S. in Ship of Theseus (S. by Dorst & Abrams)

Nov 02, 2013 Sandy rated it it was amazing

Wow...this book is unique... I'm only at the beginning but it's so interactive and fun!

On chapter three...am enjoying the main novel (reminds me a bit of Jack London with a twist) but also the sub-stories between the graduate student (Eric) and the senior (Jen)... :o)

On chapter five...the cave scenes are interesting and things are heating up with the drama about the author... I can't keep up with all the clues/information (maybe because I'm reading it in the middle of the night when I can't slee ...more

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Nov 05, 2013 Clarissa Emiria marked it as abandoned

Shelves: owned

I am shelving this for now, I haven't opened it since I reeled back from the mental image of those last paragraphs of the first chapter xD

I am hoping to be stronger soon enough but at the moment I have so many other books vying for my attention that I will lay it aside for a bit :-) ...more

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Aug 16, 2015 Michael Kuehn rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery, postmodern, experimental

S. is not just a novel. It's a total immersive experience, a puzzle, a bundle of ciphers, a maze, an entire universe of interconnected events and facts. Actually, it's very much a LOST-type experience in book form. After reading a few similarly immersive books in the recent past, I judged that I was ready to tackle another. I enjoy them. I enjoy the unique experience not available in a conventional novel. Well, nothing could have prepared me for this J.J. Abrams creation (with the help of writer ...more

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Oct 29, 2013 David rated it it was amazing

Shelves: cryptography, fiction

I finally finished reading "S." (aka "Ship of Theseus"), though I'm hardly finished with it at all. As you may know, many of the hidden ciphers within have yet to be solved or (likely) even discovered.

The book is fairly intimidating when you first begin. But context switching between the present-day margin notes, the investigation into authors' histories, and the fictional story itself grows easier as the three layers become increasingly interdependent. I thought the book was just going to be so I finally finished reading "S." (aka "Ship of Theseus"), though I'm hardly finished with it at all. As you may know, many of the hidden ciphers within have yet to be solved or (likely) even discovered.

The book is fairly intimidating when you first begin. But context switching between the present-day margin notes, the investigation into authors' histories, and the fictional story itself grows easier as the three layers become increasingly interdependent. I thought the book was just going to be some clever gimmick with stained pages, signs of wear, and everything but old book smell (how did Amazon sell this for only $17?!?). But it's packed with content and novelty, and delivers an experience like no other work of fiction. It's hard to have a casual relationship with the Ship of Theseus. She makes demands up front, takes nearly as much energy as she gives, and will become jealous of the shallow attention you give to other books during your time reading her.

The sfiles22 blog is a nice place to get up to speed on the mysteries that remain. Resources include:
- Some of the ciphers with solutions: http://sfiles22.blogspot.com/2013/11/...
- The footnotes transcribed (making it easy to feed into Python scripts, etc.): http://sfiles22.blogspot.co.uk/2013/1...

My approach to reading "S." was to take out all of the 20+ feelies (http://sfiles22.blogspot.com/2013/01/... ), noting their page numbers, and storing them in a ziplock. Then I read two pages of the story at a time, immediately followed by the associated margin notes. I examined the inserts when reaching their page position. I took careful notes, and I'm glad I did, since I'm joining forces with some formidable puzzle solving minds to attack whatever ciphers remain hidden/unsolved. I'm pretty sure there's something in there at least as cool as the hidden URL in the hardback edition of "Ready Player One"; that secret remained hidden for nearly a year, kicking off an elaborate competition very much like the one in the book's plot itself.

Buy "S." now. Don't buy it used (it will be missing inserts). Don't get a kindle version if they ever offer one. Just stop reading these reviews, go on Amazon, and order the book. Oh, and start following https://twitter.com/RadioStraka
...more

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Dec 26, 2013 Richard Magahiz rated it it was ok

Shelves: read-in-2016

This book was a long hard slog for me once I'd lost interest in the printed story itself and the confusing byplay in the margins. That's why it took me two years to read. I got the impression that these were just stories someone was making up as they went along, with repeating images and motifs that really don't mean anything deep but were thrown in to give the impression of a structure. It tries to be a few things at once, an art object with the unusual inserts dropped in, a puzzle story, a pas ...more

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Nov 25, 2013 Liana rated it really liked it

Shelves: books-i-own, 2014, fiction

Where to start...

First of all, I love how much this book is simply a tribute to the written word, for physical, bound books, and the ways in which we experience books. In this way, this was a beautiful work of art.

Second, it was a great read. Keeping track of the novel itself and the scattered timeline that was Eric & Jen's story was more than tedious -- even frustrating at times -- but it adds to the mystery, as well. There's so much that I missed during my first read through (as they did, as w ...more

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Nov 02, 2013 Steve LaFountain rated it liked it

First off, let me say that this book is very well done. I do love JJ Abrams and all that he does, and this book's presentation and thought needed to understand is amazing. With that said, this book has way too many directions to focus on while you read. Since it doesn't follow the traditional one direction chorological order of most stories, the holes that begin to develop can become difficult to keep track of as you read. The story of S is very much drawn out and in the end you get lost in all ...more

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