn't it possible, he wondered, for one person to love another without trying to own each other?  Or is that buried deep in our genes that we can never get it out?  Territoriality.  My wife.  My friend. My lover.  My outrageous and annoying computer personality who's about to be shut off at the behest of a half-crazy girl genius with OCD on a planet I never heard of and how will I live without Jane when she's gone?"

Stars: 3.5 out of 5.

Final Word: Deadly.

Old Man's War by John Scalzi

Title: Old Man's War by John Scalzi

Pages: 311.

How it was obtained: I picked it up at Books-A-Million.

Time spent on the "to read" shelf: 0 days.

Days spent reading it: 2 days.

Why I read it: I saw Zoe's Tale come out a few months ago in hardback and liked the cover. So I checked into the original book in the series, which was Old Man's War. After doing some checking into it, it sounded like a book I might actually like a lot. So I picked it up and bought it before I took off for Thailand to pass a few nights reading.

Brief review: I absolutely loved Old Man's War. John Scalzi is a witty writer. Sure, he borrows many ideas from Ender's Game, Starship Troopers, and other classic sci-fi books, but that does not make his own book inferior. It is going to be a classic on its own one day, I'm pretty sure.

The plot is simple. We meet our hero at the ripe age of 75 as he is about to enter the military for a 2-10 year stint. Yes, you read that correctly. In this book, military service (in space) is for the old who have already retired. They are taken into space and rejuvenated (I'll let you read the book to find out how). We follow Poole through his training and career in the military (and it's a pretty exceptional career). It is a fun romp that is over all too soon. The pace and point of view reminded me heavily of Starship Troopers (which was written by the master of science fiction Robert Heinlein). But some of the ideas and concepts were pure John Scalzi.

I'm glad I picked this book up, and I look forward to reading the other books in the series (and perhaps Scalzi's other works). He is a great writer and I find him very fun to read.

Favorite quote:

"You may refer to me as Ambassador, unworthy though I am of the title," The Consu said. "I am a criminal, having disgraced myself in battle on Pahnshu, and therefore am made to speak to you in your tongue. For this shame I crave death and a term of just punishment before my rebirth. It is my hope that as a result of these proceedings I will be viewed as somewhat less unworthy, and will thus be released to death. It is why I soil myself by speaking to you."

Stars: 5 out of 5.

Final Word: Refreshing.

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

Title: A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

Pages: 212.

How it was obtained: I purchased it from the local bookstore in Elkins.

Time spent on the "to read" shelf: 0 days.

Days spent reading it: 3 days.

Why I read it: I enjoy dystopian society novels, like 1984 and A Brave New World. I heard that A Clockwork Orange was in the same vein, so I checked it out.

Brief review:
A Clockwork Orange was a great gem for me to discover. While it can be compared to the types of worlds described in 1984 and A Brave New World, this novel stands on its own for me. I loved the main character of Alex and we are in his mind during the whole novel.

Esentially this book asks one question: What if we could solve all crime committed by humans, but the cost was our free choice? Would the price be too high ? In this novel, Alex is a juvenile punk, and when he gets caught in the act of breaking into a home, he is sent away to prison. While there he is offered a treatment that will get him out of jail in 2 weeks. He takes it, but in the process loses his ability to act out in violence. He gets physically sick when he thinks about hurting someone. He also loses his love for music (one of his few redeeming qualities before his incarceration). He then revisits his previous life, but there are some surprises in store for him as he encounters people who he attacked or knew from his earlier life.

I love how this book explores the big ideas of good and evil as they are presented in humanity. I love how it explores freedom and bondage. I love how the themes could be taught in a theology class and not miss a beat, and a theology class would be all the richer for it. Is this book for everyone? No way. The language is difficult (Burgess made up a kind of teenage slang for the book) and the events include senseless violence and sexuality. But for those willing to get past the first few pages of slang (which oddly enough actually mutes the violence and sexuality present in the pages), the book opens up into a wonderful treat that is both entertaining and philosophical.

