Distrust that Particular Flavor
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Product Description
Product Description
Though primarily known as a novelist, over thirty years William Gibson has also built up a reputation as one of our most entertaining and insightful critics of contemporary culture. He is widely credited with having described the internet and cyberspace before any such things existed.
Distrust that Particular Flavor brings together for the first time his writings on a wide variety of contemporary subjects: the differing cultures of Japan and Singapore; music and the movies; what's wrong with the internet; the interactive relationship between writers and readers; and many others. Also included in the book is a fascinating autobiographical sketch: his upbringing in the South, the early death of his parents and his escape into books; and the move to Canada to avoid the draft.
Over the years Gibson has been eagerly commissioned by Wired, Rolling Stone, the New York Times
and other influential journals, as well as tiny publishers, online sources and magazines that no longer exist. These collected writings grant readers a privileged view into the mind of a writer whose thinking has shaped not only a generation of writers but our entire culture.
About the Author
William Gibson's first novel Neuromancer has sold more than six million copies worldwide. In an earlier story he had invented the term 'cyberspace'; a concept he developed in the novel, creating an iconography for the Information Age long before the invention of the Internet. The book won three major literary prizes. He has since written nine further novels, most recently Zero History.
William Gibson was born in South Carolina but has lived for many years in Vancouver.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
21st Century Prose Haiku from William Gibson,
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This review is from: Distrust That Particular Flavor (Hardcover)
William Gibson has said more than once that science fiction possesses a unique toolkit for dealing with our science fictional present. He said that again when I asked why mainstream writers are turning increasingly to science fiction during a question and answer session held during his New York City literary event for this very book. He could have offered similar advice to journalists with respect to their narrative nonfiction and journalistic reporting; "Distrust That Particular Flavor" makes a most powerful case for that, in vivid, often concise, prose that will remind his most ardent fans of his early "Sprawl" stories and others collected in "Burning Chrome" and the novels "Neuromancer" and "Count Zero", and one that also evokes "Idoru", and other, later novels like "Zero History", in its relentless attention to detail. Any new book written by William Gibson should give readers ample cause for celebration, but this, his first foray into nonfiction, is not only a most distinguished collection of essays, but one that will be admired for years.There is undoubtedly a strong cyberpunk-like beat in much of Gibson's narrative nonfiction. His poignant remembrance of his favorite SoHo (New York, NY) antiques store written within days of the 9/11 terrorist attacks ("Mr. Buk's Window") could have easily been part of one of his early "Sprawl" stories (Not surprisingly, he admits in a concise afterword that that antiques store would inspire him to finish writing the novel he had just started; "Pattern Recognition".). He has written a most concise tribute to "Steely Dan" ("Any `Mount of World") that not only pays tribute to the songwriting duo of Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, but does so in such a way that anyone reading it will think that it is really a free verse poem instead of a most insightful piece of criticism. He finally explains his interest in Japanese culture in several compelling essays that explain why he thinks Japan represents our future. When he writes about his visits to Japan and Singapore, he does so in narratives that are so eerily reminiscent of his densely layered prose in novels like "Neuromancer", "Idoru", and even his most recent ones like "Pattern Recognition", and especially, "Zero History". Readers will be pleasantly surprised reading how he finally succumbed to the ample charms and distractions of the Web via eBay in his essay "The Net is a Waste of Time". And of course, he also discusses his longstanding admiration for writers as diverse as H. G. Wells, George Orwell, J. G. Ballard and Samuel Delany. In short, Gibson has given readers a concise introduction into his thought and an introductory trek that is one well worth taking.
2.0 out of 5 stars
Thin in both senses of the word.,
By
This review is from: Distrust That Particular Flavor (Hardcover)
The blank pages separating each article in this book are coloured blue, and as most of the articles herein are only a page or two long, about half of the book seems to consist of blank blue pages. Add to this the enormous font, double spacing and acres of white space, and one surmises that the publishers have managed to pad out a couple of dozen short pieces into a 17 quid hardback.Additionally, most of the stuff here dates back to the early days of the internet, when Gibson was the go-to guy for cyberspace. Hence a lot of it now seems quaintly old fashioned and a bit pointless to read 20 years on. - One article, for instance, is about how Gibson doubts Ebay being able to work practically. Really, most of this is stuff most authors would have stuck up on websites for free at this point in their career. I started reading the book at 7 yesterday evening, had finished it well before 9PM, and felt royally ripped off. Not recommended.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Thoughtful and joyful - William Gibson at his best,
By
This review is from: Distrust that Particular Flavor (Paperback)
I have been a fan of William Gibson for a long time. I guess it's fair to say he converted me from not liking science fiction all too much, to at least appreciate the better writers in the genre. "Distrust that Particular Flavor" is a series of short stories, or sometimes "just" a preface to a book written by a colleague, or a relatively short article on a given topic. Some I've read before, but most of them were new to me. All delightful in their own way. If you for some reason have run out of books to read, or have a period when no book that you pick up seem to really grab you - try this one! Short stories that often make you smile (he has a dry, wry kind of humour Mr Gibson), references to musicians and artists that you would like to know more about. A delight, a joy to read!
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