{ "export": { "source": "https://urth.darkrealm.vip/thread/urth/6065", "note": "Exported from an unofficial mirror of a public mailing list. Copyright in each message remains with the person who wrote it. Email addresses are obscured as `user at host`, the form the original archive published. This file was rebuilt from parsed fields rather than retained headers, so it is faithful in content but not byte-exact.", "addresses": "obscured as 'user at host'" }, "archive": "urth", "thread": { "id": 6065, "subject": "What should I read?", "messages": 13, "voices": 12, "first": "2011-10-12T20:47:41+00:00", "last": "2011-10-14T01:15:02+00:00" }, "messages": [ { "message_id": "<1255709933.342111.1318452461499.JavaMail.root@sz0096a.emeryville.ca.mail.comcast.net>", "from": { "name": "johnwwoolley at comcast.net", "address": "johnwwoolley at comcast.net" }, "date": "2011-10-12T20:47:41+00:00", "subject": "(urth) What should I read?", "in_reply_to": null, "reply_link": null, "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "Plunging into the middle of the conversation ... \n\nAges ago, I read \"The Book of the New Sun\", and loved it to the point that I was handing out copies of the first volume to anyone I could get to agree to try it. Wonderful, spectacular book. Then I read \"The Urth of the New Sun\" and was much less impressed; ditto with \"The Devil in a Forest\". Then \"Soldier of the Mist\", a pretty fine piece of writing and a really ambitious and strange (and rather challenging) project. The other day I started \"The Book of the Long Sun\", and once again, Wolfe is just blowing me away with his prose and story-telling and characters (Patera Silk, Chenille, Auk, even the bird!); I've nearly reached the end of the second volume, and am completely loving it. \n\nSo ... what else of Wolfe's should I make sure to read? I think I'd better go back and reread \"New Sun\", and the \"Short Sun\" volumes seem to be a continuation of \"Long Sun\". (Right?) But what besides or after those? \n\n-- John Woolley " } ] }, { "message_id": "<530wytfib9exv8qp7axeed67.1318453175309@email.android.com>", "from": { "name": "Jay", "address": "miltonwjackson at gmail.com" }, "date": "2011-10-12T20:59:35+00:00", "subject": "(urth) What should I read?", "in_reply_to": "<1255709933.342111.1318452461499.JavaMail.root@sz0096a.emeryville.ca.mail.comcast.net>", "reply_link": "subject", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "I'd try tackling his short stories next myself. The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories and Other Stories is a great introductionto them." }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "johnwwoolley at comcast.net wrote:\nPlunging into the middle of the conversation ... \n\nAges ago, I read \"The Book of the New Sun\", and loved it to the point that I was handing out copies of the first volume to anyone I could get to agree to try it. Wonderful, spectacular book. Then I read \"The Urth of the New Sun\" and was much less impressed; ditto with \"The Devil in a Forest\". Then \"Soldier of the Mist\", a pretty fine piece of writing and a really ambitious and strange (and rather challenging) project. The other day I started \"The Book of the Long Sun\", and once again, Wolfe is just blowing me away with his prose and story-telling and characters (Patera Silk, Chenille, Auk, even the bird!); I've nearly reached the end of the second volume, and am completely loving it. \n\nSo ... what else of Wolfe's should I make sure to read? I think I'd better go back and reread \"New Sun\", and the \"Short Sun\" volumes seem to be a continuation of \"Long Sun\". (Right?) But what besides or after those? \n\n-- John Woolley \n\n_______________________________________________" } ] }, { "message_id": "<2093694411-1318453330-cardhu_decombobulator_blackberry.rim.net-326851993-@b12.c5.bise6.blackberry>", "from": { "name": "hammstu at sbcglobal.net", "address": "hammstu at sbcglobal.net" }, "date": "2011-10-12T21:02:09+00:00", "subject": "(urth) What should I read?", "in_reply_to": "<530wytfib9exv8qp7axeed67.1318453175309@email.android.com>", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "Strange Travelers is a great selection of his short stories...and the 1st and last stories are great GW bookends\nSent from my BlackBerry? smartphone with SprintSpeed\n\n-----Original Message-----\nFrom: Jay \nSender: urth-bounces at lists.urth.net\nDate: Wed, 12 Oct 2011 16:59:35 \nTo: The Urth Mailing List\nReply-To: The Urth Mailing List \nSubject: Re: (urth) What should I read?