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[JackFrost2012]

I just finished reading Iain Banks' The Bridge (blog post) and would like to check out some of his science fiction. I've heard good things about his Culture series, but I can't figure out where to start. There was a nice ordered reading list, now lost forever, on the old GAF ... can someone help me?

Also, if someone has paperbacks copies they wouldn't mind schlepping over to Japan (it's cheaper than you might think!), I'd be happy to track a thing or two down for you and make it worth your while.

 

[fart]

i want a copy of kazumi nikaidoh. like the woman, not the cd.

 

[Vennt]

Here's my fave Culture novels

"Player of Games" is a good introduction to the 'Culture' and the way it works, how clever and seemingly unstoppable their civilization is, and is a great read for gamesplayers in general, "Consider Phlebas" is another good start.

However "Excession" has to be my favorite Culture novel, the interplay between ships/minds (ship controlling AI) and the pseudo-"Net" they use (Including trolls, spam flames etc.) is a work of art, as is the premise of an unstoppable force (The Culture) meeting an immovable object (The Excession)

I love the way he has evolved a civilization to the point where 'minds' (self-aware AI's) - drones & ships (Artificial constructs containing a mind) and organic lifeforms have equal rights, individual identities & character quirks.

Also, no single Sci-Fi author to date has better names for his ships.

Be warned though, not all Iain M. Banks Sci-Fi novels are Culture novels, look for a reference to the Culture in the blurb to be sure.

If you do like Bank's Culture novels, you have to also consider Peter Hamilton's "Nights Dawn" Trilogy, and Alastair Reynolds "Revelation Space" - Between them Iain M. Banks, Peter Hamilton & Alastair Reynolds have ushered in a new age of British Sci-Fi fiction, and write in similar epic style & scope.

 

[JackFrost2012]

So ... they're not like ... sequential or anything? Just in the same shared universe? So I can read them in pretty much any order? Maybe this is why I'm having issues getting order recommendations.

 

[8bit]

Wow, that US cover is truly terrible.

 

[Vennt]

That's pretty much it Jackfrost, no sequential order, just a common civilization. I've read them all and there hasn't been a common character or environment between them yet, and given the size/scope of the culture it's not hard to see why, I'm sure that in at least one of the novels he explains ithe cultures scope is so large that entire species & systems within the culture may remain entirely ignorant of each others existence.

Oh, and "Special Circumstances" rock, they are the Culture spys / agents & diplomats all rolled into one, SC's antics redefine the boundaries of what's fair, as you'll find out in "Player of Games"

 

[JackFrost2012]

Oh, and "Special Circumstances" rock, they are the Culture spys / agents & diplomats all rolled into one, SC's antics redefine the boundaries of what's fair, as you'll find out in "Player of Games"

Aren't they the focus of "Use of Weapons?" They sound hella interesting, but I think I should read at least one book about the frontside of the Culture before checking out its seedy underbelly.

BTW, if I wasn't clear in my first post, I'm just asking to borrow paperback copies of these books, not to be given to them. Of course I'll send them back after reading and cover the postage both ways. So, PM me if you're willing to part for a few weeks.

Or, I could just read the VERY AWESOME looking Japanese translation!! OMG THIS COVER

"Game Player" YES!!!!

 

[Vennt]

Nah, SC are covered in some format in nearly all the Culture novels, their certainly part of what makes the Culture what it is.

I can lend you Consider Phlebas & Excession, unfortunately Player of Games is already lent out (Thanks for the reminder to chase it back though ) - PM me your details and I'll send them out.

I'd personally be wary of reading a translation, Although I'll admit I have no experience in translated versions, just my own prejudice for reading a novel in the language it was written, especially so when the writer has a very subtle style & humor.

 

[Bregor]

The Culture books aren't in any special order, however you will be very confused if you start with some of the more complicated ones. Consider Phlebas or Player of Games are good starting books.

 

[B-B-Bomba!]

I'm a massive fan of all of Banks' books; if you liked the Bridge and are interested in reading his other stuff it's quite likely you'll end up completing the set ... Excession also has to be my absolute favourite Culture novel, although I never pieced together that the unstoppable force and immovable object were analagous to anything else? Damn that makes sense ... it's been a while since I read it. I just like it the best because it has the most incredible 'cool shit' factor of any book I've ever read. From the opening with the little drone escaping the overrun ship, to the Killing Times 'divine wind' moment, and everything in between ... for me at least it's the best condensation of everything that's cool about the Culture universe.

The books can be read in pretty much any order, certain stories fit together and interlink quite nicley but even then it isn't required to read them the right way round. Banks also wrote a collection of short stories, featuring one about a Culture mission to Earth, which I thought was fucking ace.

The Culture universe is a license to write pretty much anything you can think of, which could be both a good and a bad thing; fortunately Banks is an excellent novelist. It's even indicated that there's no real reason (except in certain cases) that events in one book should be considered to occur within a million years' timescale of the events in any of the others.

Anyway, get stuck in! Pending some research into the costs involved in sending from the UK, I'd be prepared to ship you Player of Games and any others I have and that you're interested in, seriously, PM me.

~B

 

[FnordChan]

Matsumoto Reiji cover art? Completely bad-ass, especially when it makes the main character look like Captain Harlock.

JF, I'm trying to read some Culture books myself, but am having trouble tracking down the first book in the sequence, "Consider Phelbas". As mentioned, my understanding is that you can read them in just about any order, though it helps to start with Phelbas. Now if only I could find the damn thing in paperback; I hope to track down a copy this weekend at DragonCon.

FnordChan