This book is a collection of essays and stories written by C.S. Lewis. Over all it is a mildly interesting read. The reader should know that it does not contain any works of Christian Apologetics.
The bulk of the essays deal with the way literary critics approach stories, particularly fantasy and science fiction. C.S. Lewis argues that judging stories where the point of interest is the plot by the standard of stories where characters are the center of interest is a mistake. Each essay takes this and advances along particular avenues based on the reason the essay was written.
One of the other essays is very short, and is Lewis's attempt to describe how he gets ideas for stories. Another of the essays is a response to Haldane's essay "Auld Hornie FRS". There is also an "essay" that is actually a transcript of a casual meeting between Lewis, Brian Aldis, and Kingsley Amis where they talked about writing fantasy / sci-fi stories.
A final essay describes things Lewis felt he learned from reading critical reviews of his fiction. In this essay he references honesty briefly; he saw that some reviewers felt they couldn't be honest. He then talks about the problem of reading the work hastily, or incompletely, and then assuming that the author wrote what you think he would. He goes on to talk about the serious risk of hypothesizing about how the work was written; the reviewer is usually wrong. Lewis describes reviews written that focus on the presumed psychology of the author. These, while not necessarily wrong, are generally beside the point. He also talks about the problems arising from the assumption that all stories are allegories focused on the current political events.
There are three short stories and the first chapter or two of a novel that Lewis was working on before he died. The best of the short stories is probably "Ministering Angels". In it the government is convinced to send volunteers to serve as prostitutes for the men stationed on Mars. The only volunteers they get are a professor convinced of the "new" ethic and a prostitute that wouldn't get picked up by any but the most desperate.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Book Review: "Acorna"
"Acorna" is a book by Anne McCaffrey and Margaret Ball. It contains a series of episodes following the discovery of an alien escape pod by three human asteroid miners. It is the first of the books in the series.
Over all it is an easy and enjoyable read. Acorna proves to be an interesting character, along with the three miners, Rafik, Callum, and Gill. The story ends setting the stage for the next book in the series, "Acorna's Quest".
Over all it is an easy and enjoyable read. Acorna proves to be an interesting character, along with the three miners, Rafik, Callum, and Gill. The story ends setting the stage for the next book in the series, "Acorna's Quest".
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Book Review: "Acorna's Quest"
This book by Anne McCaffrey and Margaret Ball is the second book in the series dealing with Acorna, the unicorn girl. The foe changes as the story advances. Initially there isn't one. Then the Starfarers are the foe. These are defeated in a chapter or two and the main characters start cleaning up the mess that was created. Then the Kleevi show up as new enemies. They take a couple more chapters to drive off.
Over all it's an easy read. There are several interesting characters including Hafiz Harakamian, Johnny Greene, and Karina a fake psychic. The plot isn't terribly memorable, but it suffices to put the characters in a variety of situations. The overall writing is easy to read, easy to digest, and even the less interesting characters are pleasant to read.
Over all it's an easy read. There are several interesting characters including Hafiz Harakamian, Johnny Greene, and Karina a fake psychic. The plot isn't terribly memorable, but it suffices to put the characters in a variety of situations. The overall writing is easy to read, easy to digest, and even the less interesting characters are pleasant to read.
Book Review: "Ezra Pound Early Poems"
This book, a Dover Thrift Edition of Ezra Pound's early poems, contains selections from "Personae", "Exultations", "Ripostes", all of "Cathay", and the first nine sections of "Hugh Selwyn Mauberly".
If you have never read any of Ezra Pound's poetry this could be an excellent book to find out with. It is inexpensive, contains 66 poems from his various early collections, and doesn't include much in the way of distractions. Indeed as I read this book I realized that I don't much care for the poetry of Ezra Pound. The best of the poems in this book, from my perspective, would be one of poems from "Cathay", perhaps the "Poem at the Bridge of Ten-Shin".
If you have never read any of Ezra Pound's poetry this could be an excellent book to find out with. It is inexpensive, contains 66 poems from his various early collections, and doesn't include much in the way of distractions. Indeed as I read this book I realized that I don't much care for the poetry of Ezra Pound. The best of the poems in this book, from my perspective, would be one of poems from "Cathay", perhaps the "Poem at the Bridge of Ten-Shin".