\n\nI'd try tackling his short stories next myself. The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories and Other Stories is a great introductionto them." }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "johnwwoolley at comcast.net wrote:\nPlunging into the middle of the conversation ... \n\nAges ago, I read \"The Book of the New Sun\", and loved it to the point that I was handing out copies of the first volume to anyone I could get to agree to try it. Wonderful, spectacular book. Then I read \"The Urth of the New Sun\" and was much less impressed; ditto with \"The Devil in a Forest\". Then \"Soldier of the Mist\", a pretty fine piece of writing and a really ambitious and strange (and rather challenging) project. The other day I started \"The Book of the Long Sun\", and once again, Wolfe is just blowing me away with his prose and story-telling and characters (Patera Silk, Chenille, Auk, even the bird!); I've nearly reached the end of the second volume, and am completely loving it. \n\nSo ... what else of Wolfe's should I make sure to read? I think I'd better go back and reread \"New Sun\", and the \"Short Sun\" volumes seem to be a continuation of \"Long Sun\". (Right?) But what besides or after those? \n\n-- John Woolley \n\n_______________________________________________\nUrth Mailing List\nTo post, write urth at urth.net\nSubscription/information: http://www.urth.net" } ] }, { "message_id": "<387A583C-FAEF-49B0-AE51-13CFAD3440F8@gmail.com>", "from": { "name": "Lane Haygood", "address": "lhaygood at gmail.com" }, "date": "2011-10-12T21:04:16+00:00", "subject": "(urth) What should I read?", "in_reply_to": "<530wytfib9exv8qp7axeed67.1318453175309@email.android.com>", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "New Sun, Long Sun, Short Sun = Solar Cycle. \n\nI personally found \"The Wizard Knight\" to be below Wolfe's usual quality. Or maybe I just really hated Abel as a protagonist. Either way I don't think they'd make essential Wolfe for me. \n\nI haven't read Pirate Freedom or Home Fires, but An Evil Guest was great. \n\nThere Are Doors and the seminal Fifth Head of Cerberus remain two of my favorite non-Solar Wolfe books. \n\nSent from my iPhone" }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "On Oct 12, 2011, at 3:59 PM, Jay wrote:\nI'd try tackling his short stories next myself. The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories and Other Stories is a great introductionto them.\n\njohnwwoolley at comcast.net wrote:" }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 2, "text": "Plunging into the middle of the conversation ... \n\nAges ago, I read \"The Book of the New Sun\", and loved it to the point that I was handing out copies of the first volume to anyone I could get to agree to try it. Wonderful, spectacular book. Then I read \"The Urth of the New Sun\" and was much less impressed; ditto with \"The Devil in a Forest\". Then \"Soldier of the Mist\", a pretty fine piece of writing and a really ambitious and strange (and rather challenging) project. The other day I started \"The Book of the Long Sun\", and once again, Wolfe is just blowing me away with his prose and story-telling and characters (Patera Silk, Chenille, Auk, even the bird!); I've nearly reached the end of the second volume, and am completely loving it. \n\nSo ... what else of Wolfe's should I make sure to read? I think I'd better go back and reread \"New Sun\", and the \"Short Sun\" volumes seem to be a continuation of \"Long Sun\". (Right?) But what besides or after those? \n\n-- John Woolley \n\n_______________________________________________" } ] }, { "message_id": "", "from": { "name": "Matthew Knapton", "address": "eruantien at gmail.com" }, "date": "2011-10-12T21:18:27+00:00", "subject": "(urth) What should I read?", "in_reply_to": "<387A583C-FAEF-49B0-AE51-13CFAD3440F8@gmail.com>", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "I'm a big fan of The Fifth Head of Cerberus, and also Peace. Peace is crazy.