FACT SF Reading Group

February 2000

February 1: Signal to Noise by Eric S. Nylund

Seven people attended the discussion of Signal to Noise. This is a near future SF novel about a math professor, Jack Potter, who is an expert at cryptography. While analyzing patterns in supposedly random astronomical signals, he discovers a coded message from an alien civilization. Jack and a couple of his colleagues try to establish communication with the aliens while avoiding spies from various governments who are trying to steal their research.

This novel had several interesting elements. This book's approach to communication with aliens is novel. The scenes of scientists conducting research seem well thought out. The scientists use a lot of Virtual Reality in their research, allowing Nylund to explore some fascinating and exotic imagery reminiscent of Zelazny in The Dream Master and the Amber books. Merging a standard hard SF theme with an espionage plot works surprisingly well.

Unfortunately we had problems with the writing. We felt no emotional connection with the characters. They each had a name, a gender, and a profession, but none had any personality. Some of this was intentional for the spy story angle of "who can you trust?" Unfortunately the main character wasn't likable or interesting enough to carry the book for us, and he did not seem nearly as smart as he was supposed to be. We also found the book had pacing problems. The story never seems to generate any intensity, even in a scene where the protagonist is stranded on the moon with only a few hours of oxygen!

Overall we could only give this book a moderate recommendation. The science and the aliens are interesting, but the characters and writing are nothing special. If this suits your taste, go for it.

I should mention something unusual about this discussion. Eric Nylund discovered on our group's web page that we were discussing Signal to Noise, and he offered to answer our questions about it. We conducted a mini-interview with him by e-mail, and I posted it at the following URL:

http://www.fact.org/reading/interviews/nylundqa.html

February 15: The Golden Globe by John Varley

This discussion attracted nine participants. The Golden Globe is a science fiction story set a few hundred years in our future, in the same "Eight Worlds" universe used for Varley's earlier novels The Ophiuchi Hotline and Steel Beach. The story follows the life of Kenneth "Sparky" Valentine, an actor who was a famous TV star as a child. Due to tragic event that occurred in his early adulthood, Sparky is on the run from the law. He can't resist the lure of the stage, so he wanders throughout the Solar System appearing in plays (mostly Shakespearean) under aliases. The book jumps back and forth in time, showing us the adventures of the older Sparky and flashing back to his childhood and how he ended up in his current situation.

Most of us enjoyed this book a lot. We found Sparky to be a charming narrator, with a distinctive narrative voice that kept us turning the pages. We were amused by his friend Elwood P. Dowd, a person only Sparky can see who looks just like James Stewart. The adult Sparky's adventures were always exciting, and his multifunctional luggage seemed suitable for James Bond. His faithful dog Toby was a delightful companion. The stage productions depicted in the book were fun, particularly "The Five Minute Bard." The passion of the actor for his craft was particularly apparent in his moving portrayal of King Lear. The depiction of young Kenneth's rise to stardom was fascinating yet a bit disturbing. And though Varley is not usually regarded as a "hard SF" writer, we found his use of technology in the story to be realistic.

We did find some problems with the book. Some felt the pace dragged a bit near the beginning of the book. A few people found Sparky's narration to be too smug. One person who is a big Shakespeare fan was disappointed that despite all the emotional evolution Sparky depicted onstage as Hamlet, Lear, and other classic characters, Sparky himself did not grow as a.person.

Overall we had a lot of fun with this novel. We liked the story and appreciated Varley's skill in making it accessible to those who hadn't read any "Eight Worlds" stories before. His universe was so interesting that most of us plan to seek out the rest of his work.

-- A. T. Campbell, III