gallyangel
8/3/2023
This one was a real mixed bag.
Since it was written rapidly in the late sixties, it is a reflection of that moment in time. What Aldiss was doing and thinking about, the other SF writers he was interacting with and even the day to day that he touched upon was all interesting.
What wasn't interesting was his speculations about things, where they might head from that moment in time. No clue, just like normal. If that young version of Aldiss got into a Time Machine and wandered around today in 2023, he'd be enchanted and in culture-shock.
He also wrote some about the current state of scientific discovery in several fields and that was very dated as well.
I think the only real use this book has now, is that of a sign-post. That this is what a SF author in the late sixties was thinking and doing. That's where SF was then. I think it's very important that we remember how SF changes with the times. And this book pins down some of the late sixties for us.