Hey!! Let's get some action going! What are we reading?

[DrNefario]

Some would say all SF...

Seriously, though, there is a kind of family-friendliness in a lot of older SF & F which means it can easily be read by younger readers even if not specifically aimed at them. That's how most of us got into it, I suspect.

I read Moon is a Harsh Mistress maybe ten years ago, and didn't think much of it at all. I still have two Heinleins to read this year to complete my Hugo list, and based on past experience I think I will enjoy Double Star and struggle with Stranger in a Strange Land.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by DrNefario

I read Moon is a Harsh Mistress maybe ten years ago, and didn't think much of it at all. I still have two Heinleins to read this year to complete my Hugo list, and based on past experience I think I will enjoy Double Star and struggle with Stranger in a Strange Land.

I really enjoy Heinlein's early work, but I find much of his later work (really from "Stranger in a Strange Land" onwards) to be virtually unreadable.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by DrNefario

Some would say all SF...

Seriously, though, there is a kind of family-friendliness in a lot of older SF & F which means it can easily be read by younger readers even if not specifically aimed at them. That's how most of us got into it, I suspect.

I read Moon is a Harsh Mistress maybe ten years ago, and didn't think much of it at all. I still have two Heinleins to read this year to complete my Hugo list, and based on past experience I think I will enjoy Double Star and struggle with Stranger in a Strange Land.

I'm sure some would say that, but they'd be wrong.

The other issue particularly with older SF is whether it holds up over time. (probably the same can be said of any fiction -- that's what over time results in 'classics' eh.)

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I really enjoy Heinlein's early work, but I find much of his later work (really from "Stranger in a Strange Land" onwards) to be virtually unreadable.

He was all over the board and some of his later work is not that good IMO mostly due to his incorporation of politics and sexualization etc.

One of the best Time Travel Stories is his: "All You Zombies"

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by kennyc

He was all over the board and some of his later work is not that good IMO mostly due to his incorporation of politics and sexualization etc.

One of the best Time Travel Stories is his: "All You Zombies"

I completely agree. He also wrote a number of excellent short stories, such as the wonderful "And He Built a Crooked House" (which, unfortunately, I don't think is available in any eBook collection).

[davidfor]

Originally Posted by kennyc

He was all over the board and some of his later work is not that good IMO mostly due to his incorporation of politics and sexualization etc.

There were some strange things in his later books. I enjoyed most of them when I first read them, but I'm a bit scared to try them again now. I suspect they are better left in the memory rather than revisited.

One of the best Time Travel Stories is his: "All You Zombies"

I have to agree with that. But it ruined time travel stories for me. After that, what can anyone else do? Stepping on a butterfly is nothing.

I think I need a Heinlein short story collection for my reader. And maybe some novels as well.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

I think I'll pick my next book to read when it's 2013.

I've decided to try reading through some of the books that have been on my TBR pile for some time. I'll either like them, or dump them quickly.

I chose The Maker of Gargoyles and Other Stories by Clark Ashton Smith for the first one.

I bought this back in August 2005. Not a good buy. Abandoned after one and a half stories. I can see that eldritch horror appeals to some, but not to me.

Next up: Temple: Incarnations by Steve Saville. This seems to have been a freebie picked up in 2009 sometime, before I stopped adding freebies to my TBR list.

[Cyclops]

Just started Kraken by China Mieville, new author for me!

[Apache]

Originally Posted by HarryT

The Heinlein "Juveniles" are generally regarded as being the following 12 books:

• Rocket Ship Galileo, 1947
• Space Cadet, 1948
• Red Planet, 1949
• Between Planets, 1951
• The Rolling Stones aka Space Family Stone, 1952
• Farmer in the Sky, 1953
• Starman Jones, 1953
• The Star Beast, 1954
• Tunnel in the Sky, 1955
• Time for the Stars, 1956
• Citizen of the Galaxy, 1957
• Have Space Suit—Will Travel, 1958

"Starship Troopers" (1959) is sometimes included in the list. "Podkayne of Mars" (1963) is often listed as a "juvenile" but Heinlein himself didn't consider it to be one.

Podkayne of Mars was originally edited by the publishers who were expecting a YA Book. In the original Podkayne was killed and the publishers demanded and got a different ending.
Baen published a 1995 edition with both endings. I must say I liked Heinlein's original ending better.
Apache

[ucfgrad93]

I am currently reading Field of Dishonor on my Kindle.

[Cyclops]

Originally Posted by kennyc

He was all over the board and some of his later work is not that good IMO mostly due to his incorporation of politics and sexualization etc.

One of the best Time Travel Stories is his: "All You Zombies"

Ive enjoyed Stranger in a Strange Land some years ago , but last year found his Number of the Beast really tedious and couldnt finish it!

[Synamon]

I read another couple of the Mignon Eberhart's mysteries that I picked up cheap in late November. Nice old fashioned mysteries that I'd missed out on (probably were out of print during my ravenous mystery consuming years) and am enjoying now.

Jeffrey Deaver delivered as usual in Roadside Crosses, the second thriller to feature Kathryn Dance, kinesiologist cop. I like Dance's focus on the psychology and personality types of those she interacts with.

I gorged on some Agatha Christie over Christmas, And Then There Were None and Crooked House. Unfortunately I remembered whodunnit partway through ATTWN. I know some people consider ATTWN one of Christie's best, but I prefer those with Poirot. Crooked House is one of the best small cast family murder mysteries; it captured Christie's trademark paranoia and claustrophobia and the ending was a shocker.

Some of my library holds showed up all at once, so I zoomed through Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons, Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn, and Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand. I'd seen the movie of Cold Comfort Farm and reading the book explained some of the whys and wherefores that the movie didn't delve into, but the story wasn't as entertaining as I was hoping. Gone Girl was twisted, literally, but a few shockers wasn't enough to overcome my irritation with the annoying characters. Unbroken was so engrossing that I couldn't put it down and I read the whole 500+ pages in one day. The POW sections were horrible and wonderful at the same time. Now I'm really looking forward to listening to Hillenbrand's Seabiscuit which I bought last month during an Audible sale.

I skimmed Persuasion. I like Austen's stories, but prefer them as movies since they skip the interminable descriptions leading up to events.

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by kennyc

He was all over the board and some of his later work is not that good IMO mostly due to his incorporation of politics and sexualization etc.

One of the best Time Travel Stories is his: "All You Zombies"

From SF Signal: "Heinlein’s Short Story 'All You Zombies' Heads to the Big Screen!"

Dr. Ronald Novy, Philosophy and Humanities at the University of Central Arkansas, has uploaded the story to his faculty website. I assume a philosophy professor is aware of copyright laws and that his upload is legit, but I haven't checked to be sure.

[BenG]

The rule with Heinlein is to start with books 1 inch thick or smaller and then try the larger books.

Heinlein was one of the first of the SF writers to be published in book form and the juveniles are technically the 12 novels he wrote under contract to Schribner though there are others that could be considered for younger readers. Starship Troopers was written for Scribner but the publisher rejected it.

I like most of his stuff through Fear No Evil. After that there was a seven hiatus due to health problems. Of his later books I enjoyed Friday and Job.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Cyclops

Just started Kraken by China Mieville, new author for me!

Will be interested to hear your review.