Chip Butty
boosted
A new year means a new rewatch of The Expanse right?
A new year means a new rewatch of The Expanse right?
Book Review: Under the Eye of the Big Bird - Hiromi Kawakami
https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2026/01/book-review-under-the-eye-of-the-big-bird-hiromi-kawakami/
This is an intriguing and mostly satisfying sci-fi tale. It has shades of Oryx Crake mixed in with A Canticle for Leibowitz - we are mere observers of the tattered remains of humanity. Watchers guide scattered settlements as they strive to evolve and understand their place on a corrupted Earth.
The writing is dreamy and hazy - reminiscent of Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go. It isn't immediately clear what's happening; the story is drip-fed to us. Unfortunately it is rather undone by the penultimate chapter which is a great-big data-dump of exposition.
If you've ever seen the show Don't Hug Me I'm Scared you'll be well at home with the surreal and oblique nature of the storytelling presented here. The language is obtuse and confusing, reflecting the confusion these new humans feel.
I think part of the story is a rejection of the hierarchy and artificial inter-personal structures often seen in societies like Japan. Everyone is simultaneously desperate to escape their confines while rigidly enforcing the status quo - with predictably disastrous results.
It is a meandering tale, spanning eons, which ultimately feels a bit depressing.
#BookReview #SciFi
Yogthos
boosted
Jhon Harris amazing sci-fi art.
When it is all about the mood.
4 media
Jhon Harris amazing sci-fi art.
When it is all about the mood.
4 media
Quixoticgeek
boosted
Finished reading Becky Chambers’ The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet last night. Such a fun sci-fi read. Feels less like a big story and more like a series of “episodes” each of which shows the reader more about the characters and the rich and varied galaxy they inhabit. There’s an overarching story it hangs on which has a gripping finale that you care all the more about by then.
Finished reading Becky Chambers’ The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet last night. Such a fun sci-fi read. Feels less like a big story and more like a series of “episodes” each of which shows the reader more about the characters and the rich and varied galaxy they inhabit. There’s an overarching story it hangs on which has a gripping finale that you care all the more about by then.
Chip Butty
boosted
It's National Science Fiction Day.
This day honors the birthday of sci-fi author Isaac Asimov.
It's National Science Fiction Day.
This day honors the birthday of sci-fi author Isaac Asimov.
Andrew (Television Executive)
and 2 others
boosted
ALIENS (1979)
Acrylic on Watercolor Board - 23” x 14”
The concept here is that the aliens and the lone human-—who is an alien to the others—are posing for a group photograph, with the photographer being out of view to the right. ¼
#sciencefiction #scifi #scifiart #illustration #anthology #gardnerdozois #jackdann
hypebot
boosted
CHANUR’S HOMECOMING (1986)
Acrylic on Watercolor Board - 30” X 18”
The biggest challenge painting alien creatures is finding ways to communicate information about the way they think via gestures available to their peculiar forms. The more humanoid the alien, the easier the job because everyone has innate knowledge of the subtleties of human nonverbal expression. 1/3
#sciencefiction #scifi #scifiart #illustration #cjcherryh #dawbooks
CHANUR’S HOMECOMING (1986)
Acrylic on Watercolor Board - 30” X 18”
The biggest challenge painting alien creatures is finding ways to communicate information about the way they think via gestures available to their peculiar forms. The more humanoid the alien, the easier the job because everyone has innate knowledge of the subtleties of human nonverbal expression. 1/3
#sciencefiction #scifi #scifiart #illustration #cjcherryh #dawbooks
hypebot
boosted
THE MULE (1985)
Acrylic on Canvas 32” x 20”
For book two of the Foundation series, there was once again a clear choice for the central subject.
Outwardly a buffoon, the Mule is the greatest concentration of power in a single individual in the Galaxy, the one variable Seldon overlooked in his massive plan. 1/3
#sciencefiction #scifi #scifiart #sff #illustration #foundation #isaacasimov #delreybooks
THE MULE (1985)
Acrylic on Canvas 32” x 20”
For book two of the Foundation series, there was once again a clear choice for the central subject.
Outwardly a buffoon, the Mule is the greatest concentration of power in a single individual in the Galaxy, the one variable Seldon overlooked in his massive plan. 1/3
#sciencefiction #scifi #scifiart #sff #illustration #foundation #isaacasimov #delreybooks
hypebot
boosted
FLANDRY OF TERRA (1979)
Acrylic on Board - 27 ½" x 16"
This illustration differed from others at the time in that I used models. 1/3
#sciencefiction #sff #scifi #scifiart #illustration #poulanderson #dominicflandry
hypebot
boosted
PEGASUS IN FLIGHT (1990)
Acrylic on Watercolor Board - 29” x 20”
This was a rare instance, especially with Anne’s books, when Del Rey dictated what they wanted on the cover. I didn’t get to read the manuscript. Instead I worked with a brief overview. 1/3
#sciencefiction #scifi #scifiart #sff #illustration #annemccaffrey #delreybooks
FLANDRY OF TERRA (1979)
Acrylic on Board - 27 ½" x 16"
This illustration differed from others at the time in that I used models. 1/3
#sciencefiction #sff #scifi #scifiart #illustration #poulanderson #dominicflandry
ALIENS (1979)
Acrylic on Watercolor Board - 23” x 14”
The concept here is that the aliens and the lone human-—who is an alien to the others—are posing for a group photograph, with the photographer being out of view to the right. ¼
#sciencefiction #scifi #scifiart #illustration #anthology #gardnerdozois #jackdann