Let's start with fiction...
"Cryoburn" by Lois McMaster Bujold is like going home. I wish she'd write more Miles adventures, they remind me of my mom (who was an avid reader of Ms. Bujold's) and the family of readers she fostered who all clamor to this day to read the next one. If you haven't read any of her work just go buy any of them. This one is classic and caps the series to some extent. I won't review it any more than just say, buy it.
"The Passage" by Justin Cronin was a post-apocalyptic exploration of government research and vampires gone wrong and the thousand years it took to restore humanity. Worth reading if you're into that sort of thing.
"The Kingdom of Ohio" by Mathew Flaming is an alternate history of New York's and the country's gilded age. it's a fun novel about time jumping maidens and battling inventors and of course love.
"The Oracle of Stambul" by Michael David Lukas explored the town of Sophia and the city of Istanbul and what it would be like to be an oracle in the time of emperors. A nice alternate history lesson that fits well with the Kingdom of Ohio in some ways.
"Solo" by Rana Dasgupta was also partially set in Sophia and follows an old man's recollections of his life and memories and dreams. Poetic and sad and meditative and experimental. Rumination on different forms of government and what they meant to someone caught up in the moment and forced to live through it all. I will buy the next book by this author, I think he will be one to watch.
"Deep State" by Walter Jon Williams is spooky. I reviewed his previous book, "This is Not a Game" and this one takes up where that one left off. It would be curious to find out when he actually wrote this book because it basically outlines one way that the revolutions in the Middle East may have started in vivid detail. Not deep but prescient.
"Devil May Care" by Sebastian Faulks was not even cotton candy. Predictable and a bit of a chore. Read something from the "Atrocity Archives" instead if you need a Bond fix.
Like, "The Fuller Memorandum" by Charles Stross. Although always a favorite writer and if you haven't read any of his books this is as good as any to start, he seems to have worked out all his "IT guy who helps stave off cross-dimensional nazi-demons while looking for a good wi-fi signal" demons and hopefully is moving on to another universe.
While I'm on the subject of things that go bump in the night I might as well review "Kraken" by China Mieville. A classic tale of the secret underlying structure of London and the Universe at large as seen through the eyes of a giant squid god. He's got a new book coming soon so catch up!
"Surface Details" by Ian M. Banks is another walk down memory lane. I've been a longtime fan of Mr. Banks and his "Culture" universe. It follows the resurrected life of a sex slave killed before her time as she seeks revenge and the question of whether virtual hells should exist or not. If you need to get up to speed on the culture, read "Consider Phlebas."
Non-Fiction?
"Reality is Broken" but luckily Jane McGonigal has some ideas about how to fix it. I encourage you to read this book. It feels important to me though you'll have to work through a bit of repetitiveness in places. It resonates well with my belief that gaming is an emergent and pervasive property of the trillion node network (aka the age of ubiquitous computing).
Insights from the book?
At their most basic ALL games have a few key characteristics:
1. Goals (because we like to reach them)
2. Rules (think of these as Unnecessary Obstacles). Golf wouldn’t be so fun if the goal of getting a little white ball into a little hole was as simple as walking over and dropping it in the hole.
4. Feedback Loops, so you know if you’re reaching your goals (which is the obvious connection to a world where everything is connected, at least if it’s connected in the right way)
5. Voluntary Participation (because otherwise it feels like work… or survival)
"Moonwalking with Einstein" by Joshua Foer is a nice counterpoint to "The Information" in that it explores in a light-weight-hearted and playful way the history of memory and how humans handle information. My favorite line is where he notes that inventory and invention have the same root. His point is that it would be hard to invent if you didn't have raw materials in your inventory to recombine in new ways. Other great stat? He recounts a study where participants were asked to view 2500 images (pile of five dollar bills, red boxcar, etc.) and then had them later choose between those images and ones that were almost the same (pile of one dollar bills versus five dollar bills, blue boxcar versus red boxcar, etc.) and the participants were able to successfully pick out the ones they had seen before 90% of the time. Funes lives.
