Change of Direction
I have become increasingly disgruntled with the direction of my meanderings. I find that I am just getting angry and lashing out which accomplishes nothing other than make me feel temporarily better. So, I have decided to go back to the original reason I started this blog; things that interest me. To wit, I have been reading some great science fiction lately so here goes.
I have to start a few years ago, well more like 20. In the early 1980's, science fiction was at its apex. The masters were still alive and publishing but as the 80's came to an end, so did the era of science fiction. First, in 1986 Frank Herbert died after surgery for pancreatic cancer. He was followed in 1988 by Robert Heinlein who went in his sleep from emphysema and heart failure. The last was Issac Asimov in 1992. He died of complications from AIDS which he received from a blood transfusion from open heart surgery. I know that there are other great science fiction writers but these were the ones I grew up with and followed.
Herbert was best know for his Dune series. I enjoyed Dune but thought his Destination Void and the Jorj X. McKie spy/saboteur series were more thought provoking. I have read and reread most of his novels. His novels are not really action packed but the narrative provides a background for exploring aspects of government, religion, the legal system and social dynamics that are not the common areas of focus.
Heinlein is best known for his Stranger in a Strange Land novel. I must say, I have read it more than I can count. Heinlein started writing science fiction focused toward teenagers. They were adventure stories. His Lazarus Long series is about a long lived family and their exploits from living so many years. He came into his own with the advent of free love and the 60's radical movement. He was one of the first popular science fiction authors to interject sex into his work. For a teenager, it peaked my interest.
Asimov is known for his Foundation series. What starts out as a visit to the galactic capital by historian Hari Seldon ends up as a struggle for the future of the human race. We find that there are mind adjusting humans, mind reading robots and mind bending mutants all bent on having their vision of the future be the one that creates the future for mankind. Asimov uses mysteries as his vehicle which makes for fun reading.
When these three died, it ended my first science fiction voyage. I read a few other authors but science fiction had grown stale and was little more than a vehicle for telling us that we were destroying the planet and needed to change our ways quickly. Not much science fiction there. But I have been reading the new authors lately and finding that they are once again focused on our future. They are exploring our current technological avenues and creating some great stories. More soon.
Icool
Cobb
I have to start a few years ago, well more like 20. In the early 1980's, science fiction was at its apex. The masters were still alive and publishing but as the 80's came to an end, so did the era of science fiction. First, in 1986 Frank Herbert died after surgery for pancreatic cancer. He was followed in 1988 by Robert Heinlein who went in his sleep from emphysema and heart failure. The last was Issac Asimov in 1992. He died of complications from AIDS which he received from a blood transfusion from open heart surgery. I know that there are other great science fiction writers but these were the ones I grew up with and followed.
Herbert was best know for his Dune series. I enjoyed Dune but thought his Destination Void and the Jorj X. McKie spy/saboteur series were more thought provoking. I have read and reread most of his novels. His novels are not really action packed but the narrative provides a background for exploring aspects of government, religion, the legal system and social dynamics that are not the common areas of focus.
Heinlein is best known for his Stranger in a Strange Land novel. I must say, I have read it more than I can count. Heinlein started writing science fiction focused toward teenagers. They were adventure stories. His Lazarus Long series is about a long lived family and their exploits from living so many years. He came into his own with the advent of free love and the 60's radical movement. He was one of the first popular science fiction authors to interject sex into his work. For a teenager, it peaked my interest.
Asimov is known for his Foundation series. What starts out as a visit to the galactic capital by historian Hari Seldon ends up as a struggle for the future of the human race. We find that there are mind adjusting humans, mind reading robots and mind bending mutants all bent on having their vision of the future be the one that creates the future for mankind. Asimov uses mysteries as his vehicle which makes for fun reading.
When these three died, it ended my first science fiction voyage. I read a few other authors but science fiction had grown stale and was little more than a vehicle for telling us that we were destroying the planet and needed to change our ways quickly. Not much science fiction there. But I have been reading the new authors lately and finding that they are once again focused on our future. They are exploring our current technological avenues and creating some great stories. More soon.
Icool
Cobb
posted by Cobb at
1:03 PM
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