A robot valet wondering in doomed world Adrian Tchaikovsky, the science fiction writer, is a master at crafting bleak, hellish future worlds. But in Service Model, a 2024 science-fiction satire telling the story of a robot valet wandering in a doomed world, he has truly outdone himself, conjuring an absurd realm where human societies have crumbled, and humanity teeters on the brink of extinction. ...
I just finished The Mercy of Gods by James S.A. Corey, best known for the Expanse series. It’s a space opera about a team of top biologists who find themselves taken captive by brutal alien invaders. Forced into servitude, they must decide how to navigate life under these new, hostile conditions. The setup is rich with tension and moral dilemmas. The first part of the book reveals certain dynamics in the academic world — competition for discoveries, power plays, and the undercurrent of personal ambitions. Even in pursuit of something noble, like advancing knowledge, human frailties often take centre stage. ...
(Spoiler Alert. Don’t read this if you have not read the book.) Last week, I finished a 1989 novel The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro, which I found both captivating and thoughtful. A film adaption, staring Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson, is also worth watching. The protagonist Stevens is a butler (a servant who manges a big house). From 1930s to 1950s, he works in a mansion in England, serving Lord Darlington, an influential British politician during the 30s. The main reason that I like the book is that the story of Stevens offers both great inspirations and stern warnings regarding how one should live a life. ...
Flowers for Algernon is a classic science-fiction novel by Daniel Keyes published in 1966. I finished reading it last week and was greatly impressed. The story is touching and the characters are likable. But most importantly, many issues raised by the book, such as how we should treat people with mental problems, are still quite important after more than half a century. The main character, Charlie Gordon, is 32 years old with an IQ of only 68. He receives an experimental treatment which turns him into a genius. However, becoming smart does not always make Charlie happy as he expected. At some point, he asks ...