Neil Gaiman www.NeilgaimanBoard.com www.NeilgaimanBoard.com The World's End Other Writers The Top 20 Geek Novels. Discuss
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There is no custom member title here. Member  |
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/technology/archives/2005/11...els_the_results.html
So... its obviously a very small sample size, so its useless as a 'scientific' poll... but it works for discussion. Usually these sorts of things make me feel stupid, but i've read 14 of them... anyone have favorites? Ommissions? The only thing i find odd is the lack of Arthur C. Clarke I'm not going to pick a favorite, since trying to choose between half of my fave books is way too hard... but i figure there's something to talk about in the list. '1984' seems a bit more of an 'academic/important' novel then a 'geek novel', and I probably would have bumped up Snow Crash, since i hear it mentioned a ton (and its pretty darn geeky)... though the guy does make that point:
This message has been edited. Last edited by: The Lord of Nothings, |
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Goofy Beast Member  |
Ten out of twenty... Does that mean my geek glass is half-full or half empty?
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There is no custom member title here. Member |
half-full... you've got alot of fun reading to go
though 1984 and The Man in the High Castle are a bit depressing Man in the High Castle is a Philip K. Dick alternate history novel set in a world where the Japanese won World War II. pretty good anyone read Consider Pblebas, Microserfs, Trouble with Lichen, or the two Asimov books? i'm guessing they're worth reading... |
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Goofy Beast Member |
I'd say that Consider Phlebas is worth reading - it's got one absolutely disgusting scene that I could have done without, but Banks is clearly a highly imaginative, original writer who doesn't pull any punches.
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Lexis Nexus Member  |
I'm kind of surprised by the inclusion of Terry Pratchett. Although I love his work, I don't know that he fits into the "geek novel" list. I mean, if you're going to include Pratchett, where's Tolkien?
And yeah, I agree with you, LoN, I'd put Stephenson way higher as well. And Neuromancer is geekier than Brave New World, which kind of fits your description of 1984. |
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Assistant *fwap*er Member  |
I've read 7, maybe 8 (can't remember if I read Stranger in a Strange Land or not.)
My favorite is, of course, Hitchhikers. ******************************** The only really sane person in there is Igor, and possibly the turnip. And I'm not so sure about the turnip. ~~ Terry Pratchett |
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mutant hedgehog worm Member  |
i come in with a lowly 6
and i read 1984 when i was 15 and hated it, way too depressing, i get it now, but i have no wish to re-read it quite a few of those listed aren't particularily geeky, and the colour of magic isn't even a very good book, and i would have thought that sandman rates higher in geek circles than american gods... odd  |
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Lexis Nexus Member |
true that |
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There is no custom member title here. Member |
hrm... The Guardian is an English website, so that might have something to do with it
i'll agree with Sandman... maybe it wasn't listed on the initial poll? seems alot of my friends have read AG and not Sandman, though this does seem to go with what gets quoted/discussed among alot of my friends. i reckon 1984 is an important book, just to spot all the cliched phrases people use from it (though i prefer Orwell's essay 'Politics and the English Language', that is beyond the scope of this poll) um... favorites... Hichhiker's Guide, Neuromancer, Dune, Watchmen, Diamond Age, Stranger in a Strange Land... though i also reckon Starship Troppers or The Moon is a Harsh Mistress should be on it that said, i've seen people (both in real life and the board) use 'grok' in casual conversation, and thats a 'Stranger...' coinage... so it defiantly deserves its place anyone think Neil should have been higher? I'm surprised The Illuminatus! Trilogy was so low (having known my share of self-proclaimed 'Discordians').. Just throwing out random discusssion bits... I still reckon everyone should give these books at least a skim, so they get alot of the 'geek' references Maybe not Cryptonomicon. Its very, very long. Good book, but... long |
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his colours are like your dream Member  |
i'd say Brave New World & 1984 have transcended geek.
