I wasn't expecting much when I started reading this book, and in the end, I was still disappointed. It’s a seemingly endless word count hemorrhage fes I wasn't expecting much when I started reading this book, and in the end, I was still disappointed. It’s a seemingly endless word count hemorrhage festival that is populated with pro forma characters (to use the author’s own words against him/them) and a plot that starts off interesting and declines into the absurd.
This book is the first in a three-volume series (extended to six!) which I intended to continue, but I’m not interested anymore. I didn’t find anything really compelling or creative about the story, instead it was a cut-and- paste mishmash of existing plots, characters, and details drawn from various sources ranging from books to film to TV. I normally don’t comment on the length of a book, but it was too long for the story being told. I skipped over numerous passages describing unimportant details or ones that repeatedly mentioned asteroids “cracking like an egg” or the couches injecting drugs into passengers travelling in high g-forces.
On the positive side, I’m grateful the authors gave this book an actual ending. If there had been a cliffhanger, I’d still not be interested enough to read Caliban s War. ...more
The story, in its most basic form, is interesting. A young boy has the potential to be a great leader, and this is the story. However, I would have en The story, in its most basic form, is interesting. A young boy has the potential to be a great leader, and this is the story. However, I would have enjoyed this book a lot more if it hadn't been so repetitive. I felt as if I was reading the same scene over and over again for almost 3/4 of the book. The other problem I had were the constant descriptions of naked young boys, especially the scenes about soapy young boys in the shower. Not only that, the adults running the school have video cameras in the shower. Seriously, what the hell is this? It's safe to say I won't be reading any more of Orson Scott Card's books. ...more
This is the kind of book where every word matters. It's amazing how Sherwood Anderson was able to paint such a clear picture and effectively transpor This is the kind of book where every word matters. It's amazing how Sherwood Anderson was able to paint such a clear picture and effectively transport the reader back in time. The citizens of Winesburg seem to lead difficult and complicated lives, searching for something that's just out of reach. It's a nice collection of related stories, and is the kind of writing that you just don't see anymore. ...more
I feel lucky to have finished DUST before it’s been officially released. I’m not a book critic or anyone of note, but I lucked out and got my copy of DUST on August 8. I pre-ordered my signed copy (the Ugly Edition) direct from Hugh Howey’s web site a few weeks ago. Shortly after, he did a surprise “pre-signing” on August 4 and pre-sent them out the next day. As soon as I pre-received my copy, I set aside the book I was currently reading and started on DUST.
I don’t want to give a lot away, but if you enjoyed the previous installments, you will enjoy DUST. Since WOOL, Hugh Howey has built a world that his characters hate, and he has done nothing but cause them befuddlement and misery in the first two omnibuses (omnibi?). In DUST, there’s hope that they can figure out what’s really going on and do something about it. The pace is relentless, and Howey portions out information in pieces that make you want to keep reading. Characters like Juliette and Solo reveal new strengths and weaknesses, new characters emerge to stir up trouble, and new details emerge about the master plan to save/doom what’s left of humanity.
(view spoiler)[Since we were left hanging for all of SHIFT, Juliette shows up in Chapter 1 of DUST. From the first page it’s full-throttle storytelling. Now mayor of Silo 18, Jules has all kinds of projects going on that stir up discontent up and down the silo. There’s an interesting friction between Juliette and everyone else, since no one really understands what she’s planning, and no one wants to hear her out. To make things worse, she constantly speaks of subject that are taboo in the silo world, like being outside and knowing there are other silos. She’s in a difficult situation, and has to help the silo understand what’s right for everyone in the present is different from what’s right for everyone in the future. Her biggest struggle is winning everyone’s faith, sometimes even her own.
At the end of SHIFT, I wondered how the Silo 1 storyline would play out. I imagined a number of different scenarios, but none of them were close to what happened. In Silo 1, Donald and Charlotte are doing their best to covertly help Silo 18. The relationship between Donald and Charlotte, has time to grow a little more, and it’s an interesting contrast to the sterile, yes-sir-no-sir inhabitants of the silo who have no memory of who they really are. Of the whole series, I found Donald’s inner struggle to be one of the most interesting. I think his story was told really well, and was probably the most conflicted character in the series. Everyone had tough choices, but his were on a different level. He simultaneously pitied and hated the inhabitants of Silo 1, but knew he was partially responsible for creating it all. There were layers in Donald’s story that made every one of his actions mean so much more. He’s a dark, tragic character, and is ultimately a victim of his own creation. (hide spoiler)]
It’s amazing that this started as a self-published short story a few years ago, and grew into something spanning three volumes, nine if you count all the WOOLs and SHIFTs separately. Overall I thought it was a fitting conclusion to the series, and if you’ve read WOOL and SHIFT then this is a must-read. For those who haven’t read the books and are curious as to what the fuss is all about, I’d recommend getting WOOL on your next trip to the bookstore....more
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