Thursday, May 23, 2024

First Lines of Samuel R. Delany's "Nova"

 "'Hey, Mouse! Play us something,' one of the mechanics called from the bar.

'Didn't get signed on no ship yet?' chided the other. 'Your spinal rocket'll rust up. Come on, give us a number." 

The Mouse stopped running his finger around the rim of his glass. Wanting to say "no" he began a "yes." Then he frowned."

- Samuel R. Delany, Nova

Delany's work has always impressed me, but i've only really known his famous works: DalghrenTrouble on Triton, the always stunning "Aye, and Gomorrah" from Dangerous Visions. Nova is one of his earlier novels, appealing to me for having more plot than the sprawling Dalghren and for his elements of Tarot, Moby Dick, and classical mythology. Overall, it's a vibrant book - filled with color and invention with very little of the obsolescence that 50 years of scientific progress can often bring to older speculative fiction. Like many of his books I felt like I didn't catch all of the thematic references, but then again I didn't feel like I needed to because there were so many fascinating aspects to the story. My favorite parts were the univeral acceptance of the Tarot, the power structure of the galactic governments and how Von Ray - the Ahab-like obsessed captain - wanted revolution, and the different species and how they spoke and related to each other. An excellent example of New Wave scifi.

 Good summary of the book here.

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