Book Review: "Acorna's People"
This book by Anne McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough is the third in the series about Acorna, the unicorn girl. It is an easy read without being particularly noteworthy.
The plot, in brief, is that certain of the Piper's associates from the first book are looking for ways to get revenge on Acorna. They would also like to make a great deal of money using the healing powers of Linyaari horns. The Red Bracelet mercenaries, seen in the second book, are recruited to capture as many Linyaari as possible. They do so while posing as members of the Federations armed forces. This plot comes to light slowly as the book progresses, and Acorna learns what it is like to live with those Linyaari that would never normally go into space. Eventually she leaves the Linyaari homeworld in the company of Aari, a Linyaari that survived being tortured by the Kleevi, the insectoid race that likes to destroy worlds, and Joe Becker a salvage expert to go to the aid of Hafiz Harakamian, her "uncle". They arrive, save Uncle Hafiz, and learn of the larger plot. A chapter later a plan has been devised in put into motion allowing Acorna to turn the tables on the Red Bracelet mercenaries. Real Federation soldiers arrest the mercenaries and the universe is again made safe for the Linyaari.
As I said at the beginning it is an easy read. It's pleasantly written with several very memorable characters, notably Becker and the over the top, and underhanded, Hafiz. However the villains are hardly ever seen and they are so swiftly overcome they seem almost like an excuse to get Hafiz into space so that the reader can see him and his new bride being outrageous.
This was neither the most interesting book these authors have written, nor was it the most memorable, but it was a quick, easy, and pleasant read.
The plot, in brief, is that certain of the Piper's associates from the first book are looking for ways to get revenge on Acorna. They would also like to make a great deal of money using the healing powers of Linyaari horns. The Red Bracelet mercenaries, seen in the second book, are recruited to capture as many Linyaari as possible. They do so while posing as members of the Federations armed forces. This plot comes to light slowly as the book progresses, and Acorna learns what it is like to live with those Linyaari that would never normally go into space. Eventually she leaves the Linyaari homeworld in the company of Aari, a Linyaari that survived being tortured by the Kleevi, the insectoid race that likes to destroy worlds, and Joe Becker a salvage expert to go to the aid of Hafiz Harakamian, her "uncle". They arrive, save Uncle Hafiz, and learn of the larger plot. A chapter later a plan has been devised in put into motion allowing Acorna to turn the tables on the Red Bracelet mercenaries. Real Federation soldiers arrest the mercenaries and the universe is again made safe for the Linyaari.
As I said at the beginning it is an easy read. It's pleasantly written with several very memorable characters, notably Becker and the over the top, and underhanded, Hafiz. However the villains are hardly ever seen and they are so swiftly overcome they seem almost like an excuse to get Hafiz into space so that the reader can see him and his new bride being outrageous.
This was neither the most interesting book these authors have written, nor was it the most memorable, but it was a quick, easy, and pleasant read.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Book Review: "The Abolition of Man"
This set of three lectures by C.S. Lewis begins with "Men Without Chests". This lecture or essay examines problems that he sees in a book for use in teaching English. In it the authors regularly debunk value statements as being statements about "mere" emotions. Lewis proceeds to demonstrate that some value statements are not merely statements of emotion. Some things are properly described as repulsive and others are properly described as noble. This act of debunking makes it harder for the students later because trained emotions, metaphorically seated in the heart or chest, are necessary for people to do the right thing. Hence the title "Men Without Chests", that is men who haven't got the trained emotions and are therefore made less able to behave morally.
The second lecture "The Way" takes the book that triggered the first lecture and generalizes to a philosophy of the time. Specifically, Lewis attacks the idea that morality can be based on something that admits of proof, and the idea that such a proof is required before a person ought to believe in an objective morality without proof. He demonstrates the problem with social utility and instincts, two things that some authors of the time used in their attempts to build new moral frameworks. Both run into the problem of moving from an "is" to an "ought". He then goes on to point out a difficulty in "seeing through" things. The point of "seeing through" is to see something on the other side. If you see through everything then everything is transparent and you are effectively blind. This difficulty serves as the justification of accepting the claim that people should accept the existence of an objective morality. Another way of making the claim: everyone acts like there is an objective morality; therefore they must believe that such exists.
