Task #12 Sci-FI

[Judith]

Just finishing up Madd Addam, third book of the Oryx and Crake trilogy by Margaret Atwood for Challenge #12 Sci-Fi.

[Jessica]

What was your opinion of it??

[Judith]

I really liked this trilogy. I only have about 15 more pages to read, I'm feeling like I will miss these characters when I'm done.

[Judith]

Finished Madd Addam on my lunch break today. I have The Martian on my to read list but don't own it yet. Not that good?

[Cheri]

I enjoy Atwood, I'm glad to see that you enjoyed her work, Judith. Thanks for this, as I was wondering about scifi read! Heading to indie book store this weekend. Thanks

[Judith]

I think this trilogy fits the SciFi category. The category doesn't say SciFi or Fantasy, there's a difference there otherwise I'd suggest Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman but that is more fantasy than SciFi.

[Cheri]

Judith wrote: "I think this trilogy fits the SciFi category. The category doesn't say SciFi or Fantasy, there's a difference there otherwise I'd suggest Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman but that is more fantasy than SciFi."

Yes, Fantasy is transforming into YA in many aspects, so I'd prefer SciFi exclusively. My daughter just finished Nevermore & loved it, so that will be a great alternative.

[Judith]

Not certain if fantasy is becoming more YA or if it's just some authors seeing a big audience there. Must admit, I do like a good YA book. Sometimes they are better than the adult books. My thought being, if the book is bad it will not keep the interest of a young person so a really good YA book usually has a good plot.

[Robin P]

Judith wrote: "Finished Madd Addam on my lunch break today. I have The Martian on my to read list but don't own it yet. Not that good?"

Many of us loved The Martian especially the audio. I think the narration added a lot.

[Judith]

I have a friend who listens to audio books all the time, unfortunately I don't have an MP3 or other audio device at the moment so the audio challange will most likely not be fulfilled unless I can come up with something I want to read on CD.

[Risa]

I am strongly recommending (no, actually, "Maniacally Touting" would be more accurate) "Station Eleven" by Emily St. John Mandel -- a 2014 National Book Award finalist. It is a genre-defying, beautiful, brilliant work. Hard-core SciFi fans might not shelve it here, and even the author says it is "literary fiction, not science fiction" (see: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/s...) but I think it counts, given the post-apocalyptic setting. And if the Washington Post book columnist counted it as Sci Fi, that is good enough for me. :-)

[Shatterlings]

I have just started Station Eleven, hoping it would count as scifi ;)

[Risa]

Ultra wrote: "I have just started Station Eleven, hoping it would count as scifi ;)" Well, there it is. One person's SciFi is another's Post-Apocalyptic Literary Fiction, but ... let's just declare victory and move Onward. ;-) It is, in any event, a great reading experience. The year is young, of course, but I think Station Eleven is going to end up being one of my Favorites of '15, and of this Challenge.

[Judith]

Madd Addam is post-apocalyptic fiction too, but since it had genetic engineering in it, well that counted as science enough for me to count it as SciFi. I think the idea of the challenge isn't to split hairs about what exactly fits each category. The idea is to read widely in genres we wouldn't normally choose for ourselves. Be flexible, I hope no one here will challenge anyone for their choices and if they do I wouldn't let it bother me.

[Risa]

Judith wrote: "Madd Addam is post-apocalyptic fiction too, but since it had genetic engineering in it, well that counted as science enough for me to count it as SciFi. I think the idea of the challenge isn't to s..." Great point! I actually considered the trilogy for this category, but I am probably going to use it for the "Author over 65" category. Did you enjoy it?

[Judith]

I did enjoy it.

[Shatterlings]

Ultra wrote: "I have just started Station Eleven, hoping it would count as scifi ;)" Well, there it is. One person's SciFi is another's Post-Apocalyptic Literary Fiction, but ... let's just declare victory and move Onward. ;-) It is, in any event, a great reading experience. The year is young, of course, but I think Station Eleven is going to end up being one of my Favorites of '15, and of this Challenge.

Having read Station Eleven, I don't think it's scifi and I didn't like it as much as I thought I would :/ I will be finding some hard scifi with spaceships at some point :)

[Sophia]

I also read The Martian for this challenge task. I actually really enjoyed it. My eyes did glaze over a couple of times when he got deep into the science aspects, but it was suspenseful, thrilling, and emotionally engaging. Made me laugh out loud at times, too.

[Emma]

I just finished When We Wake. It focused on the cyrogenics and the ethics surrounding it in an overpopulated world lacking in resources.

[Richard]

I just read maddadam. this was an easy challenge fur me since I read science fiction occasionally anyway