Novosti iz sveta knjiga...

[Berserker]

Ovaj Max se opasno penje na listi mojih prioriteta za čitanje, sa kojom njegovom knjigom bi valjalo započeti upoznavanje? Three parts dead?

[Irena Adler]

Pa sad, Three parts dead je prva objavljena, a First last snow je hronološki prva, pa ti vidi.

[nightflier]

Ovaj Max se opasno penje na listi mojih prioriteta za čitanje, sa kojom njegovom knjigom bi valjalo započeti upoznavanje? Three parts dead?

Da nisi pobrkao temu?

Moja preporuka je da pocnes od Three Parts Dead, pa se javi za dalje ako ti se dopadne

Sent from Bigg Maggzzee

[Lidija]

With dry wit and psychological acuity, this near-future novel explores the aftershocks of an economically devastating U.S. sovereign debt default on four generations of a once-prosperous American family. Down-to-earth and perfectly realistic in scale, this is not an over-the-top Blade Runner tale. It is not science fiction.

In 2029, the United States is engaged in a bloodless world war that will wipe out the savings of millions of American families. Overnight, on the international currency exchange, the “almighty dollar” plummets in value, to be replaced by a new global currency, the “bancor.” In retaliation, the president declares that America will default on its loans. “Deadbeat Nation” being unable to borrow, the government prints money to cover its bills. What little remains to savers is rapidly eaten away by runaway inflation.

The Mandibles have been counting on a sizable fortune filtering down when their ninety-seven-year-old patriarch dies. Once the inheritance turns to ash, each family member must contend with disappointment, but also—as the U.S. economy spirals into dysfunction—the challenge of sheer survival.

Recently affluent, Avery is petulant that she can’t buy olive oil, while her sister, Florence, absorbs strays into her cramped household. An expat author, their aunt, Nollie, returns from abroad at seventy-three to a country that’s unrecognizable. Her brother, Carter, fumes at caring for their demented stepmother, now that an assisted living facility isn’t affordable. Only Florence’s oddball teenage son, Willing, an economics autodidact, will save this formerly august American family from the streets.

The Mandibles is about money. Thus it is necessarily about bitterness, rivalry, and selfishness—but also about surreal generosity, sacrifice, and transformative adaptation to changing circumstances.

[Lidija]

ahm, ova trilogija se reklamira kao "Igre gladi za odrasle", otkupljena je i za filmovanje, pa...



sinopsis za finalni deo:

Over a year has passed since "Big Guy" Clancy and the ragged band of survivors managed to escape from the hellish reality of the City. Pursued by the ruthless leader of Infinity-the corporation behind the systematic extermination of thousands of "lower class" citizens-they've been on the run ever since, constantly looking over their shoulders.

Despite this, they have forged a new life working the land on an abandoned smallholding on the other side of the mountains. Hidden there, they are as close to happy as they can be.

But peace is short-lived. Strange things start to happen in the valley: too many unlucky coincidences convince them that another power is rising against them, and there are many questions to be answered: what is the shadow maker? And who-or what-has begun to howl in the night?

[Lidija]

a ova pak ima podosta naklonjene rivjue...



One of the most anticipated books of the year is here and it is a blast! Final part of Snorri Kristjansson's strange fantasy trilogy set around Norse history and mythology was always going to be good. When you build your story on rollercoaster rides such as "Blood Will Follow" and "Swords of Good Men" even a rethread of familiar ground would be an enjoyable experience but in "Path of Gods" Kristjansson has really upped the ante.
Story of the "Path of Gods" finds Audun and Ulfar driven by common goal. Our immortal couple are the only one who can stop the march of White Christ alliance that threatens the destruction on the North. They're led by King Olav Tryggvasson, a self-appointed leader and their arch-nemesis, who is having plenty of trouble on his own. Keeping peace during the times of war is never going to be easy and there're chancers everywhere just waiting to depose him. King Olav is truly horrific creature, succumbing to doing the most heinous acts imaginable to spread his religion. Unbeknownst to other, an old, forgotten evil is starting to stir. Some very familiar names from the Norse Pantheon make a welcome appearance.

