[bksvol-discuss] Next Meeting of the Science Fiction Club, Thursday, May 12, 2011

From: "Evan Reese" <mentat1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <bookshare-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>, <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>, <scifi@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2011 20:42:32 -0400

Hello Folks,

We had another good turnout at last night's meeting, breaking double digit 
attendance once again. The vast majority liked our time travel story 
collection, with only a couple of us not caring for it much.

Our next meeting will be on Thursday, May 12, 2011.

Time: 9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central, 7 PM Mountain, 6 PM Pacific, and 01:00 UTC.

Place: Book Nook at

http://conference321.com/masteradmin/room.asp?id=rs7867a2369e0e

The book we're reading this month is Starfarers by Poul Anderson.

This one's available from Bookshare at

http://www.bookshare.org/browse/book/5988

(Listed as only in Good condition, however.)

It is also available as a digital download from the BARD site at

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.nls/db.49154

Here's the NLS Synopsis:

Astronomers have discovered the possibility of advanced civilizations in the 
far reaches of the galaxy. A group of ten scientists boards the starship Envoy 
for a journey that will take thousands of years to complete. Although they 
eventually encounter another civilization, they are unprepared for the 
ramifications of the adventure.

Here's a longer description from Booklist, taken from Amazon's page for this 
book:

An observatory on the far side of the moon detects strange energy emissions 
from deep space, which leads to the discovery of space-faring aliens and a 
drive engine that will power human ships at near light speed. A ship is 
constructed, and a crew of 10 is chosen to make the trip to try to contact the 
aliens, even though the ship won't be able to return to Earth for thousands of 
years. As the explorers reach out to the far side of the galaxy, interacting 
with three radically different alien races, Earth undergoes a series of radical 
changes. When and if the crew returns, it is
a gamble that they will come back to a recognizable home planet. Master 
storyteller Anderson uses this backdrop to explore how individuals, cultures, 
and civilizations react to paradigm shifts and the resulting cycles of 
expansion and equilibrium. He posits that humanity's desire to explore could 
ultimately be destructive, but it is integral to our nature. Recommended.

SF Grandmaster Poul Anderson was praised for many things in his long and 
versatile career, including his ability to evoke a sense of wonder and the long 
view as few other SF authors have. Hope to see another great turnout and a 
lively discussion of this one next month.

Evan

[bksvol-discuss] Next Meeting of the Science Fiction Club, Thursday, May 12, 2011

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