Brian Aldiss

[Fried Egg]

I haven't noticed many discussions around the Author Brian Aldiss and I just wondered what people's general opinions of his works are?

I've found his work hudgely varied in terms of style, pace, themes and quality. For instance his stories "Non-Stop", "Equator" & "Hot House" are fast paced with plenty of action. These contrast starkly with his "Helliconia" trilogy which is very slow moving and focusing not on any central characters.

I've read but not particularly enjoyed "Moreaus other Island" and "Frankenstein Unbound" but that might be something to do with the fact that I haven't ready either H.G.Well's "Moreaus Island" or Mary Shelly's "Frankenstein".

"Segregation" and "The Dark, Light Years" are light on action but more thought provoking.

Next on my list to read is "Earthworks".

 

[Ian Whates]

Hi, Fried Egg,

You're right, Brian's work is hugely varied, both in terms of pace and length (not to mention subject matter). Most of the books you mention enjoying are from early in his carreer, as is Earthworks, which sits well among a series of short, fast-paced novels he produced in the early 60s. Another, which you haven't mentioned but is of similar ilk and would be well worth checking out, is The Interpreter.

Also, Greybeard, which came out towards the end of this period is another good one. Longer than Earthworks, Equator, The Interpreter etc, and gentler, but more thought provoking and rated by many as one of his best.

I had the pleasure of commissioning, editing and publishing a new short story by Brian for the anthology Celebration, released last month, and it contained definite echoes of these older, faster paced works, which was great.

 

[Omphalos]

I don't know why Im getting into this discussion. I learned long ago not to discuss Brian Aldiss with people from the UK. You all seem to have a love for him that I just dont understand. Ive read Frankenstein Unbound, Greybeard, Non-Stop, some Hellonica, and a few other things by him, and the only work by him that I can stand is Billiion/Trillion Year Spree. I was shocked at first shocked in my perception of the quality of the book, because I had heard so many good things about him from the British. I remember buying my a copy of Greybeard in London at the urging of my friends there, and being very psyched up to read it. I could not have been more disappointed. I thought the story just dragged and went nowhere, then Aldis just kind of ended it without fanfare or wrap up. I was a bit shocked because I think the theme he was working with there was one of the most important in the genre. One of my favorite trilogies to date is still Octavia Butler's Xenogenesis/Patternist series. Kate Wilhelm's Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang is another. And I will generally read ANY sf book where that turns around denied reproduction. But that one, eh?

 

[j d worthington]

Well, I'm not from the UK, but I do have a fairly high regard for Aldiss. I think it is his quieter approach (in many of his works) that appeals to me, for one thing. For another, his prose is nearly always well-crafted and that appeals to the writer in me. His wry sense of humor -- often quite black -- is another thing I quite like about his work. And then there's the way he stands sf conventions on their heads more than a few times, while nonetheless very much playing "according to Hoyle" (The Dark Light Years is an excellent example of this -- I mean, you really can't get much more truly alien than that, or more guaranteed to get human sensibilities riled up, now can you?).

However, I think some of my personal favorites are the things he did during the "New Wave" era, whether it be Report on Probability A, or Barefoot in the Head, or "Man in His Time", "The Saliva Tree", or "The Girl and the Robot with Flowers", among others. I find these works to be meaty, thought-provoking, and extremely controlled and subtle (or, in the case of Barefoot, richly textured) performances....

 

[zoran]

I read his "Hot House" and it was great. And I met the guy last year, he was special guest on an SF convention in Croatia, and he seems to be a nice guy.

I guess i should read the rest of his books, too.

 

[Lenny]

I read Super-State a few months ago. I didn't think it was a bad book, but it just didn't seem to go anywhere. I'm usually very good at remembering books, but all I remember from Super-State is people on horses at the start, and then people getting drowned in floods at the end. The in-between is just... nothing.

I quite like the odd dabble in SF, as it's a genre that I don't read much of, though the things I do read, I generally enjoy a lot. However, I don't think I'll be reading any more Aldiss.

 

[Fried Egg]

Hmm...opinions of him are quite mixed then I see...

 

[Werthead]

Helliconia is the greatest achievement of SF worldbuilding ever accomplished, far more so than Dune. I'm planning a reread of the trilogy for some point in the next year or two.

His new novel H.A.R.M. has gotten a lot of good reviews as well. He stands comparison with his friend JG Ballard as a genre writer who is keen to bring in literary elements and dabbles outside the genre as well. He is certainly one of the most important SF authors of his generation and now that we've lost ACC, maybe the most important living author of that generation.

