Like The Stars My Destination, this is a classic of Sci-fi. The concepts & plot are still fresh & original 50 years on, & the style very impressive, again utilising unusual typography. The concepts of 'espers' & the psychological explorations clearly influenced PK Dick, which is an additional reason to read it. ( )

This was an intense book. Every word seemed charged with rage and hostility; especially from the main villain. There were even moments when the cop (hero) was questionable. The most compelling thing about this novel was the authors basics for telepaths. Bester's concepts for telepaths given high homage in 'Babylon 5'. This novel is a well written murder mystery with a fascinating finale. You will truly understand what it means to be 'demolished'. ( )

Old time favourite, first I can remember which handled the implications of telepathy (Espers) and still the best. ( )

In a world where much of the population is psychic, one man plots to do the impossible. Ben Reich, cartel owner, has quite a few problems on his mind - his business rival, Cray D'Courtney is undermining Reich, and Reich sees only one, rather drastic solution to his problems - murder. It seems that the business world of the twenty-fourth century is quite a cut-throat one.

Bester thumbs his nose at all of the conventions of a police procedural and a mystery novel. Bester presents the criminal, Ben Reich, to the reader within the first few pages of the novel. We're shown the planning and execution the criminal act, rather than the details of the incident puzzled out by the reader and narrator alike. There's also a disregard for the conventions of older SF stories, which I greatly enjoyed here, too.

However, the story wouldn't work unless Bester delivered it well, and this he certainly has. It's quite a fast-paced book, and throws a lot of ideas about that have little to do with the plot. The nineteen-fifties in space this certainly is not. Yes, there are a few minor slip-ups that are less than prescient (a punch-card computer, for example, displays the book's age) but for the most part, Bester does a commendable effort in trying to craft a believeable future.

Overall, it's an interesting idea, and well written. The main part of the book I didn't particularly enjoy was the ending - I felt somewhat cheated, in a way. Still, an excellent novel, and quite worth reading, doubly so if you do not like the formulae of the typical detective story. ( )

This is a very clever story and an excellent example of early science fiction.
In a world where peepers exist (a proportion of the population who can read others' minds, thoughts, intentions) is it possible to commit murder? This story is a murder mystery turned on its head, and the reader gets completely caught up in it. ( )

I absolutely loved the premise of this book. What I had a tough time with was in trying to relate to the characters. But the storyline was interesting enough to get me through it. I give it a high rating, but the potential was there to score five stars. Then again, Alfred Bester is Alfred Bester, and I'm an unpublished wannabe. ( )

One of the best-ever S-F (and murder-mystery-thriller) books, this is a "how-done-it" rather than a "who-done-it", because we know who, but we don't know how he commits the murder, or how he thinks he can get away with it when the police are mind-readers, and know he did it. Bester also indulges in some ingenious typography to illustrate telepathic interaction. ( )

A brilliant glimpse into a future world in which telepaths monitor and maintain society, and in which a daring and amazingly adept pyschopath has the gall to seek to commit murder. The world, the characters, and the dialog are colorful, descriptive, and artful in how in few words much can be conveyed — a lost art in today's literature. A true classic, of science fiction, and of twentieth century American literature. ( )

The Demolished man won the first Hugo Award in 1953 and after reading the book I cannot imagine another book beating it. Seen by many as a precursor of the 'cyberpunk' sci-fi novels that followed later in the '80's it certainly has the same style of 'high tech and low life' with large megacorporations running a future society and telepaths (called Espers) are an everyday occurence in all walks of life from business and therapy to the police force.
This is essentially a detective story where one of the owners of a multi-national corporation, Ben Reich, facing bankruptcy attempts to commit the perfect murder of his main rival Craye d'Courtney despite the seemingly insurmountable problem of doing so with Espers and modern police procedure having all but wiped out crime. To help him try to confuse their telepathic abilities he recites over and over a rhyme; "Tenser said the tensor; tension, apprehension and dissension have begun" which is so persistent it prevents the espers 'peeping' into his mind. And from this we follow a wonderful chase across space as the policeman in charge of the investigation, Lincoln Powell, attempts to prove his suspicions.
It is a wonderfully fast paced book full of noir-ish characters in a seedy futuristic underworld but it is the language Alfred Bester uses that really makes this book stand out and the pictures of words he creates on the page when the espers are communicating with sentences seemingly running up, down and diagonally at the same time. It is often criticised for appearing dated but do not let this put you off, this is a wonderful moment from the golden age of sci-fi. ( )

A very good SF thriller about a man trying to cover up a "perfect murder" in a society where telepaths are everywhere and about those trying to catch him. Loses a star and half because the ending has a bit of a "WTF? Huh?" quality to it. ( )

I was delighted to find that this is actually a detective story, if an odd one. ( )

Pre09:
Characters: Erm... I remember the main guy... that's pretty much it.
Plot: Convoluted as shit. Don't remember other than he's going crazy.
Style: Timeless Sci-Fi. Worth a read. Can never forget 'Tension Apprehension and Dissension have Begun!' ( )

