Saturday, August 31, 2024
End of an Era
by Robert J. Sawyer
First read in February 2004.
Check it out
LibraryThing link
Labels: CheckItOut, RobertSawyer
Tuesday, May 12, 2020
The Terminal Experiment
Wednesday, April 10, 2019
Rollback
by Robert J. Sawyer
On my shelf
LibraryThing link
First read in July 2007.
Last read in December 2010.
On my shelf
LibraryThing link
Labels: OnMyShelf, RobertSawyer
Tuesday, June 26, 2018
Iterations
by Robert J. Sawyer
First read in March 2008.
On my shelf! Woo-hoo!
LibraryThing link
First read in March 2008.
On my shelf! Woo-hoo!
LibraryThing link
Labels: OnMyShelf, RobertSawyer
Thursday, March 10, 2016
Starplex
by Robert J. Sawyer
Robert Sawyer does space opera. Actually, that should be did space opera. In the intro he said that Starplex was his swan song in the sub-genre. But for me, who has only read his later works, it was something brand new. Anyway, Starplex is the tale of Starplex, a starship manned by the various species of the interstellar Commonwealth who together explore the wonders of the galaxy. "Star Trek done right," he called it. I don't know if I'd go that far in agreement, but it was a well written tale with interesting characters, a mystery, some action and dolphin pilots. (Maybe that's type casting, but I liked the dolphin pilots.)
Check it out.
LibraryThing link
Robert Sawyer does space opera. Actually, that should be did space opera. In the intro he said that Starplex was his swan song in the sub-genre. But for me, who has only read his later works, it was something brand new. Anyway, Starplex is the tale of Starplex, a starship manned by the various species of the interstellar Commonwealth who together explore the wonders of the galaxy. "Star Trek done right," he called it. I don't know if I'd go that far in agreement, but it was a well written tale with interesting characters, a mystery, some action and dolphin pilots. (Maybe that's type casting, but I liked the dolphin pilots.)
Check it out.
LibraryThing link
Labels: CheckItOut, RobertSawyer
Friday, January 31, 2014
Calculating God
by Robert J. Sawyer
There's been a couple of times that I've wondered why, if there is creation science out there, have I never seen any creation science fiction? Well, Robert Sawyer has addressed that issue... sort of. Calculating God is a tale of first contact, of aliens coming to visit Earth. The aliens are strange to human eyes, as one might expect. (Though their personalities were refreshingly pedestrian.) But what was most odd to the protagonist, Dr. Thomas Jericho, was the fact that these advanced aliens believed in God. As the story progresses, Dr. Jericho and the alien Hollus discuss the latter's beliefs and Jericho wrestles with his own atheism. Mr. Sawyer does a good job of presenting some of the evidence that I've heard creation scientists cite, and his alien theists come across as credible representatives of real world believers. The weakest part of the book is the subplot with the fundamentalist Christian terrorists. And the story itself is far from Mr. Sawyer's better works. Still, I'd recommend checking it out.
LibraryThing link
There's been a couple of times that I've wondered why, if there is creation science out there, have I never seen any creation science fiction? Well, Robert Sawyer has addressed that issue... sort of. Calculating God is a tale of first contact, of aliens coming to visit Earth. The aliens are strange to human eyes, as one might expect. (Though their personalities were refreshingly pedestrian.) But what was most odd to the protagonist, Dr. Thomas Jericho, was the fact that these advanced aliens believed in God. As the story progresses, Dr. Jericho and the alien Hollus discuss the latter's beliefs and Jericho wrestles with his own atheism. Mr. Sawyer does a good job of presenting some of the evidence that I've heard creation scientists cite, and his alien theists come across as credible representatives of real world believers. The weakest part of the book is the subplot with the fundamentalist Christian terrorists. And the story itself is far from Mr. Sawyer's better works. Still, I'd recommend checking it out.