Kristjansson's "Path of Gods" feels like fireworks going on everywhere at the same time. The entire series has been a gargantuan feat of imagination and "Path of Gods" provides a worthy final stop filled with heart-warming revels and blood curdling showdowns. It is completely bonkers, slightly strange, and such great fun. If you haven't done it by now, do yourself a favour and get the entire trilogy - it's truly unique.

[Aleksandar_B_Nedeljkovic]

Mandibles, by Lionel Shriver - -  u tom prikazu/reklami kažu da taj roman nije SF, ali (ako su ga tačno opisali) naravno da jeste SF.

[Lidija]

Pa eto, poslednjih decenija kao da se nekako zapatila praksa da se razlučuje ona fina granica između striktno futurizma na jednoj i 'standardnog' SFa na drugoj strani.

Naravno, to je vrlo delikatna distinkcija, najčeće pomalo odokativna u svojoj primeni… recimo, ako ste gledali ovaj noviji film Marsovac, ili Gravity… to bi nam nekako bile dobre ilustracije za “futurizam”, u smislu da se pod tim podrazumeva tako bliska budućnost da je gotovo moguće smatrati je sadašnjošću. Većinom se to odnosi na onaj tehnološki aspekt žanra, da tako kažem, i to uglavnom zato što je sa nivoa nekog opšteg znanja vrlo teško precizno izmeriti tehnološki horizont zbivanja.

Ali naravno, u nekom mom privatnom prepoznavanju žanrovskih odrednica, slažem se sa vama – po sinopsisu, ovo zvuči kao SF, a preciznije ću znati kad se dokopam romana. 

[Lidija]

Mandibles, by Lionel Shriver - -  u tom prikazu/reklami kažu da taj roman nije SF, ali (ako su ga tačno opisali) naravno da jeste SF.

Elem, ovo je svakako roman koji bi Vas sigurno žestoko zaitrigirao, ponajpre zato jer predstavlja deo savremenog proznog korpusa koji se odupire standardnim definicijama SFa, pa otud i adekvatnoj klasifikaciji. Pri tom ne mislim da kažem kako je u pitanju ikakav granični slučaj, nego naprosto korpus koji poseduje lako prepoznatljive zakonitosti a one se uglavnom oslanjaju upravo na futurizam.

e sad, tačno je da futurizam spada u asortiman standardnog SF alata, tamo zajedno sa vremeplovom, nadsvetlosnim pogonom, vanzemaljcima, kiborzima i AI varijacijama, ali u ovom konkretno korpusu, fer je priznati da ne pripada SFu po difoltu, da tako kažem: istina je da se mogu pronaći argumenti i za i protiv, ali oni su neretko tako pažljivo odmereni da gotovo potiru jedni druge.

Primera radi, Vi bi mogli da napišete prozu lociranu u 2035 ali da u njoj ponudite isključivo sadašnji nam trenutak, sve zajedno sa ovom forumskom konverzacijom: da li bi to onda uopšte bio futurizam? Nominalno da, ali da li bi bio i SF? U prirodi SF futurizma je da dosegne ekstrapolirani tehnološki moment-u-vremenu, pa ako taj moment izostane i ako izostane novum koji bi on trebalo da nam donese - ako sve ostane ovako kako sada jeste, osim deklarativne godine od strane samog autora - da li je to onda uopšte SF futurizam?

s druge strane, mnogi književni korpusi rade upravo suprotno: lociraju svoj time-line u striktno sadašnjost, ali nude novum za koji nas dvoje ovde ne možemo sa sigurnošću da utvrdimo da li uopšte spada u sadašnjost. Dobar primer za to su tehno-trileri i njihovo baratanje tehnološkim inovacijama koje oni vrlo namerno lociraju ne samo u sadašnjost, nego neretko i blisku prošlost, kao na primer EMP gedžeti i dronovi vešto plasirani u najpraktičnija okruženja skorašnjih ratišta.

