[ExI] Books for the holidays?

[Claus Bornich]

Just came back from a long weekend to Paris, where I read Permutation City between conferences, exploring and crêpes. A very good read, truly an epic story in what seems to be the Greg Egan style, vast in time, space and concept. Written some three years earlier than Diaspora it was not quite as mind-bendingly breathtaking, but still light years ahead of much of the sf penned into existence. Reading Greg Egan is inspiring, but as much as I'd like to I'll not go into detail, lest I diminish the delight of discovery. Which one should I read next?

As for Vernor Vinge I would recommend reading A Deepness in the Sky first, the prequel to A Fire Upon the Deep. And don't forget The Peace War if you haven't already read it and if you enjoyed that, possibly Marooned in Realtime.

Currently, I'm re-reading Accelerando. When originally published as novellas in Asimov's it was perfectly in sync with my unfolding understanding of such wonderful ideas as transhumanism, extropy, the singularity, open source and daily scouring of slashdot for the latest techno news. Funny and densely packed with ideas, rocketing you straight into a weird and wonderful singularity. It permanently imprinted the name Charles Stross in my memory, and I've since read Toast, Singularity Sky and can't wait to explore Iron Sunrise and Glasshouse. Never did read the last three parts of Accelerando, so I'm hoping it ends with the same energy and vision it started out with.

Got most of the books you mention lined up on my bookshelf and I'd strongly recommend the Golden Age too. I've yet to read the Golden Transcendence though, maybe this x-mas... I don't think it matters if His Dark Materials is extropian or not, it's such a nice and intelligent trilogy. Perfect for x-mas, both for your own pleasure and wrapped up for young and old minds alike.

Never heard of Thirteen by Richard Morgan, so I'll add that to my list and I'll be watching for more tips showing up in this thread (I'm reading the digest version so I might be a bit out of sync).

Happy Holiday Reading

Claus