LibraryThing link
Labels: CheckItOut, RobertSawyer
Friday, November 04, 2011
Factoring Humanity
by Robert Sawyer
The cover pitches this as a tale about a mysterious message from space, which, when finally deciphered, threatens to push humanity to the next stage of evolution. It does finally get to that, but when I started reading the book, I thought I was reading a completely different tale. I won't say any more, so as to preserve the shock for others. Overall, I had mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, I found Mr. Sawyer's typical scientist hero, Canadian scenery-porn and Godless spirituality to be a bit cliched. On the other, the man is a great storyteller and does an excellent job of taking a science fiction idea and fully developing it. So, yes, check it out and enjoy!
LibraryThing link
The cover pitches this as a tale about a mysterious message from space, which, when finally deciphered, threatens to push humanity to the next stage of evolution. It does finally get to that, but when I started reading the book, I thought I was reading a completely different tale. I won't say any more, so as to preserve the shock for others. Overall, I had mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, I found Mr. Sawyer's typical scientist hero, Canadian scenery-porn and Godless spirituality to be a bit cliched. On the other, the man is a great storyteller and does an excellent job of taking a science fiction idea and fully developing it. So, yes, check it out and enjoy!
LibraryThing link
Labels: CheckItOut, RobertSawyer
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Rollback
by Robert J. Sawyer
First read in 2007. Didn't like it as much the second time around.
On my shelf.
LibraryThing link
First read in 2007. Didn't like it as much the second time around.
On my shelf.
LibraryThing link
Labels: OnMyShelf, RobertSawyer
Thursday, July 01, 2010
Flash Forward
by Robert J. Sawyer
First read in June of 2000.
Still on my shelf.
LibraryThing link
First read in June of 2000.
Still on my shelf.
LibraryThing link
Labels: OnMyShelf, RobertSawyer
Saturday, March 01, 2008
Iterations
by Robert J. Sawyer
This one was an impulse read. I was at the library for some reason or other and was loath to leave empty handed. This collection of short stories was there for the taking in the science fiction section, so I snatched it up. What can I say? I loved it! Not that it's such a big surprise. If you read a collection of short stories, the odds are fairly good that you'll find something enjoyable in it. Add the fact that these particular short stories are written by Robert J. Sawyer--who, despite his obsession with dinosaurs, is my current favorite living science fiction author--and the fact that I would enjoy it is almost inevitable. So what's to love? Well, a lot of things. There's dinosaurs, if you like that sort of thing. There's a tale of vampires. There's a murder mystery, and a botched execution. There are a couple of first contacts, a space war, two extended space journeys, time travel, a marketing executive with a hidden agenda and high school gym class. All of which is presented with Mr. Sawyer's gentle humor, likable characters and wonder-filled imagination. I may have to get a second job so I can indiscriminately buy books again.
I want a copy on my shelf!
LibraryThing link
This one was an impulse read. I was at the library for some reason or other and was loath to leave empty handed. This collection of short stories was there for the taking in the science fiction section, so I snatched it up. What can I say? I loved it! Not that it's such a big surprise. If you read a collection of short stories, the odds are fairly good that you'll find something enjoyable in it. Add the fact that these particular short stories are written by Robert J. Sawyer--who, despite his obsession with dinosaurs, is my current favorite living science fiction author--and the fact that I would enjoy it is almost inevitable. So what's to love? Well, a lot of things. There's dinosaurs, if you like that sort of thing. There's a tale of vampires. There's a murder mystery, and a botched execution. There are a couple of first contacts, a space war, two extended space journeys, time travel, a marketing executive with a hidden agenda and high school gym class. All of which is presented with Mr. Sawyer's gentle humor, likable characters and wonder-filled imagination. I may have to get a second job so I can indiscriminately buy books again.
I want a copy on my shelf!
LibraryThing link
Labels: OnMyShelf, RobertSawyer
Wednesday, April 21, 2004
The Terminal Experiment
by Robert J. Sawyer
I really shouldn't wait so long to write my reviews--I forgot what I was going to say about this one. Something good, I'm sure. Seriously, this book is practically advertised as a mystery. "Dr. Peter Hobson... has created three electronic simulations of his own personality. ... But now all three of them have escaped from Hobson's computer... and one of them is a killer." Now I have a soft spot for science fiction mysteries ever since I read Asimov's Mysteries in days of yore. (Note to self: pull that one off the shelf for a re-read.) Problem is, the mystery of The Terminal Experiment isn't all that hard to figure out. The science fiction part, on the other hand is excellent. Dr. Hobson's impetus for creating his simulations is his scientific discovery of the human soul. Mr. Sawyer does an excellent job of showing the consequences of this discovery while also telling the tale of troubles between Hobson and his wife. (Which provides motives for the killing spree.) The tale evolves, all the while looking at the concept of death and life after death. Another excellent tale, securing Mr. Sawyer's position as one of my favorite science fiction authors. I've got to reserve some more room for his books on my shelf.
