Philosophy Now Forum

It's Iain M Banks when he's sci-fi Notvacka.

And I think chaz was just confirming my assumption and not making a recomendation.

chaz,

Surprised Heinlein wasn't there?

Why- He's a fascist bastard!


But I think the list you gave will be reflected in it's breadth and range by my modern one.

Theres a couple of pot-boiler space-operas in there, as the new boys have decided to revist them, a couple of great English post psyber-punk novels, and a couple of nice takes on maths, computers, nanotechnology and politics.

Oo! And William Gibson and Bruce Sterling(shaper/mechanist series) and an American called John Barnes - did not expect this from an American.

I think you might especially like Ken Macleod and Greg Egan.

Shit, if you can stand thumping great rip-roaring, boys own, sword and sorcery then try Steven Erikson - Matzlan Book of the Fallen. Although I agree that given you've studied History fact can be stranger than fiction.

I've done the Tolkien, H Rider Haggard (some things never date), Stephan Donaldson, Sword of Shannnarah? (author?), too. But I just don't find fiction enjoyable now. Recently I've done a fair bit of Martin Amis, I recommend Yellow Dog; T. Coraghessan Boyle. Water Music and Budding Prospects are both a hoot; Stephen Fry can knock up a good yarn; but many books I just yawn after 20 pages and wonder where my latest philosophy book is.

Surprised Heinlein wasn't there?

Why- He's a fascist bastard!

Hubbards not exactly a paragon of respectability.

I have no idea why he does it but I could guess that its a combination of things like, that his 'real' fiction readers wouldn't want to associate with Sci-Fi, that it helps him keep him focussed when writing in the two different genres in does. My take is that much of his fiction is pretty much sci-fi in disguise for the literati to swallow.

Interviewed on Mark Lawson's BBC Four series, first broadcast in Britain on 14 November 2006, Banks explained why his novels are published under two different names. His parents wished to name him Iain Menzies Banks but his father made a mistake when registering the birth and he was officially registered as Iain Banks. Despite this he continued to use his middle name, and it may be considered official by adoption. It was as Iain M. Banks that he submitted The Wasp Factory for publication; his editor asked if he would mind dropping the 'M' as it appeared "too fussy". The editor also raised concerns about possible confusion with Rosie M. Banks, a minor romantic novelist in P.G. Wodehouse's Jeeves novels. Following his three mainstream novels, his publishers agreed to publish his first SF novel, Consider Phlebas. To distinguish between the mainstream and SF novels, Banks suggested the return of the 'M'.