Tag: sci-fi

  • The Muppets Meet Murderbot

    For the last year and a half or so Andrle and I have been having a ton of fun as part of an online book club put together by my friend Tanya. Unlike most book clubs where you all read the same thing, we all just share things we love that we’ve been reading. One…

  • The Martian

    The Martian by Andy Weir My rating: 4 of 5 stars I won’t deny part of my motivation for reading this book is the impending release of the movie based on it. I have a strong preference for having read the book before seeing a film adaptation, and The Martian was both a book I’d…

  • Robopocalypse

    Robopocalypse by Daniel H. Wilson My rating: 3 of 5 stars This one has been on my list for a while, discovered somewhere online. It seemed right up my alley. I was reminded to tackle it after my friend Emily read it recently, and I wanted to see if my impression lined up with her…

  • Mockingjay

    Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins My rating: 4 of 5 stars I finished this third and final book on the plane down to Cancun a few weeks ago. I didn’t get a chance to review it on account of the travel and then the end of the semester. Up front: I liked it, although not quite…

  • Catching Fire

    Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins My rating: 4 of 5 stars Finished this one a week ago. On a few levels, I liked this second book in the trilogy more than the first. In particular, the balance between world-building and action was better: I preferred the history over the combat. I would guess that is…

  • Captain Picard Doesn’t Have an iPad

    It should be of no surprise to any of you that I am a huge Trekkie. You are probably also aware that I am a total MacAddict. What better binding of bailiwicks than to blather about both? Star Trek has been at various times credited with inspiring a number of modern gadgets, including the mobile…

  • The Hunger Games

    The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins My rating: 4 of 5 stars This book has been out for a while, and has been on my list for some time, based both on the general buzz and direct recommendations, not to mention that dystopian near-future young adult sci-fi is right up my alley. I got the…

  • Moon

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    I saw the film Moon at the Somerville Theatre this afternoon. It is everything you want from a classic sci-fi story, in terms of addressing the human experience, using a futuristic setting. It also has modern production values, but without any of the empty action sequences typical of a major sci-fi motion picture. Sam Rockwell…