Welcome to Litsy!

A couple of questions for any who have finished this month‘s #ClassicLSFBC pick. If anyone would like to be added or removed from the tag list, let me know.

🚀 What do you think about the novel‘s imagined trajectory for humanity? Do you see it as a positive or negative development? Did any of you also read “Almost Human”, one of our earlier group reads? It posits a very different possibility.

A couple of questions for any who have finished this month‘s #ClassicLSFBC pick. If anyone would like to be added or removed from the tag list, let me know.

🚀 The characters are fairly flat, which isn‘t uncommon for some classic SciFi. Did particular character or behavior stand out to you? Maybe Karellen? He‘s the only one present in all three sections of the book.

The Overlords take over Earth, ushering in a golden age. But what is their purpose?

Classic SF novel. Obviously dated in some respects, but still a great story.

@RamsFan1963 @ClassicLSFBC

(1953) Yay for the #ClassicLSFBC because here's one I should have read long ago and never got around to till now. Maybe it's just as well, because I think younger-me may have struggled to engage with the very loose plot, flat characters, and wooden dialog. OTOH maybe I would have loved the big-picture speculation about humanity's nature, future, and our place in the universe(s?). I'll never know, but now-me found it a rewarding read.

#lunchandabook

@RamsFan1963 #ClassicLSFBC

The volcano that had reared Tratua up from the Pacific depths had been sleeping now for half a million years.

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

And here are my #BookSpin and #DoubleSpin: a science fiction novel set somewhere in the future, and an eighteenth-century satirical fantasy set in “pre-Adamitical times.“ Looking forward to both though with very different expectations.

Thanks @TheAromaofBooks!

With the majority of votes, Childhood's End will be #ClassicLSFBC selection for March. The other three books were tied for 2nd, so I threw the names in a hat to pick April's selection. April's selection is The Weapon Shops of Ishtar by A.E. van Vogt. Childhood's End should be available at most libraries, and I've seen it on Ebay for as little as 5 dollars. Good luck and happy reading. #ClassicLSFBC
@Bookwomble @Ruthiella @TheSpineView

Omigosh, the only thing I really love about old school sci fi is when things become true!! This is just spot on from 1953!!!

I suppose this still holds true... even more accurate if you've got a customer service job!!!!

A great little read. To think that this was almost 70 years ago, the writer's imagination is phenomenal.

Childhood's End is a thought-provoking and sinister read, which is way ahead of it's time.

You would think with the words Last Generation of Mankind written in big letters on the back I‘d expect something kind of sad but I didn‘t so that‘s on me. This is that typical 1950s sci-fi that makes you think about the way mankind behaves and extrapolates about where it can go. This started out kind of slow for me but by the end I was invested and had to see where it was going. It was my #BookSpin for March @TheAromaofBooks #BuriedAliveChallenge

#WeeklyForecast
My main goal for this week is to finish the tagged and then make headway into Obelisk Gate and possibly The Thousand Names. I doubt I'll finish them but if I do it's on to more Thursday Next. I decided to put Trials of Koli on pause until I can come to terms with the fact there's now two povs instead of just Koli's.

I‘ve been spending too much time indoors lately (haven‘t we all lol) so I decided to take my book out to the front porch. Shoutout to my cats for taking up all my favorite reading spots at the same time to give me this idea.

After three days with no reading buddies I‘m glad the girls finally decided to join me again. Even if Callie is more interested in playing with Sierra‘s tail than keeping me company.
#CatsOfLitsy

Decided to start this one today since I‘m still not in the mood to finish Trials of Koli. I‘ve said this for two days now though so hopefully posting will make follow through happen.

I‘m excited for my #BookSpin selections this month. I always like when I get one sci fi and one fantasy to mix it up a bit. I‘ve been meaning to read Obelisk Gate forever so it‘s nice to have that extra push to finish the trilogy.

“The world‘s now placid, featureless, and culturally dead: nothing really new has been created since the Overlords came. The reason‘s obvious. There‘s nothing left to struggle for, and there are too many distractions and entertainment.”

this novel is so bizarre. apparently it was a SyFy miniseries in 2015? This art is by Neal Adams, concept artist for an unformed movie planned in the 1970s.

Excellent, classic sci-fi. Earth is being observed/governed by alien overlords who never descend. They stay in airships in the sky and keep watch over everyone‘s actions. All evil is corrected, despotism eliminated. But there‘s a lot more to their intentions.
I flew through this one. It was written in the 50s, but is still relevant and has aged well. Definitely a must-read.