Kao rezultat, umesto futurizma sa novumom mi imamo cvateći književni korpus koji istovremeno nudi novum bez futurizma i futurizam bez novuma: tradicionalne SF definicije bazirane na motivima i ikonografiji su tu od relativno slabe pomoći.

Ali više o tome kasnije, kad skrpim dovoljno vremena za par reči o ovom veoma vešto napisanom romanu.  

[Aleksandar_B_Nedeljkovic]

Добро, па, има тих граничних случајева, где је тешко пресудити да ли нешто јесте, или није, СФ. Али обично размишљамо, да ли је СФ или је фантази или је хорор. Један, други, или трећи жанр фантастике. То је наша типична дилема. Па Ghoul каже да Франкенштајн, или Alien, нису једно него су друго, итд. Али у кругу та три жанра.

Ви сте овде наишли на једну ипак друкчију теоријску дилему (ако сам добро схватио):

да ли је нешто фантастика или уопште није фантастика

него је реалистички роман, или прича, или филм, реалистички, само се дешава у будућности, али без икакве СФ или фантази или хорор садржине.

Или садржина јесте нешто што се још никада није десило али би, итекако, стварно, могло да се деси (ето, на пример, банкрот Америке због неодговорно наштампаних трилиона долара без икаквог реалног покрића...) и што јесте неки новум али друштвене или економске или верске врсте, а нема ама-баш-никакву димензију научног открића.

То јесте интересантна и важна област за теорију научне фантастике.

[Lidija]

Iskrena da budem, problem sa fantastikom je ovde još i ponajmanji: onaj glavni problem je više terminološke prirode, i proizilazi iz ehm... pa, recimo vrlo liberalnog korištenja termina "fantastika", i to primarno kao sinonima za autorsku imaginaciju, za predočavanje svega onog neverovatnog, neočekivanog, čak i pomalo apsurdnog... i znate već, sve u tom stilu pogodbenog sveta.

A nakon toga, stiže nas dodatna dilema koliko je ova vrst proze uopšte žanrovska, odnosno, da li je ona zaista žanrovski granična, ili je naprosto ko suza čist mainstream, glavnotokovska, proza književne matice.

U nedostatku boljeg i dubljeg poznavanja napora domaćih istraživača na ovom terenu, ja nemam izbora nego da ovde rečeni korpus za ove potrebe okrstim kao "društvenjačku ekstrapolaciju". Koliko god nam sad ostalo otvoreno pitanje da li taj korpus spada u SF ili ne, toliko po pitanju fantastike nam nema dileme: nema je niti mrve, bez obzira kako nam se prohte da taj termin koristimo.

Primera radi, roman koji dobro ilustruje korpus je The Man, Irvin Wallace, o prvom crnačkom predsedniku SAD. E sad, naravno da je te daleke 1964te ta premisa mogla svima (nama i njima) da izgleda do koske apsurdno, ta pretpostavka da će predsednik SADa postati upravo pripadnik rase koja nije smela da deli javni prevoz ili restorane sa belcima... ali proglasiti taj  trenutačni apsurd - dakle, trenutačan zato jer je bio baziran isključivo na trenutačnoj političkoj volji, na trenutačnoj limitaciji društvenog i kulturnog momentuma -  fantastikom, je... pa, veoma pogrešno samo po sebi, bez obzira upakovali mi to u nominalni prozni futurizam ili ne. Kao što danas to vrlo dobro znamo, zar ne?

Ali i pre ove naše današnje mudrosti - pre Obame u Beloj kući, na primer - svakako smo mogli da zaključimo kako sve te smele ekstrapolacije nisu i ne mogu biti nikakav vid fantastike.

A ako se ispostavi da za tu distinkciju manjka adekvatna terminologija - pa, onda je možda potrebno stvoriti istu. Jer pad aparthejda u ovoj zemlji, pad komunizma u toj, pad rasizma u Americi, pad sekularnog režima u Iranu - sve su to listom rezultati volatilnih društvenim promena koje su veoma stvarne i relativno lako predvidive, ma kako nam to drugačije izgledalo na nivou opšteg znanja. 

No dobro, smatram da je ipak potrebno da sve ovo malko artikulisanije saopštim...


