Thursday, June 23, 2005
book thirty-one
The Lathe of Heaven
Ursula K. LeGuin
I LOVE this book. It was so, so good. It's set in Portland in a dystopian near-future, where overpopulation and global warming have taken their toll on society. (This book was written in 1971 - but it's quite prescient.)
The main character, George Orr, has dreams that actually change reality. He is the only one who remembers afterward that anything has changed. Terrified by his ability, he turns to abusing drugs in an attempt to forestall dreaming. He's arrested for drug abuse and ordered to see a psychiatist/sleep specialist for treatment. The psychiatrist at first doesn't believe that Orr's dreams can change anything - but once he realizes that the dreams *are* changing reality, he begins using hypnosis to steer Orr's dreams in order to promote his own position.
Not only is the concept a good one, but as always, the writing is impeccable. LeGuin's words convey the freakishness of the situation without becoming overwrought. Has she written other books like this? I'm only familiar with the Earthsea series and a few of her short stories.
Ursula K. LeGuin
I LOVE this book. It was so, so good. It's set in Portland in a dystopian near-future, where overpopulation and global warming have taken their toll on society. (This book was written in 1971 - but it's quite prescient.)
The main character, George Orr, has dreams that actually change reality. He is the only one who remembers afterward that anything has changed. Terrified by his ability, he turns to abusing drugs in an attempt to forestall dreaming. He's arrested for drug abuse and ordered to see a psychiatist/sleep specialist for treatment. The psychiatrist at first doesn't believe that Orr's dreams can change anything - but once he realizes that the dreams *are* changing reality, he begins using hypnosis to steer Orr's dreams in order to promote his own position.
Not only is the concept a good one, but as always, the writing is impeccable. LeGuin's words convey the freakishness of the situation without becoming overwrought. Has she written other books like this? I'm only familiar with the Earthsea series and a few of her short stories.
Labels: book reports, science fiction
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I can't think of any other LeGuin books that are set on "Earth," but she's got a bunch that are more sci-fi than fantasy. The most well known is The Left Hand of Darkness, which is about a society where people only have gender when they are in estrus. Definitely worth reading if you haven't read it. I'd also recommend The Dispossessed.
I'm still in awe that you can find the time to read so many books, work out, go to school, go to work and get a 4.0 in Microbiology. Amazing.
Elizabeth: Thanks for the recommendations! I'll put both those books on my holds list. I think I read Left Hand of Darkness as a teenager, but I don't remember anymore.
Cat: Dunno, I haven't reached the instructor - I'm just going to show up on Tuesday and hope for the best. I know the class isn't full.
Denise: I only have time to read because I make time to exercise! :) It's a two for one deal. I predict based on Cat's comment above that I'm going to be reading eye-bleeding textbooks for the summer, though...
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Cat: Dunno, I haven't reached the instructor - I'm just going to show up on Tuesday and hope for the best. I know the class isn't full.
Denise: I only have time to read because I make time to exercise! :) It's a two for one deal. I predict based on Cat's comment above that I'm going to be reading eye-bleeding textbooks for the summer, though...
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