Yes, Clarke predicted a lot of technological developments (although there are still way too many fax machines in here). But there are much better written and more interesting classic sci-fi novels out there that aren't nearly so depressing. The overall message (or was there even one?) was unconvincing. The only entertaining bit for me was the form the overlords took.

#1001books #LifetimeReadingPlan

#coffeeandabook #mycover

1. Has to be chocolate when I am ever feeling low! If illness sick, weetabix in hot milk!
2. This is going to sound really sad but don‘t think anybody EVER read a story to me at bedtime.
3. With a book if not too ill, if too ill asleep!
4. @Cathythoughts

Thanks for the tag @JenlovesJT47
#TuesdayTidbits

I grabbed this short book with the idea of reading it over a weekend trip. It‘s a fun little read. Published in the 50‘s, it‘s packed with silly anachronisms, like “The task would have been impossible without the aid of the giant computing machines that could perform the work of a thousand human calculators in a matter of seconds.”

#Utopia #AugustIsATrip

Book: Childhood's End
Author: Ted Chiang
Movie: The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
TV Show: Carnivale
Food: Candied pecans

#manicmonday @JoScho

The next time someone asks me why I never want to have children I‘m just going to give them a copy of this book. Deeply weird, wildly imaginative, unsettling in the extreme. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

There were some things that only time could cure. Evil men could be destroyed, but nothing could be done with good men who were deluded.

He felt no regrets as the work of a lifetime was swept away. He had labored to take man to the stars, and now the stars–the aloof, indifferent stars–had come to him.

Got a great #scifi #bookhaul today from #goodwill ✨📚

"There have been #underground movements before, and even Karellen, whatever powers he's got, won't find it easy to deal with us. We're out to fight for our independence." #quotsynov17

Hunky Dory is my favorite Bowie album, and I still remember the moment when it clicked in my head that #OhYouPrettyThings is pretty much exactly the plot of Childhood's End.

First the alien Overlords come "All the nightmares came today" etc. and let humanity know that the children of Earth will become uplifted super beings "Look at your children / See their faces in golden rays" etc. Check it, the lyrics all fit.

#SeptemBowie

This was my view while camping this afternoon! Then we went swimming and kayaking. I'm hoping to get in some more reading time this evening and tomorrow along with more quality family time.

This book is so problematic even for #classicscifi. Maybe skip it if colonialist metaphors for humanity's future make you barf.

#JuneTunz #RuleTheWorld

The Overlords are all about ruling the world. 🌎

Also, I'm kind of freaking out because I can't find my well-worn copy that I've had since college. This image, courtesy of google, is a close approximation of my missing friend. 😳

This was crazy, creepy, thought provoking, all the things. (Also terrifying, since I have my own kids now). I definitely preferred the first half, it was interesting to think about what would happen if the alien overlords came.

Finally started listening to this, it's been on my list forever. So far it is great sci-fi. I'm really excited to see how the story goes.

I love the pulp covers you find on old mass market paperback editions of classic sci fi and fantasy. I find them unexplainably charming.

Ooh I liked this one. It contained several unexpected turns of events and revelations, and Clarke manages to create a world its very easy to become immersed in. Thanks @soldeace !

Multitasking 😁 I can't get enough minutes of focus at a time to read in German or Russian ( @mhillis not sure what to think of the book!) so I'll focus on this one instead! It's not at all bad.

Chill evening at home. This wine is awesome, which is why the bottle is almost empty. Highly recommended, and it's easy to recognize as well! Perhaps the #recommendsday sticker isn't for wine?? 😱

Currently not a whole lot to do at the office, so I'm squeezing in some reading with the Kindle desktop app 😀

Who got lots of bookish gifts? Well, not me! I got this ebook from an awesome friend far far away though. 🤗

Day 18 of #augustphotochallenge is #usedbooks

I ❤️ used book stores, garage sales, and thrift shops for book shopping. I often pass books I have read on to others, but here is a little stack of some used books that I have either decided to keep in my collection or have yet to read.

Time to read some Arthur C. Clarke.

Just finished the audio version on Audible. An amazing and creative work of science fiction that holds up. I avoided it for years because I think of the long drawn out moments of Space Odyssey but I should have read it a long time ago!

Excited to start "Childhood's End" by Arthur C. Clarke, thanks to my older sister.

Hoping this will get me through a day with perpetually angry toddler. So far, so good! Even had story time!

I built a novel around this book, once upon a time. I've got a big fancy one somewhere, but a few of these little ones as well. Getting on another plane this morning, this book's my stuffed animal, the one the kid always goes back into the fire for.