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1jsdelia
I have a certain fondness for books/stories where the protagonist is discovering who they actually are (maybe limited to memory loss type situations, although perhaps there are other creative ways that this situation can come to pass).
Or, alternatively, the protagonist might know who he/she is but the reader has to figure it out on the fly. In essence, an "identity puzzle" is the best way I can describe this.
I'm not limited by genre, but am posting in SF because this community is large and there is likely to be a lot of recommendations from SF/Fantasy.
Examples:
Books such as "Chronicles of Amber" and "Bourne Identity" come to mind as excellent examples. A bit of a stretch but many Tarantino's "Kill Bill" works for me here as well (the main character may know who she is and what is going on, but the audience has to figure out the puzzle over time).
Non-examples:
What I'm not interested in is the tried and true "coming of age" identity crisis material where the kid doesn't realize he/she is a descendent of some great bloodline/power/whatever. (i.e., King Arthur (probably the original), Luke Skywalker, Garion of the Belgariad, etc.).
Any recommendations?
Or, alternatively, the protagonist might know who he/she is but the reader has to figure it out on the fly. In essence, an "identity puzzle" is the best way I can describe this.
I'm not limited by genre, but am posting in SF because this community is large and there is likely to be a lot of recommendations from SF/Fantasy.
Examples:
Books such as "Chronicles of Amber" and "Bourne Identity" come to mind as excellent examples. A bit of a stretch but many Tarantino's "Kill Bill" works for me here as well (the main character may know who she is and what is going on, but the audience has to figure out the puzzle over time).
Non-examples:
What I'm not interested in is the tried and true "coming of age" identity crisis material where the kid doesn't realize he/she is a descendent of some great bloodline/power/whatever. (i.e., King Arthur (probably the original), Luke Skywalker, Garion of the Belgariad, etc.).
Any recommendations?
2iansales
Template by Matthew Hughes. I've just reviewed it for Interzone. It's available from PS Publishing.
There's also Lord Valentine's Castle by Robert Silverberg.
Quite a few novels by Vance are this sort of bildungsroman, too.
There's also Lord Valentine's Castle by Robert Silverberg.
Quite a few novels by Vance are this sort of bildungsroman, too.
4Jim53
Identity issues are a staple in Gene Wolfe's novels. In The Fifth Head of Cerberus, the primary narrator must discover the truth about his family, and the reader must work out the identity of the author of the second section (an anthropologist, or a shapshifter he was studying, who has assumed his identity?).
Wolfe's Latro novels, Soldier in the Mist et seq., are narrated by a soldier in ancient Greece who has lost his memory, and who records his life on a scrap of parchment, which he must read each morning to recall who he is. I have read the first two of these, and found them slightly tough going, but quite rewarding.
There are identity issues bubbling beneath the surface in Wolfe's magna opera, the "solar cycle," but the reader has to do some work to recognize that the issues exist, much less solve them.
Wolfe's Latro novels, Soldier in the Mist et seq., are narrated by a soldier in ancient Greece who has lost his memory, and who records his life on a scrap of parchment, which he must read each morning to recall who he is. I have read the first two of these, and found them slightly tough going, but quite rewarding.
There are identity issues bubbling beneath the surface in Wolfe's magna opera, the "solar cycle," but the reader has to do some work to recognize that the issues exist, much less solve them.
6arthurfrayn
Keith Laumer's The Infinite Cage is one of the best novels about that kind of thing that I've read.
I have a review of that on LT, so you can get a reasonable synopsis when you look at the book on the LT link.
Ah, I forgot AE Van Vogt's The Book of Ptath.
A synopsis from the link listed directly below:
"The setting is Earth, 200 millions years from now. Peter Holworth wakes up in a state of amnesia. Little by little, he remembers that he's died in a battle during WWII and remarks that a second personality is living now in his body. In fact, a being named Ptath, is trapped in Holworth's body. Ptath had decided a long time ago to be incarnated in the body of a series of common people in order to learn empathy, a feeling that could help him rule his country Gonwonlane. But, during Ptath's absence, a being named Ineznia has seized the reins of power and begun a hunt in order to catch a still weak Ptath. Both have the ability to leave their carnal body and secretly pass from people to people by squatting their mind. Soon, as Ptath is recovering, a huge battle is in the air, involving the armed forces of the three continents."
http://www.allreaders.com/Topics/Info_16268.asp
That's on Pringle's Top 10 Fantasy list, for what that's worth. Despite how that synopsis reads, this is less like that King Arthur thing you don't want to see, and more like a surreal identity puzzle story. It's actually a pretty weird read. I read it working out a hangover and that gave the whole thing a real fever pitch. ;)
The World of Null-A is about this as well, but I'm not terribly fond of that book.
I suppose one could put Use of Weapons in this category as well.
Not SF, but a real good noir one of this type of story is Buddwing by Evan Hunter.