\nI'm not really sure if it's one of the best books I've ever read or one of\nthe most boring, but I recommend it to people just about every chance I get\nso I suppose I liked it." }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "On Wed, Oct 12, 2011 at 10:04 PM, Lane Haygood wrote:\nNew Sun, Long Sun, Short Sun = Solar Cycle.\n\nI personally found \"The Wizard Knight\" to be below Wolfe's usual quality.\nOr maybe I just really hated Abel as a protagonist. Either way I don't think\nthey'd make essential Wolfe for me.\n\nI haven't read Pirate Freedom or Home Fires, but An Evil Guest was great.\n\nThere Are Doors and the seminal Fifth Head of Cerberus remain two of my\nfavorite non-Solar Wolfe books.\n\nSent from my iPhone\n\nOn Oct 12, 2011, at 3:59 PM, Jay wrote:" }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 2, "text": "I'd try tackling his short stories next myself. The Island of Doctor\nDeath and Other Stories and Other Stories is a great introductionto them.\n\njohnwwoolley at comcast.net wrote:" }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 3, "text": "Plunging into the middle of the conversation ...\n\nAges ago, I read \"The Book of the New Sun\", and loved it to the point\nthat I was handing out copies of the first volume to anyone I could get to\nagree to try it. Wonderful, spectacular book. Then I read \"The Urth of the\nNew Sun\" and was much less impressed; ditto with \"The Devil in a Forest\"." }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "Then \"Soldier of the Mist\", a pretty fine piece of writing and a really\nambitious and strange (and rather challenging) project. The other day I\nstarted \"The Book of the Long Sun\", and once again, Wolfe is just blowing me\naway with his prose and story-telling and characters (Patera Silk, Chenille,\nAuk, even the bird!); I've nearly reached the end of the second volume, and\nam completely loving it." }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 3, "text": "So ... what else of Wolfe's should I make sure to read? I think I'd\nbetter go back and reread \"New Sun\", and the \"Short Sun\" volumes seem to be\na continuation of \"Long Sun\". (Right?) But what besides or after those?\n\n-- John Woolley\n\n_______________________________________________" } ] }, { "message_id": "<4E960D5C.9030807@verizon.net>", "from": { "name": "David Stockhoff", "address": "dstockhoff at verizon.net" }, "date": "2011-10-12T21:57:48+00:00", "subject": "(urth) What should I read?", "in_reply_to": "", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "Free Live Free blew my mind before TBotNS." }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "On 10/12/2011 5:18 PM, Matthew Knapton wrote:\nI'm a big fan of The Fifth Head of Cerberus, and also Peace. Peace is \ncrazy. I'm not really sure if it's one of the best books I've ever \nread or one of the most boring, but I recommend it to people just \nabout every chance I get so I suppose I liked it.\n\nOn Wed, Oct 12, 2011 at 10:04 PM, Lane Haygood > wrote:\n\n New Sun, Long Sun, Short Sun = Solar Cycle.\n\n I personally found \"The Wizard Knight\" to be below Wolfe's usual\n quality. Or maybe I just really hated Abel as a protagonist.\n Either way I don't think they'd make essential Wolfe for me.\n\n I haven't read Pirate Freedom or Home Fires, but An Evil Guest was\n great.\n\n There Are Doors and the seminal Fifth Head of Cerberus remain two\n of my favorite non-Solar Wolfe books.\n\n Sent from my iPhone\n\n On Oct 12, 2011, at 3:59 PM, Jay > wrote:\n\n > I'd try tackling his short stories next myself. The Island of\n Doctor Death and Other Stories and Other Stories is a great\n introductionto them.\n >\n > johnwwoolley at comcast.net wrote:\n >\n >> Plunging into the middle of the conversation ...\n >>\n >> Ages ago, I read \"The Book of the New Sun\", and loved it to the\n point that I was handing out copies of the first volume to anyone\n I could get to agree to try it. Wonderful, spectacular book. Then\n I read \"The Urth of the New Sun\" and was much less impressed;\n ditto with \"The Devil in a Forest\". Then \"Soldier of the Mist\", a\n pretty fine piece of writing and a really ambitious and strange\n (and rather challenging) project. The other day I started \"The\n Book of the Long Sun\", and once again, Wolfe is just blowing me\n away with his prose and story-telling and characters (Patera Silk,\n Chenille, Auk, even the bird!); I've nearly reached the end of the\n second volume, and am completely loving it.