Random’s Comments (group member since Apr 30, 2009)

Random’s comments from the Beyond Reality group.

Doesn't look like this group has read anything by Elizabeth Moon yet so how about Remnant Population for Science Fiction.
It's a great character driven story with some interesting themes. I really enjoy her work and would love to see more people give her a try.

I can never seem to come up with any ideas for Fantasy. :)

This may sound as weird as Dick himself but....

They're not hallucinations. To me, it was if ChewZ gave some sort of access or a glimpse into some sort of alternate reality/dimension.

Palmer himself is no longer human. He may not even be Palmer but something different, something transcended. Either way, what we know as Palmer has some sort of power or dominance into this alternate reality that ChewZ gives access to. The more of the drug you take, the longer you coexist there, the more you are under Palmer's influence.

It isn't a question so much of what is and is not reality, but instead which reality the character is experiencing.

William wrote: "It is a good book and very entertaining, but I'd say Bujold improved as an author in her later books (later in terms of writing, not necessarily chronology)."

I have to agree, though we are approaching one of my favorite books in the series. Just a month to go. :)

Sandi wrote: "Does the story match the supernatural meaning of the title? "

It does on a few levels. The motto for the drug Chew-Z is "God promises eternal life. We can deliver it".

There is also speculation near the end of the book on who or what Palmer Eldritch is or has become. I don't have the book handy though to remember the details very well.

I'd guess it's related to the three artificial portions of Eldritch, his eyes, teeth and arm. It is these three items which seem to popup and alert people that what they're seeing is not the mundane.

Has anyone else been drawn to the significance of his name?
eldritch - Strange or unearthly; eerie.
BTW - I looked up the name meaning for Palmer and it turns out to be Pilgrim.

I found the whole evolution therapy somewhat grating. It just doesn't work that way.

Of course, if we look at those in the book who had successful treatment, any signs of them being smarter or better were very superficial. Perhaps it was meant to be BS. :)

Carrying over from the Initial Thoughts thread.

I feel this story is very significant to Miles since it not only helps him develop an ethical base, I also believe it is one of the areas where Miles starts to move beyond and become something greater than his father and grandfather.

There are three portions of the story that over the years still stand out so strongly in my mind.

The first is when Harra is sitting in front of the gates to the estate at Vorkosigan Surleau. She is dirty, ragged, and tired sitting on the ground. She's walked for 4 days to get there not long after having given birth.
"It's my right. My daddy, he died in the Service. It's my right."

It's an image I can see vividly in my mind.


The second is at the end, when they have injected Ma Mattulich with fast-penta.

"No!" said Ma Mattulich. Indignation broke through the fast-penta wooze briefly. "Two were born dead already, the first one, and the twisted-up one. The one with too many fingers and toes, and the one with the bulgy head, those I cut. Cut out. My mother, she watched over me to see I did it right. Harra, I made it soft for Harra. I did it for her."

and

"Murdered?" said Ma Mattulich. "No! I cut them out. I had to. I had to do the right thing." Her chin lifted proudly, then drooped. "Killed my babies, to please, to please... I don't know who. And now you call me a murderer? Damn you! What use is your justice to me now? I needed it then — where were you then?"

Barrayar eats it's children, all of them.


The last is where we see Miles finally realizing the true loyalities of a leader and Lord.

He contemplated his urge to throw all his money, not just a lightflyer's worth, at those mountains; to quit it all and go teach children to read and write, to set up a free clinic, a powersat net, or all of these at once. But Silvy Vale was only one of hundreds of such communities buried in these mountains, one of thousands across the whole of Barrayar. Taxes squeezed from this very district helped maintain the very elite military school he'd just spent — how much of their resources in? How much would he have to give back just to make it even, now? He was himself a planetary resource, his training had made him so, and his feet were set on their path.
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Miles had sworn his officer's oath to the Emperor less than two weeks ago, puffed with pride at his achievement. In his secret mind he had imagined himself keeping that oath through blazing battle, enemy torture, what-have-you, even while sharing cynical cracks afterwards with Ivan about archaic dress swords and the sort of people who insisted on wearing them.

But in the dark of subtler temptations, those that hurt without heroism for consolation, he foresaw, the Emperor would no longer be the symbol of Barrayar in his heart.

Peace to you, small lady, he thought to Raina. You've won a twisted poor modern knight, to wear your favor on his sleeve. But it's a twisted poor world we were both born into, that rejects us without mercy and ejects us without consultation. At least I won't just tilt at windmills for you. I'll send in sappers to mine the twirling suckers, and blast them into the sky....

He knew who he served now. And why he could not quit. And why he must not fail.

Here he comes to terms with the fact that his duty is not to the Emperor. It is instead to the people who as their Lord he serves.

And here is one of the spots where Miles goes beyond his father and grandfather. Their unwavering loyalty to the Emperor had led them to doing some very awful things. The events at Escobar were for pride and image only. All the atrocities committed, all of the lives lost, just so a monster could have an honorable death.

Another point where Miles shows himself as having gone beyond his father is when he is sentencing Ma Mattulich. I have to compare it to the young hothead Aral had executed because he killed another in a duel. I always kept thinking there had to be a different way. Here Miles did find another way.

Can you imagine the image of the mutie lord watching while his big strong armsman executed an old woman? Compare it to the image of Aral forcing himself to go and watch that boy's execution and what resulted from it.

I think Miles' solution was more effective, leading by example into where the future should go instead of being just another example of a barbaric past.

