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Loading... 334by Thomas M. Disch
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. A classic that survived surprisingly well, given its anchoring in 60s and 70s US concerns of welfare state dependencies and overcrowding. I realised that I had read many parts of it before as novellas or short stories (including Angouleme) but it was still a fresh read. The final section, with its diagram showing how the segments move back and forth between years and narrators. was particularly effective although I found the narrative harder going as I was reading the book in small chunks separated by a lot of time. (  )1   kevinashley | Sep 21, 2008 |  A friend recently formed a local classic Sci-Fi book club. This, 334, was the third book on our reading list. To put it simply, I was not impressed. What's more, I can safely say I was far from alone. Now granted that our group is small, only about a dozen of us. When we gathered to discuss this book, admittedly only 5 of us were involved in the conversation, but only one of the group present could say they liked this book. One reader went so far as to stop reading it, so much was his dislike of this book. I can only say that I finished only out of stubbornness. Not much of a recommendation for any book... (  )1 Gutshot | Jul 15, 2007 | It's a shame that Disch is so little known. Familiar mostly to Sci-Fi afficianados, his grasp of language and social trend is excellent. Perhaps Philip K. Dick said it best after reading Disch, "(w)hen I finished...I was different." (  ) Daedalus | Feb 22, 2006 |  no reviews | add a review
Amazon.com (ISBN 0375705449, Paperback)The stories in 334 revolve loosely around a government housing project at 334 East 11th Street in New York City in the 2020s. The project's inhabitants are universally poor, often jobless, sometimes squalid. Some are happy, others angry, depressed, or just numb. The stories study their hopes and disappointments, and all are deeply introspective.The early 21st-century setting might, in the hands of another author, be only a guise, a shortcut to making a world that's more gritty, shabby, and used up than ours. But Disch's future is thoroughly imagined, and he's adept at dropping in details of his characters' lives that are commonplace to them but jarring to us. It might be something as simple as going to the kitchen to "mix up a glass of milk." Occasionally it's radical, as in the case of Millie, who wants to have a baby but also keep her career. The answer? The child is gestated in an artificial womb and Millie's husband gets mammary implants. Though American, Disch is closely associated with the UK's New Wave movement, and these stories reflect the New Wave emphasis on character above ideas. He's also a well-known poet, and in 334 you'll find some of the most lyrical science fiction written. --Brooks Peck (retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:58:22 -0400) The first test round has been closed. Visit the Open Shelves Classification group for details. |
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