I'm also guessing that not as many ppl have read The Forever War or The Black Company series as I thought...?
― fat fat fat fat Usher (DJP), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:28 (thirteen years ago) link
Placed 4 of my top 10, 11 of my whole ballot.
Forever War was my #15
― The Louvin Spoonful (WmC), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:28 (thirteen years ago) link
I thot Black Company had a pretty big stanbase on ILX.
― the Stars That Play with Laughing Sam's Doink (Jon Lewis), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:28 (thirteen years ago) link
Black Company was my #12.
― EZ Snappin, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:29 (thirteen years ago) link
I don't think I've ever even heard of the Black Company series...?
― The Louvin Spoonful (WmC), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:29 (thirteen years ago) link
6 of my 10 placed
my #1 was A Canticle for Leibowitz
― ciderpress, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:30 (thirteen years ago) link
I hit 10 out of 25
My #1 was The Diamond Age (Snow Crash is great but this one is just all around better front to back)
― fat fat fat fat Usher (DJP), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:31 (thirteen years ago) link
Did Ballard get the most number ones?
yeah ballard had the most with 3 - there were a few with 2 #1 votes that didnt chart (in fact 'riddley walker' got 2 #1 votes & no other votes, lol) - there were also 1/5 of the ballots that came unranked
almost all the books in 52-100 had just as many votes as the novels 51-28 (& VALIS finished @ 19 w/only 6 votes) they just didnt get enough top 5 placements on ppls ballots.
― RANDY BEAMAN ANAGRAM (Lamp), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:32 (thirteen years ago) link
I hit 11 overall, 6 of those are in my bottom 10.
I'd put Diamond Age over Snow Crash too, but went with Anathem as my lone Stephenson.
― EZ Snappin, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:33 (thirteen years ago) link
placing LOTR #1 on your ballot
uh wow this is moving fast.
yes I am serious!
xp
― in my world of loose geirs (Shakey Mo Collier), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:34 (thirteen years ago) link
I'm really sad that Sturgeon didn't make the top 50.
― The Louvin Spoonful (WmC), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:34 (thirteen years ago) link
Hey Dan, did you ever read his first book, The Big U?
― sarahel, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:35 (thirteen years ago) link
I didn't, and I really don't know why.
― fat fat fat fat Usher (DJP), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:36 (thirteen years ago) link
(Or if I did, I've forgotten it.)
i re-read it recently, and it still held up, but it wasn't as funny as when i first read it in college.
― sarahel, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:37 (thirteen years ago) link
The Big U was like the hardest book to find for years, after loving Snow Crash and Diamond Age the serious hunt was on, but gave up. Is it sci-fi?
― Spectrist, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:39 (thirteen years ago) link
it's definitely speculative fiction. Our college library had a copy. I got a paperback copy a few years ago.
― sarahel, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:40 (thirteen years ago) link
So, having never read any Stephenson, Baroque Cycle y/n?
― the Stars That Play with Laughing Sam's Doink (Jon Lewis), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:41 (thirteen years ago) link
not to start! I'd probably start with The Diamond Age.
― EZ Snappin, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:41 (thirteen years ago) link
I love the Baroque Cycle, but really consider it outside any definition of speculative fiction. I love Anathem, myself; don't remember much about his earlier works to be able to give recommendations.
― The Louvin Spoonful (WmC), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:45 (thirteen years ago) link
After looking at his bibliography, I realize I've never read Snow Crash.
― The Louvin Spoonful (WmC), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:48 (thirteen years ago) link
tbh I strongly strongly recommend reading Snow Crash before The Diamond Age as I don't think I would have liked the latter as much without having read the former
Cryptonomicon is also great.
― fat fat fat fat Usher (DJP), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:51 (thirteen years ago) link
I read them in opposite order and it didn't cause issues. To each their own.
― EZ Snappin, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:54 (thirteen years ago) link
hahaha this is the part where dan kills me for not voting considering diamond age would have been my #1 and watership down my #2
― broke my o_O face o_O (jjjusten), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:54 (thirteen years ago) link
O U BICH
― fat fat fat fat Usher (DJP), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 19:59 (thirteen years ago) link
If you now say that Dying Earth or Neveryon would be your #3 I will have to kill u on my next mplstpl trip
― the Stars That Play with Laughing Sam's Doink (Jon Lewis), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:02 (thirteen years ago) link
16/25 of my votes placed. Apparently I have canonical tastes, yay.
― bert streb, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:04 (thirteen years ago) link
Enjoyed Snow Crash, but the awkwardness of the infodumps stayed with me more than the plot or anything else; thought The Diamond Age a lot better, & it made my ballot. Keep looking at that Baroque Cycle, but I fear it will basically be x,000 pages of me shouting 'NO NO NO WRONG NO NOT LIKE THAT' at the book, since I am ok at Europe 1640-1740 (and I didn't enjoy Cryptonomicon so much. It was ok).