In 2301 A.D., guns are only museum pieces and benign telepaths sweep the minds of the populace to detect crimes before they happen. In 2301 A.D., homicide is virtually impossible -- but one man is about to change that...[A] psychopathic business magnate devises the ultimate scheme to eliminate the competition and destroy the order of his society. Hurtling from the orgies of a future aristocracy to a deep space game preserve, and across densely realized subcultures of psychic doctors, grifters, and police, The Demolished Man is a masterpiece of high-tech suspense, set in a world in which everything has changed except for the ancient instinct for murder. (From the back cover)

It's truly a joy to read classic SF that holds up so well. This excellent story hasn't been dated much by advances in science over the last five decades. It's fast-paced, hardcore SF that presents futuristic technology without venturing into Flash Gordon/Buck Rogers hokiness. The premise is plausible and well-developed, if a trifle predictable (my jaded SF/police procedural-accustomed brain figured out the "mystery" about 2/3rds through).

I got a chuckle out of some of the names: 1/4maine; @kins, Wyg&. Clever. Oh, and I loved the sing-song rhyme that plays a major role: "Tension, apprehension and dissension have begun."

Highly recommended. ( )

This one shows up near the top on most critics' lists of "Greatest Science Fiction novels." To be honest, I found it dated (somewhat forgiveable) and a bit dull (not so forgiveable, given its reputation as a thriller). I've had similar reactions to other 50s SF novels, so maybe its just the period I don't care for (although I loved "The Stars My Destination"). In any case, its a fairly quick read, so maybe I'll try it again. ( )

A little dated-- but a Classic. Enough said ( )

I do not know my way around detective fiction or science fiction, so I have little to say about the "Demolished Man." I also generally avoid books that would lose nothing in their transition from paper to the big screen. Stories that do not need to be written are uninteresting as texts even if they are entertaining. I kept having the sensation that I've already seen a film adaptation of Bester's novel; but it is more likely that others have borrowed from this influential writer. He seems to have a good deal in common with Phillip K. Dick and this book reminded me frequently of "Minority Report"--the movie.

Extra-sensory perception, cabal politics, double-crossing and four or five twists in the last twenty pages: par for the course, I'm guessing. ( )

Hugo for Best Novel 1953. Police procedural centering around telepathy, with strong policeman/murderer figures. Heavy Freudian themes. Fast-paced and verbally acrobatic. Pioneering work of SF as literature. Moderate profanity, frequent euphemistic references to sex, occasional graphic violence. Women treated stereotypically as objects.

Super Reader: In The Demolished Man, society goes for the Doc Savage school of rehabilitation of criminals. i.e. they alter their brains and minds until they are good productive citizens. Telepaths can generally notice when crimes will be committed beforehand.

Here, a clever supervillain type is at large, and has a plan to change things. A man must try and stop him.

A crazy fun suspense SF from the olden days. One of the best examples of Bester's genius: perfect storytelling efficiency. ( )

This is classic sci-fi, winner of the very first Hugo Award in 1953, but you know, I just didn't like it. This was a mystery about a man who tries to get away with murder in a future where mindreading makes such a thing pretty much impossible. Maybe when this was first written it was fresh and thrilling, but fifty-five years later it just seems flat and uninteresting to me. The mindreading "peepers" are boring with their guild and their strict code of ethics that nobody really follows, the science is outdated with computers that take up entire rooms and run on punch cards, and character names like @kins, Wig& and ¼main just seem like text-messaging, not futuristic at all. The story was a bit confusing and the big twist at the end, was more of a little tweak than anything. ( )

In The Demolished Man, society goes for the Doc Savage school of rehabilitation of criminals. i.e. they alter their brains and minds until they are good productive citizens. Telepaths can generally notice when crimes will be committed beforehand.

Here, a clever supervillain type is at large, and has a plan to change things. A man must try and stop him.

http://superprose.blogspot.com/2006/12/demolished-man.html ( )

(Review at my blog) ( )

great book. a classic. the language in the book works today as it did over fifty years ago, which is genuinely surprising for an sf novel. ( )

This is a very good book; it is amazing that Bester wrote it over 50 years ago. The future world he envisions is clever, fascinating and compelling. It feels far less dated than you would expect for a book written so long ago. The writing is fast paced and proficient. At times (especially when groups of espers are conversing) even dazzling.

The two main characters of the book are Ben Reich, the wealthy tycoon who resolves to commit a murder in a crime free world, and Lincoln Powell, the esper cop who is determined to catch him. These are intriguing complicated characters, drawn with psychological insight.

My disappointments with the book were (1) the romance angle between Powell and the daughter of the murder victim felt unconvincing and was not really needed, and (2) I wanted Jerry Church, the disgraced telepath who had been disbarred for getting involved in a past Reich scheme, to play a greater role in the story. Don’t look for any strong female characters.

Still, highly recommended. ( )

http://www.lincolnlibraries.org/depts... ( )