- Forum Clout
- 4,332
Fucking masterpiece. For a relatively short story this thing contains an entire world and a man’s entire life.
This book is exemplary for what sci-fi can be at its best. It builds a whole world without over explaining anything - the authors give you just enough detail for your imagination to fill in the blanks.
I’ve seen criticism of the character depth but I didn’t find it to be a problem. In fact, I loved our main character. He’s exactly the type of person that would do what he does and feel the way he feels. I think giving him a different arc would perhaps be more superficially satisfying to the reader, but less impactful IMO.
Here I have to give special commendation to the audiobook. Robert Forster reads it and the way he builds the final chapter is simply incredible. It was filling me with anxiety and he perfectly captures the spiraling mental state of the main character. The way his entire brutal life just builds and builds and comes to a head… The way he reads the final couple of paragraphs building to the crescendo of the final lines… perfection.
There is so much here to interpret and think about. The book overtly comments on the nature of intelligence and knowledge, mankind, technology, the military-industrial complex, crime, purpose and fulfillment, work… but the subtext and metaphor is just as rich.
Highly recommend. 5/5 stars.
I think even if the book turns out to not be for you, you should read it anyway, because it is a singular work whose influence contextualizes the next 30 years of sci-fi.
I’m going to watch the movie nexxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxt
This book is exemplary for what sci-fi can be at its best. It builds a whole world without over explaining anything - the authors give you just enough detail for your imagination to fill in the blanks.
I’ve seen criticism of the character depth but I didn’t find it to be a problem. In fact, I loved our main character. He’s exactly the type of person that would do what he does and feel the way he feels. I think giving him a different arc would perhaps be more superficially satisfying to the reader, but less impactful IMO.
Here I have to give special commendation to the audiobook. Robert Forster reads it and the way he builds the final chapter is simply incredible. It was filling me with anxiety and he perfectly captures the spiraling mental state of the main character. The way his entire brutal life just builds and builds and comes to a head… The way he reads the final couple of paragraphs building to the crescendo of the final lines… perfection.
There is so much here to interpret and think about. The book overtly comments on the nature of intelligence and knowledge, mankind, technology, the military-industrial complex, crime, purpose and fulfillment, work… but the subtext and metaphor is just as rich.
Highly recommend. 5/5 stars.
I think even if the book turns out to not be for you, you should read it anyway, because it is a singular work whose influence contextualizes the next 30 years of sci-fi.
I’m going to watch the movie nexxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxt
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