Here’s what I read in December 2023, in no particular order and with no spoilers. I read more than usual thanks to my Christmas vacation. My top 3: Hyperion, The Three-cornered World, and Kindred. Oryx and Crake is perhaps the only one I wouldn’t recommend.
1. Hyperion
— Dan Simmons
A sci-fi classic for good reason. Superb storytelling. Seven alien pilgrims tell their stories in this Canterbury Tales-esque tale of the mysterious Shrike and the Valley of the Time Tombs.
2. The Three-cornered World
— Natsume Soseki
Soseki never disappoints.
3. The Forever War
— Joe Haldeman
A fast-paced, bloody, and pretty convincing military sci-fi with extreme time dilation and a nice twist at the end.
4. The Handmaid’s Tale
— Margaret Atwood
My first Atwood. Enjoyed it. Strong, well-developed characters. I was surprised by how closely the TV show adaptation follows the book.
5. Dark Matter
— Blake Crouch
It took a while to get off the mark, but an entertaining parallel worlds sci-fi with a nice twist.
6. Parable of the Sower
— Octavia E Butler
Very well-written near future dystopia with compelling characters. Working my way through the Butler canon.
7. Frankenstein
— Mary Shelley
A tale of hubris and grief. This has held up well.
8. Adulthood Rites
— Octavia E Butler
Part 2 in the Lilith’s Brood series. Slow burner, original aliens.
9. Kindred
— Octavia E Butler
My new favorite Butler book. A sci-fi time-traveling masterpiece.
10. The Heart of a Dog
— Mikhail Bulgakov
The kind of batshit crazy that only Bulgakov could pull off.
11. Oryx and Crake
— Margaret Atwood
I enjoyed only the beginning and end. Very slow-paced. The protagonist is an immature and self-indulgent __. If your main character is going to be a dick, then he at least needs to be an interesting, lovable, tragic, or comic dick.
12. Consider Phlebas
— Iain M Banks
Like a Hollywood blockbuster — but as a novel. This isn’t big ideas sci-fi, but is nonetheless fun and fast-paced.
13. 2001: A Space Odyssey
— Arthur C Clarke
Quite enjoyed this. Only 200 pages.
14. Peter Camenzind
— Hermann Hesse
Pathos, poetry and human all too human.
Have you read any of these? What did you think? And, based on these, do you have any recommendations for me?