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DrNefario
Posted 2016-02-26 7:36 AM (#12847 - in reply to #11652)
Subject: Re: The Definitive 1970s SF Reading Challenge		Quote Reply



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Location: UK		I'm up to 1973, now, having just read The Man Who Folded Himself by David Gerrold. It was fairly good, but I didn't totally love it. In fact I haven't really been enthused by any of my 70s picks yet. Current trends seem to be time travel (4 of my last 5 books) and greater psychological depth when exploring SF tropes (Beyond Apollo and The Man Who Folded Himself).

For 1972 I read Beyond Apollo by Barry Malzberg, which was again merely OK. It reminded me somewhat of The Tomorrow People by Judith Merrill, which I read for 1960 some months ago. I'd previously read The Gods Themselves, which is possibly my favourite Asimov, but that's not really big praise from me, and (I'm almost certain) The Fifth Head of Cerberus by Gene Wolfe, which I don't seem to be able to remember very clearly.

For '73 I had previously read The Embedding by Ian Watson, which I liked a lot; and Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C Clarke, which is pretty good, but see my comments about Asimov above (I'm not really a fan).

My next book will mark the half-way point of the whole 50-year challenge, although almost certainly not in page count. All 24 of my challenge books to date have been on the short side. The longest only just over 300 pages (Flowers for Algernon), with many under 200, and quite a few of those under 150. I have dodged (or previously read) some more substantial books, but only once did I deliberately pick a shorter book for speed (Slaughterhouse-Five vs The Jagged Orbit). I rather suspect my average book length is going to start increasing as I get to the 80s and 90s, and next up for 1974 I have the 560-page brick that is The Mote in God's Eye by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle.

Although I do also have the much shorter Continuous Katherine Mortenhoe by DG Compton...

Right now I don't have anything in the bank for 1975 and 1976. They're currently my last blank years until 1989. I'm probably going for The Wind's Twelve Quarters and Man Plus, but I haven't picked them up, yet.

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