\n >>\n >> So ... what else of Wolfe's should I make sure to read? I think\n I'd better go back and reread \"New Sun\", and the \"Short Sun\"\n volumes seem to be a continuation of \"Long Sun\". (Right?) But what\n besides or after those?\n >>\n >> -- John Woolley\n >>\n >> _______________________________________________" } ] }, { "message_id": "", "from": { "name": "Antonin Scriabin", "address": "kierkegaurdian at gmail.com" }, "date": "2011-10-13T13:10:14+00:00", "subject": "(urth) What should I read?", "in_reply_to": "<4E960D5C.9030807@verizon.net>", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "I have enjoyed all of his books that I have read, but his stand-alone novels\nthat most impressed me (like Matthew) were *Peace* and *The Fifth Head of\nCerberus*. They are, in my opinion, at the level of the New Sun books;\nWolfe at his finest. For a brief, mysterious, and thoroughly entertaining\nread, *The Sorcerer's House* is also excellent. It is a bit less dense and\ncomplicated than those other two I have mentioned." }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "On Wed, Oct 12, 2011 at 5:57 PM, David Stockhoff wrote:\nFree Live Free blew my mind before TBotNS.\n\n\nOn 10/12/2011 5:18 PM, Matthew Knapton wrote:" }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 2, "text": "I'm a big fan of The Fifth Head of Cerberus, and also Peace. Peace is\ncrazy. I'm not really sure if it's one of the best books I've ever read or\none of the most boring, but I recommend it to people just about every chance\nI get so I suppose I liked it.\n\nOn Wed, Oct 12, 2011 at 10:04 PM, Lane Haygood > wrote:\n\n New Sun, Long Sun, Short Sun = Solar Cycle.\n\n I personally found \"The Wizard Knight\" to be below Wolfe's usual\n quality. Or maybe I just really hated Abel as a protagonist.\n Either way I don't think they'd make essential Wolfe for me.\n\n I haven't read Pirate Freedom or Home Fires, but An Evil Guest was\n great.\n\n There Are Doors and the seminal Fifth Head of Cerberus remain two\n of my favorite non-Solar Wolfe books.\n\n Sent from my iPhone\n\n On Oct 12, 2011, at 3:59 PM, Jay >> wrote:\n\n > I'd try tackling his short stories next myself. The Island of\n Doctor Death and Other Stories and Other Stories is a great\n introductionto them.\n >\n > johnwwoolley at comcast.net >\nwrote:\n >\n >> Plunging into the middle of the conversation ...\n >>\n >> Ages ago, I read \"The Book of the New Sun\", and loved it to the\n point that I was handing out copies of the first volume to anyone\n I could get to agree to try it. Wonderful, spectacular book. Then\n I read \"The Urth of the New Sun\" and was much less impressed;\n ditto with \"The Devil in a Forest\". Then \"Soldier of the Mist\", a\n pretty fine piece of writing and a really ambitious and strange\n (and rather challenging) project. The other day I started \"The\n Book of the Long Sun\", and once again, Wolfe is just blowing me\n away with his prose and story-telling and characters (Patera Silk,\n Chenille, Auk, even the bird!); I've nearly reached the end of the\n second volume, and am completely loving it.\n >>\n >> So ... what else of Wolfe's should I make sure to read? I think\n I'd better go back and reread \"New Sun\", and the \"Short Sun\"\n volumes seem to be a continuation of \"Long Sun\". (Right?) But what\n besides or after those?\n >>\n >> -- John Woolley\n >>\n >> ______________________________**_________________" } ] }, { "message_id": "", "from": { "name": "Gerry Quinn", "address": "gerry at bindweed.com" }, "date": "2011-10-13T13:22:29+00:00", "subject": "(urth) What should I read?", "in_reply_to": "", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "From: Antonin Scriabin " }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "I have enjoyed all of his books that I have read, but his stand-alone novels \nthat most impressed me (like Matthew) were Peace and The Fifth Head of \nCerberus. " }, { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "I also think those are his best. And of course he has written a lot of terrific short stories and novellas.