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Related: Culture Forums, Support ForumsReally hard classic science fiction quiz...(try not to google)
Last edited Thu Jan 13, 2022, 02:32 AM - Edit history (1)
...I'll name a character, idea, thing from a classic SF novel; you name the book and author. And you get brownie points for not using the term "sci fi", though I apparently am the last person on earth fighting this noble battle...
1. The Sons of the Bird.
2. The Empress Innelda. (Answered.)
3. The Scientific People.
4. Doppell.
5. The Reverend Nehemiah Scudder.
6. Sietch Tabr. (Answered.)
7. Joseph Schwartz.
8. The Overlords. (Answered.)
9. The Planet Tyr.
10. Martin Padway. (Answered.)
11. Norman and Tansy Saylor.
12. Magnifico.
13. Adam Selene.
14. The Games Machine.
15. Lincoln Powell. (Answered.)
16. Beowulf Schaefer. (Answered.)
17. Dominic Flandry. (Answered.)
18. Michael Finn.
19. The Jewel of Judgment.
20. Diaspar.
Have fun. If you know five of these, you've probably never used the term "sci fi" in your life...
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eppur_se_muova
(41,942 posts)There were actually three novels in the series. (I had to look up the correct first name).
The Overlords from Arthur C. Clarke's "Childhood's End".
Dominic Flandry was featured in a large number of stories by ... um ... that well-known author; all have been republished in a comprehensive collection recently. (OK, I cheated and looked it up. But I'm not saying who.)
A couple of others seem vaguely familiar, but don't trigger any big memories. I would have thought there would be a Cordwainer Smith item in there, but if there is, I didn't catch it.
First Speaker
(4,858 posts)...and about Flandry, though you didn't name the author. (A *little* cheating is OK.) I will--Poul Anderson. But you're wrong about Beowulf Schaefer--it *isn't* Sheffield. Hint--it's a more-famous author who debuted in the 1960s. As for "Smith"--yes, I should have included something by him. Maybe the name, "Karen America". I wouldn't say the late Dr Linebarger is my "favorite" Sf author--but I'd bet on him being the one most likely to be read 500 years from now...
eppur_se_muova
(41,942 posts)Really odd how similar two such ostensibly unique names turned out to be.
highplainsdem
(62,144 posts)He was definitely off in his own universe, far enough in the future to be, like fantasy, pretty much immune to being run over by actual changes in the near future, which make so much SF look archaic fairly soon.
The same, in a way, is true of Dune, which is why it's held up so well over the decades.
Re Smith/Linebarger, have you read this?
https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/03/remembering-cordwainer-smith-full-time-sci-fi-author-part-time-earthling/274344/
First Speaker
(4,858 posts)
Chipper Chat
(10,870 posts)Toughie fo sho
Coventina
(29,731 posts) 
malthaussen
(18,568 posts)... at least for the ones I'm familiar with. More verging on space opera than not, with some fantasy thrown in.
-- Mal
Tetrachloride
(9,624 posts)3, 5, 6, 16
and probably 8
PoindexterOglethorpe
(28,493 posts)I also hate the term "sci fi". I am a science fiction person. I read a fair amount, attend various cons (will be at COSine this coming weekend in Colorado Springs) write a small amount, recently edited an anthology, and really, really like the science fiction world. I'm also friends with several well-known authors, and even got to see the 2017 total eclipse with one very well-known author, lucky me.
I love the world of science fiction. I've been reading it for some 65 plus years now. Back in the 1950s my older brother belonged to the science fiction book club, and I got to read many of the classic novels of that era, thanks to him. I continued reading in the field, but did not start attending cons until relatively recently. I currently go to Bubonicon in Albuquerque (and yes the name means exactly what you think it does, because bubonic plague is endemic to New Mexico), Mile Hi in Denver, COSine in Colorado Springs, the Jack Williamson Lectureship in Portales NM, and recently SoonerCon in Norman, OK.
Okay, I understand that not everyone who reads this is any kind of a science fiction person, but this is a world that I am very glad I am a part of.
highplainsdem
(62,144 posts)PoindexterOglethorpe
(28,493 posts)Alas, she cannot attend in person, but expects to participate via Zoom. Isn't technology wonderful?
