by Millennium Paperbacks. What I found was a book with an amazing scope (literally the entire lifespan of the universe, and more), and an astounding creativity. by Nimble Minx Press. 'What it all means' is a central theme of the novel, and perhaps its reason for being. Stapeldon was truly a pioneer of SF for bringing us truly big ideas. Here’s the full story… Writing and storytelling is a passion of mine, one that I’ve enjoyed since childhood with music being a twin passion. We use cookies to give you the best possible experience. She was also Hollywood's premier political matchmaker, kingmaker, and MGM movie star maker. He wasn't, but his ideas are worth engaging anyway. Stapledon imagined the Star Maker being indifferent to his creations, using evolution as its artist’s brush to paint an endless infinity of cosmoses. Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. We use cookies to give you the best possible experience. Jeff VanderMeer's Climate Fiction Reading List. This novel is pure speculation in the grandest sense. In Star Maker, author Stapledon goes big, unlike his previous book, Last and First Men, which only covered the two-billion-year history of the human race.. Star Maker covers the entirety of the history of life in the universe, including watery nautiloids, hyperspiders, and intelligent star clusters. We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of, Published I found Last and First Men to be a much tougher read than this and others I've recommended these books to have found the same. ... Goodreads is the world's largest site for readers with over 50 million reviews. Written in the late 1930's, Stapledon was perhaps a bit ahead of his time, or at least, it seems at least as relevant today as it must have been back then. “A buried treasure of 20th century literature reemerges in this splendid and practical edition. This novel is pure speculation in the grandest sense. ― Olaf Stapledon, quote from Star Maker. The forward to this book promises "more than science fiction" but, alas, the book delivers something rather less. A consciousness, very like an astral projection of a human, explores outer space. Being that I was raised in the greater Los Angeles area, I had constant access to the entertainment industry. As with “Last and First Men”, “Star Maker” is not a conventional novel, so if that is what you are looking for, you should look elsewhere. It was Stapledon’s fourth novel and was first published in 1937. This novel has many great and fascinating ideas in it about the nature of life, the universe, and everything. July 11th 2014 When it was over, the host of the planetary systems still lived on, with here and there a casualty, and here and there among the stars a new planetary birth, and here and there a fresh disaster.”. Some narrative momentum and personal attachment is sacrificed to the remarkable breadth, but this is necessary, and he gets around the problem admirably. Real-time Auto-Tune™ to help you hit all the notes and to give you that pop-star sound! Sing hits by artists like Sam … Olaf Stapledon’s Star Maker (1937). Star Maker is a classic -- I first read it only 3 or 4 years ago and was awestruck by it. It is a philosophical journey rather than a conventional story with a traditional plot and characters. That said they're both, I found Last and First Men to be a much tougher read than this and others I've recommended these books to have found the same. Stapledon doesn't discriminate between humans shaped like. The main story kicks off on "Other Earth", with what seems a thinly-veiled polemic against capitalist materialism. The book describes a history of life in the universe, dwarfing in scale Stapledon's previous book, Last and First Men (1930), a history of the human species over two billion years. This book nearly blew my head off so I can only imagine what readers felt when they first encountered it in 1937. Star Maker the novel imagines just what some of those creations would be like. As a 'science fiction' novel this is definitely in my top ten although it is important to remember that Stapledon was not aware that he was writing anything resembling a work in this genre and indeed had never heard of the genre at all. It stands on its own as a gorgeous and inventive investigation of humanity, but I also can't help but see this as an allegory of pre- and inter-war year tensions, with alien depictions reflecting early 20th assertions of national identity, as if Stapledon is trying to pinpoint the common bit of humanity left in the ruthless world powers of the 1930s. We die praising the Star Maker, the Star Destroyer.”. I feel you won't at all be disappointed that it feels dated. The Tao Is Silent (Smulyan) 62. 2,721 100 Load More Book Lists. We use cookies to give you the best possible experience. Even if you torment and waste all your lovely worlds, the little figments of your imagination, yet I must praise you. And this book reads like a realistic memoir of the period. In me it would be wrong, but in you it … Star Maker is a classic -- I first read it only 3 or 4 years ago and was awestruck by it. She Damn Near Ran the Studio, a new book by Jacqueline R. Braitman, is the untold story of Ida Koverman, the most powerful women of Hollywood's Golden Years. The foreword waxes on about how mindbrowing and transcending it is, calling it undefinable and not really a scifi novel. There is no real character/narrator, just a frame story about "mental interstellar travel" that allows the text to move around from planet to planet. The journey ultimately takes the narrator through the entire galaxy and across eons of time from the birth of the universe to the final … But in so many ways, it is a tale of the human desire for excellence. Our young heroine, Kit McKenna, moved out to LA like so many others in search of fame and fortune. Stapledon envisions life on other … Far, far too many ideas. 61. Publisher: Wesleyan University Press, 2004. 