 

[Ian Whates]

I haven't read H.A.R.M. yet but I was at a reading Brian gave when the book was launched last year. This was followed by an interview/conversation with critic John Clute in which Brian revealed much of the motivation behind the book.

It sounds a very vivid, insightful and at times disturbing work; something I greatly look forward to reading.

 

[j d worthington]

I've not read his more recent work, I must admit; but I've been feeling a tugging toward a re-read along with expanding it to take in the newer stuff; think it's about time I did so.

F.E.: Part of this is that Aldiss, like Moorcock and Ballard, has a rather wide range of things he's written, from classic "Golden Age" style sf to very experimental to humorous mainstream (The Brightfont Diaries, for example), to opinionated histories of several subjects, to... well, he basically writes what interests him, and he has a very wide range of interests... and of voices.

 

[Connavar]

If you are looking for a thought provoking story of his, which book would be recommended ?

SF story of course. No need to recommend his huge worldbuilding series. I was thinking more like the books J.D,fried egg mentioned.

I was thinking about trying Aldiss and mooching a book of his.

 

[j d worthington]

The Dark Light Years, perhaps; or Hothouse. Either of those is a fairly good introduction to Aldiss' "straight" sf -- though, as noted, even there he tended to turn some sf conventions on their heads. Non-Stop is also well worth a look, and does some very good things with the "generational ship" idea. Or you might want to dip into one of his story collections, such as The Canopy of Time, The Saliva Tree, Who Can Replace a Man?, or Man in His Time....

 

[Connavar]

After many collections reading these days i feel for an actual book stand alone or not.

Doesnt really care too if a book is turning sf conventions on theirs heads or not. I want a good SF book no matter what its doing.

Are any of those books mentioned a story set in our world and not some space alien story ?
A PKD setting so to say and not whats out there space setting if you know what i mean.

 

[Razorback]

Hothouse is a stand-alone, set in a far-future Earth, but nothing like the limited P.K. Dick that I’ve read. It may not be exactly what you're seeking, but I don't think you will be disappointed.

 

[j d worthington]

Well, if you're looking for something that plays with perceptions of reality, identity, etc., I'd suggest Barefoot in the Head or Report on Probability A. Both stand-alone novels, both set in a (near-)contemporary Earth, and both novels that you can chew on for a while, even though they are quite short....

 

[chrispenycate]

Well, if you're looking for something that plays with perceptions of reality, identity, etc., I'd suggest Barefoot in the Head or Report on Probability A. Both stand-alone novels, both set in a (near-)contemporary Earth, and both novels that you can chew on for a while, even though they are quite short....

I still think Probability A was a joke. A rather nasty ironic one, at that.

 

[j d worthington]

I still think Probability A was a joke. A rather nasty ironic one, at that.

LOL... well, I can't really argue too much with that....

 

[Connavar]

Well, if you're looking for something that plays with perceptions of reality, identity, etc., I'd suggest Barefoot in the Head or Report on Probability A. Both stand-alone novels, both set in a (near-)contemporary Earth, and both novels that you can chew on for a while, even though they are quite short....

Exactly what i was looking for.

Nothing against the other type of SF books he wrote. But when you have read a couple of space/alien stories no matter how high quality you want a SF set in Earth near future or not. Something dark,dystopian like or whatever . Thats what i meant with PKD style.

Just to read something different.

 

[j d worthington]

Exactly what i was looking for.

Nothing against the other type of SF books he wrote. But when you have read a couple of space/alien stories no matter how high quality you want a SF set in Earth near future or not. Something dark,dystopian like or whatever . Thats what i meant with PKD style.

Just to read something different.

Oh, those two are different, all right.... Barefoot in the Head is set during the Acid-Head Wars, when hallucinogens are thoroughly altering the structure of societies, and the perception of what constitutes reality. The book is a rich melange of styles which shift and blur from one to another, making it a very complex textual mosaic. Some (like myself) find it to be a great reading experience; others find it almost unreadable.

Report on Probability A, on the other hand, is almost minimalist in its approach, yet obsessive in its tone, and dissects a famous painting from the perceptions of the (unnamed) narrative voices, but there is always the question as to whether we are really dealing with the painting or a series of alternative realities. Again, some find it very rewarding; others simply want to throw the book (and, not infrequently, Aldiss himself) against the wall....

So if it's a challenge you want....

 

[Fried Egg]

Exactly what i was looking for.

Nothing against the other type of SF books he wrote. But when you have read a couple of space/alien stories no matter how high quality you want a SF set in Earth near future or not. Something dark,dystopian like or whatever . Thats what i meant with PKD style.

Just to read something different.

I'm currently reading "Greybeard" and that's very darkly dystopian so far. Might be what you're after.