The "controversial SF books" poll

[andrewducker]

[Poll #1264685]

And yes, I'm sure I've missed a load out - feel free to mention in the comments :->

Comments

[opusfluke.livejournal.com]

Got a bookmark of an article somewhere arguing that "Number of the Beast" was actually a rough guide on how to do plot arcs and point-of-view in a novel while referring to examples in literature. Still say no-one can do time-travelling incest epics like Michael Moorcock. Or sword-swinging-sorcerer-princes like him either (though in the Shannara series I liked Walker Boh and Cogline ven though they weren't part of the first three. The Mallorean hacked me off: Maragor should have been the place that no longer insisted! Not some feckin' sunken island! As for Pern I just scored som of the Harper Hall stuff in a charity shop and went "Ah ha! If only someone had told me it was set on an alien world and there were nice ideas about technological decline and loss I'd have read this years ago!" And would have got a few more of the gaggs in David Brin's "The Practice Effect" as well (same bloke who wrote Kil'n People" for those ravening masses who read my copy).

[opusfluke.livejournal.com]

Note to self: look up from keyboard and remove ciggy from gob occasionally to avoid glaring typographic errors.

[andrewducker]

http://www.heinleinsociety.org/rah/numberbeast.html
and
http://groups.google.co.uk/group/rec.arts.sf.written/browse_thread/thread/6983ad326d457fcc/d2f41caa74f5a248#d2f41caa74f5a248

[moniqueleigh]

Thank you for those! I've always loved Number of the Beast & could never quite articulate why. This nails it!