 

[Lidija]

With The Three-Body Problem, English-speaking readers got their first chance to experience the multiple-award-winning and bestselling Three-Body Trilogy by China's most beloved science fiction author, Cixin Liu. Three-Body was released to great acclaim including coverage in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. It was also named a finalist for the Nebula Award, making it the first translated novel to be nominated for a major SF award since Italo Calvino's Invisible Cities in 1976.

Now this epic trilogy concludes with Death's End. Half a century after the Doomsday Battle, the uneasy balance of Dark Forest Deterrence keeps the Trisolaran invaders at bay. Earth enjoys unprecedented prosperity due to the infusion of Trisolaran knowledge. With human science advancing daily and the Trisolarans adopting Earth culture, it seems that the two civilizations will soon be able to co-exist peacefully as equals without the terrible threat of mutually assured annihilation. But the peace has also made humanity complacent.

Cheng Xin, an aerospace engineer from the early 21st century, awakens from hibernation in this new age. She brings with her knowledge of a long-forgotten program dating from the beginning of the Trisolar Crisis, and her very presence may upset the delicate balance between two worlds. Will humanity reach for the stars or die in its cradle?

[Lidija]

A businessman was attending a company wide meeting in Chicago when all power fails. Cars and trucks stop, planes fall from the sky, and cell phones fail.Everything that has anything to do with the movement of electrons is useless. Not knowing the cause of the failure or how long it will last he is forced to make a decision to sit it out in Chicago or try to get home to his wife in Alabama.



After an unexpected malfunction, the technology which enables humanity to cross vast distances has separated an interstellar traveler from the love of her life — not in space, but in time. Now, while her companions remain in stasis, she must endure the loneliness of the journey until the moment her lover wakes.

Winner of the 2015 Friends of Merril Short Story Contest, When I'm Old, When I'm Grey imagines the strange — and strangely familiar — forms that fear and longing can take, as we venture forth into the unknown of the future.

[Lidija]

A Dragon is dead.

Corta Helio, one of the five family corporations that rule the Moon, has fallen. Its riches are divided up among its many enemies, its survivors scattered. Eighteen months have passed .

The remaining Helio children, Lucasinho and Luna, are under the protection of the powerful Asamoahs, while Robson, still reeling from witnessing his parent’s violent deaths, is now a ward--virtually a hostage-- of Mackenzie Metals. And the last appointed heir, Lucas, has vanished of the surface of the moon.

Only Lady Sun, dowager of Taiyang, suspects that Lucas Corta is not dead, and more to the point—that he is still a major player in the game. After all, Lucas always was the Schemer, and even in death, he would go to any lengths to take back everything and build a new Corta Helio, more powerful than before. But Corta Helio needs allies, and to find them, the fleeing son undertakes an audacious, impossible journey--to Earth.

In an unstable lunar environment, the shifting loyalties and political machinations of each family reach the zenith of their most fertile plots as outright war erupts.

Luna: Wolf Moon continues Ian McDonald's saga of the Five Dragons.

[Lidija]

In the near future, Simon Taylor is CEO to one of the planet’s most recognized brands. His supercomputer, Sophia, has already earned humanity’s trust by successfully resolving more than one global crisis. Individuals to institutions now leverage Sophia’s Halo App, whose search engine filters knowledge through wisdom itself. Better governance, our genome’s inherited secrets, as well as a promising synthetic XNA helix are only a few of the markets dominated by Simon’s PurIntel Corporation. However, when Sophia’s growing intelligence becomes the focal point of a crime, and her true potential is fully revealed, the world is stunned by the degree to which she has evolved on her own. This compelling Sci-fi places the human journey on a new and exciting trajectory, one that immerses Artificial Intelligence into a future that Simon believes is inextricably linked to our distant past. Confronted by his species’ ability to adapt, Simon must answer a question he could easily defer to you: If you could deploy any combination of genetics and technology in order to accelerate our evolutionary process, if you could eliminate intolerance, greed, the suffering we impose on each other, would you do it? Would you intervene and change the destiny of humankind? Simon knows his answer. Do you know yours?