Favorite quote: "What does God want? Does God want goodness or the choice of goodness? Is a man who chooses the bad perhaps in some way better than a man who has the good imposed upon him? Deep and hard questions little 6655321."

Stars: 5 out of 5.

Final Word: Liberating.

Shadow of the Giant by Orson Scott Card

Title: Shadow of the Giant by Orson Scott Card

Pages: 367.

How it was obtained: Checked it out from the library.

Time spent on the "to read" shelf: 0 Days.

Days spent reading it: 3 days.

Why I read it: I packed most of my books from "The Patrick Challenge" and shipped them to Thailand. So I had to fill in with some books. Shadow of the Giant is the fourth book in the Ender's Shadow series by Orson Scott Card, I figured I would finish up this series before I left to go to Thailand. I'm glad I did.

Brief review: Shadow of the Giant is the final (as of right now, and probably ever) installment of the Ender's Shadow series. I have enjoyed this particular series quite a bit. It recounts the events on Earth after the events in Ender's Game. We follow Bean and Petra, but the real star of this show (and perhaps the real "Shadow" of Ender) is Peter Wiggin. We follow as Peter continues in his quest to become the Hegemon (the world leader) and to have actual authority over the whole world. The political and military maneuvers and manipulation that make this a reality for Peter are fun to watch unfold.

This series has been easy to read, but still full of great ideas by Card. Shadow of the Giant makes us think about contemporary events, even though it discusses them in playful science fiction. Card brings up issues about Muslim, Chinese, and United States politics from current headlines and stretches them to their logical conclusion. What if the Muslim world united under one head? Or if the massive Chinese population began an offensive against an almost equally massive Indian nation? In this book Card examines these possible political situations, but he does so within a very entertaining novel.

Shadow of the Giant is clever and thought provoking. If you have not read any of the rest of the series, this would not be a good place to start. But I would highly recommend picking up Ender's Game and then Ender's Shadow, because these books (and especially Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow) have been worth it.

Favorite quote: Life is full of grief, to exactly the degree we allow ourselves to love other people.

Stars: 4 out of 5.

Final Word: Huge.

Book 31: Sandworms of Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson

Title: Sandworms of Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson

Pages: 494

How it was obtained: My parents gave it to me for Christmas.

Time spent on the "to read" shelf: 18 months.

Days spent reading it: 3 days.

Why I read it: After reading Hunters of Dune, I simply HAD to finish Sandworms of Dune as well. Its the sequel and concluding book in the Dune series (although now Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson are going back and filling in the holes in the series).

Brief review: I have enjoyed reading Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson's additions to the Dune universe. I have read both prequels and now the concluding chapters to the series. They are fun and easy reads. Like I said for Hunters of Dune, they're not literature, but they are not bad.

Having said that, I have a few more complaints about Sandworms of Dune than I did about Hunters of Dune.

First, Brian and Kevin treat the readers like they are stupid. They drop not-so-subtle hints about the direction of the story every page and I guess they hope that the readers do not put it all together before the final unveiling. At points in the novel I literally shouted out "I'M NOT STUPID!!! I GET WHAT YOU ARE HINTING AT!!!!!!!" Seriously, I'm not a kindergartner.

Second, I did not like the simple way they wrapped up some of the serious conflicts in the story. The Dune universe has been about conflict its entire existence, and at the end of this book we are supposed to believe that with a few kind words those conflicts simply disappear. Please. I envision a war torn universe and factions to emerge, not this homogenizing effect that magically happens with the thoughts of one powerful being. In my opinion the conclusion of this series was a little forced. Even if this is the conclusion Frank Herbert outlined, it was poorly executed by Brian and Kevin.

That being said, any Dune fan would consider this a must read. It was not difficult reading and it did bring a sense of closure that was lacking in Chapterhouse. Of course, if you are like me, perhaps you liked the wide open possibilities that Chapterhouse presented and would prefer to stay in a universe that is so open-ended its crazy. If that's you, don't read Hunters of Dune or Sandworms of Dune, just revel in your imaginative Dune universe.

Favorite quote: "One can always find a battlefield if one looks hard enough."

Stars: 3 out of 5.

Final Word: Lacking.