Here is a link to the website: https://www.firstfridayfandom.org/cosine/
I live in Santa Fe, and several years ago negotiated the Raton Pass exception. Because I (and anyone south of the Raton Pass) need to drive through it to get to Colorado Springs, they agreed to give the early registration amount if those of us who have to drive through the Raton Pass, which in January can be a problem, and show up at the Con without previous registration, but get the early registration fee. The difference is something like five dollars, but for several years I resisted attending COSine (I live in Santa Fe, NM) because the Raton Pass can be quite iffy in January. A few years ago someone pointed out that I could book the hotel, cancel 24 hours ahead of time if the weather was bad, and then simply register for the con once I got there.
Duh! I did that, and have grown to love COSine. For one thing, my all time favorite s-f author, Connie Willis, is always there. I adore her. And her husband, Courtney Willis, is always also there and does some kind of science thing.
Oh, and if you're a fan of the Willises, you need to seriously consider going to the Jack Williamson Lectureship in Portales, NM. This year, 2022, it will be April 7-9. Not only will Connie and Courtney be there, but their daughter Cordelia, who is a CSI person is also there and gives an amazing presentation in her field. It's intended essentially for the students at Eastern New Mexico State University in Portales, but anyone who is there for the lectureship is welcome to attend. I'd gone to several of the lectureships before I finally went to one of Cordelia's talks, and was absolutely blown away.
Another thing. Apparently, many years ago, when Connie was only attending Mile Hi in Denver (she lives in Greeley, CO, a bit north of Denver) Jack was there and invited her to an early lectureship. She attended and was totally delighted. As I understand it, she said to Jack, "Please have me back. I don't have to be guest of honor, but I'd love to attend." Well, he invited her back, and she now attends pretty much every year. She gives a talk at the Saturday luncheon which is not to be missed.
My very first Jack Williamson lectureship, when I was checking in at the Holiday Inn where most of the attendees stay, various other s-f people who were also checking in kept on asking me, "Are you going to be at the dinner tonight?" Well, I didn't know about the dinner, but was told I needed to call Patrice,a wonderful woman (who turned out that we had a friend in common) to put my name on the list to attend. When I got to the venue, I sat next to an author friend of mine. The waitress was taking our drink orders, and I was concerned that she was keeping track of who was ordering what, because although I understood the dinner was paid for by the Lectureship, I expected I'd by paying for my alcohol myself. My friend Walter said, "Oh, Poindexter, Jack funded this lectureship fully, and our drinks are also paid for." Oh, my.
So if your question is at all connected to a possibility of your attending COSine, I hope you are there. Even if you have zero intention of connecting to me. I love the s-f world. I love going to the cons I attend. I hope you are the same.
Oh, and here's something else, and perhaps the most important thing. The small cons, like COSine and the Jack Williamson Lectureship allow you to truly get up close and personal with the attendees, meaning the writers. They are always highly approachable, even at the large events, but if you are like me, you might feel that Famous Author, no matter how friendly they seem to be, is someone you really cannot talk to simply because they are Famous Author. I know what that's like, because I've been there. But they really are approachable, and they would not be there if they weren't more than happy to talk with everyone, even the lowliest of fans. At the big cons, it can be difficult to connect with or talk to Famous Author. Even though they really are totally approachable, as I've learned. At the small cons it's a non problem. And by small cons I mean ones like COSine, the Jack Williamson Lectureship, the Campbell Conference which is now renamed although I'm not sure of its new name. For that last one, I believe it's being renamed for Jim Gunn, who died recently and was a long-time supporter of the Campbell Conference and a major s-f writer in his own right.
highplainsdem
(62,144 posts)but with a pandemic a virtual appearance makes sense.
Thanks for answering my question, and much more.
Damn, I didn't know Jim Gunn had died. I still have his Alternate Worlds: The Illustrated History of Science Fiction.
As I explained in reply 12 below, I basically burned out on SF about 30 years ago, have read very little SF since. I asked about the GoH at COSine mostly because I was wondering if it would be someone I'd never even heard of.
But you've provided some great info here for anyone else who might be interested in going to the con. And I have to applaud you for having negotiated the Raton Pass exception, which sounds like it was definitely a good thing at the time.
And yes, writers, like ALL artists, are just people, and approachable. Though closed parties at large cons can shut fans out.
Do they still use the term trufan? You definitely sound like one.
First Speaker
(4,858 posts)...except that, for various reasons, I was never an active fan...could you tell us something about your anthology?
PoindexterOglethorpe
(28,493 posts)Hope it helps.
highplainsdem
(62,144 posts)Lincoln Powell - Alfred Bester's The Demolished Man
Empress Innelda - A.E. van Vogt's The Weapon Shops of Isher
Beowulf Shaeffer - Larry Niven's Neutron Star
Martin Padway - L. Sprague de Camp's Lest Darkness Fall
First Speaker
(4,858 posts)highplainsdem
(62,144 posts)in an interest-universe far, far away.