\n- Gerry Quinn" } ] }, { "message_id": "<1318512579.50379.YahooMailClassic@web161802.mail.bf1.yahoo.com>", "from": { "name": "Marc Aramini", "address": "marcaramini at yahoo.com" }, "date": "2011-10-13T13:29:39+00:00", "subject": "(urth) Silk's origin", "in_reply_to": "", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "Just one more thing I wanted to note. I always start with \"themes\" in any explication - the repetitive inclusion of ghost stories in Peace, for example, made a compelling pattern of ghostliness that matched up with the more discrete hints of the narrator's death. similarly, in the sun series, from the very first two chapters of Shadow Severian thinks that light will engender life in a brush that will run up a tree, and then near the end of Citadel he thinks of the great green emerald forests that will flourish when the new sun comes.\n\nIn Short Sun, the first chapter talks about those hybrids in the vegetable world. In the last non-epilogue chapter of RTTW, Silk is touched by the story of Hyacinth(us), whose blood falls and in dying as a man springs up as a flower. THIS IS THE END OF THE MAIN STORY, it's important n several ways? One of these ways is the obvious one of Hyacinth and her death, recalling Silk to himself. He was headed to the wrong home, now he can head to his home in the stars. This lack of ability to distinguish the actual homeward odyssey can be applied to mankind in this case. We've always known the white fountain would lead to the Green Man future. The story of Hyacinthus is one in which even though the man dies his blood becomes a flower that lives? This s what has happened. " } ] }, { "message_id": "", "from": { "name": "Daniel Petersen", "address": "danielottojackpetersen at gmail.com" }, "date": "2011-10-13T14:43:49+00:00", "subject": "(urth) What should I read?", "in_reply_to": "", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "I'll chime in on recommending Wolfe's short story collections - I haven't\nrun into one I didn't pretty thoroughly enjoy, but Doctor Death is probably\nthe one that's as consistently rich as New Sun and feels like it prefigures\nit in many ways. I heartily agree with the recommendation of Cerberus and\nthink that's probably the best next stop. And I must put in a good word for\nThe Wizard-Knight duology against its detractors. It is in some respects\nrather frustrating or unnerving or annoying or some such thing (which of\nWolfe's books aren't?!), but I think it's truly masterful and up there with\nhis greatest stuff - after attempting New Sun and not being sure what I\nthought, it was Wizard-Knight (and then the collection Innocents Aboard)\nthat got me thorougly mesmerised and hooked and led me in to the entirety of\nthe Solar Cycle and everything else.\n\n-DOJP" }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "On Thu, Oct 13, 2011 at 2:22 PM, Gerry Quinn wrote:\n\n\n *From:* Antonin Scriabin \n\n > I have enjoyed all of his books that I have read, but his stand-alone\nnovels\n >\nthat most impressed me (like Matthew) were *Peace* and *The Fifth Head of\n*\n >\n*Cerberus*.\n\n I also think those are his best. And of course he has written a lot of\nterrific short stories and novellas.\n\n - Gerry Quinn\n\n\n_______________________________________________" } ] }, { "message_id": "", "from": { "name": "Antonin Scriabin", "address": "kierkegaurdian at gmail.com" }, "date": "2011-10-13T14:48:45+00:00", "subject": "(urth) What should I read?", "in_reply_to": "", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "I have only read the first half of the Wizard / Knight duology, but I very\nmuch enjoyed it. It was one of those books that got me sufficiently\ninterested (though not enthralled) during the first 200 pages or so, and\nthen rewarded patience with the last half. By the end of the book, I was\ncompletely roped into the story. I have a few other books to read, then I\nwill read *The Wizard*. I can understand why people might be turned off by\nWizard / Knight, but I for one thought the first book at