3 reviews. Refresh and try again. In turn, this created the experience of a lifetime for me that has spanned decades. Unfortunately, he presents it all in a style so determinedly dry that it's hard to stay awake for the marvels. Just wow. Even if you torture my dearest. Once intelligent life is encountered, it observes, then incorporates knowledge from that race and moves on to the next. Sorry Olaf. Bestselling author Jeff VanderMeer is perhaps best known for his creepy sci-fi thriller Annihilation, which was made into a movie and kicked... To see what your friends thought of this book. And with music being one of my loves, I found that I easily aligned with fellow musicians. This is not an easy read, but incredibly important one. I wish (oh how I wished while I was reading this) that Stapledon had been a lighter writer. The 1980s in LA is a time and place I remember too well. I would advise starting with Last and First Men but if you struggle with it don't be put off reading Star Maker. I really wanted to like this book, especially given its glowing reviews and being hailed as early sci-fi with lots of great ideas, etc., etc. The next, he is whirling through the firmament, and perhaps the most remarkable of all science fiction journeys has begun. Last and First Men: A Story of the Near and Far Future is a "future history" science fiction novel written in 1930 by the British author Olaf Stapledon.A work of unprecedented scale in the genre, it describes the history of humanity from the present onwards across two billion years and eighteen distinct human species, of which our own is the first.. On the contrary I have been impressed by Stapledon's prescience in a number of places in his oeuvre. All in all, it was an incredibly entertaining book. This is a 'what if' story in the best way. Also, the author isn't very science literate. There is no real character/narrator, just a frame story about "mental interstellar travel" that allows the text to move around from planet to planet. The author takes us on a journey of ideas and concepts and in process completely alters our sense of scale, both spacial and temporal. I got this from a list of books on io9 that were "books everyone talks about and no one reads." It's a shame, because if you can keep your mind focused, there's a lot here to like. But in her case, she was not just another starry-eyed wannabe. 2014 Contemporary Romance/Romantic Suspense (July - December), Musically Inclined Heroes/Heroines In Romance, Lauren Hough on Leaving Cults, the Military, and Bad Jobs. Also, there isn't much plot, in any traditional sense, which is probably why no one ever reads this book. There's a theory that, no matter what the author appears to be writing about, really he's writing about himself. The problem is that while Gulliver’s Travels and Brave New World are both very good books, both are very well written and keep the reader’s attention, Star Maker is tedious, dull and plodding: at least that’s how i found it to be. It started to remind me of my own age! Great prose style, and especially remarkable for the fact it was written just as WWII was a gathering storm. I did, however, discover the best way to get acquainted with the innovative ideas buried in the book -- have your fellow book club members, who actually did finish the book, recap the cool bits and save you the reading time. Ecstatic? Ironically, C.S. Star Maker (Early Classics Of Science Fiction) Stapledon, Olaf. This is a SF novel from 1937, it shows a way the genre could have gone. But in her case, she was not just another starry-eyed wannabe. And this book reads like a realistic memoir of the period. Peering, the mind could see nothing sure, nothing in all human experience to be grasped as certain, except uncertainty itself; nothing but obscurity gendered by a thick haze of theories. This led to a variety of opportunities working in the ente. Being that I was raised in the greater Los Angeles area, I had constant access to the entertainment industry. As I recall, this conception was profoundly upsetting to some, especially those whose philosophy was basically Christian, such as CS Lewis, who responded with competing ideas in some of his own books. Refresh and try again. Star Maker: The grandest vision of the universe, Stapledon manages to make it into the classical science fiction canon while dispensing with the traditional methods and inventing his own brand of speculative storytelling. Another for the re-read shelf! StarMaker Features: Backing tracks & scrolling lyrics by chart-topping artists. Finally, Stapledon describes his experience witnessing the Starmaker, his term for a god-like creator, progressing through successive attempts at universe building as well as creating both good and evil. “Star Maker”, by Olaf Stapledon, is an incredible novel by an author whose contributions to science fiction are unique and serve as inspiration to many of the greatest works in the field. AbeBooks.com: Star Maker (SF Masterworks) (Millennium SF Masterworks S) (9781857988079) by Stapledon, Olaf; Stapledon, William Olaf and a great selection of similar New, Used and Collectible Books available now at great prices. Following Kit’s story really helped me realizing how difficult achieving your dreams can be behind the stage instead of in front of the mike. The Star Maker by Helen E. Buckley, 9781910587393, available at Book Depository with free delivery worldwide. Lewis thought Stapledon's answer was "devil worship", so perhaps he hit an unhappy medium after all. I always envisioned them as the big overlords who decided whether or not you could reach fame. I really enjoyed this book - maybe a little too much. And with music being one of my loves, I found that I easily aligned with fellow musicians. Star Maker tackles philosophical themes such as the essence of life, of birth, decay and death, and the relationship b. Star Maker by Olaf Stapledon, 9781857988079, available at Book Depository with free delivery worldwide. I find this theory quite appealing, and, even though I don't believe it 100%, I think it's often a good way to try and understand why you like a book. Enthralled? The story details the mental journey of an unnamed narrator who is transported not only to other worlds but also other galaxies and parallel universes, until … By using our website you agree to our use ... Goodreads is the world's largest site for readers with over 50 million reviews. As a work of the imagination, I have never read anything that surpasses this. Narrated by the same voice as narrated “Last and First