Triffids Beard 2 - The Bearded Triffid

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eaking into the Pentagon and starting World War III. Well I should have known better -- despite its unfortunate title the book has absolutely nothing to do with that sort of thing. Rather to my surprise it turned out to be a beautifully written book about the early days of computing history and it told the tale of the lives and personalities of the pioneers of the computer revolution of the 1960s and 1970s. It evoked the atmosphere of the time brilliantly; its tone reminded me very much of Tracy Kidder's Soul of a New Machine. I have no idea whether or not it is still in print (I got my rather battered copy from a second hand bookshop) but if it is you should search it out. As an examination of the social and technical history of a crucial era in the development of the modern computer I doubt if it can be beaten. One of the joys of reading is the discovery of new words. Neal Stephenson's anfractuous new novel The Diamond Age taught me one, and I am grateful for the lesson. A major attraction of this superb story is its anfractuosity -- an anfractuosity which is exemplified by the machinations of John Percival Hackworth, a nanotechnologist who is employed by Lord Finkle-McGraw to help with the upbringing of his daughter. Hackworth creates A Young Lady's Illustrated Primer, an anfractuous combination of book, computer and theatre which is designed to introduce some subversion into the young lady's life. But Hackworth is greedy -- he causes a second copy of the primer to be created for the sake of his own daughter. Unfortunately it is stolen and a young girl who is unknown to the other protagonists eventually receives it and it takes over her upbringing instead. The stories that the primer tells her (many of which are excerpted in the book) are delightful as well as instructional. Other characters include the mysterious (and anfractuous) Orientals Doctor X and Judge Fang. Although the Judge has only a small role to play, he is drawn with such loving feeling (and with such loving parallels) that I am absolutely certain that Stephenson is a fan of Robert van Gulik's Judge Dee novels. I enjoyed this small ‘homage' very much. The name of Hackworth is well chosen. He is a computer engineer and what he does is recognisably hacking (as we understand it today). Stephenson delights in this sort of thing -- in an earlier novel the protagonist was called Hiram Protagonist. It is a cute conceit. Don't let it put you off. The Diamond Age is a superb book by anyone's measure. And it is anfractuous. Were you bullied at school? Of course you were; and you dreamed of revenge. Probably you lay awake at night imagining exquisite tortures that you would love to inflict on your tormentors. I think a writer called Christopher Fowler was just like you and me, and his new novel Psychoville is that childhood dream writ large. The first half of the story concerns young Billy March and his family moving into the new town of Invicta Cross. Billy watches as his family is destroyed by the petty vindictiveness of their neighbours. Surburban angst and active indifference (no that is not an oxymoron). The second half of the book, told from a different point of view, is set ten years later as another new family moves into Invicta Cross. Soon those old persecutors start to die in some singularly gruesome ways. There is a delightful twist in the tail of the story which I won't spoil things by revealing. The whole book is classic wish-fulfillment fantasy with lashings of gore. Great fun. A couple of years ago Nancy Kress took the SF world by storm with the superb novel Beggars in Spain. Now she is back with a wonderful and subtle sequel Beggars and Choosers and it is even better than the first (most unusual for a sequel). There are three classes of people in the world of the novel. The ordinary people (you and me) are supported by the efforts of the intellectually superior genemodified. But they themselves are running scared of the almost superhuman powers of the Sleepless. The novel tells a continuing story from all three points of view. The world is in crisis -- the nanotechnological industries are failing as genetically engineered organisms attack their mechanisms. A fanatical underground wreak terrorist havoc in the pursuit of vague political ambitions. Nothing changes, does it? But the book gripped me by the scruff of the neck and wouldn't let go. This is story telling of the highest order and the parallels with contemporary society add an extra frisson of delight. Beggars and Choosers has been nominated for a Hugo and I hope it wins. If I was eligible to vote, I would certainly vote for this one. A most uninteresting book is Protektor by Charles Platt. Let's clear the air -- it has nothing whatsoever to do with the similarly named characters from the novels of Larry Niven. No -- a Protektor in the world of Charles Platt is a sort of high tech trouble shooter who keeps the technological world turning by
searching out and nullifying saboteurs and hackers. Accompanied by his faithful auton (robot) he hunts out evil wherever it lurks. If I've made it sound a bit like a comic book that is not unintentional. The story is mainly gloss and glitter, cinematic perspectives and unsubtle (often arbitrary and coincidental) plot twists as the Protektor tracks down the systems hacker who is bringing breakdown and chaos to the systems of Agorima. The hero is lack lustre; a man to whom things happen rather than a man who makes things happen and the trustworthy robot is just too damned capable. The Lone Ranger and Tonto in the twenty first century. Platt has done much better than this in the past -- this is his weakest book and I cannot recommend it. Walter Jon Williams is an annoyingly uneven writer. You read a book of his and rave about it and dash out and buy the next one and it's terrible and you wonder why you bothered. Then the next one tingles your spine again and enthusiasm is rekindled. Well I am pleased to say that Metropolitan is one of the good ones. The story is set in an indeterminate alternative future. Plasm is the fuel of magical power. It is regulated and distributed to the population by the equivalent of our electrical companies. Aiah is a clerk working for such a company. Through various circumstances she stumbles on a plasm well unknown to the distributing authorities. She manages to keep it secret and milk it for all it is worth. She sells the plasm clandestinely to Constantine, a failed revolutionary but a mage of great power. Not only does he provide her with money he also provides her with training in the use of plasm and soon they are constant companions. The revolution, powered by plasm, is just around the corner. It is an absorbing, convincing and thoroughly exciting tale. This one belongs on your permanent Walter Jon Williams shelf and I've got all enthusiastic again and I am now actively looking for books missing from that area of my collection. Got any you don't want any more? As long as they're anfractuous, of course. Brian Aldiss Somewhere East of Life Flamingo Poppy Z. Brite Wormwood Dell Harry Turtledove Worldwar: Tilting the Balance New English Library Stephen Levy Hacker Dell Neal Stephenson The Diamond Age Viking Christopher Fowler Psychoville Warner Nancy Kress Beggars and Choosers Tor Charles Platt Protektor AvoNova Walter Jon Williams Metropolitan Voyager
