Isaac Asimov’s Robots and Aliens Book 3: Intruder by Robert Thurston

Fahrenheit 451 has been on my list to listen to for some time now. It just so happens that this turned out to be “Banned Books Week”. How serendipitous is that? I recently listened to The Martian Chronicles and immediately noticed it was the same narrator, Stephen Hoye. His voice seems to pair well with the classic nature of both of these novels. There’s an old-timey feel to it, and the tone of his voice is perfect to express the melancholy feel ever so prevalent in Fahrenheit 451.

To be honest, all I really knew about the novel was that books were burned, and that this was classic that everyone should read as a cautionary tale. There are many layers to it other than the book burning though. It’s not just about burning the books. What do they represent? Knowledge begets jealousy. Undeniably some people have more time or ambition to seek out knowledge than others. Why not control what knowledge there is to consume so everyone is equal and people are happier, right? Without books, what is left? There are still publications like comic books and magazines, but nothing of real substance. (more…)

Frank Herbert goes in a completely new direction with his fourth book in the Dune series, God Emperor of Dune. This novel has quite a different feel than the first three. The setting takes place 3500 years after the ending of Children of Dune. Dune’s ecological transformation is complete except for a small patch of desert. As a result of the transformation, the sandworms (and the supply of new spice) died off. Leto has almost completely transformed into a sandworm, and has taken over as leader of the galaxy. He’s been working on his “Golden Path” all this time while sitting on the last big hoard of spice. (more…)

It has been a while since I have read any Star Wars related books. I was pretty adamant about reading all of the Expanded Universe novels up until the explosion of new authors back around when the New Jedi Order series started. I read up until Dark Tide I: Ruin, then lost interest and moved on to other Science Fiction. The Rise and Fall of Darth Vader was a present from my sister. I probably would have never bought this book for myself, but nevertheless it was a good present because I enjoyed it. (more…)