[bksvol-discuss] Next Meeting of the Science Fiction Club, Thursday, June 11, 2009
- From: "EVAN REESE" <mentat3@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>, <bookshare-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>, <scifi@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 16 May 2009 11:58:00 -0400
The next meeting of the Science Fiction Club will be on Thursday, June 11, at 9
PM Eastern time, 6 PM Pacific.
This month, we're going to read Red Lightning by John Varley, available from
NLs on tape, at RC 62386, and available for those who can use the digital
download service at:
http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.nls/db.62386
It is the sequel to Red Thunder, but you don't need to have read that one to
follow this one.
Here's the review from Publishers Weekly on Amazon's page for Red Lightning:
Ray Garcia-Strickland is just another Martian teenager. Sure, his parents are
two
of the ultra-famous original Mars colonists (as detailed in Varley's rollicking
Red Thunder), but who cares when he's got school, girls and airboard tricks to
think about?
Then an object traveling at the speed of light slams into Earth, causing a
massive
tsunami that swamps Atlantic islands and coasts, including Ray's grandmother's
Florida
home. When the Garcia-Stricklands return from wading through the horrifying
aftermath
in search of survivors, they find that Ray's eccentric uncle, Jubal, has
developed
a gizmo that stops time and used it to mail himself to Mars. Drawing unabashedly
on current events from 9/11 to Hurricane Katrina, the author mixes space
opera-esque
adventure and merriment with uncensored images of disaster areas and teenage
sex.
At his Heinlein-channeling best, Varley preaches the gospel of individual
responsibility
with all the fervor of a space-age libertarian revival preacher.
If anyone can pull this kind of thing off, it's Varley. Hope lots of you will
enjoy the book and be able to come.
Evan
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