Men” the novel is a sequel of sorts, but at the same time it has a much larger scope and thus there is no noticeable overlap between the two novels. In Stapleton's convulsively expanding reference frame humans are almost immediately inconsequential, and shortly thereafter almost any reference to specific planet or even solar system. the problem with that scenario would be the sneakiest suspicion that 15 years would take me way past any interest I would have in completing a novel i find totally porridge-like in its stodginess. Spellbound? There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Maybe its just my mood. The silent darkness, the featureless unknown, were more dread than all the terrors that imagination had mustered. Man's science was a mere mist of numbers; his philosophy but a fog of words. "Star Maker", by Olaf Stapledon, is an incredible novel by an author whose contributions to science fiction are unique and serve as inspiration to many of the greatest works in the field. It was interesting to watch Kit try to make it with Gypsy Tango despite working in a macho and chauvinistic environment. Pick from hundreds of Billboard chart-topping hits, sing your heart out karaoke style, polish it up with real Auto-Tune™ and capture the magic on video! He postulates intriguing intelligences, species, societies, cultures, lifeforms, you name it. This is possibly the dullest interesting book I've read, or vice versa. It is like a dinosaur, it is great in some aspects and modern animal can go green with envy for their advantages but ultimately it was unfit, so the evolution done its deed. Star Maker Fragments by Taylor Brook is a new release on 3 March from TAK Ensemble, a contemporary chamber music group from New York.The album is inspired by Olaf Stapledon’s far-reaching cosmic visionary novel Star Maker (1937), and responds to specific episodes in the book in seven passages and a postlude, with recitations from the text.. One of the greatest books ever written. By using our website you agree to our use of cookies. In my opinion it's one of the most important Sci-Fi books of all time. Never read anything like it. "...to discover what part life and mind were actually playing among the stars.". So I'm basically just walking around like a raw nerve and I'm not sure that I... Set in the mid-1980’s Sunset Strip rock scene, Star Maker offers an all-access pass to the rise and fall of life in the music industry through the eyes of two up and coming stars: one aspiring executive and one aspiring artist. Finn is not allowed to help. Another for the re-read shelf! Stapledon manages to make it into the classical science fiction canon while dispensing with the traditional methods and inventing his own brand of speculative storytelling. Should I read Last and First Men before this, or does it make no difference what order you read them in? Star Maker by Olaf Stapledon, unknown edition, After reading "Last and First Men", I approached Olaf's next masterpiece, "Star Maker" ( first published in 1937), with some disbelief as to how on earth he could possibly better the span, pathos and magnanimity he had already laid out. [1] [2] In 2014, he was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame . Less successful, to me, is some of the exaltation and mysticism that comes up, but this is also obvious from the start given the title of the book. Starmaker Design Concepts by Kaye Wood, 9780944588321, available at Book Depository with free delivery worldwide. Here and there a turn of phrase is quaint and not commonly in contemporary use, but it also speaks to Stapledon's beautiful and rich writing. That said they're both incredible books in scope and well worth getting through. Just enough to be dangerous. It is rather an extrospective blossoming of conglomerate consciousnesses from diverse and disparate stock, amalgamating into a semi-universal consciousness. It does contain some really cool ideas about extraterrestrial species (and some somewhat less accessible/relevant/persuasive ideas about the organization of the universe), but it reads like a textbook. Musicians, songwriters and producers, directors, actors and actresses; some famous, some not, are still some of my greatest friends and teachers. I really wanted to like this book, especially given its glowing reviews and being hailed as early sci-fi with lots of great ideas, etc., etc. A consciousness, very like an astral projection of a human, explores outer space. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. I found Stapledon's answer to have too strong a religious tinge for my taste, but it's clearly something he (and his narrator) thought long and hard about. A joyful and fun-filled celebration of creativity, imagination and daring to be different – from the bestselling author of Star in the Jar Finn's father makes and mends stars. But if you persevere, and if you manage to keep Stapledon's ideas in focus, you'll be rewarded. We’d love your help. Mixes everything from Einstein to Buddha and astrophysics to strange life forms in megagravity environments. Following Kit’s story really helped me realizing how difficult achieving your dreams can be behind the stage instead of in front of the mike. There's a mountain of fascinating material in here. “In every one of these "chrysalis" worlds thousands of millions of persons were flashing into existence, one after the other, to drift gropingly about for a few instants of cosmical time before they were extinguished. To see what your friends thought of this book, I really enjoyed this book - maybe a little too much. This is where the science fiction comes in. It was Stapledon's fourth novel and was first published in 1937. Star Maker 12. His very perception of this rocky grain and all its wonders was but a shifting and a lying apparition. “I'm in a weird place because the book is about to come out. Stapledon tosses off interesting and novel ideas every few pages, including the original Dyson sphere. Eventually, would be faced with a difficult decision about her own priorities that would affect everyone. Be the first to ask a question about Star Maker. Synopsis One moment a man sits on a suburban hill, gazing curiously at the stars. 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