Benevolent Misanthropy

Will points us to Teh Grauniad’s list of Top 20 Geek Novels of the last century, and there is, as Will finds, much to nitpick¹. Thus:

1. The HitchHiker’s Guide to the Galaxy — Douglas Adams 85% (102)

Will says it’s overrated. But as an influence over geek culture, it’s tough to overrate Adams, between Hithhiker’s and his work on Doctor Who.

2. Nineteen Eighty-Four — George Orwell 79% (92)

Massively influential over Anglosphere culture as a whole, and world culture to a lesser extent, it’s tough to see this as a geek-centric novel… unless you take into account Orwell’s linguistic geekiness in inventing doublespeak, doublethink, triplethink, and following their logical consequences so ruthlessly.

3. Brave New World – Aldous Huxley 69% (77)

I’m with Will — can’t stand this one. Other than writing SF before SF got stigmatized as “geeky”, I can’t imagine why it’s here, unlike 1984.

4. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? – Philip Dick 64% (67)

I used to worship Dick, now I grow impatient with him in a matter of a few pages. This book, however, belongs on this list for several reasons, the most obvious of which is that it is the inspiration for Blade Runner, which influenced cyberpunk as much as any novel.

5. Neuromancer – William Gibson 59% (66)

Can’t stand Gibson. Can’t stand this book. If one must include Gibson on this list (as, I suppose, one must), at least make it Mona Lisa Overdrive, where his geeky obsessions run riot and take everything off the rails early on. That would acknowledge the dire consequences of geekly obsession.

6. Dune – Frank Herbert 53% (54)

Boy. Loved the book when I first read it. Liked it somewhat when I reread it. CAN NOT STAND its cult following. But, in its world-building audacity, if nothing else, this belongs here.

7. I, Robot – Isaac Asimov 52% (54)

Inarguable, but. I would force the inclusion of Poul Anderson’s brilliant deconstruction of the story “Reason”, “The Critique of Impure Reason”, as an appendix of the Geek Edition.

8. Foundation – Isaac Asimov 47% (47)

In fact, I think this is also inarguable. This is one of the three series of stories that gave American SF scope, sweep, and heft. (The others being E.E. Smith’s Lensman books and Robert A. Heinlein’s “Future History” stories.)

9. The Colour of Magic – Terry Pratchett 46% (46)

Read what Will said. That is all.

10. Microserfs – Douglas Coupland 43% (44)

I’ve been running a blog for nigh on three years, and I’ve never mentioned Coupland before. Weird. I used to worship the guy. Generation X was a funny book, a strange combination of shallow and insightful. Shampoo Planet knocked my socks off because I more or less ignored the irony and wallowed in the positive sense of life. I soured on him quite a bit after Life After God, though, and haven’t really gone back. Still, a Coupland book belongs here, and this particular one fits as well as any other.

11. Snow Crash – Neal Stephenson 37% (37)

No. The first chapter, yes. The rest of it, no.

12. Watchmen – Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons 38% (37)

Superficially, this deconstruction of superhero comics seems rather anti-geek. But on second reading, or careful first reading, you will begin to see just how demoniacally geeky Alan Moore was in composing this monster. The plot construction is, possibly, entirely symmetrical. Not one single detail is incidental, but factors into the story at some point, in some way, and usually not in a predictible one. The end-of-chapter extras alone qualify this one for geekdom. Moore spent a lot of effort making his world real.

13. Cryptonomicon – Neal Stephenson 36% (36)

Not read it.

14. Consider Phlebas — Iain M Banks 34% (35)

Hated it when I read it, but Will’s right, Banks should be here. I would nominate Use of Weapons for this spot instead, though Phlebas has its moments.

15. Stranger in a Strange Land — Robert Heinlein 33% (33)

Not “Waldo”? Not The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress? mutter mutter grumble grumble…

16. The Man in the High Castle — Philip K Dick 34% (32)

There’s nothing geeky in this book, and including Dick twice is asinine. Still, either Ubik or A Scanner Darkly would be a better choice.

17. American Gods — Neil Gaiman 31% (29)

No argument. The god Media alone merits this book’s inclusion.

18. The Diamond Age — Neal Stephenson 27% (27)

Haven’t read it, but heard excellent things. Still, three books on the list?

19. The Illuminatus! Trilogy – Robert Shea & Robert Anton Wilson 23% (21)

No argument. Still waiting to be rescued by that yellow submarine myself. Hagbard Celine, where are you?

20. Trouble with Lichen - John Wyndham 21% (19)

Huh? Not The Midwich Cuckoos? Not Day of the Triffids? Ah, well.

As to what is not included…

No Tolkien?

No manga? Akira could be here, easily.

“No John Brunner” doesn’t rub me wrong quite as strongly as it does Will, but Brunner’s influence is inarguable.

No Vernor Vinge? The guy invented cyberpunk!

No steampunk? C’mon, give me at least one novel/story that makes use of Charles Babbage’s Difference Engine! I nominate either Michael F. Flynn’s In the Country of the Blind or Charles Sheffield’s “Georgia on My Mind” (the latter is especially geeky).

No Alfred Bester?!?

In short, a rather deficient list, in this geek’s opinion.

1. Notice that this was done by online survey, so there was probably no selection criteria at all. [back]