Stefan wrote: "At the time I was having an amiable debate with (publisher) Jim Baen whether the series should be called "Miles Naismith Adventures" or "Miles Vorkosigan Adventures"; "Mountains" was in some degree the last word in this argument."

I've always preferred when he's Mile Vorkosigan over when he's playing Miles Naismith.

The events in this story are so significant for Miles in helping form a strong value system. I guess my mother's family having come from the hills of Appalachia I can understand the people, the pride, determination. They have so little because they are the ones who gave, and still give, so much. This is where Miles finally becomes aware of the true loyalties of a leader and a Lord.

There are three portions of the story that over the years still stand out so strongly in my mind. No spoilers, so I won't share them here.

I finished it about 2 weeks ago. Not one of my favorites but an interesting read.

One thing about PKD that always stands out in my mind are his unique but very relevant titles.

Kathi wrote: "I don't think I've read anything by him and I haven't been too enticed by all the "super weird" comments about his writing. I don't mind strange, unique, and unusual, but (from the comments I've r..."

I don't know if I would call it "super weird", just that there are parts where you start to question what is reality and what isn't.

Personally I love it when that happens. :)

I finished this one a couple weeks ago. It does have some weird elements, but those are part of what I liked about the book. :)

I just started Pandora's Star yesterday. My husband has been trying to get me to read some of his work for years now so I finally gave in. Given its size, I'll probably be working on it for a while. :)

I've also been trying to start Simulacron 3. Been wanting to read it for years but I might hold off a little longer until after I reread The Vor Game.

Chris wrote: "Man....I finished Hero of Ages last night..I'm still reeling a bit...."

That was quite an ending. I was reeling a bit myself.

Don't know if it counts, but I've recently been raiding Project Gutenberg for old books on mythology. :)
The Twilight of the Gods and Other Tales
The Myths of the Norsemen
Legends Of The Middle Ages - Narrated With Special Reference To Literature And Art

Janny wrote: "One of the fun bits to this character is we get to see that inventive exuberance and the brash innovation mature with experience. He keeps is basic traits but they evolve with each book. A credit to Bujold - as so many series just "stick" the character in time - they never change attitude or get shifted by their experience."

I think this is why I like Bujold's work so much. She knows how to treat characters so they feel like real people.

This time around we got to see a young and inexperienced Miles. It is fun watching him mature but at the same time retain that certain insane spark. :)

Many of the books in the list sound interesting to me. I plan on reading a few of them even if they aren't picked.

That said, I have to plug the book I nominated even though I realize its likely not going to win. :) The Dark Beyond the Stars is so hard to describe well without spoiling the plot or any surprises. The story is good, a look at social structures, a bit of a mystery, and....well more. :) It also has several points that really make you think.

I found a small description that might help a little.

"Imagine that you wake up in a hospital bed. All you can remember is the last mission, the one that put you into that bed. You don't know who you are, or what else has happened before that last planetary landing. You don't remember the people around you -- either their names or what they mean to you. And you need to discover what mission the ship is on.

The facts are easy to determine. Your name is Sparrow. You are a seventeen-year-old tech assistant. People are named after birds, or characters in the Bible, or from plays. The ship is the Astron, an interstellar ship, and it is on a mission to discover life in the universe. It has been going for two thousand years. Now the crew is faced with a decision, should it cross a huge expanse of space known as the Dark? It is a rift of empty space that will take a hundred generations to cross. The Captain is the same Captain that started the voyage, 2000 years before, because he had received a longevity treatment which has kept him young.

Yet somehow the facts aren't quite what they seem."

Plus, I do have to admit, I prefer tossing in books which seem less read and less well known.

Kerry wrote: "Finished The Stars Blue Yonder and back to reading Diamond Star. I took a break while not feeling 100% as Asaro's books tend to put me through the emotional wringer. G..."

Diamond Star was a good one. I'm always so doubtful every time I'm about to start one of her books. Once I start though I don't stop until the book is done. :)

There's also the idea of identity. So many of the characters are trying to redefine where the fit in the grand scheme of things.

There's Miles trying to figure out who he is if he isn't a military officer.

Elena is trying to discover and redefine herself from a Barrayarian maiden to something more, ending up a soldier as she wanted to be.

Jesek slowly worked his way from deserter and coward to something he could be proud of again.

Artie Mayhew floundering as a pilot without a ship.


It is ironic how in some ways things are more more difficult for Miles because of the social advances they had made.
I've always wondered, how much did Miles' physical problems molded him into the type of person he turned out to be. Would he still have the same will and drive to find solutions to impossible situations if he hadn't had to fight setbacks from birth? I've no answers myself but it is an interesting thought.

Not a theme, but think about the idea of judging someone by the company he keeps. Through this book and the rest of the series, its really interesting to take a good look at the people Miles chooses to keep around himself.

The good part about a lot of interesting nominations is that even if they don't win, they're still fodder for my TBR list. :)

One thing that has really drawn me here is the tendency for this group to have a more unique reading list than the other groups out there. I've been introduced to more than a few new authors and books.

Sisimka wrote: "In the edition I have, Cordelia's Honor, Bujold talks about how she intended Shards of Honor to be a longer story, but essentially truncated it, then used her leftover notes to write Barryar at a l..."

Whatever Bujold's intention or desire, the content in Barrayar was not published until after Warrior's Apprentice. I was just commenting that approaching the book without the knowledge of the other gives one a different point of view of the story. You discover things along with the characters instead of knowing it all before hand.