Post by Deleted on Jul 30, 2017 10:51:43 GMT
I'm a huge fan of the Cultureverse. I agree that Consider Phlebas is a great book - I didn't know people don't generally like it. It does have a couple of weird asides (the Eaters bit, for example), but also lots of awesomeness.
Player of Games is a fantastic book, I hope you post your thoughts on it when you're done.
Use of Weapons was the first Banks book I read, and still one of my favourites. Yeah, the structure can be very confusing. Bu there is a reason for it, and I think it works well. Worth noting that whilst one strand of the book moves forward and the other backward, the two are not intertwined - that is, all the roman numeral chapters are set before the first of the numbered ones. So what's happening is that the book is showing you a current adventure of the hero, whilst gradually filling in his back story as it goes. And it turns out to be kind of important that it be done that way, considering.
It's helpful if you realise that the book is not really about the hero's current mission as such, but rather about him, the character. The current mission is important for what it tells you about him as a person, and the backstory is just as important in that respect.
As Banks once put it, "I believe every story should have a beginning, a middle, and an end. But not necessarily in that order..."
I really would give it a go if I were you. It's one of the very best Culture books.
Player of Games is a fantastic book, I hope you post your thoughts on it when you're done.
Use of Weapons was the first Banks book I read, and still one of my favourites. Yeah, the structure can be very confusing. Bu there is a reason for it, and I think it works well. Worth noting that whilst one strand of the book moves forward and the other backward, the two are not intertwined - that is, all the roman numeral chapters are set before the first of the numbered ones. So what's happening is that the book is showing you a current adventure of the hero, whilst gradually filling in his back story as it goes. And it turns out to be kind of important that it be done that way, considering.
It's helpful if you realise that the book is not really about the hero's current mission as such, but rather about him, the character. The current mission is important for what it tells you about him as a person, and the backstory is just as important in that respect.
As Banks once put it, "I believe every story should have a beginning, a middle, and an end. But not necessarily in that order..."
I really would give it a go if I were you. It's one of the very best Culture books.
