JuLieN wrote:Tord Romstad wrote:It probably doesn't qualify as popular culture, but Gene Wolfe -- my favorite living author -- has written a short story named The Marvellous Brass Chessplaying Automaton. The story is set some time in the future, at a time when technology has regressed compared to today. People still remember the age of computers, but the art of making them has been forgotten. It is widely assumed that no working computers remain. But there are rumors that a single computer still survives in a remote German village: A dedicated chess computer.
I won't spoil the story, in case somebody wants to read it. It's included in the short story collection The Best of Gene Wolfe (which, albeit very good, isn't really the best of Gene Wolfe, because his novels are better than his short stories).
I remember you yet mentioned this author, and advocate him so well that I really want to read him, now.
That's surprising -- I suck at advocating things, and would have been the worlds least successful salesman. As an example, I had to advocate late move reductions for a year or so before anyone started listening.
Sadly the only books from him I find in my language seem to be heroic fantasy only, which is not my cup of tea... :/
What books were those? None of the numerous Wolfe books I have read could be described as heroic fantasy. The only such books I know of are the
The Wizard Knight duology, which don't look that interesting to me, and which I haven't read.
Wolfe isn't for everyone, however. It's not easy and fast-paced entertainment, and there is little direct action. You have to think hard and pay attention to every little detail in order to figure out what is going on. The narrators are usually not entirely reliable, and some of the most important events in the books often happen off-screen, forcing the reader to figure out what has happened based on little fragments of information given in dialog from characters who may or may not be truthful. The books are best suited for people who enjoy solving puzzles, and who don't mind reading a book two or three times.
If someone wants to give Wolfe a try, read
The Best of Gene Wolfe if you like short stories,
Peace if you want something close to mainstream literature, the
Soldier series (
Soldier of the Mist,
Soldier of Arete and
Soldier of Sidon) if you're interested in ancient history and mythology,
The Book of the New Sun if you're a science fiction fan, and
The Fifth Head of Cerberus if you're a science fiction fan without the time or patience to attack something as big as TBotNS.
The Book of the New Sun is widely regarded as the best of them all, but it can also be very dense, confusing and frustrating for new readers.
)