Read more SF than anything else 40-55 years ago. Had a collection of old SF magazines going back to the early 1950s, found in used book stores in pre-internet days.
But it's possible to burn out on SF, just like anything else, and I've read almost no SF in the last 30 years. Got rid of almost all the books and magazines, and 90% of what's left is packed away in boxes.
PoindexterOglethorpe
(28,493 posts)in the late 1960s when the "new wave" in s-f happened, I found I simply could not relate to it, and gave up reading science fiction for about 20 years. Eventually, the new wave went away, and I could go back.
Another thing. What writing I do is invariably science fiction. I cannot help myself, and I simply cannot begin to write in any other genre. I've been slightly published, and trust me, I'm as obscure as a writer can be which is just fine. In my reading life, about half of what I read is non fiction. The other have is split up among many genres, the least of which is science fiction. Which means I'm a bit of an odd duck in the s-f world, because I've read at best a fraction of what's out there. I'm willing to say that my s-f interest is quite narrow. I mostly like time travel and alternate history. I have zero interest in fantasy or zombies or vampires or urban fantasy or anything like that. I'm pretty much a hard science fiction person.
Some recommendations:
The Doomsday Book by Connie Willis
anything by Robert J. Sawyer
anything by Robert Charles Wilson, especially A Bridge of Years, one of my all time favorite books
Almost anything by Jack McDevitt. He has two series going, which are wonderful, and several stand alone novels. Do NOT read Time Travellers Never Die. It is truly terrible, unlike every other book of his. Oh, and I met him at the World Con in Kansas City in 2016 and he's a wonderful guy.
highplainsdem
(62,144 posts)I absolutely loved it.
Especially Zelazny and Delany, my two favorite authors for years.
In fact, the first SF novel I ever bought was by Delany. Captives of the Flame, the first of his Towers trilogy. 1963. I was 12 or 13. Delany's novel was half of an Ace Double. The other half was ordinary, ho-hum SF. Captives of the Flame was magical, to me.
The older SF I've mentioned here is stuff I collected long after it was published. Loved a lot of it. Some very fine writers, like C.L. Moore.
And I loved Cordwainer Smith, off in his own universe. Timeless.
And Walter Miller's A Canticle for Leibowitz, probably my favorite SF novel ever.
I wrote a long term paper on Asimov's Foundation trilogy in college.
But my favorite SF was New Wave. Which meshed so well with '60s and '70s rock music, for me.
Re urban fantasy - Jim Butcher's Dresden Files series is brilliant. Much better than the SyFy channel's adaptation.
PoindexterOglethorpe
(28,493 posts)I started reading science fiction as soon as I could read, thanks to my brother's science fiction book club membership and a dedicated science fiction room at the Utica Public Library. Which means my taste in s-f was well set before the New Wave.
I also don't get urban fantasy, fantasy of any kind, or the zombie and werewolf craze, although I did recently read World War Z and loved it, mainly because the focus was not on zombies, but on how their existence totally altered life for everyone else.
I honestly have a very narrow range of what I read and like in science fiction, mainly time travel and alternate history. At least half of what I read is non fiction, and the fiction covers a very broad range.
Also liked A Canticle for Leibowitz. Too bad Miller didn't write more. Some other authors I like and recommend are Jack McDevitt, Robert Charles Wilson, and Robert Sawyer.
highplainsdem
(62,144 posts)(Thor Heyerdahl's Kon-Tiki was one of my grade-school favorites) or public libraries, where librarians were letting me check out adult books by the time I was 10 or 11. Started reading Fleming's 007 books when I was 11, had caught up with all of them by a couple of years later, and discovered Len Deighton and John le Carre were much better. Also read all the nonfiction I could find on espionage.
I loved New Wave SF for the same reason I loved what has now become classic rock from the '60s and '70s. With both SF and music, the newer artists (and some older artists unfurling wings they hadn't tried stretching earlier) didn't just PUSH the envelope -- they EXPLODED it.
Which was just what the genre needed.
Along with a social/political consciousness and liberalism that were a very-much-needed counterbalance to the conservative views of all too many older SF writers and "hard" science fiction writers.
The times they were a-changin'...and I was so glad of that.
malthaussen
(18,568 posts)... when my grandparents gave me a box of various books that had been left behind at the motel where my grandmother worked as a maid. Among them were The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and William Tenn's collection The Wooden Star.
