Bellwether in The Alternative Worlds

Aug 30, 2013 Danielle The Book Huntress rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: nerd-love, library-checkout, nerd-prof-scientist-genius-geek, yearly-reading-challenge-2013, 1st-person-pov, metafiction, audiobook, humor, 2013-200s-club-challenge, laughed-myself-silly-while-reading

A huge thanks to Nenia for recommending this when I asked for a Nerd Romance. This was exactly what I wanted and more. I can't even begin to classify this into a genre. It's so distinctive. First of all, it's hilarious! I felt like Connie Willis nailed what it's like to work in Corporate America. I could have changed the name of HiTek to the places I worked and it would have been exactly the same. The complete waste of time exercises they come up with in the hopes that it will increase productiv A huge thanks to Nenia for recommending this when I asked for a Nerd Romance. This was exactly what I wanted and more. I can't even begin to classify this into a genre. It's so distinctive. First of all, it's hilarious! I felt like Connie Willis nailed what it's like to work in Corporate America. I could have changed the name of HiTek to the places I worked and it would have been exactly the same. The complete waste of time exercises they come up with in the hopes that it will increase productivity (when it actually interferes with it), the jive turkey meetings, and horrible acronyms, and the fact that said environment is so fertile for folks like Flip, Desiderata, and even Dr. Bullock. I loved the wry and deadpan humor. I mainly listened to this while I was doing my Wii Fit exercises, and this is one where you can't be quiet while you read. It made the exercise time fly by!

Sandra is a very accessible heroine. While she does have a snarky way of looking at the world, and the narrator has her sounding a bit superior at times, her inner voice is very realistic. You don't always see people in the most charitable ways internally, even when you make an effort to treat others well. Sandra's field of study is fascinating. She's a sociologist/statistician who investigates fads. I loved the facts about various fads throughout the many years of human history. While I feel that she is really a hater of Barbies and I like Barbies, I can't argue with her on most of what she says. I loved how Sandra processed Flip, who is a complete slave to fads and seems about the most useless person on earth. Flip is that person you know who just seems to make your life a living 'you know what', but then you realize that they do have a purpose in your life, and they help you to grow as a person. With that in mind, her sometimes superior way of looking at Flip and folks like her is put into complete perspective. I also loved how Sandra is a big reader and she processes life events in light of what she's read. This book is definitely for bibliophiles.

Can I tell you I adored Bennet? Oh my, he made my Nerd Love meter go off big time. I wanted to hug him with his horribly fashion-challenged self and his adorable Coke Bottle glasses. Man I wish I could find a Bennet of my own. :)

The sheep storyline had me dying of laughter. Yeah, sheep aren't the brightest animals, and you really understand why they need shepherds. I had no idea about the bellwether and it just draws the story together so well when we learn about it.

I tell you, this is a really clever and just wonderful book. It takes a lot of writing talent to take such dissimilar ideas as sheep, fads, Chaos theory and hair bobbing and actually craft a meaningful story around it. A nice sized read. It helped me enormously with my book reading slump because it was just so clever and vivid and kept me interested. I never thought I'd enjoy a book about something so non-specific as research into fads. I surely did. I definitely recommend this to readers who want something different. And for sure to those looking for Nerd Love and satire about the corporate work environment. It hits high on every point, so five stars! ...more

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Apr 04, 2013 Nicky rated it liked it

Shelves: humour, romance, speculative-fiction

I'm not sure this really belongs under speculative fiction, but I found it in the SF/F section in Waterstones, so it'll do. Nor is it exactly humour -- it's humorous, but I don't think that's the main feature of the book. It's also not a romance, even though there is romance in it. In fact, I'm not entirely sure what it is, altogether.

I did enjoy it, all the way through, which is a step up for me when it comes to Connie Willis. (I found The Domesday Book painful when it comes to pacing, but good ...more

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May 25, 2012 Ryandake rated it really liked it

a fun read that is not popcorn.

it's not popcorn because Willis does an interesting thing: she tells you a lot about chaos theory and statistical analyses while keeping you very, very amused about Cerenkov blue, and Barbies, and sheep.

this novel should be a foundation work for writers studying how to incorporate science into their fiction without being boring about it.

so! the plot. our heroine is a researcher named Sandy. she is studying fads--how they begin, bow they spread, in an effort to un ...more

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Sep 13, 2015 Brooke rated it liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, 2015

This definitely felt like a Connie Willis novel. However, it didn't have much of a plot. I liked it MUCH more once I finished it and saw how everything tied together, but getting there would have been a chore if it hadn't been such a short book. It was repetitive, the protagonist had a single-track mind about her research topic, and at times I wasn't sure if I was reading a novel or non-fiction.

It actually reminded me a lot of Willis' Passage, except missing whatever bit of heart that propelled ...more

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Dec 21, 2008 Lee marked it as to-read

Shelves: speculative-fiction

I think I've read this one but I can't remember! ...more

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Oct 14, 2013 Regina rated it it was amazing

Shelves: narration-is-great, listened-to-audio-only, audio-also-listened-to, world-without-end-women-genre-chall

Loved it. Review to come.

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Apr 01, 2012 Michelle rated it really liked it

Shelves: dtb-own, sci-fi, grand_masters

this book is delightfully clever, in the same way that a 50s romantic comedy (e.g., 'bringing up baby') is, with sweet witty banter and interesting musings on the way the world is put together. it's a little madcap, certainly funny, but not over the top or silly. is it sci-fi? well, there's no robots or outer space, but it is fiction about scientists doing research, so sure, why not? ...more

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Apr 02, 2012 Suz rated it really liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, non-men-sff-authors, grand-masters, grand-masters-2012-challenge

I picked this book up as part of my Grand-Masters challenge. And while it's written by a good sci-fi/spec fic writer, I don't think it really qualifies. But for politeness sake, I'll keep it there.

It's a fun little book that actually teaches you things (science-y things!), and isn't tedious. It's a quirky little fun thing, and I highly recommend it. ...more

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Feb 04, 2009 Carolyn rated it liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, 2010-read

Notes:
Interesting snippets of information on different fads.
Nice weaving in of the fairy tale "Toads and Diamonds".
A bit slow and meandering, but wraps up well at the end.
...more

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