all she wants to do is

[arguchik]

i don't know what's with me lately. for the last week or so i have just not wanted to do anything except read.

i just finished sheri tepper's grass, which was really good; it's not a novel for the ages or anything (despite being nominated for a hugo), but it's an excellent read. over dinner tonight i started william gibson's count zero, part of my quest to read his non-neuromancer novels. i've also read pattern recognition and most of the stories in burning chrome--but that's not much, and i have a lot of books to go. it's hard to believe i haven't done this sooner. i guess he has a new one coming out in august: spook country. should be interesting. he did a documentary film a few years back, too, which i thought was pretty cool: no maps for these territories.

i'm wondering what SF is out there dealing more explicitly with genetic/eugenic themes, too. i have read all of the dune books (the real ones...the ones by frank herbert), and aldous huxley's brave new world of course, but i'm drawing a blank on others. any suggestions?

Comments

[rojonoir.livejournal.com]

Jeff Noon's Pixel Juice had a short story, "Solace," about using DNA for viral marketing - parents get money for having the DNA of their fetus modified so that when they grow up they will like a certain product and create a buzz about it.

Lots of other great stuff, too...

[arguchik.livejournal.com]

ooh, i've never heard of him. thanks!

have you read paul difilippo?

[rojonoir.livejournal.com]

paul difilippo?

No, but looked at http://www.pauldifilippo.com/about.php, and looks interesting - any recommendations on where to start?

[arguchik.livejournal.com]

i haven't read all that much, actually--only ribofunk, which is a book of short stories. his stuff is a little hard to find, oddly; though the u-bookstore on the ave has a decent selection. (i love dwayne, their SF guy.)

[malafrena.livejournal.com]

rojonoir: I heard about this cool writer, paul difillipo.
malafrena: Gimme the laptop, I can get his books for free.
rojonoir: Oh, really?
(malafrena grabs laptop)
rojonoir: Oh. The library.

For a fun yet deep genetics-related read, I suggest The Girl in the Glass. Hispanic boy playing swami as a con in Depression times happens upon a eugenics-related murder mystery.

I have been scouring the February issues of Locus Magazine (last year's best) with excellent results, that being one of them.

[malafrena.livejournal.com]

BTW, friended you.

[arguchik.livejournal.com]

aha, thank you! for both tips. i will check them out.

(friending you back...)