The third and final lecture "The Abolition of Man" moves on to the broader interaction between Science and morality. It largely consists of an examination of the claim "Man is conquering Nature". Lewis uses radio, airplanes, and contraception as examples in his demonstration that the "conquest" is a matter of some people getting more power to impact the lives of other people. In the case of contraception it is power by people of "this" generation over those that would otherwise be in future generations. This concern moves into education and raises the problem of individuals that free themselves from the "Tao", the term used in these essays for objective morality, as humanity gains the knowledge to use unfailing conditioning to control and shape students. This interaction leads to an argument regarding the necessity of objective morality by scientists and those pursuing science.
The first essay is mostly of interest in education, particularly textbook reviews. After all English textbooks should teach the students how to write, not an amoral philosophy. The third is mostly irrelevant. After all science has yet to provide any reliable way of shaping students to be precisely what the powers that be want, and it seems unlikely to do so in the near future or even the not so near future. The second is of greater interest as it fits into the ongoing struggle over the foundation of ethics.
All in all this, along with "Mere Christianity" and "A Grief Observed", is one of C.S. Lewis' books that everyone ought to read at some point. For its lucidity, for the structure of his arguments, and for the conclusions it is a book well worth reading.
The second lecture "The Way" takes the book that triggered the first lecture and generalizes to a philosophy of the time. Specifically, Lewis attacks the idea that morality can be based on something that admits of proof, and the idea that such a proof is required before a person ought to believe in an objective morality without proof. He demonstrates the problem with social utility and instincts, two things that some authors of the time used in their attempts to build new moral frameworks. Both run into the problem of moving from an "is" to an "ought". He then goes on to point out a difficulty in "seeing through" things. The point of "seeing through" is to see something on the other side. If you see through everything then everything is transparent and you are effectively blind. This difficulty serves as the justification of accepting the claim that people should accept the existence of an objective morality. Another way of making the claim: everyone acts like there is an objective morality; therefore they must believe that such exists.
The third and final lecture "The Abolition of Man" moves on to the broader interaction between Science and morality. It largely consists of an examination of the claim "Man is conquering Nature". Lewis uses radio, airplanes, and contraception as examples in his demonstration that the "conquest" is a matter of some people getting more power to impact the lives of other people. In the case of contraception it is power by people of "this" generation over those that would otherwise be in future generations. This concern moves into education and raises the problem of individuals that free themselves from the "Tao", the term used in these essays for objective morality, as humanity gains the knowledge to use unfailing conditioning to control and shape students. This interaction leads to an argument regarding the necessity of objective morality by scientists and those pursuing science.
The first essay is mostly of interest in education, particularly textbook reviews. After all English textbooks should teach the students how to write, not an amoral philosophy. The third is mostly irrelevant. After all science has yet to provide any reliable way of shaping students to be precisely what the powers that be want, and it seems unlikely to do so in the near future or even the not so near future. The second is of greater interest as it fits into the ongoing struggle over the foundation of ethics.
All in all this, along with "Mere Christianity" and "A Grief Observed", is one of C.S. Lewis' books that everyone ought to read at some point. For its lucidity, for the structure of his arguments, and for the conclusions it is a book well worth reading.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Book Review: "3001 The Final Odyssey"
This is the last of the books dealing with the Monoliths written by Clarke. Over all it is an easy and often pleasant read. However, in 250 pages there are only about 50 that actually advance the plot. There are also at least three chapters that were copied verbatim from prior Odyssey books by Clarke. The rest of the book is something of a Utopia by Clarke. Some would describe the society as rather dystopian rather than utopian, particularly given the way criminals are non-persons in 3001.
This is a fine book if you want something easily read and easily put down, so I recommend it for those traveling.
This is a fine book if you want something easily read and easily put down, so I recommend it for those traveling.
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