{ "export": { "source": "https://urth.darkrealm.vip/thread/urth/6834", "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": 6834, "subject": "Effinger", "messages": 4, "voices": 4, "first": "2020-04-18T22:55:30+00:00", "last": "2020-04-19T06:22:29+00:00" }, "messages": [ { "message_id": "", "from": { "name": "Dan'l Danehy-Oakes", "address": "danldo at gmail.com" }, "date": "2020-04-18T22:55:30+00:00", "subject": "(urth) Effinger", "in_reply_to": null, "reply_link": null, "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "I just read and reviewed George Alec Effinger's book _What Entropy Means to\nMe_, and I think it may be of interest to y'all.\n\nHere's my review, which will explain why.\n\nThis book by the late Mr. Effinger could have been written by the late Gene\nWolfe as a _jeu d'esprit_. It has many of the earmarks of Wolfe's best\nnovels...\n\nOn a distant planet, a Mother and a Father have settled down to raise a\npassel of kids - I mean an utterly unreasonable number - and, along the\nway, instituted a religion with themselves as deities. Father goes off and\ndisappears. After a while, and not long before her own death, Mother sends\nDore - the eldest son and only one who was born on Earth - to look for\neither Father, or the source of the River which plays a major part in their\nreligion, or, ideally, both.\n\nIt's been a long time and there has been no word of Dore. A younger son,\nSeyt, is tasked by the elders with writing a history of Dore's journey.\n\nThis is the story of Syet writing Dore's story. Dore sets off and meets a\nwide variety of characters, including a Mysterious Companion, a Mad Doctor\nand his Monster, a Treacherous Baron, and more. Dore develops as the story\nprogresses.\n\nAnd so does Seyt. The First household is a crazed hotbed of political and\nreligious factions, in which the wrong words can get Seyt sent to the Pen,\nalong with losing his name and being assigned a number. Seyt tries, as he\nwrites, to please (or at least not to too-badly displease) all the factions\nat once. His life as he writes is intermingled with Dore's story, each\nrising and falling in a sort of pulsing double-helix of narrative.\n\nIf you know your Wolfe, you'll find a lot of this famililar. Only ... this\nbook was published in 1972, the same year as Wolfe's first serious book\n(_The Fifth Head of Cerberus_). Thus, that Wolfe had influenced Effinger's\nbook is fairly unlikely, though it is quite possible that Effinger's book\ninfluenced Wolfe's later work. Sadly, it's too late to ask him whether he'd\never read it.\n\nWhat this book has that Wolfe's major work lacks, however, is bellylaughs.\nWolfe used humor, and used it well, but it was a sly sort of humor that\nusually involved suddenly getting the joke several pages (or chapters, or\neven weeks) later when you realize what something back there actually\nmeant. Many of Wolfe's jokes only appear on rereading; Effinger's jump out\nand buttonhole you.\n\nRecommended, and for two bucks on Kindle you really can't go wrong.\nDan'l Danehy-Oakes\n\n*Maka ki ecela tehani yanke lo!*\n*--*T?a???ke Witk?" } ] }, { "message_id": "", "from": { "name": "David Stockhoff", "address": "dstockhoff at verizon.net" }, "date": "2020-04-18T23:07:54+00:00", "subject": "(urth) Effinger", "in_reply_to": "", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "Thanks!" }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "On 4/18/2020 6:55 PM, Dan'l Danehy-Oakes wrote:\nI just read and reviewed George Alec Effinger's book _What Entropy \nMeans to Me_, and I think it may be of interest to y'all.\n\nHere's my review, which will explain why.\n\nThis book by the late Mr. Effinger could have been written by the late \nGene Wolfe as a _jeu d'esprit_. It has many of the earmarks of Wolfe's \nbest novels...\n\nOn a distant planet, a Mother and a Father have settled down to raise \na passel of kids - I mean an utterly unreasonable number - and, along \nthe way, instituted a religion with themselves as deities. Father goes \noff and disappears. After a while, and not long before her own death, \nMother sends Dore - the eldest son and only one who was born on Earth \n- to look for either Father, or the source of the River which plays a \nmajor part in their religion, or, ideally, both.