Book 30: Hunters of Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson

Title: Hunters of Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson

Pages: 520.

How it was obtained: Bargain bin at Barnes and Noble. I would have bought it outright, but I knew it was going to be a two book story, so I waited.

Time spent on the "to read" shelf: 6 months.

Days spent reading it: 3 days.

Why I read it: Nearly 10 years ago now, I started and finished the original Dune series by Frank Herbert. I have long considered Dune (the original novel that kicked off the franchise) and Chapterhouse: Dune (Book 6 of the series) two of my favorite novels. I loved the complex story telling, interweaved with innovative (and strange) ideas about science, religion, politics and technology. But most of all, one of the last chapters in Chapterhouse is one of my favorite chapters in a book of all time. It was not expected and simply blew my mind away. The possibilities were endless. Frank Herbert had left a door so wide open my mind raced with the different scenarios of what happened after the book ended.

Frank Herbert was supposed to write a final 7th Dune novel, but sadly he died before this could happen. Then his son, Brian Herbert, and Kevin J. Anderson found some outlines for the last novel and started writing. The result has been 2 trilogies of prequels to the Dune series and now the final 7th novel (which became 2 novels). I waited patiently for the 2nd of the two novels to be released and then preceeded to read books 7 and 8 in the Dune saga.

Brief review: I enjoy the Dune universe. I think Frank Herbert had a very creative mind that was both full of intrigue and subtlety. He was nuanced in his writing. It is truly sad that he could not be the one to complete his grand epic. Instead his son Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson have picked up the mantle.

There are pros and cons to this situation.

Con--Brian and Kevin are no Frank Herbert. Frank's thoughts were dense and his overall vision broad. He was a visionary and a creative genius. Brian and Kevin, not so much.

Pro--Brian and Kevin are MUCH MUCH easier to read. I cruised through these two rather large books (each over 500 pages) in a little under 3 days each. It would have taken me a few weeks to manage reading 1,000 of Frank Herbert. Really its the difference between pop fiction and literature. Frank Herbert wrote literature, it just happened to be sci-fi. Brian and Kevin write pop fiction. Not bad, just not of the same caliber.

I know I did not get much into the plot here. And I won't really because it would reveal too much from the previous books and the next book. What I will say is that I did enjoy reading Hunters of Dune. It was cheesy at points, it was action filled adventure at others. But it was a fun read. This book is definitely defined by the "Hunters" that exist in many forms through the book. It is a constant game of hide and seek, of hunting and being hunted. There is a real sense of danger for the main characters through the whole book.

Did it live up to my expectations for book 7 in the Dune epic? No, but I think with the way my brain was rolling after Chapterhouse:Dune, perhaps nothing ever could. Not even if it was written by a Frank Herbert ghola himself (gholas are people who have been cloned from dead cells in the Dune universe...often they can get their old memories back, for those who have never read the series).

I think anyone who has read the entirety of the Dune series would read Hunters of Dune and its sequel Sandworms of Dune simply for closure. Its not bad, its just not as great as it might have been.

Favorite quote: "As human beings, we have trouble functioning in environments in which we feel threatened. The threat becomes the focus of our existence. But 'safety' is one of the great illusions of the universe. Nowhere is truly safe."

Stars: 4 out of 5.

Final Word: Spicy.

Book 27: Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson

Title: Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson

Pages: 572.

How it was obtained: I traded in a ton of used books at a used book store before we left Columbia. This is one of the books I got in exchange for super cheap.

Time spent on the "to read" shelf: 3 years.

Days spent reading it: 3 weeks.

Why I read it: I love science fiction. I like the idea of colonizing Mars. This book won the Nebula award in 1993 (very prestigious SF awards). So I imagined I would like it.

Brief review: Red Mars is a novel about colonizing and terraforming Mars. It deals with all the facets of colonizing another planet: scientific, political, personal, nature, business, and government, amongst others. It also theorizes on the consequences of that transformation.

