Just started reading this. I’d be making faster progress, but reading the book makes me want to pick up my needles…

‘Worth Consuming’ yes, but hardly enjoyable. I found the subject matter very uncomfortable (preparing for your own death or dealing with the death of those close to you, in terms of fiscal responsibility..)

Still, worth reading.

The book is great, absolutely fascinating, and it really clarified some things about M-theory for me (no, I don’t claim to ‘understand’ it, but I can see around some of those strange edges…).

My problem with the book is the ideology – Dr. Susskind clearly has a problem with the way some people have interpreted the Anthropic Principle – which is well and good, since that’s central to the theme of the book. He makes a detour to attack Intelligent Design (which has NO relationship whatsoever), and repeatedly uses Darwinian analogies as though they were from the cutting edge of evolutionary theory… WTF? 19th Century biology to support 21st Century physics? Needless to say, he pays homage to Dawkins in there too, although at one point he admits that there is a lot of wishful thinking in the ‘science is the new Ghod’ camp.

The parts where he talks about physics, though, are well worth reading.

Fun in a ‘blast from the past’ way. Don’t expect too much in terms of deep thought, but it’s certainly got some philosophy behind it, about growing up, about having ethics in a complicated world, etc, worked in there between the weapons fire and the OTT aliens.

Hey, it even introduces transporter technology in homage to Shatner’s background. Gotta love that, right?

I know, I know… I’ve seen the flyleaf for the next book (still in hardback), and there’s not much more of a ‘spoiler’ than that and the blurbs in the front of the book (won’t go further, because you might not have seen the next one…).

Having said that, I’m not reading this to follow Lynley’s storyline. It’s Havers I care about (although it’s nice to see N’kata getting some exposure as well).

It starts out well in that department.

Got some direction on how to play Ellen, as well as an explanation of why the director wants her to be played that way. (I need movement in this scene, so Ellen has to be BIG in everything she does, you have to drive the other characters to this side of the (tiny) stage because otherwise we’ll have a traffic jam…)

OK, I can go with that. I’d already figured out she has to be needy and a little desperate (she’s pretty over the top in her bitchiness). The director has given me a handle on how she wants this shown, and some hints on why…

I think Schmitz is going to be a favorite. He’s got very strong opinions, ones I don’t always agree with, but that’s not always a bad thing. I can see why ‘The Witches of Karres’ read like the first book in a series, even though there really wasn’t anywhere he could go with it without making his protagonist a ‘god-mod’ character. Every story in the book (except one) had series potential. Some he developed further, some he didn’t.

The worlds are fascinating. The technology is a bit over the top, but the ecologies are great fun.

Yes, his writing reflects the sexism of his day, but he still has strong, competant female heroes (as well as male ones).... overall, I’d put him in the ‘feminist author’ camp, and Telzy Amberton (his most noted protagonist, if Amazon is any clue) doesn’t even appear in the book.

There is a common thread going through all these short stories. It’s hinted at in the first one (in a comment which is never explained), and fleshed out in the last one. I won’t give it away, but I will say that it explains some things which make for good story telling, but don’t (IMHO) make for a stable society. Let’s just say that ‘the Hub’ would be a great setting for a role playing game, and leave it at that.

I hunted this book down as background research for a PC in an SF role playing game (the GM suggested it as a basis for the culture my character came from – the rest of the PCs are off worlders).

I really liked “Witches of Karres”, so I’m optimistic about this one.

Lots of good techniques and motivation. Helps build optimism without denying reality. Some people might do better with a little coaching in self-acceptance rather than just self-esteem building, but it’s a pretty good thing overall.

Well, as the last attempt to monitor food eating triggered a series of binges, and this one started to trigger a binge, but contained instructions useful in forestalling it, I think it’s at least a little helpful.

Not a ‘quick fix’, but it contains some useful tools.