\n\nIt's been a long time and there has been no word of Dore. A younger \nson, Seyt, is tasked by the elders with writing a history of Dore's \njourney.\n\nThis is the story of Syet writing Dore's story. Dore sets off and \nmeets a wide variety of characters, including a Mysterious Companion, \na Mad Doctor and his Monster, a Treacherous Baron, and more. Dore \ndevelops as the story progresses.\n\nAnd so does Seyt. The First household is a crazed hotbed of political \nand religious factions, in which the wrong words can get Seyt sent to \nthe Pen, along with losing his name and being assigned a number. Seyt \ntries, as he writes, to please (or at least not to too-badly \ndisplease) all the factions at once. His life as he writes is \nintermingled with Dore's story, each rising and falling in a sort of \npulsing double-helix of narrative.\n\nIf you know your Wolfe, you'll find a lot of this famililar. Only ... \nthis book was published in 1972, the same year as Wolfe's first \nserious book (_The Fifth Head of Cerberus_). Thus, that Wolfe had \ninfluenced Effinger's book is fairly unlikely, though it is quite \npossible that Effinger's book influenced Wolfe's later work. Sadly, \nit's too late to ask him whether he'd ever read it.\n\nWhat this book has that Wolfe's major work lacks, however, is \nbellylaughs. Wolfe used humor, and used it well, but it was a sly sort \nof humor that usually involved suddenly getting the joke several pages \n(or chapters, or even weeks) later when you realize what something \nback there actually meant. Many of Wolfe's jokes only appear on \nrereading; Effinger's jump out and buttonhole you.\n\nRecommended, and for two bucks on Kindle you really can't go wrong.\nDan'l Danehy-Oakes\n\n/Maka ki ecela tehani yanke lo!/\n/--/T?a???ke Witk?\n\n_______________________________________________" } ] }, { "message_id": "<004601d615ef$a19b12b0$e4d13810$@hwaet.com>", "from": { "name": "Eric Bourland", "address": "eb at hwaet.com" }, "date": "2020-04-19T02:09:58+00:00", "subject": "(urth) Effinger", "in_reply_to": "", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "Interesting! Thank you.\n\n \n\nEric\n\n \n\n \n\n*******\n\nEric Bourland\n\nhttps://www.hwaet.com/\n\n \n\n \n\nFrom: Urth On Behalf Of Dan'l Danehy-Oakes\nSent: Saturday, April 18, 2020 6:56 PM\nTo: The Urth Mailing List \nSubject: (urth) Effinger\n\n \n\nI just read and reviewed George Alec Effinger's book _What Entropy Means to Me_, and I think it may be of interest to y'all.\n\n \n\nHere's my review, which will explain why.\n\n \n\nThis book by the late Mr. Effinger could have been written by the late Gene Wolfe as a _jeu d'esprit_. It has many of the earmarks of Wolfe's best novels...\n\nOn a distant planet, a Mother and a Father have settled down to raise a passel of kids - I mean an utterly unreasonable number - and, along the way, instituted a religion with themselves as deities. Father goes off and disappears. After a while, and not long before her own death, Mother sends Dore - the eldest son and only one who was born on Earth - to look for either Father, or the source of the River which plays a major part in their religion, or, ideally, both.\n\nIt's been a long time and there has been no word of Dore. A younger son, Seyt, is tasked by the elders with writing a history of Dore's journey.\n\nThis is the story of Syet writing Dore's story. Dore sets off and meets a wide variety of characters, including a Mysterious Companion, a Mad Doctor and his Monster, a Treacherous Baron, and more. Dore develops as the story progresses.