I did the book club thing, but am way too introverted for cons. So I read most of the books that have the characters mentioned; of course, as an old fart I forget a lot of proper names and usually end up saying "Wait, I know that one -- um, what was his name?"
I got burned out after a fashion, I suppose, in the 90s. It seems to me that literary quality has gone way down, but that could just be old-fogeyism. But so many of the sci-fi writers that are remembered as masters were great craftsmen -- they had to be, they pumped out six stories and a couple of novels a year.
The genre also seems to have been overrun with superheroes and fantasy, both of which are fine in their own way, but I really don't need another variation on Captain America or Farmboy is Actually the Long-Lost King Who Will Save the World From Darkness.
In which respect, I recommend Tim Powers's The Drawing of the Dark, in which the Dark is not what you might expect at all.
-- Mal
PoindexterOglethorpe
(28,493 posts)I also generally don't care for the science fiction movies or TV shows. The problem with them, in my opinion, is that those doing them (writers and directors) do know how to write or direct for TV and movies, but often know squat about science fiction, and have never read any of it.
The other problem with the written word is that in recent years self-publishing has gotten popular, and too many who go that route have no understanding of what actually goes into regular book publishing, especially the several different kinds of editing that normally take place. I've become extremely wary of self-published books, because in my opinion most of them are not worth it.
Something else I tend to avoid are the lengthy series, by which I mean three or seven or fourteen novels that are just one very long story. Several decades ago, when trilogies started becoming popular, I quickly noticed that often the first one was good, the second was filler, and the third just meh. So I usually prefer not to bother. Despite that, there are some series I enjoy. Jack McDevitt has two, although they don't need to be read in order. He's also written a bunch of stand-alone novels.
I don't agree that the old masters were mostly craftsmen. If you reread some of them, aside from cringing at the sexism in almost all of them, the writing quality is mainly utilitarian and gets the story told. Which is fine. I don't have a lot of patience for much "literary fiction", which is its own genre, although the people who read only that can be tiresomely snobbish about it.
Looking at the description of the Powers book, I'll pass. It's exactly the kind of thing that just does not interest me.
Jeebo
(2,560 posts)From Asimov's Foundation novels. The clown who immodestly called himself Magnifico Giganticus when Arkady Darrell first met him, before she found out that he was The Mule. I'm really surprised somebody hasn't already gotten that one. A few others I knew that have already been answered, and a few others look vaguely familiar but I couldn't tell you what they're from. Oh, and I almost forgot, Joseph Schwartz might be from one of Asimov's novels too. This is a guess, but is it from Pebble in the Sky? As for you, First Speaker, aren't you Preem Palver, also from Asimov's Foundation novels?
-- Ron
highplainsdem
(62,144 posts)ago, and I haven't reread the trilogy since.
First Speaker
(4,858 posts)...Magnifico is indeed the Mule, and a very poignant character. Yes, Joseph Schwartz is the gentle tailor from the 20th century who ends up in the future Galactic Empire in *Pebble in the Sky*. And I am indeed "Preem Palver", a character I've always loved, and indeed physically resemble not a little...
ms liberty
(11,237 posts)First Speaker
(4,858 posts)
lapfog_1
(31,904 posts)"Man, my only friend."
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - Robert Heinlein.
First Speaker
(4,858 posts)malthaussen
(18,568 posts)By Bob Heinlein; Adam Selene from The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, ditto.
The Jewel of Judgement is from the Amber series by Roger Zelazny.
-- Mal
First Speaker
(4,858 posts)
FSogol
(47,623 posts)One of my all-time fav science fiction series.
PS. Sci fi is just shorthand for science fiction. When most of the stories on your list were written, the genre wasn't as branched as now.
highplainsdem
(62,144 posts)books serialized in Galaxy.
Not my favorite Zelazny, though. That would be Lord of Light, which I read so often I practically had it memorized.
FSogol
(47,623 posts)It mixes science fiction with Navajo legends with a nod to Tony Hillerman's Leaphorn and Chee stories.
malthaussen
(18,568 posts)... but he really was sloppy in it. There are enough continuity errors to fill a blooper reel. And the sequel is, alas, rushed since he was busy dying at the time. I wish he'd been able to take the time (and had the motivation) to do it right, it showed promise.
Love Lord of Light, one of my favorite stand-alone novels by anyone.
-- Mal
FSogol
(47,623 posts) First Speaker
(4,858 posts)