least was great." }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "On Thu, Oct 13, 2011 at 10:43 AM, Daniel Petersen <\ndanielottojackpetersen at gmail.com> wrote:\nI'll chime in on recommending Wolfe's short story collections - I haven't\nrun into one I didn't pretty thoroughly enjoy, but Doctor Death is probably\nthe one that's as consistently rich as New Sun and feels like it prefigures\nit in many ways. I heartily agree with the recommendation of Cerberus and\nthink that's probably the best next stop. And I must put in a good word for\nThe Wizard-Knight duology against its detractors. It is in some respects\nrather frustrating or unnerving or annoying or some such thing (which of\nWolfe's books aren't?!), but I think it's truly masterful and up there with\nhis greatest stuff - after attempting New Sun and not being sure what I\nthought, it was Wizard-Knight (and then the collection Innocents Aboard)\nthat got me thorougly mesmerised and hooked and led me in to the entirety of\nthe Solar Cycle and everything else.\n\n-DOJP\n\nOn Thu, Oct 13, 2011 at 2:22 PM, Gerry Quinn wrote:" }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 2, "text": " *From:* Antonin Scriabin \n\n > I have enjoyed all of his books that I have read, but his stand-alone\nnovels\n >\nthat most impressed me (like Matthew) were *Peace* and *The Fifth Head of\n*\n >\n*Cerberus*.\n\n I also think those are his best. And of course he has written a lot of\nterrific short stories and novellas.\n\n - Gerry Quinn\n\n\n_______________________________________________" } ] }, { "message_id": "<4E971DC4.6030706@gmail.com>", "from": { "name": "James Wynn", "address": "crushtv at gmail.com" }, "date": "2011-10-13T17:20:04+00:00", "subject": "(urth) What should I read?", "in_reply_to": "", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "Innocents Aboard is probably my favorite short story collection. \nAlthough Strange Travelers contains one of my favorite short stories: \nCounting Cats in Zanzibar.\n\nFifth Head of Cerberus was the one that changed my opinion of The Book \nof the New Sun and of Wolfe as a writer. After I read it, I started \ntelling people he was the best SF writer period...ever.\nI always recommend Peace to readers who are more into naturalistic \nfiction. It tricks them into following Wolfe.\n\nPirate Freedom made me think it would be fun to be a pirate. In an \nalternate universe, fantasy stories set at sea are as popular as stories \nabout boy wizards are here. In that universe, Wolfe is a god.\n\nAntonin:\nWhen you get into The Wizard, you will see why some people --one famous \nfemale former-lister in particular-- could not finish the book. But as \none of the most unusual fantasies, as a fully developed world, as a \ndefense of Knightly mores, it's really something." }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "On 10/13/2011 9:48 AM, Antonin Scriabin wrote:\nI have only read the first half of the Wizard / Knight duology, but I \nvery much enjoyed it. It was one of those books that got me \nsufficiently interested (though not enthralled) during the first 200 \npages or so, and then rewarded patience with the last half. By the \nend of the book, I was completely roped into the story. I have a few \nother books to read, then I will read /The Wizard/. I can understand \nwhy people might be turned off by Wizard / Knight, but I for one \nthought the first book at least was great." } ] }, { "message_id": "", "from": { "name": "Matthew Knight", "address": "jacobeiserman at gmail.com" }, "date": "2011-10-14T01:15:02+00:00", "subject": "(urth) What should I read?", "in_reply_to": "<4E971DC4.6030706@gmail.com>", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "On Thu, Oct 13, 2011 at 12:20 PM, James Wynn wrote:\nPirate Freedom made me think it would be fun to be a pirate. In an\nalternate universe, fantasy stories set at sea are as popular as stories\nabout boy wizards are here. In that universe, Wolfe is a god." }, { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "So...Gene Wolfe is Dr. Manhattan?\n\nSorry; even as a lurker I couldn't resist.\n\nBut while I'm here, I'll chime in on Fifth Head and Peace. Very different\nnovels, but both quintessentially Wolfean." } ] } ] }