Made into a film with James Garner:
Guy wakes up in the street with total amnesia doesn't remember his shoe size. Gets a name from looking up a plane and seeing a beer truck (Buddwing -get it?)
and finds a phone number in his pocket and that's all he has to go on.
As far as movies go, just to add them to the mix, in addition to the Nolan bros. "Memento" mentioned above, there's also, Brad Andersons' "Session 9" and "The Machinist"
I have a review of that on LT, so you can get a reasonable synopsis when you look at the book on the LT link.
Ah, I forgot AE Van Vogt's The Book of Ptath.
A synopsis from the link listed directly below:
"The setting is Earth, 200 millions years from now. Peter Holworth wakes up in a state of amnesia. Little by little, he remembers that he's died in a battle during WWII and remarks that a second personality is living now in his body. In fact, a being named Ptath, is trapped in Holworth's body. Ptath had decided a long time ago to be incarnated in the body of a series of common people in order to learn empathy, a feeling that could help him rule his country Gonwonlane. But, during Ptath's absence, a being named Ineznia has seized the reins of power and begun a hunt in order to catch a still weak Ptath. Both have the ability to leave their carnal body and secretly pass from people to people by squatting their mind. Soon, as Ptath is recovering, a huge battle is in the air, involving the armed forces of the three continents."
http://www.allreaders.com/Topics/Info_16268.asp
That's on Pringle's Top 10 Fantasy list, for what that's worth. Despite how that synopsis reads, this is less like that King Arthur thing you don't want to see, and more like a surreal identity puzzle story. It's actually a pretty weird read. I read it working out a hangover and that gave the whole thing a real fever pitch. ;)
The World of Null-A is about this as well, but I'm not terribly fond of that book.
I suppose one could put Use of Weapons in this category as well.
Not SF, but a real good noir one of this type of story is Buddwing by Evan Hunter.
Made into a film with James Garner:
Guy wakes up in the street with total amnesia doesn't remember his shoe size. Gets a name from looking up a plane and seeing a beer truck (Buddwing -get it?)
and finds a phone number in his pocket and that's all he has to go on.
As far as movies go, just to add them to the mix, in addition to the Nolan bros. "Memento" mentioned above, there's also, Brad Andersons' "Session 9" and "The Machinist"
7iansales
Does The Raw Shark Texts by Steven Hall count? It was on this year's Arthur C Clarke Award shortlist.
8andyl
Saturn Returns by Sean Williams deals with a main character who has quite a few gaps in his memory.
11bluetyson
Cliff is right, if you got a lot of Philip K. Dick stuff, you'd be happy
We Can Remember It For You Wholesale etc. etc.
We Can Remember It For You Wholesale etc. etc.
12Whatnot
Another recommendation for Philip K. Dick. Just pick up almost any of his short story collections, and you'll be set.
Somebody beat me to mentioning We Can Remember It For You Wholesale.
I haven't read Paycheck by PKD, but from the description, it contains similar themes.
Somebody beat me to mentioning We Can Remember It For You Wholesale.
I haven't read Paycheck by PKD, but from the description, it contains similar themes.
13arthurfrayn
Before anyone else recommends PKD, I think people should check out his library. Right now, it's whole lots of PKD, and a few other things.;)
I don't know why jsdelia didn't mention it, but there it is.
I don't know why jsdelia didn't mention it, but there it is.
15arthurfrayn
I agree. That's why I wanted to give a heads up. ;)
16CliffBurns
You are wise, oh, Arthur...
17arthurfrayn
I try to do my part. ;)
18CliffBurns
How about RIVERWORLD (Philip Jose Farmer)?
Richard Burton and other historical luminaries trying to figure out why they've been reborn along the banks of a seemingly endless river...
Richard Burton and other historical luminaries trying to figure out why they've been reborn along the banks of a seemingly endless river...
19rgurskey
I'm not sure if Use of Weapons fits the bill.
20johnnyapollo
Cully Foyle in the Stars My Destination - a classic!
21JohnFair
Ben Bova's Orion series has Our Hero thinking he's just an Ordinary Joe to begin with...
Given that you are also allowing the reader to work out the protagonist, I guess that Agatha Christie's And Then there Were None sort of counts - it's not quite the usual crime novel problem of picking a living murderer after all.
Given that you are also allowing the reader to work out the protagonist, I guess that Agatha Christie's And Then there Were None sort of counts - it's not quite the usual crime novel problem of picking a living murderer after all.
22Aquila
Charles Stross' Glasshouse has a central character who is recovering from having their memories wiped.
23GotoTengo
Two examples involve memory loss after an accident, The Echo Maker by Richard Powers and Oblivion by Peter Abrahams. I enjoyed Oblivion, the Echo Maker not so much. The last is a fictional telling of a real life case, Caspar Hauser or the Inertia of the Heart by Jakob Wasserman, about a young illiterate amnesiac who may be the heir to a European throne.
25Jenson_AKA_DL
Sunrise Alley by Catherine Asaro is the book that immediately came to mind when I saw this thread.