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Trimmings From The Triffid's Beard
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Foreword Unlike most holics, (if, a
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Buster Keaton and the lateral mind
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Movie Go Round Phlogiston Thirty-Fi
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crisps and a most revolting orange
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Lingua Frankly Phlogiston Thirty-Si
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tranquil islands of San Serif as th
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linguistic analysis. It is a theme
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up is laughable (feudalism across t
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perhaps over six feet." or "The per
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A Dozen Drabbles Phlogiston Thirty-
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This sort of thing had been going o
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In the story Jack Connie Willis cho
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(assuming the author describes them
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You should also consider whether or
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The Lesser Spotted Science Fiction
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. . . She peered at the cracked man
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stick. He hit the bed, and it was s
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Funny Business Phlogiston Forty-One
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...A large bottle. And in the bottl
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His wit and wisdom are highly prais
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Page 71 and 72: press in recent years about people
Page 74 and 75: John Kilian Houston Brunner (1934-1
Page 77 and 78: In the Beginning Phoenixine Seventy
Page 80 and 81: It's Only Words Phoenixine Seventy-
Page 82: Alan Dean Foster Montezuma Strip As
Page 85 and 86: Drachenfels is absolutely brilliant
Page 88 and 89: There's a Pigeon in the Hole Phlogi
Page 90 and 91: detective story. Currently, under t
Page 92: Shock -- The unofficial Iain M Bank
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Page 103: To Be Continued Phoenixine Seventy-
Page 108 and 109: various acquaintances. Most of the
Page 112 and 113: The Mixture As Before Phoenixine Ei
Page 114 and 115: Paul J. McAuley's new novel Fairyla
Page 116: John Barnes Kaleidoscope Century Mi
Page 119 and 120: and move hastily on. It is also qui
Page 121: outside of these areas it is corres
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Page 127 and 128: Genre? Phoenixine Eighty-Two, July
Page 129: example, it is genuinely moving. On
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Page 135 and 136: Living in an SF Novel Phoenixine Ei
Page 137 and 138: Robyn Gossett is an entertaining wr
Page 140 and 141: Youthful Vices Phoenixine Eighty-Fi
Page 142 and 143: story is ever continued, I will be
Page 145 and 146: Connections Phoenixine Eighty-Six,
Page 147 and 148: have worried. She is on the top of
Page 150 and 151: New Things Phoenixine Eighty-Eight,
Page 152 and 153: novel with a lot of libertarian pre
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Oh Frabjous Day Phoenixine Eighty-N
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Falco, the detective in Vespasian's
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autobiography and several smaller a
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anyone to be proud of. But Malafren
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It sounded good and I dived into it
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Real Hols Phoenixine Ninety-One, Ma
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few months ago and complained that
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I Can't Lift up My Book Phoenixine
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There was a time, many years ago, w
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Moronicity Phoenixine Ninety-Three,
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my body opening in anticipation of
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Cats Phoenixine Ninety-Four, June 1
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With Higher Education, Sheffield an
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Food Phoenixine Ninety-Five, July 1
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through. His books pull you up with
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Snot Phoenixine Ninety-Six, August
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I have no hesitation in recommendin
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Tower Blocks and Graffiti Phoenixin
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picture had appeared on the wall an
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As I collected my luggage, the clou
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the Kay Scarpetta stories. Other th
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Ah -- so now I was having earthquak
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went back to the dentist. "Oh yes,
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Tony Phoenixine One-Hundred, Decemb
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ut when she puts her mind to it she
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Bouncy Phoenixine One-Hundred and O
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slammed shut as the wind screamed p
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A series of bizarre murders is shak
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The Universe Hates Me Phoenixine On
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humour with which this farrago of n
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Diatribe on Language Phoenixine One
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unless your school principle says s
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with large gaps in his memory and a
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Toilets Phoenixine One-Hundred and
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wall rather than recessed into it.
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Richard Matheson I am Legend Orb Ro
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almost a reprise of the war of 1812
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McConnell's book Code Complete proc
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Fiji Phoenixine One-Hundred and Six
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Every night the resident trio of mu
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The next day I flew home and the vi
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Triffids Beard 2 - The Bearded Triffid

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