They are way too mainstream for proper geekdom. they are studied for GCSE courses. And Neal Stephenson has 3 books in the top 20... so his votes would be split. ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hyperbole is, without a shadow of doubt, the single greatest thing in the universe! |
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Member |
And the only one that I feel I've really missed something by not reading is Nueromancer because of its importance as a subgenre leader. The Asimov books are worth reading. I, Robot is the solid part of his robot stories (which gave us the word 'robotics' as the study/creation of robots). Foundation is the first book of a galaxy-spanning exclusively-human cilivization, which was another first when he wrote it. Just don't expect sex. Or romance. Considering how much he fooled around in real life, you think that some of it would have leaked into his fiction, but noooooo. |
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Member |
Not Cryptonomicon, it's a read-once. I've re-read some bookmarked bits, but I'll never read the whole thing again.
Sandman over AG, defintely. AG is a pretty good book, but Sandman spawned knockoffs. Author geekiness isn't that important. Big names like Douglas Adams, Kurt Vonnegut, Ray Bradbury are scientific laymen, and William Gibson famously did not and does not know much about computers. What's the criteria? Fight Club and A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius are popular in geek circles, though not quite geeky in themselves.
And it was nice to see some people pimping Alfred Bester's The Demolished Man. A lot of "What, no Altered Carbon?" comments, but yeah, it's new, and frankly, derivative. In a few years, Mieville's Perdido Street Station and Clarke's Strange and Norrell might be on such lists. |
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There is no custom member title here. Member |
....something just hit me after reading the 5 millionth RPG.net thread about HP Lovecraft... where is Call of Cthulhu? it should go up there for all the jokes and such its influenced, at least...
and Tolkien. yeah |
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Lexis Nexus Member |
I don't know, I've read Cryptonomicon twice already.
And yeah, where's Lovecraft? |
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Member |
Here we are and yet another list where I've read one, yes one book.
BUT American Gods is the best book on the list anyways!! How do I know that when I haven't read them - you ask??? simple -- Neil wrote it! ha! |
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his colours are like your dream Member |
i've read Cryptonomicon several times now...
~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hyperbole is, without a shadow of doubt, the single greatest thing in the universe! |
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There is no custom member title here. Member |
*looks at what he said*
Okay... i think i meant something like "if you're just skimming books on the list for completness, most of them are quick reads... except for Cryptonomicon". I should also add AG and Illuminatus! to that list. rigpig, i reckon everything on the list is worth at least a read, and while they might not all be as good as Neil's stuff you might be pleasently surprised or, in the case of Illuminatus! pleasently confused. really, really, really confused Snow Crash even gets away with naming its main character Hiro Protagonist |
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really is wicked Member  |
I'd have put Microserfs first, or much higher. It's a beautiful book, and very VERY geeky. It's one of my favourate books of all time! ----------------------------- St.Barbarella: Sexy Tart. Buys Ale, Reads Books, And Really Enjoys Leaving Lovers Aching - JP yes, University is all about incontinence - Mythos You are a Tradesman. Long before labor unions, your guilds were powerful enough to make a free-market capitalist run away screaming. Who controls the British Crown? Who keeps the metric system down? You do, you do. |
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Lexis Nexus Member |
that's 'cause Stephenson is awesome. (finalist for miost useless comment of the month) |
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Did something right Member  |
Try here? I love Stephenson's writing, but his inability to write an ending is more than a little annoying. I'm not sure I'd put both Snow Crash and Diamond Age in the top 20. I'd also put Moon is a Harsh Mistress on the list for Heinlein instead of Stranger - really, how geeky is Mike? ---------------------------------------------------------- "It really is fun to to stick burning objects into various orifices." "Sorry I haven't been around much, but I am easily distracted by shiny objects." "WEIRD! WEIRDY-WEIRDO-WEIRD! WEIRDOPOTTAMUS WEIRDOSAUR! HIM! YOU! WEIRD!"-Mr. Furious |
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Neil Gaiman www.NeilgaimanBoard.com www.NeilgaimanBoard.com The World's End Other Writers The Top 20 Geek Novels. Discuss
www.NeilgaimanBoard.com www.NeilgaimanBoard.com The World's End Other Writers The Top 20 Geek Novels. Discuss© YourCopy 2001