26bkhl
Use of Weapons is a good example, but Banks' first novel (not marketed as SF) The Wasp Factory might be even better.
By the way I find it interesting that the original poster says not interested in clichéd fairy story style realisations of destiny, right after mentioning the Amber series (mainly indicating Nine Princes in Amber, I assume).
By the way I find it interesting that the original poster says not interested in clichéd fairy story style realisations of destiny, right after mentioning the Amber series (mainly indicating Nine Princes in Amber, I assume).
27jsdelia
Hehe.
#13. I should have mentioned I have a ton of PKD...and that has been the first material I have entered into my library. Which came first, my interest, or my PKD reading? Not really sure.
#26. I was only specific in that I said I wasn't interested in "coming of age" identity material. Nine Princes in Amber is not "coming of age". Also, I'm not sure I would classify it (as you do) as clichéd fairy story style realizations of destiny (certainly, not as clichéd when first published in 1972, and yes I'm old enough :-)), but that's just personal opinion. I found it "refreshingly" unexpected (and still do) to see brothers and sisters going after each other so aggressively (to the point of trying to knock each other off). Fun stuff.
All. Thanks for all the great recommendations so far. Lots to add to my reading list.
#13. I should have mentioned I have a ton of PKD...and that has been the first material I have entered into my library. Which came first, my interest, or my PKD reading? Not really sure.
#26. I was only specific in that I said I wasn't interested in "coming of age" identity material. Nine Princes in Amber is not "coming of age". Also, I'm not sure I would classify it (as you do) as clichéd fairy story style realizations of destiny (certainly, not as clichéd when first published in 1972, and yes I'm old enough :-)), but that's just personal opinion. I found it "refreshingly" unexpected (and still do) to see brothers and sisters going after each other so aggressively (to the point of trying to knock each other off). Fun stuff.
All. Thanks for all the great recommendations so far. Lots to add to my reading list.
28RobertDay
No-one's mentioned Bob Shaw's Who goes here?: in the past, people joined the French Foreign Legion to forget - but then had to spend hard years soldiering in hostile parts of the world and even then forgetting was never guaranteed. In the future, this problem has been solved. When you join the Space Legion, they hook you up to a machine that selectively wipes your short/medium-term memory. Bingo! You wake up to find that you've forgotten whatever it was that was making you so unhappy.
Then they show you the contract you've signed. Ten (or twenty) (or thirty) (or more...) years, and of course you have no memory of signing it..
But Warren Peace wakes up to find that he can remember nothing of his previous life at all. "You must have been REALLY BAD" people keep helpfully telling him. He spends the rest of the novel trying to discover what was so bad that the machine would wipe all his memory.
This was Bob's only overtly comic novel, and has much of the excruciatingly funny writing of his best fan fiction. (The belated sequel, Warren Peace; Dimensions, is best avoided.)
Then they show you the contract you've signed. Ten (or twenty) (or thirty) (or more...) years, and of course you have no memory of signing it..
But Warren Peace wakes up to find that he can remember nothing of his previous life at all. "You must have been REALLY BAD" people keep helpfully telling him. He spends the rest of the novel trying to discover what was so bad that the machine would wipe all his memory.
This was Bob's only overtly comic novel, and has much of the excruciatingly funny writing of his best fan fiction. (The belated sequel, Warren Peace; Dimensions, is best avoided.)
29geneg
Not to quibble, but just a small quibble with the statement that people joined the French Foreign Legion to forget. I thought it was to be forgotten.
30stellarexplorer
Behold the Man by Michael Moorcock.
The Last Starship From Earth by John Boyd
The Last Starship From Earth by John Boyd
31HoldenCarver
I see Riverworld has been mentioned, but there's an obvious Farmer series that hasn't - considering Zelazny acknowledged it as being an influence on Amber, which is mentioned in the initial post; the World of Tiers books.
32ChrisRiesbeck
#29
Not sure why people *really* join, but "to forget" has been a common plot point for a long time, e.g., Laurel and Hardy's The Flying Deuces.
Not sure why people *really* join, but "to forget" has been a common plot point for a long time, e.g., Laurel and Hardy's The Flying Deuces.
33PortiaLong
Can't let this go by in the SF group without tossing in one by the GrandMaster Robert A. Heinlein: Citizen of the Galaxy. Blurb from the cover "Thorby was a slave with a past he couldn't remember and a future that didn't look too promising..." (1950s juvenile SF)
34dankimberg
A few random additions:
Samuel R. Delany's Dhalgren
Roger Zelazny's Creatures of Light and Darkness
Paul Auster's playful and mercifully short Travels in the Scriptorium
Samuel R. Delany's Dhalgren
Roger Zelazny's Creatures of Light and Darkness
Paul Auster's playful and mercifully short Travels in the Scriptorium
35RoboSchro
I just read Fools by Pat Cadigan -- the protagonist in that one might be one of several people, temporarily deluded that she's one of several other people.
I didn't think much of it, mind you.
I didn't think much of it, mind you.
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