I picked up Red Mars not really knowing what to expect. I was blown away by Kim Robinson's (a man, by the way) grasp of the technical elements of space travel and colonization. I would not say that the technical side gets too heavy except occasionally. Robinson's sheer knowledge of the technical side of space colonization is dumbfounding. He certainly did his homework before writing this novel. I would not be surprised if he actually traveled to Mars! It was so realistic at points.

My only complaint about this novel was that it was actually very slow reading. It took me almost twice as long to read a page than it normal does. Which meant this novel took some real time to finish. And I could only take it in smaller chunks (50 pages or so at a time).

The characters in the novel are fantastic. They are all a little messed up. You spend a lot of time with a few of the first 100 (the first 100 to travel to Mars). They all have their different take on what colonizing Mars should mean for them and the nations they represent (or the planet they represent as they settle Mars). The political elements of this book were very fascinating. The business elements of this book (talking about transnational businesses, etc) was confusing to me, but I understand nothing about big companies. Somebody out there probably appreciates what I could not even fathom.

Overall I thought this book was great, but probably not for anyone who is not really interested in sci-fi or colonization. The technical side of it alone will slow the reading to a crawl, but the ideas are entirely worth the time. I thought I might not be interested enough to read the other two in the trilogy, but after finishing Red Mars I am ready to start Green Mars (once I get through this list of course!).

Favorite quote: "Frank Chalmers made his way through them , feeling their stares, moving without thought toward them, feeling their stares, moving without thought toward the platform at the top of town; and as he walked he said to himself, Now we'll see what I can do with this planet." (Its not a great quote out of context, but in the midst of the chapter, it was amazing).

Stars: 4 out of 5.

Final Word: Transforming.

Book 23: Prelude to Foundation by Isaac Asimov

Title: Prelude to Foundation by Isaac Asimov

Pages: 528.

How it was obtained: Christmas gift from Ben and Jen a few years back.

Time spent on the "to read" shelf: 3 years.

Days spent reading it: 5 days.

Why I read it: I started reading the Foundation novels awhile back, and at some point I asked for them for Christmas. I received this great book, but was unable to read it due to my somewhat strange habit of almost always reading books in the order the author wrote them. Although it is a prequel, Prelude to Foundation is one of the last Foundation novels Asimov wrote. SO I had to get through 5 others before I could even start this one.

Brief review: Prelude to Foundation is chronologically the first book in the Foundation series. The story centers on the character of Hari Seldon, who is by far one of the better characters Asimov has created. He is memorable, likeable, and unique.

Although Prelude to Foundation is one book, its really a series of short stories as Seldon travels across Trantor fleeing from Imperial power that wants to control Seldon so it can control the future. As I stated in my previous posts, Asimov does great short stories (Foundation, the first book the author wrote in the series, was actually a group of four short stories that were published in a Sci-Fi magazine). He has interesting ideas and fun places to visit. However, in my opinion, Asimov struggles with longer plots. He has trouble bringing a longer book to a satisfying conclusion. So in this book the individual chapters are great, but the overarching plot is shoddy.

In Prelude, we see Seldon in a number of different environments that he explores, then leaves. However, it seems like nothing is really gained at any one location. But the stories in those locations are interesting. In one place all the people have their heads completely free of hair, including their eyebrows. Asimov uses stories like these to discuss culture, anthropology, taboos, and how humans rise or fall to these social forces. Some of the time its interesting. Other times I was bored or tired of being told for the hundredth time how humanity needs to grow out of its prejudices (whether they be gender, social, economic, race, etc. related).

The overarching story was a little weak. Once again Asimov oddly ties in his foundation series to his Robots series. I found the connection forced and strange yet again (as I discussed here about Foundation and Earth). But this book was much more readable and more enjoyable than Foundation's Edge or Foundation and Earth. I would recommend it as a worthy successor to the Foundation series, even if its not quite as good as some of the earlier works.

Favorite quote: "Thalus, Emmer--A sargeant in the armed security forces of the Wye sector of Ancient Trantor. Aside from these totally unremarkable vital statistics, nothing is known of the man except that on one occasion he held the fate of the Galaxy in his fist."

Stars: 4.5 out of 5.

Final Word: Foundational.