\n\nAnd so does Seyt. The First household is a crazed hotbed of political and religious factions, in which the wrong words can get Seyt sent to the Pen, along with losing his name and being assigned a number. Seyt tries, as he writes, to please (or at least not to too-badly displease) all the factions at once. His life as he writes is intermingled with Dore's story, each rising and falling in a sort of pulsing double-helix of narrative. \n\nIf you know your Wolfe, you'll find a lot of this famililar. Only ... this book was published in 1972, the same year as Wolfe's first serious book (_The Fifth Head of Cerberus_). Thus, that Wolfe had influenced Effinger's book is fairly unlikely, though it is quite possible that Effinger's book influenced Wolfe's later work. Sadly, it's too late to ask him whether he'd ever read it.\n\nWhat this book has that Wolfe's major work lacks, however, is bellylaughs. Wolfe used humor, and used it well, but it was a sly sort of humor that usually involved suddenly getting the joke several pages (or chapters, or even weeks) later when you realize what something back there actually meant. Many of Wolfe's jokes only appear on rereading; Effinger's jump out and buttonhole you.\n\nRecommended, and for two bucks on Kindle you really can't go wrong. \n\nDan'l Danehy-Oakes\n\n \n\nMaka ki ecela tehani yanke lo!\n\n--T?a???ke Witk?" } ] }, { "message_id": "", "from": { "name": "Charles Gillingham", "address": "charlesgillingham at gmail.com" }, "date": "2020-04-19T06:22:29+00:00", "subject": "(urth) Effinger", "in_reply_to": "", "reply_link": "header", "blocks": [ { "kind": "text", "depth": 0, "text": "I have it on my shelf. Well the shelves I have here, and it's even in\na front row. I'll check it out. I did very much enjoy When Gravity\nFails." }, { "kind": "quote", "depth": 1, "text": "On Sat, Apr 18, 2020 at 3:55 PM Dan'l Danehy-Oakes wrote:\n\nI just read and reviewed George Alec Effinger's book _What Entropy Means to Me_, and I think it may be of interest to y'all.\n\nHere's my review, which will explain why.\n\nThis book by the late Mr. Effinger could have been written by the late Gene Wolfe as a _jeu d'esprit_. It has many of the earmarks of Wolfe's best novels...\n\nOn a distant planet, a Mother and a Father have settled down to raise a passel of kids - I mean an utterly unreasonable number - and, along the way, instituted a religion with themselves as deities. Father goes off and disappears. After a while, and not long before her own death, Mother sends Dore - the eldest son and only one who was born on Earth - to look for either Father, or the source of the River which plays a major part in their religion, or, ideally, both.\n\nIt's been a long time and there has been no word of Dore. A younger son, Seyt, is tasked by the elders with writing a history of Dore's journey.\n\nThis is the story of Syet writing Dore's story. Dore sets off and meets a wide variety of characters, including a Mysterious Companion, a Mad Doctor and his Monster, a Treacherous Baron, and more. Dore develops as the story progresses.\n\nAnd so does Seyt. The First household is a crazed hotbed of political and religious factions, in which the wrong words can get Seyt sent to the Pen, along with losing his name and being assigned a number. Seyt tries, as he writes, to please (or at least not to too-badly displease) all the factions at once. His life as he writes is intermingled with Dore's story, each rising and falling in a sort of pulsing double-helix of narrative.\n\nIf you know your Wolfe, you'll find a lot of this famililar. Only ... this book was published in 1972, the same year as Wolfe's first serious book (_The Fifth Head of Cerberus_). Thus, that Wolfe had influenced Effinger's book is fairly unlikely, though it is quite possible that Effinger's book influenced Wolfe's later work. Sadly, it's too late to ask him whether he'd ever read it.\n\nWhat this book has that Wolfe's major work lacks, however, is bellylaughs. Wolfe used humor, and used it well, but it was a sly sort of humor that usually involved suddenly getting the joke several pages (or chapters, or even weeks) later when you realize what something back there actually meant. Many of Wolfe's jokes only appear on rereading; Effinger's jump out and buttonhole you.\n\nRecommended, and for two bucks on Kindle you really can't go wrong.\nDan'l Danehy-Oakes\n\nMaka ki ecela tehani yanke lo!\n--T?a???ke Witk?\n_______________________________________________" } ] } ] }