Labels: OnMyShelf, RobertSawyer
Friday, February 27, 2004
End of an Era
by Robert J. Sawyer
Well, back in my review of Flash Forward I said I've got to read more of this Sawyer guy. Unfortunately, it's taken me over three years to do so. I've looked for his name at the library sales and used book stores, but people don't seem to be getting rid of his books. Hmmmm. Anyway, I did happen to come across this book and went ahead and bought it, despite the dinosaurs on the cover. (I'm bored with dinos. Way too overrated.) It's a tale of a couple of paleontologists who are sent back in time using newly developed time travel technology in an attempt to find out why most of the dinosaurs died out at the end of the Mesozoic period. Like Flash Forward, this is a classic science fiction tale--chock full of scientific facts and protagonists who face their dilemma with their brains rather than their muscles. I was a bit put off by some of the strange things our heroes encountered back in the past, but Mr. Sawyer's writing is engaging enough that I was won over and was mostly satisfied by the ending. Definitely a book science fiction fans should check out.
Labels: CheckItOut, RobertSawyer
Wednesday, June 14, 2000
Flash Forward
by Robert J. Sawyer
What if you got a glimpse of your life twenty years in the future? How would that change you? What if everybody got that glimpse? What would that do to our world? Well, that's the premise of Flash Forward. This is a classic science fiction tale: the hero is a scientist and the narrative occasionally detours off into explanations of the latest scientific theory. An experiment in Switzerland causes everyone's consciousness to jump ahead 20 years to spend two minutes in the future. Of course, this causes problems in the present as everybody just blacks out and falls over. Annoying if you're sitting at your desk, deadly if you're on a landing plane. Sawyer then takes you through the consequences of the event -- first the response to the disasters, then the realization of what happened and the piecing together of different people's visions. (or lack of them, for those who were slated to die in the next 20 years) I found the whole story quite gripping...until the end. Unfortunately, Sawyer takes the story a bit too long and goes off into some bizarro future scenario. I suppose it's just a matter of conflicting worldviews here. (I can suspend disbelief enough to swallow that the future dead don't see visions of Heaven or Hell, but I can't buy the .... Hey, I better not spoil the ending.) That being said, I think I might try to get this one on my shelf. It's a good story and good science fiction. I've got to read more of this Sawyer guy.
LibraryThing link
What if you got a glimpse of your life twenty years in the future? How would that change you? What if everybody got that glimpse? What would that do to our world? Well, that's the premise of Flash Forward. This is a classic science fiction tale: the hero is a scientist and the narrative occasionally detours off into explanations of the latest scientific theory. An experiment in Switzerland causes everyone's consciousness to jump ahead 20 years to spend two minutes in the future. Of course, this causes problems in the present as everybody just blacks out and falls over. Annoying if you're sitting at your desk, deadly if you're on a landing plane. Sawyer then takes you through the consequences of the event -- first the response to the disasters, then the realization of what happened and the piecing together of different people's visions. (or lack of them, for those who were slated to die in the next 20 years) I found the whole story quite gripping...until the end. Unfortunately, Sawyer takes the story a bit too long and goes off into some bizarro future scenario. I suppose it's just a matter of conflicting worldviews here. (I can suspend disbelief enough to swallow that the future dead don't see visions of Heaven or Hell, but I can't buy the .... Hey, I better not spoil the ending.) That being said, I think I might try to get this one on my shelf. It's a good story and good science fiction. I've got to read more of this Sawyer guy.
LibraryThing link
Labels: OnMyShelf, RobertSawyer
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