[OT] 17 Science Fiction Books That Forever Changed The Genre

[Steve Kinney]

On 10/29/2017 03:39 PM, Cecilia Tanaka wrote:
> 17 Science Fiction Books That Forever Changed The Genre
> 
> #  https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2017/10/17-science-fiction-books-that-forever-changed-the-genre

Interesting picks, including a couple of duds IMO.  Missing in action:

Alfred Bester - The Stars My Destination - 1956 - the first New Wave
science fiction novel

John Brunner - The Shockwave Rider - 1975 - the first Cyberpunk novel

Vernor Vinge - True Names - 1981 - Vinge invents Cyberspace

Neal Stephenson - Cryptonomicon - 1999 - IMO more genre-changing than
Snow Crash (1992) which did make the list referenced above, because
Vinge got there first

It remains to be seen whether Cory Doctorow's Little Brother will
"change the genre" by introducing contemporary radical politics as core
subject matter.

> Bonus:  -  The Best And Worst Philip K. Dick Adaptations
> 
> #  https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2017/10/the-best-and-worst-philip-k-dick-adaptations

Hah!  They didn't have the nerve to pick which was which.

I'm awfully fond of Blade Runner and The Man In The High Castle, but A
Scanner Darkly FTW IMO:  Keanu Reeves says he studied his lines straight
out of a paperback copy of the novel.

Just before theatrical release, the studio and distributors "pulled the
plug", canceling all promotional appearances and advertising.  The film
was shown in one or two "art houses" per major city and was solid gone
in a couple of weeks (I tracked that via show time lookups).

Problem is A Scanner Darkly tells the entire truth about Wars Against
Drugs, through a broad enough metaphor to remain completely relevant for
a looong time.  We can't have that, can we nao?

:o/



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