recent reading

[sergebroom]

A few days ago, I finished reading The Lost Fleet: Fearless, by Jack Campbell (nom de plume of John G. Hemry). It's the sequel to The Lost Fleet: Dauntless, the story of Captain John Geary who died in a famous space battle. Except that he didn't die. He drifted in space for a whole century, until his lifepod was rescued. Upon awakening, he found he had become the legendary Black Jack Geary. And, with every one higher in rank now dead, he has to live up to the legend of his fighting skills, which will be sorely needed if he is to bring the Fleet back from enemy territory. Lots of space battles that keep in mind the limits of the speed of light. And the only series of such stories that doesn't make me want to argue with the author about his/her politics.

Besides that, I'm almost done with Asimov's June 2007 issue. Good stuff. I especially enjoyed Elizabeth Bear's Tideline. It's about a crippled war machine trapped on a beach, from which she (*) can't escape and, as she waits for corrosion and her dwindling power source to shut her down, she puts together necklaces of stones to commemorate the humans of the group she belonged to, now all dead. Then one day she finds a young boy and takes care of him, further depleting her remaining resources, but helping him grow up, telling him stories of Great Adventures of the likes of Horatio Hornblower and King Arthur.

(*) That is how the machine thinks of itself.

Comments

[miltonthales.livejournal.com]

If I were a rabid 1970s feminist I'd feel really annoyed at the idea of a female war machine nurturing some young boy.

Fortunately, I'm not.

[serge-lj.livejournal.com]

You are right, and that'd annoy me too (*), but the story was written by a woman. Besides the war machine, by what she does for the boy, teaches him a lesson that results in his saving a gravely wounded puppy.

(*) It would, unless the doc is the one played by Diana Muldaur in ST-TNG, or Frances Sternhagen in Outland.

[miltonthales.livejournal.com]

Oh, well then. Puppies! ;)

[serge-lj.livejournal.com]

Heheheh...

[fledgist.livejournal.com]

Sounds like fun reading. I'm about halfway through The Children of Hurin, which I'm reading in bed.

[serge-lj.livejournal.com]

The Hemry/Campbell books? I enjoy them. (My wife thinks it's funny and significant that, after being asked if something was good, I tend to answer that, well, I liked it.) Those are short books, by the way, and you might want to start with Dauntless.

As for The Children of Hurin, what is it about?

[fledgist.livejournal.com]

The Children of Húrin is by one J.R.R. Tolkien as edited by his son Christopher and grandson Adam. It tells the story of the fate of the descendants of Húrin son of Galdor, who were cursed by Morgoth. It's an expansion of a tale mentioned in the Silmarillion and another in the Book of Lost Tales.

I think your wife is right.

[serge-lj.livejournal.com]

I've heard of that writer, I think. Isn't he related to actor Michael Tolkan who appeared in the movie version of Masters of the Universe?

("Hm... Serge, it's Tolkien, not Tolkan")
("Oh. Nevermind.")

Is the story good? Do you like it? (*) And would you recommend it to someone who isn't that well versed in JRR's grande oeuvre beyond Lord of the Rings? I did read The Silmarillion, but that was 30 years ago.

(*) So, my wife is right, eh?

[fledgist.livejournal.com]

I'd recommend it. It's a grim tale, with a grim ending, but still well-told.

[serge-lj.livejournal.com]

I guess I should put it on my to-read list then.

[fledgist.livejournal.com]

I think that's a good idea. I devoured the book in two days (my wife bought it at Borders with a 40 percent off coupon).

[miltonthales.livejournal.com]

I'm sorely tempted to buy it. I saw it the other day at Borders with the standard new-book-discount of 30%. Maybe I should go back and struggle through The Silmarillion again first, though; like our host, it's been a long time since I read that.

[fledgist.livejournal.com]

I'd say it was worth buying, and reading. It's been a long time, too, since I read The Silmariillion.