― portrait of velleity (woof), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:05 (thirteen years ago) link
i am safe then, my #3 was lot 49, altho dan will be here in 5 weeks so you prob wouldnt have gotten the chance anyway. xxpost
― broke my o_O face o_O (jjjusten), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:05 (thirteen years ago) link
i was totally down w/snow crash up until the super creepey sex scene and uh pretty much the ending in general.
― broke my o_O face o_O (jjjusten), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:06 (thirteen years ago) link
I thought the super creepey sex scene worked really, really well!
― fat fat fat fat Usher (DJP), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:14 (thirteen years ago) link
I like how the climax of Cryptomonicon was literally NERD GETS LAID
I can kinda take or leave Stephenson in general. my wife loves him tho
― in my world of loose geirs (Shakey Mo Collier), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:16 (thirteen years ago) link
at least thomas covenant didnt place eh
― the salmon of procrastination (darraghmac), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:28 (thirteen years ago) link
do you feel like you've been bamboozled― ℳℴℯ ❤\(◕‿◕✿ (Princess TamTam), Tuesday, April 5, 2011 5:51 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalinkno, I feel like I've participated in an ILX poll lol― in my world of loose geirs (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, April 5, 2011 5:55 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark
― ℳℴℯ ❤\(◕‿◕✿ (Princess TamTam), Tuesday, April 5, 2011 5:51 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink
no, I feel like I've participated in an ILX poll lol
― in my world of loose geirs (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, April 5, 2011 5:55 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark
― Pigmeat Arkham (James Redd and the Blecchs), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:29 (thirteen years ago) link
So are we doing another thread to just post lists?
― Fig On A Plate Cart (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:32 (thirteen years ago) link
I think we're waiting for tomorrow, when #52 - #100 is getting posted
― fat fat fat fat Usher (DJP), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:33 (thirteen years ago) link
Never doubted Earthsea would be top five but delighted to see it do so well - it's a kind of book that I can't imagine existing now, a book about a child, written for children not adults, but children with adult reading ages? I read Atuan again a month ago when trying to decide where to place it (#2 in the end) and it was astonishingly written still, better than I ever remembered.
― Gravel Puzzleworth, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:38 (thirteen years ago) link
Haha well that will be my first Stephenson then, since it's the only one I already have a copy of.
― the Stars That Play with Laughing Sam's Doink (Jon Lewis), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:40 (thirteen years ago) link
Thanks to whoever else voted for the 1st Edition DMG incidentally! It is the best book out of all the books.
― Gravel Puzzleworth, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:44 (thirteen years ago) link
woof's post about how he'd stan for LOTR constantly if it had been unsuccessful is my takeaway from this poll I think? Never thought of it that way but it is v. true!
― Gravel Puzzleworth, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:48 (thirteen years ago) link
Will now write an alt history novel in which the cultural receptions of LOTR and Gormenghast are swapped.
― the Stars That Play with Laughing Sam's Doink (Jon Lewis), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:53 (thirteen years ago) link
I would love to read that book!
― The Louvin Spoonful (WmC), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:57 (thirteen years ago) link
and 9/11 never happens as a result
― the Stars That Play with Laughing Sam's Doink (Jon Lewis), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 20:59 (thirteen years ago) link
picked up 10 books I wanna read from this thread already
anticipating/dreading the 52-100 reveal
― sorry ozzy but your dope is in another castle (Edward III), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 21:04 (thirteen years ago) link
I voted for Watership Down very highly on my Ballot! Also that one #1 vote for Neuromancer was mine I think...
― I love my puppy -- and she loves me! (Viceroy), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 21:05 (thirteen years ago) link
I missed all of this!
random comments-
Pychon´s "V" is unreadable imo, his worst.
There's like a three-page bit where one character pedantically corrects another for not pronouncing Welsh properly. f u, Susan Cooper
gtfo that part is awesome
everybody should read "Riddley Walker"
thanx Lamp
― sleeve, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 21:09 (thirteen years ago) link
I put the Baroque Cycle on my ballot. Definitely worth the effort
― Number None, Wednesday, 6 April 2011 21:10 (thirteen years ago) link
I wonder what the handwritten manuscript for the Baroque Cycle would auction for.
― The Louvin Spoonful (WmC), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 21:18 (thirteen years ago) link
agree that everyone should read Riddley Walker
― in my world of loose geirs (Shakey Mo Collier), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 21:19 (thirteen years ago) link
O!T!M! There's a even a line where Will says, "I expect Welsh babies dribble a lot." And that book is the only reason why I know that the name Bran isn't pronounced like the cereal.
― Back up the lesbian canoe (Laurel), Wednesday, 6 April 2011 21:22 (thirteen years ago) link