I really like science fiction in general of course, but I'm totally enthralled by the sci fi subgenre of cyberpunk. I don't know exactly why, maybe its the whole big city thing, or maybe its way the main protagonist is always somebody insignificant, but I love those types of books. I've already read Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? and Neuromancer, and now I'm rather unsure of what to read next. I'm sure one of you guys could help me out. Posted by Elmer's Glue (Member # 9313) on :
The Feed, but it's not exactly cyberpunk.
Posted by Orincoro (Member # 8854) on :
What if you just read wikipedia while listening to the Ramones... does that count?
Posted by The White Whale (Member # 6594) on :
Rudy Rucker's 'Software' and 'Wetware' are good and uber-freaky cyberpunk...y.
Posted by Mike (Member # 55) on :
Snowcrash and The Diamond Age seem like the obvious options here.
Posted by SoaPiNuReYe (Member # 9144) on :
quote:Originally posted by Orincoro: What if you just read wikipedia while listening to the Ramones... does that count?
good one... maybe.
Posted by Reshpeckobiggle (Member # 8947) on :
Psion and Catspaw by Joan D. Vinge. Written in the 80's, you can find them together in the same volume entitled Alien Blood. Cream of the crop if you ask me. You've got the seedy underbelly of society that exists underneath the overgrown structures of the rich, never seeing the sky; you've got people jacking into the galaxywide internets and telepaths exploring a physical manifestation of the network; warring corporations that control the government engaging in high-level intrigue over vital resources, using slave labor ("contract employees") to work on their mining colonies; and possibly the most memorable protagonist I've ever met, with a character arc rivaling that of Gully Foyle. There's so much more that's amazing about these books, every cyberpunk story I read fails to live up to their standard. READ THEM!!!
Vinge's Snow Queen and Summer Queen novels are more well known and also very good, but if you want Cyberpunk, Alien Blood is what you need.
Posted by Reshpeckobiggle (Member # 8947) on :
quote:Originally posted by Mike: Snowcrash and The Diamond Age seem like the obvious options here.
Definitely not cyberpunk. Good books though.
Posted by SoaPiNuReYe (Member # 9144) on :
Thanks. I wish there was a larger selection of these books around. Maybe I'm wrong but there doesn't seem to be a lot of cyberpunk novels around. It's kind've a bummer because I think they're the best type of science fiction out there.
Posted by Reshpeckobiggle (Member # 8947) on :
I agree with you, although I think it has more to do with the taste and personality of the reader. Something about cyberpunk really appeals to me as well. I wish OSC had tried his hand at it. But trust me, my recommendations will not disappoint. Check them out and let me know what you thought.
Posted by TL (Member # 8124) on :
I'll go ahead and recommend Vurt, by Jeff Noon. I suspect it's along the lines of what you're looking for. I read it 8 (9?) years ago so I'm not sure how it holds up, but I remember really liking it at the time, and equating it in my mind with Neuromancer as an example of Oh!-so-that's-how-you-do-that -ness.
![[Smile]](smile.gif)